House Republicans Lead Connecticut Budget Debate
House Republicans this week held a forum to kickstart the process of finally implementing a two-year state budget. Read about the forum from our members in these newspaper editorials:
"The GOP budget — unlike a competing proposal from majority Democrats — contains no tax increases. It also maintains school aid, caps future borrowing and abandons Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s plan to extract $400 million in teacher pension payments from municipalities." The New Haven Register
"Unlike some budgets released in recent months, the House Republican proposal does not include any tax increases and maintains the popular $200 property tax credit on the state income tax that goes largely to the middle class. The Republican plan also does not seek to legalize recreational marijuana or sweep funds set aside for energy and the environment in order to help balance the state's general fund." The Hartford Courant
Minority Republicans in the House renewed the pitch for their own budget, a plan that relies on $2 billion in labor savings mandated by statutory changes — and not bargained collectively. CT Mirror
Republicans are seeking to make the changes like eliminating the use of overtime in pension calculations and changing how Medicare Advantage plans are administered to retirees through state statute, instead of collective bargaining. CT News Junkie
