About Brandon

Brandon Chafee was born and raised in Middletown. He is a graduate of Central Connecticut State University where he obtained a degree in Civil Engineering. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Connecticut, and has spent his career as a field engineer with Eversource working to design a more reliable and efficient electrical distribution grid. Brandon lives in the Westfield section of town with his wife Meghan who is a nurse practitioner, dog Rocco, and cat Neville.

Brandon became an engineer to help solve the big problems that face society.

“In our rapidly changing world, our goal must be to build an economy and government that works for us all. This will require long-term vision and planning. In the engineering world, decisions must be made in order to solve the problems of today, while withstanding the test of time. If something I design is not still safe and functional in fifty years, that is a failure, and this is the mentality I will bring our state government. Connecticut has a lot of structural problems, and I look forward to bringing new ideas and a proactive mindset to the Legislature to help solve them.”

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About Brandon

News

In the News

Middletown Engineer Gets Party’s Support to Run for 33rd House District

Brandon brings an incredibly unique background to this position, as an engineer, as a labor organizer, and as a lifelong resident. He is the type of person who will be looking forward and thinking forward.

Ben Florsheim

Mayor of Middletown

Opinion: Time to ensure people can safely vote during pandemic

In the wake of the election, many poll workers and voters have tragically fallen ill with COVID-19. Forcing people to choose between their health and exercising their right to vote is abhorrent.

Brandon Chafee

Candidate for State House

Issues & Political Concerns

Time for Change

Issues

Health Care

The coronavirus is testing our current healthcare system like never before. Hundreds of thousands of people in Connecticut are losing not just their jobs, but also their health insurance. We are seeing shortages of basic supplies and medications that put all of us at risk.

Create a universal healthcare system in which insurance is no longer tied to employment.
Make prescription drugs more affordable by allowing importation, bulk purchasing at the state level, and reviewing current patent laws.
Incentivize the production and manufacturing of medical supplies, antibiotics, and prescription medications here in Connecticut.

The Environment

As an avid outdoorsman, I have always been a nature lover and conservationist. It has been my long held belief that it is our collective responsibility to preserve the environment for future generations to enjoy. Climate disruption is one of the biggest threats humanity and society have ever faced. We need leaders who not only acknowledge this, but take the necessary action to mitigate it.

Create a carbon neutral energy grid by 2030.
Invest in public transportation, a clean energy grid, and electric vehicle infrastructure.
Invest more in energy efficiency programs to retrofit old buildings, homes, and offices.
Allow net metering for residential solar installations.
Create a program to allow shared solar installations.
Build a network of bike trails, multi-use trails, and sidewalks to make Middletown more pedestrian and bike friendly.
Preserve our woodlands, open spaces, local farmland, and natural beauty.

Tax Reform

Connecticut’s tax system is overly burdensome on working families and small businesses. The average household in Connecticut pays an effective tax rate of 14%, while the average millionaire household pays and effective rate of 7%.

This is wrong!

Income inequality is one of the defining issues of our time, and must be addressed if we wish to have a country where everyone has a fair chance at a decent life.

Increase the income tax rate for people making over $250,000 per year.
Increase the tax rate on dividends, interest, and capital gains income but provide exemption for seniors.
Move the property tax on vehicles to the state level and lower the tax rate.
Create a tax system to incentivize local manufacturing, farming, and small business growth.

Education

Education is the foundation of our society. A good education is the best way to ensure people have opportunity in the workforce and in their personal lives.

Provide more state funding for special education and mental health programs in our schools including dedicated school psychologists and social workers.
Recruit, train, and retain more teachers of color to match the demographics of our schools.
Make public university and college tuition free for all state residents.
Provide more education funding at the state level to relieve the town’s reliance on property tax.
Make civics and financial literacy core curriculum for all students.

Workers Rights

As a proud member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, I will fight tirelessly for the working class of Middletown. I helped organize in to the union at my workplace and I know firsthand the difficulties and the benefits of forming a union.

Protect the right for workers to collectively bargain.
Crack down on wage theft, in which employers short change their workers paychecks.
End the practice of forced captive audience meetings in the workplace that are used to coerce, intimidate, and pressure employees on political and religious issues.
Protect prevailing wage laws.
Oppose Right to Work legislation in any form.
Study the feasibility of creating a fund to provide seed money for workers co-ops.

Transportation and Infrastructure

As a civil engineer, I know that an efficient transportation system and sound infrastructure are the backbones of a strong society. Over the past few decades we have chronically under invested in maintaining our current transportation system, and building a system for the future.

Invest in complete street programs to create a network of sidewalks and multi-use trails to link Westfield to Wesleyan and Main Street.
Determine a long-term plan for the re-design of Route 9 that eliminates the traffic lights in a way that does not off load traffic or increase vehicle speed and volume on Main Street and the North End.
Lead discussions around the replacement of the Arrigoni (Portland) Bridge (The bridge was was opened in 1938, and the structure is nearing the end of its useful life).
Help craft a transportation master plan to ensure we preserve the charm and feel of Main Street while building a transportation system for the future.
Study the feasibility of creating a commuter rail system from Dekoven Drive to Hartford on the existing rail line, or turning the rail line into a rails-to-trails river walk south to Higganum.

Seniors

Cost of living is a big issue for every resident in Connecticut, especially for our seniors. Too many people grow up here, build a home here, start a family here only to realize they can no longer afford to live here in retirement. We need to alleviate the burden on our seniors to ensure that no one needs to leave due to cost of living in retirement.

Create a homestead tax exemption for people who have owned a primary residence in CT for over 25 years. This would reduce the property tax burden for longtime residents.
End the income tax on social security and pension income.
Create a community program in which seniors can volunteer at local schools to pass their knowledge on to the next generation and interact with the youth.
Make prescription drugs more affordable by allowing importation, bulk purchasing at the state level, and reviewing current patent laws.
Provide a tax break to seniors on retirement incomes derived from dividends and interest.

Criminal Justice Reform

Our criminal justice system is broken and overly expensive. Equal treatment under the law and a path toward rehabilitation are cornerstones of a free society. The average cost per inmate in Connecticut is $50,262 per year, and sadly many people return to prison once their initial sentence is over. We need to create a system in which people are reintegrated into society once their sentence is over and help them get their lives on track.

Legalize and tax cannabis. Spend the revenue generated on education, drug prevention / rehabilitation programs, and community investments.
Decriminalize drug use and treat it as a public health crisis instead of a criminal issue. Throwing people in prison for drug offenses is expensive and ineffective. Instead of spending money to send people to prison, we should be sending people to rehabilitation and helping them recover from addiction.
Create a penal system that is focused on rehabilitation instead of punishment for nonviolent offenders.
Root out institutionalized racism in our judiciary and legal system.

Good Governance

Government is supposed to serve the people. Mistrust in government has reached an all time high, and too many residents know that they are not being properly represented at the Capitol. We need to make sure that our Legislature and state agencies serve the residents of Connecticut, and work to restore public trust in their government.

Create an independent watch dog to investigate government misconduct and corruption.
Create a performance review board to find and diminish wasteful spending throughout the government. Get input from government employees on where to save in their departments.
Allow the use of no excuse absentee ballots and early voting for all elections.
Reform the legislature to make the elected offices of State Senator and Representative full-time positions. The current part-time legislature is rife with conflicts of interest and inadequate to solve our problems.
Reform the public hearing process to make it more accessible to working people and average citizens.
End the practice of all night legislative sessions. There is no need to make crucial decisions in the middle of the night.
Determine which government jobs can continue to be done from home and consolidate or sell unneeded state office buildings.