Former Vice President Joe Biden wants to be president and is closer every day to being ready for a bid. But he's considering what would happen if the president or his allies make his family an issue in the campaign, NBC News reported.

Aides close to Biden and other people he's recently spoken to say Biden's candidacy is a matter of when, not if — one aide called it a "slow boil" since the start of the year.

He is clear-eyed about the challenge of running and doesn't assume he would win the primary, even though he's confident he offers Democrats the best opponent to Trump, according to sources close to Biden.

But Biden, who recently said that "everything revolves around family," must still have gut-check conversations with his children and grandchildren. His inner circle has discussed how Biden would need to react to a comment about the family, still reeling from the death of Beau Biden, from President Donald Trump.

Some college baseball players in Connecticut will have the chance to play at what Ballpark Digest ranks as one of the best minor league baseball parks in the country.  

For the third season in a row, Dunkin’ Donuts Park, home of the Hartford Yard Goats baseball team, will host college baseball teams. 

The three local Division I programs playing at the Hartford ballpark are the University of Connecticut Huskies, University of Hartford Hawks and Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils. 

The UConn vs Cincinnati game on April 5 will be the first game played at Dunkin’ Donuts Park this season, six days before the Yard Goats 2019 home opener on April 11. 

The tickets will go on sale at 9 a.m. Friday on the Yard Goats website over the phone (860-246-4628) or in person by visiting the Click It or Ticket Box Office at Dunkin’ Donuts Park. Tickets start at $10. 

This is the schedule: 

• Friday, April 5: UConn Huskies vs. Cincinnati Bearcats at 7:05 p.m.
• Saturday, April 6: UConn Huskies vs. Cincinnati Bearcats at 2:05 p.m.
• Wednesday, April 17, Hartford Hawks vs. University of Rhode Island Rams at 6:05 p.m.
• Friday, May 3, UConn Huskies vs. Wichita State Shockers at 7:05 p.m.
• Saturday, May 4, UConn Huskies vs. Wichita State Shockers at 2:05 p.m.
• Tuesday, May 7, Hartford Hawks vs. CCSU Blue Devils at 10:35 a.m.
• Tuesday, May 14, Hartford Hawks vs. LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds at 6:05 p.m.

A dispatcher in New London talked a couple through the delivery of their newborn Thursday morning when the baby started to arrive during the drive to the hospital.

The couple called 911 at 4:13 a.m. as they were on the way to Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London and New London Dispatcher Rich Waselik took the call.

He put the family at ease and talked the couple through the delivery of their baby boy, according to the New London Police Department.

The baby had arrived before members of the New London Fire Department got there and they cut the umbilical cord and transported the family to the hospital, according to officials.

Police said Waselik has been a dispatcher with the City of New London for 16 years and he is also an EMT and a volunteer firefighter with the Oakdale Fire Department.

Waselik gave major credit to the baby's father for the successful delivery. 

National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend is from Feb. 22 to 24 and you won't believe what they're doing to celebrate!

The Girl Scouts of Connecticut have hidden five golden cookie tickets in cookie boxes to be delivered across the state.

Each golden ticket winner will recieve 12 cases of cookies in total - six cases twice a year.

Starting March 2, girl scouts will be delivering cookies to customers who ordered them earlier this year and will also be hosting booth sales across the state.

They said the tickets could be in any of those cookie boxes.

If you are one of the contest winners, contact productsales@gsofct.org or call 800-922-2770.

A man suspected of killing the mother of his children in New Britain on Feb. 4 has been at large for more than two weeks and the search for him continues.

Police have identified 42-year-old Benjamin Morales, of New Britain, as the suspect in the fatal shooting of 27-year-old Alice Marie Figueroa on Elam Street on Feb. 4 and said they have a warrant charging him with murder.

Authorities said Morales and Figueroa were dating and had two young children together.

The investigation into Figueroa’s death has led to three other arrests.

Sharod Pipkin, 29 of Putnam, is accused of assisting Morales and police said 18-year-old Odalys Morales and 48-year-old Ramon Morales, both of New Britain, are accused of misleading police and/or providing assistance to Benjamin Morales.

Odalys Morales was charged with interfering and Ramon Morales was charged with hindering prosecution in the second degree and interfering.

Benjamin Morales, who is 5-feet-6 and has brown hair and brown eyes, is known to frequent New Britain and Hartford and police warn that he is considered to be armed and dangerous and should not be approached.

Anyone with information is asked to call the New Britain Police Department at 860-826-3000 or leave an anonymous tip by calling 860-826-3199.

The Eastern League of Professional Baseball, the minor league baseball league that governs the Hartford Yard Goats, announced Thursday it will be changing to a split season playoff format.

With the new format, the first place team from each division (the league includes a Western and Eastern division) during both the first and second halves of the season will qualify for the playoffs.

The first half of the season will go through the 76th day of the regular season, ending on June 18.

The Yard Goats play in the Eastern Division of the Eastern League.

In the event the same team finishes in first place in both halves, the second playoff spot in that division will go to the next team with the best full season records.

This change will begin with the upcoming 2019 season.

Amanda Velez heard a loud bang, then screams of her youngest daughter, inside their North Philadelphia home.

"In a matter of seconds, I’m using the restroom, I hear a loud bang, and I heard glass shatter, and I heard my youngest daughter, who’s two years old she was screaming," Velez told NBC10 in an interview Thursday.

Then, she said, "I heard my son say, 'Mommy.'"

Velez picked up her son, Adrian Ortega, and a shard of glass fell to the floor, she said.

"I lift him up and I saw blood," she said.

Adrian, 4, suffered a fatal wound from the piece of broken glass, which came from a large picture frame that had shattered.

Velez rushed the boy Wednesday afternoon from the house in the 3200 block of North Reese Street to the nearest hospital.

"They tried to do everything," she said. "They said they were trying to stabilize him, so he could go to the surgery room. But he wasn't strong enough."

Adrian was pronounced dead at St. Christopher’s Hospital shortly before 5 p.m.

EMTs and members of the Hartford Fire Department helped deliver twins in Hartford Thursday morning when they were dispatched to help a woman who was about to deliver at any minute. 

The call EMTs from AMR and members of the Hartford Fire Department answered initially came in to help a woman who was in labor.

Then they learned that she was 30 weeks pregnant with twins and the delivery was expected at any minute, according to a Facebook post from AMR. 

The woman was in the process of having the first baby when she answered the door and the first responders helped her deliver the baby and helped with the delivery of the second child, according to AMR.

They brought the mom and babies to a local hospital and all three are doing well, according to AMR.

Wolcott Police Department and the 'Neighbors' app by Ring are partnering up to reduce crime in the area.

The goal is to connect people, security cameras and law enforcement, according to police. Residents can do this through the app by monitoring neighborhood activity, sharing crime and safety-related videos, photos and text-based posts, and recieving alerts from neighbors and law enforcement.

Police said the app will provide the Wolcott community with "real-time, local crime and safety information."

The partnership will begin Feb. 22 at 11 a.m.

You can download the app at download.ring.com/wolcott or by texting "Wolcott" to 555888.

A judge ruled Thursday that federal prosecutors broke federal law when they signed a plea agreement with wealthy, politically connected Florida financier, Jeffrey Epstein, and concealed it from more than 30 of his underage victims.

Epstein sexually abused more than 30 minor girls from 1999 to 2007 at his mansion in Florida, elsewhere in the U.S. and overseas. 

The opinion and order in response to the U.S. Government’s efforts to stop a civil case are the first time Epstein’s abuse of minor girls has been confirmed in court, which is a violation of federal law.

Judge Kenneth Marra writes, “Epstein and his co-conspirators knowingly traveled in interstate and international commerce to sexually abuse Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2 and others, they committed violations of not only Florida law, but also federal law.”

Federal prosecutors helped Epstein avoid potentially severe penalties for sexually abusing teenage girls in favor of a relatively light state conviction.

U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Nebraska, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee who had twice asked the Justice Department to investigate the case, was previously quoted as saying:

"Jeffrey Epstein is a child rapist and there's not a single mom or dad in America who shouldn't be horrified by the fact that he received a pathetically soft sentence," Sasse said in an email.

Epstein, now 66, reached a nonprosecution deal in 2008 with then-Miami U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta's office to secretly end a federal sex abuse investigation involving at least 40 teenage girls that could have landed him behind bars for life. He instead pleaded guilty to state charges, spent 13 months in jail, paid settlements to victims and is a registered sex offender.

Acosta, now President Donald Trump's labor secretary, has defended the deal as appropriate but has not commented since the recent round of stories. He was asked about the case during his Senate confirmation hearings for the Cabinet post.

"At the end of the day, based on the evidence, professionals within a prosecutor's office decided that a plea that guarantees someone goes to jail, that guarantees he register generally and guarantees other outcomes, is a good thing," he said.

According to court papers, Epstein had a Palm Beach mansion where underage girls were brought for what they were sometimes told were massage sessions but often turned into sexual encounters. He allegedly had female fixers who would look for suitable girls, some local and others recruited from Eastern Europe and other parts of the world.

Before the scandal broke, Epstein was friends with Trump and had visited his Mar-a-Lago resort. Trump at the time told interviewers that Epstein was "a great guy." Records also show former President Bill Clinton flew on Epstein's jet more than two dozen times on various philanthropic trips.

Epstein also has a home in New York City, a ranch in New Mexico and a private Caribbean island.

Some of his accusers are pursuing a separate legal effort to nullify the plea agreement and, they hope, expose him to federal prosecution again. That lawsuit in West Palm Beach federal court contends their rights as victims were violated because they were not consulted or informed about the nonprosecution agreement before it was finalized.

Last year, Epstein settled a defamation lawsuit brought against him by some of the accusers' lawyer, Bradley Edwards, who said Epstein tried to derail his representation of the women and ruin his career. In settling, Epstein apologized and agreed to pay an undisclosed amount to Edwards.

"Empire" actor Jussie Smollett staged a racist, anti-gay attack on himself because he was unhappy about his salary and wanted to promote his career, Chicago's police superintendent said Thursday.

Smollett appeared in court Thursday, where his bail was set at $100,000 with pretrial monitoring. The visibly frustrated Smollett sighed and rolled his eyes during the bond hearing, according to reports from the courtroom. 

Smollett, who is black and gay, turned himself in Thursday to face accusations that he filed a false police report last month when he told authorities he was attacked in downtown Chicago by two men who hurled racist and anti-gay slurs and looped a rope around his neck, police said. 

Before the attack, police also say Smollett sent a letter that threatened him to the studio in Chicago where "Empire" is shot, Superintendent Eddie Johnson said.

The actor "took advantage of the pain and anger of racism to promote his career," Johnson told reporters at a news conference.

"This publicity stunt was a scar that Chicago didn't earn and certainly didn't deserve," he added.

Read the full profer from court below.

The FBI has been investigating the letter. Johnson would not say whether Smollett could face additional charges for that.

The companies that make "Empire," Fox Entertainment and 20th Century Fox Television, issued a statement Thursday saying that they were "evaluating the situation" and "considering our options."

President Trump also tweeted about Smollett following the press conference. "@JussieSmollett - what about MAGA and the tens of millions of people you insulted with your racist and dangerous comments!? #MAGA"

Smollett turned himself into police early Thursday morning on a felony charge of disorderly conduct in filing a false police report. He is expected to appear in bond court at 1:30 p.m. 

Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi confirmed to NBC Chicago that Smollett surrendered to police at around 5 a.m. at CPD's Central Booking station at West 18th Street and South State Street. 

The "Empire" star was charged Wednesday with the class four felony, which carries a sentence ranging from probation to up to three years in prison, according to Chicago police and the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.

"Like any other citizen, Mr. Smollett enjoys the presumption of innocence, particularly when there has been an investigation like this one where information, both true and false, has been repeatedly leaked," Smollett's legal team said in a statement Wednesday. "Given these circumstances, we intend to conduct a thorough investigation and to mount an aggressive defense."

Chicago police have confirmed that attorneys for Smollett had discussions with prosecutors Wednesday, but details surrounding the dialogue were not released. 

Authorities said new information "shifted" their investigation of the reported assault last week.

Smollett said two masked men physically attacked him as he was returning home from an early morning stop at a Subway restaurant. He said the men shouted racial, anti-gay slurs and "This is MAGA country!" as they looped a rope around his neck and poured an "unknown chemical substance" on him before running away. 

Detectives questioned two brothers about the attack but released them late Friday without charges. Police said they had gleaned new information from their interrogation of the two men and they were no longer suspects.

Surveillance video taken at 10 a.m. on Jan. 28 appears to show brothers Abel and Ola Osundairo shopping at Beauty House at 1041 W. Wilson Ave. in the Uptown neighborhood.

The brothers can be seen making their way to the check out counter and purchasing several items, including two ski masks, gloves and baseball caps. The video then shows them walking to their vehicle.

The items are of interest because police said Smollett told them the attackers were wearing masks. The security guard working that day told NBC 5 he realized the brothers had been in the store last week and that he had helped them find the items they were looking for.

"This has been very traumatizing for them as well as everyone who knows this story and has heard this story," said Gloria Schmidt, attorney for the Osundairo brothers.

On Tuesday, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx recused herself from the investigation into the alleged attack with little explanation.

"Out of an abundance of caution, the decision to recuse herself was made to address potential questions of impartiality based upon familiarity with potential witnesses in the case," a spokesperson said in an emailed statement Tuesday.

A statement from 20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment issued Wednesday - before the charges were announced - said that despite the ongoing case, Smollett's character was "not being written out of the show."

"Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show," Fox said of Smollett.

"Chicago's message to the world is that no matter where you come from, who you love, or how you pray you will always have a home here. Our laws exist to reflect and defend those values, and hate crimes will never be tolerated," Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement. "A single individual who put their perceived self-interest ahead of these shared principles will never trump Chicago's collective spirit."

There have been another four flu-related deaths in Connecticut this season. 

The state Department of Health has released flu statistics from Aug. 26 through Feb. 16 and 29 deaths have been reported over that span of time. 

Of the 29 flu-associated deaths, 17 were people over 65 years old, nine have been people 50 to 64 years old and three have been people between 25 and 49 years old. 

Flu remains widespread in the state, according to the department of health. See the full statistics here.  

To date, 1,668 patients have been hospitalized in Connecticut with influenza this season. 

A total of 4,540 positive influenza lab tests have been reported this season: 

• New Haven: 1,287
• Hartford County: 1,181
• Fairfield: 970
• Middlesex: 274
• New London: 261
• Litchfield: 226
• Windham: 174
• Tolland: 91
• Unknown: 76

A Stamford woman reached out to NBC Connecticut Responds to share her story when her vacation rental didn’t live up to expectations.

Jamie Lamborn said she’s a frequent customer of vacation rentals. However, it was her first time booking a reservation with HomeAway.com.

“I’ve had friends use it before. So, it was recommended to use it,” said Jamie Lamborn.

The Stamford resident said she wanted to spend a quiet week with her mom at home nearby that she spotted on the website because she had limited space in her Stamford apartment.

She showed us the receipt, which indicated she spent $1,112 for a week-long stay from November 26 to December 1 of 2018. But on the day that Lamborn checked into the home, she said things felt off.

“I was surprised that the homeowner was there greeting me and she seemed a little uncomfortable and I was uncomfortable as well as I had to ask her to show me around the place,” said Lamborn.

According to HomeAway’s policy, it does not allow the homeowner to be present in the property during the rental. Lamborn was also shocked by the condition inside of the property.

“The place was dirty. There were dishes everywhere, dog pee pads…just a mess and it seemed really disgusting,” said Lamborn.

Lamborn said she picked her mom up from the airport and headed back to the home. Since it was 11:30 that night, the two decided to stay overnight and called HomeAway the next morning.

“They said they actually don’t host homes with a shared living space like that. So, I was expecting that we’d have this private area to ourselves. So that was confusing at first,” said Lamborn.

Lamborn said she left the property and filed a claim with HomeAway asking for a refund for the remaining days.

“They said that the negotiations on whether I would get my money back or cancellation would be at the discretion of the homeowner, said Lamborn.

HomeAway also instructed Lamborn to file a claim through her bank, which she said she did. A few days later, Jamie said HomeAway informed her that she needed to file a second claim to get the damage deposit refunded.

“They told me they were going to reach out to the homeowner and explain what the claim was about on my side and wait to hear their response,” said Lamborn.

Lamborn said HomeAway also told her to try and resolve the issue with the homeowner herself while they processed the claim.

Meanwhile, the bank denied Lamborn’s claim for the damage deposit. After she provided the proper documents, HomeAway sent her confirmation through email stating that the company would refund her $500.

When we contacted HomeAway for comment, the company told NBC Connecticut Responds:

“HomeAway does not permit owner-occupied rentals or other types of shared spaces on our site. Once we found out this rental was owner-occupied, we removed it from our site.”

As for Lamborn, she’s just relieved to have this experience behind her.

“It was a horrible experience and I wouldn’t want anyone to go through that,” said Lamborn.

Some things to remember when booking a vacation home rental: Be sure to read the host’s profile, listing description, pay attention to the amenities, house rules and cancellation policy. Read the ratings and reviews and make sure to protect your personal information.

A former Hartford man was convicted Thursday in a 2003 murder, according to the state's Criminal Justice Division.

40-year-old Rafael Ortiz was charged following a trial in the Hartford Superior Court.

Ortiz shot Benjamin Baez while sitting in a parked car on Main Street, police said.

Ortiz was convicted as a result of an investigation by the Hartford Police Department. Detectives arrested Ortiz in New York in Oct. 2017.

Four people were forced from their home by a fire in Manchester Thursday.

Fire officials said they were called to the home at 151 School Street around 2:21 p.m. When crews arrived there was heavy fire coming from the first and second-floor windows and heavy smoke from the attic.

Firefighters had received reports that there might be people trapped, but when they swept the home they found no one.

No injuries were reported. The building has been deemed uninhabitable until repairs are made.

The homeowner is providing temporary housing for the displaced tenants, with assistance from the American Red Cross and Manchester Human Services.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

A pedestrian suffered life-threatening injuries in a crash involving a tractor-trailer in Hartford Thursday, according to police.

Police are on scene near the intersection of High Street and Walnut Street, near the Interstate 84 entrance ramp. Drivers are advised to avoid the area.

No other details were immediately available.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Since Sunday, Payless ShoeSource has been liquidating merchandise at all of its 2,100 stores.

Thursday, some shoppers hoping to take advantage of the going-out-of-business sale walked away disappointed.

Shoppers who checked out the sale said they are hoping there’s deeper discounts to come.

Foot traffic into Payless Shoesource stores around Connecticut was brisk Thursday, but many customers walked out empty handed.

“I didn’t find anything today,” said Linda Petrillo of Southington, after spending time at the Payless in Southington.

The signs said up to 40 percent off, but shoe shoppers told us most items were just 20 percent off the ticket price.

“They didn’t really discount it that much yet,” said Jen Lee of Newington after coming out of Payless’ New Britain location.

“I’m surprised that prices were still high,” added Melinda Rodriguez of Hartford who chose not to make a purchase at the Hartford Payless.

“I thought 20 percent, you get that at any other store you know,” said Petrillo.

Petrillo said she expected to double that discount.

Like her, Lee is playing the waiting game and hoping she doesn't pay the price.

“You go in today, it’s not that heavily discounted right, but then I’m thinking should I wait a little bit longer to see if there are even more deeper discounts? And if not, if I don’t get it today, what if it’s gone next week?” said Lee.

“What we hear from people is they didn’t act fast enough,” said William Tong, Connecticut’s attorney general.

With more and more brick and mortar stores closing their doors, is there a shopping strategy to make the most of these going out of business sales?

Tong said every company has its own plan, making difficult to know how long to hold out. Companies will try to get rid of what they can before lowering the price and many bring in a liquidator to buy up the remaining inventory.

“At that point you’ll see empty shelves and big florescent signs and that’s when the store is really about to close,” Tong said.

Eboni Teasley of Naugatuck isn’t waiting. Thursday afternoon, she walked out of Southington’s Payless Shoesource store with two pairs of shoes, one for her and one for a friend.

“I’m happy with their prices, honestly. I don’t think that’ it’s too much. I think it’s reasonable,” said Teasley.

“You’re eventually going to see it. They’ve just got to get everything off the shelves and they’re going to sell it. So you can look for some great sales, but just be aware that sale is final,” said Michelle Seagull, Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection commissioner.

Payless says after March 1 no returns will be accepted and, gift cards have to be used by March 11.

Almost 18 years later, many 9/11 first responders are plagued by long term health effects from Ground Zero.

There is concern the federal fund set up to help them is running dry.

The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund is running out of money and payments will be cut 50 to 70 percent, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said.

The reason, according to the senator, is a rise in legitimate claims by first responders dealing with injuries and illnesses from answering the call on one of the country’s darkest days.

“September 11th was a day the world changed,” said West Haven Fire Department Lt. William Heffernan.

In the days after 9/11, Heffernan recalled West Haven firefighters asking themselves, “how could we not go to help the greatest fire department in the world?”

About 30 firefighters, including current Chief James O’Brien, responded to Ground Zero to help with the rescue operation in the rubble.

“To be there in person to see what transpired was overwhelming,” O’Brien said.

“We didn’t know what was in the air we didn’t know never occurred to us to worry about that,” Heffernan said.

But the exposure to toxins has led to major health problems for many 9/11 first responders.

“The ailments that we are seeing were not overnight and over time various respiratory problems arose and from that it turned into a lot of cancers were being discovered,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien goes for annual medical screenings at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York as part of the World Trade Health Center Program. The objective is to document illnesses and catch problems early.

“We have many firefighters here who are involved in the program,” O’Brien said.

Congress made funding permanent for the health monitoring program, but the money set aside to compensate first responders and their families is running low.

“This money is owed to the first responders that answered the call,” Blumenthal said during a Thursday press conference in West Haven.

Blumenthal said he plans to introduce legislation to restore funding and reauthorize the program beyond 2020, something that certainly has support in the firehouse.

“When an individual is diagnosed with an ailment or cancer, this is a compensation for them to cover medical costs,” O’Brien said. “If they’re unable to work so they can take care of their families.”

According to the most recent September 11th Victim Compensation Fund report, 366 claims have been filed by Connecticut residents. More than 130 are receiving payments.

Tomasyn Goode says it still hasn’t hit her how her Willimantic home became a massive crime scene in a matter of minutes.

“It’s like a thing that happens in movies,” Goode said. “I start to hear sirens and gunshots. I’m at the back door with my hand on the door knob I’m about to open it and I realize that the guy, the suspect is there on the other side of that door trying to get in.”

In the rush, Goode says she doesn’t remember locking her now banged up back door. She then ran out the front of her house where officers ordered her back inside. She laid on her front porch with one thought.

 “I hope none of these bullets that are flying around comes through this wall and hits me,” Goode said.

A couple minutes later Goode learned that the suspect, 39-year-old Kyron Sands, had been shot by police on her back porch. He later died in her backyard.

 “I was shocked when I came back after it's all over and I came back to see this,” Goode said. 

Just as she starts to process what’s happened, reminders keep popping up that fill in the holes.

 “It’s surreal to me it’s like hard to believe that it’s real it really happened,” Goode said.

 As State Police still comb for leftover evidence, Goode realizes the danger that came knocking on her door has now put things in perspective.

 “Just lucky you know like winning the lotto but in reverse or something you can never predict that something like this is going to happen to you,” Goode said.

One line in the governor’s budget proposal has the entire construction industry in Connecticut on edge for fear of seeing multi-million-dollar projects put on hold.

“You’re going to put a lot of construction workers on the street when you shut this down,” said Don Shubert with the Connecticut Construction Industry Association.

The proposal in question would leave an estimated $91 million in revenue from tax applied to new car sales in the general fund of the Connecticut budget, instead of being moved over to the Special Transportation Fund, which was included in the most recent state budget, supported by both Democrats and Republicans.

Shubert warns that if those funds are not diverted to the STF, then the fund could face insolvency, which would leave projects valued in the hundreds of millions, like a renovation of the Charter Oak Bridge in Hartford, on hold.

“That’s a major project that’s going to have a big impact on the Hartford area,” Shubert said. “If that project is stalled out, it’s only the beginning.”

Previous estimates by the Office of Policy and Management, the state’s budget agency, projected the STF could be insolvent as soon as 2021.

New OPM Secretary Melissa McCaw told reporters Thursday such talk is overblown, especially against the backdrop of the governor proposing putting the state on a “debt diet,” limiting the amount of debt issued for all projects, meaning less money is being withdrawn from the fund.

“We don’t have an immediate solvency issue in the Special Transportation Fund if we make strategic decisions now to begin to implement this plan so there are revenues in place before an insolvency occurs,” McCaw said, alluding to the governor’s proposal to install tolls on state highways in some form, either for trucks or for all vehicles.

New Transportation Commissioner Joseph Giuletti told reporters he was not sure whether any projects, like the Charter Oak Bridge, would need to be postponed indefinitely as a result of the transfer of funds back to the general fund. Giuletti, who previously served an executive on Metro North Railroad, said he hasn’t yet examined all of the financials of his new department.

“From my standpoint, I’m at five weeks right now. I’m not at a point where I’m going to say that is the case right now,” Giuletti said. “We’re going through an evaluation on that. Of course if we don’t come up with these formulas that are going to provide that funding moving forward, that is going to be something that has to be considered.”

Dennis Shugrue is currently a crane operator on an MDC project in Hartford, a job he expects to continue to work on for at least another year.

“No job is permanent,” Shugrue cautioned.

He said even though he’s not sure he would have been one of the engineers working on the Charter Oak Bridge project, he was at least hopeful that the state would keep authorizing major jobs to keep guys like him working. Now, he’s less certain.

"To wake up every morning and not have a job, that's not a great feeling, especially when you have a mortgage and everything to pay,” he said. “It's tough enough to live in this state. When you don't have a job and you don't know where your next paycheck will come in, it's a scary thing."