Officials Decry Malloy’s ‘Outrageous’ Budget Proposal and Its Impact on Wallingford

WALLINGFORD, CT — Local leaders are decrying Gov. Dannel Malloy’s budget proposal, in which Wallingford is among the biggest losers in the state in terms of losing state aid.

In general, Malloy’s budget would shift state aid away from wealthier suburban municipalities to impoverished cities. In some cases communities may find themselves effectively writing a check to the state to help cover one-third of teacher pension obligations.

Wallingford stands to lose $8.1 million in state aid and it could reach more than $10 million based on the calculations.

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Wallingford Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr., a Republican, told the Meriden Record-Journal that Malloy’s proposal is “outrageous” and “way beyond” what he was anticipating.

The Record-Journal reports Wallingford’s $29.2 million in financial reserves factored into Malloy’s proposed cuts in state aid to the town.

See also: Winners And Losers In Malloy's Budget Proposal

State Rep. Craig Fishbein (R-90), who is also a member of the Town Council, said Malloy’s proposed budget will unfairly burden middle class taxpayers and harm local municipalities.

During a joint session of the legislature earlier this week, Malloy unveiled a $40.6 billion two-year proposed budget that increases taxes by nearly $200 million on families, taxes cigarettes by an additional $.45 per pack, shifts $400 million in annual pension costs to local municipalities and relies on $700 million in savings from organized state labor unions, without any guarantees those unions will renegotiate their contracts, according to Fishbein.

“The governor’s budget is the first step in a long process but he has shown his intention to balance the massive state budget deficit on the backs on middle class taxpayers and local municipalities, and that’s unacceptable,” Fishbein said in a press release. “Instead of tightening the state’s fiscal belt, working toward true structural changes that will alleviate these reactionary budget decisions in the future and doing more with less, the budget proposed today places distinct and unfair burdens on those who are already struggling, and those towns that have been responsible with their own budgets.”

The governor’s proposal to shift about one third of the cost of municipal schoolteachers’ pensions to cities and towns, and redistributing educational cost sharing (ECS) funds has the potential to “cripple local budgets that are established for the fiscal year and already stretched thin,” according to the release. Many towns will be forced to cut local services or raise property taxes to make up for the cut.

“By springing the additional costs of teachers’ pensions and proposed education cost sharing reductions mid-year it effectively pits cities against towns, and penalizes those municipalities that have been fiscally responsible,” Fishbein said. “If this plan goes through, Wallingford and Cheshire will be forced to make up substantial amounts of lost revenue and that can only come through tax increases or service cuts.”

Democratic State Rep. Liz Linehan, whose district covers parts of Wallingford, Cheshire and Southington, said she was concerned that Malloy’s budget doesn’t “make supporting the middle class a priority.”

“These are challenging times and we have many difficult decisions ahead of us as we work to craft a balanced budget,” Linehan said in a statement. “We need to do more for our middle-class families. “The proposed cuts to municipal aid for Cheshire, Southington and Wallingford are not feasible and would wreak havoc on town budgets. I will fight for a fairer distribution of funding for our towns.”

“It is disingenuous to characterize the proposal to shift teachers’ pension obligations to towns as a partnership when municipalities were not asked to provide input on this plan. Proposals that balance the state budget by shifting the burden to towns are not a win for middle-class taxpayers.

“Today was only the first of many steps in the budget process, and I look forward to working collaboratively with my colleagues to reach practical and fiscally responsible solutions. Representing the interests of Cheshire, Southington and Wallingford residents remains my top priority, and I’m committed to making Connecticut a great place to live and work by strengthening the economy and relieving the pressure on middle-class families.”

Read more about the reaction from town officials to Malloy’s budget proposal at the Meriden Record-Journal here.