Connecticut Lawmakers; 109

Why. A. I'm Bob Douglas welcome to this week's edition of Connecticut lawmakers state legislators have been under pressure this session to move ahead on a budget proposed by Governor Weicker that included 1.1 billion dollars in cuts and current services. The early battleground has been the budget writing Appropriations Committee which has the responsibility to get a budget to the Assembly floor. By a 24 to 18 vote the legislature's Appropriations Committee voted

out a budget that was just under Governor why acres eight billion dollar proposal. But the package was filled with blanks. The spending bill did not include final figures for big ticket items like general welfare state aid to education funding for nursing homes and more. Majority Democrats hope that that can be worked out later. Some Republicans call the vote a sham. The meeting got off to a nasty start the Senate resident know what we're saying here is that we're going to be doing nothing. Actually here. We're just here for. The purpose of getting a budget out if you can get it out. And then let the chips fall where they may and the Florida House and what the hell are we wasting time for. Why don't you just cough. Let's do it. If we're just going to sit here be a do nothing committee like we have been for so many years I think we should demonstrate to the public. Put it out on the Florida House and let our colleagues have a say on what his budget is gone. But I agree with some of the points you have brought out and

somebody areas. This budget does not do enough for areas for people who are in need in no way shape or form. And it seems that every time we come out with a budget we attack those who could least fight back and we're back to square one again. And I think it's about time that we start acting more responsible as a committee and do our job and take cuts warty really won't affect as much as those who are in need and I look at some of the items here which are vets welfare comp base elderly nursing homes all these different things that we should be addressing and you're saying here now we're not going to address it on this committee we're going to wait or we get to the Florida House. Now let's cut our spinning our wheels and let's get to the Florida House and let's resolve this problem. If that's our intent is not to do our job as a committee. Then let's go forward get this thing out you people vote your way you've already got your mind made up. We've got our mind made up and you're going to hear from us before it's over and let's get on with it. Let's got to pussyfoot around where

if you're going to come up with a mammoth say so if you're not and we say we're not going to want to members let's get the show in a row on a house where it's going to have the effect and probably get the right answers if there are the right answers. Oh I would never personally vote in favor of the budget in the present form. You're hurting too many people. For. All Americans. For us it's fairness. And let's try to be fair this time this is my last term let's try to do something right for a change. I cannot be seen organizing in mass confusion. Thank you very much Representative making our own. Now let's vote. I think first of all we owe it to members of the public and other members of this committee to give them some idea as to what's included in the document. I think also on the hair in your remarks was a suggestion that we have be about the business of this

committee and we have got to do that. And if you just bear with us for a little while longer we will get that done. If you just be patient. In addition to that I like to point out something. If you're suggesting that all of the issues that we've talked about revisiting is an indication of this committee not being about his work I think is a mistake. I think it's a mistake simply because the process around here suggests that the committee is not the ultimate in terms of making decisions for this General Assembly. This is a finally made on the floor and we're not circumventing that process at all. And what we are attempting to do here by virtue of the budget that we're presenting to you today is to present to you those things that we have agreed on and we are saying this committee. There are some things we haven't agreed on yet that we haven't resolved that we will

resolve. And when we do you will have more than an opportunity to vote on it. I would think though that we have been trying to govern ourselves predicated upon what we think this General Assembly want to do and that is to act responsibly live within the government's bottom line not raise taxes and we end up having to do that now if you are for raising some taxes. Then you ought to suggest that but if you're not. You jolly well ought to wait and see what it is this committee has worked on for a long period of time. And then after they have done that then I think it would be most appropriate that you would comment at that point. With all due respect this germ of the truth directed your question we had to kind of try to live rebut what the question is common. What eventually will be the budget is anybody's guess as lawmakers disagree over the bottom line and add backs. State residents and lawmakers were warned this week that Connecticut's children face

conditions so severe and troubling that schools cannot solve them by themselves. Representatives of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and Public School Superintendents told the state capitol news conference and called on businesses the government and the media to join with the schools to provide a safe environment for Connecticut's children. America is losing sight of its children in decisions made every day we are placing them at the very bottom of the agenda with grave consequences for the future of the nation. We have ignored the fundamental fact that to improve the nation's schools a solid foundation must be laid. We have failed to recognize that the family may be a more imperiled institution than the school. The focus of our concern must be children said Dr Boyer. Not just the schools. And that really in many respects underscores the paper that is

being released now by cave in caps. We're calling it a solutions paper. We hope that isn't. A bit egotistical but we what we do want to capture people's attention if we can. First and foremost the paper focuses on children. The paper underscores the belief that Connecticut needs a policy on children of bill of rights for children which will guarantee every youngster the Ascensions of a healthy childhood. This public policy would call for a total and complete coordination of all services provided to children in Connecticut. These include health education recreation labor and a host of social services. Without their kind of holistic approach to the needs of children in which the educational community would certainly play a ply I'm wrong but join with these other partners in making sure their children from the time of literally prenatal

care through adolescence I have the support they need without their kind of arrangement what we do as educators alone just simply is not going to work. Now at the same time when you look at the recommendations in the paper you'll see that we're also calling for reforms within the business community in terms of promoting family friendly policies and practices to better support parents in the workplace. We're very lucky in Connecticut. There are a variety of outstanding models of how a business can assist parents in their child rearing. There are those businesses in Connecticut which you know and have adopted the position that it's in their own self-interest to support their employees in this way. Those kinds of policies and practices need to be expanded well beyond where they are right now. So at the same time while we at the public level are looking at the needs of kids we would

also ask the business community to join us in that effort. I said this was a two pronged approach in the paper. The other important dimension of the paper obviously focuses on us as those charged with providing for the education of our children in the schools. And while we're calling for this look at children as a whole we're also recognizing in the paper the need to take a look at certain reforms and improvements within the educational community itself. Take a look at the statistics right now in the greater Bridgeport area. The number of youngsters who are being born in our three general hospitals are running about a 15 percent involvement because of drug ingestion by the mother. In my community we're figuring that in Bridgeport alone again to three hospitals take in the metropolitan area and my community we're estimated between 20 and 25 percent of the children reaching kindergarten

have a developmental delay already paramount because of drug or alcohol abuse or use by their parent during their gestation time. Somehow we as a society have to do some intervention with them. We know that a lot of our young people coming to school are the victims of malnutrition poor nutrition not nutrition. We know what's going on. We have to do so we have to do some intervening with that. If that means you're interfering with the family with the family structure and going in where the family should have then so be it. We provide daycare in some schools for the children of our students. Now I'll give you an example. There isn't just the cities. I'm from a suburban community 70 yet we provide debt service in our high school because otherwise there are young woman students young female students who wouldn't otherwise complete their high school education if they didn't have that help. So if people are going to deal with reality then you're going to have to deal with these particular issues we're not here to be intrusive in become

big brother. And I understand that somebody could take that from what we're saying. The family structure needs the support. We're not sure who's going to be a great outpouring of help. On the other hand we have the statutory responsibility to make the point known. We feel at some point we've got to say this is it it's politically expedient to go after what every town says the largest part of the budget. On the other hand they're going to pay now or they're going to pay later. Because the one major growing institution in the state is the prison system. Saw that unless people wake up soon your kids and my kids are going to pay a big price. I've represented seven cities in this state and I've been in other countries working in seeing schools and quite frankly we continue to let the not the programs for kids lag. We probably do not have to pay dollar for dollar to improve what we're doing if we learn how to coordinate better. We can close the gaps and try to avoid the overlaps. We're never going to have all the resources in the future we have in the past that's just not going to be solved. It's going to be

necessary to make better use out of the resources available to us. State lawmakers have heard from just about everyone this year trying to stop budget cuts. More than 100 University of Tennessee students held a mock funeral on the steps of the state capitol to protest cuts in higher education. It was one of many in the ongoing efforts of groups trying to urge lawmakers to reject the governor's proposed budget. We're gathered here today. In the shadow of the state capitol. To pay our last respects to accessible affordable higher education in Connecticut. This is a sad day for all of us. A day we wished would never come. Alas here we are in our desperation and our sorrow. Mourning the loss. Of a true friend. She was struck down in the prime of her life. Unfortunately right is a gentleman.

I have to tell you it was a slow painful death. She was killed. By negligence. Those who were entrusted to care for her. And nurture her. Towards a positive future. Just left her to expire. Those You're responsible individuals just lost interest in her. They felt. That she was not worthy of their attention. She did not deteriorate all at once. In her youth she was wonderful. She grew to be strong and smart full of potential. As time wore on however. The negligence of her guardians began to take effect. She became very very weak. She stopped maturing physically and mentally. And as conditions worsened.

Some say that she even began to shrink. Inch by painful range until she was just a shadow of her former self. In the last portion of her life her morale. Was very low. She was able to rally and organize her energies However from time to time enough at least. To play a few good games of basketball. Ask about what's her favorite sport and she played it well. Often being among the best in the nation. But alas. They eventually became too much for the weaker she became. The more her guardians neglected her. In fact those guardians wanted to amputate. All of her appendages. They thought because she would lose use less energy they could afford to neglect her even more. Little did they know however. That

those appendages provided her with much strength. In her last days I think that the university is in critical condition. We've had five years of cuts in budgets and the biggest budget cut is proposed for next year. It's creating serious problems for the university and the students in the future if you can you hone the Weicker administration and the legislature together I too will be guilty for this of mine. Well I think the continued neglect isn't the fault of any particular individual but I think our concern is that those people who are in responsible positions now are not taking as the end that will help save the university. What's the mood on campus among staff and students. The mode is mixed. There are many people who are I think resigned to the fact that we have a serious difficulty and we're trying to resolve it. They're more apprehensive about next year than they are this year. This year people are going about their classes and their work and getting a lot done. But we're very concerned about the budget which is about to be passed which would create the problems for next year.

How optimistic or pessimistic Are you hopeful if you will that any of this is going to make any difference this year. It needs to make a difference this year I think we need in the neighborhood of five to seven million dollars in addition to the budget that had been proposed by the governor in order to get through next year. I don't think there is another way to save the university next year without the infusion of a few million dollars. And as a practical matter nothing like that occurred what happened. You can't fix what happened time frame. It's not clear to me what can happen next year unless we get a few additional million dollars we're only asking for something which is in the neighborhood of 10 million dollars less than last year. Are you surprised of what's occurring here. What the administration has proposed and how the legislature at least up to now has reacted. Well I'm pleased that in terms of the reorganization of higher education that we the students and the citizens spoke and the legislators I think have heard us.

Senator Harper and Senator Larson have stated that they will not be in favor of removing the regional campuses from Yukon. We made our case. We were honest about it. We stated as clearly as we could. And that message was heard. We're hoping the same thing will happen with the university budget today. The mood of the students are you encouraged by the kind of support that the students are. Are performing in terms of their university. Absolutely. I think one of the most important messages is that they have a responsible group of student leaders who understand what needs to be done and they have worked with their fellow students in dormitories in clubs and in the student union to ask them to contact their own state legislator have their parents enlisted to give that help. They came and made arrangements here days in advance to make sure that it was done in a respectful adult manner. These are not kids yelling and screaming. They understand what the problems are and they're presenting their case effectively.

You mention parents. Are you hearing from them or are you getting support from the parents of Connecticut whose students are university the faculty along with the students prepared a brochure describing some of the problems at the university. We mailed those brochures to a random group of parents and alumni and other friends of Yukon and we got a very large response. This morning I brought some of those cards and letters back to people on the Education Committee and the students have boxes and boxes of cards that they have from themselves and from their parents and they're delivering them to their own legislators today. Last week we focused on Governor Weicker his appearance before the legislature's Commerce Committee which was hearing a bill that included a measure that would provide loan guarantee support for some state businesses having trouble getting loans from banks. That program is getting approval from the governor and from state lawmakers this week. Why Landis has this follow up report on a Connecticut company

benefiting from this effort. Case in point Eastern color printing of Avon fell on hard times in early 1989 when it lost a long term contract with Sears the printing deal representing 45 percent of Easterns annual business. Combined with the deepening recession and the fact that Easterns main assets were in real estate in early January the company got some devastating news from the bank on its three and a half million dollar loan. All of our art our notes were due and payable in a six day period of time which meant that we had to scramble to try to find a way. To circumvent the company closing quite frankly even though eastern had never missed a loan payment one hundred ten jobs were at stake. Palmer quickly taking his case to the state asking for a loan guarantee under a new program aimed at easing the current credit crunch a crunch that has seen six billion dollars of available credit disappear in Connecticut alone in just the past two

years. The more we can push into long guarantees the more we want to because it's leveraging private capital. The name of the game today is not the but at Valladolid it is the put out one dollar and leverage five dollars from the private sector. Exactly you want the private sector involved in extending credit and that enhances our ability then to provide credit. And that's exactly what the state did by giving Eastern a one point three million dollar loan guarantee that allowed for the continuation of the three and a half billion dollar bank loan. For the past several months. Business has been picking up here in eastern caller writing the plan operating seven days a week with freight ships lining up. Certain newspaper supplements. But more importantly people here feel the company has turned a big corner thanks to the state loan guarantees. I think it was a general sigh of relief when we found that somebody was going to stand behind us so we wouldn't have to vote. And people were very very thankful I think that the state was able to step in and had the money to step in

and guarantee to long for being able to come to work in the morning is a blessing really is actually today. A lot of people that are out of jobs and. We feel very very thankful that we have ours. We have not missed the payment yet. And as long as I can stand here and look in the eye and tell you that we're going to do just fine. With some early signs of success the state legislature will be looking at an expansion of the jobs fun program including an additional 400 million dollars in loan guarantees that would conceivably free up 2 billion dollars of bank credit so desperately needed by small and medium sized businesses to make a go of it in these economically hard times. I'm on land is for Connecticut lawmakers Connecticut voters stunned the Democratic political establishment this week by handing former Governor Jerry Brown an upset victory over Arkansas governor when he and Clinton while the Brown victory has potential national ramifications. It was also

the topic of speculation and analysis at the state capitol where lawmakers are facing re-election in November. Here's reaction from the General Assembly. I'm very happy with a George Bush Bush three to one victory. They tell you when three to one you're always happy. And I would say that the fact that we got all the delegates 35 zip is what it appears to be right now makes it even better. And on the Democratic side the upset if it wasn't of sense for Mr. Brown here Connecticut. Well I think a lot is going to be upcoming last week. I'm glad he won. They asked what I think I would I would love to run against Jerry Brown the best thing in the world. I'm glad they pick up that hope the National necrotic party flowers really. Does the Brown win in Connecticut send any kind of a message above and beyond to the Democrats and to Clinton incumbents here in Connecticut anything that might spill over for example here in the legislature.

Well I would point out that last night Mr. Clinton's press secretary talked about were difficult time it was for incumbents. He also further said that it was a strange state in that regard to his words that they their voters had an income tax forced down their throat. Point out that when Bill Clinton says that or Bill Clinton's press secretary says that that we believe that and that is still going to want to threshold issues in this campaign. And it's nice to have got confirmation from my Democratic sources that the Democratic Party is in trouble. From a Connecticut perspective how much damage if any as you can campaign done to right I think is what's negligible what you're seeing is a request more of a mission anything else than what you I think what voters are witnessing and if they don't realize it right now and they don't realize a couple years from now is a discussion over who is going to lead the conservative wing the Republican Party. Now the Republican Party itself the conservative wing and

it will there be a a a a a protectionist Pat Buchanan or an empowerment Jack Kemp or a Dan Quayle or something that that's really what the discussion comes down to and that the grid if the discussion is rather limited. There's no question who the Republican candidate is going to be for president on the Democratic side now is your question. Oh yeah I mean I got to be the champagne corks are popping in Albany last night. You know Mariel Mario Cuomo was the biggest winner keeps this thing up in the up and the over the air allows it to be a brokered convention. He can come try waiting at the last minute and and try and be there for their salvation. I would also suggest the softly begin to move his organization to Brown's camp or with it for the New York primary two weeks down the road and I would suspect that would happen he needs to have Clinton and the whole process tied up. He needs a fractured Democratic Party in order to be the candidate of the fractured Democratic Party and

how Republicans Republicans are in the legislature think thinking about running with the president will be on top of the ticket in New York. No no I think I think this sort of ridden a roller coaster ride. When we went we went through the very high numbers of Persian Persian Gulf situation last year we went through the income tax debate of this of late last year went through some some difficult poll numbers the beginning of this year. President's numbers were yes they were very good I think. The polls read nationally have begun to rebound as as the Democrats one of the most intriguing polling number on the exit polls I saw last night were from the Democratic side and that is that half of the Democrats who were asked the exit polls thought the Bill Clinton wasn't honest enough to be president. I'm not so sure that it was anything even close to a vote for Jerry Brown what it was was a statement by Connecticut Democrats a statement much like we've heard from around the country of anger and frustration of concern some of it anti-Clinton a lot of it just

anti-politics the other big message was that participation in the political process has declined so dramatically the turnout was so small that somebody like a Jerry Brown with his extreme views could actually get a plurality of the vote. I'm not sure what it means for November but if we continue to see this kind of decline we're going to see real problems for the health of American democracy an anti incumbent message from that primary and can that have some effect on what might happen here in the legislature in November. I think you always want to try to take a look and see whether this has any foreboding of things to come on the other hand you have to be very careful not to read too much into it. It's not the Bill Clinton was an incumbent. It's not that it's true that he's the front runner but he's not Washington based so it wasn't really an anti-Washington statement. It wasn't really an anti-incumbent statement. I'm afraid that what it was was just an empty politics and government statement. Saying that people are fed up and frustrated that we'll be the real winner or a loser yesterday will people who voted with their feet and they didn't even bother to show up but so when you

have that kind of low participation. Jerry Browns of the world do OK if you have a lot of participation. You then get much more of a mainstream kind of candidate. There's more to come on the battle of the budget at the state capitol so stay tuned for decisions on gambling and proposed changes in collective bargaining proposals as lawmakers struggle to meet a May 6th adjournment. So far Connecticut lawmakers. I'm Bob Douglas. We do thank you for joining us.