There is an old truth in American democracy: decisions are made by those who show up.
It is a lesson as old as the town meeting, as enduring as the letters John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail, worrying about whether the people of the new Republic would truly understand the responsibility of self-government. It is a lesson found in the words of Thomas Jefferson, who believed that “the government closest to the people serves the people best.”
It is a lesson for New Canaan to remember now.
The Connecticut legislature is in session, and the decisions being made in Hartford will have real and lasting consequences for our town. The state is debating the future of zoning, taxation, education, and energy costs. The fiscal discipline that has stabilized Connecticut’s finances for the past several years is at risk of being undone. There are proposals that would centralize power, reducing the ability of towns to govern themselves. And there are also ideas that could strengthen Connecticut’s economic footing, if they are allowed to succeed.
All of these debates demand engagement, because the future belongs to those who take part in shaping it.
There is an old habit in politics of assuming that the right people, the responsible people, will steer things in the right direction. But that is not how democracy works. It is participatory, or it withers. If history teaches us anything, it is that bad ideas flourish when good people assume they will be stopped by someone else.
Some of the most consequential decisions being weighed in Hartford concern Connecticut’s fiscal policies. The state’s budget guardrails, which have kept spending in check and prevented the return of massive deficits, are under pressure. For years, Connecticut lurched from crisis to crisis—spending beyond its means, raising taxes to compensate, then finding itself deeper in the hole the next year. Then, in 2017, the legislature—Democrats and Republicans alike—agreed to put guardrails in place.
They worked. Connecticut is more financially stable today than it has been in decades. The rainy-day fund is full. The state is paying down its debts. There have been no broad-based tax increases. The system is doing exactly what it was designed to do: prevent a return to fiscal chaos.
And yet, there are calls to loosen the rules. The argument is always the same: this time is different, this need is greater, this moment requires an exception. That argument has been made in statehouses across the country, and it has been the ruin of many. Illinois, a cautionary tale, is held hostage by its unfunded obligations.
It was Warren Buffett who said, “The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken.” Connecticut has finally broken the habit of spending what it does not have. It cannot afford to slip back.
Beyond fiscal policy, other debates in this session will directly affect New Canaan. There are proposals that would erode local zoning control, forcing towns to accept one-size-fits-all housing mandates. There are education proposals that could change how our schools are funded and managed. There are energy policies that could drive costs up or bring them down.
The people of New Canaan should engage—not with outrage or partisanship, but with the conviction that self-governance is a right worth exercising. The legislature is holding public hearings. Testimony can be submitted by email in a matter of minutes. Calls to elected officials are noted. The effort is small, the impact real.
When Alexis de Tocqueville traveled through America nearly two centuries ago, he marveled at the way small towns governed themselves. He saw in the New England town meeting the essence of what made the nation work. “Town meetings are to liberty,” he wrote, “what primary schools are to science; they bring it within the people’s reach.”
New Canaan has a voice made strong by thoughtful, engaged, well-educated, remarkable residents. We hope you use that voice to engage, educate, and enlighten Connecticut’s legislators.
