New Hampshire’s governor strongly objected Wednesday to legislation that would rewrite Connecticut’s renewable energy policy, complaining it would disadvantage small hydro- and wood-fired generating plants in her state. Gov. Margaret Wood Hassan told her fellow Democratic governor, Dannel P. Malloy, that his proposed changes to the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard favors big hydroelectric plans, an […]
Mark Pazniokas
Mark is the Capitol Bureau Chief and a co-founder of CT Mirror. He is a frequent contributor to WNPR, a former state politics writer for The Hartford Courant and Journal Inquirer, and contributor for The New York Times.
Posted inNews
Voting changes go to referendum in 2014
The Senate voted along party lines Wednesday night to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November 2014 that could open the door to early voting in Connecticut in time for the 2016 presidential election. If approved by voters, the General Assembly would have the flexibility to consider a number of election changes that […]
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House endorses mixed martial arts
One legislator compared it to the blood sports of ancient Rome. Another called it “appalling.” But the House of Representatives voted Tuesday to legalize mixed martial arts in Connecticut, one of two states that ban the sport. Queasiness over the nearly free-form combat sport was evident during the debate, but the real threat to legalization […]
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California chancellor recommended as president of Regents system
A state Board of Regents’ presidential search committee voted Thursday to recommend a California community college chancellor to oversee Connecticut’s state university and community college system. Gregory W. Gray, chancellor of the Riverside Community College District, would become just the second president of the Regents’ system since its creation in 2011. The system includes the […]
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The short, fast life of a political gaffe
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy knew the drill. The last step in dealing with a political gaffe is address the press, take a few questions, smile and say something mildly dismissive like, “You know, we’re pretty much done with it.” And so it was that Malloy waited for reporters to surround him Thursday evening outside the […]
Posted inPolitics
Malloy reimburses People for White House party
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy moved today to shortcircuit controversy over People magazine paying his way last weekend to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner by personally reimbursing the magazine. “To remove a needless distraction when there are far more important public policy issues to deal with, Gov. Malloy has made the decision to personally reimburse People […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Mistrust of DEEP fuels enviros’ FOI request
Activists starkly signaled their distrust of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Friday with a broad demand for records pertaining to the department’s evolving energy policy.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Senate passes controversial energy bill
A renewable energy bill that has set much of the environmental community against the administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and legislative Democrats was passed Wednesday by the state Senate.
Posted inPolitics
McKinney says Malloy’s trip to WH Correspondents’ soiree violated ethics law
Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, a potential challenger to Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy next year, says the governor violated ethics laws by attending the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Saturday as a guest of People magazine. The publication picked up Malloy’s travel, lodging and dinner expenses of $1,000. “The governor is in clear violation […]
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Malloy, Sharkey endorse minimum wage increase
House Speaker J. Brendan Sharkey, D-Hamden, said today he will back Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s call for increasing the $8.25 minimum wage to $9 over the next two years. “I think I am in line with where the governor is, frankly. It is always a balancing act to recognize the needs of workers, while also […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Outcry over Esty chat with utility investors delays Senate vote
The state Senate postponed a vote on a renewable energy bill Wednesday after environmentalists raised questions about the propriety of Connecticut’s top energy official discussing the measure Tuesday in a wide-ranging conference call with stock analysts and investors.
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Bipartisanship? Oh, that was so last week
Bipartisanship, we hardly knew ye. Hartford’s flirtation with inter-party cooperation ended Friday as the General Assembly returned to the fiscal crisis, an issue expected to dominate the remaining six weeks of the 2013 session and the 2014 race for governor. After months of coping with the Newtown school massacre, which yielded a gun-control law praised […]
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New threat echoes at groundbreaking for vets
A brief moment’s reflection for victims of terrorism in Boston coincided Monday with a long-awaited groundbreaking in Hartford for a monument honoring Connecticut war veterans, a roster covering 1.3 million living and dead. Current events intruded on history as Gov. Dannel P. Malloy led a moment of silence at 2:50 p.m., precisely one week after […]
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Waterbury cop pleads guilty
George Tirado, a Waterbury police detective and smoke shop owner, pleaded guilty Friday to a federal conspiracy stemming from the effort to influence tobacco legislation with hidden contributions to the congressional campaign of former House Speaker Christopher Donovan. He is the seventh defendant to plead guilty in a case that torpedoed Donovan’s campaign last summer, […]
Posted inPolitics
Connecticut reaction swift to U.S. Senate failure on gun control
Connecticut politicians reacted strong to the failure by the U.S. Senate to pass even a watered-down effort to expand federal background checks for gun purchases in response to the Newtown school massacre. House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, used just three words to describe his reaction: “Disappointment. Colossal disappointment.” Cafero, who found himself […]
