As session winds down, plans for a sweeping energy overhaul emerge

A thaw in one of the General Assembly’s chilliest relationships has produced a sweeping, 11th-hour proposal to overhaul Connecticut’s electric regulatory structure and subsidize solar energy. Setting aside three years of conflict, Sen. John W. Fonfara, D-Hartford, and Rep. Vickie O. Nardello, D-Prospect, are collaborating on what could be the biggest energy bill since deregulation […]

The chances of survival for a controversial bill to force collection of sales taxes on Internet transactions have become very slim as the regular legislative session nears its May 5 deadline, key lawmakers said Thursday. The problem, according to leaders of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, is that many legislators fear businesses could be […]

The House passed a bill today that forbids businesses from charging customers when they return defective merchandise. Proponents say the law is needed because businesses are allowed to charge an unlimited amount when customers return a product. Several House members shared their personal stories of returning a product and being charged the fee before the […]

State employee unions have rejected Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s call to offer the second worker retirement incentive program in two years, according to a statement released late Wednesday night by the administration. But the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition responded that it didn’t reject anything. Rather, it said, it insisted that Rell assess how a […]

Gov. M. Jodi Rell asked state legislators Wednesday to put nearly $1 billion in operating costs on the state’s credit card for the second year in a row as part of a complex scheme to avoid securitizing future revenues. The proposal, which is actually centered on tearing a new $1 billion hole in the current budget […]

If you want to predict children’s chances for success in school, the latest test scores tell only part of the story. You might want to check their ZIP codes, too. That was a key message at a forum Wednesday in Hartford, where a series of experts said the quality of children’s health and education is […]

State employee unions have rejected Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s call to offer the second worker retirement incentive program in two years, according to a written statement released late tonight by the administration. But the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition responded that it didn’t reject anything, but rather insisted that Rell first assess how a second […]

Just two weeks after raiding the next state budget to balance the current one, Gov. M. Jodi Rell unveiled a plan this afternoon to do the reverse – and thereby replace $1.3 billion in planned securitization with nearly $1 billion in more traditional borrowing. The odd back-and-forth maneuver still would place new burdens on residents […]

The state House voted Wednesday to lay the groundwork for what could be a complete overhaul of the state’s tax system by ordering a comprehensive study of the existing revenue structure–the first since establishment of the state income tax nearly 20 years ago. “There is precedent do exactly this the last time we faced a […]

It’s been three months since The Connecticut Mirror began news coverage of Connecticut’s government, politics and public policy. In that time we’ve published hundreds of stories viewed by a steadily-growing number of visitors to our website, CTMirror.org, as well as by readers of our newspaper partners. Now we’re starting a new opinion section, CTCommons, to […]

BRIDGEPORT – At a crowded gubernatorial forum today, Republican Tom Foley exempted the GOP from any responsibility for the state’s fiscal crisis, despite controlling the governor’s office for 16 years. Foley, the Republican front-runner, was immediately ridiculed by Democrats, who asked why he was running for an office he saw as powerless compared to a […]

The path to becoming a Superior Court judge eventually involves a public examination and vote by the legislature, but it begins in private at the New Haven Lawn Club. Once every month, the Judicial Selection Commission meets at the club to interview would-be judges, then votes up or down on their prospects. Without exception, as […]

One day after the legislature’s Black and Puerto Rican Caucus threatened to hold up her nominees for judgeships because of a lack of minority candidates, Gov. M. Jodi Rell came up with a compromise to get her choices approved by the Judiciary Committee. Three weeks after Rell threatened to veto a proposal by Democrats to […]

As the legislative session nears its end, proponents are pushing for passage of several bills they say will crack down on dangerous driving in Connecticut. “Most of them are ready to go,” said Rep. Antonio Guerrera, D-Rocky Hill, co-chairman of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. “Let’s look at the big picture, these are public safety bills.” […]