Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, showing he’s a man of his word, followed through on his promise last spring to swap out his gas-guzzling Ford Crown Vic for a Honda Civic hybrid.
And the state’s top lawyer couldn’t be happier with his new wheels.
“It’s a great car,” he said.
Blumenthal made the switch in May, shortly after an Associated Press reporter pointed out the AG racked up 69,000 miles in less than a year, mostly because of the commute from his Greenwich home.
At the time, Blumenthal told the AP he felt “somewhat embarrassed about driving a car that is so fuel inefficient.”
The Civic hybrid gets 45 to 48 miles per gallon compared to the Crown Vic’s 15 mpg in the city and 23 on the highway.
It turns out that the Blumenthals like the hybrid so much that Mrs. Blumenthal purchased a Toyota Prius shortly after her hubby started driving the Civic.
“When we need another car, we’ll almost certainly buy another hybrid,” Blumenthal said.
Insurance Commissioner Thomas Sullivan said he will not lower capital requirements for Connecticut insurance companies that are being hit hard by the current financial crisis, a move being considered by several other states.
Capital is the financial cushion a company must maintain to cover risks associated with its various products and investments.
Regulators in Connecticut and other states establish minimum capital requirements to ensure that insurers can meet those obligations.
Most of the nation’s largest insurers, including The Hartford Financial Services Group, have seen their capital levels shrink in recent months due to losses related to their investments and the insurance products that they sell.
Sullivan said he will not lower the state’s minimum capital requirements at this time because thresholds are prescribed in actuarial laws and regulations.
