In October of 2025, Senate and House Republicans held a press conference questioning the allocation of millions in the latest budget to nonprofit organizations throughout the state, some of which appeared to not exist or to be limited to a couple social media posts. These organizations, in some cases, received hundreds of thousands of dollars in allocations that are virtually untraceable through the budgetary process and are based on requests by individual lawmakers.

In some instances, the nonprofits highlighted during the press conference had received allocations over multiple budget cycles; in another instance, a brand-new nonprofit was launched by the sister of a sitting lawmaker just in time to receive $75,000 from state taxpayers with no explanation — like the other named organizations — of what it does.

“Essentially, what is going on here is the candy store is open in the state of Connecticut with our state employees and different organizations that are receiving these grants within our state budgets and these line items and the Democrats and the one-party rule they have and this absentee governor are doing nothing about it,” Republican Senate Leader Stephen Harding said.

There was good reason to be concerned: over the summer of 2025, news broke that the United States Department of Justice had subpoenaed records from the Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) over the allocation of millions of state and federal dollars to Hartford-area nonprofits.

Most specifically, they sought records pertaining to Senator Doug McCrory, D-Hartford, and Sonserae Cicero, the founder and head of the Society for Human Engagement and Business Alignment (SHEBA), with whom McCrory allegedly had an ongoing personal relationship.

Records obtained and published by Inside Investigator showed McCrory had used his influence as a senator and board member of the Minority Business Initiative to steer millions toward SHEBA, both directly from the state and through nonprofit intermediaries like the Blue Hills Civic Association, which was forced to close after it lost $300,000 in a fraudulent wire transfer. The DOJ, at this point, has only requested records and has not made any charges or allegations, but the inquiry also comes on the heels of the Kosta Diamantis school construction bribery case that was playing out in federal court at the same time.

It all painted a very unflattering picture of Connecticut’s handling of taxpayer money and the way state officials were steering state business and money toward friends, partners, and, perhaps, unscrupulous actors. 

“It’s a pattern,” said House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, and Stephen Harding in a joint statement. “From the State Pier debacle to the CSCU Chancellor scandal to this week’s Diamantis trial, the disrespect for taxpayers’ money is widespread in Connecticut state government. Mismanagement. A lack of oversight and accountability. Money wasted. We now see a lack of respect with regard to taxpayer-funded grants for nonprofits. Earmarks are divvied out with minimal vetting and little to no transparency.”

Republicans called out several nonprofits who had received allocations by name, saying they could find little to no proof of these organizations’ existence. Sen. Rob Sampson, R-Wolcott, questioned a $250,000 allocation to Sports Academy, for example, saying they couldn’t find that organization anywhere.

“That’s a quarter of a million dollars. When we tried to find this organization to identify who they are that is receiving this quarter of a million dollars, we couldn’t find them,” Sampson said. “So who is this organization? Maybe they’re legitimate folks, but how do I know that when this document is put in front of me?”

They then proposed reforms to the allocation process, including requiring organizations to submit written requests for funding to the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee, attend a public hearing regarding their request, supply financial information, have background checks conducted, and be subject to audits.

The nonprofit allocations listed by Republicans were awarded through the Judicial Department for their Youth Services Prevention and Youth Violence Initiative, so money is often directed toward YMCA’s, religious organizations, re-entry programs, sports and arts programs, or other programs focused on youth deemed at risk.

Although there have always been allocations to nonprofits contained in the state budget, as the state’s financial situation reversed from a decade of deficits to a new decade of continuing revenue surpluses, the number of organizations getting allocations through the budget process also grew. In the 2020-2021 budget there were 121 allocations made through the Judicial Department to nonprofit grantees totaling $3,160,997.

By the time of the Republican press conference in October of 2025, they reported 289 grantees receiving a total of $18.9 million; in between those dates was the COVID pandemic, which flooded the state with more federal money than it knew what to do with. Lawmakers started distributing funds quickly, flooding the community nonprofit space with money. 

To follow up on the questions raised in the press conference, Inside Investigator went through all 289 grantees and vetted organizations for their online or social media presence, state business registration, the names of their listed leaders and principals, IRS 990 filings, and where their organizations were located. Through this process, Inside Investigator was able to locate several of the nonprofits named during the press conference, along with several more who lacked an online presence and some of the filings normally required of nonprofit groups, but who still received money and were on hand to answer our questions.

The nonprofits varied in size and in the amounts of their budget allocations; some appear to be run by well-intentioned people who may not be internet savvy or lack the funds to create a functioning website; or they may be unfamiliar with nonprofit business filing requirements that likely raised red flags for minority party lawmakers who find themselves on the outside looking in when it comes to budget earmarks crafted by the majority party.

Several nonprofits that received allocations in the budget were specifically named by Republican leaders during the press conference, and so Inside Investigator undertook researching them to find out who they are and what they do. Specifically, the Republicans raised concerns that there was little to no information available online, that the organization’s activities appeared limited to a couple social media posts, or that the businesses did not appear registered in the state or lacked tax filings. 

To be sure, these organizations were not easy to locate online or even on social media. Some of them did lack documents that would raise red flags had these allocations been vetted. However, when we reached the owners, they indicated they were very much real – although usually small – and said they are known in their communities. We were able to reach all but three.

Additionally, we included nonprofit groups that also could have raised red flags for similar reasons – lack of online presence, no website, or lack of business and IRS filings, and reached out to those organizations as well.

Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut

Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut landed on our list as a potentially suspect non-profit as we could locate no IRS filings and no online presence beyond a private Facebook page and yet received $5,000 in state funding. Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut also garnered the ire of several CT Republicans, who mentioned the organization by name when discussing unvetted non-profit spending. 

We reached out to the founder of Jeep Enthusiasts, Ivy Vazquez, who agreed to a phone call with an Inside Investigator reporter. Vazquez indicated that she was unsure how her organization was awarded funds, claiming the state government “have been sending me emails, but I haven’t had any time to respond to the email or even attend the workshops that they want me to… in order to receive the funds.”

Vazquez also indicated she didn’t know she needed to make filings with the IRS for her organization, didn’t have a website and was unsure how to get one. “I don’t have a website,” Vazquez said. “I don’t know where to go to get a website… Do you [the reporter] have anyone that could help me get a website?” 

Vazquez maintained that Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut is an active organization, and one that is committed to doing genuine good within the community, like delivering packages of water to community members and a turkey drive. Vazquez said she named the organization Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut because she likes Jeeps.

The Bread Room, Inc.

The Bread Room, Inc was mentioned by name during the press conference, with lawmakers indicating they couldn’t find anything about it despite the organization being awarded $17,000 through the budget process.

Indeed, there is no website, social media presence, or mentions online about this organization. The Bread Room was registered in Connecticut in 2015 by James and Sandra Dill as a religious organization at their multifamily home in New Haven. Although there have been no business filings with the Secretary of State’s office since 2017, the organization has consistently filed 990 postcards with the IRS, meaning the organization takes in less than $50,000 per year. Sandra Dill is also the owner of Motherlyluvtoo, a licensed childcare business she runs out of the first floor of the multifamily home and was featured by All Our Kin, a nonprofit that trains and supports childcare providers.

Reached for comment, Sandra Dill says that The Bread Room is a functioning nonprofit that does community work, including homeless outreach, back to school giveaways, lessons on financial literacy and cooking workshops for young people. The Bread Room receives additional grants from community foundations and private donations. She stated she was unaware that she had to file annual reports with the Secretary of State’s office, and that she isn’t tech savvy enough to develop a website. She says The Bread Room was started in part to honor her son who was a victim of gun violence.

“We’re definitely real,” Dill said in a phone interview. “I understand their [lawmakers] concern, but it makes it hard for people doing the right thing. People locally know The Bread Room, but I guess legislators, the state… this just encourages me to get it fixed where it needs to be fixed so when you see it, it’s a legitimate nonprofit that is supporting the community with the funds.”

Sports Academy

Sports Academy was perhaps the biggest question mark during the press conference, as there appears to be no such entity in the state and yet the line item “Sports Academy,” appeared in the state budget with an allocation of $250,000 and received the same allocation in the 2023 budget. Indeed, we could not find Sports Academy, but this was largely due to an error in how the organization is listed in the budget documents, which, in and of itself, could highlight the need for some kind of reform. While Public Act 25-168 lists only “Sports Academy,” a breakdown of the Judicial Department budget by the Office of Fiscal Analysis shows the $250,000 allocation going to “Sports Academy Est. 2013 Inc.”

This led us to the social media sites and website for S.P.O.R.T. Academy out of New Haven run by CEO Edward Trimble. S.P.O.R.T. Academy runs a variety of youth programs, including chess clubs, mentoring, sports, motivational speaking, and home economics, among other programs, and claims several other nonprofits and New Haven Public Schools as partners. 

Reached for comment, Trimble confirmed that his organization was awarded the $250,000, part of which pays for his salary and a secretary, but a chunk of the funding goes to stipends for youth to work for Sport Academy. “Right now, we got like ten youths working with us,” Trimble said.

However, Trimble said the award is restricted in such a way that they can’t use it to purchase a home facility, thus requiring them to work out of schools, libraries, and gyms. “You guys from the state is making it really difficult when you award us money, you won’t let us buy anything, but you let us pay rent for stuff,” Trimble said. “That’s the one thing I don’t understand. If Sport Academy had a building, crime would probably be way down. That’s a shame.”

“We’re a real organization, we’re doing real work, and we need a real building,” Trimble continued. “If we had a real building we could do more work, you know?”

Black Girls Get Legal Tee

Black Girls Get Legal Tee was recently incorporated in 2024 and was mentioned by name during the press conference. At the time, the organization had little online presence beyond an Instagram page with 28 followers, and yet was awarded $75,000 through Connecticut’s government.

Since then, there appears to be a website indicating the organization offers mentorship, professional development, and community for “young women of color” to enter into the legal profession. Tasheedah Roberts—the president of Black Girls Get LegalTee— is the sister of CT House Representative Kadeem Roberts, who is pictured alongside Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, on the website. The address listed as the operational headquarters of Black Girls Get Legal Tee under their state business filing is the Roberts siblings’ parents’ address in Norwalk. We reached out to Roberts several times for comment and received no correspondence back. We also called the office of Representative Kadeem Roberts over the phone, but again received no response. 

Building Leaders across Communities (BLaC) 

While not mentioned in the press conference, Building Leaders across Communities (BLaC) received $15,000 in state funds, despite having no IRS filings, an expired Connecticut business license, and a website that does not exist (http://blacstrategies.com/ is a broken GoDaddy domain).  BLaC incorporated in 2020, has been supposedly active for the past five years, yet hasn’t officially filed with the state as a business since 2023, and has never filed an IRS 990 resulting in the organization having its tax-exempt status revoked by the IRS in 2024.

This fiscal year is the first time BLaC has received state funding, according to the previous state budget reports. We reached out to their founder—listed on Connecticut Business Records Search as Kirk Wesley—several times via email and cellphone for request to comment, but received no correspondence back. Wesley is listed as working for the Open Communities Alliance and, according to his website Kirkawesley.com, he developed BLaC strategies to provide “leadership development training and strategies through the lens of racial equity and gender justice,” as well as offering coaching on how to be a white ally.

We Believe Academy

Very little information about We Believe Academy exists online. The nonprofit was incorporated in 2020, dissolved by the state in 2024 for failure to file required reports, and then reincorporated in 2025. Despite the reinstatement, there is no record of annual reports being filed since 2021, and IRS filings and other organizational records remain missing. According to available information, the organization was founded by former NBA player and Waterbury native Ryan Gomes and former NBA player Ta’Quan Zimmerman as “an alternative to the traditional high school basketball path, with the goal of eventually placing their players into college basketball programs,” along with academic support.

The organization then changed its name to The Bright School and partnered with the Putnam Science Academy, whose owners were recently ordered to pay $5 million in restitution for fraud following a report by Inside Investigator. The Bright School’s website is connected to Putnam Science Academy and lists its boarding tuition as $45,000, plus fees. We Believe Academy was awarded $5,000 in the state budget.

Abe Prior—Keep 5 Alive

We initially flagged Abe Prior—Keep 5 Alive as potentially suspect because it did not have any IRS filings or any online presence beyond its mention in Connecticut budget reports. However, when we reached out to the founder Terrano Higgs-Prior, she clarified that the organization is currently compiling their IRS documents, and their forms will be submitted before this year’s deadline. Moreover, the absence of IRS filings in prior years stem from the organization’s dissolution between 2023-2025 and, before that, from Higgs’s apparent lack of familiarity with tax-filing requirements.

Higgs said their website is currently under construction, and if interested parties would like information regarding Abe Prior–Keep 5 Alive’s operations, they can email apkeep5alive@gmail.com directly. Higgs said Abe Prior—Keep 5 Alive is a non-profit based out of Norwalk, dedicated to providing scholarships to students from single-parent homes facing socioeconomic challenges, enabling them to pursue higher education and develop essential skills through community events. The organization was established in honor of Higg’s son, Abe, who passed away. The organization was awarded $25,000 in the budget.

Advocacy Academy Accomplish Education

The founder and president of Advocacy Academy Accomplish Education (AAAE), Marta Persia, supplied similar answers. We included AAAE in our investigation as there was no online record of the organization besides a Facebook page with 74 followers, the address listed for their headquarters was a residential home in Meriden, and they consistently filed 990-postcards, meaning the organization took in less than $50,000 annually. Persia explained over email that the address listed is only used for mailing and administrative purposes, as the AAAE does not have a physical headquarters. Furthermore, their website is being updated and thus cannot be located online. Members of the community can find information about AAAE through community partnerships, public outreach activities, and other online platforms. Persia said that AAAE is a non-profit dedicated to supporting families with children on the autism spectrum, including many monolingual families, through advocacy, education, and community-based support services. The organization was awarded $15,000 in the state budget.

On January 20, 2026, the DECD released a forensic audit of the Blue Hills Civic Association that found hundreds of thousands of dollars unaccounted for, and millions paid for work not completed or toward programs that appeared fraudulent. BHCA was used as a pass-through entity to direct funds toward third-party recipients, allegedly at the direction of Sen. McCrory. The auditors found “pervasive governance failures, systemic internal control weaknesses, and pattern of conduct that strongly suggest potential fraud and misappropriation of public funds by BHCA and related parties.”

Both the DECD and Gov. Ned Lamont responded to the audit in a press release calling for greater oversight and accountability in how “legislatively directed funds” are administered, including legislative earmarks.

“This report makes it clear that these earmarks require greater scrutiny,” said DECD Commissioner Daniel O’Keefe. “As a result, and at the Governor’s direction, DECD will immediately expand staff capacity in financial review and compliance to conduct diligence and grant recipient monitoring activities over legislatively-directed funds the same way we do our other programs.”

The press release also indicated that the Office of Policy and Management implemented a new policy “specifically focused on the management and administration of legislative earmarks.”

“This policy establishes a standardized, statewide framework for the administration of legislatively directed funds,” the press release states. “Some of the features of the new policy include requiring additional pre-award due diligence and documentation provided by the grant recipient, conducting a risk assessment, and outlining a process through which a state agency can withhold funding if deemed in the best interest of state taxpayers.”

Even Sen. McCrory – who Lamont said should step back from his leadership roles following the audit findings – released a statement denying any wrongdoing and calling for greater oversight “to ensure that public funds are managed responsibly and effectively,” but stating that such oversight shouldn’t create “unnecessary red tape that blocks resources from reaching residents that need them the most.”

Millions of dollars, year over year, were allocated to BHCA and other entities which then passed the money on to third parties, but it wasn’t through the Judicial Department. There are several paths to getting earmarks, particularly through the DECD and carry-forward funds.

According CT Mirror reporting, the budget adopted in June of 2025 included $78.2 million in earmarks outside of housing, juvenile justice, and health centers, which are the areas generally included in the Judicial Department budget. During his 2026 budget presentation, Lamont called for a reduction in earmarks of roughly $15 million.

The nonprofits that receive earmarks through the Judicial Department don’t approach the level of funding that organizations like BHCA received in the past. In the case of Jeep Enthusiasts of Connecticut, it might cost more to vet the nonprofit than the organization actually received.

Regardless, Sen. Rob Sampson, R-Wolcott, one of the speakers at the press conference, doesn’t believe taxpayer money should be awarded through such an arbitrary and opaque process, particularly when these funds can be used as political patronage. In comments made to CT Mirror, legislative leaders acknowledged that it takes little more than a legislator asking for the grant, a sympathetic cause, and “the financial and political needs of its district and its representative.”

“Even if you could make an argument for any one of these individual organizations and their activities, it deserves to be put before the entire legislature and, more importantly, before the public,” Sampson said in an interview. “There’s no reason why any money should be dispersed to any entity without a public hearing. It should just never happen. There’s got to be oversight. There isn’t any.”

Sampson says as part of the Republican Caucus platform this year, they will be offering amendments to implement greater oversight of such earmarks so they have to go through the same process as every other appropriation: “You can’t get money bonded without a public hearing, it just doesn’t happen.” 

Following the collapse of the Blue Hills Civic Association and questions regarding several other nonprofits associated with BHCA amid the federal investigation, reports of widespread fraud in Minnesota put a national spotlight on how money flows to nonprofits, particularly those with political connections. In the end, the wrongs of a few can make it difficult for those doing legitimate, good work.

“We do a lot for the community,” Sandra Dill of the Bread Room said. “I don’t want our nonprofit to look suspicious because we are not a suspicious entity. I personally have a problem with nonprofits that aren’t doing what they’re supposed to be doing… It’s good that you’re looking into it.”

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