CONNECTICUT’S BEST-IN-THE-NATION COVID RESPONSE

STEFANOWSKI MISLEADING CLAIM: “…and we didn’t have basic testing resources” on COVID. 

THE FACTS: A national leader in managing our state through a once-in-a-century pandemic, Governor Lamont has delivered: 

●      3.1 MILLION TESTS AND 3 MILLION MASKS: Over the last two weeks, Connecticut has distributed 3.1 million self-tests, the most per capita in the Northeast, along with over 3 million masks.

●      THE MOST PER CAPITA TESTING IN THE NORTHEAST: Under Governor Lamont, Connecticut has “outpaced its neighbors” in at-home COVID test distribution. [CT Insider, 1/8/22] 

●      400 TESTING SITES: There are 400 testing sites open across Connecticut, including over 100 that test at no cost. [CT Post, 1/5/22] 

●      RECORD TESTING: Connecticut is conducting more testing now than at any point in the pandemic. [Twitter, 1/10/22] 

CONNECTICUT’S POPULATION GROWTH

Stefanowski False Claim: Families and businesses are moving out of Connecticut. He said yesterday that: “But United Van Lines just came out with a study that said for last year there are only three states, only three states in the entire country that had more people move out of their state last year than Connecticut.” [Chaz & AJ, 1/19/22] 

THE FACTS: Under Governor Lamont, Connecticut is gaining population. 

●      According to the Census Bureau: during the pandemic, Connecticut actually gained population. For the first time in a decade, more people moved into Connecticut from elsewhere in the U.S. than left. [Hartford Business, 1/17/22] 

●      U-Haul: CT 18th-most moved-to state: “An analysis of moving trends by truck rental company U-Haul shows Connecticut may be attracting more residents than in years past. U-Haul’s Growth Index, released Monday, named Connecticut the 18th-most moved-to state in the country in 2021, a dramatic rise from its place at No. 43 on the list the year before.” [HBJ, 1/6/22] 

●      Greater Hartford had the nation’s hottest real estate market. “Homes are selling so fast in the Greater Hartford area that the region had the nation’s steepest declines in inventory of properties over the last year. The Hartford metro area, which includes Hartford, Tolland and Middlesex counties, registered the steepest decline in the inventory of homes on the market across 53 metro areas nationwide, plunging more than 83% in February, compared with the same month a year ago, according to the monthly report from real estate giant RE/MAX.” [Courant, 3/17/21] 

●      New Business Registrations Jumped to A Dramatic “And Likely Unprecedented” 20% “Between 2010 and 2020, business registrations in Connecticut increased by an average of 5% per year. In 2021, however, business registrations increased by over 20%, thru the end of November, according to an analysis by the Connecticut Data Collaborative of data filed with the Connecticut Office of Secretary of the State. That dramatic – and likely unprecedented – pace of growth suggests that more people are launching more businesses all across Connecticut.  Who is launching those business enterprises, and where, is part of the story of a changing population, and expanding interest in new enterprises. ” [CT Examiner, 1/7/22]  

CONNECTICUT’S OUTLOOK 

Stefanowski Misleading Claim: “by every metric that matters, almost every single one of them Connecticut is last or near the bottom.” 

THE FACTS: Connecticut is growing and tops the nation on numerous measures. 

●      HEALTHCARE, EDUCATION, AND CRIME: US News: Connecticut Is A Top 10 State On Health Care, Education; and Crime On healthcare (#3), education (#6) and crime & corrections (#6), Connecticut is comfortable in the top-10 states in the nation. [US News, Health Care; Education; Crime] 

●      QUALITY OF LIFE: CONNECTICUT 4^th BEST STATE TO LIVE IN. “24/7 Wall St. created its own index using the HDI model in order to rank the best and worst states to live in. Our index consists of three measures: life expectancy at birth, bachelor’s degree attainment, and poverty rate.”  Connecticut is ranked 4th on this list. [24/7 Wall Street, November 2020] 

●      RAISING FAMILIES: Connecticut ranked the 7th best state to raise a family. “To help with the evaluation process, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 51 key indicators of family-friendliness. Our data set ranges from the median annual family income to housing affordability to the unemployment rate.” Connecticut ranked 7th on that list because of high rankings on health & safety, education & childcare, and affordability. [WalletHub, 11/12/20] 

●      RAPIDLY IMPROVING BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT: Connecticut has surged in CNBC’s ranking of “America’s Best States for Business.” The ranking of states still places Connecticut solidly in the middle at No. 24, but that’s a jump of 11 places since CNBC’s last ranking…” [Courant, 7/13/21] 

●      BEST PANDEMIC RESPONSE IN THE NATION: Connecticut was ranked the safest state in the nation during the pandemic according to Wallethub . Key metrics include transmission rates, positive tests, hospitalizations and death, and vaccinations among eligible population. [USNews, 12/1/21 

●      FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY: “Connecticut’s fiscal safety net has few rivals, according to a new report from The Pew Charitable Trusts” as Connecticut has the 5th largest rainy-day fund in the nation, and the second-fastest growth; and received its first bond ratings upgrade in over two decades. [Courant, 10/28/21; Office of the Governor, 5/14/21] 

EDUCATION 

Stefanowski Misleading Claim: Democrats have failed Connecticut’s children – “…And I don’t think Democrats have served cities…You look at the quality of education…” 

THE FACTS: Connecticut schools are among the best in the nation & Gov. Lamont is keeping them open and safe as he leads us through the unprecedented Omicron surge. 

●      Ranked In The Top 5 By Education Week’s “Quality Counts” Report Card. “As students and educators start a new school year amid continued uncertainties related to the coronavirus pandemic, the nation once again receives a C grade for the combined academic, finance, and socioeconomic factors that set the stage for a quality K-12 education for all children.” [EducationWeek, 9/1/21] 

●      US News and World Report – Pre-k Thru 12 Ranking – Connecticut Is Top 3 “Half the weighting in evaluating education goes to metrics measuring pre-K through 12th grade. Overall, the generation progressing through school now is the most educated ever. According to the U.S. Department of Education, nearly 85% of students graduated from high school in 2016. Along with high school graduation rates, this subcategory measures preschool enrollment, standardized test scores in math and reading among eighth-graders and college readiness based on SAT and ACT scores.” [US News, 2021] 

●      Ranked The Second best school system in the nation by Wallethub. “Unlike other research that focuses primarily on academic outcomes or school finance, WalletHub’s analysis takes a more comprehensive approach. It accounts for performance, funding, safety, class size and instructor credentials. To determine the top-performing school systems in America, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 32 key metrics.” [WalletHub.com, 2021] 

●      Lamont, state leaders outline plans to keep Conn. schools open. “State leaders continue to prioritize efforts to ensure students and teachers remain in the classroom amid a spike in COVID-19 across Connecticut.Families are concerned, and state leaders reaffirmed to everyone on Tuesday that they hear those concerns, and they want to do what’s best for everyone.” [News8, 1/4/22 

PROTECTING SENIORS FROM COVID

Stefanowski False Claim: Gov. Lamont is endangering seniors and nursing home residents by sending COVID positive patients to nursing homes.

THE FACTS Nursing homes in Connecticut have routinely admitted COVID patients throughout the pandemic, and do not have to accept COVID patients if they are unable to safely care for them. 

Throughout the Pandemic, Nursing Homes Have “routinely admitted and cared for COVID-19 positive residents” “The two nursing home associations also noted that throughout the pandemic, nursing homes have routinely admitted and cared for COVID-19 positive residents, and that they continue to do so when they are able to adequately address their care needs. Nursing home staff are clearly adept at caring for residents with COVID-19 under the

appropriate conditions.” [Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities/Connecticut Center for Assisted Living, 1/11/22] 

Nursing Homes Can Refuse Patients If The Cannot Properly Address Their Care “Matthew Barrett, president and CEO of the Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities, said nursing homes should still be able to decide whether to accept COVID-positive people from hospitals under the guidance.”  “The guidance that came out today, we don’t interpret it initially as in any way undermining a nursing home’s very appropriate authority and ability to refuse a hospital admission, if the nursing home believes it is unable to meet the care needs of the resident due to staffing issues,” he told the Mirror. “And staffing issues are present all across the state and especially in Connecticut nursing homes.” [CT Mirror, 1/6/22] 

---

CRIME

Stefanowski False Claim: Democrats haven’t funded law enforcement and Connecticut is awash in violent crime 

Stefanowski quote: “Last year was one of the most violent years we’ve had in Connecticut in 10 years.” […] “ So we wonder why crime is up, is because we haven’t funded the police departments we’ve taken away their ability to do the job” 

THE FACTS: Gov. Lamont has been focused on keeping Connecticut safe – funding hundreds of new police officers, sending millions to local police departments, and investing in crime prevention and gun violence prevention efforts. 

●      Connecticut Adding Hundreds Of New Police Officers, Most Diverse State Police Class In the History of The State. “The governor’s office highlighted $6 million in the state budget to fund another three training classes over the next two years, which are expected to produce 255 additional troopers. With this latest class, more than 200 troopers have come on board under Lamont, with another 95 trainees slated to start at the state police training academy next month, the governor’s public safety commissioner James Rovella said Thursday.” [CT Insider, 8/26/21]

 ●      Lamont Announces $5 Million in Funding for Gun Violence, Crime Reduction [NBC CT, 6/28/2021] 

●      Violent crime in Connecticut is actually at a 35-year low. Connecticut is one of the safest states in the nation and one of the best places to be a police officer. 

●      Connecticut Adding Hundreds Of New Police Officers, Most Diverse State Police Class In the History of The State. “The governor’s office highlighted $6 million in the state budget to fund another three training classes over the next two years, which are expected to produce 255 additional troopers. With this latest class, more than 200 troopers have come on board under Lamont, with another 95 trainees slated to start at the state police training academy next month, the governor’s public safety commissioner James Rovella said Thursday.” [CT Insider, 8/26/21] 

●      Gov. Lamont: “our No. 1 responsibility to you is to keep you safe, keep you healthy and keep you out of harm’s way” During a press conference outside St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Lamont drew parallels between the pandemic and the state’s experience with violent crime and gun violence. “Everybody standing here today, I think our No. 1 responsibility to you is to keep you safe, keep you healthy and keep you out of harm’s way,” said Lamont, speaking in front of a group of lawmakers and policymakers. [CT Insider, 6/28/21] 

●      FBI: Connecticut’s violent crime rate is near a 35-year low “At the same, Connecticut’s violent crime rate is near a 35-year low after falling sharply in the 1990s and continuing to decline in the 2000s, according to FBI data. There were about 181 violent crimes reported last year for every 100,000 people who live in the state. That’s down from 282 a decade ago, and well under the violent crime rate in the United States as a whole, which stood at nearly 399 crimes per 100,000 last year.” [CT Public, 10/28/21] 

●      Connecticut ranked in the Top 10 for safest states in America by 3 different studies Connecticut ranked in the Top 10 for safest states in America by 3 different studies measuring the likes of violent crime and property crime. 
Consumer Affairs (6^th)
WalletHub (6^th)
US News & World Report (5^th) 

●      WalletHub: CT is the 2^nd Best State to be a police officer “As much as we would like to see top-notch police programs in every city and town in the United States, the reality is that the playing field is far from equal. Wallethub recently compared the conditions in all 50 states and ranked them according to 30 different factors, ranging from opportunity and compensation to training programs to job hazards and protections.” Connecticut is the 2^nd highest state on that list. [National Police Support Fund, 9/2/21]“Connecticut ranked first in the nation for law enforcement training requirements, which was enough to put it at number two in the country overall. The state also has the third-lowest violent crime rate in the U.S., making it a relatively safe environment for police and other law enforcement officers.” [National Police Support Fund, 9/2/21]