New Havener Russell being sworn in.
(Updated) Erick Russell raised his right hand Wednesday, took the oath to be the state’s new treasurer — and already found himself grappling with the first scandal of the second Lamont administration.
Russell was sworn in as state treasurer along with other constitutional officers during an inauguration ceremony held at the armory in Hartford.
He became the first New Havener in nearly four decades to hold one of the state’s elected constitutional offices. He also entered the fray of a red-hot debate in Hartford over political power and closing the racial wealth gap.
Now in office, Russell — a Westville resident, former Democratic state party vice-chair, and lawyer specializing in government bond issuances — is the nation’s first Black openly gay state official. He is also the first New Havener to hold a state constitutional office since Henry “Hank” Parker retired from the treasurer position in 1986.
His swearing in took place as one of his predecessor’s signature accomplishments is in limbo, as revealed by an explosive investigative report published by the CTmirror’s Katy Golvala and Ginny Monk on Jan. 1.
That debate centers on the CT Baby Bonds program, an initiative that would see the state invest money on behalf of children born into poor families and then make that money available to them once they turn 18 years old. The state treasurer’s website describes the program as “a racial equity, anti-generational poverty, economic growth bill … designed to narrow the wealth gap and spur long-term economic growth for Connecticut’s economy.” It has already been passed by the state legislature, and has earned national political attention and praise.
The CTmirror report revealed that the program has been delayed in part because of a behind-the-scenes fight between the governor’s and treasurer’s offices over political power and over how baby bonds will be funded. Private Lamont administration text messages and emails obtained by the Mirror showed top officials ridiculing Russell’s support for the program and predicting he will have trouble seeing it enacted. (See more below.)
On Thursday morning, Russell told the Independent in a phone interview that he will keep pushing to make the CT Baby Bonds program a reality now that he has taken office. “I still remain committed to getting baby bonds implemented in Connecticut,” he said. “I look forward to working with the governor and the legislature and stakeholders across the state to bring that to fruition.”
Russell said his office and the governor’s office should be able to start new conversations “with a clean slate” about how to get this program started now that he has formally assumed the role of treasurer. “Our goal is to work to have baby bonds funded in this next budget so we can start on schedule” on July 1, he said.
“I’m really coming in looking to work with everyone involved to make this happen,” he added. “I’m very open to different ideas to how we get there. … I’ve stepped into this role with responsible fiscal management as my top priority. I absolutely believe that this program can be achieved.”
In a phone interview with the Independent on Wednesday, Russell’s new spokesperson, Tyler Van Buren, also emphasized that the new treasurer plans to work to make the CT Baby Bonds program actually happens.
“He does support baby bonds,” Van Buren said. “It will be part of our legislative agenda. The policy goals that baby bonds are set to achieve — of leveling the playing field, closing the wealth gap, especially for kids from backgrounds that might not have had those opportunities — are all things that Erick supports.”
As for negotiating with Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration to actually get the program implemented, Van Buren said, “We’ll see where these conversations go. It’s an open-door policy. … Nothing that’s worth doing is easy.”
After a campaign marked by Democratic unity and mutual agreement among top statewide candidates, Russell now faces a sooner-than-expected challenge in which his public stances differ with the actions and perspective of some of his party’s leaders at the Capitol.
With his husband Chris Lyddy by his side, Russell took the oath of office as administered by state Supreme Court Justice Andrew McDonald on Wednesday.
“Do you solemnly swear that you will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Connecticut … and that you will faithfully discharge according to law the duties of the Office of Treasurer to the best of your abilities?” McDonald asked.
I do, Russell replied.
The state treasurer is one of six statewide constitutional offices, and is responsible for overseeing Connecticut’s nearly $45 billion in pension and trust fund assets. The treasurer also handles unclaimed property, oversees the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET) college savings plan, and sits on government and quasi-public boards like the state airport authority.
Over the course of 2022, Russell — who was born and raised in New Haven — emerged after a crowded Democratic convention and contested primary to become the party’s nominee to replace outgoing State Treasurer Shawn Wooden, who decided not to run for a second four-year term. Russell then defeated Republican challenger Harry Arora in November’s general election.
“Early in life, my parents instilled in me the idea that through compassion and hard work and strong values, that my opportunities were boundless and that I could help shape the world around me, making it a better place. Mom, dad, thank you,” Russell said at Wednesday’s inauguration ceremony.
He concluded his brief remarks by thanking “the people of Connecticut. You have my absolute commitment that I will work every day to shape this state in a way that represents our values and that also reflects our limitless opportunities as a state.”
Mirror Exposé Uncovers Power, Funding Dispute
Just three days prior to Russell being sworn into office, the CTmirror published its investigation into why CT Baby Bonds has still yet to begin.
In that article, the CTmirror revealed that the governor’s office has aggressively worked behind the scenes to delay the implementation of the program.
The program’s initial start date was July 1, 2021. The state legislature then voted to push it back to July 1, 2023. According to the Mirror’s reporting, even that new expected start date is up in the air because of political fighting between the treasurer’s and governor’s offices over how exactly the program would be funded — specifically in regards to an “automatic authorization” that would allow the program to bypass the governor-controlled state bond commission.
Russell is not quoted in the Mirror’s article, but is mentioned by name a few times.
The Mirror reported that, at least publicly, the governor’s office is open to finding a way to implement the baby bonds program. “We’re not making any formal decision yet as the office is waiting to begin conversations with the incoming treasurer,” gubernatorial spokesperson Anthony Anthony told the Mirror for that article.
The Mirror then reported that Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)-obtained text messages between the governor’s then-Chief of Staff Paul Mounds and the state’s then-Comptroller Natalie Braswell revealed a determination to stall the program.
The article includes a screenshot of a text message that Mounds sent Braswell on May 7. That text message included a screenshot from a New Haven Independent article about Russell winning the party’s endorsement at the Democratic convention in Hartford and claiming then that he would support baby bonds.
The Mirror reports Braswell as replying to Mounds by text message: “Lol @ baby bonds we’ll fix that.”
On Wednesday, treasurer spokesperson Van Buren stressed that the new treasurer — only a few hours into his new job — is committed to making the baby bonds program a reality.
“I do think the values of doing it are shared by most people in the legislature and policymakers across Connecticut,” Van Buren said, “to give kids a fair opportunity to start addressing some of these long-term problems” related to the racial wealth gap.
In one respect, the annual $50M expenditure is only about 0.25% of the annual budget. On the other hand, the extremely generous pension benefits given to state employees has ballooned our state debt to about 2nd in the nation per capita and one of the highest as a percentage of per capita GDP.
Something has to give because our population is shrinking and we're quite near the bottom of the list for states GDP growth.