On April 22, 2025, the Connecticut General Assembly's Appropriations Committee introduced and passed its recommended state budget for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. This nonpartisan analysis details these changes to state education funding in the Appropriations Committee's budget, and provides a brief overview of the general fiscal outlook of the state budget and economy.
School accountability is the process of evaluating school performance on the basis of student performance measures. These measures determine the ability of a state, district, and school to successfully prepare students for college, work, and life. This policy briefing examines the systems of school and district accountability that currently exist in public education in Connecticut. This policy briefing also explains what school accountability is, gives a brief summary of the history of school accountability, provides an overview of Connecticut’s current systems of school accountability, and details school accountability grants currently available.
On December 27, 2020, President Donald Trump signed Public Law 116-260, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSA), which is the second stimulus bill passed by the U.S. Congress in response to the coronavirus pandemic. This policy briefing outlines the amounts and eligible uses of education aid provided by the CRRSA Act to states, analyzes how the CRRSA Act compares to the CARES Act, and details how the CRRSA Act impacts education in Connecticut.
Overcoming Connecticut's fiscal challenges to produce a balanced budget that maintains service levels and fulfills policy objectives requires creative solutions. Examining the state’s non-appropriated accounts for possible resource reallocation opportunities is one potential solution. The purpose of this policy briefing is to provide insight on what non-appropriated accounts are, how these accounts fit into the state’s budgeting process, and how including non-appropriated accounts in the budget development process can have the potential to help address Connecticut’s fiscal challenges.
This policy briefing provides a quick overview of Connecticut's biennial (two-year) budget process from the governor's initial proposed budget to a final product passed by the legislature and signed by the governor.
The Connecticut General Assembly has periodically created “revenue diversions” in state statute. A “revenue diversion” is established when the General Assembly diverts a portion of revenue, which would otherwise be deposited into the General Fund, to a different fund or account. Revenue diversion statutes are explicit in the amount of revenue that is diverted, established as either a percentage of total revenue or a flat dollar amount, along with a description of what the diverted revenue will support. Once established in state statute, revenue diversions exist in perpetuity unless adjusted by the General Assembly.