Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo is questioning whether Connecticut state employees should be able to continue directing charitable payroll deductions to the American Family Association of Tupelo, Miss., a Christian charity that the Southern Poverty Law Center monitors as an anti-LGBT “extremist group.”
Kevin Lembo
Kevin Lembo previously served as Connecticut comptroller from 2010 to 2021. Before his time in office, Lembo served as Connecticut’s first state healthcare advocate.
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Lembo says state finances are $42 million in deficit
State finances are $42 million in deficit this fiscal year, Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo wrote Tuesday, a modest shortfall that splits the difference between competing budget projections from Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and nonpartisan legislative analysts.
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Lembo walking a tightrope in ‘silly season’ budget feud
As legislative leaders and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy engage in a partisan battle over the health of Connecticut’s budget, Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo insists he doesn’t want to stay out of the debate — just the political posturing.
Posted inMoney
Lembo to Malloy administration: Explain conflicting budget projections
State Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo asked Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration Thursday to explain why it withheld revenue estimates from his office last month that would show a $133 million deficit in the current budget.
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Malloy administration disclosed budget deficit to agencies last month
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration last month warned dozens of state agency heads of a significant shortfall in the current budget — but continues to officially report that finances remain in balance.
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CT budget closes in deficit again; little reserves left for this year
Connecticut officially closed its second consecutive fiscal year in deficit Friday, shrinking its budget reserve to a low level as threats of another shortfall loom.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Anthem-Cigna controversy exposes gaps in ethics rules
Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade’s controversial refusal to recuse herself from ruling on the Anthem-Cigna insurance merger has provoked a reappraisal of ethics regulators, who heavily rely on the self-reporting of public officials, and an ethics code that may be clearer to lawyers than lovers of English.
Posted inMoney
Lembo sees a few ‘bright spots’ among CT’s fiscal woes
While confirming that state government’s finances have slipped yet again, Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo also said Friday that a few “bright spots” show Connecticut’s economy might not be done growing.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Comptroller says Wade should recuse herself on Cigna merger
Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo publicly urged Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade on Thursday to recuse herself from Connecticut’s review of the Anthem-Cigna merger, saying even a positive legal ruling from ethics officials would not overcome the appearance of a conflict of interest.
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Angry, yet pragmatic, CT AFL-CIO assesses role in 2016 elections
The Connecticut AFL-CIO vented Thursday at Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Democratic legislators, but the labor federation will convene again Friday, probably to endorse some of the same Democrats accused of betraying labor on the state budget. The reason is a labor report card: The best-ranked Republicans have lifetime scores of 60 percent, lower than the worst-ranked Democrat.
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A divided CT House passes retirement security legislation
The Democratic majority in the House of Representatives outlasted a Republican filibuster early Tuesday to pass legislation that would create a quasi-public authority to offer private-sector workers a retirement savings program. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was non-committal on the bill, but says he favors a key provision: a mandated payroll deduction for retirement savings.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Insurers, hospitals form new campaign to fight drug price spikes
WASHINGTON — The nation’s health insurers are getting a boost from a new coalition that has taken up one of their key causes: halting big increases in drug prices and the cost of medicine. The goal: to press drug price increases and the high cost of many new medicines as an issue in the presidential campaign.
Posted inHealth
Study: State employee wellness plan increased use of preventive care
A wellness program added to the state employee health plan as part of a controversial 2011 concession package led to significant increases in the use of preventive care and a drop in certain emergency room visits, but it’s still too soon to say if it will save the state money, according to a study published Monday in the journal Health Affairs.
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Lembo warns CT’s budget may not remain balanced for long
State Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo confirmed Friday that Connecticut’s finances are back in balance — for now. But the state’s chief fiscal watchdog reminded officials that Connecticut is due to test its revenues again shortly after the April 18 income tax filing deadline, and that the potential for more red ink remains very real.
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Lembo reports $220M deficit, confirms eroding tax receipts
State Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo certified a $220 million deficit Tuesday for the current fiscal year, a report that largely echoes last week’s warning from the legislature’s nonpartisan analysts about eroding state income tax receipts.