That’s the prospect Governor Dan Malloy faces with a new budget year set to begin July 1. As a result, municipal finance officials all over the state wonder about the solvency of their respective local budgets based on projected state revenues. Eventually, a state budget will be hammered out, good, bad or ugly. What if the numbers local officials plugged in don’t jibe with the state money they expect to receive?
More on this from the CT Mirror:
“Ever been on a roller coaster?” Malloy asked. “You always end where you began on a roller coaster, and that’s usually the low point of the ride or the calmest point of the ride. I would say all discussions with legislative folks are a little bit like riding a roller coaster.”
The state is facing a projected $5.1 billion two-year budget deficit–a $2.3 billion gap in the next fiscal year and a $2.8 billion gap in 2018-19, which would amount to 12 and 14 percent shortfalls, respectively.
Malloy and the Senate Republicans have offered separate line-by-line budgets to close the deficit. The House Republicans and legislative Democrats have put forward budget outlines as well.
One of the primary hurdles in the talks, Fasano said, is that legislative Democrats have not presented a line-by-line budget to be discussed. Malloy said he expects them to offer details in the near future.
Full story here.
I’d rather have a State Without a Budget than a budget with a $5 billion deficit.
Put another way, Connecticut’s General Assembly needs a thunderbolt-the kind only Governor Malloy can deliver. If The GA isn’t afraid to extend their deadline, the Governor should deliver that thunderbolt and veto anything that doesn’t meet his agenda. Deadlines are designed to produce specific results by a specific time. Before it’s too late, Connecticut needs a foot-stomping, values-driven Governor who demands results free of deficits.
See Lennie Grimaldi commentary above.
http://onlyinbridgeport.com/wordpress/mayor-state-delegation-to-highlight-legislative-achievements/#comment-128302
Whoever is forecasting the State Budget needs to be fired. Either the projections were way off or there is a reason revenue fell short. It’s one or the other.