The Transportation Committee heard testimony regarding the implementation of tolls on Connecticut’s highway, a highly contentious and complex proposal being championed by Gov. Dannel Malloy and Department of Transportation Commissioner James Redeker.
Only sixty-five cents of every tax dollar actually goes toward funding Connecticut’s state government, the rest goes toward supporting the “legacy costs” of massive debt, pension and healthcare costs. That fact was pointed out by former Webster Bank CEO and co-chair of the Commission on Fiscal Stability and Economic Growth, Jim Smith, during an extensive hearing on the various difficulties — both fiscal and economic — facing Connecticut.
Buried in a bill to raise taxes on bed & breakfasts and implement yet another motor vehicle registration fee is a provision to raise the income tax on Connecticut’s top earners from 6.99 percent to 7.49 percent. Senate Bill 1054 would impose a retroactive tax on individuals, families and owners of small businesses who earn $500,000 or more.
A public hearing before the powerful state appropriations committee on Friday became a referendum on state employee pension benefits and the collective bargaining process that ran almost ten hours. Several speakers warned that changes to Connecticut’s collective bargaining practices and retirement benefits would cause the state to become a southern backwater.
Last week, Yankee Institute President Carol Platt Liebau sent a letter to Gov. Malloy and lawmakers to offer support for many of their cost-cutting ideas. PDF Version: Budget Ideas from the Yankee Institute Dear Governor Malloy and Legislative Leaders, Thank you for your efforts to address the problems with Connecticut’s budget now, rather than waiting to make last minute cuts near the end of the fiscal year. We appreciate your bipartisan commitment to reducing spending.
Yankee Institute Study Explains Legal Limits Imposed By Spending Cap Connecticut lawmakers regularly find themselves tiptoeing at the edge of the law while writing the state’s budget. To clarify exactly where that edge lies, the Yankee Institute released a policy brief on Monday, Connecticut’s Spending Cap: A Legal Overview. Read ...