June 27, 2009
Governor Rell Will Veto Democrats’ Budget Bill With
$2.5 Billion in New Taxes and Built-in Future Deficits
Flawed Plan, Filled with Holes and Excess Spending, is
“Exactly the Wrong Budget at Exactly the Wrong Time.”
“At a time when states surrounding and near Connecticut are raising income, sales and business taxes, Connecticut has the opportunity to become a beacon of opportunity. Holding the line now – making difficult but necessary decisions about state spending now – will make Connecticut a far more attractive place to live and do business, keeping and attracting the jobs and new economic development that is essential to our recovery from the current recession.”
Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced she will veto upon receipt the legislative Democrats’ budget bill that passed the state Senate on Thursday and the House of Representatives on Friday.
“The flaws and failures of the tax and spending proposals contained in the Democrats’ budget are obvious and they are a recipe for disaster,” Governor Rell said. “It is neither balanced nor remotely realistic in its assumed ‘savings’ and ‘spending cuts.’
“Instead of doing what families are doing all across Connecticut – cutting back, this budget does nothing to reduce the size of a government that has outgrown the taxpayers’ ability to pay for it.
“By not reducing the size or cost of state government now, the Democrats’ budget sets the stage for further – and larger – deficits in the years to come,” Governor Rell said. “With its built-in deficits, the Democrats’ budget would inevitably result in still higher taxes falling more and more heavily on Connecticut’s already overburdened middle class.
“The Democrats’ budget calls for $2.5 billion in new taxes on the people and employers of Connecticut in the midst of the worst global economic downturn since the Great Depression,” the Governor said. “Equally troubling, however, is the failure of this budget to reduce state spending in any meaningful way.
“I will veto this bill because the battle over this budget is more than about just dollars and cents,” the Governor said. “This battle is about the future of Connecticut, about the future of our families and about the opportunities we will create – or not create – for our children.
“At a time when states surrounding and near Connecticut are raising income, sales and business taxes, Connecticut has the opportunity to become a beacon of opportunity,” Governor Rell said. “Holding the line now – making difficult but necessary decisions about state spending now – will make Connecticut a far more attractive place to live and do business, keeping and attracting the jobs and new economic development that is essential to our recovery from the current recession.”
“There is still time between now and Tuesday night at midnight to develop a budget that is responsible and affordable,” the Governor said. “I have asked the legislative leaders to meet with me at the Executive Residence on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. to work on a budget that will meet the needs of our citizens and protect Connecticut’s future. We cannot wait to get to work.
“However, I am also preparing an Executive Order to make sure that government runs smoothly in the absence of a budget on July 1,” Governor Rell said. “The clock is ticking, but it is more important to get the budget done right than to simply get it done.”
Courtesy of the Vernon Republican Town Committee.
Tags: Budget 2009-2010, CT, Deficit 2009, Rockville, State of Conn, Vernon
