On May 7, 2024, the General Assembly passed H.B. 5523, a budget stabilization bill that appropriates funds for fiscal year 2025 and makes a number of different policy changes to K-12 education and other areas. Along with maintaining the $150 million in additional funding for K-12 education in FY 2025 that was allotted as part of the state budget passed last year, the bill overhauls how Connecticut distributes state education funding to school districts.
On May 3, 2022, the Connecticut General Assembly passed an adjusted state budget for fiscal year 2023. This budget amends the biennial state budget passed by the General Assembly on June 17, 2021. These budget snapshots provide a nonpartisan look at how the adjusted budget for FY 2023 compares to current and budgeted spending and revenue levels, detail key policy changes, and provide estimated town-by-town runs for the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) grant.
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.
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.