Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

The amounts spent on lobbying ranged from $710,000 by Intergrys Energy Group to $84 million by General Electric. Others that spent heavily on lobbyists were PG&E (PCG), Verizon (VZ), Boeing (BA) and FedEx. It all added up to a total of almost half a billion dollars -- $476 million -- over three years. Or, as the report notes, "in other words, roughly $400,000 each day, including weekends." The same firms spent an additional $22 million on donations to federal campaigns. Logically enough, the two biggest contributors were defense contractors: Honeywell International (more than $5 million) and Boeing ($3.85 million). General Electric wasn't far behind ($3.64 million).

For a complete list of the companies surveyed, as well as information on executive compensation, read the full report.

See full article from DailyFinance: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/12/13/30-major-u-s-companies-spent-more-on-lobbying-than-taxes/

Montana Supreme Court Defies Citizens United Decision Jan 3, 2011 Wall St Journal On Friday, the Montana Supreme Court restored a 100-year-old state ban on direct spending by corporations on political candidates or committees, saying that the U.S. Supreme Court�s 2010 decision in Citizens United v. FEC dealt with federal laws and elections, but the �vast majority� of elections are held at state and local levels, AP reports.� For more background on the case, our own Jess Bravin has stories here and here.� Montana�s 1912 Corrupt Practices Act blocks certain political speech by corporations; plaintiffs in the case sought to have the century-old law declared unconstitutional. Montana Attorney General Steve Bullock, who represented the state in defending the ban, said the case was the first to examine state laws and elections.� Read complete article at

http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2012/01/03/montana-supreme-court-defies-citizens-united-decision-upholds-state-ban/

DRIFTWOOD | The Broken Contract Inequality and American Decline GEORGE PACKER is a staff writer at The New Yorker. This essay is adapted from a Joanna Jackson Goldman Memorial Lecture on American Civilization and Government that he delivered earlier this year at the New York Public Library�s Cullman Center for Scholars & Writers. Lobbying has existed since the beginning of the republic, but it was a sleepy, bourbon-and-cigars practice until the mid- to late 1970s. In 1971, there were only 145 businesses represented by registered lobbyists in Washington; by 1982, there were 2,445. In 1974, there were just over 600 registered political action committees, which raised $12.5 million that year; in 1982, there were 3,371, which raised $83 million. In 1974, a total of $77 million was spent on the midterm elections; in 1982, it was $343 million. Not all this lobbying and campaign spending was done by corporations, but they did more and did it better than anyone else. And they got results.� These changes were wrought not only by conservative thinkers and their allies in the business class. Among those responsible were the high-minded liberals, the McGovernites and Watergate reformers, who created the open primary, clean election laws, and �outsider� political campaigns that relied heavily on television advertising.� Continued at

http://drftwd.tumblr.com/post/11471025572/the-broken-contract-inequality-and-american

Debate Over CT�s Hidden Gas Tax Begins

Four In CT�s Congressional Delegation Are Millionaires

Education Panel Finds Consensus on the �Incredibly Ridiculous� Test Scores Argument by Hugh McQuaid | Jan 6, 2012 5:30am Some argue that test scores are the best indicator of a teacher�s performance but Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said the argument over testing �has become incredibly ridiculous.�� . Weingarten argued that test scores should be used to evaluate teachers, but only as one of a number of other factors. She wasn�t alone. On Tuesday, Connecticut�s largest teachers union released a report which included the same recommendation�.. Patrick Riccards, CEO of the private, non-profit, pro-charter school group ConnCAN, who was not on the panel, said test scores should be the most important factor when teachers are evaluated. Continued at �.. http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/education_panel_finds_consensus_on_the_incredibly_ridiculous_test_scores_ar/

Malloy: Our schools need more funding January 5, 2012 By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas� Gov. Dannel P. Malloy may have given an energizing pep talk on education reform to a roomful of education advocates and leaders Thursday, but it was the comments he made to reporters afterward that will likely receive the largest cheers from those who have long said the state is shortchanging education.`"To make some of the progress we need to make in early childhood and teacher improvement, some additional monies are going to have to be expended. So, I believe that districts, and/or the state, are going to have to spend more money," he said.These comments come as the task force he has asked to re-configure how schools are financed nears the finish line in making some first-round recommendations. That task force is scheduled to meet Friday afternoon and does have a long list of recommendations they are considering� Continued at �.

http://www.ctmirror.org/story/14975/malloy-more-money-needed-education

Court favors Democrats in redistricting instructions� By Mark Pazniokas Jan 5, 2012 In a victory for Democrats, the Connecticut Supreme Court has directed its special master on redistricting to make minimal changes as he draws new lines for the state's five U.S. House districts. Continued at �.. http://www.ctmirror.org/story/14973/court-favors-democrats-redistricting-order

A Message from Bob MacGuffie of Right Principles�

Greetings from LibertyLine:�� Just a quick reminder that our show LibertyLine is live tonight from Soundview Studios in Bridgeport. The show is at 8:30pm every Thursday on Channel 88 in Fairfield, Bridgeport, Stratford, and Channel 77 in Milford, Orange, and Woodbridge. And, anyone who can hit the Internet can see the live-stream at 8:30 at: www.soundviewtv.org Then click "Watch SVTV Live Online" and the feed will come up in about 30 seconds. Prior shows are archived and can be seen at www.blip.tv/libertyline �We take a look at the start of the presidential primary season and more.�� Bob MacGuffie�� www.RightPrinciples.com

Watchdogs urge lawmakers to limit executive branch oversight

By Keith M. Phaneuf The divisions of state government's new and loosely unified watchdog agency found a common voice this week as they opposed recommendations that would increase executive branch oversight of their missions. Leaders of the right-to-know, clean elections and ethics agencies, along with the child advocate, urged lawmakers in a new report not to enhance the powers of the new executive administrator of the Office of Governmental Accountability.� Continued at �..

http://www.ctmirror.org/story/14966/watchdogs-urge-lawmakers-limit-executive-branch-oversight

Heading into tumultuous education reform year, 'common ground' highlighted� By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas� Teachers unions and education officials will soon begin butting heads as the Malloy administration tries to reform teacher tenure and other laws the unions have worked hard to protect.

But Tuesday was a day of niceties, as -- at a meeting that included Education Commissioner Stefan Pryor and Senate President Donald E. Williams -- the union representing more than 41,000 teachers unveiled the reforms they would like to see this year. "To be sure we don't agree on everything," Pryor told the roomful of education advocates and officials at the Legislative Office Building, "but we agree on more than we don't ... [Let's] focus on ideas that we can come together around rather than on wedge issues that separate us."� Those wedge issue are likely to include how teachers are evaluated and then dismissed if they are determined to be failing.� Previous attempts to speed up the process for firing or laying off the worst teachers have fallen flat since few school districts in the state have evaluation systems to measure teacher performance� Continued at �.. http://www.ctmirror.org/story/14955/heading-tumultuous-education-reform-year-common-ground-education-reform-highlighted