The CT Mirror (https://ctmirror.org/author/kphaneuf/)
Keith, with Jacqueline Rabe Thomas, won first prize in investigative reporting from the Education Writers Association in 2012 for a series of stories on the Board of Regents for Higher Education. The former State Capitol bureau chief for The Journal Inquirer of Manchester, Keith has spent most of 24 years as a reporter specializing in state government finances, analyzing such topics as income tax equity, waste in government and the complex funding systems behind Connecticut's transportation and social services networks. A former contributing writer to The New York Times, Keith is a graduate of and a former journalism instructor at the University of Connecticut. E-mail him at kphaneuf@ctmirror.org.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy may be enjoying more economic good fortune during his last year in office than he did in the first seven years combined. State income tax receipts tied to Wall Street continue to surge, potentially leaving Connecticut with $2 billion in reserves 12 months from now. Continue Reading →
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, keenly aware of the unwelcome role his record is playing in the campaign to succeed him, spent one of his final State Bond Commission meetings Thursday defending state borrowing made during his tenure to promote economic development statewide and help Connecticut’s struggling capital city. Continue Reading →
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Ned Lamont unveiled a jobs plan Wednesday centered on three business tax cuts — and a previously disclosed middle-class income tax break — none of which he could provide without solving a much-larger state budget deficit. Continue Reading →
Ben Barnes, who has overseen Connecticut’s budget as the secretary of the Office of Policy and Management from the first days of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration, is on a short list of candidates interviewed for the vacant post of chief financial officer at the state’s system of community colleges and regional universities. Continue Reading →
While past governors legislatures and governors get much of the blame for Connecticut’s massive pension debt, a new analysis says politically appointed oversight boards should share the heat both here and in other states. Continue Reading →
The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities challenged candidates for state office Monday to address more than 1,300 mandates placed on city and town budgets. Continue Reading →
Independent gubernatorial candidate Oz Griebel, who has struggled to attract financial and political support, told reporters Thursday that he would empty the Rainy Day Fund and suspend contributions to the state’s underfunded pension system to help close a huge, post-election state budget deficit. Continue Reading →
With big budget deficits looming large, Connecticut’s next governor will be hard pressed to deliver a package of tax cuts legislators already have approved and scheduled to begin after the November election. Continue Reading →
While most Connecticut businesses are optimistic the nation’s economy will grow over the next year, a new survey has found many have broad anxiety about the state’s economic future. Continue Reading →
Gubernatorial contenders Ned Lamont and Oz Griebel took advantage of Bob Stefanowski’s absence at their first debate Wednesday to criticize their rival’s controversial pledge to phase out the state income tax. Continue Reading →
The new federal cap on income tax deductions could translate into higher interest costs for Connecticut and other wealthy states when they borrow for school construction and other capital projects, warns a Wall Street credit rating agency. Continue Reading →
Connecticut’s chief fiscal watchdog slammed the brakes Tuesday on Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s assertion that the new state budget is on its way to another surplus. Continue Reading →
Democrats running for key state and federal offices fired up Connecticut’s largest labor coalition Friday, painting President Donald Trump and GOP gubernatorial nominee Bob Stefanowski as major threats to the left’s core values. Continue Reading →
Next month Connecticut will post its largest emergency budget reserve in a decade. But Connecticut only ranks in the middle of all states when it comes to amassing a fiscal cushion against the next economic downturn. Continue Reading →
Ned Lamont has spent months trying to distance himself from the unpopular Democratic governor he hopes to succeed, but when it comes to the public-sector unions that bedeviled his predecessor, Lamont faces the same dilemma: How to keep labor’s support in difficult fiscal times? Continue Reading →