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24 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | MARCH 4, 2024 investment in transit-oriented devel- opment to help address the state's housing shortage. Annie Lamont is a successful healthcare venture capitalist and informal adviser to the governor. She is co-founder and managing partner of Stamford-based venture capital firm Oak HC/FT, where she focuses on growth equity and early- stage investments in healthcare and fintech companies. She has significant influence in the venture capital industry. Last year she was appointed to Bloomberg financial's board of directors. She was also named one of Modern Healthcare's "100 Most Influential People in Healthcare." In November, she joined a panel discussion hosted by Axios to discuss her 2024 outlook for the VC industry. "I think it's a bipolar market and that great companies will get funded and do well, and those that are good companies or highly challenged companies will either go away or they will be consolidated," she said, according to Axios. "So, I do think it's going to be a very active (2024). The 2021 money is running out by 2024, and I think there is going to be a lot of consolidation in a good way." G ov. Ned Lamont shows no signs of losing his power as the state's top political leader. He's also not eager to squander the budget stability Connecticut has enjoyed in recent years, thanks in part to bipartisan fiscal guardrails that were adopted in 2017. Lamont, a Democrat, is a supporter of the guardrails, which restrict spending and borrowing and require lawmakers to save a portion of annual state revenues. The business community also supports the guardrails, but some Demo- crats want to work around them to increase spending on higher educa- tion, social services and other areas. Despite facing pressure from his own party, Lamont in February proposed a revised, two-year $26.1 billion budget that stays within the fiscal guardrails and erases $500 million in bonded debt. It maintained steady funding in most areas, but did provide some added investment in child care and education. The former business- man-turned-politico is in his sixth year in office, where he has said one of his main priorities is promoting economic growth. Last year, he signed into law the largest income tax cut in the state's history. On the economic development front, Lamont is pushing for private Meet Connecticut's 2024 Power Players H artford Business Journal this week unveils its 2024 Power Players list, a section that highlights private- and public-sector, nonprofit, higher education, real estate and healthcare officials in Connecticut who are not only top leaders within their organizations but also of the broader business community. Power comes in a variety of forms. You can be a CEO, government leader, college president, run a nonprofit, regulate an industry or be an important cog in a highly visible project, issue or trend. HBJ's fifth annual Power 50 class was chosen and ranked by our editorial staff. This is not an awards section. We identified newsmakers and movers and shakers who are having a broad impact within the region and state. In each profile, we explain who the individuals are and why they are influential. The rankings include a mix of established players and some fresh faces. We tried to emphasize diversity in people and industries. Also, in order to keep the Power Players issue fresh, we change at least 50% of the list annually. Some deserving individuals may have dropped off the list this year after being on it for consecutive years. Our Power Players issue has become a must-read, so if you have ideas for who should be on next year's list, please let us know. We don't accept nominations, but we certainly welcome outside input. Greg Bordonaro Editor gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com 1 Ned Lamont & Annie Lamont