Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

Today, it was announced that The Massachusetts House of Representatives has approved a bill that would strip municipal union members of most of their rights to bargain over health benefits as reported by Michael Levensen at The Boston Globe.�

In CT, the Governor has presented a budget which is flawed in that it is burdened with excessive taxes while it excludes any concessions agreed to with the unions.� The Federation today submitted the following letter to Governor Malloy asking him to give the unions a 48 hour notice to return to the bargaining table, to allow the public access to those negotiations, and should the unions fail to cooperate, that the Governor work toward ending collective bargaining in our State.

The Federation commends Democrat State Senator Edward Meyer for rejecting Governor Malloy�s budget while demonstrating a clear understanding of the dire fiscal conditions of our state and 169 towns as well as the burden placed on over taxed state and local taxpayers.� As Senator Meyer noted �Over the past 20 years, state spending has increased by 280 percent at the same time that inflation has risen by only about 90 percent�.

Also, due to the State�s excessive bonded debt, we have asked the Governor to cancel the April 29, 2011 bond commission hearing and to impose a moratorium on bonding.�

Our Letter to Governor Malloy follows�..

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April 28, 2011

To� Governor Malloy

State of Connecticut

State Capitol, 210 Capitol Avenue

Hartford, CT 06106

Telephone:� (860) 566-4840

(800) 406-1527, Fax: (860) 524-7395

Send Email To Governor Malloy

From Susan Kniep, President
The Federation of Connecticut

Taxpayer Organizations, Inc.�
Website: http://ctact.org/
Email: fctopresident@aol.com

Telephone: 860-841-8032

Please Cancel the April 29, 2011 Bond Commission Hearing,

Put a One Year Moratorium on Bonding, and

Walk Away from the Unions, and Assume Control of our State! ��

Begin by removing the negotiations table from behind the

closed doors of secrecy and placing it in the light of public debate.

If unions refuse, work to end Collective Bargaining!

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First, Governor Malloy we ask you that cancel the Bond Commission hearing scheduled for April 29, 2011 .Further, that you place a one year moratorium on bonding, or at minimum, place a hold on bonding until the State has a credible budget.�

Connecticut has the highest bonded debt in the nation at approximately $20 billion.�� Connecticut taxpayers pay the highest taxes in the nation, paying $4,091 per capita in state and local taxes. ��Less than one year ago, a major credit rating agency �lowered Connecticut�s bond rating.��

Second, the state budget submitted by you is significantly flawed in that in fails to contain any concessions from the unions, thereby leaving the spending side of the budget in limbo.� The excessive tax increases you have imposed on your constituents could escalate even higher without those concessions.� �

As State employees appear unwilling to cooperate, those in the private sector are continuing to be impacted as the State Labor Department recently reported another� 6,000 jobs lost bringing unemployment in Connecticut to 9.1%.��

The silence from the Hill in Hartford is deafening in that taxpayers throughout Connecticut continue to have no insight into what you are seeking from the unions and what, if anything, they are putting on the table.� We ask that you immediately take the negotiations table out from behind the closed doors of secrecy and thrust it into the light of public debate. ��As the leader of our state, we suggest you give the unions a 48 hour notice to meet with you in a public forum.� Their failure to do so should result in your pursuing an end to collective bargaining which would in turn place you in control of the government you were elected to serve.� This would also provide local municipal leaders elected to office the ability to manage their budgets and personnel.�

We commend Democrat Sen. Edward Meyer for his stand in rejecting your tax proposal.�� By his remarks as noted below, Senator Meyer demonstrates his insight into the problems which besiege our State which are clearly on the spending side of state and local budgets.�� Those spending issues are driven by collective bargaining.� The unions have been given ample time to submit their concessions.�� You must separate yourself from the unions to which you are aligned and cross over to the side of the taxpayers and businesses which will be significantly impacted by the tax increases approved to include the gasoline tax as we now pay the fourth-highest gasoline tax in the nation at 45.2 cents per gallon.

Recently, it was reported by the press that

� Hundreds of state employees who accepted a retirement-incentive package in 2009 remain on the state's payroll.� �At least 38 rehired retirees are collecting six-figure pensions in addition to a paycheck�� http://articles.courant.com/2011-04-24/news/hc-retire-rehire-0424-20110424_1_highest-paid-retiree-retirement-package-state-retirees

� In 2010, 380 State Retirees received pensions from $100,000 to $263,048; 1467 retirees received pensions from $75,000 to $100,000; and nearly 6,000 retirees received pensions from $50,000 to $75,000, in addition to their healthcare benefits.

� 911 State employees who are collecting salaries from $62,000 TO $202,000 are� union stewards allowed to conduct business on state time.

� In October of 2010, Connecticut's 3,582 non-union employees and 28,175 union employees each received a longevity payment costing the state $19.7 million.

� The average state employee's annual compensation, including salary and benefits, is $105,498, compared with $74,174 for the average worker in the private sector, according to a December report produced by the state Commission on Enhancing Agency Outcomes, a task force formed under the former administration to streamline state government.

� About 14,000 state employees make no contributions to their pension plans, according to the benefits commission. Another 18,315 make a 2 percent contribution.

� Connecticut had $26 billion in liabilities related to retiree health benefits in fiscal year 2009.

� The state is required to make payments exceeding $5.4 billion a year to compensate state employees and retirees, a figure that represents about 25 percent of the state's general fund budget.

� Overtime can be lucrative for some state employees as a Supervisory Nurse with a �Base Pay at $103,239 and Overtime at $231,190 receives a Total Pay of �$334,429.

Again, we appreciate the efforts of Sen. Edward Meyer who by his comments below understands the problems of our State.�

Senator Meyer�s comments as reported by the press�..

�Over the past 20 years, state spending has increased by 280 percent at the same time that inflation has risen by only about 90 percent.

"This budget history now requires our focus on responsible spending before we entertain an historical package of tax increases, particularly when we see that those tax increases are not sunsetted.''

"If we vote today for this historical package of new taxes,'' Meyer told his colleagues early Thursday afternoon before the committee vote, "we and our constituents will be continuing mistakenly to support, for example, longevity bonuses, payment out of the public pensions at age 50, lifetime health insurance for our public employees and their spouses when they have only eight or 10 years of state service'' and what he described as "boondoggle programs such as Riverview children's hospital.''

Our state debt is at $72 billion, driven by state retiree benefits.�

We hope Governor Malloy that you understand that it is the unions who will ultimately bankrupt our State unless you do what other Governors have done to protect their constituents.

Thank you for considering our requests.