Senate Democratic leaders unveiled a 2012 budget blueprint Wednesday, discussing the document behind closed doors during a policy lunch. After emerging from the session, Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal declined to comment on the measure, which comes as Congress faces an increasingly tight deadline to craft a debt-and-budget deal. But Sen. Joseph Lieberman, an independent who […]
Lieberman lukewarm, Blumenthal mum on Senate Dems 2012 budget plan
Posted inPolitics
Tong, Murphy tout strength in Senate campaign organizations
William Tong may have to keep up-or even speed up-his fundraising pace, given the campaign staff he’s assembled for his U.S. Senate bid. In a release Wednesday, Tong, a state representative from Stamford, touted the political talent he’s hired for his campaign to replace retiring Sen. Joseph Lieberman. Among the recruits are Jim Jordan, a […]
Posted inEducation
State education officials intervene in Bridgeport, then name new leader in Windham
Thirty minutes after deciding to takeover the Bridgeport school board, state education leaders announced who they intend to lead the other district they intervened in earlier this year. The controversial former superintendent of Hartford Public Schools Steven Adamowski has been named the new leader of Windham Public Schools. “He can make some positive differences. We […]
Posted inMoney
Blumenthal lauds reversal on suicide condolence letters
Sen. Richard Blumenthal applauded the White House’s decision to begin sending condolence letters to families of service members who commit suicide. Previously, the Administration’s policy had been to only send letters to families of personnel who were killed in combat or noncombat incidents in war zones. The White House initiated a review of that policy […]
Posted inNews
Without new offer, unions ask Malloy to reopen talks
State employee union leaders formally asked Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Tuesday to “reconvene discussions” on labor concessions, but they have no plan to amend the voting process that sunk the first concession package last month. The governor’s office did not reject the prospect of more talks with the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, but […]
Posted inNews
Malloy vetoes insurance rate review bill
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy used one of his first vetoes on a controversial bill that would have created a new public review process for proposals to increase health or long-term care insurance rates. In his veto message, Malloy called the bill, which drew support from consumer advocates and fierce opposition from the insurance industry, “bad […]
Posted inNews
With budgets tight, some districts chafe at special ed spending
Facing a major cut in funding for the schools in Bristol, Superintendent Philip Streifer has cut electives, scaled back four-hour kindergarten to two hours, pruned athletics and cut other costs everywhere he can. But his hands are tied to reducing costs to the fastest growing section of his budget — special education. Twenty percent of […]
Posted inNews
Donovan juggles roles as speaker and candidate
Chris Donovan’s formal entry into the 5th District congressional race got sidetracked: On the eve of his scheduled announcement last month, the labor concession deal on which the state budget depended was failing, and as leader of the House of Representatives, Donovan had some work ahead of him. “My full-time job is still speaker of […]
Posted inHealth
Mini-med plans explained
Federal health reform was supposed to limit so-called “mini-med” plans-health insurance plans that cap how much health care they cover. But federal officials have granted some of these plans waivers from the law, out of fear that employers would drop any insurance option if they had to comply with the new rules. The Kaiser Family […]
Posted inHealth, Money
SEBAC, SustiNet and Sal Luciano’s letter
No one disputes the basic facts: The head of the largest state employee union, Council 4 AFSCME Executive Director Sal Luciano, sat on the board that developed the proposed SustiNet state-run health care plan. He was among the labor leaders urging state workers to ratify a concession deal that included changes to the state employee […]
Posted inNews
Tom Sheridan, the distinctive voice of the Connecticut Senate, dies at 62
Tom Sheridan, the long-serving clerk of the Connecticut Senate, died Monday after a battle with cancer that was measured, as were many things in his career, by legislative sessions. Sheridan, 62, was diagnosed after seeking medical attention the day after the legislative session ended a year ago. It was a struggle, but he served again […]
Posted inMoney, Politics
Tong raises more than $500,000 for U.S. Senate bid
William Tong said he’s raised about $550,000 in the 53 days since he jumped into the 2012 U.S. Senate contest. Tong’s campaign said Tuesday that he ended the 2nd fundraising quarter, which ran from April through June, with more than $500,000 cash on hand. Tong, a Democrat and state representative from Stamford, is in a […]
Posted inNews
To our readers:
The continuing controversy over state union concessions brought a significant increase in comments to our website, which we welcomed. Regrettably, however, too many of those comments were rude, mean-spirited, misleading, and generally disruptive to our goal of promoting civic discourse. To elevate the level of the conversation, we are making changes to our comment policy, […]
Posted inCT Viewpoints
The deal they couldn’t refuse–but did
As they say, “Everything’s been said and everyone’s said it”: Connecticut’s state workers were nuts to reject the deal offered by Governor Dan Malloy. Indeed, anyone who looked closely at the deal is doubly amazed, because it involved no genuine sacrifice: a two-year wage freeze (no pay cuts or unpaid furlough days) followed by three […]
Posted inNews
The deal they couldn’t refuse–but did
As they say, “Everything’s been said and everyone’s said it”: Connecticut’s state workers were nuts to reject the deal offered by Governor Dan Malloy. Indeed, anyone who looked closely at the deal is doubly amazed, because it involved no genuine sacrifice: a two-year wage freeze (no pay cuts or unpaid furlough days) followed by three […]