Connecticut’s all-Democratic U.S. House delegation split in this afternoon’s vote on whether to authorize the American military campaign in Libya. Reps. Rosa DeLauro and Joe Courtney, of the 2nd and 3rd districts respectively, both supported a resolution Friday to authorize the “limited” use of American armed forces to support the NATO mission in Libya. Reps. […]
Delegation divided over Libya funding, authorization
Posted inNews
Facing uncertainty in state funding, UConn cuts its budget
Faced with continued uncertainty over its funding from the state, the University of Connecticut Thursday approved a $30 million reduction in its budget for next year–the first cut in more than two decades. School officials had initially proposed maintaining next year’s budget at the current level of $1.04 billion, but decided on the cut shortly […]
Posted inNews
Malloy: Layoffs will be ‘large scale’ and quick
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said today he will outline spending reductions and mass layoffs next week in response to the apparent collapse of his $1.6 billion concessions deal with state employees. A special session of the legislature has been called for June 30 to approve a revised budget that Malloy says will be ready Monday. […]
Posted inNews
First report card on DCF under Katz: Potential, but little progress
The new leader of the agency responsible for the care of abused and neglected children in Connecticut has received her first report card, and it says that while the problems that have kept the troubled agency under federal court supervision for 20 years persist, there is reason to believe things may change. “It is acknowledged […]
Posted inNews
Special session called for Thursday
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy called a special session for Thursday at 10 a.m. to deal with the budget revisions. His statement: “It was always my hope that the SEBAC Agreement would be ratified and we could move forward with the process of getting our state’s fiscal house in order and creating new jobs,” said Governor […]
Posted inMoney
Lieberman, Rubio criticize planned House vote to nix funding for Libya
Sen. Joseph Lieberman is warning his congressional colleagues-Democrats and Republicans alike-against efforts to nix the U.S. military campaign in Libya. Lieberman teamed up with Marco Rubio, a Tea Party conservative from Florida, to pen an oped in this morning’s Wall Street Journal. The piece argues that the U.S. has an “unequivocal national interest in ensuring […]
Posted inNews
Researchers warn of marine species extinction
A new report by an international panel of marine experts says the health of the world’s oceans is deteriorating to the point that we are “at high risk for entering a phase of extinction of marine species unprecedented in human history.” And while warnings of impending ecological disaster abound, this one is particularly worrisome because […]
Posted inNews
Prospects unclear for town aid, social services if labor deal fails
For the past five months, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has put a scare in municipal governments and social service providers, warning they could well face deep cuts in aid if unionized state employees refuse concessions. But while those threats may have been effective at mobilizing advocates for these groups to press state workers for givebacks, […]
Posted inNews
Droney gets a brief and cordial hearing on appeals court nomination
WASHINGTON–The Senate Judiciary Committee gave Connecticut’s Christopher Droney a light and breezy 15-minute quizzing at his confirmation hearing Wednesday, with no hard-ball or hostile questions for the appeals court nominee. The top Republican on the panel, Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, asked Droney a half-dozen questions, querying him about a colorful quote he gave to […]
Posted inNews
As concessions face defeat, unions and administration react cautiously
On the eve of a vote by AFSCME that is expected to kill a tentative union concession plan, a top adviser to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said the administration might be open to a new vote by the bargaining units that voted it down, but it won’t offer new terms. Union spokesmen called the question […]
Posted inNews
With givebacks in doubt, Malloy and legislators face new fiscal gap
The apparent rejection of a concessions deal by state employees leaves Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the General Assembly with a sizable hole in the budget for the year that begins in just over a week. The question is, how much do they have to make up? It’s not the $700 million that the labor […]
Posted inMoney
Obama’s Afghanistan plan gets mixed reviews from CT delegation
Several members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation expressed dissatisfaction with President Barack Obama’s plan to withdraw 10,000 American troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3rd District, said the president’s proposal “does not go far enough,” noting that the war is now a decade old. “We need to begin a more […]
Posted inNews
Report: Government jobs buoyed Hartford-area economy in recession
Nineteen of the 20 metropolitan areas that fared the best economically though the recession–including Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford–had growth in government jobs, Brookings reports in its latest MetroMonitor. Overall, employment was significantly stronger in the Hartford area during the recession than in the state’s other two metropolitan areas, Brookings said, falling just 1.5 percent from its […]
Posted inMoney
McKinney: Maybe concession failure will be catalyst for labor changes
Has the apparent failure of the state employee concession deal created a new political environment for labor isuses? Senate Minority Leader John P. McKinney, R-Fairfield, sounds like he wants to find out during a special session anticipated for next week. He said Republicans would try to raise collective bargaining changes at any special session, seeking […]
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Money
U.S. Dept. of Labor grants CT $5.8 million for green jobs
U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis announced Wednesday afternoon that Connecticut will receive $5.8 million in grants for the creation of green jobs, pleasing both U.S. Rep. John Larson and U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro. The money comes from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Green Jobs Innovation Fund. The Connecticut Department of Labor in Wethersfield and […]