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Fourteen years ago, the U.S. House of Representatives voted for the final passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), landmark legislation that extended healthcare coverage to millions of Americans. The legislation faced a long, contentious debate. Conservatives waged a propaganda war for months against the proposal. By the time it reached the floor, it was deeply unpopular; many Democrats from swing districts were actively lobbying against the bill, afraid of losing the election.
Tim Walz, then a novice Congressman, represented a conservative district, the kind of place where, in theory, a vote in support of the ACA could cost him the election. Instead of looking for an excuse to oppose the bill, however, he stated plainly that the bill was more important than getting re-elected; he was in Congress to pass legislation, not to win elections. He supported the bill, and spoke proudly about how, thanks to the ACA, millions of Americans would have access to healthcare. He was handily re-elected soon thereafter.
More than a decade later, as Governor of Minnesota, Walz faced a similar dilemma. Democrats, in 2022, regained control of both chambers of the state legislature by a one-vote margin. Moderate voices within the party called for caution and a narrow policy agenda to consolidate support. Progressive activists and legislators argued for more action. Walz opted for the latter.
In two short years, Minnesota has passed a dizzying array of pro-worker, pro-family, and pro-labor legislation. The state approved an ambitious paid family and medical leave, universal school breakfast and lunch, a massive housing bill, legislation requiring 100% clean energy by 2040 paired with permitting reform to build up green infrastructure, massive investments in transit, abortion protections, universal background checks for gun purchases, and legalized recreational weed.
As Governor, Walz has often stated that one of his goals is to make Minnesota the best state in the nation to raise children. Hence, he has taken steps to support working families every step of the way. Like a certain state in Southern New England that also claims to share the same goal, Minnesota found itself with a large budget surplus. Walz made the choice to use that additional revenue in both long-term infrastructure investments and passing an ambitious child tax credit that is not only fully refundable but that parents can choose to receive in monthly payments instead of a large lump sum.
And he did all this—again—with a one-vote Democratic majority in the Minnesota state senate.
Part of Governor Walz’s success comes from the fact that his state had divided government for many years, and there was a large backlog of pro-worker, pro-family legislation in the pipeline ready to pass. Connecticut, after all, passed paid family and medical leave several years ago, and the Minnesota law looks strikingly similar. A more important factor, however, comes from a willingness to govern, and to pass legislation. Walz has been very clear that winning elections should not be the goal; you run for office to improve the lives of your constituents. The best way to do this is by delivering policy victories, using governing power to achieve policy goals.
Connecticut is a very blue state. The Democratic Party holds large supermajorities in both chambers; Governor Lamont is immensely popular and was re-elected with ease two years ago. In contrast to Minnesota, Connecticut leaders have shown little interest in adopting a bold pro-worker, pro-family agenda. Our response to a strong economy and large economic surpluses has been to claim misery, impose on ourselves overly restrictive budget constraints, and do little besides tax cuts. Meanwhile, many of the urgent issues that are making our state increasingly unaffordable for working families remain unaddressed, from an acute housing shortage to even more expensive childcare, outdated infrastructure, and rising energy costs.
Connecticut doesn’t have the years of inaction that Minnesota experienced up to 2022 that would justify the incredible flurry of legislation in that state, that is for sure. But we have many issues that need to be fixed, many underfunded programs, and many families are struggling to make ends meet. We do have the resources to pass and implement universal free meals in schools, create a child tax credit, expand access to healthcare for immigrant children, and make childcare available to all children in the state. Not even looking at the budget, we could pass predictable scheduling or wage theft legislation or look at all kinds of measures to build more housing of any kind in our state.
Sure, some of these measures might attract some criticism. Lawmakers might have a slightly harder time seeking re-election, and we might have to hire some additional state workers, spend some money, or (gasp) build some housing in somebody’s backyard. By doing so, however, we could also ensure that more working families in our state have good jobs, children are better fed and healthy, there is more access to opportunity, more prosperity for all, and even lower rents and more people moving to our wonderful state.
Governing to try to solve problems might be harder than claiming we don’t have money for anything or endlessly caving to any special interest that complains a bit too loudly, sure. But that’s why we are here. Let’s learn from Walz and the Minnesota legislature and make Connecticut the best state for working families in the country.