From: The Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer
Organizations
Contact: Susan Kniep, President
Website: http://ctact.org/
Email: fctopresident@aol.com
Telephone: 860-841-8032
TAX TALK
AUGUST 10, 2010
Blumenthal Finds Improper Use
Of Bysiewicz Office Database; Probe Concludes With
Report, Referral To Chief Prosecutor By Jon Lender
August 5, 2010 Courant, State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Thursday
that the office of Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz
maintained "inappropriate" personal and political information in a
taxpayer-funded office database - creating "the reasonable perception that
the state database was developed as a useful tool for political campaign
purposes." Blumenthal made those
findings in an investigative report. He said he was was
referring the report to the state's top prosecutor, Chief State's Attorney
Kevin Kane, as well as the State Elections Enforcement Commission and
legislative leaders in hopes of closing a longstanding loophole in state law
that permits political activity in state offices by elected officials and their
appointed aides. The referral to Kane
also will allow the prosecutor to review whether any criminal laws were
violated, Blumenthal's office confirmed Thursday. Blumenthal also said in his
report that it was "not proper" for his fellow Democrat, Bysiewicz, to use its 36,000-name database to identify the
"religion, race and ethnicity" of more than 2,400 citizens, and to
keep "special notes" records of some citizens' political leanings and
personal characteristics. In a few cases, those notes included "descriptions
of [citizens'] medical issues, choice of clothing, and favored political
candidates," the report said. Blumenthal
found no violations of state law. But he said the Connecticut law banning political activities
in state offices is too weak, and he recommended that the legislature extend it
beyond the civil-service work force, which it now covers, to also include
political officials such as Bysiewicz and her
appointed aides. http://blogs.courant.com/capitol_watch/2010/08/blumenthal-finds-improper-use.html
Bysiewicz's Campaign-Funded Parties Raise Questions, Jon Lender, August 1, 2010, Courant http://blogs.courant.com/capitol_watch/2010/08/bysiewiczs-campaignfunded-part.html
The University of Connecticut
will terminate its lease on the private home where President Michael Hogan
lived after spending nearly $500,000 in state money to upgrade and maintain the
Gurleyville
Road house.
August 01, 2010|By DAVE ALTIMARI, daltimari@courant.com http://articles.courant.com/2010-08-01/news/hc-uconn-house0801-20100801_1_philip-lodewick-gurleyville-road-house-lease
Citizens: Follow the money.
No, really. Courant, Aug 3, 2010,
If you needed another reason to make MAPLight.org a
frequent stop on your trips through the Interwebs,
here's one: As we anxiously wait to see if BP has forever plugged its Gulf Coast oil disaster, on Friday
the House of
Representatives passed the so-called CLEAR Act, Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic
Resources Act (HR-3534), with a vote of 209-193. The act is supposed to signal an overhaul of the oil industry, and creates an
office within the U.S.
Department of the Interior that will be focused
on efficiency, transparency, and accountability in the administration of
federal mineral and energy resources.That vote was not exactly a squeaker, but it's not a mandate either. The
bill moves to the Senate,
where it may hit rough water. http://blogs.courant.com/susan_campbell/2010/08/citizens-follow-the-money-no-r-1.html
CSU reduces salaries for chancellor, campus presidents
By Robert A. Frahm, CTMirror.org At the request of Gov. M. Jodi Rell,
Connecticut State University
System trustees Monday reduced the size of raises granted this month to
Chancellor David G. Carter and the presidents of CSU's
four campuses. The officials were allowed to keep 5 percent cost-of-living
increases, but the Board of Trustees Executive Committee rescinded an
additional raise of about 5 percent that was considered a "pay
equity" adjustment based on a consultant's compensation study. The
committee is expected to meet again later this week to consider similar
reductions for other top non-union managers who also received the pay
adjustments. Rell last week asked the trustees to cut
the raises, calling them "excessive" and "intolerable"
in light of the state's fiscal crisis. She also said she will order a study of
the possible elimination of the central office of the 36,500-student system. The
governor took the action a day after the Mirror disclosed that raises, some as large as 10
percent, had been granted to non-union managers. http://ctmirror.com/story/6990/csu-reduces-salaries-chancellor-campus-presidents
Real Race To
The Top Requires New Focus
August 01, 2010|By BETTY J. STERNBERG …… Children in urban,
suburban and rural environments, rich and poor, deserve to experience the joy
of persevering to solve complex problems that affect them and society. Such
experiences should be woven into the fabric of instruction from kindergarten
through Grade 12. They should not be held off until each student takes a
one-credit senior demonstration project, which new state legislation requires
of graduates in 2018. To focus such work into a one-credit senior course
trivializes the depth of change that is necessary throughout children's school
years. 1 | 2 | Next http://articles.courant.com/2010-08-01/news/hc-op-sternberg-0801-20100801_1_teachers-classrooms-test-scores
Sunset in America: an unpaved, unlit road to
nowhere Everything we know
about economic growth says that a well-educated population and high-quality infrastructure
are crucial, writes columnist Paul Krugman. Emerging
nations are making huge efforts to upgrade their roads, their ports and their
schools. Yet in America
we're going backward. By Paul Krugman Syndicated columnist Related The lights are going out all over America — literally. Colorado
Springs has made headlines with its desperate attempt to save money by turning
off a third of its streetlights, but similar things are either happening or
being contemplated across the nation, from Philadelphia to Fresno. Meanwhile, a
country that once amazed the world with its visionary investments in
transportation, from the Erie Canal to the Interstate Highway System, is now in
the process of unpaving itself: In a number of
states, local governments are breaking up roads they can no longer afford to
maintain, and returning them to gravel. Continued at….. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2012579377_krugman10.html
Freddie Mac reports loss,
seeks another $1.8 billion in taxpayer bailout Mortgage giants
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, between them, have needed $148.2 billion in bailout
money since late 2008 to stay afloat. The aim is to ensure that mortgage credit
remains available. By Mark Trumbull, Staff writer, Christian
Science Monitor / August 9, 2010 The mortgage-finance
company Freddie Mac reported a $4.7 billion net loss for the second quarter
Monday, due to a rise in home loans that ended in default. The report,
following a similar loss at sister company Fannie Mae last week, underscores
that the US housing market remains a central
trouble spot in the economy. Because these government-sponsored
enterprises (GSEs) sit at the heart of the housing
market, it also means the taxpayer tab is rising for keeping these firms
afloat. Continued at …. http://www.csmonitor.com/Money/2010/0809/Freddie-Mac-reports-loss-seeks-another-1.8-billion-in-taxpayer-bailout
Read: Regulators' Deepwater Drilling
Document Is "at War With Itself" By Marian Wang, ProPublica, Aug 9, 2010, A decade-old environmental
assessment by offshore drilling regulators called for more research on Corexit dispersant, warned that deepwater spills were
difficult to stop, and cautioned that such spills could "permanently cover
water bottoms and wetlands."At the same time, it
cited industry speculation that a deepwater blowout could stop itself in a
matter of days and concluded that deepwater spills were "a very low-probability event [1]." The
document, written in 2000, was mentioned in Sunday's New York Times [2] story
about the Minerals Management Service and its record of drilling oversight. The
Times called the environmental assessment a "document at war with
itself" that reflects the regulatory agency’s conflicting mandates:
facilitating energy production and royalty collection while ensuring that
offshore drilling is done safely, with proper environmental consideration and
review. Continued at.. http://www.propublica.org/blog/item/read-regulators-deepwater-drilling-document-is-at-war-with-itself
Despite Extra Help, Weakest
Bailed-Out Bank Is Still Among the Worst By Marian
Wang, ProPublica, Aug 20, 2010, At the center of the
ethics controversy enveloping Rep. Maxine Waters, a California Democrat, is OneUnited [1], the nation’s largest
African-American-owned bank. The House ethics committee announced three charges [2] against Waters today, alleging
that she improperly used her office to help the bank, in which her husband had
a financial stake. Continued at …. http://www.propublica.org/blog/item/weakest-bank-to-get-bailout-funds-despite-extra-help-is-still-among-the-wor
Fed expected to downgrade US
growth outlook, Aug 9, Federal
Reserve's interest rate-setting panel will meet Tuesday, under
pressure to bolster a weak economic recovery that many fear is grinding to a
halt. The 10-member body is expected to downgrade its assessment of the health
of the world's largest economy, as it keeps interest
rates at historic lows. The Fed's
policies have come under the microscope in recent months, as investors asked
whether the central bank has been overly rosy in its previous assessments,
calling its credibility into question. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CNG.2267033ea5e4a89c39757ee49f007d7b.b11&show_article=1
Senate’s Costs for Foreign
Travel May Set Record By Paul Singer
Roll Call Staff Aug. 9, 2010, 12 a.m. House
Won’t Follow Feingold’s Lead on Pay Raises The Senate is on pace to
set an all-time high for foreign travel costs this year, with a burn rate that
is 30 percent higher than the first half of last year. According to travel disclosures published in
the Congressional Record, from Jan. 1 to July 1 the federal government spent
$2.6 million to cover the costs of overseas travel for Senators and their
staff. Over the same period last year, the Senate reported foreign travel costs
of just more than $2 million. At the
current rate, the Senate’s reported travel tab for the year would exceed $5
million for the first time, and that number dramatically understates the true
costs to taxpayers of the chamber’s trips abroad. http://www.rollcall.com/issues/56_19/news/49105-1.html?mostread=1
Arianna Huffington: Third World America:
Chronicling the Assault on America's Middle Class...and the Solutions
From foreclosures to unemployment to household debt to
bankruptcies, the American middle class is under assault -- and America
is in danger of becoming a Third World nation. That's why HuffPost
is launching a "Third World America"
section to bear witness to what is happening to the American middle
class in small towns and big cities all across the country. Every day, we will
also focus on the solutions that are making a difference in the lives of
ordinary Americans, and offer many ways for you to get involved -- things we
can all do to make sure we never find ourselves living in Third World America.
Start by watching this video, taking our Pledge for the America
Dream, and sharing your story.
'Third World America' Excerpt: Michigan Father Commutes To Chicago For Work
In Third World America,
her forthcoming book about the gradual demise of the United States as an industrial,
political, and economic leader, Arianna Huffington profiles middle-class American families
struggling to recover from the recession
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/08/third-world-america-excer_n_675434.html
Hartford Council Approves
Purchase Of 'Butt Ugly' Building HARTFORD — —
Hartford Courant, August 10, 2010, The city has taken the final step toward
purchasing the property at 1161 Main St. — known as the "Butt Ugly
Building" — and tear the structure down. The city council on Monday voted
in favor of allowing the Hartford Redevelopment Agency to buy the land and its
decrepit building for $625,000. City leaders plan to knock down the five-story
structure in late September. The cost of the property and demolition of the
building — an additional $300,000 to $500,000 — will be covered by city bond
money. http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-hartford-butt-ugly-0810-20100809,0,5750946.story
Jobs Report Brings More Bad News for the Unemployed
By Murrey Jacobson on August 6, 2010 Heading into Friday morning, no one was expecting much good
news from the July jobs report. Unfortunately, the picture it
provided of the jobs market is even worse than many expected. Payrolls shrank
by more than projected. Roughly 130,000 jobs were lost last month (much of it
due to the end of the census), but estimates for losses
had been more in the range of 60,000 or so. There was some pickup in the
private sector. But even those numbers provided little reassurance. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/mt4/mt-search.cgi?blog_id=29&tag=ECONOMY&limit=20
PATCHWORK NATION --
August 9, 2010 at 1:00 PM EST
Property Taxes Emerge as Latest Front in Housing Crisis
By: Lee Banville http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2010/08/property-taxes-emerge-as-latest-front-in-housing-crisis.html
Problematic
contract lurks in intelligence nominee's past
August 01, 2010|Ken Dilanian,
Tribune Washington Bureau, WASHINGTON — In December 2001, shortly after James
Clapper took the helm of the Pentagon's mapping intelligence agency, the agency
privatized its information technology functions, giving 600 employees the
choice of being laid off or going to work for a private contractor.Now
called the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, it awarded a no-bid,
15-year deal worth up to $2.2 billion to NJVC, a joint venture of two Alaska
Native corporations. The privatization was set in motion by Clapper's
predecessor, but Clapper endorsed it, saying it would allow the agency to take
advantage of the "best commercial practices." http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/01/nation/la-na-clapper-20100801
The following articles can be
found in Tax Talk August 9, 2010
Ø
OP-ED: The Truth about ‘Jobs’ Governors
Ø
German police have shut down the Hamburg
mosque where the 9/11 hijackers met before their suicide attacks on the US in
2001.
Ø
BP oil spill costs pass $6bn mark
Ø
Lindsay Lohan, 24, gets her name
and face all over the news because she went to jail. The following are Marines
that gave their lives for you this week.
Ø
Pricey Projects: A Look at Where Taxpayer Dollars are Going
Aug 6, 2010,
Ø
Oil Spill Disaster in Gulf Hurt Obama,
but Governors Came Out Ahead,
Ø
Appropriators Beware: Primaries Spell Defeat for Some
Ø
The Net Neutrality Spat Explained
Ø
Corporations Donate in Honor of Lawmakers to Win Favors:
More in Money and Politics,
Ø
The U.S.
Government has taken too much of the State of Utah’s Property!
Ø
The Spill, The Scandal and the President
Ø
Spending Binge, Part Deux, Fiscal
schizophrenia reigns in the White House.