Connecticut Baby Bonds is Two!

by Erick Russell, Connecticut State Treasurer | June 13, 2025

Connecticut State Treasurer Erick Russell hosts a CT Baby Bonds outreach event at Wheeler Clinic, a nonprofit health center in Hartford. Community partners like Wheeler Clinic will play a vital role as trusted messengers for Baby Bonds families in the coming years.

Two years ago, Connecticut made history by launching the nation’s first statewide Baby Bonds program, a major step toward alleviating the state’s extraordinary wealth gap. As we mark the second anniversary of CT Baby Bonds, we celebrate the lives already touched by the program and the tens of thousands more it will impact in years to come.

We estimate that more than 30,000 babies are now part of the CT Baby Bonds program. From the day we established the Connecticut Baby Bonds Trust to the birth of our very first “Baby Bonds baby” to our collaborative efforts with our community partners, each milestone has helped crystallize the importance of this groundbreaking initiative. 

We’re already taking steps to support Baby Bonds beneficiaries long before the first baby ever claims their funds. We have built a strong coalition of “Ambassadors,” trusted partners who are strengthening our connections to the Baby Bonds constituency. We’ve also shored up our internal assets, ensuring we have the systems and personnel in place to provide information and resources to Baby Bonds families along the way.  We recently held an in-person forum for the Ambassadors to explore how the program can serve as a foundation for broader wraparound services including childcare, housing, and early education.

Our local partnerships will be among the most important keys to the success of CT Baby Bonds, because we know that staying in touch with Baby Bonds recipients on their journey to adulthood is crucial. Families move and circumstances change, so there is a real concern we could lose touch with them over the years. Making a concentrated effort to stay connected through social services and partnerships with local community organizations helps us ensure that recipients are accessing the benefits of the Baby Bonds program throughout their lives. 

We also recognize the growing need for complementary supports, such as financial education, youth mentorship, and career guidance, so that the capital provided through Baby Bonds will be just one step on the path to building generational wealth. Growing those educational resources is a top priority for the years ahead.

Juneteenth is an especially meaningful moment to reflect on how far we’ve come with CT Baby Bonds. This day commemorates the end of slavery in the United States and calls us to honor the ongoing fight for racial equity. Juneteenth reminds us that while emancipation ended slavery, the struggle for true economic justice is still not complete.

CT Baby Bonds is rooted in the belief that every child deserves a fair shot at prosperity, regardless of their zip code. By investing in children born into poverty, many from historically marginalized communities, we are working to close the racial wealth gap—one Baby Bonds account at a time. 

Connecticut has proven that Baby Bonds are practical, cost-effective, and can provide opportunities for meaningful economic mobility. As other states launch or consider their own programs, CT Baby Bonds can serve as a model of what’s possible when government boldly invests in people.

The path forward is clear. This Juneteenth, and on the second anniversary of CT Baby Bonds, we must commit to expanding the work, deepening its impact, and accelerating our journey toward a more just and equitable future for all.