Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT HAS MASSIVE DEBTS. PER THE STATE�S 2006 FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT* THAT DEBT WAS ESTIMATED TO BE $49 BILLION.� ON FRIDAY, DEC 12, THE STATE BOND COMMISSION WILL MEET TO VOTE ON MORE DEBT!� EXAMPLE:� $500,000 FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO A BASEBALL FIELD!

*View the Full Report at the following link �..� http://www.ct.gov/opm/LIB/opm/Budget/FiscalAccountability/FiscalAccountability2006Report.pdf

Many Connecticut residents are losing their jobs, their homes and their savings.� Their future is uncertain as Washington is using taxpayer dollars to fuel the Bailout Express to Success for the mortgage, banking and auto industries.� Due to the aforementioned, today, The Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations directed the following letter to Governor Rell �..

Dear Governor Rell:

According to the Office of Policy & Management, the State Bond Commission is scheduled to meet on December 12, 2008 at 10:30 AM in Room 1E of the Legislative Office Building, 300 Capitol Ave, Hartford, CT.

The Federation requests that you attend this meeting and ask that the Bond Commission not go forward at this time with the approval of the bonds denoted on their agenda which follows and which includes such expenses as $500,000 for improvements at a baseball field. http://www.ct.gov/opm/lib/opm/budget/capital/cy2008/sbc_agenda_dec.12.2008.pdf

The State�s bonded debt is one of the highest in the country. Our State is facing high deficits as your constituents are losing their jobs, homes and savings.

Unless there is an emergency, future state bonding should be carefully scrutinized and delayed or eliminated until our economy improves.

We would further request that the State Bond Commission amendment is policies and allow for a Public Hearing on agenda items prior to voting on them.

Thank you for your consideration of our requests. Sincerely, Susan Kniep, President, On Behalf of the Officers and Board Members of The Federation of CT Taxpayer Organizations

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House passes Detroit bailout, Bill would provide $14 billion in loans to keep GM, Chrysler out of bankruptcy. But Republican opposition in Senate threatens chances of approval.� By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer Last Updated: December 10, 2008: 10:39 PM ET NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The House passed a stopgap $14 billion bailout to U.S. automakers Wednesday evening, but Republican opposition cast doubts about its fate as it moves on to the Senate.� The House vote came in the wake of an agreement on the measure earlier in the day between Democratic Congressional leaders and the Bush administration.� The bill is designed to keep General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) and Chrysler LLC out of bankruptcy through at least March to give the new Congress and Obama administration a chance to craft a more long-term solution.

The measure passed by a count of 237 to 170 thanks to overwhelming Democratic support. But only 32 Republicans joined Democrats in voting for the bill.�

http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/10/news/companies/auto_bailout_legislation/index.htm?postversion=2008121022

Click to read the House auto bailout bill

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Nobel winner: U.S. auto industry will likely disappear STOCKHOLM (AP) � Dec 7, 2008 �.� Nobel economics prize winner Paul Krugman said Sunday that the beleaguered U.S. auto industry will likely disappear.

"It will do so because of the geographical forces that me and my colleagues have discussed," the Princeton University professor and New York Times columnist told reporters in Stockholm. "It is no longer sustained by the current economy.�� Krugman won the $1.4 million Nobel Memorial Prize in economics for his work on international trade patterns. Some of his research on economic geography seeks to explain why production resources are concentrated in certain locations. Speaking to reporters three days ahead of the Nobel Prize ceremony, Krugman said plans by U.S. lawmakers to bail out the Big Three automakers were a short-term solution, resulting from a "lack of willingness to accept the failure of a large industry in the midst of an economic crisis." Continued �.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2008-12-07-nobel-auto_N.htm

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43 states in financial trouble, The recession has most states unable to cover expenses, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and states should expect tough times ahead. By Catherine Clifford, CNNMoney.com staff writer, Last Updated: December 10, 2008: 7:01 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The recession has state-level fiscal budgets in crisis mode, according to a report released Wednesday. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, an organization that works on the state and federal level on policy research and analysis, said 43 states are facing shortfalls in their budgets for this year and/or next year. Most state budgets start on July 1, which means they are nearly half-way through their fiscal year. Continued � http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/10/news/economy/state_budgets/index.htm?postversion=2008121019

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Why Chris Dodd is gunning for the banks

Detroit may get its bailout at last - but Wall Street could pay the ultimate price.By Nina Easton, Washington editor, �December 10, 2008: 1:55 PM ET WASHINGTON, D.C. (Fortune) -- If and when Detroit's automakers actually get their taxpayer-funded lifelines, Senator Christopher Dodd will be remembered for his tough-guy demand that General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner be shown the nearest exit. No one will remember Dodd's full-throttled threat, issued just last week, that an auto bailout bill should "also place tougher conditions on any loans to financial firms." With Tuesday's compromise between Democrats and the White House over emergency loans for Detroit, it's clear that the Senate Banking Committee chairman wasn't able to follow through on his threat to stretch the bill to apply to bailed-out banks too. If he had, banks would have been forced to start lending their taxpayer billions and to go easier on homeowners facing foreclosure.

That's not entirely surprising, given Dodd's weak leadership and the sheer legislative difficulty of turning his rhetoric into law. The little-noticed episode outlines an emerging political reality: Just as the automakers faced an especially severe drubbing because they were second in line asking for taxpayer support, lenders - and their lifeguard, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson - now face an especially cranky Congress in part because of the strict conditions Detroit will have to meet in order to qualify for emergency loans.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/10/news/economy/easton_dodd.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008121013

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U.S. deficit climbs to $402 billion

The budget gap racked up in first two months of the fiscal year approaches the level recorded for all of '08.

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNNMoney.com senior writer , Last Updated: December 10, 2008: 3:31 PM ET� NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Treasury Department on Wednesday reported that $164.4 billion was added to the federal budget deficit in November -- bringing the total deficit for the first two months of the fiscal year to $401.6 billion.� By comparison, the budget deficit for all of fiscal year 2008 was $455 billion, according to the Treasury. http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/10/news/economy/treasury_budget_deficit_Nov08/index.htm

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AP IMPACT: How Freddie Mac halted regulatory drive�� The Boston Globe, Dec 7, 2008 �� WASHINGTON�From a hefty lobbying budget to the use of free baseball tickets, Freddie Mac fended off any meaningful regulation in the years before the housing mortgage giant crashed, records obtained by The Associated Press show.

When the Washington Nationals played their first-ever baseball game in the nation's capital in April 2005, two congressmen who oversaw Freddie Mac had choice seats -- courtesy of the very company they were supposed to be keeping an eye on. Continued � http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2008/12/08/ap_impact_how_freddie_mac_halted_regulatory_drive/?rss_id=Boston.com+--+Latest+news

From the Institute of Justice who defended Susette Kelo in her attempts to keep her home from Eminent Domain abuse.

Texas Developer Files Lawsuits To Bulldoze Freedom of the Press

Targets Include Book Author, Publisher, Law Professor Richard Epstein and Newspapers that Published Book Review

WEB RELEASE: December 10, 2008
Media Contact:� John Kramer� (703) 682-9320
[First Amendment]

Dallas, Texas�In perhaps the most striking example of a disturbing national trend, Dallas developer H. Walker Royall has launched a lawsuit spree to silence any media or public affairs commentator who dares expose his attempted abuse of eminent domain. Similar suits have been filed in Tennessee, Missouri and elsewhere by developers and governments looking to silence critics of eminent domain for private gain. http://www.ij.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2517&Itemid=207

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A Quiet Windfall For U.S. Banks, With Attention on Bailout Debate, Treasury Made Change to Tax Policy, By Amit R. Paley, Washington Post Staff Writer, Monday, November 10, 2008; A01�The financial world was fixated on Capitol Hill as Congress battled over the Bush administration's request for a $700 billion bailout of the banking industry. In the midst of this late-September drama, the Treasury Department issued a five-sentence notice that attracted almost no public attention. But corporate tax lawyers quickly realized the enormous implications of the document: Administration officials had just given American banks a windfall of as much as $140 billion. The sweeping change to two decades of tax policy escaped the notice of lawmakers for several days, as they remained consumed with the controversial bailout bill. When they found out, some legislators were furious. Some congressional staff members have privately concluded that the notice was illegal. But they have worried that saying so publicly could unravel several recent bank mergers made possible by the change and send the economy into an even deeper tailspin. Continued �� http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/09/AR2008110902155_pf.html

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TRIBUNE OWNS HARTFORD COURANT �.

TRIBUNE FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY

� Tribune files Chapter 11

http://www.laobserved.com/biz/2008/12/tribune_files_chapte.php

*Why Tribune filed, Mark Lacter � Bio � Email

The parent company of the LAT and KTLA has nearly $13 billion in debt and $7.6 billion in assets, according to a court filing. The biggest problem appears to be inadequate cash coming in. As reported by the NYT, there is a covenant on some of its debt that basically requires the company to generate a certain amount of earnings. Failure to maintain that level puts Tribune in technical default. http://www.laobserved.com/biz/2008/12/why_tribune_filed.php

TRIBUNE HISTORY� http://www.tribune.com/about/history.html

WHOSE NEXT!!!!!!!!!!!

Tribune is extreme, but more bankruptcies possible [AP Financial News], 12/10/2008 10:38:00 AM, Associated Press, The

NEW YORK_Although Tribune Co. has the distinction of being the first major newspaper publisher to seek bankruptcy protection in this sour economy, it is hardly alone in facing the deadly combination of high debt and declining advertising revenue.� For a sense of who might be next, consider publishers that have put individual papers up for sale or have had trouble meeting their debt contracts.

Analysts said Tuesday that most publishers fall into that category. The exceptions often cited: Gannett Co., whose $4 billion in debt is reasonable for its size even though its revenue has shrunk, and McClatchy Co., which in September bought about two years of flexibility on $2 billion in debt by agreeing to higher interest rates� http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/news/detail.xhtml?ID=10971&ArticleID=200812101038AP______NEWS_____feef0035a004f6df_AP&source_type%5B%5D=

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