Santoro Challenges Menapace for 37th District House Seat
Republican Anne Santoro is challenging Democratic incumbent Nick Menapace for the 37th District state representative seat, which includes East Lyme, Salem and Montville.
If reelected, this will be Menapace's second term. He currently teaches part time at New London Adult Education. He has also served on the East Lyme Planning Commission since 2023.
Santoro has a background as an attorney and previously served on the town’s Board of Finance from 2017 to 2021. She also was the deputy first selectwomen from 2021 to 2023.
Santoro said she decided to run for state representative because she believes Connecticut needs a change in direction and that her experience in local government has prepared her to help bring that change.
“I don't believe we can keep doing the same things we are doing and expect improvement,” Santoro said.
If elected, Santoro said her priorities would include lowering the cost of living, addressing rising electricity bills, improving education funding and making state spending more efficient.
Menapace said he is running to continue to address issues affecting local families. Some of his priorities if reelected include improving state funding for public schools, adjust the state’s fiscal guardrails to allow for more equitable tax policies, increase funding for municipalities to address climate change and flooding, and helping first responders.
Housing and Development
Santoro said she supports creating more affordable housing options, but believes where and how these options are built should be controlled by local governments. She said the state should help towns through grants and other assistance instead of adding more regulations and expenses.
“We need incentives for towns to build more affordable housing,” Santoro said.
Santoro also said she is concerned about the conditions of state and federally funded housing for seniors and people with disabilities. She said the state needs to do a better job making sure those facilities are repaired and renovated. She also said development should be balanced with protecting open space, farmland and the character of towns.
Menapace said Connecticut needs to make housing more affordable and towns need to balance housing development with the cost of public services and property taxes, arguing that smart development can help communities grow their tax base.
“If we make it extraordinarily difficult to build housing, then it’s going to be more expensive,” Menapace said.
Flock
Santoro said she has concerns about Flock cameras, including residents' privacy and the security of information collected by the technology. However, she said that police departments have come to rely on the cameras as a public safety tool, and lawmakers should work to better understand how much they are used and how safe they are before deciding whether to restrict or remove them.
"If you take it away, please explain to me what that means precisely. I'm okay taking it away, but just tell me that you, as a police officer or as a department, can function without it," Santoro said.
Menapace said he has serious privacy concerns about automated license plate readers, including Flock, arguing that the cameras continuously monitor the public in hopes of catching someone doing something wrong. Menapace said lawmakers need to push for stronger rules to protect residents’ privacy and prevent companies from finding ways around existing restrictions.
“I'm uncomfortable with this thing that is constantly surveilling everything with the hope that it might catch someone who is doing something wrong," Menapace said. "I think that it is unwarranted. It is surveillance without any kind of warrant, without any kind of restriction. I think it's a slippery slope.”
Data Centers
Menapace said he wants to eliminate state tax incentives for data centers because he does not believe they provide enough long-term jobs to justify the tax breaks. While construction can bring temporary jobs, he said the state should focus on the long-term economic benefits and potential impacts on nearby communities.
He said residents should have answers about noise, electricity costs and environmental impacts before data center projects move forward.
Santoro said decisions about data center development should be made in cooperation with local officials and take into account the concerns of residents and the environment.
SNAP/ACA Cuts
Menapace said Connecticut should provide more assistance to residents affected by federal cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Affordable Care Act. In the short term, he supports increasing funding for food banks and providing direct assistance to people who lose benefits. He also supports expanding HUSKY, Connecticut’s public health insurance program, to make coverage available to more people.
Santoro said the state needs to protect its most vulnerable residents while also considering who is able to work and whether they should be expected to do so.
Pension Debt
Regarding the state's $30 billion pension debt, Menapace said Connecticut should continue paying down its pension debt but also begin putting more state money toward services that directly benefit residents. He said the state has made significant progress in reducing its debt, and should now focus more on education and other investments in communities.
Santoro said paying down Connecticut’s pension obligations and maintaining the state’s fiscal guardrails are important to keeping the state’s finances stable. She said businesses need confidence in the state’s financial position when deciding whether to open or expand in Connecticut.
Immigration
Santoro said she believes immigration enforcement falls under federal authority and that Connecticut should work cooperatively with federal, state and local agencies.
Menapace said Connecticut should do more to protect immigrants from what he described as unjust treatment by federal immigration authorities.
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