A withering assessment of Connecticut’s economic and fiscal problems was used by The Pioneer Institute — a think-tank based in Boston — as an example of why Massachusetts should not raise taxes on high-income earners.
When Governor Dannel Malloy admitted that the state’s recent trend of raising taxes wasn’t working, and that economic growth was necessary, it signaled a shift in attitude toward the right direction. How to foster economic growth should consistently be a factor and goal in any public policy debate or legislative issue. The state needs revenue, but by chasing revenue through tax increases, it has actually chased people, and revenue, away.
General Electric announced this week it would move its headquarters from Connecticut to Boston, Mass., highlighting the need for policies focused on increasing opportunity for all Connecticut residents. While many officials tried to cast blame elsewhere, GE officials warned lawmakers the company would consider moving if they went ahead with what amounted to a 40 percent increase in corporate taxes.
The cost of building a rail line between New Haven and Springfield, Mass., continues to rise, even as transportation needs in Fairfield County go unmet. At its most recent meeting, the State Bond Commission approved another $155 million for the railway line connecting New Haven, Hartford and Western Massachusetts.