Governor’s Last Ditch Effort for Tolls

By: Senator John A. Kissel

Last week Governor Malloy took another swing at forcing North-Central Connecticut residents to pay another tax – a tax in the form of highway tolls.

On July 17th the governor announced that he had signed an executive order directing state agencies to conduct a $10 million study of tolls. These tolls would be on I-95, I-91, I-84, the Wilbur Cross Parkway, the Merritt Parkway, and more.

The legislature made it clear this legislative session there was no support for implementing tolls – ultimately just another tax on Connecticut residents like you. Through this executive order the governor has ignored the will of the legislature, and ultimately ignored the will of Connecticut taxpayers.

The state Bond Commission will need to approve this allocation at a meeting that is set for Wednesday, July 25th. I am urging members of the bonding commission to vote against this proposal to recklessly charge $10 million on the state’s credit card – ultimately forcing another tax and more debt onto the residents of North-Central Connecticut.

I am working and hoping this bond allocation does not get approved but if you are reading this and it has I urge you to contact your state officials and contact the governor – make your voice heard.

I have been a constant advocate against tolls for many years. I will continue to stand by this as tolls are just another tax on the hard-working families of Connecticut. To that end, bonding such a large amount of taxpayer dollars to study the implementation of another tax is unacceptable and puts our state even deeper in debt.

I look forward to continuing to discuss how we can improve Connecticut’s infrastructure through budget prioritization and long-term investments that do not include tolls.