Municipal leaders are questioning whether Gov. Dannel P. Malloy had the authority to cut state aid to some municipal programs as part of his plan to head off a nearly $1 billion budget deficit.
James Finley, the executive director of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, sent a letter to Malloy’s budget director this week questioning the $4.7 million cut Malloy made in state aid to towns, much of it to schools.
In an interview with the Connecticut Mirror, Finley said the cuts Malloy ordered appear to overstep his budget authority.
Finley told the Mirror that the cuts might violate a legislative measure limiting the governor from cutting municipal aid once that aid is given. However, Malloy’s budget chief, Benjamin Barnes, told the website that the cuts were proper and do not violate such a rule.
The $4.7 million in local funding was part of a larger $123 million “budget mitigation plan” put forth by Malloy’s budget officials that is aimed at reducing what looks to be a more than $1 billion state budget deficit for 2013. The legislature has scheduled a special session this month to try and close the budget gap.
What does Rasmussen say about the 4 year Bull Market? Click for more market data. NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The bull market on Wall Street enters its fourth year this week and investors are wondering how much higher stocks can go. Over the long term, however, stocks have been marching higher: Friday marked the third anniversary of the current bull market. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have more than doubled in value from bear market lows on March 9, 2009. And the Dow is up more than 97%.
Alex Tytler 7:49 pm on Tuesday, October 16, 2012 Gallup R-50 O-46
For someone not even on the ballot, it was a tough election for Florida Republican Governor Rick Scott. President Barack Obama is poised to become the first Democrat in 68 years to twice win the state, which still hasn’t finished counting votes. Scott’s party lost seats in both the state House and Senate. Voters also rejected Scott’s $20 million tax cut for small businesses and a constitutional amendment that would have made it tougher to implement Obama’s health-care overhaul. Those defeats, coupled with a 38 percent approval rating, put Scott among the country’s most vulnerable incumbents heading into the next two years when 36 governor seats are up for election, including 22 held by Republicans.