The panel studying Connecticut’s tax system got some sobering news Wednesday morning in separate reports detailing the state’s struggle to recover from the last recession and the challenge of closing the wealth gap between the cities and wealthy suburbs.
income tax
Posted inMoney, Politics
Daunting task: Study taxes but not whether they’re too high
The State Tax Panel is kicking off a four-month study of the state’s tax system and economy, but in theory it will not address whether taxes are too high or too low, or whether certain groups should pay more or less.
Posted inMoney
State panel to host teleconferences with tax specialists
The committee studying Connecticut’s tax system will host a series of telephone conference meetings next week, and members of the public interested in listening to those briefings can do so at the headquarters of the state Office of Policy and Management.
Posted inEducation, Money, Politics
Retired teachers buck CT budget trend and get a tax cut
What separates retired Connecticut teachers from the working poor, middle-income consumers, corporations and insurance companies? In the context of the new state budget, it’s the ability to get a tax break.
Posted inEducation, Money, Politics
Looming deficits already threaten transportation, town aid initiatives
A new, two-year state budget would make unprecedented investments in communities and transportation. But while Gov. Dannel P. Malloy insists his transportation investment will be protected by a legal lockbox, and Democratic lawmakers profess their commitment to local aid, looming deficits that start arriving in 2017-18 have advocates for both constituencies admitting they’re worried.
Posted inHealth, Money, Politics
5 Things you may have missed in the new state budget
Once a month The Mirror addresses five points about a key element of the state budget process. Today’s story looks at some of the lesser-known aspects of the new $40.3 billion biennial state budget adopted last week by the General Assembly and expected to be signed by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.
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Senate Dems threaten ‘nuclear option’ to pass budget, $2B tax hike
Senate Democrats took the extraordinary step in the final hour of the 2015 session Wednesday of threatening to cut off debate to ensure passage on a 19-17 vote of a new state budget that raises tax revenues by $2 billion.
Posted inEducation, Health, Money, Politics
House adopts controversial state budget
Connecticut’s long-running budget drama began drawing to a close early Wednesday as the House of Representatives adopted a $40.3 billion, two-year package that largely restores deep cuts to social services and expands municipal aid while bolstering tax revenues by almost $2 billion.
Posted inEducation, Health, Money, Politics
Democrats modify tax proposals, but business unimpressed
Democratic legislators are using a two-stage, 50-cent increase in cigarette taxes to lessen — but not to eliminate — controversial income and data processing tax hikes, with the goal of passing a $40.3 billion, two-year state budget plan on Tuesday. The state’s chief business lobby quickly decried the changes as woefully inadequate.
Posted inMoney, Politics
New budget includes $200 million income tax hit on middle class
A last-minute component of the new two-year state budget deal includes a $100 million-per-year income tax hike on Connecticut’s middle class, according to budget documents released early Monday. The hit comes in the form of a reduced credit for local property tax payments.
Posted inNews
Legislators, Malloy hovering on brink of a state budget deal
Sources say legislative leaders and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration are creeping up on a tentative agreement on a new two-year budget. Few details have leaked, but the sources said spending will be less than the legislature’s Appropriations Committee has recommended, and the latest talks have centered on the taxes that will be required to balance the budget.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Competing sides ramp up tax debate
The opposing sides in the state tax debate each tried to grab center stage Monday as Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Democratic legislative leaders kicked off what many expect to be their most contentious round of budget negotiations yet.
Posted inMoney, Politics
5 Things you need to know about the Connecticut sales tax
Once a month The Mirror addresses five points about a key element of the state budget process. Today’s story looks at the Connecticut sales tax, its role in state finances, and its role in a dramatic tax reform plan proposed by the legislature’s Democratic majority.
Posted inMoney, Politics
State tax debate: Whose plan really helps the middle class?
As the development of the next state budget enters its final stage this week, the main players in this drama might be further apart than at any previous time during Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration.
Posted inHealth, Money, Politics
GOP to stage public hearing in hopes of rallying tax-hike opposition
Hoping to rally public opposition to $2.4 billion in new proposed tax revenues for the next two fiscal years, Republican state legislators will conduct a public hearing next week that GOP leaders hope will exert enough public pressure to do what their votes alone cannot – block most, if not all, of these proposed increases.