HARTFORD, Conn. (PIX11) — A day after Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont delivered his State of the State Address, unveiling a revised state budget, the governor spoke with the PIX11 Morning News about the so-called “comeback” budget.
The new budget includes tax cuts and more funding for mental health services. Lamont said the sate was in better fiscal shape than three years ago when he first took office.
“We’ve got to build off of our strength. We’ve got some of the lowest COVID infection rates in the country, our economy is open, we are in strong financial shape,” Lamont said.
The governor said his top priority currently is addressing mental health in the state, followed by getting more people to work. The governor said Connecticut has tens of thousands of jobs that need to be filled.
The governor, who is seeking reelection, gave a rosy assessment of the state, which he said has earned the right to no longer have a statewide mask mandate in schools.
“We have very little community spread…I think we found a year ago, we know how to keep our schools open safely. I think now we’ve reached the point where our teachers and students know how to get back to school safely, and it’s up to them whether they want to wear a mask,” Lamond said, referring to individual local school districts.
The governor also spoke on his proposed $60 million plan to track illegal guns up the “iron pipeline” as the tri-state continues to be plagued by gun violence.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
