Governor Lamont’s today provided a preview of a $336 million mid-term tax relief package he plans to present to the Legislature when it convenes the 2022 session on February 9th.
Office of Policy and Management Secretary Melissa McCaw noted that, because Connecticut is using federal money from the American Recuse Plan Act to balance the budget the State is limited in the amount to tax relief it can execute.
Two of the four proposals addressed in the Governor’s plan call for accelerating already scheduled tax relief measures. Below is a summary of the proposed plan put forth today.
FY 2023 Tax Proposals:
- Accelerated full eligibility for property tax credit by one year (currently scheduled to take effect in FY 2024) and expand the benefit from $200 to $300;
- Accelerate the exemption for pension and annuity income to income year 2022 from 2025;
- Expand the employer tax credit for those assisting with CHESLA student loans to include all CHESLA loans. Currently, this benefit only applies to refinanced CHESLA loans; and
- Lower the current property tax cap on vehicles from 45 mills to 29 mills. This would cover passenger, commercial and combination vehicles and would affect 103 towns.
Asked if he supported lowering the sales tax rate as Senate Republicans have proposed, the Governor said, “This (package) is a targeted investment. People don’t leave Connecticut because of the sales tax rate.” He added that he views this limited relief as “investments not subsidies.”
