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New Haven committee forwards Neighborhood Assistance Act program list to full board for state review
Summary
The Health and Human Services Committee reviewed the city's annual Neighborhood Assistance Act proposals and agreed to send the list to the full Board of Governors for a vote to meet a state deadline; no public testimony was offered.
The Health and Human Services Committee of the Board of Governors of the City of New Haven voted to close public comment and forwarded the city's annual Neighborhood Assistance Act program list to the full board for a vote to meet state filing deadlines on May 21, 2025, at the Moore Falls Chamber.
The action matters because the Neighborhood Assistance Act is a Connecticut Department of Revenue Services program that makes corporate donations eligible for state tax credits; local approval of the city's list is a required step before the state determines which projects may solicit donor contributions.
Kathy Schroeder, economic development and housing staff, presented the packet and described the program as a donation-based state tax-credit program. "This is our annual submission for the Neighborhood Assistance Act, which is a DRS program to the state of Connecticut," Schroeder said. She told the committee the city does not disburse cash through the program: "This is a donation program. It is not money. They have to go out and seek donations." Schroeder explained tax-credit levels: "If it's an energy efficient program, the corporation would get a dollar for dollar tax credit. If it's just a public service program, they'll get 60¢ on a dollar." She also said organizations receiving more than $25,000 in donations must submit post-project reports to the city.
Committee members had no substantive questions about the proposals. Chair Eli Sabin, who represents Ward 7 and presided over the meeting, asked for public testimony; no members of the public spoke. The chair then closed the public portion of the hearing by voice vote. Committee members Caroline Thomas Smith (Ward 9), Theresa Morant (Ward 12) and Frank Rodenti (Ward 15) were present for the item.
Schroeder told the committee the packet will be transmitted to the state Department of Revenue Services, which issues the formal determinations and sets limits on approved tax credits statewide. She asked the committee to move the item along immediately because "the statute requires that it's approved by July 1," and the committee agreed to discharge the item to the full Board of Governors for a vote at an early June meeting to meet that timeline.
The city's role, as described in the presentation, is administrative: reviewing submissions for completeness and confirming that listed programs qualify as community-benefit projects before forwarding them to the state. Organizations that are approved by the state may then solicit corporate donors, who apply for tax credits when they make donations.
The committee took no further substantive votes on program approvals at the meeting; the formal approval authority resides with the full Board of Governors after the state review. The committee adjourned after discharging the item for the board vote.
