Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Budget crisis enters race for secretary of the state

  • by Keith M. Phaneuf
  • October 27, 2010
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

The secretary of the state is Connecticut’s chief elections official and business record-keeper, but it’s the state budget crisis that’s seeping into this fall’s campaigns for that office.

Jerry Farrell Jr., the GOP nominee and commissioner of the state Department of Consumer Protection unveiled a new radio ad recently claiming he “returned” $500,000 of his operating budget last fiscal year — a claim that specifically helped him receive four newspaper endorsements.

But Democratic candidate Denise W. Merrill is crying foul, arguing the savings stems from cuts mandated in spring 2009 by the legislature and Gov. M. Jodi Rell, and that those sacrifices were demanded of more than 80 other departments, agencies, higher education units, offices and commissions.

Meanwhile, Merrill, who has led the House majority caucus for the past two years, is finding the $3.3 billion budget deficit that’s been left for the next legislature and governor to solve has come back to confront her in this campaign.

“Last year my office returned a half million dollars of our operating budget. As secretary of the state, I will run this office for less too, and I will lead other state agencies to cut spending,” Farrell said in a new ad.

The legislature included a $12.07 million budget for consumer protection within the $18.64 billion budget for 2009-10 — with several key caveats.

Farrell said his department actually spent $10.17 million, or about $1.9 million less.

But according to budget records, the Rell administration withheld $1.3 million from consumer protection to meet savings targets mandated by the legislature for two reasons:

  • A May 2009 concession package from state labor unions ordered a wage freeze, furloughs, and a retirement incentive program.
  • The administration also was charged with finding more than $473 million in total savings among all agencies in 10 different categories, including salaries, benefits, contracts, information technology costs, and other expenses.

The governor also cut $250,005 from the department’s budget as part of a broader rescission of state government spending to close a deficit, according to her budget office.

The remainder, about $300,000, was returned by Farrell’s agency at year’s end.

Farrell “has presented this as something he achieved on his own, voluntarily,” Merrill said. “These savings were required, we spelled out where they had to come from, and virtually all agencies were told to do this by the legislature.”

But Farrell insists that he deserves the credit for more than the savings his department returned, and therefore listed a larger number in the ad.

  • About $137,550 withheld by the administration to meet a savings mandate for contracts was handled smoothly, Farrell said, because of changes he ordered to the computer licensing system.
  • And Farrell also said two mid-level clerical positions had been subjected to an Executive Branch-wide hiring freeze ordered by Rell in 2008, saving $141,243 last fiscal year. But he added he had no plans to fill them regardless of the freeze.

“I was the one who said to (the administration) that we could achieve these two savings,” he said. “Were these all sexy, big-time items? No. But these efficiencies didn’t just come out of the air.”

Farrell conceded he returned $300,000 to the state’s coffers at year’s end, not the $500,000 claimed in the commercial, but added he was responsible for more than $580,000 in agency savings.

And though many other agencies were required to live with similar budget reductions, Farrell added that he welcomed the opportunity. “Other commissioners were pulling out their hair,” he said.

“At the end of the day, I think most people would agree that we can’t sustain the level of government that we have now,” Farrell said, adding that the state budget crisis is a fair topic of discussion in the race for secretary of the state, regardless of Merrill’s objections.

House majority leader since November 2006,  Merrill and other Democratic lawmakers have spent much of the past two years locking horns with Rell, a Republican, over how to close the state budget deficit.

Though many Democrats favor higher income tax rates on the wealthy, Rell offered major cuts to state social services and health care programs.

The compromise was more than $2.5 billion worth of spending for ongoing programs in the current budget backed by one-time revenues, such as the emergency reserve funds, federal stimulus grants and borrowing.

The Norwich Bulletin was one of the four papers to endorse Farrell, and editorial page editor Ray Hackett referred to Merrill as the “microcosm of irresponsibility” in one column.

Merrill, one of the legislature’s most vocal advocates for a more progressive state income tax, said she argued repeatedly against the one-time solutions. Still, she conceded Tuesday that the approval of more than $950 million in borrowing for this year, to be paid off with a new surcharge on utility bills, was a big mistake.

“I thought the borrowing was probably one of the worst things we could have done,” said Merrill, whose frequently mantra during budget debates was the warning: “there are worse things than tax increases.”

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Keith M. Phaneuf

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Health issues carried weight on the campaign trail.
by Victoria Knight | Kaiser Health News

Even with the Democrats’ newfound Senate majority, differences in health policy between the party’s moderate and progressive wings will persist.

Trump’s pardons included health care execs behind massive fraud
by Fred Schulte | Kaiser Health News

At the last minute, President Donald Trump granted pardons to several individuals convicted in huge Medicare swindles that prosecutors alleged often harmed or endangered elderly and infirm patients while fleecing taxpayers. “These aren’t just technical financial crimes. These were major, major crimes,” said Louis Saccoccio, chief executive officer of the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association, […]

‘It’s a nightmare:’ A growing number of seniors are unable to book vaccine appointments as problems mount
by Dave Altimari and Jenna Carlesso

The state acknowledged Friday in an email to local health workers that some residents are waiting days for a callback.

Panel recommends small, inflationary pay hike for state officials
by Keith M. Phaneuf

Connecticut's part-time legislature hasn't received a pay hike since 2001. The annual base-pay for senators and representatives is $28,000.

Police task force seeks wider applicant pool for watchdog role
by Kelan Lyons

The task force sent four recommendations — and two that didn't get unanimous approval— to lawmakers for the 2021 session.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Miguel Cardona, who are you?
by Ann Policelli Cronin

When I ask Connecticut teachers about Miguel Cardona, those who know him or have worked with him say that he is really nice guy who knows what the challenges in our classrooms are, knows how to help teachers to improve their teaching, and respects public schools. All good. But what is his vision for teaching and learning that he will bring to the U.S. Department of Education?

Opinion Connecticut needs a strong two-party system, this Democrat says
by Edward Marcus

J.R. Romano’s recent resignation as the state’s Republican Party chair has brought into focus the need for a viable opposition party in Connecticut. It is not healthy politics when everything is totally controlled by one party:  the legislature, the governorship, and most of the major municipalities in our state.

Opinion Connecticut’s $100 million college shell game
by Stephen Adair

The plan to consolidate the 12 community colleges in Connecticut into one college with 12 campuses is called “Students First,” which is ironic because it does not fund students first.  It funds a new administration in a new, statewide bureaucracy. The Board of Regents (BOR) and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system office […]

Opinion Inconsistent television captioning is a barrier to equal access
by Jeffrey Bravin and Barbara Cassin

Our world long ago entered the age of the 24-hour news cycle, and a full understanding of the “who, what, when, where and why” of the news is critical for deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing citizens. Yet, Connecticut’s inconsistent quality of television captioning locks our community out of the complete sense of what is happening.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO