Despite increasing General Fund revenue by $2.52 billion over the next two years, Connecticut will still face billion-dollar budget deficits from 2022 through 2024, according to a budget report released by the Office of Fiscal […]
spending cap
Analysis: Preview of the budget battle ahead Democrats are gearing up for an intra-party squabble about how to close the $3.7 billion two-year budget deficit. This year’s budget battle won’t be Democrats vs. Republicans, but […]
The left-leaning think tank which has the ear of the Democratic Party in Connecticut hosted a forum at the Capitol Building today to decry the state spending cap, volatility cap and bonding cap, saying the restrictions will make Connecticut’s budget situation worse.
The newest budget negotiated between Democratic and Republican leaders in both the House and Senate has yet to be released, but based on the information we have received, this is a breakdown of the changes included in the new budget package.
Gov. Dannel Malloy proposed definitions earlier this year to finally implement the 25-year-old constitutional spending cap. His budget chief admitted Monday that, unless lawmakers pass the administrations' proposed definitions, his proposed budget will exceed the existing cap by $153 million.
Among the troubled roots is Connecticut’s inability to sufficiently reduce spending, which has hurt the state’s fiscal health. In the most recent fiscal health analysis put out by some of the nation’s most reliable economic researchers, Connecticut shows vast room for improvement.
In the Pew Charitable Trust’s research titled Fiscal 50: State Trends and Analysis, Connecticut did not fare well compared to its neighbors. Of particular note is the state’s depleted reserves; Connecticut’s reserves would allow the state to operate for a projected 8.3 days.
This time of year, children are told that Santa Claus is making a list and checking it twice to find out who has been naughty or nice. However, Santa isn’t the only one who makes a list every year. Leading experts and organizations across the country also rank states by their public policy. In this ongoing series, we will see which “naughty” lists Connecticut landed on and make small suggestions to help the state be a little “nicer.” Check back every day from now until Christmas for a new entry!
As Connecticut’s Spending Cap Commission closes in on it’s December 1st deadline to deliver recommendations to the state legislature, committee co-chair, William Cibes, asked that the term “death-spiral” cease to be used when discussing the state’s fiscal health.
Cibes also said that he no longer wanted to hear that state spending was out of control.
Tuesday, voters across Connecticut spoke, loud and clear. They are demanding better jobs; an affordable, sustainable state government; and politicians of both parties who are willing to work together to fund our state’s priorities without constant tax increases.
With your help, Yankee stands ready to help achieve these goals – in 2017 and beyond. We have heard our state’s residents, and we have developed policy proposals that can drive real reform.
The state’s constitutional spending cap should be “comprehensive” and cover all state spending except for debt service, Webster Bank CEO James C. Smith told members of the Spending Cap Commission this week.
The spending cap is supposed to limit how much state lawmakers can spend – but in recent years money has been moved out from under the cap, weakening it.
Smith powerfully made the argument that the state’s spending cap matters – read the rest of his testimony here.
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