Statement from Joe DeLong, CCM Executive Director and CEO

Deal will give firefighters help in fight vs. cancer

HARTFORD – Local leaders and firefighter organizations say they have reached a compromise on providing essential benefits for firefighters and their families dealing with work-related cancers.

PRESS ADVISORY: CCM AND OTHER KEY EDUCATION ADVOCATES TO CONDUCT CAPITOL NEWS CONFERENCE ON THURSDAY MORNING, APRIL 27th TO UNVEIL MONTH-LONG ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN IN SUPPORT OF HB 5003

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM), in conjunction with the State School Finance Project, Faith Acts for Education, Educators 4 Excellence, CT Association of Boards of Education, CT Association of Public School Superintendents, CT Charter School Association and CONNCAN, will conduct a news conference at the State Capitol Building on Thursday, April 27 at 9:30 a.m to unveil a month-long advertising campaign that calls on Governor Lamont and the General Assembly to accelerate necessary funding increases for FY 2023-24 in the State’s Education Cost Sharing (ECS) Grant by implementing the proposals contained in HB 5003 before the regular state legislative session concludes on Wednesday, June 7. 

2023 CT Emergency Management Symposium set for April 25 in Prospect: Over 400 local, state & business leaders to attend

Over 400 municipal, state, and business leaders will converge in Prospect, Connecticut on Tuesday, April 25 for the 2023 Connecticut Emergency Management Symposium. The 16th presentation of this critical conference will take place at the Aria Banquet Hall from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

CCM: Affordable housing conversation needs to include property tax reform

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities is trying to drive the conversation that affordable housing does not exist without affordable property taxes.

Joe DeLong, the executive director and CEO of CCM, shared that message with The Day’s Editorial Board on Monday and called for the state to address property tax reform. He said the lack of property tax reform makes the state less competitive and particularly affects seniors and low-income people.

Unlocking Possibilities: How Cities Are Using ARPA’s State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds After Two Years

This report finds that SLFRF helped stabilize local governments and their communities and positively support residents through direct engagement. Additionally, SLFRF did not lead to excessive municipal spending or cause global or national inflation. 

CCM delegation to meet with Senator Blumenthal and Senator Murphy on March 28 in Washington, D.C.

Leaders from the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) will meet with Senator Richard Blumenthal and Senator Christopher Murphy on key federal-local issues impacting Connecticut towns and cities on Tuesday, March 28 in Washington, D.C. beginning at noon in the U.S. Capitol Building.
 
The Connecticut leaders will conduct the meeting as part of their participation in the Congressional City Conference from March 27-29  in Washington, D.C., organized by the National League of Cities. 

Study: Connecticut high-speed internet consumers want more affordable and reliable service

A new survey released this week indicates Connecticut consumers want broadband internet service that is more affordable and reliable.

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities on Monday released the results of its first-ever statewide broadband survey, which was conducted between May and September. Joe DeLong, CCM's executive director and chief executive officer, said educating consumers about what is available to them in terms of service is critical.

Future of CT Housing Nothing Like The Past

On Dec. 22, 1939, at the opening of the first public housing project in New England, the day’s featured speaker extolled the virtues of the newly constructed dwellings in contrast to the squalor they were helping replace. It was “not a promise,” he said, “but the beginning of a reality — fine, decent homes for about 5,000 people.”

The complex, known as Yellow Mill Village, was initially named for the adjacent waterway, but would later be rechristened in honor of that first day’s speaker, who had done so much to make it possible. As it degenerated over the years into one of the nation’s worst public housing projects, up until its eventual demolition in the 1990s, the housing had a name that became synonymous with everything wrong with our state’s declining cities — Father Panik Village.

Opinion: CT local leaders are ready to build additional affordable housing but towns need adequate flexibility within their own communities to do so

Connecticut’s 169 cities and towns are on the front lines of addressing our state’s housing needs – responding to emergency calls from the housing insecure, re-evaluating local zoning laws to better facilitate affordable housing development, and partnering with private developers to create innovative housing solutions in communities across Connecticut. But our mayors and first selectmen can’t do it alone.

Work by CCM and local leaders to promote affordable housing is making a positive difference, but we must remember that a one size solution will not work for 169 diverse and unique towns and cities, and that the impact of the property tax on housing affordability is inescapable. Reducing the property tax must be part of any comprehensive plan to increase affordable housing.