Having just returned from my session in Hartford, I would like to share with you some highlights and a few thoughts on a subject that should be of concern to all of us, the state budget. I also want to thank you for the trust you have placed in me - it will always be a profound honor to serve you in the State Senate for as long as you see fit.
The General Assembly has passed bills concerning improvements in firearms safety, changed the bottle bill to apply to noncarbonated beverages, named bisphenol-A from drinking containers for infants, expanded health care coverage for autism, added nutritional information to restaurant chain menus, revamped the probate court system, and enacted a Silver Alert System for seniors amongst others. I have to say that a large part of this job is helping to prevent bad ideas from becoming law, and I believe we were successful in our Republican Caucus in stopping bills that included a law dictating to the Catholic Church would form a lay board of governance to manage the Church’s finances, a clear violation of the U.S. Constitution.
I would like to share with you my off the cuff observations regarding the legislative process. Despite the simple logic behind how a bill becomes law, it is laborious exercise that, at times, can be inefficient and nonsensical. Hundreds of days of effort can go into an effort to pass a bill only to find that it became caught up in the vortex an argument on the floor and mysteriously dies. As the clock ticks down to midnight on the last day of session, the multi layer “game of chess” becomes ever more complex, and the best of ideas can be lost or the worst of ideas can be voted on favorably.
As this relates to the creation of a budget, we experienced a breakdown very early on in the year due to major philosophical and political differences in our approach to the expected budget deficits for this fiscal year and for 2010 and 2011. Plain and simple, the Republicans see our fiscal crisis as an opportunity to reign in state spending and maintain our competitive advantage with respect to our neighboring states on the issue of taxation. Democrats see our fiscal mess as a golden opportunity to raise taxes for not only the current period, but forever. The problem is that spending always rises to the current revenue levels and is oftentimes legislated or contracted into permanent spending with built-in annual increases. Unlike the private sector, the General Assembly is simply incapable of making meaningful cuts regardless of the extreme need to do so. Our Governor has been a stalwart to date on the issue of maintaining tax rates at current levels. If we do not use the worst economic and fiscal circumstances in many lifetimes to stop state spending from growing at just under 7%, as it has for the last 15 years, we risk putting ourselves out of business for the long term. The tax base can only bear so much of the responsibility of picking up the state’s spending tab. Those corporations, partnerships, families and individuals who pay the vast majority of taxes can easily and quickly move to another state.
The budget negotiations are now out of our hands, at least for the near term. The Governor and leadership from the majority party will be working towards a resolution, which I believe will take the better part of the summer, if not longer. I could be wrong, but the issues are as contentious as they get, and there are no simple fixes. My job at this point, as I see it, is to influence decision makers and negotiators to not waste the opportunity of a lifetime to make Connecticut the most competitive state in the northeast. If we are successful, our tax base will grow significantly and swiftly, setting the stage for another bright chapter in our state history. We sure could use your help in contacting the Democrat Legislators to express your disapproval of the idea of raising taxes.
At the end of the day, our success in the General Assembly boils down to numbers. We are in the super minority in both chambers and are unable to sustain a veto. This changes the dynamics on the floors dramatically and almost always guarantees being outvoted on any given issue. We need more Republicans in Hartford ! If you have ever thought about running for office, now is the time to seriously consider taking that step. If that is not your cup of tea, please consider helping us get good people elected so we can stop the hemorrhaging and assure a brighter future for our state.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and please always feel free to contact me at 860-240-0474 or online at scott.frantz@cga.ct.gov.
The General Assembly has passed bills concerning improvements in firearms safety, changed the bottle bill to apply to noncarbonated beverages, named bisphenol-A from drinking containers for infants, expanded health care coverage for autism, added nutritional information to restaurant chain menus, revamped the probate court system, and enacted a Silver Alert System for seniors amongst others. I have to say that a large part of this job is helping to prevent bad ideas from becoming law, and I believe we were successful in our Republican Caucus in stopping bills that included a law dictating to the Catholic Church would form a lay board of governance to manage the Church’s finances, a clear violation of the U.S. Constitution.
I would like to share with you my off the cuff observations regarding the legislative process. Despite the simple logic behind how a bill becomes law, it is laborious exercise that, at times, can be inefficient and nonsensical. Hundreds of days of effort can go into an effort to pass a bill only to find that it became caught up in the vortex an argument on the floor and mysteriously dies. As the clock ticks down to midnight on the last day of session, the multi layer “game of chess” becomes ever more complex, and the best of ideas can be lost or the worst of ideas can be voted on favorably.
As this relates to the creation of a budget, we experienced a breakdown very early on in the year due to major philosophical and political differences in our approach to the expected budget deficits for this fiscal year and for 2010 and 2011. Plain and simple, the Republicans see our fiscal crisis as an opportunity to reign in state spending and maintain our competitive advantage with respect to our neighboring states on the issue of taxation. Democrats see our fiscal mess as a golden opportunity to raise taxes for not only the current period, but forever. The problem is that spending always rises to the current revenue levels and is oftentimes legislated or contracted into permanent spending with built-in annual increases. Unlike the private sector, the General Assembly is simply incapable of making meaningful cuts regardless of the extreme need to do so. Our Governor has been a stalwart to date on the issue of maintaining tax rates at current levels. If we do not use the worst economic and fiscal circumstances in many lifetimes to stop state spending from growing at just under 7%, as it has for the last 15 years, we risk putting ourselves out of business for the long term. The tax base can only bear so much of the responsibility of picking up the state’s spending tab. Those corporations, partnerships, families and individuals who pay the vast majority of taxes can easily and quickly move to another state.
The budget negotiations are now out of our hands, at least for the near term. The Governor and leadership from the majority party will be working towards a resolution, which I believe will take the better part of the summer, if not longer. I could be wrong, but the issues are as contentious as they get, and there are no simple fixes. My job at this point, as I see it, is to influence decision makers and negotiators to not waste the opportunity of a lifetime to make Connecticut the most competitive state in the northeast. If we are successful, our tax base will grow significantly and swiftly, setting the stage for another bright chapter in our state history. We sure could use your help in contacting the Democrat Legislators to express your disapproval of the idea of raising taxes.
At the end of the day, our success in the General Assembly boils down to numbers. We are in the super minority in both chambers and are unable to sustain a veto. This changes the dynamics on the floors dramatically and almost always guarantees being outvoted on any given issue. We need more Republicans in Hartford ! If you have ever thought about running for office, now is the time to seriously consider taking that step. If that is not your cup of tea, please consider helping us get good people elected so we can stop the hemorrhaging and assure a brighter future for our state.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and please always feel free to contact me at 860-240-0474 or online at scott.frantz@cga.ct.gov.
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