Connecticut scored some of the highest marks given out by the League of Conservation Voters in its 2011 Congressional scorecard. That despite a year the organization called the U.S. House’s “truly breathtaking and unprecedented assault on the environment and public health.” The state’s two senators each scored 100 percent on the 11 votes ranked by […]
Money
Stories about Connecticut’s budget, the federal budget, jobs and employment, state investments and casinos.
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Malloy would eliminate 25 state boards and commission, merge two others
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced Tuesday he would recommend eliminating 25 of state government’s 258 boards and commissions to reduce overlap. “Over the years when these boards and commissions were first created by statute, most of them served a worthwhile purpose for their time, however many either no longer fit today’s needs, or their functions […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
New shoreline task force to explore post-Irene issues
Rep. James Albis, D-East Haven, took one look at that map we published a month ago that showed his district would pretty much wind up underwater if a category 2 hurricane hit and decided it was time to take action. And in true legislative fashion, step one is a task force. Speaker Chris Donovan is […]
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Strange bedfellows: Chris Donovan, Mitt Romney and indexing the minimum wage
House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan’s proposal to raise the state’s minimum wage by $1.50 over two years could give Connecticut the highest minimum in the nation, a distinction certain to fuel opposition to the idea by business interests and some legislators. But the proposal by the Democratic leader and congressional candidate to index the wage […]
Posted inHealth, Money
PCA collective bargaining recommendations delayed 2 weeks
The working group charged with recommending ways to structure collective bargaining rights for some home care workers has gotten a two-week extension on its final report. The group had been expected to issue its recommendations by today, but will instead meet and finalize them Feb. 15. The process was created by a controversial executive order […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
A new agriculture committee?
As we reported a week or so back, the idea of re-establishing an agriculture committee in the General Assembly for the first time in decades was being considered by a pair of Republican lawmakers. On Thursday, Sen. John A. Kissel, R-Enfield, and Rep. Penny Bacchiocchi, R-Somers, will announce plans to create a Select Committee on […]
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy in Washington to promote his record
During a whirlwind two-day visit to Washington, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has been asked by two very different groups to talk about his brief record in the governor’s office. Although he was inaugurated only last year, Malloy was asked by Governing magazine to be its keynote speaker Tuesday for its “Outlook in the States & […]
Posted inHealth, Money
Public option proposal coming back for 2012
A proposed public health insurance option didn’t get through the legislature last year, but some supporters are planning to try again this year. Creating a publicly administered health insurance plan is among the recommendations of a working group on small business health care, established by House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan and led by Rep. Robert […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
DEEP hires first procurement manager
Connecticut Thursday became the second state in the nation to have a power procurement manager — with the announcement that the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection had hired Jeffrey Gaudiosi. The position was mandated in the huge energy bill passed during the last legislative session as way to get cheaper and cleaner energy to […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
CEQ offers legislative priorities for session
It’s a modest, and somewhat familiar, list of legislative priorities released by the Council on Environmental Quality Tuesday in advance of the 2012 legislative session. Modest in that, with a short session, folks tend to be mindful of realistic expectations — not to mention the current economic climate notable for its distinct lack of money […]
Posted inHealth, Money
New state hiring restrictions unlikely to quash DSS proposal
The Malloy administration announced that it will exercise tighter scrutiny on hiring by state agencies, but Department of Social Services Commissioner Roderick L. Bremby said he doesn’t expect the higher standards to get in the way of his request to hire more than 100 new workers. Benjamin Barnes, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s budget director, agreed […]
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Malloy reaffirms plans to use spending cuts to balance budget, continue GAAP conversion
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy reaffirmed his commitment Wednesday to keep the state’s finances in balance without further tax hikes — and to continue the conversion to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles — even though declining revenues are making both prospects increasingly difficult. Speaking with reporters after announcing a new economic development venture in South Windsor, Malloy […]
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Porter named to lead Bureau of Rehabilitation Services
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Tuesday named Amy Porter director of the state Bureau of Rehabilitative Services, which serves people with disabilities and was created last summer by the consolidation of several state offices. Porter, a certified rehabilitation counselor, currently leads the agency’s rehabilitation services division, and previously directed the Department of Social Services’ bureau […]
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Malloy names new task force to assess state’s business tax breaks
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy created a new task force Thursday to determine whether Connecticut is getting the best possible return on its tax breaks for businesses. Malloy issued an executive order to create the Governors’ Business Tax Policy Review Task Force, a nine-member panel that must report its findings to the administration by October. “Over […]
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At 4:03 p.m. on a Thursday, DECD ‘launches broad new marketing initiative’
Yes, the state does need marketing help. A two-year, $22 million marketing campaign to establish a “brand” for Connecticut is something important to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, but the Department of Economic and Community Development chose to “launch” the effort with a late-in-the-day email blast to reporters today. The campaign will led by Chowder Inc., a New […]