
Senate Democratic Budget Plan Sending Towns $190 Million in Additional Funding for Local Education Heads to Senate Floor
HARTFORD — The Connecticut Senate has begun debate on Senate Bill 1, legislation delivering on the priorities of the Senate Democratic Caucus by adjusting the two-year budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, reducing pressure on local tax burdens by providing towns and cities with $190 million in additional education funding and a $100 million increase in town aid.
The budget is balanced, under the spending cap and includes $300 million for early child care and an additional $30 million in healthcare assistance for lower income families.
“For years, towns and cities across Connecticut have absorbed the growing cost of public education with insufficient state support, and that burden has landed squarely on local property taxpayers, Senate President Pro Tem. Martin M. Looney said. “Senate Bill 1 addresses that imbalance directly, directing substantial new resources to local boards of education and ensuring that every district receives an increase regardless of enrollment. Paired with $100 million in direct aid to municipalities, this budget gives Connecticut’s cities and towns the tools they need to serve their residents without reaching deeper into taxpayers’ pockets.”
“While Washington Republicans are busy exploding the federal deficit and slashing education funding, Connecticut is doing the exact opposite: sending $190 million more to our local schools and cutting taxes for families buying back-to-school supplies, Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff said. “This budget is balanced, under the spending cap, and puts money back in the pockets of working- and middle-class families who have been squeezed from every direction. Connecticut Democrats are delivering real relief, and the contrast with what’s happening in Washington could not be clearer.”
Senate Bill 1 responds directly to an urgent need articulated by municipal leaders from across Connecticut: the rising cost of educating the next generation has placed unsustainable pressure on municipal budgets and local taxpayers.
Through S.B. 1, the state is committing to use its resources to pick up part of that tab and reduce the need of towns and cities to raise local property taxes. The bill accomplishes that goal through the following provisions:
- $152 million for local boards of education, in the form of an additional Education Cost Sharing payment. The additional funding will be built into the ECS grant in FY 28, which begins on July 1, 2027.
- $20 million in additional funding to ensure that all school districts receive a minimum of a 4% increase in their ECS grant this year, regardless of student enrollment.
- $18 million in additional aid for magnet schools, the Open Choice program, charter schools, and vocational-technical schools.
The new budget also includes:
- $100 million for state grants to Connecticut cities and towns.
- A $30 million increase to the state’s HUSKY health care program on top of the $45 million already budgeted, resulting in a total $75 million increase. HUSKY Health provides comprehensive, no-cost or low-cost medical coverage to eligible low-income residents, children, seniors, and people with disabilities.
- A $300 million transfer of ‘volatile’ state revenue to the Early Childhood Endowment which helps families access child care, supports higher wages for educators, and improves child care facilities.
Senate Bill 1 also includes a new, $5 million tax cut on back-to-school supplies beginning on July 1 of this year. The new tax cut will save parents money on essentials like notebooks, pens, paper, lunchboxes.
The budget will also bolster Connecticut’s annual Sales Tax Holiday by increasing the exemption cap on clothing, footwear, and backpacks from $100 to $300.



