Republican State Senate Republican President Pro Tempore Len Fasano is running to retain his seat in District 34, which he has held since 2003. During his time in the Senate, Fasano is most proud of his accomplishments in both the economic and health care sectors.

“Most recently, the biggest accomplishment is putting together to back-to-back bipartisan budgets for the first time in Connecticut’s history, during the most divisive time, I would argue, in politics,” Fasano said. “Senator [Martin] Looney [D-11] and I agree that we have to move Connecticut forward. It can’t get caught up in this divisiveness.”

Many of Fasano’s proudest achievements revolve around issues of health care. In the past, he says he has supported bills to bring medical costs down.

“We have to go back and still manipulate that health care to make it better,” he said. “Competition is good and right now the monopoly we have with hospitals is a little scary to me, both in terms of market health and patient care.”

One of Fasano’s top priorities going forward in the legislature would be to continue to grow the Connecticut economy.

“I think we have to continue on with where we left off last budget and really turn this economy around,” he said.

“[Wealthy taxpayers are] leaving because Connecticut used to be a place where the wealthy could come, pay heavy taxes, and still it was less than New York and Boston and Massachusetts,” Fasano said. “Now [taxes are] equal to…or greater than our surrounding areas.”

As part of this year’s budget, the state has included spending and bonding caps as well as phasing the estate gift tax exemption up to $5 million and increasing the numbers of residents whose social security income is exempt from state taxes in 2018.

“We did that to keep the retirees here, so people don’t leave,” Fasano said.

He is also concerned with the direction of the Department of Children and Families (DCF).

“DCF is out of control, it’s very sad,” Fasano said. “I think we need more DCF oversight. More children have passed—died—under this commissioner in a short period of time than any other commissioner in the history of the state.”

Fasano believes that a lack of background checks and other failures have led to more children being placed in unsafe households, resulting in deaths throughout the state of Connecticut. Fasano gave strong support to a bill, vetoed by Governor Dannel Malloy in February, that would have instituted a more independent oversight council for the DCF.

“We need an oversight committee that is not staffed by a governor’s appointments—Republican or Democrat, I don’t care,” Fasano said. “It cannot be controlled by one party and it cannot be controlled by the commissioner.”

Fasano does not support the implementation of taxes as a solution to the state’s infrastructure problem.

“I would look forward to pressing [House Republicans’ transportation plan] Prioritize Progress, which is a way to put in over $70 billion over 30 years in transportation. No new taxes, no new tolls,” Fasano said.

Fasano thinks that the questions of placement of tolls and the charge per mile would make the implementation of tolls too expensive for business owners and not feasible in the state.