HARTFORD – A new poll of likely voters shows strong support for Governor Malloy’s proposed spending cuts but strong opposition to his proposed tax increases. 57% of voters think the budget deficit should be addressed […]
Governor Dannel P. Malloy's budget increases taxes twenty one different ways and eliminates numerous exemptions to raise even more revenue. With the economy in trouble and struggling to grow jobs, these tax increases are the wrong solution for Connecticut's future.
Since the Hartford Courant published YI Policy Director Heath W. Fahle's piece on e-governance on Sunday, January 9, the buzz about e-gov has been, well, buzzing.
by Dr. Lewis Andrews As the Bush tax cuts become a central issue of the midterm elections, more and more people are asking why President Obama, in refusing to extend them for “the rich,” has […]
Rocky Hill, CT – Yankee Institute Executive Director Fergus Cullen appeared on the Connecticut Business and Industry Association’s “State Fiscal Issues” panel on Friday, September 10, 2010 at the Rocky Hill Marriott. With the State […]
HARTFORD – The number of retired state employees collecting annual pensions of more than $100,000 has risen to 299 people, a new analysis by the Yankee Institute shows. Of those, 81 individuals receive more than […]
HARTFORD – The Yankee Institute announces that it has updated its CTSunlight.org website by adding 2009 payroll data for all state employees. The data shows that 1,293 state employees earned more than Gov. Jodi Rell’s […]
HARTFORD – The State of Connecticut collects money from 347 separate taxes, fees, and transfer payments, according to a new report released by the Yankee Institute. The report lists every separate source of revenue collected […]
HARTFORD – A new report released today by the Yankee Institute warns that Connecticut’s true unfunded liability for pension and other retirement benefits is much bigger than widely assumed. Connecticut’s pension system serving 175,000 active […]
Following up their 2009 piece "How to Reduce Property Taxes with a Citizens Audit Committee", Dr. Lewis Andrews and Dr. Armand A. Fusco have published a compendium of model school board policies from across the nation that help save school districts money.
The Connecticut State Legislature will begin its 2023 session on January 4th and will adjourn on June 7th. The “long session,” as non-election years are called in Hartford, will be centered around the biennial budget. The Office of the State Comptroller reports that state government found a way to spend $47.11 billion in 2022 and, if trends continue, we can expect that number to grow even more going forward. Concerns over energy prices, inflation, and general cost of living continue to dominate the headlines and the threat of a recession hovers over economic forecasts.
What will our elected officials be working on to improve policy outcomes for Connecticut residents? What tax reform proposals will there be? What can be done to lower home heating bills? How will state and local budgets be affected by fewer federal resources? How will schools be implementing to curriculum requirements?
While we wait to see the thousands of individual and committee bills that while dominate the myriad policy debates this year, Yankee Institute is hard at work promoting free-market solutions to the problems we face from Stamford to Putnam and Mystic to Salisbury. To that end, we have produced a new edition of our Charter for Change. The Charter provides commonsense reforms to make Connecticut’s government work for its residents.
Though the list of reforms may be exhausting to review, it is far from exhaustive! And that’s why we want to work with you to build a broad-based coalition to encourage sound policy reforms to enable Connecticut residents to forge a better future for themselves and their families.
It’s also imperative that we do so. As we noted in a report and CT Mirror op-ed last year, the debate over whether we’re in a national recession really misses the point for Connecticut residents. We had more people employed in the private sector in 2007 than we do today. Our economy has grown at one of the slowest rates in the nation for the past decade, and we are getting outpaced year after year. We’re not attracting innovation and industry. We’re losing some of our best and brightest as they seek other parts of the country where it’s easier to make a living.
But together, we can reverse this trend.
At Yankee Institute, we know Connecticut is a state with boundless opportunity, and we intend to help make our state more than a place where people are just able to make ends meet! Connecticut should be a place where everyone can thrive – and with your help, it will be.