WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s latest immigration proposal, which would give thousands of young undocumented immigrants in the state an eventual path to citizenship, landed with a thud among congressional Democrats, including those from Connecticut.
CT lawmakers say Trump immigration plan is DOA
Posted inMoney, Politics
CT, NY and NJ to sue over tax changes that hit blue states
The Democratic governors of Connecticut, New York and New Jersey said Friday they will file a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of new federal income tax laws restricting state and local tax deductions, a change that primarily falls on a dozen states that voted against President Trump in 2016. “Somebody has to stand up and say, ‘Not at this time. You can’t do this. It is fundamentally unfair and illegal,” Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers ready for Trump’s first State of the Union
Connecticut lawmakers are preparing for President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address by inviting a diverse group of guests from the state to attend what is expected to be a highly politicized event.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
This is Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day
January 26 is this year’s Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day. Awareness is important to the success of this program, for both the families and the communities it serves. As a tax attorney and Connecticut’s representative to the IRS Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, I want to share information about the importance of the EITC.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
America needs a Census Bureau director who will count all fairly
Federal elections are the pillar of our national democracy, and the decennial census is the foundation for those elections and assuring that every person is counted accurately and has fair political representation. That makes the responsibility of the Census Bureau to carry out an accurate and fair census a critical charge. Everything from how we are represented in Congress to community resources for our schools, hospitals, and assistance to veterans depends on reliable and accurate census data. Unfortunately, as our country moves along a shrinking timeline for executing the 2020 census, serious legal concerns are emerging regarding how the Trump administration views Census Bureau leadership.
Posted inEducation, Money
Request for school construction dollars is a record low
There could be several reasons for the smaller request this year, including local unwillingness to pay for a community’s share of a project during a sluggish economy, declining enrollment, or a stricter state application process.
Posted inJustice
Abuse case at juvenile detention center prompts vow to improve
Judge Patrick L. Carroll III, chief court administrator, calling the abuse incident an embarrassment, said the Judicial Branch would make necessary modifications to “prevent anything like this ever happening again.”
Posted inPolitics
General Assembly to review its policies on sexual harassment
The Connecticut General Assembly is going to hold a public hearing on its policies for preventing and responding to sexual harassment, becoming the latest public institution to take stock of its workplace culture in the wake of scandals that have swept through the top ranks of entertainment, media and politics.
Posted inJustice, Politics
New Haven Mayor Toni Harp displeases Trump
President Donald Trump sought to recognize New Haven Mayor Toni Harp Wednesday — then criticized her when it turned out she wasn’t in the room to receive the compliment. Harp was boycotting the meeting over the issue of sanctuary cities.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Blumenthal, Murphy sour on Trump HHS pick
WASHINGTON — Like his predecessor, the new head of the Department of Health and Human Services, has sparked controversy and sharp criticism from Democrats, including Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy.
Posted inEducation, Money
Wall Street firm: CT schools ruling helps state, hurts cities
A major Wall Street rating agency said the recent Connecticut Supreme Court ruling that the state provides at least a minimally adequate education in all school districts is a “credit positive” for state government, but a “negative” for its largest cities.
Posted inPolitics
Hatfield’s visibility boosted by Gingrich letter, Lawlor tweet
Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich endorsed the exploratory campaign for attorney general of his former policy assistant, Susan Hatfield, in a letter that praises her work as a state prosecutor and makes no mention of the controversy generated by a Democrat’s tweet saying her support of Donald J. Trump makes her “a full-force racist enabler.”
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Connecticut is still a great place to live, good place to work
Connecticut’s attractiveness as a place to work and a place to live is because of our region, not just the individual townships. Lacking real functional counties to tie our regions together is a weakness, but the townships can overcome this by recognizing their interdependence.
We in Connecticut are tending to focus on our weaknesses, but should recognize that overall Connecticut is a great place to live and a good place to work, for many reasons, and we should all work together to make it even better.
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
CT’s clean energy edge: Going, going . . . or coming back?
Connecticut, once a national leader in clean and renewable energy and energy efficiency, has slipped behind many other states, including its neighbors. Most of the finger-pointing is at the state’s budget problems and questionable choices by the legislature. But the state may have started to lose its energy edge before then. The question is, can it get it back?
Posted inPolitics
Despite shutdown deal’s promise, CT immigrant youth still in limbo
WASHINGTON — A deal that ended the brief government shutdown included a promise to hasten a debate in Congress over immigration, but good intentions have run into political realities that are putting the fate of thousands of young, undocumented immigrants in Connecticut in doubt.