Senate, House approve tax plan CT lawmakers call disastrous for state

Posted inMoney, Politics

Senate, House approve tax plan CT lawmakers call disastrous for state

Avatar photo by Ana Radelat

Updated at 1:15 a.m. Wednesday
WASHINGTON — With Vice President Mike Pence presiding, the Senate early Wednesday approved a massive tax overhaul on a strict party-line vote, deepening the partisan divide in Congress. Connecticut’s Democrats joined all others in their party to vote against the tax plan, calling it a giveaway to the rich that would hurt working Americans.

Posted inCT Viewpoints

If education justice is the goal, don’t follow Massachusetts

by Lisa Guisbond

Massachusetts, like Connecticut, has long boasted top-performing public schools (“Massachusetts Is Like Connecticut, But Does a Better Job Educating the Poor,” Dec. 11, 2017). Students in both states scored at or near the top on national tests before the start of high-stakes testing. But then, as now, there have been huge differences in academic outcomes linked to race, income, language and disability. These gaps mirror the two states’ large (and growing) gaps in wealth and opportunity, as well as glaring inequities in school funding between rich and poor districts. … Rather than follow Massachusetts’ lead and impose more tests, Connecticut should implement an assessment system using projects and portfolios that promote and measure deeper, broader learning.

Posted inCT Viewpoints

Some analysis, please, on tolls versus higher gasoline tax

by Peter Moss

We need a serious comparison of the costs and benefits of tolls vs. higher gas taxes.  Some obvious issues are…
Costs: It should cost next to nothing to raise gas taxes, while tolls might involve significant capital and operating costs.
Equity: It would seem fair that all drivers pay a share of maintaining and improving roads, not just ones using particular highways.
Contribution from drivers from out-of-state: How would the two options compare?

Congestion pricing: Would a toll system really be put at locations that enable effective congestion pricing?  Border tolls would not do so.  Could congestion pricing really be fair and effective in a state with limited alternative transportation options and limited number of lanes on highways?

Posted inCT Viewpoints, Talking Transportation

Feeling sorry for Dannel Malloy; more sorry for us

by Jim Cameron | Columnist

Six words I never thought I’d write:  “I feel sorry for Dannel Malloy.”

Sure, we’ve had our differences. And yeah, the governor does have the personality of a porcupine and the disposition of a bully, sometimes.  But the man is not evil and he doesn’t deserve what’s happening to him now.  Nor do we. Our governor is a lame duck.  Because he’s announced he’s not running for re-election, he has the political clout of a used teabag.  And even though he’s our state’s leader for another 11 months, nobody cares about him or his ideas any longer.

Posted inMoney, News, Politics

As Congress readies tax overhaul, an accountant explains its impact on Connecticut taxpayers

Avatar photo by Ana Radelat

As a historic overhaul of the nation’s tax code nears the finish line, Connecticut taxpayers have deluged their accountants with questions over its impact on their households or businesses. In this Sunday conversation, Andrew Lattimer, a certified public accountant and tax specialist at the West Hartford office of BlumShapiro, explains how the new tax plan would affect Connecticut taxpayers.

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