States Struggle to Meet Pension Liabilities

Yesterday, the Pew Center on the States released a nationwide study of state pension funding shortfalls.  The Center’s survey of the states found that 31 out of 50 states were below the 80 percent funded threshold in 2009–this is a sharp increase from the previous year when only 22 percent were below the advised threshold. Connecticut’s pension program liability is over $41...
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24 Retirees Make More than Governor

HARTFORD – Pensions for two dozen retired state employees exceeded the governor’s salary of $150,000 in 2010, according to new data posted to the Yankee Institute’s CT Sunlight Project (www.ctsunlight.org). A total of 378 retired state workers received pensions of more than $100,000 last year. That’s up from 175 individuals in 2008 and 299 retirees in 2009. In all, the state of...
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The Connecticut Plum Book

HARTFORD – The Yankee Institute’s Zach Janowski has assembled a listing of all the gubernatorial appointments to be made by Governor Dannel Malloy as he fills his administration in the Connecticut Plum Book. The data shows that Gov. Malloy has numerous posts to fill, including 23 commissioner-level positions, 22 deputy commissioner-level posts, and 91 paid appointments to various...
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Your Guide to the State Legislature

HARTFORD – Over the last two years, members of the Connecticut House of Representatives and the Connecticut State Senate have voted on hundreds of bills that have an effect on the daily lives of Connecticut’s citizens.  As a result, it can be very challenging to discern whether individual elected officials are acting in the best interest of the state on critical issues. The Yankee...
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Yankee Institute Starts Raising Hale

HARTFORD – The Yankee Institute announces the launch of Raising Hale, a new source of investigative reporting for Connecticut. The website, www.RaisingHale.com, will feature articles and videos that break news and address topics not covered elsewhere. Zachary Janowski is an investigative reporter for the Yankee Institute and is responsible for the material posted to Raising Hale. Most recently...
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$100k Pension Club Includes 299 State Retirees

HARTFORD – The number of retired state employees collecting annual pensions of more than $100,000 has risen to 299 people, a new analysis by the Yankee Institute shows. Of those, 81 individuals receive more than $120,000, or at least $10,000 a month. The top ten biggest pensioners in 2009: Name Employer Position Amount Veiga, John F UCONN Professor $257,362.21 Blechner, Jack N UConn...
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Top State Employee Salaries 2009

HARTFORD – The Yankee Institute announces that it has updated its CTSunlight.org website by adding 2009 payroll data for all state employees. The data shows that 1,293 state employees earned more than Gov. Jodi Rell’s salary of $150,000 last year. This is up from 1,137 state employers who were paid more than the governor in 2008. Check out CTSunlight.org now! A total of 180 state employees...
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Sunlight is the Best Disinfectant

HARTFORD – The Connecticut Department of Corrections hired Huggles the Clown for $600. The Department of Veteran’s Affairs spent $1,210 on New York Yankees tickets. A total of 1,137 state employees are paid more than the governor, and 175 retired state employees collect pensions of more than $100,000 a year. These facts are now publicly available online for the first time thanks to a new...
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The Care and Feeding of Our Congressmen

TRANSPARENCY FOR THE FIRST TIME Published on August 8, 2009 by the Yankee Institute for Public Policy Download the data now! XLS PDF How much responsibility does any single member of Congress have for the $3 trillion Federal budget? It’s impossible to say. Like a football team, so many people contribute to the success or failure of each play that one is never able to assign sole responsibility...
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Blueprint for Reform: A Guide to Key Issues for Campaign 2006

Report published in September 2006. The Yankee Institute analyzes four key issues in the 2006 campaign: economic development, education reform, property taxes, and government reform and accountability. Download the Report Now
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