Sen. Sampson Statement on Passage of CT Budget

State Sen. Rob Sampson (R-Wolcott) issued the following statement regarding the General Assembly’s passage of a budget adjustment agreement that includes $2.3 billion in additional government spending that is not supported by current revenue:

Families in the 16th District continue to send me to the Capitol because they trust me to fight hard for a better future for the people of Connecticut. The agreement passed along party lines last night       significantly undermines this future. It’s not hard to see though the smoke and mirrors of a reckless budget.

Even before the budget debate began, my constituents were asking me if the Democrats were really interested in tax relief – or if it’s just election year politics.

There are no ‘historic tax cuts’ in the majority’s budget. The lion’s share of the Democrat’s so-called tax cuts are not immediate, nor are they available to all residents. Most importantly, they pale in comparison to the permanent and massive increases in government spending that will impact us all for years to come. It’s equivalent to taking an additional $22.00 out of your pocket then giving you back $6.00 in ‘tax cuts.’

If anything is historic in this budget, it’s the spending – a 10% increase in total spending over FY 22, soaring an additional $2.3 billion over the term of the budget – billions of dollars calculated for the Government class to grow in size, scope, and authority.

I should also mention a number of the other items in the document, a laundry list of special interest contributions in Section 10, expanded healthcare for undocumented aliens in Sections 234-235, redefining “reproductive healthcare” to include “gender dysphoria” in Section 192, debt-free college in Sections 119-120, and countless other controversial items that couldn’t pass through the normal legislative process, and the fact that this budget has sizeable deficits already expected in the outyears.

None of this should come as a surprise. The majority Democrats have had a stranglehold on Connecticut’s finances since I was first elected in 2011 and since then they have increased the state budget more than 50%.

On another note, I am proud of my Republican colleagues for both saying no to this irresponsible budget product despite a loud promotional campaign by CT Democrats with the help of large parts of the news media, and for standing together to offer an alternative package of real tax relief – which was sadly voted down on a party line, proving once again that the majority has little interest in anything besides growing government.

Connecticut can deliver $1.2 billion in immediate tax relief proposed by Republicans to CT residents.

• reducing the state income tax for low- and middle-income families and individuals
• reducing the state sales tax and eliminate the meals tax through the end of the year
• extending the gas tax suspension through the end of the year
• cut the tax on diesel
• eliminating the state’s new truck tax
• accelerating the elimination of the income tax on pension and annuities
• reducing burdens on job creators by paying down on the state’s unemployment trust fund loan.
• expanding property tax relief

Connecticut Democrats have continued to overtax residents even now when inflation is crushing family budgets. Now is the time to return these dollars to CT residents.

Read CT Republicans’ proposal for $1.2 billion in tax relief: https://ctsenaterepublicans.com/2022/04/ct-senate-house-republicans-offer-1-2-billion-tax-relief-plan-for-working-and-middle-class-families/.