U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., plans to introduce legislation intended to speed up FDA approval of generic prescription drugs and combat the “astronomic rise” in the cost of health care, he said Tuesday.
2016
Posted inMoney
Transportation advocates say widening I-95 won’t ease congestion
A major consumer advocacy group and a key legislator on transportation financing both argued Tuesday against one of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s largest transportation initiatives: the widening of Interstate 95.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
GE’s move muddles economic development debate
General Electric’s corporate-headquarters move from Connecticut to Boston has been inaccurately described as a decision based solely on taxes. This characterization might be understandable, given GE’s public outcry over the legislature’s adoption of a common-sense policy known as mandatory combined reporting, which requires profitable corporations to pay their fair share. On the other hand, Massachusetts has long had such a policy on the books and is also seriously considering a millionaires tax.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
A Connecticut Muslim’s reflections from the State of the Union
As I sat in the gallery of the House Chamber at the United States Capitol, I soaked in what was about to commence; the State of the Union address by President Barack Obama. Elevating the eminence of the epic experience was the fact that this would be his last. I reflected on how unlikely it was that I, just a common resident of Eastern Connecticut, was sitting in this auspicious historic hall that looked strikingly different from what appears on television.
Posted inEducation
School funding on trial: 5 things to know
A trial has begun in Hartford that is taking a deep dive into the conditions in the state’s lowest-performing schools. Here are some important things to know as the five-month proceeding unfolds.
Posted inPolitics
On MLK Jr. Day, a look in Connecticut at challenges ahead
A suburban pastor recalled Monday how Connecticut was the place where a teenaged Martin Luther King Jr. first escaped the Jim Crow laws of the racially divided South, a bittersweet experience that would profoundly shape King’s view of racial injustice in America. And a gay, white adoptive father of three black sons spoke of living a “transcultural life.” It was all in observance of the 30th Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday.
Posted inPolitics
For CT delegation, a flurry of successes in a blizzard of bills
WASHINGTON – Sen. Richard Blumenthal sponsored and co-sponsored 377 bills and amendments in 2015, more than any other U.S. senator. But a Connecticut Mirror analysis found other Connecticut lawmakers were busy, too.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
General Electric’s departure not Connecticut’s fault — or loss
Has State Sen. Toni Boucher taken the blue pill? She seems a little ignorant of the most basic facts about the reality of General Electric. Ginning up a false narrative about onerous taxes and Connecticut’s anti-business climate can hardly be taken seriously at this point. These billion dollar corporations, now more powerful than governments, leverage that power to get unnecessary sweetheart deals, use tax loopholes and armies of lobbyists to rig the game to not only get out of paying their fair share in taxes, but in GE’s case actually having the Federal Government pay them or paying a nominal effective state tax rate.
Posted inPolitics
Food stamps ending for some in towns with high employment
WASHINGTON – The state’s economic upturn – at least in about half of Connecticut’s cities and towns – isn’t good news for about 3,600 food stamp benefits who will lose their benefits in about three months unless they get a job or job training.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Eroding income tax receipts undo much of recent state budget repair
Eroding state income tax receipts have largely undone Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the legislature’s efforts to whittle down big budget deficits projected for each of the next three fiscal years, a new report showed late Friday.
Posted inHealth
DPH asks providers to report suspected Zika virus cases
Connecticut has not had any reported cases of the disease, which is spread by mosquitoes that are not found in the state.
Posted inPolitics
A HUD secretary touts a new promise to a poor city
HARTFORD — President Obama’s secretary of housing and urban development, Julián Castro, dropped in Friday on 06120, one of the poorest zip codes in the United States, a place where the latest federal anti-poverty programs go to be road-tested. So it is with the North Hartford Promise Zone, a designation granted in April to about three square miles of unrealized promise.
Posted inMoney
Transportation funding options: tolls and gas and sales tax hikes
A state panel is recommending restoring tolls to Connecticut highways, raising sales and gasoline taxes, and taking other steps to finance a 30-year transportation program – but Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Thursday he would propose none of the revenue-raising proposals in the new budget he will give legislators in three weeks.
Posted inHealth
Spending and enrollment up, but Medicaid per-person cost is down
Connecticut’s Medicaid program is projected to cost the state and federal government more than $6 billion this year, and it covers close to one in five state residents, a dramatic growth from a decade ago. But underneath the rising cost and enrollment trends, something else has been happening: The average per-person costs have been falling – particularly among those newly eligible for coverage under the federal health law.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
On keeping GE: Too little, far too late
When GE and other major employers warned that onerous taxes and financial instability would make it impossible for them to stay in Connecticut, the state’s response could be described as novice at best, similar to a minor league player in a World Series game. The governor’s office made a huge faux pas when they showcased GE’s competitor’s engine in their final pitch to persuade them to stay.