Good news, bad news, and aggravating

Dear neighbors,

I have good news, bad news, and aggravating news.

The good news is that Republicans and Democrats have an agreement to restore funding to the Medicare Savings Plan. Changes to eligibility requirements in the plan would have cost 113,000 low income seniors and disabled patients their ability to pay for insurance.

Thankfully, my fellow legislators and I are ready to go back into special session to restore funding assistance for those 113,000 individuals. We would like to do this as soon as possible.

The bad news is that Governor Malloy said he will not call legislators into special session.

It’s impossible to understand his motivations. All he needs to do is sign a few papers, but he is unwilling to do that.

Working together, Republicans and Democrats again have a solution to the Governor’s reluctance to call a special session. We are signing a petition asking the Secretary of State to call a special session. With a few more signatures, we can fix this problem before the end of the year.

Now for the aggravating news.

Today, Governor Malloy released his proposed deficit mitigation plan. I have only begun to review the proposal, but I already have a problem with his suggestion to raise nearly $200 million in taxes.

The Governor’s continual answer to budget deficits is to raise taxes. That hasn’t worked for the last four years. Why would it work now?  Connecticut’s high taxes have already driven businesses and residents out of the state. Increasing taxes will only accelerate their flight. As history has shown us, this will only lead to more budget deficits.

Of course, the deficit mitigation plan must be approved by the legislature. My colleagues and I will carefully review this proposal and will be able to propose changes other than tax increases.

As the never-ending budget saga continues, I will keep you informed of any progress.

If you have any questions or issues, please feel free to contact me at [email protected].

Thank you