Requiring municipalities to take more responsibility for their teachers’ pension costs makes some sense – if those towns have the power to lower those pensions or the teachers’ other compensation. To do so any other way is […]
After extensive debate, the Connecticut Transportation Committee today voted along party lines to approve several tolling bills, which have sparked public interest and outcry across the state. The Democratic party majority held enough of a […]
Instituting a paid family medical leave program in Connecticut is one of the biggest legislative pushes of the year and will be funded with a .5 percent payroll tax on all employees except state employee […]
While not a tax per se, a bill to impose a $15 fee on the purchase of a dog, cat or “other domestic animal” from a municipal shelter received a public hearing on Monday. Notably, […]
How big were the tax hikes in Governor Ned Lamont’s budget proposal? If you include all of the proposed increases over the next few years, and account for a few tax breaks, the total comes […]
What would have been an un-eventful labor contract renewal in the small town of Harwinton became highly-charged altercation on January 18 when AFSCME Council 4 representative Kelly Cashman “stormed” into the office of First Selectman […]
Gov. Ned Lamont reportedly considered a small sales tax on groceries in Connecticut, sparking widespread media coverage and public backlash, but that idea – and some of his other tax ideas which became part of […]
Gov. Ned Lamont proposed instituting a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in an effort to close Connecticut’s $3.5 billion budget deficit. This isn’t the first time the so-called “soda tax” has come to Connecticut – it […]
Gov. Ned Lamont has proposed a 10-cent tax on plastic grocery bags to raise $30 million in revenue for Connecticut, which faces on-going budget deficits due to unfunded pension liabilities and bonded debt. But the […]
In an interview with CNBC, famed investor Warren Buffet warned companies to stay away from states facing major pension problems, a blow to Connecticut which has one of the worst-funded state pension systems in the country. […]
The Connecticut State Legislature will begin its 2023 session on January 4th and will adjourn on June 7th. The “long session,” as non-election years are called in Hartford, will be centered around the biennial budget. The Office of the State Comptroller reports that state government found a way to spend $47.11 billion in 2022 and, if trends continue, we can expect that number to grow even more going forward. Concerns over energy prices, inflation, and general cost of living continue to dominate the headlines and the threat of a recession hovers over economic forecasts.
What will our elected officials be working on to improve policy outcomes for Connecticut residents? What tax reform proposals will there be? What can be done to lower home heating bills? How will state and local budgets be affected by fewer federal resources? How will schools be implementing to curriculum requirements?
While we wait to see the thousands of individual and committee bills that while dominate the myriad policy debates this year, Yankee Institute is hard at work promoting free-market solutions to the problems we face from Stamford to Putnam and Mystic to Salisbury. To that end, we have produced a new edition of our Charter for Change. The Charter provides commonsense reforms to make Connecticut’s government work for its residents.
Though the list of reforms may be exhausting to review, it is far from exhaustive! And that’s why we want to work with you to build a broad-based coalition to encourage sound policy reforms to enable Connecticut residents to forge a better future for themselves and their families.
It’s also imperative that we do so. As we noted in a report and CT Mirror op-ed last year, the debate over whether we’re in a national recession really misses the point for Connecticut residents. We had more people employed in the private sector in 2007 than we do today. Our economy has grown at one of the slowest rates in the nation for the past decade, and we are getting outpaced year after year. We’re not attracting innovation and industry. We’re losing some of our best and brightest as they seek other parts of the country where it’s easier to make a living.
But together, we can reverse this trend.
At Yankee Institute, we know Connecticut is a state with boundless opportunity, and we intend to help make our state more than a place where people are just able to make ends meet! Connecticut should be a place where everyone can thrive – and with your help, it will be.