Connecticut:Where Democrats Profit From Nonprofit Organizations

It has been another week in the sordid and bizarre world of the State of Connecticut. Horrendous bills violative of the constitutional rights of ordinary citizens advanced in the state Legislature. Decrepit and nearly bankrupt Hartford, CT, a city that is run by lunatics and one that cannot pay its bills, is petitioning to borrow $50,000,000 as that amount will finally fix everything. As my friend and colleague Tony De Angelo pointed out on his March 19, 2026, THIRTY WITH TONY no gubernatorial candidate of either party has yet addressed the cancer of this new crippling debt engulfing the state. Another minor league sports franchise is leaving, adding to a very long list of such disasters in the past thereby breaking the hearts of thousands of fans, many of whom are young. And as all of this were not enough, once again, we have an esteemed member of the Connecticut State Democrat Party with his hand in the till leveraging his take through a nonprofit organization.

Before we delve into that, let us define our terms. A nonprofit organization is defined as a legal entity organized for purposes other than generating profit, such as charitable, educational, or social causes, where no part of the net income is to be distributed to directors or officers. Even though reasonable compensation is allowed, a nonprofit must use all revenue exceeding expenses to further their mission rather than for private gain or inurement.

Over the course of time in Connecticut and in review of a number of the abuses of the past, some may wonder why Connecticut’s nonprofits are even considered to be “nonprofit.” In some cases, those who are politically connected with the Connecticut Democrat Party or who hold elected office in the state are somehow able to gain income and profit from these same state subsidized nonprofits. Confusing? It is very confusing and is meant to be, in order to hide the complex web of money that flows in and out of these organizations.

The latest issue involves the “Human Resources Agency of New Britain.” Since 1964, the organization has stated that it has been dedicated to “increasing economic self-sufficiency among individuals and families. It provides a wide variety of services that support citizens at every phase of life, from early childhood education to employment and training to elderly assistance. Its mission is to respond to the causes and conditions of poverty while building stronger individuals, families, and communities.”

Given the same, abused and intransparent abuse-filled conveyor belt that no politician wishes to fully overhaul, this organization receives a significant amount of money from the State of Connecticut. Its most recent available Form 990 from 2023 shows that Executive Director Marlo Greponne received $165,338 dollars in compensation along with $32,300 dollars in additional compensation. The Director of Finance and Sustainability, James Frohn, received $130,322 dollars along with $25,038 dollars in additional compensation. Director Amy Griswold received $105,191 dollars with $14,338 dollars in additional compensation. As the old song says, its nice work if you can get it. 

Based on available financial filings, this nonprofit receives approximately 7 to 8 million dollars in federal pass-through grants, along with well over 10 to 12 million dollars in direct and indirect funding from the State of Connecticut. Its total budget is roughly 23 million dollars. All this money is intended to combat poverty.Yet in 2026, New Britain continues to face serious social and economic challenges, including job losses from one of its largest employers, Stanley Black and Decker, which is closing manufacturing units in the city. The city also continues to struggle with illegal drug activity and other chronic issues.

Formerly under the stewardship of Republican candidate for governor Erin Stewart, New Britain is represented at the state level by Democrat State Senator Rick Lopes of the 6th District. According to his website, Lopes highlights efforts to secure funding for housing, health care, and other initiatives. However, and most recently, questions have been raised regarding financial connections between Lopes and the Human Resources Agency of New Britain.

According to reporting by “Inside Investigator,” two companies owned by Senator Lopes have been among the highest paid contractors to the nonprofit. These companies reportedly received 1.6 million dollars between 2018 and 2024, based on a review of the organization’s Form 990 filings. At the same time, the Office of State Ethics has stated that this arrangement does not violate state ethics laws because the companies are not directly contracting with the state and therefore do not require disclosure on financial filings.

Taking into account this sickeningly insufficient explanation from the heart of the Great Connecticut Administrative State, this taking raises an important question. If the “Human Resources Agency of New Britain” receives substantial taxpayer funding, should those financial relationships be subject to greater scrutiny? More broadly, what measurable outcomes have been achieved since 1964 if both Connecticut and New Britain continue to experience economic decline, rot, and persistent social challenges? Can it be argued that billions of dollars spent on nonprofits over the past fifty years have produced limited results, if any at all?

A larger issue is how political ethics are viewed in Connecticut. A pattern appears to emerge where elected officials support funding for nonprofits, while businesses connected to those same officials receive compensation for services provided to those nonprofits. And but for the egregious abuses of the Blue Hills Civic Association and this instant case, one must ask if these questions would have ever been raised at all.

However, there are even further questions. Are there other businesses in Connecticut that could perform these services at a lower cost through a competitive bidding process? Why are executives at some nonprofit organizations paid at such high levels? Why does no real oversight of these organizations exist at all? And why are these organizations not subject to any Freedom of Information disclosure whatsoever?

Connecticut faces a nonprofit spending problem, a politically connected profit problem, an illegally overcompensated politician problem and a lack of oversight problem. Meanwhile, those most in need continue to struggle, and taxpayers are left questioning how their money is being used.

So, in this 2026 election year which many have considered to be the “Last Chance Saloon” in the annals of Connecticut history, critical questions need to be answered. Will this same, intransparent abuse-filled fiscal conveyor belt covertly feeding nonprofits that no politician wishes to fully overhaul, finally be overhauled (or, eliminated?) Will real-time financial disclosures be available from these organizations as a condition of their grants? Will reasonable compensation guidelines be instituted? Will the next governor empower a citizen DOGE picked by fellow citizens? And will “quasi-public” organizations such as the Department of Economic and Community Development and “Connecticut Innovations” and “Advance CT” be abolished, or even overhauled in the least? The answers to those questions will determine if those patrons in the “Last Chance Saloon” will either live to enjoy another day or die in a hail of bullets in what will be the end of a once-great, innovative, and proud state.

May God Save The Once Great State of Connecticut in 2026.

 

Connecticut Community Fund 2030: Funding a Community That You Ain't In

The week of March 9. 2026 was a monumental week in the sordid annals of Connecticut history. In this week, scores of disenfranchised and justifiably disaffected Connecticut citizens descended on the Connecticut State Legislature fighting for their very lives in matters of education, medical freedom, and matters of personal self-defense in front of a largely uncaring and supercilious legislature who in many ways could not care less about them. Meanwhile, state Republicans caucused and called conferences supporting the efforts of these dear people. However, when all the dust settled one equally sickening issue remained: The government of the state of Connecticut continues to take your money and throw it into the street. And the arrogance and disdain from the political class towards the unwashed masses regarding this issue continually reaches steroidal proportions. 

And in this latest fiscal boondoggle, no politician comes out a winner. But you, the taxpayer, continually come out the loser.

Therefore, welcome to the “Connecticut Community Fund 2030”.

What is the Connecticut Community Fund 2030? 

Depending on what you want it to be, it is yet another bureaucratic dive for your wallet that creates even more economic misery for you, the Connecticut Taxpayer. The supposed purpose of the  "Community Investment Fund 2030 (CIF) is a Connecticut state-run program established in 2021 (codified in CGS § 32-285a) designed to foster economic and community development in historically underserved and distressed municipalities."  (https://portal.ct.gov/communityinvestmentfund/about-the-fund). This fund started in 2021 and works through the should-be-abolished and failed Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development to give free money to  throw to his or her district like a gouty ward heeler. 

This fund is a bipartisan project. At the onset, it was intended to be funded for a mere $767 million dollars in its lifespan with a series of aspirational and/or questionable projects that you did not vote on, and regardless of how you may feel about it. But no one really gives a tinker’s dam about what you may think. And so what? Are we not supposed to pay attention to $767 million dollars to Connecticut taxpayers?  Especially since no amount of Taxpayer’s monies thrown any of the state's nonprofits/historically distressed communities and never-ending stream of "nonprofits" ever solves any of the massive social and economic problems of the state.

Here is some of the projects the Connecticut Community Fund has funded so far (https://portal.ct.gov/communityinvestmentfund/about-the-fund?language=en_US) : 

INTERNATIONAL HARTFORD - $1,137,514

The request of CIF funds is towards the construction of a year-round public food truck court for ethnic food vendors. The project will renovate an existing 5,500 square foot property at 681 Wethersfield Avenue. The facility will have both outdoor patios and indoor dining, a breakfast café with free community Wi-Fi, a community performance space for activities and programming, a lounge with music as well as outdoor musical concerts, a co-working kitchen space, cold and dry storage, graywater, and grease disposal – all in one environment, increasing efficiency for food truck operations.

CITY OF BRIDGEPORT - $3,500,000

“Civic Block” CIF funds will aid the completion of the East End development known as Civic Block. Funds will be used to complete construction to create 35,000 ft2 of retail space, including a grocery store in a neighborhood that is currently a food desert.

This project is interesting as there continues not to be much progress on the project. Does anyone have an accounting of money spent to date? Does anyone realize how much money has been given freely to Bridgeport to solve the never-ending years of fiscal theft, fiscal negligence, fiscal ineptness, and fiscal lies of all of their supposed economic development? Does anyone in Bridgeport feel they will benefit from a grocery store? 

Moreover, is there any starvation, scurvy, or beriberi taking place in this Bridgeport “food desert” to date?

TOWN OF HAMDEN - $5,400,000

“Arts & Cultural Center / Middle School Demolition”

This CIF award will enable the re-development of a former middle school that currently stands as a blighted, vacant structure within an Environmental Justice Block Group. CIF grant funds will go towards demolition and abatement of the structure, and community planning activities for the creation of a Community Campus on the site. 

Hamden, formerly a highly desirable town, now has a large theft and crime problem. Instead of worrying about "Environmental justice" maybe Hamden should worry about "Justice for victims of Hamden's never ending crime problem"? 

Or possibly how about some property tax relief or Kevlar shields for the bullet-ducking Hamden taxpayers?

Planned Parenthood of Southern New England, New London $ 2,020,096

New London Relocation PPSNE health centers promote the availability of high-quality family planning and reproductive services. PPSNE proposes to use CIF funds to renovate and expand the property at 467 Ocean Avenue in New London to become the new home of PPSNE’s New London health center. 

Connecticut is now such an economic wasteland that abortion is now considered to be a community and economic development activity.

YWCA Hartford Region, Inc., Hartford $ 1,500,000

Center for Racial Justice & Gender Equity YWCA is committed to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting justice, freedom, and dignity for all. YWCA proposes HVAC system enhancements as part of renovating its 50-year-old Hartford building to establish The Center for Racial Justice and Gender Equity. 

Hartford has a a serious theft and crime problem. Instead of worrying about "Racial justice" maybe Hartford should worry about "Justice for victims of Hartford's never ending crime problem"? But "Racial Justice" of course is a much higher priority than resident safety.

Make no mistake in that Connecticut is a hotly divided state between the aggressors and enablers vs. the aggrieved and besieged. But when it comes to pork-filled and quasi-useless-feed-the-monkey type spending, both sides of the aisle unify to incinerate your tax money in the street while they are calling for financial policing and ending waste, fraud, and abuse. My friend and colleague Tony De Angelo did a great job of explaining this very thing on the March 12 edition of THIRTY WITH TONY TRUE NORTH THIRTY WITH TONY MARCH 12 2026

But nothing ever seems to change in the Grand Nutmeg State, The list is endless for what is being spent on top of the $28 billion dollars yearly in the Connecticut State Budget. Kindly consider that the state has $100-150 billion dollars in short- and long-term debt along with unfunded liabilities before this latest jaunt into Community Investment. But no one in this history of Connecticut politics past or present ever seems to get that. The formula for insolvency and failure continues:  Keep throwing money out the window to a should-be-abolished agency with the result always leaving Connecticut at the bottom of the country in most economic categories. This unmitigated fiscal horror should make every Connecticut Taxpayer's blood boil. And the same pattern is repeated, year after year. 

But in fairness to Republicans let us never ever forget the root cause of the fiscal destruction of the state. The Connecticut Community Fund 2030  is another pure overreach of a never-ending money-wasting Democrat Party ruling authority eliminating local decision-making and facilitating a socialist command top-down planning regime. And in typical Connecticut fashion, there is no transparency whatsoever with respect to this fund and in accuracy, no member of the Board has advocated for your right to the same. Of course, this usual behavioral pattern continues as the state is facing at a federal investigation of Democrat State Senator Doug McCrory and the misuse of $750,000 in funds for the now bankrupt Blue Hills Civic Association. But with business as usual, McCrory is still Deputy President Pro Tempore, Chair: Education Committee, and Vice Chair: Public health; Government Oversight. But again, what is stealing $750,000 of Connecticut Taxpayers monies given the amount that has been stolen and wasted for the past 35 years? Its just a mere bag of shells.

Omnipotent one-party Democrat rule facilitating and enabling the same, and state government with no transparency has consequences. I am confident that down the road there will be even more committees, commissions, and politically appointed- highly paid incompetent-economically illiterate state employees who will talk incoherent economic gibberish while still we see the same horrific economic results. The waste and theft of Connecticut Taxpayers monies needs to stop today. Hopefully, the current federal investigation into State Senator McCrory will lead to many more investigations into Connecticut State Government's corruption. For we simply cannot have enough of them. The dear and hardworking citizens of Connecticut that have been aggrieved and harmed by Connecticut, deserve nothing less. There are no winners here whatsoever, only losers. And the losers here are the poor taxpaying citizens of Connecticut.

 

Why Is 40% The Biggest Number In Connecticut?

 In the alternative universe of the once-great State of Connecticut, omnipotent Democrat One Party Rule clutches to economic failure, destruction, and confusion much like to someone exiting a burning building would clutch to a bungee rope. As a continual model for failure, the political leadership of Connecticut arrogantly hails economic bankruptcy and skyrocketing crime as progressive triumphs as they trumpet their ” care” for their people. Concurrently, President Donald Trump is aggressively moving toward a campaign of business repatriations, border security, “drill baby, drill” energy independence, and the sharpest and best tax policy I have seen in decades. But for the dogged efforts of stalwart independent journalists on social channels, Connecticut residents would have never heard about Trump Accounts, enhanced Opportunity Zones, and enhanced tax breaks for business asset purchases. Any rational person would think that Connecticut Republicans should be championing and pounding on these issues and benefits daily. Instead, we see a wan, late-to-the-dance effort in the Legislature to push the “no tax on tips, overtime and Social Security” provisions of the Trump OBBBA Act of 2025, (without mentioning the ruinous word “Trump”) and done only by public outcry as my friend and colleague Tony De Angelo was mentioning this six months ago on the Lee Elci Show, WJJF - New London, CT . With no mention of any other serious matters of tax and economic policy, we see a series of dumb and unfunny videos performed by Republicans lending no focus nor seriousness to the critical matters and benefits at hand helpful to all Connecticut citizens. But apparently, none of that matters in the grand bizzarro world of the Nutmeg State, where Democrats spin fictions, Republicans try to add humor to weak or fruitless matters while much more serious things slide, and meanwhile, over 40% of the adult-voting population of the state flounders in a tunnel of non-representation and continued aggrievement.

You may wonder why I used the figure of 40%. Forty percent is the figure of Connecticut residents that voted for Donald Trump in 2024. 40% of Connecticut residents voted for safe communities, lower taxes, (only) two sexes, cheaper energy, and financial empowerment. 40% of Nutmeggers voted against boys in girls sports and legal immigration. But close to 100% of the Connecticut State Legislature really does not give a care about any of that 40%. Presumably, it is because 40% of the population aligns themselves with a horrible individual wanting them to live free and prosper and start stock index accounts for their children. Could this selective ignorance be generated in fear, jealousy, or shame? I submit to my readers that it is a form of all three of the above.Therefore, the operative question then becomes: If 40% of the voting population of Connecticut wants and believes the policies of President Trump, why is there never an effort to seek out and develop another 11% of what would be these unwashed masses?

Imagine a Country on fire. Imagine a state like Connecticut on fire. Can you imagine if President Trump was actually allowed to govern without his two hands tied behind his back all the time?  Can you imagine if the Democrat Party, who is currently in the minority on a federal level, actually tried to govern with the President rather than spew their never-ending hatred for the man on a daily basis? Can you imagine what would happen if our stoic Connecticut Republican party acted like Republicans and applied themselves to sound economic and tax principles and policies rather than a new generation of “Ned Lamont Goes To Nashville” videos? It really would be the dawn of the Golden Age of America.

The key to victory, especially in Connecticut, in the November election, is to reinforce that 40% of Connecticut Trump voters and cultivate 11% more. The gags and the videos are useless. Policies will drive this election. And the many successful policies of President Trump should primarily be communicated to voters on a daily basis. True Republican policy changes have historically created an avenue of positive change for our society and economy that will fuel economic expansion overall. Instead of making gags, this should be the Republican Job #1, every day, in every way.

The campaign for state offices should not be an automatic write off for the Republicans, yet this election is starting off as it has normally for many years now. As a gross insult to the 40% of state voters affirming the Trump principles, over thirty state office seats were unopposed by Republicans in 2024. This gap  facilitates the plan of the corrupt Democrat Party to ram “emergency legislation” down the throats of Connecticut Taxpayers while crying that such egregious conduct is necessary because the Republicans hold up critical pieces of legislation such as earmarks to Democrat political cronies, biased public education policies, and much more bad legislation. It is the same rhetoric that the Connecticut Democrat Party throws out without a bit of questioning by the obedient state run and paid-for media. But operatively, Connecticut never gets out of its "emergencies" and or its ongoing "crises". It is still in a horrific economic recession with no economic growth. It is one of the highest cost of living states in the country with high state and local taxes, high insurance costs, high electric rates, and high transportation costs. It continues to have a poor business outlook unless you are Ned and Annie Lamont or you fall high up on the Great Administrative State Food Chain. But these issues just never get addressed and have not been addressed for 36 years as Connecticut still is stuck in a perpetual economic recession that it can never extricate itself from.

Of course, anything Connecticut has tried has skidded right to failure. Therefore, what would be lost if Connecticut Republicans led the charge to a bold and different approach? Why couldn’t Trump-like policies that attack some of the many issues that are impacting Connecticut be part of the campaign in the upcoming election? Why couldn't economic issues be front and center of this campaign. For example, are there any solutions whatsoever being offered to the crushing Connecticut state debt? Why does Connecticut spend so much and still have so much debt? Why are people continuing to leave Connecticut, especially young college graduates? How many more Stanley Black And Decker’s will be lost due to the endemic and inept business practices of Connecticut and its leaders? Isn't the "affordability" crisis a making of poor economic policies by the Democrat Party with years of gross fiscal mismanagement? Isn’t “affordability” a direct coefficient of “energy prices?” Has any Connecticut politician ever mentioned that critical coefficient to you? I am happy that you now know.

A logical economic and social plan can end Connecticut's Democrat Party omnipotent one-party rule. A promotion of strict economic policies of cutting state spending, a Citizen-DOGE like state office to eliminate fraud and waste in state government, full Freedom-of-Information of all entities, cuts in both personal and business taxes, a real anti-drug program to get drugs off the streets and eliminate the profitability of illegal sales, a legal system that takes hardened criminals off the streets and makes the entire state safe, and lastly the end of financial support for those illegal immigrants that crowd the state with deportations would dramatically create a bright future for Nutmeggers present and future.  A strong platform would gain traction in the state and show leadership that is sorely lacking in the state with the incoherent Democrat failed programs that are force fed to the masses and create a rebranding of Republicans which they have never had in any recollection of memory.

Just remember that 40% of Connecticut voters have no representation in the state, and elected office holders do not acknowledge that. Just remember that state spending increased in a 35-year period by over three hundred percentage points with roughly the same amount of population. Just remember, the cure-all issues of the Connecticut state income tax have increased over the years, and the state still has never-ending debt and unfunded liabilities. Maybe just maybe voters could have real alternatives this election and finally change the state's direction. For if not, look forward to another eight-year reign of a self-dealing fatuous King and the constant destructive pandering of his connected winners over losers.