Lawmakers frustrated as state budget deal looks far off
http://www.journalinquirer.com/articles/2009/05/22/politics_and_courts/doc4a16a3500d04d147134473.txt
By Keith M. Phaneuf
Journal Inquirer
Published: Friday, May 22, 2009 10:06 AM EDT
HARTFORD — The chances of a state budget being resolved before the legislature’s June 3 adjournment — already considered a longshot — worsened Thursday as frustrations mounted in a meeting between top lawmakers and Gov. M. Jodi Rell.
Democrats, who control two-thirds of the House and the Senate, said the governor, a Republican, still hasn’t shown how she would balance finances over the next two fiscal years. Rell’s $38.4 billion plan for 2009-10 and 2010-11 is between $2 billion and $2.7 billion out of balance, according to analyst reports from the administration and the legislature.
Democrats know Rell opposes the record-setting tax increase they’ve put on the table. Hikes in the income, corporation, sales, estate, and cigarette taxes, as proposed by Democrats, would raise $3.3 billion over the next two years.
But while Rell isn’t ready to talk taxes, her administration hasn’t outlined how it would bring state finances into the black.
Senate President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr. of Brooklyn made it clear that if Rell wants Democrats to scale back tax plans, she must identify which services or town grants can be cut.
“At some point, we have to share the proposed cuts with the caucus,” he said. “And time is running out.”
House Majority Leader Denise W. Merrill of Mansfield conceded that Democrats are becoming frustrated with Rell’s call for spending cuts, combined with her reluctance to talk publicly about where such cuts should be made.
The governor last week told reporters that ideas for more cuts are being developed. But she said only those ideas that lawmakers endorse would be discussed publicly, and that most budget negotiations should be kept in private.
Merrill countered that this isn’t a normal year — and the $2 billion to $2.7 billion hole in Rell’s budget isn’t a last-minute budget problem typically solved in closed-door talks.
If state programs were to be cut $2 billion or more over the next two fiscal years, “things will look dramatically different,” Merrill said, noting that many of the proposed cuts never would have been discussed at a public hearing or committee meeting.
“I’m worried that we’re running out of time, and the administration feels it is kind of stuck,” she said.
While Rell didn’t meet with reporters following Thursday’s meeting, Republican legislative leaders did. And they said the governor’s frustration with Democrats is equally strong.
The governor has proposed four plans to mitigate this fiscal year’s deficit, which is close to $1 billion. Democrats have endorsed fewer than half of the proposed cuts, said Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield. “She has put things on the table,” he said.
“There is frustration,” added House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero, R-Norwalk, who said both sides still disagree strongly about what taxpayers can afford in these tough times.
Copyright © 2009 – Journal Inquirer
Join our Facebook Cause. Fight the Lies.