The opening day of the 2018 legislative session combined ceremony, personal moments and a foreshadowing of the session to come.
Politics
Stories about CT politicians, elections, state legislation, the state’s congressional delegation and the impact of federal legislation on Connecticut.
Posted inPolitics
Malloy opens session with plea for ‘Connecticut fairness’
In his final State of the State address, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy proposed a progressive agenda Wednesday to the legislators who shut him out of last year’s budget talks, promising to help fellow Democrats to raise the minimum wage, enhance a paid sick days law, address sexual harassment and take a stand on pay equity as acts of “Connecticut fairness.” For a day at least, the governor succeeded in stepping from beneath the cloud of the state’s chronic fiscal and economic challenges.
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Text of State of the State Address
Read the text of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s State of the State address as prepared for delivery to a joint session of the General Assembly.
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Democrats promise boldness in 2018 session and campaign
Connecticut House and Senate Democrats, seemingly adrift in recent years over how to respond to a stagnant economy and electoral losses, signaled Tuesday they have chosen a path for the 2018 session and campaign, releasing a “values agenda” committing to progressive favorites such as pay equity, a livable wage and paid family medical leave.
Posted inMoney, News, Politics
Congress’ efforts to avoid another shutdown feature last-minute deals
Updated at 7:20 p.m.
WASHINGTON — To avoid another government shutdown, the U.S. House on Tuesday passed a spending bill that would fund the Pentagon until the end of the federal fiscal year – with big boosts for the Connecticut defense industry — and keep other federal agencies running until March 23. But approval of the bill is just one maneuver in a complex budget dance between congressional Republicans and Democrats this week that also will feature a face-off between the House and Senate.
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Eva Bermudez Zimmerman opens exploratory campaign for SOTS
Eva Bermudez Zimmerman, a Democratic labor organizer who was raised in Hartford and lives in Newtown, said she is filing papers Tuesday opening an exploratory campaign for secretary of the state, a potential first step in an attempt to become the first Hispanic elected to statewide office in Connecticut.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy offers strategies to counter federal tax changes
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy recommended two measures Monday aimed at protecting Connecticut households and businesses that may face higher federal taxes under the plan passed recently by Congress. One would allow municipalities to create charitable organizations to support local services, offering property tax credits in exchange.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy pushes legislature for election-year budget cuts, tax hikes
Unveiling his final budget proposal two days early, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy challenged legislators Monday to take politically difficult steps to close modest deficits in the current, two-year budget and mitigate larger shortfalls looming after the November elections.
Posted inHealth, Politics
As states target drug prices, Pharma targets lawmakers
With federal officials seemingly unwilling or unable to come up with legislation to control skyrocketing drug prices, that task is increasingly moving to the states. But so is pharma muscle and money opposing the measures, regulatory disclosures and corporate filings from the last two years show.
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CT Dems scorch memo charging FBI, DOJ abuses
WASHINGTON — House Intelligence Committee Republicans on Friday released a controversial, once-classified memo critical of the way top FBI and Justice Department officials sought court permission to wiretap Carter Page, an adviser to the Trump campaign. Connecticut Democrats scorched the memo as a partisan attempt to discredit a probe into possible ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy to take one last shot at balancing CT’s books
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will use the final budget proposal of his tenure next week to urge lawmakers to close a nearly $165 million gap in next fiscal year’s finances and mitigate much larger shortfalls facing his successor.
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MGM spends $3.8M lobbying in Hartford, but wins in Washington
MGM Resorts International spent $3.8 million on lobbying in Connecticut last year, more than three times any other interest group, in a vain attempt to stop the General Assembly from authorizing its tribal competitors to build a casino in competition with MGM Springfield. But MGM had another card to play — a friendly relationship with the Trump administration and its Interior secretary, Ryan Zinke.
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Esty leads House delegation in fundraising
WASHINGTON — Rep. Elizabeth Esty raised the most campaign cash among the state’s delegation to the U.S. House, nearly $1.3 million, as Connecticut’s Democratic incumbents, for the most part, handily outraised their political rivals last year.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Himes warns colleagues, ‘If the memo is wrong, there will be hell to pay’
WASHINGTON — Connecticut lawmakers are playing key roles in the turmoil over “the memo,” a document drafted by Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee, and in efforts to protect special counsel Robert Mueller as he continues his investigation into Russian meddling in U.S. elections.
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Democratic Party official may challenge Merrill
Secretary of the State Denise Merrill is working with the legislature’s Black and Puerto Rican Caucus and community groups on a voter-registration drive directed at Puerto Ricans who have resettled in Connecticut after being displaced by Hurricane Maria. Two of them are the father and stepmother of a woman who may challenge her re-election.