Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo made it official Friday: In a letter to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, the comptroller says the state is on pace for a $207.8 million deficit that exceeds the one-percent threshold requiring the administration to prepare a deficit-mitigation plan. The Malloy administration made a similar prediction last month.
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Posted inMoney
Malloy signs budget bill, but there’s this one other thing…
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signed a bill Tuesday that makes technical budget revisions he forced through a line-item veto, but he also raised a new complaint: The legislature improperly transferred a $2.9 million children’s health program to an account funded by assessments on the insurance industry.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy criticizes budget outline; Fasano calls him ‘irrelevant’
The syncopated rollout of the General Assembly’s bipartisan budget deal got a harshly skeptical review Friday from Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who either will be the final arbiter of what legislative leaders say will be a satisfactory ending to Connecticut’s long-running budget drama — or just a loud voice from the balcony.
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Another day of negotiations yields optimism, but no deal
The state’s long-running budget drama took a new twist Tuesday as some legislative leaders hinted they were closer than ever before to a bipartisan deal, absent any input from the Democratic administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. But House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, conceded that any bargain likely would include measures Malloy already has vetoed and labeled as gimmicks.
Posted inMoney, Politics
No budget progress amid a day of political theater
Connecticut’s budget drama continued Tuesday with two plot twists: the failure of the House to override the veto of a Republican-authored budget, followed by a Democratic challenge for the GOP to accept a legally suspect measure to temporarily stabilize public services while continuing negotiations.
Posted inPolitics
Voting with GOP, then explaining it to hometown Democrats
It was strained, awkward and raw. Sen. Paul Doyle, D-Wethersfield, came home to explain his defection to the GOP on a key budget vote as a matter of conscience. A few applauded. Others didn’t buy it, accusing him of unnecessarily prolonging Connecticut’s budget impasse.
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Despite unsolved deficit, CT must observe sales tax holiday
Connecticut remains without a budget six weeks into the new fiscal year, but by law officials must still move forward with the state’s 17th-annual sales tax holiday later this month. The Department of Revenue Services estimates the state will miss out on about $4.1 million in revenue.
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Malloy, legislators struggle over uncertain path to a budget
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Democratic legislators are struggling to frame a budget deal that requires Malloy to compromise on taxes, liberals to accept structural changes in municipal aid and moderates to embrace a new labor concessions deal.
Posted inHealth, Money, Politics
Malloy enlists disabled in budget fight — gets protest at his office
A day after Gov. Dannel P. Malloy all-but invited the disabled recipients of state services to lobby for a new budget, they did: They targeted him in a demonstration that ended with the arrest of five protesters in his outer office at the Capitol.
Posted inEducation, Money
Malloy would cut town aid, early childhood education to patch budget hole
The governor, who sent his adjustments to legislative leaders Thursday, also would reduce state contributions to a supplemental retirement health care program for teachers, potentially boosting costs for future retirees.
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Aresimowicz wants mini-truce on Malloy’s ‘mini-budget’
House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, under fire for blocking a provisional budget vote, is calling for a temporary truce. The speaker, who may not have enough votes in the closely divided House to defeat GOP amendments on major issues related to labor concessions, told CT Mirror on Wednesday he wants a pledge from the GOP minority for a clean vote, meaning no amendments and limited debate.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy tries to focus budget talks with a veto threat
Never coming close to resolving a budget crisis in the five-month regular session that ended Wednesday night, the General Assembly and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy now will try again in special session, burdened by the knowledge that neither chamber has a reliable working majority on the question of how to fund Connecticut’s government.
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Malloy would empty reserve, cut local aid to close deficit
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy unveiled a plan Wednesday that relies on one-time revenue sweeps, withholding $19 million in municipal aid, dozens of small agency cuts, and draining the state’s reserves to close the roughly $390 million gap in current state finances.