Hartford Business Journal

4 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JULY 14, 2025 BIZ BRIE FS Employers now face fines for not enrolling employees in CT retirement savings program A new state law imposes fines of up to $1,500 on employers who fail to enroll their eligible employees in the state's retirement savings program. Senate Bill 1221, now Public Act 25-30, took effect July 1, and made several changes to the Connecticut Retirement Security Program, known as MyCTSavings. The program was created by the state legislature in 2016, and fully launched in 2022. MyCTSavings provides a Roth individual retirement account (IRA) for any employee who isn't offered a retirement savings plan by their employer. To qualify, an employer must have a minimum of five employees, at least five of whom are paid more than $5,000 per year. The Office of the State Comptroller, which administers MyCTSavings, said that 7,518 businesses have enrolled 32,772 employees, allowing them to save more than $45.8 million through the program. The new law creates a notice requirement and financial penalty for noncompliant employers. After three notices of noncompliance, employers with five or more workers can now be assessed a civil penalty ranging from $500 to $1,500. Lamont signs bill allowing state to cut some health carrier rate increases A bill that allows the state insur- ance commissioner to reduce some health insurers' rate increases was signed into law by Gov. Ned Lamont. Senate Bill 10, now Public Act 25-94, was overwhelmingly approved by both chambers of the state legislature. The comprehensive act includes sections addressing compliance with mental health parity requirements, prohibiting insurers from requiring the use of step therapy for certain prescription drugs and prohibiting insurers from imposing arbitrary limits on reimbursement for general anesthesia. Under one section of the act, begin- ning on Jan. 1, 2027, the insurance commissioner will be allowed to reduce a health carrier's individual or small employer group health insurance rate request by up to 2 percentage points, if the carrier's "average approved rate increase exceeded the state's health- care cost growth benchmark in each of the two most recent years for which benchmark data is available," it states. The state's healthcare benchmark initiative sets annual healthcare cost growth targets for five-year periods. On June 9, the state Office of Health Strategy released a report that proposed a benchmark target of 2.8% growth for each of the next five years. CT economy shrank nearly 1% in 1Q Connecticut's economy contracted during the first quarter of 2025, mirroring the performance of the U.S., according to new data from the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis. Connecticut's economy decreased at a 0.9% annualized pace in the first quarter, compared to a 0.5% decrease nationally, BEA data shows. Connecticut's economy grew by 1.8% in the fourth quarter of last year, and 2.6% for all of 2024. GDP is the market value of goods and services produced by the labor and property located in a state, and is considered the most comprehen- sive measure of economic activity. Real GDP decreased in 39 states in the first quarter of 2025, with the percent change ranging from 1.7% at an annual rate in South Carolina to -6.1% in Iowa and Nebraska, BEA data shows. Connecticut's 0.9% decline was ranked 27th among U.S. states. During the first quarter, every New England state's economy shrank, led by Maine, which contracted by 1.2%. The construction sector had the sharpest first-quarter decline in Connecticut, shrinking by 0.28%, followed by education services (-0.27%) and retail trade (-0.25%), BEA data shows. State Comptroller Sean Scanlon oversees the state's MyCTSavings program. HBJ Photo | Steve Laschever West Hartford | Shelton 860-561-4000 CLAconnect.com ©2025 CliftonLarsonAllen LLP. CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP) is an independent network member of CLA Global. See CLAglobal.com/disclaimer. Investment advisory services are offered through CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor. NUMBERS. PEOPLE. It takes balance. ™ Biz Briefs Continued from page 3

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