Gov. Ned Lamont said Monday the misuse of the state car pool by a senior aide was under review and most likely would result in reimbursement to the state for using a work car for personal purposes. The aide, Jonathan Dach, has been a member of the governor’s inner circle since his first day in office and was his third chief of staff for 18 months before stepping back for a policy role in July. Lamont defended a portion of the after-hours use of the two state cars assigned to his office, noting that Dach’s duties as his chief of staff extended beyond an eight-hour day or five-day work week. “But that said, you got to be fastidious about this, and we got to lead by example,” Lamont said. “So the degree to which any of that car use can be perceived as for purely personal, not public, I think we’re going to have to make amends there.” News of Dach’s use of the state car was reported by Inside Investigator, which describes itself as an independently managed project of the conservative Yankee Institute. The organization used state records to examine the use of the cars between June 2023 and September of 2024. The cars, a compact SUV and a compact sedan, are equipped with telemetric data collectors that record the day and time of use, destinations where the cars were parked, and the routes taken and speeds reached. They are not assigned to individuals. “On numerous occasions, the vehicles reached speeds in the 90s, and on three occasions vehicle speeds surpassed 100 miles per hour. On November 14, 2023, the state vehicle reached 113 mph while traveling from New London to Hartford; on February 9 and April 1 of 2023, the vehicle reached 102 mph. according to the data,” Inside Investigator reported. Based on destinations, much of travel was attributed to Dach, though not all and not the drives in which the speed limits were greatly exceeded. “The speeding stuff, frankly, was a little more concerning to me,” Lamont said. “And people jump to the conclusion, who was doing that? There’s 10 people that have access to these cars. So we’re taking a look at that as well.” Earlier Monday, Lamont was at a press conference about the importance of highway safety and the state’s actions to guard against wrong-way driving. Neither Lamont nor Dach disputed a central thrust of the story: State cars were used for personal purposes, in violation of state policy. “The lion’s share of the trips, including those taken after hours and over weekends, were to staff the governor, meet with colleagues, visit state-funded projects, or return home from a late night or even early morning in the office,” Dach said. “Occasional drives, however, were for personal errands. Those were mistakes, I apologize for them, and I look forward to making amends for them.” Dach lived in New Haven for much of time he has worked for Lamont, typically commuting by train. Then he moved to an apartment in Hartford’s Coltsville neighborhood. A state car often was parked near Dach’s apartments. Inside Investigator reported it reviewed about 12,000 miles of travel. “According to a review of the data, roughly 190 trips totaling more than 2,300 miles appear personal in nature, with more than 900 miles of travel across 80 trips occurring on weekends,” Inside Investigator said. One trip made by Dach in a state car was to Albany, N.Y. a year ago for the elevation of Judge Rowan Wilson to chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals. Dach had clerked for Wilson. Dach now lives in Manhattan, his job involving remote work and periodic trips to the Capitol. He oversees energy policy, working on housing and municipal issues, and represents Lamont on the University of Connecticut board of trustees. “He’s here today,” Lamont said. “He comes up every week — by train.”