Senator McLachlan Warns Taxpayers: “Hold on to Your Wallets!”

State Senator Michael McLachlan (R-24) today said Governor Malloy’s tax and budget proposals show that the outgoing elected official has tunnel vision when it comes to the state’s fiscal problems.

“Taxpayers better hold on to your wallets because the Governor plans to clean you out,” Sen. McLachlan said. “And it’s the poorest and most vulnerable resident who will suffer the most. Being poor or middle class will be a lot more expensive in the Governor’s Connecticut.”

During a press conference Monday, Governor Malloy listed a number of tax proposals and budget cuts he will introduce during the upcoming short legislative session.

Sen. McLachlan said much of what Malloy talked about is a regurgitation of proposals previously rejected by the legislature.

“Once again, the Governor proposes eliminating the property tax credit claimed by the middle class and increasing the sales tax in restaurants to 7 percent,” Sen. McLachlan said. “He also again tries to cut the Medicare Savings Plan for more than 100,000 low-income seniors and disabled residents. Is this his version of the movie Groundhog Day? Not only did the General Assembly come back at the beginning of the year to overwhelmingly approve funding for this program, just last week we voted overwhelmingly to override the Governor’s veto of this funding.”

“I can appreciate persistence,” Sen. McLachlan said, “but this is just ridiculous.”

The General Assembly will be called into session on Wednesday. Sen. McLachlan said it will then be up to legislators to provide realistic solutions to the state’s budget deficit.

“Balancing the budget won’t be easy and we will have to make hard choices,” he said, “but trying to squeeze even more money out of an overtaxed populous didn’t work before. It’s not going to work now. We need to change the focus to being more fiscally responsible with the money we have.”

Sen. McLachlan represents the communities of Bethel, Danbury, New Fairfield, and Sherman.