By Jude Toohey
Orange Republican Town Committee
Jude Toohey
I would like to kick off this column by celebrating the outstanding performance of the US Olympic teams. Every athlete competed with heart and demonstrated tremendous national pride. A heartfelt congratulations to all of them – they have made us all proud.
As I reflect on the past month, it has been a wild ride weather-wise: heavy snowstorms, biting cold snaps, brief thaws and now March is kicking off with rain and possible snow showers. It reminds me of my childhood, when endless snowfalls meant neighborhood kids bundling up to build forts and igloos, playing outside for hours on end. Those were simpler times, brimming with joyful memories.
But simplicity feels like a distant memory in today’s world, where worries pile up relentlessly. Here in Orange, our Republican leadership treats the town’s budgets like their own hard-earned cash – because it is, just as much as it is ours. They work tirelessly to keep Orange safe, affordable and a wonderful place to live and raise families.
Unfortunately, we cannot say the same for the leadership in Hartford, where one-party Democratic rule reigns supreme with a supermajority that steamrolls legislation without meaningful input from the taxpayers footing the bill.
Take House Bill 8002, for example. This bill, passed under emergency certification during a special session in November, bypassed public hearings and robust debate, effectively shutting out citizens and local officials. While it builds on a previous housing bill vetoed by Gov. Ned Lamont earlier in the year, this “compromise” version still centralizes power in Hartford at the expense of towns like ours.
On the surface, HB 8002 sounds appealing – promising to boost housing growth and help low-income families afford homes, much like the existing 8-30g law. But dig deeper, and it is clear this is just another tool for developers to sidestep local zoning rules while creating a new state agency to oversee it all.
This is not about genuine affordability; it is about stripping away local freedoms. The bill mandates towns create “housing growth plans” and allows developers to appeal directly to the state if they do not get their way, overriding community decisions on what gets built and where.
It could strain our police and fire departments, overload schools and permit high-rise developments that clash with our suburban character. Worse, it is not optional – towns must comply or face penalties.
With each new state mandate like this, we lose more control over our own backyards. When politicians claim, “this will help you,” it is time to be skeptical.
What’s particularly galling is how Democratic representatives pushed this through despite the obvious flaws. In the House, the bill passed 90-56, with the vast majority of yes votes coming from Democrats, who hold the supermajority. In the Senate, it was even more partisan: a 24-10 vote where every single Democrat (including our local Sen. James Maroney) voted in favor, while all Republicans opposed it. Local Democratic House members like MJ Shannon (117th District) and Mary Welander (114th District) also supported this power grab, prioritizing Hartford’s agenda over the voices of their constituents in Orange.
These Democrats tout HB 8002 as a win for affordability. But look at the evidence: cities already overwhelmed by unchecked development experience skyrocketing costs, infrastructure strain and diminished quality of life, without delivering truly affordable units. Critics, including the Connecticut House Republicans and analyses from outlets like the CT Mirror, highlight how the bill adds layers of bureaucracy without guaranteeing a single new home while conflicting with existing laws and creating confusion. It is a top-down approach that ignores the real drivers of high housing costs in Connecticut, like excessive regulations and taxes, which these same Democrats have failed to address.
We all support affordable housing in principle, but forcing it through heavy-handed legislation is not the solution. It is a burden on taxpayers and a threat to local autonomy. At a time when Connecticut residents are already overtaxed, this bill exemplifies Democratic overreach.
I urge you to check your elected officials’ voting records on sites like the Connecticut General Assembly’s website or LegiScan. We deserve representatives who fight for us, not against our freedoms. While Democrats may spin these laws as benevolent, read the fine print and see the real-world fallout in overdeveloped areas. It is time to hold them accountable and demand better.
I want to make one thing crystal clear: neither I nor anyone else opposes truly affordable housing. We all want families in Orange and across Connecticut to have access to decent, attainable homes. However, the new housing law mirrors past affordable housing regulations that sound promising but often fail in practice. The state bureaucracy expands and well-connected developers and contractors profit, while those who need help most get lost in red tape and mismatched outcomes.
Any mandate that overrides local plans of conservation and development must include real taxpayer input. After all, it is your tax dollars and your community services that bear the burden. Orange has a strong track record of pursuing thoughtful, truly affordable projects that fit our suburban character, and we should be allowed to build on that success without Hartford’s heavy-handed overreach. True affordability comes from cutting excessive regulations and taxes to encourage market-driven solutions, not from more top-down mandates that enrich a few while burdening many.
We welcome all who wish to join the Orange Republican Town Committee. There is always something special happening.