Gov. Ned Lamont and the General Assembly’s highest-ranking leaders drew a political line in the sand late Friday.

If President Donald Trump continues to withhold huge blocks of federal aid for health care, education or other core programs, Connecticut’s done waiting to see if Congress or the courts will reverse the damage, leaders here wrote in a joint statement.

Connecticut’s piggy banks are large, and officials won’t hesitate to crack them immediately if vital programs are damaged, they indicated.

“Sound fiscal practices have positioned us better than most states in the nation,” Lamont wrote late Friday afternoon in a joint statement with House Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, and Senate President Pro Tem Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven. “If this pattern of devastating cuts continues, we will be prepared to exercise emergency powers. Although we hope that Washington reverses course, we must plan for the inevitable or unpredictable.”

Officials here also had expected to see deep cuts in aid from Washington, but not until late summer or fall with the congressional adoption of the next federal budget. Since taking office in January, though, Trump has used executive orders on several occasions to suspend grants, reclaim unspent dollars from states, or attach controversial new conditions to federal assistance.

The comments came hours after state Senate Democrats completed a closed-door caucus during which members vented frustrations about Trump’s latest unilateral move, the cancellation of $12 billion in public health grants to states this week, including $155 million for infectious disease management, genetic screening of newborns and substance abuse prevention in Connecticut.

“What no one could anticipate was how severe these cuts would be and how quickly they would occur to vital programs, sometimes without warning,” Lamont and legislative leaders wrote, adding decisions on when to restore funding would be made in the coming weeks on a case-by-case basis.

Their statement didn’t say, though, whether the fiscally moderate-to-conservative governor and his fellow Democrats in legislative leadership see eye-to-eye on which piggy banks are OK to shatter, and which can’t be touched.

Connecticut holds a record-setting $4.1 billion budget reserve, commonly known as its rainy day fund, an amount equal to 18% of annual operating costs.

But an aggressive series of budget caps, labeled “fiscal guardrails” by Lamont and other supporters, have generated roughly triple that $4.1 billion mark since their enactment in 2017. And what wasn’t deposited into the reserve, another $8.5 billion, was used to whittle down the state’s massive pension debt.

One “guardrail” alone, a provision that restricts lawmakers’ ability to spend certain income and business tax receipts, has forced them to save an average of $1.4 billion annually since 2017. Analysts say it will capture another $1.4 billion before this fiscal year ends on June 30, and closer to $1.3 billion in each of the next three years.

Though the governor and legislative leaders all have cited the rainy day fund as one coffer Connecticut may need to tap to mitigate impending cuts in federal aid, scaling back the budget caps that helped fill this reserve is another matter.

Lamont has been reluctant to tamper with this system, though he did express a willingness in February to scale back this savings mandate modestly by about $300 million per year.

Ritter and Looney, though, have been more direct about the need to reform this “guardrails” system, save less, and pour more dollars into core programs like health care, education and social services.

And the House speaker said Friday he believes these saved income and business tax receipts should be the first line of defense against Trump cuts. 

It’s been 14 years since Connecticut has failed to make the full contributions recommended by pension analysts for its retirement benefits for state employees and municipal teachers, and Ritter noted the full $3.2 billion owed this fiscal year already has been budgeted.

And any “guardrails” savings Connecticut doesn’t need to reverse cuts in federal funding still could be sent into the pensions as well, Ritter added.

But cracking this piggy bank first would leave the larger, $4.1 billion rainy day fund available for later this summer or fall, when potentially more damage could occur.

With Congress aiming to find more than $880 billion in cuts to Medicaid — a cooperative health care program that sends $6.1 billion to Connecticut this year alone — officials here fear revenues that support nursing homes, federally qualified health clinics, hospitals and insurance programs for poor adults and children, could be in grave jeopardy.

And with recent tariffs ordered by the president increasing many economists’ fears of a looming recession, Connecticut may need its rainy day fund later this year or next to mitigate the big drops in tax receipts that often accompany a sharp national economic downturn, legislative leaders say.

Looney echoed Ritter’s comments, calling the president’s latest health care funding cuts “irresponsible, reckless and possibly disastrous” and showing Connecticut must have all resources ready to offset damage to its most vital programs.

“We can’t draw a line anywhere,” Looney added.

The Lamont administration opted not to elaborate on Friday’s statement after its release.

But the governor has warned on several occasions that Connecticut must understand it ultimately can’t offset all losses in federal funding if the cuts go as deep as some fear they will. 

Connecticut will receive more than $10 billion in federal funding this fiscal year, a total that equals roughly 40% of the entire state budget.

“No state can restore every cut that comes from Washington,” the joint statement from Connecticut leaders adds.

Connecticut high school football doesn’t have spring football practices, but regardless the Constitution State has produced some of the top talent coming out of the Northeast United States.

Why not take a look into the future with the top passers from Connecticut, shall we?

A position that the state has started to produce talent at regularly is at quarterback, with many top end signal callers now heading to the collegiate level from Connecticut. With the passing game becoming a focal point of many high school offenses around the country, it’s no different when it comes to the Constitution State.

The following is a list and voting poll of top returning Connecticut quarterbacks heading into the 2025 spring. Take a look at our nominees and then vote in our poll that’s at the bottom of the page.

Know of another? Send a note to villamarzo@scorebooklive.com with some details on your nominee. 

Voting will conclude Thursday, May 1st, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

Quarterbacking one of the state’s top programs, Rolapp put up some solid numbers in his junior season for Darien. Rolapp finished 2024 completing 183-of-309 passes for 2,587 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Another talented passer that carried the weight of playing under center for one of the state’s better clubs was Manning for the Jesuits. As a junior, Manning completed 170-of-282 for 2,556 yards and 32 touchdowns.

Weil stepped into some big shoes for the Wreckers and played admirably all throughout the 2024 campaign. The junior ended the season throwing for 2,174 yards and 24 touchdowns on 162 completed passes.

In helping guide Sheehan to a 10-3 record in 2024, O’Brien did a superb job of orchestrating a potent Titans’ offensive attack. The signal caller ended last season completing 123-of-194 passes for 2,227 yards and 30 scores.

Now Robinson’s numbers may not pop out to you, but make no doubt about the talents the passer possesses. The Windsor starter exited 2024 completing 96-of-164 passes for 1,690 yards and 19 touchdowns.

Though Killingly loved to run the football, Sumner did a pretty solid job when the Redmen did decide to throw the rock. Sumner ended 2024 throwing for 1,222 yards, 21 touchdowns only five interceptions.

Unheralded compared to the aforementioned names on this list, if you go off of Burbank’s numbers alone, he’s certainly deserving of a spot among these passers. The 5-foot-10 quarterback threw for 2,634 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2024.

Undoubtedly one of the state’s better passers as Croucher already has offers from schools like Indiana, Michigan and Ole Miss on the table. The 4-star 2027 prospect finished last season throwing for 2,052 yards, 20 touchdowns and only three interceptions.

The Panthers’ field general led the way to a state championship last season and figures to be in store for another big fall campaign. In 2024, Campagne completed 135 passes for 2,580 yards and 33 touchdowns.

Another sophomore that shined during the 2024 season was Jones, who finished last year throwing for 1,611 yards, 21 touchdowns and just five interceptions. Certainly was one of the quarterbacks that flew a little under the radar last fall.

Just a freshman last season, Pelletier proved he could play about as good as anyone no matter the grade level. The quarterback finished his first season of varsity play completing 144-of-259 passes for 1,507 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Follow High School On SI throughout the 2025 high school football season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

To get live updates on your phone – as well as follow your favorite teams and top games – you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App

— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi | @Andy_Villamarzo

Police are reminding Connecticut drivers that you should be treating the stop sign you see on the school bus the same way you treat a stop sign in your neighborhood.

We spoke to people in North Haven who say it scares them to see more and more reports of drivers running through school buses’ stop signs.

“If that was your child, you wouldn’t want that happening,” Toni Martone, a North Haven parent, said.  “I hope that they understand that it’s a little kid, and if you hit someone, you have to deal with the law.”

“I saw two times this week that they go right by the school buses,” Nick Grillo, of North Haven, said. “They don’t stop, they just keep going like it’s a racetrack.”

Connecticut law says it’s a $475 fine for your first offense of passing a bus, and repeat violations could result in arrest.

The North Haven Police Department shared a reminder on Thursday, but it’s a problem all throughout the state.

The Norwalk Police Department posted a reminder, too, as well as a video, where you can see a car blow through a bus stop sign.

The Waterbury Police Department said they’ve issued 97 infractions since the start of this school year, where people have illegally passed a bus.

In Bridgeport, over 10,000 citations have been issued for school bus passing from the start of this school year until February.

“I think the majority is inattentive driving, and everybody seems like they’re always in a rush. People are speeding. They’re not realizing it. They’re not paying attention what’s going on in front of them,” Lt. Joel Lenda, of Groton Town Police Department, said.

In Groton, Lenda said parents and bus drivers alike make reports in waves throughout the school year.

He said if police have the license plate, which school bus cameras help with, they can track down the driver in question.

A common error Lenda said he sees drivers make is not thinking the stop sign applies to them in a multiple lane road.

“Your typical two-lane, four-lane road with a double yellow down the middle, everybody in every direction is required to stop,” Lenda said.

A 2024 law allowed school buses to install cameras, with police retroactively able to review the footage. North Haven said they’re exploring automated enforcement.