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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
A member of CSEA\/SEIU Local 2001 said that getting people back should be a top priority for the legislature.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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