Author: Christopher Keating

Less than 24 hours after Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell unveiled her proposal, the two leading Democratic candidates for governor ripped her plan for early retirement for state employees.

Both Greenwich cable TV entrepreneur Ned Lamont and former Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy said the idea is pennywise and pound foolish – saving some money in the short-term and costing even more in the long-term as state employees head out the door.

The state, they argued, will lose some of its best and brightest as thousands of experienced employees leave.

“The worst part is that the ‘savings’ this short-sighted proposal offers are a drop in the bucket – savings that are overshadowed by the loss of talent and the time, energy, and money it will take to train their replacements,” Lamont said. “It’s time to stop kicking the can down the road.”

Malloy said, “The problem with this type of program is clear: they sacrifice long-term economic stability and growth for a perceived short-term benefit.  When employees take advantage of the plan they eventually have to be replaced, often at higher costs than if the current workers had stayed on the job.  As just one example, in last year’s plan we lost approximately 500 corrections officers. Obviously, they’ll have to be replaced, and it costs approximately $30,000 to train each one.”

Malloy also complained that some state employees have traditionally become double-dippers by being rehired for 120 days – even while collecting their pensions.

“In fact, after the 2003 early-retirement program the total number of state employees only dropped temporarily for one year before rising the following year to a point even higher than before the program was tried,” Malloy said. “Where are the savings there?”

But House Republican leader Lawrence Cafero, who helped craft the initial Republican early retirement plan in April 2008, said that both Lamont and Malloy are wrong.

“Their response and reaction to the early retirement plan epitomizes their campaigns,” Cafero said in an interview. “Neither of them has specified one program they would cut to balance this budget. These two gentlemen, who hope to be governor, deserve to give an explanation to the people. They owe the public nothing less. What is their plan? What is their plan?”

Regarding Lamont’s comment that Rell’s proposal is “kicking the can down the road,” Cafero said that legislative Democrats – who hold veto-proof majorities in both chambers of the General Assembly – have been kicking the can down the road since the budget crisis started in 2008.

The candidates, he said, have not delivered the level of specificity in the governor’s budget or the line-by-line plan by Republican legislators.

“Mr. Malloy has been running for governor for four years. Where is his plan?” Cafero asked. “He has not proposed one specific tax or cut. It’s all generalities.”

Both Lamont and Malloy, Cafero said, are hurling criticisms from the sidelines without playing the game.

“That’s like being in the stands, saying the pitcher is not throwing the right pitches,” Cafero said. “You’ve got to go down on the field and throw one.”

Sen. Edward Meyer, a Guilford Democrat, is publicly clashing with Rep. J. Brendan Sharkey, a Hamden Democrat who co-chairs the legislature’s planning and development committee.

In an unusual letter that was distributed around the state Capitol among environmental advocates and others, Meyer writes in detail about Sharkey’s actions concerning two bills that were killed at the committee level.

Hartford Courant columnist Kevin Rennie has the details and the two-page letter at http://www.dailyructions.com/oh-the-sharkey-has-pretty-teeth-dear/

Hartford Courant cartoonist Bob Englehart weighs in on the Susan Bysiewicz case.

http://blogs.courant.com/bob_englehart/2010/04/april-11-2010.html

The New York-based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights has written a letter to all Connecticut legislators on the controversial issue of extending the civil statute of limitations in cases of sexual abuse.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue, who is well known from appearances on Larry King Live and other national cable television shows, sent a letter that states:

“Dear Connecticut Legislator:

“Some Catholics who support H.B. 5473, the bill that eliminates the statute of limitations for cases of sexual abuse, are falsely positioning themselves as being a legitimate competitor to the voice of the bishops. No group has irresponsibly assumed this mantle of authority more than Voice of the Faithful.

“To be sure, lay Catholics have a right to speak to all public policy issues that touch on the affairs of the Catholic Church. But no lay Catholic organization has the right to portray itself as a substitute to the canonical authority of the bishops. That is what Voice of the Faithful has done.

“In its recent letter to you, Voice of the Faithful unjustly condemns the bishops for seeking to “mislead, mischaracterize and spin the facts in an effort to preserve their temporal, rather than spiritual, authority.” In doing so, it not only goes well beyond the pale for even a dissident Catholic organization–it betrays an animus so vile as to rival the antics of rank anti-Catholics.

“Voice of the Faithful is not only financially bankrupt (a reflection of its abysmally low membership), it has shown itself to be morally bankrupt as well. Unlike loyal lay Catholic sons and daughters who support the palpable reforms made by their bishops, those who support this group have never found a reform worth cheering. In other words, nothing the bishops can ever do is enough to satisfy them.

“The Catholic League respectfully asks that you weigh the real-life concerns of the bishops regarding the draconian implications of this bill. And we ask that you not be distracted by those who harbor an agenda of their own.”

The bill was passed, 23 to 20, by the legislature’s judiciary committee. The full General Assembly might debate the bill by the state-mandated deadline of May 5, but no date has been announced for a debate.

There are multiple links on the issue in Susan Campbell’s blog today at http://blogs.courant.com/susan_campbell/2010/04/more-invective-against-a-conne.html

Trying to capitalize on the bipartisanship that led to a budget deal for 2010 last week, Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell offered a new plan Monday – including an early retirement plan for state employes – to solve the state’s ongoing fiscal crisis for the next fiscal year.

In an unusual display of cooperation, Rell stepped outside of her Capitol office after the meeting and stood side-by-side with the top Democratic and Republican leaders to declare they will continue working together – after several vetoes and essentially a full year of sometimes-bitter clashes over financial issues.

When asked if she believes the two sides can reach a deal for the 2011 fiscal year before the legislative session ends May 5, Rell responded, “I’m always optimistic.”

Rell and the Democrats agreed not to discuss the plan in detail because it is still being reviewed by fiscal analysts in the coming days.

But insiders said the plan includes an early retirement proposal for state employees, which would save money in the short-term by prompting the departure of highly paid employees who would be replaced by lower-paid, new employees. Rell said the early retirement is “one of the things” that she has asked Democrats to consider in the plan.

“There are no taxes and no cuts to municipal aid,” Rell told reporters outside her suite of offices.

The plan also assumes that the state will receive about $356 million in federal stimulus funds to close a projected deficit of about $725 million for the fiscal year that starts in July. Another idea being discussed is deferring another payment of $100 million into the state employees’ pension, but some lawmakers say that is essentially a shell game because the money must eventually be paid and no one’s pension is being reduced. An initial $100 million was deferred for the current fiscal year, and another $100 million is being discussed for the next fiscal year. The legislature, however, would not be requeired

Republicans are also asking for $150 million in additional concessions from the state employee unions, but the unions have rejected that idea.

“Obviously, it is totally up to the unions,” said House Republican leader Larry Cafero of Norwalk. “It’s a unilateral thing.”

When asked if the Democrats would support additional union concessions, House Speaker Christopher Donovan – a major union supporter – said, “We’re looking at the governor’s proposal right now, and it’s not in there.”

Besides attempting to close the gap, Rell and lawmakers are trying to find the best way to borrow $1.3 billion to cover operating costs for the 2011 fiscal year. Under the law, they must find a way to “securitize” certain revenue streams to pay off those bonds. Despite a formal rejection by the Democratic-controlled legislature, Rell said Monday that she still supports legalizing the keno electronic gambling game and using about $60 million in keno revenues each year to pay off the bonds.

The Democrats have responded by saying they would use revenues from utility customers of the Connecticut Light & Power Co., which has ignited an intense campaign by CL&P with newspaper and radio advertisements that rip the proposal.

“This hidden tax will cost electric customers $180 million every year for the next 10 years,” says the advertisement by CL&P. “Customers of municipal electric providers would be exempt from paying; UI customers won’t pay until 2014. These funds would be used to float new revenue bonds designed to offset the state’s deficit – creating more debt to pay existing debt. Don’t let the state use your electric bill to pay for its own debt. Fight this hidden tax at www.NotMyBill.org”

“I have never liked that option from the beginning,” Rell said of the electric option. “I don’t think there’s a lot of support for that.”

No follow-up meetings are scheduled yet as the numbers will be crunched and analyzed in the coming days.

Donovan said that crafting a deal is possible because all sides are moving forward.

“We’ve been working together – the bunch we have here today. We know where each other are,” Donovan said. “The governor has put forward a proposal that we’re going to take a look at, building off the success of last week where we closed 2010. Our hope is that we continue that effort and close 2011.”

“There was a huge step forward when we closed the deficit for 2010,” said Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams, the highest-ranking senator. “Everybody’s resolved to roll up our sleeves and tackle this fiscal problem. … I don’t think anybody expected us to close the 2010 deficit in a bipartisan way this session. We did that.”

“I’m more optimistic after the meeting that we can balance our 2011 budget – whether it’s May 5 or shortly thereafter,” said Senate Republican leader John McKinney of Southport. “I think the governor’s plan that she put forward is a pretty good one. There are some things in there I don’t like. Obviously, I don’t like the deferral of pension funds. But, by and large, I think her openness to an early retirement program for state employees – something that legislative Republicans offered about two years ago – helps us get to where we need to be, not just for 2011, but structurally for 2012 and 2013 as well.”

Both McKinney and Cafero said that there would be a much better chance for budget savings if Democratic leaders put more pressure on SEBAC for more concessions.

“Were the Democratic leadership to publicly say that SEBAC should come to the table and sit down with the governor … that would go a long way to getting them to the table,” McKinney said. “But the silence of the Democratic leadership gives a lot of strength to SEBAC’s current position.”

In April 2008, the Republicans unveiled a budget in which the cornerstone was an ERIP – rather than a simple retirement incentive plan that starts only at the age of 55.

“I predicted in April … that this thing would be in force by February 2009,” Cafero told Capitol Watch on Monday night. “I said to the governor, publicly and privately, that there’s a whole host of people who are out there with 25 years [of service] who are just shy of the age.”

Under the SEBAC agreement, those eligible must have a magic number of 75. For example, a person who is 54 years old with 21 years of service would reach the number of 75.

“We got calls and calls and calls when we came out with our plan” for early retirement, Cafero said. “We missed a whole group of people that we could now capture” at an earlier age.

The GOP plan would save about $65 million in the 2011 fiscal year – assuming 1,000 jobs at $65,000 each.

McKinney and Cafero had no advance notice Monday that Rell would support an early retirement plan.

“We need the flexibility to consolidate agencies,” Cafero said. “The only way you’re going to get flexibility” is to do an ERIP.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has filed a civil lawsuit in an attempt to recover more than $16 million in the massive financial scandal involving highly touted investor Bernard Madoff.

http://www.courant.com/business/hc-state-suing-madoff-fraud-0419,0,6931001.story

It’s D-Day.

Or at least that’s what CCM, the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, says it is for municipal mandate relief.

Mayors, first selectmen, and some legislators have been banging the drum against unfunded mandates for years. Some in the legislature have not heard the sound. As such, CCM returns to the state Capitol each year to argue for relief.

Substitute House bill 5255 would “allow towns to set their own fee levels for certain services to cover administrative costs” and “relieve towns from the requirement to remove and store the possessions of evicted residential tenants,” according to CCM.

It would also “change property tax laws governing telecommunication towers and eliminate the requirement that towns post minutes on their websites – the minutes would still be available for public inspection.”

“It’s time for the state to deliver on mandates relief, and the finance committee can jump start this effort by reporting out” the bill, said James Finley, CCM’s CEO and chief lobbyist at the Capitol.

Professional wrestling blogger Irvin Muchnick weighs in on Linda McMahon and the WWE.

http://wrestlingbabylon.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/how-linda-mcmahon-managed-the-wwe-pedophile-scandal%e2%80%99s-damage-control/

Hartford Courant columnist Bob Englehart weighs in on the cardboard cutouts of University of Connecticut president Michael Hogan that have been placed around the campus in Storrs.

http://blogs.courant.com/bob_englehart/2010/04/april-18-2010.html

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney has endorsed House Majority Leader Denise Merrill of Mansfield as Connecticut’s next Secretary of the State.

Courtney, who represents a huge section of the state that touches the Rhode Island and Massachusetts borders, is throwing his support to Merrill because of her long years of experience and service at the state Capitol in Hartford.

“She has a command of all of the issues that a successful Secretary needs – election law, business organization and state finances,” Courtney said in a statement. “Denise will make this office more pro-active and create a healthier democracy and a friendlier business climate to help Connecticut innovate and thrive.”

Merrill had been endorsed previously by House Speaker Christopher Donovan and state Rep. Jamie Spallone, an Essex Democrat who pulled out of the race after an exploratory effort. In addition, more than half of the 114-member House Democratic caucus has pledged their support to the majority leader. Merrill had previously thanked her caucus, and now she is thanking Courtney as she prepares for the Democratic nominating convention on May 22.

“Congressman Courtney has a long and solid history in Connecticut Democratic politics and has shown great leadership,” Merrill said in a statement. “I have great respect for his work, and I am honored to have his endorsement.”

The candidates in the race are battling for high-profile endorsements.

Sen. Jonathan Harris of West Hartford was previously endorsed outside West Hartford town hall by U.S. Rep. John B. Larson of East Hartford, who has become one of the most powerful Democrats in the U.S. House.

Another candidate, Gerry Garcia of New Haven, has been endorsed by state Rep. Jason Bartlett of Bethel. Garcia, who holds undergraduate and master’s degrees from Yale University, was an early entrant into the race and announced for the office before Halloween.

The three Democrats are seeking an open seat because the current Secretary of the State, Susan Bysiewicz, is running for attorney general.

Lawmakers in the state House of Representatives just got word today that they will be in session at least three days next week.

The House will meet at 2 p.m. Tuesday and again starting at noon on Wednesday. The exact time has not been set for Thursday’s session, but the University of Connecticut basketball teams will likely be at the Capitol that afternoon for the annual Husky Day.

The UConn women’s hoop team will be featured in a parade Sunday in Hartford to honor their undefeated and championship season.

HARTFORD – Greenwich cable television entrepreneur Ned Lamont called Friday for the elimination of the business entity tax – a $250 annual fee that is paid by thousands of small businesses each year.

Lamont made his announcement at City Fare Catering on Franklin Avenue in Hartford, which has been hit hard by a sharp drop in catering business.

A small business owner himself, Lamont said eliminating the tax could help thousands of companies in the state and kick-start the sluggish economy that is still weak after the huge downturn in 2008 and 2009.

“If we could give people an incentive to hire just one or two more people, we would be able to get this economy growing again,” Lamont said. “Right here at City Fare, they used to have 32 folks. Now, they’re down to four. Elimination of the business entity tax is one way that we can tell people: start growing, start hiring people. It’s a nuisance tax. … This would send a message. Let’s eliminate that tax and get growing again.”

Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the Senate Democrats have called for eliminating the tax, but nothing has happened yet at the state Capitol.

To pay for it, Lamont favors the highly controversial “combined reporting” tax that has been strongly opposed by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association because officials say it would translate into a tax increase for corporations. The unitary method would affect companies that have headquarters in Connecticut and operations in multiple states, such as Hartford-based United Technologies Corp. and Fairfield-based General Electric. Currently, 23 states, including New York and Massachusetts, have combined reporting, and it is “a red herring” that other states would recruit business way from Connecticut, he said.

“The trend across the country is to have standardized reporting like this. We’ve been a little behind the curve,” Lamont said. “Other states have been eating our lunch on this issue. Over time, everybody is going to have combined reporting, so we standardize how you allocate your income.”

Large companies like UTC and GE “already operate in states that have the combined reporting standard,” Lamont said. “It really would not impact them at all. It’s transparent, so that Connecticut gets its fair share.”

While Lamont was talking about taxes Friday, former Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy picked up endorsements from leaders of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. He supports gay marriage, which became legal in Connecticut after a ruling by the State Supreme Court.

Lamont has been leading Malloy in the past three Quinnipiac University polls. Lamont moved into the front-runner status for the Democratic nomination after Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz dropped out of the race. They are battling for the nomination with Simsbury First Selectman Mary Glassman, Ridgefield First Selectman Rudy Marconi, and former state Rep. Juan Figueroa of Meriden. 

If you have not filed your taxes yet, please read this.

If you have already filed your taxes, please read it, anyway.

A story in the business section of Saturday’s New York Times explained that more than 4 million people had filed their federal income taxes incorrectly, and millions more were expected to make the same mistake as the flood of returns come pouring in before the April 15 deadline.

The problem is that millions of people failed to file Schedule M – a new form that was included in the tax booklet this year that was sent to your home. Schedule M is important because it is directly related to the federal stimulus tax breaks that were enacted by the Congress and President Barack Obama.

If you do not file Schedule M, you could be paying as much as $800 more in federal taxes than you should.

The reason is that employers adjusted the withholding for workers, which amounted to $800 for couples filing jointly for 2009. But if you don’t file Schedule M and you don’t properly mark the credit on line 63 on the back of your 1040 form, then you will likely be paying too much in taxes.

The IRS will eventually figure it out and send you the money, but millions of people have ignored Schedule M so far.

Further information is available at www.irs.gov. The toll free number for last-minute assistance is 1-800-829-1040.

On tax day, Republican legislators unveiled a budget proposal that they say is balanced without raising taxes or cutting aid to cities and towns. The plan would save millions by cutting the salaries of all legislators, commissioners, and constitutional officers by 10 percent and eliminating the free mail that is sent by legislators.

The budget-cutting proposal also says that only the governor would be entitled to a state-paid driver, taking away the drivers for the lieutenant governor, attorney general, and all constitutional officers. The plan is being proposed to kick-start negotiations as the legislature barrels headlong toward the May 5 deadline.

Although the state employee unions already have a deal that covers the second-year of the two-year budget, the Republicans are asking for $150 million in concessions from the unions through a salary freeze for one year, imposing a $250 co-pay for in-patient hospital stays, and furloughs.

“First and foremost, we’ve already responded to the current governor’s requests for givebacks,” said Matthew O’Connor, a spokesman for CSEA/SEIU Local 2001. “Larry Cafero says they are working on the 2011 budget, but it sounds an awful lot more to us that they’re getting to work on the 2010 gubernatorial campaign. This is all politics. Instead of putting forward a political document, they should be working with the other side of the aisle and state workers. … If this is a ploy to help one or more of the candidates who share a R next to their name, that’s a real shame. There’s a time for campaigning and a time for doing the real work of the people.”

In a related development, Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell also sent a letter to all legislators, asking for bipartisan cooperation in the final three weeks of the regular legislative session. She praised the consensus budget bill that was passed and signed into law Wednesday that will eliminate the state’s projected $350 million deficit for the current fiscal year.

“Together, we passed into law a plan that closes this year’s deficit without tax increases or cuts to municipal aid,” Rell wrote. “Today is April 15 – tax day. With that in mind, I believe we can honestly say that this week we have done a service to the beleaguered taxpayers of Connecticut. However, as you are well aware, we still have major fiscal challenges to confront.”

Despite the legislative action this week, the state still faces projected deficits of $725 million in the fiscal year that starts in July and more than $3 billion in the 2012 fiscal year.

Rell intends to call a meeting for Monday with all of the top legislative leaders to plot the next steps for the next fiscal year. At that meeting, Rell will unveil a new proposal that would close the deficit without any cuts to municipal aid or tax increases – just like the Republican plan unveiled Thursday.

House Speaker Christopher Donovan, who has strongly opposed many of Rell’s budget cuts over the past 14 months, did not rule anything out Thursday.

“We have demonstrated this week that Democrats, Republicans and the governor can work together to close the deficit,” Donovan said. “I will ask our nonpartisan Office of Fiscal Analysis to review the details of the Republicans’ budget proposal, and I look forward to meeting with the governor and legislative leaders next week to discuss ideas on closing the 2011 budget shortfall. I hope we can all take the goodwill from this week and continue to work together on solutions for 2011.”

Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, a New Haven Democrat, said he was concerned that Republicans are continuing their support for the estate tax, which is now charged only on estates of more than $3.5 million. Previously, any estate over $2 million was subject to the tax, but that was changed by the legislature as of January 1, 2010.

Democrats have been trying to impose a 20 percent rate on the portion of the estate above $10 million, which Republicans charge would be the highest estate tax in the nation.

“We are disappointed that Republicans continue to support a tax break for multi-millionaires that will cost taxpayers $75 million,” Looney said. “Republicans help pay for it by cutting funding for local school services – leading to a likely increase in municipal property taxes. Under their plan the rich get a tax cut and everyone else pays for it – that’s not what families call common-sense. However, there are some sound ideas in their proposal – including agency consolidations and job creating investments. We remain confident there is room for compromise and that a solution can be reached in the coming weeks.”

Despite the smiles on the faces of legislators and others, the Republican frontrunner in the governor’s race – Tom Foley of Greenwich – was not happy with the legislature’s bipartisan action. He said the legislature essentially had kicked the can down the road.

“Yesterday Connecticut’s legislature continued to push the state toward financial disaster by passing a budget that does nothing to fix the underlying problem of the government’s wasteful spending,” Foley said in a statement. “The new budget doesn’t address our looming budget crisis, which demands that we reduce the size and cost of state government.  The legislature has simply passed the buck to the next governor when they could have started us on the road to recovery with more responsible action.  As governor, I will solve these problems by reducing the cost of state government and focusing on policies that will create jobs.  We need new leaders in Hartford who didn’t create this mess and who will bring a new approach to getting Connecticut on the path to recovery.”

A member of CSEA/SEIU Local 2001 said that getting people back should be a top priority for the legislature.

“The legislature’s vote is a reminder that Governor Rell and the legislature must work on a serious plan to put people back to work,” Vincent Steele, a correctional lieutenant with the State Department of Correction, said in a statement. “We cannot afford politicians who play it safe. What we need is an FDR of our time with the wisdom and the courage to lead us toward a more prosperous and economically secure future.  What we need are leaders who understand that helping working families improve their budgets is how you balance the state budget. You do that by getting the people of Connecticut back to work.”

A civil jury in Middletown Superior Court ruled Thursday against Portland horse trainer Robert Johnson, who was accused of assaulting a boy at the horse stables more than 20 years ago.

Johnson had been previously convicted by a jury on two felony counts in criminal court in May 2001 in front of Judge Patrick Clifford, and he served time in prison in a case involving a 14-year-old girl. The 14-year-old, who testified at the trial, had viewed Johnson as a father figure at the riding academy. She had been the top-ranked showhorse rider in Connecticut and ranked among the top 15 in the nation in her age group.

Nine years later, the girl’s mother testified earlier this month in the latest trial in Middletown against Johnson.

The Hartford Courant’s veteran court reporter, Alaine Griffin, has details at http://www.courant.com/community/middletown/hc-equestrian-verdict-0415,0,920172.story

With fishing season starting on Saturday, the state Senate unanimously granted final legislative approval Wednesday to reduce hunting and fishing fees that were hiked last year because of the state’s ongoing budget crisis.

Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who crafted many of the ideas in the multi-pronged fiscal bill, immediately signed the measure early Wednesday evening – days before the fishing season starts.

The bipartisan, consensus bill that cuts the fees was originally passed 147 to 1 in the state House of Representatives on Tuesday night. Shortly after 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, the state Senate voted 36 to 0 to approve the bill that reduces 47 different hunting and fishing fees while raising 15 different motor vehicle fees to pay for it. About 180,000 people pay the hunting and fishing fees each year.

Some lawmakers were stunned that Senate Democrats and Republicans – after disagreeing for the past 18 months on many budget issues – had voted unanimously for a budget bill.

“We should take a picture for posterity purposes of that vote on the board,” said Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, a New Haven Democrat.

The cuts in the sporting fees would only be for future payments. If someone, for example, bought a fishing license last week, they would not be able to get the fee reduced retroactively, officials said.

Overall, the sporting fees statewide would drop by $5.35 million, but the legislature would raise other fees and make moves to cover that exact amount.

Some of the most common motor vehicle fines would be increasing under the bill. For example, the fine for failing to wear a seat belt would jump to $50, up from the current level of $15. The seat-belt fines had been low because they have not been changed since 1985.

In addition, the minimum fee for speeding would increase to $50, up from $35. Those failing to carry their registration or insurance card in their car would pay a $50 fine, up from the current $35.

Sen. John Kissel, an Enfield Republican who pushed for the fee cuts, said it was a positive move that a hunting license for a Connecticut resident would be going down from the current $28 to $19.

“I know that the hunters, sportsmen and campers in my neck of the woods are going to be happy when they read what we did,” said Kissel. “I would like to have seen this happen months and months and months ago, but I’m reasonable enough to know that half a loaf of bread is better than nothing at all.”

He also praised Sen. Donald DeFronzo of New Britain, who has been pushing for the proposal since December 2009.

“This is a wonderful step in the right direction,” said Sen. L. Scott Frantz, a Greenwich Republican. “Mick Jagger hit it all wrong. Time is not on our side when we are facing large deficits. … We have to keep in mind that Connecticut lags the national economy by 12 to 18 months to come out of the recession. … The important thing is this sets the tone for moving forward.”

The bill also capped camping and state parks fees, which were benchmarked back to April 1, 2009 before any changes could be made.

In the House, state Rep. Karen Jarmoc, an Enfield Democrat, was among those pushing for the rollback of the fees, and she organized a meeting with various sportsmen’s organizations to obtain feedback on the fees.

The deficit-mitigation debate, including the fee cuts, started in the Senate at 4:45 p.m. Wednesday in an effort to wipe out the projected deficit of about $350 million in the current fiscal year that ends on June 30. The legislature wanted to act before the fiscal year had ended so that lawmakers would not be forced to borrow money to cover the deficit.

The bill includes about $139.3 million in spending cuts and balances the budget without any tax increases. Republicans and Democrats have clashed sharply over proposed changes in the estate tax and creating a new gross receipts tax on hospitals, but those debates were put off for another day.

“We shouldn’t pat ourselves on the back too hard. This was the easy part,” said Sen. Leonard Fasano, a North Haven Republican. “Our obligation is much, much more than 2010. We have an over $700 million deficit in 2011. We waited until April 14 to tackle 2010’s problem. Before we get too jubilant and excited about doing our job, we have a big deficit ahead of us.”

Fasano told his colleagues on the Senate floor that Connecticut needs to change its image that it is not a “business-friendly” state. One of the problems, he said, is that the tax-writing finance committee has continued talking about the “unitary” tax that is strongly opposed by major corporations and the Connecticut Business & Industry Association.

“The policies that we put out there tells people what we’re thinking,” Fasano said.

“I stand today in support of this bill and stand here very pleased that we have been able to come together … on spending cuts, rather than taxes,” said Sen. Dan Debicella, a Shelton Republican who often votes against Democratic budgets. “This is not slash-and-burn cutting. … I’m very pleased that the hospital tax and the estate tax are gone. I hope they are gone for good.”

Sen. Edward Meyer, a Guilford Democrat who has become a key swing voter on budget issues, said that school transportation, biomedical research, and school-based health centers were preserved as lawmakers used  “a surgical knife” to make the cuts Wednesday.

Looney said the deficit-cutting measure was a judicious package of improvements that closes the gap for the current fiscal year.

Both Republicans and Democrats rhetorically slapped each other on the back for a bipartisan plan that came in marked contrast to previous budget battles over taxing and spending.

“It certainly is a new day from when we last met at 5:30 in the morning,” said Sen. Toni Boucher, a Wilton Republican who referred to the major battle on the morning of March 27 in which the Senate approved a budget-mitigation bill that was never approved by the House after Rell vowed to veto that bill.

“After that painful night, Gov. Rell stepped forward with her own program,” said Senate GOP leader John McKinney of Southport. “That has to be the momentum we take forward in the next few weeks. … There are tough decisions to be made. … I’m happy that we are here with a bipartisan solution.”

Senate President Pro Donald Williams, the highest-ranking senator, said plenty of work was done behind the scenes in recent weeks to find savings in the state budget.

“It is a milestone,” Williams said late Wednesday afternoon. “Three weeks ago, people would have been surprised if they were told that there would be an agreement” that was supported by Republicans, Democrats, and Rell.

In other matters, the Senate voted 24 to 11 to approve a minor reform in the new campaign finance reform law that had been previously approved Tuesday by the House. The law currently says that if a court found the new law to be unconstitutional, the legislature would have only seven days to respond.

The bill was immediately sent to Rell, who signed it Wednesday.

The fix to the law would allow the state to have 30 days to act, rather than seven.

“We need more than seven days to digest an opinion” and make proper changes, said Sen. Gayle S. Slossberg, the co-chairwoman of the legislative committee that oversees elections.

Currently, the state is waiting for a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Second Circuit, which is among the most powerful appeals courts in the nation.

Fasano, a deputy Republican leader, said the legislature has avoided making any decision since the original federal court ruling last year by Judge Stefan Underhill. He noted that McKinney had successfully predicted that the bill would be ruled unconstitutional.

“This decision has been here since August, and we have done nothing,” said Fasano, a North Haven attorney.

The rules, Fasano said, should apply to the “Green Party, yellow party, Working Families, whatever.”

Fasano and Sen. Edith Prague, a liberal Democrat who often disagrees with the Republicans, said they would not accept public financing for their campaigns.

“I believe in my heart of hearts that we need this money for other things,” Prague said on the Senate floor.

Williams, of Brooklyn, said the law is designed to “eradicate the influence of special interests” in state politics. The rules for minor parties were modeled on the presidential public financing system that has been upheld in the courts, he said.

Six jurors have been picked so far in the extortion and bribery trial of Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez.

Perez’s attorney, Hubert Santos, has been highly concerned that few citizens of Hartford will be chosen for the jury. The latest jurors to be picked were a retiree from Glastonbury and a doctor from Simsbury.

The Hartford Courant’s Josh Kovner has the details at http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/eddie-perez/hc-eddie-perez-0414,0,7206943.story

Hartford Courant columnist Rick Green weighs in on U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman.

http://blogs.courant.com/rick_green/2010/04/joementum-probably-running-tha.html

Hartford Courant cartoonist Bob Englehart weighs in on the April 15 tax deadline.

http://blogs.courant.com/bob_englehart/2010/04/april-14-2010.html

They saved the easy stuff for Tuesday.

The state House of Representatives voted 147 to 1 Tuesday night on a bipartisan plan to cut the state’s projected deficit of $350 million in the current fiscal year.

In an attempt to avoid the fiscal clashes that have become inevitable between Republicans and Democrats, lawmakers agreed that there would be no tax increases in the package. The intense debates over proposed changes in the estate tax and the creation of a new tax on the gross receipts of hospitals will be held on another day. Some of the best news in the bill for residents is a reduction in hunting and fishing fees.

So Tuesday was slated to be a day for agreement, but even a day of agreement was pushed into the night because placing the finishing touches on the bill took longer than expected.

Lawmakers seemed happy that they had apparently resolved the budget problems for the current fiscal year, but the state is still facing projected deficits of more than $700 million in the next fiscal year that starts on July 1 and more than $3 billion in the 2012 fiscal year.

“For all intents and purposes, this closes 2010,” said House Speaker Christopher Donovan, a Meriden Democrat.

House Republican leader Larry Cafero of Norwalk said the package had broad support because it had no tax increases and no cuts in state aid to cities and towns.

“It’s the first step in a long journey,” Cafero told reporters. “We have a lot more work to do and very little time to do it.”

The regular legislative session will end at midnight on May 5, but some lawmakers expect that the General Assembly will go into special session after that.

The first 33 sections of the bill provided budget cuts, but section 34 included various reductions in hunting, fishing, and sportsmen’s fees that are imposed by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Lawmakers decided to cut the hunting and fishing fees by $5.35 million, while increasing fines at the state Department of Motor Vehicles and other moves that total exactly $5.35 million. Fishing licenses had jumped from $20 up to $40 last year.

Immediately after the vote, Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell praised lawmakers – who have often clashed both with Rell and each other.

“I am gratified that both the House and Senate and both Republicans and Democrats have agreed – with a handful of modifications – to the deficit mitigation proposal I offered,” Rell said. “It is a plan that eliminates the current year’s budget shortfall without increasing taxes or cutting municipal aid, two goals all of us can support.”

She added, “It is vital for all of us to continue to work together to surmount the remaining fiscal hurdles. We must still reach agreement on a securitization proposal and on a plan to eliminate the deficit for the next fiscal year. Reducing spending – cutting the size and scope of state government – remains the best solution to our financial woes.”

The plan called for transferring more than $50 million from various off-budget accounts in order to fill up the deficit-laden general fund. All sides agreed to allow the University of Connecticut to absorb $5 million of debt service costs in the current year and $10 million in the 2011 fiscal year.

The cuts include $25.73 million in savings from defering payments to managed care organizations, $320,000 from suspending coverage of “most over-the-counter drugs” from the Department of Social Services, and $200,000 from suspending a grant for elderly housing support services. Another $570,000 will be saved by updating the definition of “medical necessity” under Medicaid – a long-running, controversial issue at the Capitol that could lead to fewer services for some patients if their care was deemed not medically necessary.

The bill also eliminates meal money for 49 non-unionized state troopers who hold managerial positions, such as colonels and majors – saving more than $190,000 in the next fiscal year. The troopers and master sergeants already have meal allowances in their union agreements that will not be cut. 

Rep. Craig Miner, the ranking House Republican on the budget-writing committee, said the state legislature has already drained the “rainy day” fund – essentially emptying the state’s bank account.

“I’ve said to members of my caucus, if you think this is bad, wait until you see $700 million” in the next fiscal year that starts in July, Miner said.

“What this plan really is is a product of delay,” said Rep. Vincent J. Candelora, the ranking House Republican on the tax-writing finance committee. “I am happy to see that we have not resorted to taxes.”

The bill also requires the long-troubled Department of Children and Families, along with Child Advocate Jeannie Milstein, to craft a plan regarding the future use of the state-owned Riverview Hospital – New England’s only state-operated psychiatric hospital for children.

 “It’s not perfect. It’s not pretty, but it’s something that’s necessary to do today,” said Rep. Clark Chapin, a New Milford Republican who has served in the legislature since 2001. “Mr. Speaker, as I said before, it’s not perfect. It’s not pretty. … It certainly is deserving of everyone’s support in this chamber.”

Cafero said, “What are they saying at home? What are they thinking about what we’re doing here?”

Many state residents don’t have time to watch the legislature because they’re raising their families and hoping to be able to pay for their kids’ tuition or a new transmission for their car, said Cafero, who supported the bill.

“It is not easy to make those cuts,” Cafero said. “But we felt we had to do that. … When we take the vote on this bill, do we walk home and say our job is done? No. … For today, let’s take the first step together.”

House Majority Leader Denise Merrill, who cut her speech short because of a weak voice Tuesday night, said, “Our revenues are still plummeting. We have to remember that. … It’s instructive to remember there are 48 other states in the exact place where we are. … It is not the end. It is probably the beginning of what we need to do.”

Rep. John Geragosian, a New Britain Democrat who co-chairs the budget-cutting committee, said, “We didn’t take a meat cleaver to the services that people need out there. … We made cuts across the board to our other expenses line. … You know you have a really good compromise if everybody is not really happy and everybody is not really sad.”