Fifteen moderate Democrats are calling for a resolution of the state budget dilemma, and Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell is pledging to work with them.
Led by Sen. Bob Duff of Norwalk, the group sent a letter to House Speaker Christopher Donovan and Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams to say that they cannot support more borrowing to solve the state’s problems.
The four Senate Democratic moderates – Duff, Joan Hartley of Waterbury, Paul Doyle of Wethersfield, and Gayle Slossberg of Milford – all opposed raising the state income tax for couples earning $250,000 each. The number was eventually pushed up to $1 million per couple.
The letter states that the group has a two-fold purpose.
“First, we respectfully request that the legislative leadership and governor’s office go to work right away on a resolution to this year’s shortfall,” the letter says. “As you know, the governor recently unveiled her latest deficit mitigation package. While not perfect, it is a place to begin a dialogue. While no solution is easy or without pain, we all have a responsibility to the taxpayers of this state to get our fiscal house in order. The scope and proportions of our economic crisis demand urgent and coordinated action by both the legislature and the governor.”
The letter continues: “Second, and more importantly, we cannot support any further efforts to borrow our way out of the situation. On a per capita basis, Connecticut is one of the most indebted states in the nation and to continue to travel down that path is irresponsible and makes no long-term sense. Additional debt is not the answer. The only way we can responsibly address the current deficit is to immediately reduce spending.
“We can no longer wait or hope for a miracle on Capitol Avenue. Times are tough. We stand, ready, willing and able to assist and provide the support for closing our deficits in a responsible way. There is no time to waste.”
Rell immediately embraced the request, saying, “This letter from Connecticut’s moderate Democrats to their own leadership is commendable and should be refreshing to state taxpayers. I pledge to work with them immediately to get our budget problems solved. I wholeheartedly agree that this deficit must be eliminated now and that borrowing more money – essentially putting the bill on the state’s credit card for the next generation to pay off – is not the answer.”
While the group is calling itself the moderate Democrats, there are clearly others in the legislature who would fit the “moderate” label who did not sign the letter.
Derek Slap, a spokesman for Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams, said, “The letter articulates what Senator Williams has been saying publicly and privately to caucus members for months – the General Assembly must pass a mitigation plan that closes the deficit and it should be done as soon as possible.”
Rep. Linda Schofield of Simsbury was the first House Democrat on the list, which also includes Steve Mikutel, Terry Backer, Corky Mazurek, Tom Reynolds, Kim Fawcett, Tom Drew, Elizabeth Esty, Ted Moukawsher, Chris Wright, and Chris Perone.
“We aren’t crazy about the level of borrowing,” Donovan told Capitol Watch on Tuesday night. “That was more the governor’s proposal than ours. The governor would rather borrow than stop the tax breaks for wealthy estates. That’s about $78 million. A new tax break for wealthy estates.”
“The letter is a little contradictory,” Donovan said. “It says let’s not do borrowing, but the governor’s proposal has borrowing in it.”
While Donovan did not characterize the group, he said it was 11 out of 114 members. “We have a lot of members. People are concerned about a lot of proposals. … The letter is vague. It talked about working together, which I support.”
In discussing the budget Donovan brought up Rell’s idea to remove public notices from newspapers and place them on the Internet. The idea would save money for cities and towns, rather than the state. The state’s newspapers have strongly opposed the idea, saying that some citizens do not have access to the Internet and have always seen the notices published in their local newspaper.
“Right now, it’s not our proposal. It’s the governor’s proposal,” Donovan said. “It’s on the table. … The cities and towns have mentioned that they would save money.”
Referring to the advertisements that say BAD IDEA in capital letters, Donovan said, “It’s like the biggest print I’ve ever seen.”
When people come into his office with an idea that he disagrees with, Donovan says he holds up the newspaper to show them that it is a BAD IDEA.