CT Patch Candidate Profile: Brian Farnen For 132nd District

WESTPORT, CT — The 2022 election is heating up in Connecticut and there are plenty of races with candidates eager to serve in elected office. Eyes are primarily focused on the gubernatorial election, but every state representative and senate seat is up for grabs. All five of Connecticut's congressional seats, plus one U.S. Senate seat, are up for grabs as well.

There are 151 seats in the state House of Representatives and 36 in the state Senate. Democrats currently hold majorities in both chambers

Connecticut Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Brian Farnen, a Fairfield resident, is running for State Representative 132nd House District:

Campaign website

https://www.farnenforfairfield.com

Party affiliation

Republican and Independent Party of CT

Education

Bachelor of Arts Degree, Masters of Business Administration (Finance) and Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut

Occupation

Clean Energy Attorney and Adjunct Professor at Fairfield University and UCONN

Family

Married to Kimberly Farnen, two children in Fairfield Public Schools— Ella (13), Chad (11), and Bubba (our dog)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

None - one is enough!

Age

47

Previous public office, appointive or elective

State Representative, 2020-2021; Representative Town Meeting, Member, 2011-2020; Former deputy majority leader (2016-2017); Appointed by Governor Jodi Rell and approved by the Legislature to the Connecticut Judicial Review Council, 2005-2009

Why are you seeking this office?

When I was elected as your state representative in 2020, I anticipated long nights and forging new relationships in Hartford to put the interests of Connecticut first. As the state, country and world changed so much that year, the needs of the residents of Fairfield also changed. Instead of dealing with committee meetings and the back and forth of the legislative process, I had a more meaningful role than I could ever imagined helping neighbors in the early stages of the pandemic. With inflation, affordability problems, an increase in crime and our country so divided, I want to return to Hartford to be an independent voice that brings us together and helps make Fairfield a safer and more affordable place to raise a family, retire or grow a business.
Please complete this statement: The single most pressing issue facing my constituents is ___, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most important issue is tax relief for working families and seniors in Fairfield. Fairfield residents have been excluded from the tax relief benefits recently celebrated by both the legislature and my opponent. I will always be a vocal advocate for Fairfielders who did not receive tax relief during the 2022 legislative session. I ask this simple question to my fellow residents, did your taxes go down?

We can address the high tax burden on Fairfield residents by rebuilding our economy. Over thirty three years of stagnant job growth in Connecticut has led to higher taxes on the working families, seniors and businesses that have remained in the state. While the rest of the U.S. recovered the jobs lost due to the Great Recession, Connecticut continues to struggle. With a hot stock market and federal COVID dollars coming into the state, Connecticut did well but we had a real opportunity to make structural reforms. Instead, our state legislature spent at historic levels and with the COVID funding almost gone and a recession looming, working families and seniors are once again going to be stuck with the tab and paying the bill.

Only when we show our residents and businesses that we are serious about real reform will they be serious about growing and staying in Connecticut long-term. With a healthier state economy, we can make Connecticut more affordable and lower the crushing tax burden on all of us.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Independent Voice and Polarization
I am a longstanding environmentalist working in clean energy with a record of bringing people together, regardless of background or political affiliation while my opponent’s most recent past career was a political campaign consultant that only worked with Democratic candidates. I am proud to be endorsed by the Independent Party of CT as I am an independent voice for Fairfield.

Taxes and Affordability
I am an advocate for Fairfield working families and seniors ignored during the 2022 legislative session who did not receive their fair share of tax relief. My opponent voted with her party during the 2022 legislative session against tax relief that would have benefited Fairfield working families and seniors. She also voted with her party to increase the diesel tax that impacts the cost of all groceries, goods and services. With record inflation and the cost of college going up while our 401k’s are going down, Fairfield working families and seniors need tax relief too.

Crime and Public Safety
I voted in favor of longstanding protections for police officers and their families while my opponent voted against restoring these protections on a bipartisan basis this past spring. I believe crime is being underreported, increasing in Fairfield and the criminal justice system is out of balance favoring the criminal, not the victim. My opponent does not share my level of concern and has repeatedly stated that crime is “near historic lows.”

We need to enact criminal justice reforms that focus on prevention, accountability and rehabilitation. Reforms like implementing victim impact panels and expedited arraignment for felonies, sex assaults, offenses involving use of a firearm are well overdue. In CT, the penalty for stealing a car is based on its value and this also needs to change. So, the theft of a Mercedes is treated with greater weight than the theft of a late-model Honda. I believe that Honda is as important to its owner as the Mercedes is to its owner.

Overdevelopment and Town Beaches
I have led the fight in protecting our local town beaches from state control this past spring. I am also against the proposed 6-story downtown high-rise and in favor of reforming or replacing the state law, 8-30g, that enables overdevelopment by predatory developers. Common sense solutions include increasing the percentage of affordable units from 30% to 50% before a developer can bring a 8-30g zoning application. This would at least ensure affordable housing is actually built instead of a developer just checking a box to get their project approved. We should also lower the moratorium threshold so towns like Fairfield that are working in good faith to build affordable housing can be exempt from the heavy handed requirements of the 8-30g statute. My opponent has failed to act and merely proposed a “study” by affordable housing advocates. Instead of turning Fairfield into a city, let’s improve our cities and make them a place where young people and seniors would want to live.

Pro-Choice and Parental Choice
While my opponent and I are both pro-choice, I also believe medical freedom extends to other decisions we make with our bodies and for our children. I was a strong advocate for getting our kids back into school and out of a virtual environment. Many children have fallen behind with the pandemic and we need to advocate for our children who have been negatively impacted by the pandemic, both on a social and academic level.

Schools, Redistricting and Local Control
I look forward to working in Hartford and in Fairfield to fully support the excellence of our schools by providing our students, parents and educators the resources they need to keep Fairfield Public Schools world-class. I want to empower parents and allow all children to attend their neighborhood schools. We need an advocate for our children who have been negatively impacted by the pandemic, both on a social and academic level.

If you are challenging an incumbent, in what way has the current officeholder failed the community?

Our current State Representative has voted nearly one hundred percent with her party while in office. How can you be representing our community when you vote party line (regardless of what party it is) nearly one hundred percent? She voted against tax relief for working families and seniors in Fairfield (did your taxes go down?), she has let down our police by voting against restoring protections for them like qualified immunity when she had the chance on a bipartisan basis, and she has failed to take action on overdevelopment so Fairfield can remain a town, not a city.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

In addition to tax relief, I am focused on (i) overdevelopment and local control so Fairfield remains a town, not a city, (ii) public safety and reforming our criminal justice system that has fallen out of balance favoring the criminal, not the victim, (iii) addressing climate change and creating a clean energy economy that will lead to cleaner, cheaper and more reliable energy, (iv) term limits, open primaries and stopping gerrymandering to ensure we have competitive legislative districts, (v) common sense gun control laws to protect the public and (vi) medical freedom that supports a women’s right to choose and support parental choice when it comes to decisions like masking our children this winter or in the future.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As your former State Representative during the early stages of COVID, I worked tirelessly for our community and advocated for small businesses, parents, children and seniors that were suffering. I am a global leader in the fight against climate change as the General Counsel of the CT Green Bank, been named best attorney in CT by the CT Law Tribune and have a record of bringing people together for a common goal.

Being from a working-class family growing up in the Naugatuck Valley before coming to Fairfield, I am proud to be the first generation that graduated from college and then went on to earn both my law degree and MBA in 3 ½ years while working.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

I am very lucky to have an amazing mom and dad. They would always say “Family first.”

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I will be a principled, independent voice that represents our community - not a political party. The increased polarization we see in our country and at times in Fairfield needs to stop. We are one country, one community. I will work to bring people together, not further divide us.