In This Issue:

From Paddi's Desk

On The Marble

Municipal Roundup

Federal Focus

CT Agency Corner

This Day in CT History

This Week's News:

Latest Greater Hartford pickleball facility debuts

After awarding $48.4M in benefits, PURA temporarily suspended energy storage incentives program

The past week brings both sadness and comfort as we remember the life, leadership and legacy of former Governor M. Jodi Rell.

Decades ago I recall receiving a call from a friend at the Capitol, suggesting I take a ride to a small town in southern Connecticut called, Brookfield. Curious, I asked what was going on. The 

answer I received, “There’s an interesting candidate considering to run for the 107th district. We need to check her out.” 

The candidate was future Governor M. Jodi Rell. At the time, she was a mom, a community leader, and a campaign volunteer for her family friend, the retiring State Representative David Smith. 

We sat in her renovated historic kitchen, drinking ice tea and chatting about her kiddos, her Virginia roots, and life in a small town. She asked dozens of questions about Hartford, the legislature, and most importantly to her, whether the legislature would be a personal sacrifice. “Does it really matter?” She asked. “Can’t I make a bigger difference locally in Brookfield? What’s it really like to run a campaign and most of all, how does a mom juggle young kids, a long commute to Hartford and the long nights and weekends at the Capitol?”

At first she seemed curious about the toll public service might take on her family. But with the support of her husband Lou, Jodi embraced the legislative pace like a duck to water. A consensus builder, a people person and someone who cared deeply about her state and the people in the 107th district, she quickly established herself as one of the truly gifted leaders, a lover of facts and willing to do the work with anyone - regardless of party - to solve a problem or create opportunities for families and individuals to be their best. 

Corny huh? Well that was Jodi then and continued to be for the next two decades. Her approach to people first, politics last, made her a beloved State Representative, legislative colleague, Lieutenant Governor and respected Governor. She still was mom and community leader but now a force to be reckoned with for years to come.

While there are plenty of stories I could tell - but I won’t, she became a dear friend over those 30 years who spoke the truth, was direct and fair and expected others to do the same. You could not help but both like and respect her. She wasn’t flashy, her leadership was grounded, thoughtful and above all compassionate. True to herself, true to her district and always true to her family and dozens of friends. She was the real deal. 

It might seem cliche but as Princess Diana was the People’s Princess, Governor Rell, known in some circles as “ Snow White”, was the People’s Governor. 

Her legacy continues through the Governor M. Jodi Rell Center for Public Service at the University of Hartford which promotes civility, respect and common sense leadership - values she championed through her entire career. 

The state is a better place because of her, and she will be missed more than you can imagine. On to your next adventure, united with your beloved Lou - we bid you farewell. Rest in peace, my dear friend.

We often hear our clients’ plans for traveling to see family and friends this holiday week, and I thought it would be a nice change to reflect on Connecticut’s staples for Thanksgiving. If you find yourself staying or passing through the Nutmeg State, here are some things to know about our long standing traditions held on Thursday: 

Manchester Road Race

Many communities famously hold “turkey trots,” but in Manchester you can expect to see some tremendous competition. The race, which is 4.7 miles, starts at 10 am and has been the state’s longest running turkey day tradition since 1927. Accomplished runners from all over the country compete for bragging rights and the event raises money for muscular dystrophy and roughly 18 other local charities.

The Rival Games

Another fun tradition are the high school football games. Local teams play their natural rivals on Thanksgiving Day which tends to be high schools within the same community or private schools that are located close to one another.

All of the Pies 

OK - This one probably isn’t special to Connecticut, but the state takes its pie game seriously. Whether it’s the award-winning apple pie from Lyman Orchards in Middlefield or pumpkin pie from Bishop’s in Guilford, it’s a day you take dessert seriously.

An S&L Wednesday Tradition 

Folks at our office get tired of eating bird leftovers for consecutive days so our office started the tradition to host a luncheon today where staff pick their favorite Italian grinder (not hoagie or sub) and spend time talking about their long weekend. Normally, this day would be mixed with some UConn basketball, but the huskies suffered a devastating loss last Monday!

From our office to yours, please enjoy a safe and happy Thanksgiving. 

Connecticut's upcoming legislative session is poised for a heated debate over K-12 education funding, as advocates and local officials call for significant increases to address persistent inequities in the state's school system. At a recent press conference held at New Haven's Hillhouse High School, speakers, including Mayor Justin Elicker, emphasized the need for substantial state investment to support teachers, special education programs, and student services, particularly in underfunded districts. Elicker criticized the current reliance on property taxes for school funding, describing it as a "racist and classist system" that perpetuates disparities. The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities recently released a report advocating for an additional $500 million in education cost sharing funds, highlighting that current funding levels fail to address the challenges faced by high-need districts like New Haven.

While the coalition pushing for increased funding has garnered bipartisan support, including Stratford Mayor Laura Hoydick, Governor Ned Lamont remains cautious. Lamont has defended Connecticut's fiscal guardrails, mechanisms that limit state spending, and expressed skepticism about whether additional funding alone can solve educational issues. Critics, however, point to data showing that state education funding has declined when adjusted for inflation, leaving Connecticut among the bottom quartile nationally in state contributions to school budgets. Advocates argue that bold investments are necessary to address systemic inequities and support disconnected youth, with the School and State Finance Project urging lawmakers to prioritize equitable education funding in the upcoming session.

In some municipal waste developments, the MIRA Dissolution Authority has sold two properties in Hartford—171 and 211 Murphy Road—for $12 million, exceeding the listing price by $2.1 million, as part of its asset liquidation process. The buyer, Murphy Road Holdings Inc., owned by Enfield-based USA Waste and Recycling, continues its expansion under executive Frank M. Antonacci, who also purchased a Watertown property from MIRA earlier this year. The 211 Murphy Road site includes a 92,616-square-foot dual-stream recycling facility, formerly home to The Trash Museum, while 171 Murphy Road features a 19,200-square-foot industrial building. Of the four properties listed for sale in June, only one remains—a site in Ellington awaiting subdivision. MIRA closed its Hartford trash plant in 2022 due to lack of redevelopment financing, leaving the future of the surrounding 80-acre property uncertain.

Connecticut’s Congressional Delegation will have a very interesting role in the upcoming U.S. Congress. Last week, we discussed the importance our U.S. Senators will have on the Cabinet Secretary Nomination process as we get closer to the end of the year and the start of Congressional hearings next year for President-Elect Trump’s nominees. This week, we want to talk more about how our Connecticut members of Congress in the House of Representatives will interact with various agencies if their Secretaries are confirmed, based on specific issue areas. For Representatives John Larson (CD1), Joe Courtney (CD2), Rosa DeLauro (CD3), Jim Himes (CD4), and Jahana Hayes (CD5), the new Congress beginning next year will signal a new way of life for the next two years.

Connecticut is lucky to have a strong delegation in our five congressional districts. Each member has their own issue area of deep focus. Naturally, they handle a lot of different committees and expertise, but some of their committee work overshadows the other committees they may sit on. Let’s take a look at each and how they might work with a new Trump Administration.

Representative John Larson has always been a champion on social security and Medicaid. With President-Elect Trump nominating Russell Vought to lead the White House Budget Office, you can bet there will be some concern from Hartford’s Congressman on the future of those programs. Representative Joe Courtney has a significant voice in defense funding specific to submarines. He will have to work directly with the incoming Defense Secretary for the Trump Administration on funding and maybe more importantly, on the deal commonly referred to as, AUKUS. Representative Rosa DeLauro has been a key member of the Appropriations Committee – recently holding the gavel there. As the new administration continues to talk about slashing agency budgets, DeLauro will have a significant role in those discussions. Moving towards Fairfield County, Representative Jim Himes has found himself as a key member of the Intelligence Community. The leads of the CIA, DNI, and other intelligence organizations will be key players in his work in the incoming Congress. In the 5^th Congressional district, Congresswoman Jahana Hayes has been a strong voice on the k-12 education side. So let’s assume Linda McMahon is confirmed for Secretary of Education next Congress. If that is the case, the Congresswoman from CD5 will be monitoring and weighing in on Trump’s education policy from a fellow nutmegger. All of this is to say that 2025 will bring us a new administration full of new Cabinet Secretaries and it will bring Connecticut’s members of Congress a new challenge. 

This week, PURA announced that the agency is temporarily suspending the Energy Storage Solutions (ESS) program, one of two state incentives to promote the development of energy storage facilities. The ESS program is geared toward small-scale commercial and residential projects, and has awarded $48.4 million in incentives to over 70 different battery energy storage projects. The program is a victim of its own success, as program administrators have approved projects exceeding the 100 megawatt cap. The program is expected to resume in December, but with a reduced upfront incentive.



Connecticut has a goal of developing 1 gigawatt of energy storage by the end of 2030. Incentive-based programs for developers, contractors, and owners of battery storage systems will remain critical for helping the Lamont administration meet ambitious clean energy goals for Connecticut.

November 27: Connecticut Adds "or sex" to the State Constitution

Today in 1974, frustrated at the slow pace with which other states were acting to amend the federal constitution, Connecticut amended its own state constitution, inserting the words “or sex” into a key provision of that document.

Two years earlier, Connecticut had been one of over 30 states that voted to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.) as passed by Congress, which expressly prohibited discrimination based on a person’s sex. The federal E.R.A would have become the 27th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution upon ratification by 3/4 of the states in the Union, but it ultimately failed to gain the support it needed to reach that threshold. Two years later, local activists in Connecticut proposed a state Equal Rights Amendment that would explicitly include “sex” as a protected class under the Connecticut State Constitution. In spite of a handful of interest groups warning that the passage of a state E.R.A would place working women at risk or endanger rape or child support laws, the voters of Connecticut overwhelmingly voted in favor of the amendment on Election Day, November 5, 1974, passing the measure 77 percent to 22 percent.

1974 was a banner year for women in politics and women’s rights in Connecticut: On the same election day Ella T. Grasso was also voted into the Governor’s office as Connecticut’s first female governor and the first woman in U.S. history to be elected governor in her own right (i.e. without being preceded by her husband). Grasso won the election by a margin of over 200,000 votes.



A few weeks later, on November 27, 1974, the General Assembly formally adopted the state’s Equal Rights Amendment, adding two small — but powerful — words to the end of the Equal Protection clause found in Section I of the State Constitution. Since that date, the Equal Protection clause now reads: “No person shall be denied the equal protection of the law nor be subjected to segregation or discrimination in the exercise or enjoyment of his or her civil or political rights because of religion, race, color, ancestry, national origin or sex.” The Constitution amended, and a step forward for equal rights taken, today in Connecticut history.

To view the full story on the CT Historian's website, click here.