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Connecticut
Pandemic put tax burden on CT’s poorest, report shows
Connecticut’s already regressive tax system swung even more sharply onto the backs of its poorest residents during the coronavirus pandemic’s first year, according to a new fairness study from Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration.
The lowest-earning 10% effectively spent almost 40% of their income in 2020 to cover state or municipal tax burdens, more than five times the rate faced by Connecticut’s highest earners – and two-and-a-half times the statewide average, according to the tax incidence analysis released Thursday by the Department of Revenue Services.
The 39.9% state and municipal tax rate effectively paid by the poorest 10% also is up dramatically from the nearly 26% rate assigned to that same group by a 2022 DRS tax fairness study, which analyzed data from 2019.
Meanwhile, taxpayers in the two middle groups paid 13% and 11.5%, respectively, of their income to cover tax burdens in 2020, up from 9.2% and 8.6% in 2019.
“This latest study just confirms what people in Connecticut have been feeling in their wallets for the last several years — a dangerous combination of historic inflation, an upside-down tax system and an extreme disinvestment in critical public services and infrastructure,” said Norma Martinez-HoSang, director of Connecticut For All, a coalition of more than 80 labor, faith and civic organizations that has advocated for higher tax rates on wealthy households and corporations to finance relief for low- and middle-income families.
The study breaks Connecticut’s earners into deciles, or groups that earned 10% of all statewide income.
For example, it took the poorest 883,552 tax filers to earn about $19.3 billion, which was 10% of all statewide earnings in 2020. This the group that paid almost 40% of its income to state and municipal tax burdens.
Unlike in past reports, the administration did not include a projected income range for the households in this group. But dividing $19.3 billion by 883,552 filers yields a rough average income of slightly more than $21,843 per year.
The second decile includes the next-highest earners, another 316,630 filers, who also made $19.3 billion. Their effective tax rate was 19.8%, and their average income was $60,960.
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The highest decile, the top 10%, involves 478 filers that earned $19.3 billion. This is the group that paid 7.3%, or less than one-fifth the rate of the poorest decile, and earned an average of $40.3 million.
Roughly two-thirds of all revenues generated by state and local government combined in 2020 came from property, sales and other taxes that largely are regressive in nature, the study found.
A regressive tax does not adjust rates based on a household or business’s earnings or wealth. A progressive levy, such as the state income tax, features multiple rates that collect more as the filer’s income increases.
A second problem with regressive taxes is that responsibility for the bill can more easily be shifted, something that’s particularly burdensome for poor households, the study found.
For example, renters effectively pay some or all their landlords’ property taxes. Gasoline distributors shift wholesale fuel tax burdens onto service stations, which pass the full cost on to motorists.
As a supplement, the report also covered a second methodology that relies upon only half of the tax burden shifts that the primary section of the report assumes. But even under this scaled back version, the lowest earning 10% of filers pay an effective rate of almost 33%, while the richest 10% pay 7.3% and the statewide average is 13.4%.
Lamont, a Greenwich businessman and fiscally moderate Democrat who says higher tax rates would prompt Connecticut’s wealthy to flee the state, said through a spokeswoman that his administration has been and continues to work to make the state’s overall tax system more progressive.
“Gov. Lamont is strongly committed to making our tax structure more progressive so that all Connecticut residents have an opportunity to succeed here,” spokeswoman Julia Bergman said. “That’s why, in recent years, the governor and the legislature have cut taxes for working families, boosted the Earned Income Tax Credit and expanded exemptions on certain pension and annuity earnings to benefit seniors.”
Bergman was referencing a series of tax changes enacted last year that represented the single-largest state income tax cut in Connecticut history, a package expected to save low- and middle-income families $200 to $400 each next fiscal year, more than $415 million in total.
Lamont and legislators also enacted a broad package of tax cuts in 2022 that included temporary relief, such as a 13-month gasoline tax holiday and an income tax rebate for households with children. But it also expanded a state income tax credit that offsets a portion of municipal property tax burdens and reduced the statewide property tax cap on motor vehicles from 45 mills to 32.46 mills. (One mill generates $1 of tax revenue for every $1,000 of assessed property value.)
Because tax fairness studies routinely lag several years of tax data, the recent relief Lamont approved is not included in the latest analysis.
“There’s definitely value in looking at this [study], but also I think the next set of studies will really tell the tale in terms of the progressivity that’s been implemented by this governor,” said Department of Revenue Services Commissioner Mark Boughton.
But critics counter that Connecticut’s tax system has overburdened the poor and middle class for decades, and recent relief won’t reverse an overall trend toward worsening inequity. They say economic damage caused by the pandemic continues even now, while the 40-year high in national inflation reached in mid-2022 also set Connecticut families back.
“We expect Gov. Lamont to respond with a reminder of recent tax cuts, which will have little impact on our state’s extreme economic inequities,” Martinez-HoSang said, adding that an income tax surcharge on the capital gains earnings of Connecticut’s wealthiest families could create significant economic change.
Connecticut Voices for Children, a progressive, New Haven-based policy think-tank, renewed its call Thursday for a new state income tax credit for low- and middle-income filers with children. It argues this credit could channel $300 million annually to assist about 80,000 kids.
Connecticut Voices’ executive director, Emily Byrne, said her group has just begun its review of the latest tax fairness report but said the overall problem the General Assembly faces is clear.
“The report not only reaffirms that our state’s tax system is regressive, but it also reaffirms why this report is so important,” she said, “because it allows the legislature to make informed decisions. … It’s also clear that more families need help.”
The Yankee Institute, a conservative fiscal policy group in Hartford, had just begun its review of the tax study late Friday. But spokesman Bryce Chinault said, “This report demonstrates why the recent income tax reforms were so important to Connecticut residents, and why the fiscal guardrails are vital to building upon that success.”
Those “guardrails” are a reference to caps on spending and borrowing and other savings programs that have helped reduce state debt by billions of dollars since 2020, which advocates say enables state government to channel more resources to cities and towns.
Members of the legislature’s tax-writing Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee received the report Thursday morning, and leaders said the 77-page analysis would get close attention in the coming weeks.
But both Sen. John Fonfara, D-Hartford, who co-chairs the panel, and Rep. Holly Cheeseman of East Lyme, ranking House Republican on finance, said it’s clear Connecticut must find a way to ease property tax burdens.
The property tax generated nearly $12 billion in revenue in 2020, more than any other state or municipal tax did, and represented 38% of all tax revenue raised in Connecticut that year.
Fonfara pushed two years ago to boost rates on Connecticut’s richest families and on large corporations and set up a new fund to support economic development and other services in the state’s poorest cities. It was blocked by Lamont and other fiscal moderates and conservatives.
House Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, brokered a compromise that abandoned the tax hikes but authorized $175 million in annual bonding for urban investment that began in the 2022-23 fiscal year and runs through 2026-27.
The property tax “punishes those who have the least income,” Fonfara said Thursday, adding that the high mill rates in Connecticut’s urban centers make it very hard to attract commercial and industrial development. “It pits one town against another.”
Luxury Homes
Kathie Lee Gifford and her late husband, football legend Frank Gifford, purchased the house in 1994.
Former “Today” show host Kathie Lee Gifford is selling her sprawling 13,163-square-foot Connecticut home. The asking price? $100,000,000.
Dubbed “Cedar Cliff,” the Greenwich estate at 108 Cedar Cliff in the Riverside section of town, was once owned by railroad tycoon Henry F. Shoemaker. Kathie Lee Gifford and her late husband, football legend Frank Gifford, purchased the house in 1994 for $7.8 million . The 13,163-square-foot, 29-room estate has eight bedrooms and 14 bathrooms (nine full, five half).
“They added a substantial addition to the house to make it work for their lifestyle,” listing agent Leslie McElwreath of Sotheby’s International Realty said. That addition is the east wing of the house, constructed in the early 2000s, which includes a private theater and wine cellar.
The eight bedrooms are similarly sized and have views of Greenwich Cove. The primary bedroom and two guest bedrooms have a balcony as well. The estate has a greenhouse, a screened porch, a sun room, a tennis court, and a billiards room currently containing Frank Gifford memorabilia. There are 10 fireplaces throughout the house.
Within the 2.91-acre gated peninsula is a spa, pool, and pool house.
McElwreath said “empty nester” Gifford is selling the property because “her children are grown and are married with their own children. Kathie Lee spends most of her time in Tennessee and is no longer using the house full-time.”
The house has a recently installed Ludowici terra cotta roof, sun decks that have been rebuilt, and there is access to a full-property generator as well as a private beach.
McElwreath said there are additional aspects that make this property worth the monstrous price tag.
“The setting is extraordinary. Elevated high above the water with over 1,250 feet of frontage, the property offers the rare combination of commanding panoramic views and direct waterfront access via a private pier and deep water dock,” she said.
McElwreath said the kind of buyer looking at this property is attracted to Greenwich for its high quality of life and proximity to Midtown Manhattan.
”High net-worth buyers do not compromise. They seek exceptional properties in prime locations. Cedar Cliff is a one-of-a-kind opportunity and will attract buyers looking for privacy and resort-like amenities,” McElwreath said.
The task of selling the estate was entrusted to McElwreath by Gifford after McElwreath represented the seller of Copper Beech Farm in Greenwich, which sold for just under $139,000,000 in 2023.
“[Copper Beach] is still the highest sale ever in Greenwich and the state of Connecticut. I plan to use the full resources of Sotheby’s International Realty to find the buyer for Cedar Cliff,” McElwreath said. “I also represented the seller of 100 Field Point Circle, the second highest sale in Greenwich at $50 million. My proven track record, combined with the marketing expertise of Sotheby’s, will prove to be a winning combination.”
Connecticut
Hailey Van Lith waived by Connecticut Sun after just nine games, marking second cut in under a month
Hailey Van Lith’s rocky WNBA start took another unexpected turn Thursday.
The Connecticut Sun waived Van Lith after just nine games with the team, including three starts.
CHICAGO, IL – AUGUST 25: Hailey Van Lith #2 of the Chicago Sky high five during the game against the Las Vegas Aces on August 25, 2025 at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL. (Photo by Melissa Tamez/NBAE via Getty Images) ((Photo by Melissa Tamez/NBAE via Getty Images))
TCU’s Hailey Van Lith poses before the WNBA basketball draft in New York on April 14, 2025. (Pamela Smith/AP)
Van Lith was once one of college basketball’s brightest stars at Louisville, but her path has become increasingly turbulent in recent years. After a disappointing stint at LSU stalled her momentum, Van Lith revived her draft stock with a standout final season at TCU.
CHICAGO SKY WAIVE HAILEY VAN LITH ONE YEAR AFTER SELECTING HER WITH THE 11TH OVERALL PICK
The former NIL standout was selected 11th overall by the Chicago Sky in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She struggled to establish herself as a rookie, averaging 3.5 points and 1.6 assists in 12.4 minutes per game across 29 appearances before Chicago waived her on May 4.
Hailey Van Lith’s brief stint with the Connecticut Sun ended Thursday after the franchise waived the former first-round pick. (Photo by Ali Gradischer/Getty Images) ((Photo by Ali Gradischer/Getty Images))
Hailey van Lith drives past opponents during the women’s 3×3 basketball bronze medal game between the United States and Canada at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 on Aug. 5, 2024, in Paris, France. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
TCU’s Hailey Van Lith jogs onto the court during introductions before the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament game against Louisville in Fort Worth, Texas, on March 23, 2025. (Tony Gutierrez/AP)
Van Lith also helped Team USA win a bronze medal in 3×3 basketball at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Connecticut quickly gave Van Lith a second chance, but the reunion lasted just over two weeks.
“The Connecticut Sun has activated Leïla Lacan,” the team announced on X. “In a corresponding move, Hailey Van Lith has been waived.”
EX-WNBA STAR CRITICAL OF SKY ROOKIE HAILEY VAN LITH, BELIEVES POPULARITY PLAYED ROLE IN DRAFT SELECTION
The move comes as Lacan — the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 draft — returns after averaging 10.4 points and 3.7 assists with Connecticut last season.
Van Lith appeared in Wednesday’s 71-61 loss to Portland, finishing with seven points, no assists and two turnovers in 13 minutes.
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Van Lith averaged 8.1 points and 2.2 assists in nine appearances with Connecticut before Thursday’s move, marking her second waiver in less than a month.
The Connecticut Sun waived Hailey Van Lith on Thursday, ending the former college star’s nine-game stint with the franchise. ((Photo by Mollie Handkins/NBAE via Getty Images))
Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela
The following article was submitted by Brody and Associates, LLC. It is posted here with permission.
The Connecticut legislature passed broad artificial intelligence legislation May 11, 2026 that includes a new framework governing the use of AI in employment-related decisions.
The bill, known as SB 5, is awaiting Gov. Ned Lamont’s signature, which is expected shortly.
Once enacted, Connecticut will join a growing list of jurisdictions that are imposing transparency and accountability requirements on employers that use AI tools in recruiting, hiring, promotion, discipline, scheduling, and termination decisions.
The statute regulates what it calls automated employment-related decision technology.
In general, AEDT refers to technology that processes personal data and generates an output that is a substantial factor in an employment decision.
The definition is broad enough to potentially cover resume-screening software, applicant ranking systems, video-interview analytics, skills assessments, productivity tools, and certain workforce management platforms when those tools materially influence personnel decisions.
What Does the Law Require?
The purpose of the law is to reduce the risk that algorithmic systems will continue or worsen historic discrimination while also giving applicants and employees more visibility into how these systems are used.
One of the most important features of the new law is its notice requirement.
Beginning Oct. 1, 2027, employers that deploy AEDT intended to interact with applicants or employees must disclose, in plain language, that the individual is interacting with such technology unless it would be obvious to a reasonable person.
When the tool’s output will be used as a substantial factor in making an employment-related decision, the employer must also provide a written notice before the decision is made.
The law does include protection for proprietary or trade secret information.
Notice must identify the purpose of the tool, the categories and sources of personal data being analyzed, how data will be assessed, and contact information for the employer.
If such employment-related decision is “adverse,” employers must provide a high-level statement disclosing the principal reasons for the decision, including “the degree to which, and manner in which” an AEDP output contributed to the decision, the type of data used, and the right to examine or correct such data.
The law does include protection for proprietary or trade secret information, but employers should not assume that vendor confidentiality excuses them from compliance.
If an employer withholds certain information regarding the AEDP based on a third party’s confidentiality claim, the employer must nevertheless disclose that the information is being withheld and identify the legal basis for the withholding.
As a practical matter, this means employers that rely on outside vendors for screening, testing, or candidate evaluation should begin reviewing vendor contracts now to ensure they can obtain the information needed to satisfy Connecticut’s notice obligations.
Anti-Discrimination and Related Obligations
The law also makes clear employers cannot avoid liability by blaming an algorithm.
Connecticut’s anti-discrimination framework will expressly provide the use of AI or automated systems is not a defense to a discrimination claim.
The employer may still be responsible even if the challenged output came from a third-party platform.
In other words, if an AEDT disproportionately screens out candidates or influences decisions in a way that has an unlawful discriminatory effect, the employer may still be responsible even if the challenged output came from a third-party platform.
This provision reinforces a principle regulators have increasingly emphasized nationwide: employers remain accountable for employment decisions, whether those decisions are made by people, software, or a combination of both.
What Employers Should Do Now
For employers, the immediate takeaway is AI governance can no longer be treated as an IT issue.
Human resources, legal, compliance, and procurement teams should collaborate to identify all tools used in recruiting or personnel management, assess whether those tools materially affect employment decisions, and determine what disclosures this new law may require.
Even companies that already use AI responsibly may need to formalize review procedures.
Employers should also assess whether internal policies, vendor agreements, and recordkeeping practices are sufficient to support compliance.
Even companies that already use AI responsibly may need to formalize review procedures, conduct bias testing, and create documentation explaining how automated outputs are considered by human decision-makers.
Connecticut’s new law reflects a broader regulatory trend: employers may continue using AI, but they must do so transparently, carefully, and with meaningful human accountability.
About the authors: Robert Brody is managing partner at Brody and Associates, LLC, which he founded in 1997. Matthew Chiota is a law clerk at Brody and Associates, awaiting admission to the Connecticut and New York Bar associations. Contact them at [email protected] or 203.454.0560.
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