New Taxes & Forced School Regionalization, Does State Government Really Know Best?

Over the past few weeks in Hartford, two major issues have taken the Capitol by storm.

The first is a series of new tax increases proposed by Democrats, including proposals that would increase property taxes and tax groceries.

The second is a proposal to force regionalization of school districts across the state.

While these ideas are just in the early stages of the legislative process, I have serious concerns about their combined impact on growing Connecticut’s economy, creating jobs and education opportunities, and enabling people to thrive in our state.

Here’s a closer look at the proposals, and why we all need to pay attention to these bills as the session moves forward:

1. Forced regionalization of school districts: Connecticut Democrats have proposed multiple bills to force towns to regionalize school districts. One bill would force any school district with fewer than 2,000 students to regionalize (impacting an estimated 84 towns). Another bill would force any town with a population of fewer than 40,000 to consolidate with other towns to form new school districts matching the state probate court districts. While I think it can be beneficial to encourage towns to share services, forcing regionalization in a manner controlled by the state raises concerns. It’s a proposal that suggests state government knows how to run our schools better than local communities, which I do not agree with. Other concerns of forced regionalization include: more time on the bus, wasted taxpayer investments in new and newly renovated schools, fewer extracurricular opportunities, potential new costs to build new schools to meet regional needs, increase in busing expenses, loss of teaching positions, and loss of local control over school decision making. (Senate Bill No. 457 and Senate Bill No. 454)
2. A new tax on groceries and medication: It has been reported that the governor is considering this idea, but we are still waiting to see his budget proposal to know what he is actually going to propose.
3. An increase in the sales tax: Democrats have filed a bill to increase the sales tax rate to 6.85%. (Senate Bill No. 475)
4. Creation of a new statewide property tax: One Democrat proposal includes a new statewide tax on real estate, on top of local property taxes. (Senate Bill No. 431)
5. An increase in property taxes in cities and towns: A bill marketed as a way to change the state’s car tax structure would result in higher property taxes for many. The bill creates a statewide car tax that the state would collect. The bill also includes provisions to reduce certain assessed property values in towns and cities, thereby forcing municipalities to increase mill rates leading to higher property taxes on everyone. (Senate Bill No. 431)

All of these proposals suggest state government can do a better job than local government when it comes to managing taxpayer dollars, whether that means making decisions about combining schools or collecting a statewide car tax. I don’t particularly agree with this perspective. I find our local town governments to often be managed more efficiently than state government and to be more aware of our communities’ unique needs. I also have concerns about the burdens of new state taxes and forced increases to our property taxes. Every day, our families have to budget for our needs and live within our means. The state should operate in the same way, not seek out more from those who can least afford it.

To follow these proposals throughout the legislative session, you can look up bills on the Connecticut General Assembly website at cga.ct.gov. You can also visit my website for updates or contact me directly at [email protected] or 800-842-1421.