How Lamont Drove Us Out of Business

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Connecticut is bleeding out under Governor Ned Lamont’s watch, and the evidence is piling up faster than the excuses from his administration. What started as a promise of pragmatic, business-friendly governance has devolved into a masterclass in progressive overreach, fiscal gimmickry, and outright mismanagement. Businesses flee, families pack up, taxes climb, and everyday Nutmeggers are left holding the bag—literally, in the form of insultingly tiny rebate checks that pretend to fix sky-high energy bills. Lamont’s tenure isn’t just disappointing; it’s a slow-motion disaster that’s turning the Constitution State into a cautionary tale of what happens when moderates cave to the far left.

In a recent Bloomberg interview, Lamont himself admitted the squeeze he’s feeling from his own party. He lamented that the space for moderates is getting smaller in both parties, and griped about criticism for not being progressive enough. He positioned himself as a centrist caught in the crossfire, whining that the center is shrinking as extremes pull harder. Yet actions speak louder than these self-pitying soundbites. Lamont didn’t hold the line as a moderate—he sprinted leftward, rewriting legislation and embracing policies that would make even the most ardent progressives blush.

Take HB 8002, the housing “growth” bill he signed into law after vetoing an earlier, even more radical version and then negotiating what he called a compromise. This isn’t moderate zoning reform; it’s a mind-blowing progressive power grab dressed up as affordability. The bill forces towns to create mandatory housing growth plans, expands fair rent commissions that meddle in private property rights, eliminates most off-street parking requirements for smaller developments (good luck finding a spot in your own neighborhood), and pushes dense multifamily projects with state incentives that override local control. It’s classic top-down central planning: override suburban zoning to cram in high-density housing, all under the guise of solving a “crisis” that Lamont helped exacerbate with years of regulatory stagnation and high costs. Towns lose autonomy, property values get pressured, and character gets sacrificed for state-mandated quotas. This isn’t helping working families—it’s social engineering that punishes homeowners and rewards developers with state-backed mandates.

Then there’s Lamont’s Santa Claus phase, where he throws money at anyone he deems “neediest” while the state’s wallet gets thinner. He’s presided over massive spending increases, ballooning budgets, and a parade of handouts that mask deeper structural problems. But the real sting comes from the tax hikes that fund this largesse. Under Lamont, Connecticut has seen repeated hospital provider tax increases (one scaled back from $375 million to $100 million annually after backlash, but still a hike), tweaks to income taxes that never go far enough for relief, and a refusal to meaningfully cut the burdens driving people away. The state clings to high property taxes, some of the nation’s highest electric rates (thanks in part to green mandates), and a general anti-business climate that chases away employers.

Just look at the exodus: Duracell is moving its R&D headquarters from Bethel to Atlanta, Georgia, citing consolidation but undoubtedly lured by lower taxes and fewer regulations—Georgia even tossed in property tax breaks. Lego announced plans to relocate its main U.S. offices from Enfield to Boston by the end of 2026, praising Beantown’s talent pool while leaving behind hundreds of jobs and a long history in Connecticut. These aren’t isolated cases; they’re symptoms of a state that’s become hostile to business growth. Families follow suit—high taxes, failing schools in some areas, and crushing cost of living push them to lower-tax states like Florida or the Carolinas.

Even Lamont’s own household isn’t immune to the allure of greener pastures. His wife, Annie Lamont, co-founder of the venture capital firm Oak HC/FT, relocated the company’s headquarters from Greenwich to Stamford back in 2022. While still in-state, the move within Connecticut underscores the broader dissatisfaction with high-cost areas, and it’s rich coming from the first family preaching loyalty to the state while quietly optimizing their own footprint.

And then there’s the craziness of HB 5044, Governor Lamont’s latest power grab introduced in February 2026 as “An Act Establishing Connecticut Vaccine Standards.” After the pandemic-era lockdowns, school closures, mask mandates, and vaccine pressures that wrecked businesses and infuriated parents, you’d think restraint would be the order of the day. Instead, this bill hands the Commissioner of Public Health unilateral authority to set immunization standards for all residents—not just kids—including schedules and contraindications based on CDC, AAP, and other recommendations. It expands from children to adults, allows the commissioner to post these standards online with minimal notice, and crucially, bypasses the legislative Regulations Review Committee that currently provides checks and balances on major changes like adding flu shots or boosters to school requirements. Parents, legislators, and everyday families get shut out while executive power balloons. It’s not about health—it’s about centralized control, setting precedents for mandates in schools, workplaces, or beyond. After all the outrage from heavy-handed COVID policies, Lamont doubles down with more top-down authority. Classic overreach.

Outrage has also boiled over from the public benefits charge—a sneaky surcharge on electric bills funding green programs, low-income aid, renewables, and nuclear deals—that ballooned to about 20% of many Eversource bills amid soaring rates and inflation. After years of poor energy policy driving costs up, Lamont’s response? A pathetic $200 rebate check for single filers (up to $200,000 income) or $400 for joint filers (up to $400,000)—a one-time pittance from surplus funds that could have funded real tax cuts or debt paydown. It’s insulting: a band-aid on a gaping wound, an election-year gimmick that doesn’t touch persistent high costs or the underlying charges. Nutmeggers aren’t fooled; this doesn’t offset anything meaningful—it’s a cheap pat on the head while rates stay punishing.

Lamont’s critics on the right are calling it out. Erin Stewart, the former New Britain mayor and sharp conservative voice, has hammered the need for real relief by slashing the public benefits charge entirely and prioritizing fiscal sanity over feel-good programs. Ryan Fazio, the Greenwich senator eyeing higher office, rolled out an energy plan that could cut bills by 20% through eliminating those charges, expanding natural gas, hydropower, and nuclear while curbing wasteful renewables. Betsy McCaughey, the former New York lieutenant governor now in the Connecticut fray, echoes the call to axe the surcharge and stop subsidizing failed green experiments. These aren’t fringe ideas—they’re common-sense proposals that recognize Connecticut can’t tax-and-spend its way to prosperity.

When all is said and done, Connecticut can’t survive more gimmicks from Ned Lamont. The rebates, the half-measures, the progressive lurches masked as moderation, the executive power grabs—they’re symptoms of a governor who’s lost his way. Businesses leave, families flee, and hardworking residents get stuck with the bill. He’s gotta’ go. In 2026, it’s time for real change: lower taxes, less regulation, and a leader who actually puts Connecticut first instead of pandering to the shrinking center while embracing the radical left. The state deserves better than this slow bleed.

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