Updated State Budget Proposal Unveiled By East Lyme Senator, Senate Republicans

HARTFORD, CT – State Senator Paul Formica (Republican-East Lyme) and fellow Senate Republicans released a revised line-by-line state budget proposal Tuesday that does not rely on new taxes.

The revised two-year budget addresses a dramatic revenue drop reported at the end of April which leaves Connecticut with a budget shortfall of nearly $5 billion, according to a release.

“I’m proud to offer a revised budget that addresses the significant financial shortfalls our state is facing without relying on new taxes,” Formica said in a release. “Our revised budget plan makes tough choices. But it also successfully protects and enhances funding for education to towns and cities with a new education funding formula, protects municipalities and property taxpayers from being hit with more financial burdens, and prioritizes core services such as mental health care, substance abuse treatment and transportation funding. This budget embodies a new vision for our state to first address today’s financial problems and second to simultaneously implement structural changes to attain long-term savings and encourage future economic growth.”

The proposal offered by Senate Republicans does the following:

• Closes the state budget deficit without tax increases
• Increases education funding by $170 million in the first two years
• Includes a new Education Cost Sharing formula
• Reformulates municipal aid and holds towns harmless in the first year to cuts to statutory grants
• Streamlines government
• Provides for structural changes
• Maintains the tax exempt status for hospitals to protect them from a new local hospital tax
• Prioritizes transportation needs and stabilizes funding without tolls or new taxes
• Lowers taxes for retirees and helps seniors age in place
• Enhances funding for state parks and tourism
• Preserves core government services by restoring funding for social services such as Meals on Wheels, mental health care and substance abuse treatment

A full summary of the updated “Confident Connecticut” budget is available here. Line-by-line details available at www.ctsenaterepublicans.com.

Photo Attached: Senator Paul Formica unveils the revised Senate Republican budget proposal alongside Senate Republican President Pro Tempore Len Fasano, Deputy Senate Republican President Pro Tempore Kevin Witkos, and Senator George Logan.

Image via Nicole Rall.