Ethics chair resigns

G. Kenneth Bernhard of Westport resigned today from the Citizen’s Ethics Advisory Board over campaign contributions he made in violation of state law. “I have had a few days to consider recent events…It is apparent that my service will be a distraction to the important work that the Board does for the people of our […]

Connecticut education officials will rewrite a massive school reform plan in a second attempt to win federal stimulus funds after failing to make a list of finalists Thursday in a state-by-state competition for the money. The U.S. Department of Education listed 15 other states and the District of Columbia as finalists for their reform proposals […]

After being rebuffed during her late November attempt to cut town aid, Gov. M. Jodi Rell steered clear of that public relations minefield in February, proposing no reductions to major grants in her budget plan for the coming fiscal year. But less than four weeks later, despite virtually no change in an already dismal deficit […]

With state aid to towns stagnant at best for the near future, a panel of 46 Democratic state lawmakers proposed Wednesday to increase the hotel tax in the state from 12 to 15 percent and give the revenue to cash-strapped towns. The estimated $20 million in annual revenue the tax increase would generate would help […]

Gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley Gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley distanced himself today from fellow Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell, saying he does not support her Keno gambling proposal or her proposal to use $100 million of state dollars to lend to small businesses. The Greenwich businessman also criticized Rell, whom he called a good friend, for allowing the […]

The lineup promised fireworks: Linda McMahon, a WWE executive who has acted in wrestling melodramas; Peter Schiff, a CNBC pundit with a rabid following; and Rob Simmons, a former congressman, soldier and spy. But for 60 minutes Tuesday, constrained by a televised debate format that discouraged confrontation, the three Republican U.S. Senate candidates found agreement […]

Officials from Connecticut’s two casinos said Tuesday that the Rell administration’s proposal to launch a Keno game would violate their exclusive rights to operate “casino games” in the state and jeopardize a revenue-sharing compact that means millions of dollars to the state each year. But state officials say Foxwoods and and the Mohegan Sun thought […]

Magnet schools, charter schools and technical schools all have become popular options for many Connecticut families, but those schools rely on a financial structure that is “broken, unfair, and inadequately funded,” says the state’s top education official. State Education Commissioner Mark McQuillan will ask the State Board of Education today to find ways to fix […]

Legislative leaders were lukewarm at best Tuesday in their reception of Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s latest deficit mitigation plan, but they were even vaguer about when – or even if – they would adopt any plans to erase state government’s deficit before the regular General Assembly session ends on May 5. “We’re intending to pass […]

Connecticut’s hospitals are wary of Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s plan to reinstate a 10-year-old tax on revenues, rejecting the administration’s claim that overall payments to the industry would remain constant, although individual hospitals would experience gains or losses. An official with the Connecticut Hospital Association also said that numerous spending cuts also proposed in the […]

Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s latest deficit-mitigation plan would take $12 million from the Citizens’ Election Program, possibly leaving the system of publicly financing campaigns with insufficient funds for the 2010 elections, advocates said Tuesday. Surprised legislators said Rell’s proposal to take money from the fund undermines efforts by an administration-led working group to formulate changes […]

Officials from Connecticut’s two casinos testified today that if the state allows Keno gambling it will be in violation of its revenue-sharing compact with the Indian tribes that run the casinos. The state receives almost $400 million a year from the slot machines at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos. Jackson King, counsel for Foxwoods, said […]

Connecticut has joined 16 other states in a national alliance to reverse a discouraging downward trend in the percentage of young people earning college degrees, Gov. M. Jodi Rell announced today. The states have joined Complete College America, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that will assist states in setting goals for graduation rates, monitoring progress, […]