Senator Looney Addresses Chamber After Re-Election as Senate President

HARTFORD – Today, the Connecticut State Senate re-elected Senator Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) as Senate President Pro Tempore. Senator Looney was first elected as State Representative in 1981, as 11th District State Senator in 1993, as Senate Majority Leader in 2003, and as President Pro Tempore in 2015.

Senator Looney addressed the chamber and delivered the following remarks:

Thank you, colleagues and friends.

I begin by expressing my deepest gratitude to my wife, Ellen, for her love, sound judgment, wise advice, and unwavering support throughout these 44 legislative years. To my son Michael, my daughter-in-law Becky, and my grandchildren—you are my inspiration and the foundation of my resilience and optimism. Your love and encouragement give meaning to this work.

Today, I stand before you humbled and honored to begin another term as your Senate President Pro Tempore. The Connecticut State Senate, the institution of the General Assembly, and the awesome responsibility of holding the trust of approximately 100,000 people to represent them and to legislate wisely on behalf of all the people of our state are sacred to me. To lead this great chamber for another two years is a privilege I cherish, and I pledge to continue serving with the same dedication, purpose, and sense of being blessed that I felt when first taking the oath as 96 District State Representative in 1981, as 11th District State Senator in 1993, when first chosen by my Democratic colleagues as Senate Majority Leader in 2003, and by the entire body as President Pro Temp in 2015.

Over the last decade, the Connecticut State Senate has been a force for progressive vision and action. Together, we have enacted policies that have transformed lives:

-We implemented Paid Family and Medical Leave, ensuring no one has to choose between an essential paycheck and tending to a seriously ill loved one.

-We raised the minimum wage from $10.10 per hour in 2019 to now, with annual indexing, $16.35, lifting countless families out of desperate poverty and restoring dignity to work.

-We expanded paid sick days so that all employees can access a basic level of support to care for themselves.

-We championed second chances, reforming our criminal justice system to offer hope and opportunity to those seeking to rebuild their lives.

-We expanded education and workforce development investments, better equipping our people to thrive in a rapidly evolving economy.

-We modified the private college and hospital PILOT formula to create greater equity and target need

-We provided protections for customers and patients against the abusive practices of health insurance companies and large pharmaceutical companies and will continue this ongoing battle in 2025.

-We have significantly invested in programs to support the youngest in our state. This year we must make a major interventional commitment to providing high quality affordable early childhood education to every child in our state to guarantee that children are prepared to thrive in Kindergarten rather than starting behind and often remaining behind, resulting in alienation from school, behavioral problems, truancy, contact with juvenile court, early dropout and then criminal acts and/or membership in the growing cohort of disengaged 16 to 24 year olds who are neither employed nor in school.

-We have made modest progress in protections for renters and other housing initiatives. However, in 2025 we must also make a breakthrough in the creation of more housing in order to reduce rising costs. The need is both in urban areas that need population growth to be healthy and vital and in those suburban and rural towns who tend to see Connecticut merely as a collection of 169 insular municipalities existing in close proximity to each other.

These are not just abstract policies; they are critical needs met and promises fulfilled, embodying the values we hold dear—compassion, fairness, and opportunity for all.

In this past election, the people of Connecticut delivered a resounding message. They entrusted Democrats with the largest majority in the State Senate in 38 years—a mandate as historic as it is humbling. This overwhelming support is a testament to the tangible results of our governance.

Our policies have strengthened Connecticut’s economy, expanded access to quality healthcare, enhanced educational opportunities, and addressed the pressing challenges of our time—from climate change to public safety. This expanded majority is a call to action, a collective charge to build upon our successes and to lead with boldness and urgency.

While this chamber now boasts a historically strong Democratic majority, let us not forget that our most enduring achievements have always come from working together. Bipartisanship is not a relic of the past but a guiding principle for our future. To my Republican colleagues, your perspectives and good faith contributions to sustaining state government as effective, accountable, and sufficiently empowered are always welcome.

As we embark on this legislative session, let us remember in the words of George Bernard Shaw: “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” Let us lead—not wearing partisan blinders but as public servants dedicated to the common good.

To my colleagues, both new and returning, I urge you to seize this moment with confidence and hope. Push the boundaries of what is possible. Challenge yourselves and one another to think creatively, act courageously, and legislate with wisdom and compassion.

The challenges we face are beyond the powers of the timid and tentative. As the great Harlem Renaissance writer Zora Neale Hurston said, “There are years that ask questions and years that answer.” 2025 is one of those years that demand answers. How will we deal with possible massive federal funding cuts to states that may place additional pressure on our Budget Reserve Fund and our fiscal guardrails? How will we respond to the galloping pace of advances in artificial intelligence? The potential for an avalanche of misinformation and deception grows exponentially. As Jonathan Swift said in 1710 “Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it.”

Let us continue to build a state that believes in human potential, honors every generous dream, and dismisses no one as unworthy. That is the best tradition of the Connecticut State Senate.

May our deliberations and achievements in this term bring renewed hope to the people of our state in these troubled times and in doing so be an inspiring light to the nation.

Thank you.