By state law each of Connecticut’s 169 municipalities must fund all of its public services (education, public safety, road maintenance, etc…) solely through property taxes. The result: the average property tax bill in Hartford is roughly seven times higher than in Sharon, while median income in Hartford is roughly a third as much. There is wide agreement that this is unjust and unsustainable, yet no meaningful reform has passed since 1972.

The legislature has struggled to come together to improve this system, but maybe Connecticut citizens can. The Connecticut Citizens’ Assembly will convene 100 randomly selected residents - a microcosm of Connecticut across key demographics- to learn, deliberate, and pass recommendations directly to State Comptroller Sean Scanlon and a legislative hearing.

Learn more about the assembly and sign up for the newsletter here: https://ct-citizens-assembly.org/ !

Alongside the Assembly, this Consultation opens the conversation to every resident of the state. This Consultation will run from May 13th 2026 to June 21st.

Our objective is to surface the ideas, priorities, and trade-offs that Connecticut residents actually want their leaders to consider and to present a report of these proposals to the 100-person Assembly. The Assembly members will then consider the report, alongside other forms of expert testimony or evidence (like in a jury) to inform the recommendations they pass to the State Comptroller and the state legislature.

Any Connecticut resident can help shape the future of the tax system in Connecticut. This consultation is an opportunity to cut through the political polarization plaguing our politics and contribute to common sense ideas for how public services should work in Connecticut.

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