ANSONIA – The new state budget includes a section that forces city officials to appear in front of an advisory committee to review finances.
Mayor David Cassetti said the appearances are not necessary and that the provision is the work of state Rep. Kara Rochelle, a Democrat who represents Ansonia and Derby. He complained no one gave city officials a head’s up.
“It’s all political, there’s no question about it,” Cassetti, a Republican, said. “I didn’t get a call from the state representative or the state senator who represents this district, saying ‘Hey, they’re talking about putting you in an oversight state.’”
Cassetti was referring to Rochelle and state Sen. Jorge Cabrera, a Democrat who represents Ansonia in the state Senate.
Cabrera could not be reached for comment on Wednesday (June 4). Rochelle did not directly answer if she was responsible for the action.
However, Rochelle issued a 368-word statement saying, in part, that the appearances in front of the Municipal Finance Advisory Committee (MFAC) will be good for the community.
“The Municipal Financial Advisory Commission (MFAC) is not a state takeover — it’s a support system designed to engage municipalities that are struggling to maintain healthy fiscal management and help them create a plan to get back on track before more serious damage is done,” Rochelle said.
Rochelle’s statement raised questions about the Cassetti’s administration’s decision last year to sell the city’s Water Pollution Control Authority to Aquarion for $41 million.
“Where did the money go? My constituents have been reaching out to me, deeply concerned about the city’s fiscal management and seeking state oversight to get objective answers,” Rochelle said.
Cassetti said the public already has that information as explained in the proposed city budget.
Ansonia’s looming MFAC appearance was first reported by Connecticut Insider Investigator, a nonprofit news site that is a project of the Yankee Institute but independently managed.
What Is MFAC?
The Municipal Finance Advisory Committee is an 8‑member panel of municipal finance experts. Its members include municipal finance directors, accountants, and lawyers.
The committee provides guidance to municipalities struggling with finances. The City of Derby, with its history of budgeting mistakes and bad financial forecasts, has been appearing in front of MFAC since 2020. MFAC members review Derby financial statements, ask questions about Derby budgets, staffing in the finance office, and pay close attention to any issues found in independent audits.
Derby’s appearances were voluntary – until MFAC, concerned they weren’t getting straight answers from former Mayor Rich Dziekan’s administration, voted in August 2023 to give Derby a ‘tier 1’ designation. That made the appearances mandatory.
The language in the just-passed state budget, automatically makes Ansonia a “tier 1.”
“Tier 1” communities that continue to struggle can be referred to the Municipal Accountability Review Board, which gives the state more power over fiscal decisions.
Ansonia Was Targeted, Republicans Say
Cassetti administration officials said the new MFAC information was hidden inside the state budget without their knowledge. They said the wording of the provision is such that it only applies to the City of Ansonia.
The provision mandates that municipalities with populations between 15,001 and 19,999 that have been distressed municipalities for 15 consecutive years must go to MFAC.
“It appears that currently only Ansonia qualifies,” according to a bill analysis from the Office of Legislative Research.
John Marini, Ansonia’s corporation counsel, said forcing the city to appear in front of a state commission without warning is an overreach.
“This isn’t just a bad precedent for Ansonia. This is a bad precedent for every city or town in the state that doesn’t want to one day be under state review and under state control, simply because they disagree with a state representative,” Marini said.
State Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria, a Republican from Seymour, agreed, calling it a “targeted attack on local control” and questioned how it was included in the budget.
“It’s troubling that it appears this change was seemingly created with a backroom deal that weaponizes the Hartford bureaucracy in contradiction to long-standing established practices using criteria based on the town’s population, income, housing, and tax base rather than any indication of trouble with the town’s municipal finances,” Klarides-Ditria said.
A spokesman for Gov. Ned Lamont said the governor will not get involved, despite Ansonia’s resistance.
“The General Assembly believed that this was the proper course of action for Ansonia, and the executive branch will follow those requirements,” said David Bednarz, the spokesman.
Marini said the city does not appear to have legal recourse, so the city will comply with the MFAC consultations.
“We see this as a very, very thinly veiled attempt to enact a grudge, to grind an axe against the mayor, coming obviously from one legislator,” Marini said, pointing to a similar bill that Rochelle introduced earlier in the legislative session.
Ansonia Is In Trouble, Democrats Say
Ansonia Democrats have been raising questions about city finances since Cassetti took office in 2013. They say the city is late this year in submitting its annual audit to the state, is not transparent in its budgeting practices, and sold the WPCA because they needed to fill holes in the budget.
“Most residents have had to watch as a major municipal asset was sold to cover budget holes, while services are being cut and jobs are being threatened,” Rochelle wrote in her statement.
“I know it is hard for David (Cassetti) to admit there is a problem, but I will always put the residents first, regardless of the political attacks that may come. Ansonia qualifies for oversight, needs to get its fiscal house in order, and the residents deserve transparency,” she said.
Rochelle and Cassetti have both told The Valley Indy in the past that they aren’t on speaking terms with each other. Cassetti challenged Rochelle for her House seat last year, losing by about 900 votes.
Dave Hannon, the chair of the Ansonia Democratic Town Committee, said the Cassetti administration should welcome the oversight.
“It’ll be good for the state to take a look to see what the issues are. I think it’s positive, and as the Republicans love to say when it’s about other people, if they’ve got nothing to hide, there shouldn’t be a problem at all,” Hannon said.
Cassetti said the city’s finances are in good shape, and that there’s no need for the state to step in.
“You’re talking about a AA- bond rating, you’re talking about a fund balance of seven to nine million dollars, and we’re on oversight? What did we do wrong?” Cassetti asked.
The Valley Indy also reached out to state Rep. Mary Welander for comment but did not hear back by deadline. Josh Shuart, president of the Ansonia Board of Aldermen, said he would comment after Ansonia passes a budget.
Note: after this article was published, there was an attempt in the legislature late Wednesday to remove the MFAC provision. The effort failed. Read about it here and here.
