[CTDex]

Some more stats from a recent opinion piece.


Opinion: Connecticut budget crisis — unresolved


Big Labor has thrived in Connecticut as it has in no other state. Connecticut is now among the top five states in the country in percentage of employed workers represented by labor unions. While the rest of the country has experienced a recent decline in union membership (from 12.5% in 2004 to 11.1% in 2015), Connecticut has seen a simultaneous increase, from 16.6% to 17.4%. Our workforce is just under 1.6 million people, with over 276,000 of these workers covered by a labor union. Sixty-two percent of the unionized workers are government employees.


Opinion: Connecticut budget crisis

[MrGompers]

Originally Posted by CTDex

Some more stats from a recent opinion piece.


Opinion: Connecticut budget crisis — unresolved


Big Labor has thrived in Connecticut as it has in no other state. Connecticut is now among the top five states in the country in percentage of employed workers represented by labor unions. While the rest of the country has experienced a recent decline in union membership (from 12.5% in 2004 to 11.1% in 2015), Connecticut has seen a simultaneous increase, from 16.6% to 17.4%. Our workforce is just under 1.6 million people, with over 276,000 of these workers covered by a labor union. Sixty-two percent of the unionized workers are government employees.


Opinion: Connecticut budget crisis

LOL Scott Walker changed his name ?

[CTDex]

Originally Posted by MrGompers

LOL Scott Walker changed his name ?

So what's your solution to CT's fiscal dilemma? How do we maintain our competitiveness against other states?

[Blargrifth]

The article never explained why he thinks having a higher percentage of union labor is bad. Unless were we supposed to assume that this statistic only refers to public unions?

[ayoskillz]

Union workers are bad. Cost the company more money and you pay those extra dues for no reason. Anyone thing unions are good just look at what happen to Detroit that was mostly 90% union..

[RunD1987]

Dozens of Marshals, Probation Officers laid off in new Judicial Branch report | WTNH Connecticut News

[HumpDay]

Originally Posted by CTDex

So what's your solution to CT's fiscal dilemma? How do we maintain our competitiveness against other states?

-Legalize recreational marijuana
-Add tolls to our highways. $1 for state residents, $3 for out of state residents, $4 for commercial trucks
-Cut a portion from welfare programs and services
-Lower legislators pay from 5%-10%
-Get rid of some state worker benefits such free college for their children
-Elimate business entity tax and lower corporate tax rate to pre recession levels
-Elimate car tax
-Fix the income tax bracket and put it back the way it was pre-2011 (before Malloy came into office)
-Raise sales tax from 6.35 to 6.5% and raise the gas tax by a small amount
-Cut funding to education by a small amount (if we're expecting to have a smaller amount of kids in our school systems in the future, why increase or keep spending flat?)
-Limit the amount of miles state police can drive in a month and focus more on highway safety by enforcing the speed limit. Enforce the rules of the road by staying idle more. Pulling more people over for speeding which shouldn't be that hard to do in this state and you'll gain more revenue. Limit the amount of miles means less gas and less often the state has to replace its vehicles.
-Offer lower taxes to new business so they can hire more employees which can help the regain the lost income tax revenue.

There's more but lowering taxes and creating a more business friendly environment may not be good for the short term but for the long term, it'll work. We need to become more competitive to the states around us and realize if we continue what we're doing then the worse CT will be in the future.

[mlassoff]

Originally Posted by HumpDay

-Legalize recreational marijuana
-Add tolls to our highways. $1 for state residents, $3 for out of state residents, $4 for commercial trucks
-Cut a portion from welfare programs and services
-Lower legislators pay from 5%-10%
-Get rid of some state worker benefits such free college for their children
-Elimate business entity tax and lower corporate tax rate to pre recession levels
-Elimate car tax
-Fix the income tax bracket and put it back the way it was pre-2011 (before Malloy came into office)
-Raise sales tax from 6.35 to 6.5% and raise the gas tax by a small amount
-Cut funding to education by a small amount (if we're expecting to have a smaller amount of kids in our school systems in the future, why increase or keep spending flat?)
-Limit the amount of miles state police can drive in a month and focus more on highway safety by enforcing the speed limit. Enforce the rules of the road by staying idle more. Pulling more people over for speeding which shouldn't be that hard to do in this state and you'll gain more revenue. Limit the amount of miles means less gas and less often the state has to replace its vehicles.
-Offer lower taxes to new business so they can hire more employees which can help the regain the lost income tax revenue.

There's more but lowering taxes and creating a more business friendly environment may not be good for the short term but for the long term, it'll work. We need to become more competitive to the states around us and realize if we continue what we're doing then the worse CT will be in the future.

Sure, I can get on board with most of this--- I don't see it having a dramatic enough effect to fix the issues here.

Legislators pay and miles driven by state police are simply symbolically punitive....

You also don't address what is the largest issue by far--- State employee pension obligations.

[HumpDay]

Originally Posted by mlassoff

Sure, I can get on board with most of this--- I don't see it having a dramatic enough effect to fix the issues here.

Legislators pay and miles driven by state police are simply symbolically punitive....

You also don't address what is the largest issue by far--- State employee pension obligations.

Didn't Malloy propose a split in the states pensions back in 2015? We're in a very tricky situation when it comes to our pension system because the previous governors didn't even bother finding a feasible solution. Either way the state has to negotiate with labor unions more feasible retirement plans for future workers.

[RunD1987]

Legalize recreational marijuana (I am for)
-Add tolls to our highways. $1 for state residents, $3 for out of state residents, $4 for commercial trucks ( Why not $2.50 passenger and $3.50 Commercial vehicles. Located at I95 and I84 on New York and Mass border.
-Cut a portion from welfare programs and services (I would be more for cleaning up Welfare. 2 year limit and must work 10 hour's or more a week.) Also cleaning up disability eliminating fraud and providing service to those in need. Also expedite and lessen delay for approval for those applying to disability and meet the criteria.
-Lower legislators pay from 5%-10% (I am for 5% decrease.)
-Get rid of some state worker benefits such free college for their children (Go against the Unions and revamp the State worker system. Fix and cap certain pay for job's. Limit amount of reimbursement for college education to $8K a year for full time and $4K for part time. Grandfather those with 10 year's with pension and rest switch to a 403B.
-Elimate business entity tax and lower corporate tax rate to pre recession levels
-Elimate car tax (I be for.this but this be a disaster in CT..Capping the car tax caused Waterbury to raise it's taxes to 62%.
-Fix the income tax bracket and put it back the way it was pre-2011 (before Malloy came into office)
-Raise sales tax from 6.35 to 6.5% and raise the gas tax by a small amount (I think they should raise sakes tax to 8% and over the course of 4 year's lower it by .85% (Making it 4.6% in 4 year's.)
-Cut funding to education by a small amount (if we're expecting to have a smaller amount of kids in our school systems in the future (Cities fund education via a school tax and State stop funding school's .)
-Limit the amount of miles state police can drive in a month and focus more on highway safety by enforcing the speed limit. Enforce the rules of the road by staying idle more. Pulling more people over for speeding which shouldn't be that hard to do in this state and you'll gain more revenue. Limit the amount of miles means less gas and less often the state has to replace its vehicles. (Increase funding to State Police and reinstate some Resident Trooper positions.)
-Offer lower taxes to new business so they can hire more employees which can help the regain the lost income tax revenue. (Offer tax breaks to small companies with 100 or less people.)
Give the money back to hospitals to create jobs and fix tax rate on hospital's
Stop wasting tax payers money on projects that don't affect infrastructure, health, or safety of Residents. Can invest in tourist projects after 4 or 5 year's.
Restore funds to DMHAS, Disability, and DCF. Remodel Statw Hospital in Middletown and build another State facility.
Increase funding to Probation and Parole.