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Dear Friend,
It’s Joe Courtney. From a town hall in Tolland to welcoming the next generation of shipbuilders and meeting with UCONN researchers, it’s been a busy week here in eastern Connecticut. As always, thanks for starting your weekend here with me.
The Next Generation of Shipbuilders
Enthusiasm filled the auditorium on Wednesday night at Electric Boat’s annual signing day.
Over 170 high school seniors from across Connecticut signed job offers to begin working after graduation on the most complex, advanced nuclear-powered submarines in the world. With the support of their families and outstanding educators, these students worked extremely hard learning the metal trades at tech schools and local high schools to reach this milestone.
Many of these students learned their trade in classrooms made possible by federal funding from the U.S. Department of Education through the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. Thanks to this federal funding – which I have long championed in Congress – Tourtellotte Memorial High School opened a new welding lab in October 2024, and Westbrook High School followed with its own in September 2024—expanding its program from just eight students to 50. This was Congress’ goal when it created the Department and the National Perkins Career and Technical Education Act in 1984. Today, it’s launching careers in eastern Connecticut and helping meet our workforce needs. I will continue working in Congress to protect this important funding from cuts.
These students made an excellent choice in entering a high-paying career at a shipyard whose workload will endure for decades to come because of the Congress and the Navy’s strong demand for a larger fleet. Right now, there are 16 Virginia-class submarines in the construction pipeline. Each one is 377 feet long—add them all up, and that’s more than 23 football fields' worth of Virginia class submarines in the pipeline. On top of that, Electric Boat is building the first two Columbia class boats which are 2.5x larger than a Virginia. It’s a clear sign this is a shipyard with serious staying power – made possible by the talented workers at Electric Boat.
Town Hall in Tolland
Last night, I hosted my seventh town hall in 2025 at the Tolland Town Senior Center.
There was plenty to discuss following last week’s House passage of the 10-year budget bill that will have harmful fallout to Medicare and Medicaid. In eastern Connecticut alone, the Joint Economic Committee estimates that over 21,000 people would lose their Medicaid coverage. The bill also includes 100s of reckless provisions tucked away in the 1,000 page bill that people are rightly concerned by.
There is a better, bipartisan way forward that actually meets people's needs. As the bill makes its way to the Senate for consideration, I will continue to fight for a budget that lowers costs and is fiscally responsible.
Reopening the East Haddam Swing Bridge
On Tuesday, I joined Governor Lamont and Connecticut’s Transportation Commissioner, Garrett Eucalitto, to re-open the iconic East Haddam Swing Bridge.
Thanks to the federal infrastructure law – which funded 80% of the construction project – we were able to deliver a long-overdue, full-scale rehabilitation of the 112-year-old bridge that is safer for both motorists and pedestrians, while retaining its unique historic design.
There’s no question that the three-year construction project brought noticeable disruptions to customer traffic for local businesses – but thanks to federal American Rescue Plan funding I supported in Congress, businesses like Oh Fudge in Haddam received funding to make up for lost revenue. I stopped by Oh Fudge to meet with owner Bridget Marshall to hear how the federal funding helped them keep their doors open and employees on payroll throughout construction.
At the ribbon cutting, we were joined by the Riendeau family, whose ancestors brought oxen to the original ribbon cutting for the East Haddam Swing Bridge in June 1913. 112 years later, the family brought a new generation of oxen – Winston and Wayne – to mark the reopening.
Thank you to the Riendeau family for joining us, and congratulations to the Connecticut Department of Transportation and the contractors who swiftly executed this complex project, which will endure for decades to come.
Electric Boat Workers Ratify Record New Contract
Another big update from the shipyard. On Tuesday night, the Marine Draftsman Association ratified a new labor contract.
As the dust settles following the hard-fought, months-long negotiations between Electric Boat and the MDA Local 571, both sides deserve tremendous credit for reaching a record-setting agreement and finding a fair path forward for the next five years. Reaching the “sweet spot” of this historic contract for the members of MDA Local 571 required a lot of intense advocacy and dialogue between management and labor, as well as the 2,200 members of this unique workforce that designs the most advanced, complex nuclear-powered submarines in the world. A contract that boosts general wages by more than 30% over the course of the contract, while retaining superior health and retirement benefits sends a strong signal that this workforce is respected and valued. The five-year term of the contract also highlights that the workload of the designers will be enduring in the coming years, given the strong demand for submarines by the U.S. Navy and Congress.
All principals involved deserve credit for reaching a record-setting agreement and finding a fair path forward.
Federal Funding to Expand Behavioral Health Services
Every resident should have access to high-quality, affordable behavioral health services. Thanks to a major federal grant, United Community and Family Services is expanding its behavioral health services to help meet that goal.
This morning, I sat down with UCFS CEO Jen Granger and her excellent team to hear how federal funds are driving real progress to address the mental health and substance use/overdose crises in eastern CT. What makes UCFS's model successful is its integrated approach to health care. Jen described how their primary care physicians can immediately connect patients to in-house, grant-funded staff – like substance recovery coaches, mental health providers, and other specialists. This allows patients to get timely and specialized care while easing the caseload on primary care physicians.
If you or a loved one are interested in accessing their services, click here.
Critical Research Under Attack
This week, I met with a remarkable team of researchers at the University of Connecticut whose lifesaving work is now at risk due to reckless and short-sighted funding cuts by the Trump Administration. These cuts are hitting critical projects midstream—including a diabetes clinical trial that was providing life-saving care for 150 patients while producing critical research to reduce the disease’s prevalence.
Among the programs now in jeopardy are studies on cellular aging that aim to help Americans live longer, healthier lives; genomics research that helped pave the way for breakthroughs like the development of Ozempic; and a SNAP-Ed program working to combat childhood obesity. UConn is also home to the Pepper Center, which is one of 15 nationally recognized centers of excellence in aging science and medicine. Funding cuts threaten its important work.
Much of this research is funded through respected programs at federal agencies like NIH, the FDA, and the Education Department. Cutting these programs not only halts progress—it wastes the investments already made and pulls the rug out from under researchers. Moreover, these cuts are wildly unpopular among the American people, with only 3 in 10 Americans supporting cuts to universities' scientific and medical research, according to a AP-NORC study.
I strongly support Connecticut Attorney General William Tong’s lawsuit to reverse these harmful funding cuts, and I’ll continue working in Congress to defend our Article I responsibility to control federal spending.
Thanks for taking some time to read my update. If we can be of any assistance, don't hesitate to give my Norwich office a call at (860) 886-0139.
Sincerely,
Joe Courtney
Member of Congress
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