The state comptroller is projecting a deficit of $619.9 million amid massive job losses and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Many people in Connecticut are hurting as the pandemic continues to impact every sector of the economy,” Comptroller Kevin Lembo said in a statement. “It will take a tremendous amount of work to make
sure the job losses we’re experiencing are temporary while continuing broad measures to protect public health.”
He noted that the state’s Budget Reserve Fund, or “Rainy Day Fund,” has more than $2.5 billion, which will help close budget deficits related to the pandemic, but said state economists forecast that the Budget Reserve Fund alone will not be enough to “supplant revenue losses in the coming fiscal years.”
Lembo noted that revenue projections are uncertain due to economic volatility and the delayed filing date for income taxes.
He cited statistics on from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and said employment losses were over four times the level experienced during the Great Recession and more than enough to wipe out all the job gains since the recovery began 11 years ago.
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“My gratitude remains with the people of our state who are stepping up, and making sacrifices,
for the health and wellbeing of our friends and neighbors,” Lembo said. “We are facing
unprecedented challenges, but we will get through them together.”
