Democrat Dyer running for 66th District House seat

LITCHFIELD — Democrat Matthew Dyer is seeking to unseat Republican state Rep. David Wilson for the 66th District state House seat.

Dyer, a native of Wyoming who moved to Bristol in 1999, is an attorney with two grown children. He relocated to Litchfield in 2018. Dyer said listening to people’s concerns about taxes, education and their town’s growth are some of the most important issues his constituents face — and he knows, because he’s asked them.

“We can’t do door-todoor campaigning right now because of COVID-19, so we’ve had to find other ways to reach people,” Dyer said. “We texted people, using a (platform called Red to Blue). They coordinated a script based on my election platform, and the we had 200 people participate. We’ve also done Zoom meetings, meet-and-greet things, and we’ve had all sorts of conversations about what people are concerned about.”

The two top issues he’s encountered during those conversations are high taxes and the cost of living — specifically, Eversource’s decision to raise its rates in July. Regulators, according to a story in CT Mirror, suspended the rate hike temporarily while it investigates.

“The concerns tend to rarely get more specific than that, when it comes to taxes,” Dyer said. “People are upset about taxes — housing taxes on a municipal level. And that relates to the fact that the cost of living (in Connecticut) is just out of control.

“Cost of living increases is a more focused concern, because in the last 20 years, the cost of housing has taken a more significant chunk out of people’s paychecks, and 30 to 40 percent of it goes to housing. My parents used to put 15 or 20 percent away for housing, and that left them money to spend on other things.”

Some of the most worried residents are retirees who are afraid they’ll be driven out of the state by higher taxes and unaffordable housing, he said.

“The cost of existing is something we have to get a hold of,” Dyer said. “That’s going to require the entire community’s voice, to decide what to provide, to make life better for each of us. Instead of just shouting across Facebook or Twitter, stop letting that fear drive you. What that requires is a conversation.”

The cost of education, specifically Education Cost Funding, or the amount of funding per student that a town receives from the state, is a concern, he said. “We need to find a way to address Educational Cost Funding,” he said. “It’s an unfair distribution of assets. The five towns I would represent, Bethlehem, Woodbury, Litchfield, Morris and Warren, have vastly different needs.

“I was in Bethlehem right before COVID-19 hit, and even though they have one of the largest agricultural education schools (Nonnewaug), they feel they are being overlooked . ... ECS funding seems to be too easily politically motivated, and it doesn’t seem like there’s a ton of advocacy coming from our state representative and senator.”

He’s also hoping to focus on supporting economic growth in Litchfield County. “(Since COVID-19 began) something like 16,000 people have moved into Connecticut,” he said.

“And a lot of them came to Litchfield County, where they want to stay,” he said. “Connecticut is a draw. It’s closer to New York City. Each town has a character that attracts people, and it should be used to support that town.”

That, he said, would bolster economic development and build more diverse communities. “We need to get more people to put their voices into the community,” Dyer said. “Get them involved; join agencies, boards, host meetings and events. We all need to participate.”

Dyer said there’s a feeling of complacency among voters these days, and that it doesn’t have to be that way. “People throw up their hands and say, ‘What does it matter? Nobody listens to me anyway.’ I say if you have complaints or you think something is working, tell someone. Make your voice heard. I don’t have all the answers, but I want to make sure I speak to as many people as possible, not just the people on the fringes who are the loudest.”

Dyer