Public Hearing Testimony of
Danté Bartolomeo
Commissioner
Department of Labor
Appropriations Committee
February 26, 2025
Good afternoon, Senator Osten, Representative Walker, Senator Somers Representative Nuccio, Subcommittee Co-Chairs Senator Hartley and Representative Kavros DeGraw, and members of the Appropriations Committee. My name is Danté Bartolomeo, and I am the Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Labor (CTDOL).
It is my pleasure to speak with you today in support of Governor Ned Lamont’s proposed FY 26-27 biennial budget. This budget complements CTDOL’s mission to protect and promote the interests of Connecticut’s workforce and help workers and employers compete in the global economy. The Department accomplishes its mission by providing a variety of services that benefit both workers and employers. Among these services are administering Unemployment Insurance benefits, income support for eligible workers who are between jobs, and properly stewarding the Unemployment Trust Fund, which is paid for by Connecticut employer taxes.
We strongly support and appreciate the Governor’s budget recommendation to provide funding and nine staff positions to support Unemployment Insurance claimants and protect the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. The new positions will help staffing levels of CTDOL’s public-facing Consumer Contact Center, the one-stop for unemployment insurance filers who need timely assistance with their benefits claim. Representatives at the Consumer Contact Center received more than 900,000 inquiries in 2024 and closed just under 500,000 cases. Additionally, the new positions will support the Integrity Unit which protects employers and the Unemployment Trust Fund by identifying and stopping fraudulent unemployment claims. As many of you know, during the pandemic there was a nationwide spike in unemployment system fraud. Since March 2020, CTDOL’s Integrity Unit has stopped 431,132 fraudulent unemployment claims in Connecticut’s system and protected approximately $4.6 billion in unemployment benefits from going out the door to criminals.
In addition, CTDOL supports Governor Ned Lamont’s proposed FY 26-27 biennial budget provision for one position on CTDOL’s legal team. This position is needed to support the operation of Public Act 24-8 which expanded the state’s paid sick leave law in numerous ways and significantly expanded eligibility.
We appreciate that the Governor’s proposed budget maintains support for important programs, among them:
(1) $5.26 million in FY 2026 for CT’s Youth Employment Program, which enrolled more than 3,600 young people last year and supports job opportunities and work experiences for disadvantaged youth;
(2) $4.62 million in FY 2026 for the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative which provides no-cost training to address the hiring needs of Electric Boat, members of the Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance, and other manufacturers;
(3) $750,000 in FY 2026 for the New Haven Jobs Funnel to connect New Haven resident job applicants with employers, including for employment in construction;
(4) $712, 857 in FY 2026 for the Jobs Funnel program, supporting residents of both the North Central and Northwest workforce areas of our state; and
(5) $708,113 in FY 2026 in the Banking Fund for Opportunity Industrial Centers to coordinate programs and deliver services to individuals who have significant barriers to employment
The budget also transfers the $245,047 Veterans' Opportunity Pilot from the Department of Labor to the Department of Veterans' Affairs to better align programmatic requirements.
Currently, CTDOL is operating with 730 employees, four are Temporary Worker Retirees, 15 are Temporary Employment Security Intermittent Interviewers, and 17 are Temporary Durational staff. The Temporary staff are currently federally funded with an end date of September 30, 2025. Of these 730 employees, 261 are paid by 3 General Fund Continuing Services and the remaining are paid by federal grants and/or a combination of federal and state appropriations. Of those, there are currently 13 vacancies; six of those are paid out of State Appropriated Funds, and seven of those are paid out of federal funds.
In closing, I want to express my gratitude to all of you for your continued support for CTDOL. We deeply appreciate that you have taken the time to understand the many services that the agency provides to benefit Connecticut’s workers and employers. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. I am here with CTDOL subject matter experts and am happy to take your questions.
