Woodbury selectmen urge state to restore Mashantucket Pequot–Mohegan grant funding to defunded towns

WOODBURY, Conn. — The Woodbury Board of Selectmen on Jan. 27 unanimously approved a resolution urging state officials to restore annual payments from the Mashantucket Pequot–Mohegan Fund to towns that have received $0 in recent years.

First Selectman Paul Zulpa presented the motion, saying the board wants the state to “restore to 44 municipalities to their 2018 levels of funding under CGS 3-55(i)” and to develop a plan to return funding according to the formula described in recent legislative proposals. The motion was seconded and carried 3-0.

The resolution, entered into the record by Zulpa, recounts a history in which some municipalities’ grants were reduced to zero for multiple years and notes that bills such as SB 1213 and SB 858 sought to restore funding. It cites Public Act No. 23-204 as evidence that money is available in the grants fund and calls on the legislature and governor to implement a restoration consistent with CGS 3-55(i).

Selectman Karen Reddington-Hughes said the action was "long overdue," and Selectman Richard Coates questioned whether the board could issue such a resolution; Zulpa described it as the town's formal expression that the state should act.

The resolution does not bind the state to a specific budgetary appropriation; it is a formal request and local advocacy position. The board voted 3-0 to adopt it.

What happens next: the resolution asks state leaders to pursue restoration and to develop a plan; the town record does not show any direct response from state officials during the meeting.