The Republican’s Pathway to Sustainability plan includes no tax increases, and protects funding for local town education, hospitals, and critical services for the most vulnerable in the state, including those who suffer from mental health issues and developmental disabilities.
“We’ve come to the table today with a workable proposal that accomplishes the kind of true structural changes needed to begin digging the State of Connecticut out of the downward fiscal spiral we've been warning of for years,” said Bolinsky.
Sredzinski said the new plan will incorporate a number of cost-savings measures, including a cap on state bonding.
“Our plan is the only proposal that closes the deficit facing the state next year and makes a serious effort to change the way our state does business down the line,” he said.
Carter lauded the plan, as well, adding that Republican lawmakers have “surmounted an impossible burden posed by the governor and majority party by proposing a budget that not only closes the deficit for fiscal year 2017, but plans for fiscal sustainability over the next five years.”
Echoing Carter, Hwang said state lawmakers need to make predictability, transparency and sustainability the top priorities in dealing with Connecticut’s finances.
“Our plan will hold harmless state funding for local education and protect services for our most vulnerable residents while making fundamental, long-term, structural reforms,” Hwang said. “We can do this without tax or fee hikes on residents and businesses. We look forward to these sound, common sense ideas being passed soon so that we can put Connecticut back on a stable, sustainable budget path.”
Bolinsky added the plan “not only digs the state out of its current deficit, but also gives us the opportunity to work toward using accumulated surpluses to roll back recent Democrat tax increases, rebuild the Rainy Day Fund, pay-down debt and under-funded long-term liabilities, invest more in mental health, kill unfunded mandates and dump dozens of marginal nuisance taxes.”
For more information on the Pathway to Sustainability plan, click here.
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