Malloy promises an ugly budget. But ugly for who?

This one hit the web after I was off the air, so I’ve had plenty of time to think about it. Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy (D) is demanding concessions from state labor, $1 billion in concessions, to help close a $3.5 billion budget gap. Unless he can tackle pensions and healthcare I’m not sure how he’ll get $1 billion in savings he needs. So when he promises that Plan B will be ugly, is this already etched in stone? Or is this nothing more than tweaking the unions? H/T ctcapitolreport.com

Here’s the skinny from CT mirror.org:

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Friday he has begun work on an “ugly” alternative budget in case talks with state employees do no not yield significant savings in the next month.

“I am preparing recommendations with respect to what that would look like,” Malloy said. “I hope we don’t have to go there. It would be nasty and ugly.”

Speaking to reporters at a press conference, Malloy declined to assess the state of talks with unionized state employees, from whom he is seeking $1 billion in concessions and savings in the fiscal year beginning July 1.

“They are not over,” he said of the talks. “So I am happy.”

Malloy conceded for the first time that his goal of obtaining legislative approval on a budget in May relies on the labor talks, and that he does not yet have $1 billion in alternative cuts.

After reading the entire story, I just don’t get the feeling that there is any conflict between labor and the governor’s office. It sounds more like a governor is just tweaking the process open to get it moving a little faster. And I don’t think it’s unusual for me to wonder if a Democrat governor is really serious about laying off public employees.

My biggest concerns are two: that either the governor will announce concessions by labor call them dramatic but still not be able to close the budget gap resulting in additional taxes on top of the $2.8 billion in new taxes he’s already proposed, or, get the concessions he needs, balances the budget this year but does little to change the clunky system that will drive us right back into deficit again in a few years.

Initial reports seem to indicate that the governor is at least trying to establish a new tier of benefits for new employees. The Courant reported on this just a couple days ago.

The one-page memo, obtained by Capitol Watch, also asks if the employees would vote against a one-year wage freeze or a two-year wage freeze. They are also asked if they would oppose allowing the state to switch to a 401k retirement program for all new employees who are hired after July 1 – instead of the lucrative pension system that the current employees receive.

Other issues include:

*”Raising the retirement age to 65 for employees hired after June 30.”

*Creating a new, Tier III pension plan for new employees with a defined benefit, such as the current system.

*Charging an additional $60 per month – or $720 per year – for health insurance. An alternative would be an increase of $30 per month.

Everything mentioned here is a step in the right direction except a couple points. I am stunned that the state is even considering extending a defined benefit plan to new hires. it needs to be made clear those days are long gone. As for “raising the retirement age to 65”, welcome to the private sector.

By the way, the employees who were asked to fill out the survey are all professionals. Lawyers now belong to a union?

A & R represents 3,300 state employees, including accountants, planners, and attorneys in various state agencies, as well as about 500 tax collectors, auditors and other employees in the state Department of Revenue Services.

Too much.

Posted in ,

Jim Vicevich

Jim is a veteran broadcaster and conservative/libertarian blogger with more than 25 years experience in TV and radio. Jim's was the long-term host of The Jim Vicevich Show on WTIC 1080 in Hartford from 2004 through 2019. Prior to radio, Jim worked as a business and financial reporter for NBC30 - the NBC owned TV station in Hartford - and as business editor at WFSB-TV in Hartford for 14 years while earning six Emmy nominations and three Telly Awards.

6 Comments

  1. Shared Sacrifice on March 26, 2011 at 6:33 pm

    I was at the last SEIU rally in Hartford- the union mantra  is, "Tax the Rich!"  I'm about ready to walk away from mortgage and whole damned state!  I can get garbage pick-up & sh*tty public service for a whole lot less in other states!



  2. Kelly on March 26, 2011 at 8:36 pm

    Hey Jim!
    They’re planning on taxing Millstone 2 cents per KWt hr. which will come out to be over $300 Million/yr.? My husband works at Dominion Millstone? and the company says if this goes thru?? They will close the plant….My husband has been employed in Nuclear Power since 1990 (NU then Dominion)…Malloy is making it easy for us to move south.? Just to let you know where he plans on getting his money.



  3. winnie888 on March 27, 2011 at 1:04 am

    Query:  Why is the state even contemplating new hires when the money isn't there for existing state employees?  And not to be a nitpick, but what's with the July 1st/June 30th dates?  Pick a flaming date already and moveon.

    Of course, none of this matters because these union concessions aren't going to happen and nothing will change.  It's Connecticut, after all.  Land of steady habits and all that jazz.  Very depressing stuff.



  4. TomL on March 28, 2011 at 3:27 am

    It's already ugly for the cart pullers.



  5. Don Lombardo on March 30, 2011 at 5:08 am

    Get out the banjos, bend over, and squeal like a pig.



  6. edwardinct on March 31, 2011 at 3:19 pm

    jim, it should read "ugly for whom" dont let your vocab slip to Obama level.



Square - Malloy

The website's content and articles were migrated to a new framework in October 2023. You may see [shortcodes in brackets] that do not make any sense. Please ignore that stuff. We may fix it at some point, but we do not have the time now.

You'll also note comments migrated over may have misplaced question marks and missing spaces. All comments were migrated, but trackbacks may not show.

The site is not broken.