May 27, 2011

Sen. Joseph Lieberman was the only Connecticut lawmaker to vote “yes” on a four-year extension of the Patriot Act yesterday. The anti-terrorism measure gives broad and controversial powers to law enforce officials. One provision, for example, gives the FBI the authority to continue using roving wiretaps on surveillance targets, while another allows law enforcement officials […]

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy recommended Friday that lawmakers significantly reduce the surplus already built into the next two fiscal years rather than impose deeper cuts in the $40.11 billion biennial budget adopted earlier this month. To close a $300 million in gap in next year’s budget left by the tentative union concession package, Malloy proposed […]

Majority Democratic lawmakers tried unsuccessfully Friday to avert a partisan battle in the Senate over a new policy designed to shrink the prison population by allowing inmates to earn credits for early release. The Senate adopted the policy–included in a budget implementation bill–following a 6½ hour debate during which GOP lawmakers criticized a Democratic amendment […]

A compromise bill on the controversial SustiNet state-run health plan passed the House Friday, and it drew praise from both supporters and opponents of the original proposal–albeit for different reasons. SustiNet supporters say the bill represents concrete steps toward their ultimate goal, offering a state-run insurance plan to the public. Opponents of the original proposal, […]

Legislators said Friday that Attorney General George Jepsen, a staunch ally of labor, effectively has killed a legislative priority of the Connecticut AFL-CIO by advising them that federal labor law appears to pre-empt the state from passing a “captive audience” bill. The House of Representatives passed the controversial bill two weeks ago, 78 to 65, […]

Scientific researchers recently released data from a high-profile study showing that people infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, were significantly less likely to transmit the virus to their partners if they were put on antiretroviral drugs immediately, when their immune systems were still relatively strong, instead of waiting for the disease to progress. […]

When Gov. Dannel Malloy first proposed slashing the state’s contribution to a program that helps AIDS patients get antiretroviral drugs, Shawn Lang was panicked. Lang, director of public policy for the Connecticut AIDS Resource Coalition, feared the loss of that funding–about $600,000 annually–would leave many low-income HIV-positive patients without access to life-saving medications. But after […]

It almost sounds too good to be true: State budget officials, who already saw revenues surge by nearly $400 million over the past month, now say anticipated savings in retired worker health care costs have grown by some $100 million in the same period. And though Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo said his office was somewhat […]

Remember the Pentagon Papers? First published in 1971 after being leaked by anti-war activist Daniel Ellsberg, the once top-secret history of U.S. involvement in Vietnam have been the subject of innumerable news articles, several books and are even available online. And next month, the documents will be officially released by the U.S. government. The fact […]