These news briefs were originally written for CT Politics, The Connecticut Mirror’s weekly newsletter providing updates on the 2025 legislative session. To sign up for CT Politics, click here.

A new hospital payment model

Legislators heard testimony last week regarding a bill that would allow interested hospitals to shift from using a fee-for-service payment model, which reimburses hospitals according to specific services they perform, to a “global budgeting payment model,” which provides hospitals with a pre-determined, fixed annual budget. Participation by hospitals would be on a volunteer basis, state officials confirmed. The program, called “All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development,” or AHEAD, is a partnership with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. Department of Social Services Commissioner Andrea Barton Reeves said participation in the program would further the state’s goals to improve outcomes and contain cost growth. Barton Reeves explained that the current fee-for-service model “gives hospitals a financial incentive to provide more services,” while the global budgeting payment model rewards hospitals for providing cost-effective, holistic care.

The Connecticut Hospital Association testified that while they agree with the intent to advance health equity and affordability, they believe there are “serious flaws” in the design. Disability rights advocates testified against the bill, citing potential adverse effects, including hospitals denying necessary care that’s costly to provide.

— Katy Golvala, Health Reporter

Undoing fleet mandate?

House Republicans have filed legislation that would repeal a 2022 law setting benchmarks for state government to transition its vehicle fleet to electric engines.

The legislation, House Bill 5373, was filed in January before The Connecticut Mirror reported that Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration is well behind the initial goal of switching over half of the fleet’s eligible cars and light-duty trucks to EVs no later than Jan. 1, 2026.

According to the Department of Administrative Services, that would require having about 1,200 EVs by the end of this year. The state currently has 43.

“It opens the state of Connecticut up to lawsuits,” said House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford. “If we’re not following our laws, then someone can sue us under those laws.”

The law that set the state’s benchmarks for switching the fleet over to EVs established only one penalty for not doing so: the DAS has to submit a report to lawmakers explaining why it failed to reach its goals and proposing a new timeline for doing so.

The Republicans’ bill was referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation, where it has yet to be raised for a public hearing.

— John Moritz, Environment and Energy Reporter

Housing omnibus

The Housing Committee on Thursday put what are expected to be two signature housing bills on the public hearing agenda, although the bills have scant information.

House Bill 5002 and Senate Bill 12 are sponsored by Democratic leadership, and many senators have signed onto the senate bill. The bills are expected to contain wide-ranging ideas on alleviating Connecticut’s lack of housing supply.

But, for now, they each contain fewer than 20 lines and focus on general support for more housing. The senate bill aims to “promote fair and equitable housing opportunities in every community in the state,” while the house bill would “lower housing costs, increase housing options and better support homeless persons.”

Typically bills like this get filled in during the legislative process with ideas from other bills. Democrats say each idea will have a public hearing, although it’s not immediately clear which ideas will move forward.

— Ginny Monk, Housing and Children’s Issues Reporter

CSCU misspending

Following a Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee & Government Oversight Committee joint informational forum Tuesday where lawmakers discussed misspending by Connecticut State Colleges and Universities leadership, higher ed lawmakers opened a public hearing for a handful of bills.

One of the bills built on the earlier informational forum and ongoing calls for higher education accountability and transparency. It proposed requirements for the CSCU Board of Regents to establish an internal audit office and for both CSCU and the University of Connecticut to establish clear “policies concerning the use of a purchase card and a state vehicle,” according to language in the bill.

“While faculty and staff fight for resources to support our marginalized students, top administrators have operated without sufficient oversight or meaningful consequences for their fiscal mismanagement,” said Seth Freeman, the president of the 4Cs union, which represents staff across Connecticut’s community colleges. “Establishing clear policies on executive spending and perks is not only common sense but an ethical obligation to the students and workers who make our institutions run.”

Other proposed legislation also targeted making the workforce more accessible and different ways to incentivize people to enter into certain fields. Bills that would offer a student loan reimbursement program for nurses, would prioritize recruiting more women into manufacturing workforce training programs and would expand a loan subsidy program for more school staff members who work in Alliance Districts received support in public testimony.

— Jessika Harkay, Education Reporter

Municipal .gov website mandate?

The Planning and Development Committee held a meeting Friday raising several bills relating to state planning. This included Senate bill No. 1189 which would require every municipality in the state to maintain a .gov website.

The proposed bill was praised by Sen. Jeff Gordon, R-Woodstock, who felt that the move was necessary and timely. However, there was pushback from committee member Rep. Irene Haines, R-East Haddam. Haines voted against the bill on funding grounds. She said, “It would be difficult and expensive for towns to switch.”

— James Watson, Legislative Reporting Intern

Homelessness funding

Homeless shelter workers on Thursday told state lawmakers about days spent working long hours, countless calls to try to find people a place to live and their dedication to helping the unhoused population.

Despite these efforts, they said, at the end of the day they simply don’t have enough resources to go around.

Service providers and advocates spoke to members of the Housing Committee about the struggles the homelessness response system has faced over the past few years as the homeless population has risen. They’ve asked for $33.5 million more in the state budget, although the governor’s recently released budget proposal falls far short of that request.

The public hearing is the next step for providers and lawmakers in getting that funding request met. To move the measure forward, members will next need to vote House Bill 6893 out of committee.

It will then likely go before the Appropriations Committee, which will work to negotiate the next state budget.

— Ginny Monk, Housing and Children’s Issues Reporter