Connecticut Lawmakers; 301

Connecticut lawmakers vented governor Weicker as he addresses the opening day of the state legislature. Lloyd will meet with more. The legislative agenda and lawmakers are whiter and the challenges facing them. This session. I'm Bob Douglas. Welcome to this week's edition of Connecticut lawmakers. The 1994 session of the Connecticut General Assembly is now of specially opened and it was a vintage governor Weicker who opened the session with his final State of the state message. He reflected on his first three years in office and then he proposed the end of the personal property tax here in Connecticut. He called for more gun control and urged lawmakers to guarantee a college education to any qualified poor student here in the state. And now here are highlights from the governor's state of the state address. Three years ago we faced a financial hole of almost three billion dollars.

On June 30th 1991 Connecticut's fiscal year ended with a deficit of nine hundred sixty five million. On June 30th 1992 Connecticut's fiscal year ended with a surplus of one hundred and ten million. On June 30th 1993 Connecticut's most school year ended with a surplus of one hundred and thirteen million. Two weeks ago President Clinton exulted over the prospect of three years of declining federal deficits. By the end of June 1994. Connecticut will have seen three years of surplus thanks to you and the people of our state. Of things. Once.

We finally dealt with the state's unfair and outmoded revenue system the sales tax the nation's highest was a regressive and unstable source of revenue particularly in bad economic times. Our corporate taxes highest in the nation were a burden that made Connecticut an increasingly hostile home for business and our tax on capital gains dividends and dividends and interest also the highest in the nation actually served as an incentive for successful citizens to leave the state taking their investments and their philanthropy with them. And with all of that by 1991 our revenue collections were falling behind even the most pessimistic projections adoption of the income tax laid the foundation for a fair. Stable and predictable revenue structure making it possible to put into place the revenue base that could carry Connecticut into the future.

And I think the time has now come to address the other aspect of this tax thing which nobody talks about and which the people of this state should be reminded of. I guess in addition to that income tax you did something else. When people talk taxes they forget we massively cut taxes. Over the past three years the 25 percent cut in the sales tax rate represented a loss to state coffers of six hundred and thirty seven million dollars in the first full fiscal year. The corporate tax surcharge was valued at 30 million in 91 92 60 million and 92 93. And with the continued savings to business of a hundred and twenty million dollars from today forward in 1993 we instituted a gradual reduction in the basic corporate tax worth 12 million in the first year and by 1998 will be yet another savings of

60 million dollars these are all tax cuts. We also added numerous tax credits and exemptions including many designed to encourage research and development employee training and retraining in the acquisition of new machinery for manufacturing and equipment for small business. The value of business tax changes translates into almost three hundred million dollars saved this year three hundred fifty million next year and five hundred and fifty million by nineteen ninety eight. Those are the cuts which you vote on in this legislature. Some say well those are a lots of breaks for business well from one perspective that may be true. But if we're going to put Connecticut back to work the private sector is where it's going to happen. Government cannot and ought not be the engine of growth.

The private sector has to be where the action is when it comes to employment. But government does have an important role to play in supporting private sector efforts. And if we balance the state's books our newfound fiscal stability enable us to turn our attention to the most pressing problem confronting us. Starting with job loss. The state began a rescue mission of precedented proportions. Those of you watching at home may not be able to see senators Jepson and Isco which representatives Warren Godfrey and Ronnie. But you can be proud of these legislators Democrat and Republican who will be asking their colleagues to enact a comprehensive program to curb. Gun violence reduce the black market trade on guns

and raise the level of responsibility for legitimate gun owners. The proposed legislation would increase criminal penalties for illegal gun ownership and use. Establish a new licensing and permuting system impose civil liability on gun owners and crackdown on violent juvenile offenders and I support them. Two hundred percent in this well reasoned effort but I want to say something. I think this is important not so much as I address you but as I address the public out there in Connecticut. If there is a wavering and I understand the pressures that will be brought to bear if there is a wave or a substantial dilution of this thoughtful constitutional approach devised in the main by your colleagues

by your colleagues then I am quite prepared to offer to the people of Connecticut through their elected representatives a total constitutional ban on all concealed weapons. Thank you Lou. Once you. Know no one in their right mind wants to live one more day in a nation where the rule of law has been replaced by the rule of the handgun there is no constitutional guarantee to kill. In America there is no constitutional guarantee to kill in Connecticut.

Above all I confess to you I've never been so excited about anything as long as I've been the governor. I ask you to give our neediest children hope and I have this capital H capital O capital P capital T help an opportunity to pursue education is what it stands for. A guaranteed college education for poor kids who work hard in school and play by the rules. 1. It'll I'm. There's a question for you Why do middle class kids go to college. Because they know they can not sell. Poor children. And I proposed today the establishment of the HOPE program by creating a trust fund of seven million dollars to be supplemented

annually with state funds and corporate and private donations. We can guarantee that any seventh grader in the state whose family income is below one hundred and thirty percent of the poverty level. Will be able to attend a Connecticut state college or university provided he or she successfully completes high school and meets admission standards. Thank you all I'm. This is the investment of a lifetime for us and it is the incentive of a lifetime for our kids. I propose the elimination of Connecticut's personal property tax.

Thank you. It'll. Be. Not the equalization of the personal property tax but the elimination of Connecticut's personal property tax. I believe our state's finances are now sufficiently healthy and growing to permit us to phase out the personal property tax achieving achieving elimination of the tax on automobiles. By 1998 and the end of all taxes on personal property within 10 years John Ritter speaker of the House has been an ardent proponent of the pressing

need to address property taxes and along with secretarial services worked with me on this issue. The local property tax burden in Connecticut is one of the highest in the nation. A greater share of personal income goes for property taxes than for the personal income tax. And there is a tremendous disparity in the tax burden from town to town. The highest effective tax rates are often in our cities precisely where the ability to pay is the lowest and the need for economic development the greatest. Lastly I am proposing a savings to taxpayers of 10 million dollars by eliminating the cliffs in the application of income tax rates of three. Thank. The learning curve now confirms the learning curve now confirms the fairness of

doing this and we have the money to correct that inequity. I have intentionally kept ladies and gentleman the writer. To a minimum in the speech preferring to let facts speak for themselves. But please don't interpret the temporary banking of my forensic life for a lack of passion on these issues. So much. Is expected of us with so little time in which to succeed. Our task is to rid this society not just of the reverberating violence of its guns but to rid this society of the silent violence of sickness the silent violence

of ignorance the silent violence of joblessness. For the first time in years we in this chamber are endowed with choices on these matters. My friends and each one of you is there my friends of the legislature. True. Well thank. You. Now Lloyd Wimbish has more on the legislative agenda facing state

lawmakers during this upcoming session. The General Assembly is expected to deal with public safety education reform health care reform property taxes legalized gambling. But it appears right now the lawmakers will spend a lot of time this year dealing with the best ways to fight crime. We have to address the increase in gang violence and street related crimes to truck trafficking. I would prefer I was supportive of banning assault weapons but there's got to be a limit. What I see with too much gun control and illegal owners of people that obey the laws is totally unfair I think we're going to have to get into criminal control. We're going to have to make these courts accountable. We've got to take away that a club fed med atmosphere away from these prisons. And we also have to bring our youth in the stay in line. We have to create programs one to keep them occupied we have to make the schools accountable. Last year the legislature approved a ban on semiautomatic assault weapons. This year

a major gun control package will be considered to curb gun violence reduce the black market trade of guns and raise the level of responsibility for legitimate gun owners. The Bills in part call for stiffer criminal penalties for illegal gun ownership and use and will set up a new licensing and permitting system. I'm sure that there will be some take some steps with regard to the sale of guns and some kind of process of trying to control the illegal and illicit movement of weapons I think those are issues that the legislature in sentencings and things of that nature I think much of the resource that's going to be required to stem this tide is going to have to come out of the Federal level of a federal crime bill that's before the United States Congress now I believe will have dollars to create resources to make our streets safer. The huge success of the Foxwoods Casino when Ledyard operated by the Mashantucket Pequot Indians has prompted some lawmakers to again seek the expansion of legalized

gambling. Casino gambling did not win approval last year. Hardwood is out of the picture this year as a possible slide but there will be an attempt to build a casino in Bridgeport. I think you're going to see a big push in this session legislature to try to get some kind of a casino in Bridgeport. I think the reason is is that if other states such as New York and Massachusetts decide to adopt it the developers that are pushing his casino see it as a disadvantage to them to wait another year. Problem of course is going to be the loss of revenue from the Indian Casino. The most recent version of the bill that's been introduced does not allow slot machines would only allow table games. So that would get around that issue of the loss of slot revenue. The legislature will be under a lot of pressure this year to provide cities and towns with property tax relief. The push will be on for Real Estate Property Tax Reform a number of lawmakers say the present system puts an unfair burden on homeowners and businesses property tax reform is a complicated issue

that requires resources in the redistribution of resources. And I think that we have to take a position on the whole question of regional services. Regional tax bases in primarily the question of how do you move forward in context. I don't believe it's something we will resolve in 12 weeks whatever we can my out of this session with will be a patchwork it will not deal with a definitive broad based issue of what you do to reform the property tax base. Not waiting for federal action Governor Weicker and key legislators are pushing a health care reform plan for Connecticut. This is the emergency room at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford. The goal is to have all state residents covered by a health plan by January 1997. We believe that Connecticut can move forward whether the federal government acts or not on health care reform. In particular the goal of this bill says that by January 1 1997 it is the goal of the state of

Connecticut to be sure that every citizen has some basic benefit health care package that is affordable and that will deliver that they will be able to use accessing the health care delivery system in the state of Connecticut. The plan in part will create a new office that will deal with the planning and regulatory functions now scattered among different state agencies within this bill we are asking for. A new agency an office of health care access that we'll begin the process of collecting the data getting the information to come back to the legislature by next January with the information and data for us to move forward. Action is expected on the report on school reform submitted by the Commission on Educational Excellence for Connecticut. It recommends raising academic standards and expanding preschool programs. Teacher unions are upset over another proposal that

would impose new job tenure requirements for teachers. And some lawmakers will also be seeking support for a voucher system would be a topic that's going to be hotly debated because there are some of us that support a voucher program where students from inner cities or within the school districts their parents can have choice. And we see it as a way of involving these parents and making local local decision making right there at that local board at the school district. More empower them empower the communities. And that's a key issue that's a key element of the equation to turn a state around some kind of action is expected to be taken on property tax relief education reform and health care. There is some uncertainty about the fate of casino gambling here in Connecticut. But lawmakers are determined to take some kind of action to fight crime. At the Capitol Lloyd Wimbish for Connecticut lawmakers. As expected several lawmakers and many of the legislative leaders

had their own take on the governor's speech and what they think are doable in this session of the General Assembly. Well he promised us backs and he gave us fiction. He said that they cut taxes on his watch in fact the average family pays $2000 a year more in taxes today than when Governor Walker became governor. He talked about some individual successes in creating jobs and ignores the fact that over 200000 jobs have lost the left the state of Connecticut since on his watch. He missed the opportunity today to address some of the important issues facing us long term what are we going to do about jobs. He rushed off welfare reform as if the job was done failing to recognize that we have a system that still drives families apart. Takes people out of the work system. He's given us no meaningful proposals in that area so it's really a bit of a disappointment. There was some fine rhetoric there was fiction not facts on the numbers in terms of taxes. And then he proposes to repeal some car taxes without telling you that really what he means is in the suburbs you have to raise

your home taxes to make up for the lost revenue because it's going to take that revenue and disperse it into the cities. And we want to have a fair debate on what it ought to be in terms of distribution of taxes not just some rhetoric to promise in 10 years the taxes will be gone. I think is a good speech it's one of those times where and deserved I think is being served before the main course. A lot of these initiatives require cuts elsewhere in this budget and that's the pain that was not discussed today far as I know we have a general need to cut the budget. I'm not sure all of these good things can be accomplished. The theme on young people and prevention I think that's a wise one and I hope we will follow through on that. What about the proposed college program that the governor included in today's STATE OF THE STATE message. It's one of those tough choices. It sounds good and I like it it has been done well in the private sector. But along with this initiative are reductions in this budget in the operating budget of every college and university which all of the kids already there will have to make up for somehow in their tuition when they already are having a hard time paying for.

I don't get a very good marketing I was trying to rewrite history here. I think there are some bad legacies. There's certainly in excess of 200000 lost jobs he tried to tell you that we've created jobs we've lost jobs net and that's that's unfortunate. I think it was unfortunate the governor has tried to pull a hoax over on the people of this state I think this conversation about eliminating the personal property tax over a 10 year period to simply the next governor you remember this is a saying Governor it also told us he was going to eliminate the income tax in three years. Can't be he couldn't do that he certainly can't do this. This is a budget in addition it's filled with gimmicks. He goes off budget so as to stay on the constitutional cap by by taking industry funds things like the insurance department out of the state budget I don't think that's what the people wanted when 81 percent adopted the constitutional cap on spending. He's not going to fully fund the e r f fund by another 60 million dollars. So there are a lot of gimmicks here that are very dangerous I think to the people long term. He mines for current expenses the revaluation propose that he makes he finds 10 million dollars to fund that. I mean that's a gimmick that he said would

never ever occur again in the state of Connecticut while he was a governor he did it in his last budget speech so I can't give him an F because I think he touched on heartstring issues and people want to talk about that but I don't think it was a really good budget message. And I think the people will see through it. I think the governor tried to insure that he won't be a lame duck by reaching out to both Democrats and Republicans with parts of initiatives that started in both parties in caucuses in an attempt to put together a package that might appeal to all of us across the board. The initiatives the question of eliminating some of those property taxes also the question of Project Hope as he called it the initiative for college educations for inner city and other youngsters. In a speech where we weren't supposed to get any surprises the personal property tax elimination was clearly a surprise. I believe that it's a very important initiative one that we can move forward with if and only if the numbers are there in the budget to reimburse municipalities for the property tax loss that will be occasioned by the elimination. We are told by sector Seabass that it can be done

especially in the out years. I'm not so much concerned about the out years as I am about the next several years when municipal budgets are strapped to the limit right now. I think you did a good job I think you spent this some of the time setting the record straight and his term and defending what he had done on the economy but what he didn't do was lose a chance to set the course for the next few years. Although he's only governor for the next 11 months or so he clearly proposed a program that would influence Connecticut for the next decade. I think that's vintage governor Weicker. I was pleased for him that he felt good enough to go through the last three years it was obvious that he feels that we're in much better shape and so I'm happy for him that he was such a good friend of spirits. And I was a very good address and I was very pleased with some specific remarks he talked about for the 94 session. But again I feel good for him that I thought about the other three years. This is only a 12 week Sastre session the so-called short session as the

leader of the Democratic Party that controls his state house. Minimum wise what do you think must be done before you finish business and go home in May. Well minimum healthcare a real tough crime program that's minimal but I mean we're better than that. And we want to do more sweeping education reform and the property tax which the governor talked about today to me is just so far. It's the most critical issue that we have to be tackling a very complex very costly but something that has to be addressed it is going to be a real success. I thought it was a positive message I think that one would expect an incumbent governor who was leaving to sort of review his term in office and I think that's what the governor did today. Well I laud the governor I love his style I have great respect for him. But as you know Bob speeches and leaders come and go. Tomorrow we have to deal with the reality of a number of the initiatives and the proposals. And I think there was a lot that was said that the

legislature can take hold of. Especially in the area of hope for our youth but reality tomorrow in the state of Connecticut is that when we wake up there we still lost 200000 jobs in the state and the chief goal of the next governor of the state of Connecticut has got to be to put those people back to work. There will also be and continue to be an emphasis and overriding concern of the General Assembly. I expect the Commerce Committee will be extraordinarily active again in trying to help the system turn around this economy. We had a press conference just the other day where we talked about getting the private sector to enter into a venture capitalist deals that will provide niche markets for the insurance industry creating some ten to fifteen thousand jobs. That's where the focus has got to be the simple dignity of a hard earned wage can do a lot to cure a number of the problems that we face here in the state of Connecticut. And with the opening session of the Connecticut General Assembly now concluded. That's this week's edition of Connecticut lawmakers. I'm Bob Douglas. And we do

thank you for joining. Us.