News Analysis
Excessive Mayor’s power in the city of New Britain
by Aram Ayalon As the new 2-year elected administration in the city of New Britain is beginning, it’s important to examine the mayor’s growing power and the lack of balance between the executive and legislative branches of the city of New Britain. As has evolved in the past 20 year the mayor’s power has become […]
City Claims Late Audit Due to Staffing Shortage, “Projected” Completion on Halloween
The administration of Mayor Erin Stewart (R) claims that the city of New Britain failed to file a required audit more than a year after the close of its 2022 budget year because it was short-staffed in its finance office. Yesterday, the New Britain Progressive broke the news about a stern letter from the state […]
New Britain School Test Scores Remain Low and Behind State
At the October Board of Education meeting, the New Britain school district attempted to paint an upbeat picture of school test scores for New Britain in 2022-23 that appear to remain on a downward long-term trend and far below statewide averages. According to analysis of data from the State Department of Education, between the 2015-16 […]
Household Income of New Britain Residents Less Than Pay of Jobs Located in City
Data in a recent study by DataHaven shows household income in New Britain lags behind the pay of jobs in the city. The data raises the question about how much of the relatively higher income jobs that are located in New Britain are held by workers who reside in other towns. The study, DataHaven’s New […]
NBPD Publishes Arrest Log Online After FOI Controversy
A July controversy over the City’s and New Britain Police’s denying access to arrest logs to the New Britain Herald without formal Freedom of Information requests has led to the New Britain Police Department (NBPD) posting a weekly arrest log online at https://pd.newbritainct.gov/safety-prevention/police-blotter. The link shows arrests made in the city for one week — […]
Republicans’ Council Slate Very Different From Current Council
New Britain Republicans have endorsed a very different slate of candidate from their current Council members, with many incumbents out — and rumors circulating that some incumbents and other Republicans may challenge as independent candidates. Only six of the twelve incumbent Republicans on the City Council were endorsed for re-election, out of a possible ten […]
State School Aid to New Britain Up 56% Since 2012; Grant Will Reach $115.5 Million By 2025
“Flat Funding” Claim By Mayor Stewart Is Contradicted By The Actual Numbers By John McNamara The new state budget adopted last month brought increases in Educational Cost Sharing (ECS) funds to the New Britain School District over the next two years. The $11.9 million increase approved by the legislature and Governor will bring the total […]
Your Water Bill: New Britain Pays Highest By Income To Mattabassett District
Census Data Shows Sewer Fees Take A Bigger Chunk Out of NB Residents’ Wallets Staff Reports| News Analysis NEW BRITAIN – The City Council received an annual budget report at its May 24th meeting from the Mattabassett District which shows how much the residents of each member city and town pay to the regional sewer […]
Study Ranks Personal “Wellbeing” of New Britain Residents Low
A regional study about the level of “wellbeing” in Greater Hartford communities identified New Britain residents as having an especially low rate of “personal wellbeing”. New Britain was found to have a far lower Personal Wellbeing Index score in 2021 than the state as a whole or the Greater Hartford region, according to the Greater […]
Mayor’s Proposed Budget Will Bring 12.58% Tax Hike
Public Hearing Is April 24th; Common Council Adoption Due By June 7th Staff Reports NEW BRITAIN – Mayor Erin Stewart’s proposed $265,849,055 city budget would increase property taxes by 12.58% for the fiscal year that begins July 1st, with a 5.92% spending increase over current year expenditures. The Mayor’s General Fund Budget Book 2023-2024 Stewart’s […]