Letter to Editor: Alarming Proposal

To the Editor,

The House Democrats have unveiled an alarming proposal to increase the state’s sales tax from the existing 6.35% to a loftier 6.85%. This is irresponsible at this point in time because there are other no-tax-increase budget options, which I have supported, that are simply not being considering by the legislative majority.

The two largest tax increases in Connecticut’s history have been dealt under the Malloy Administration and backed by the Democratic Leadership of the General Assembly, both of which occurring within the last six years.

Where have those previous revenue increases gotten the state?

These two tax hikes did not yield enough revenue to set the state on a healthy fiscal trajectory. In fact, these tax hikes provided a detrimental false sense of monetary safety, which gave way to increased state spending while Connecticut’s pension obligations skyrocketed.

A near-sighted labor agreement was penned earlier this month, which has only restricted the state’s financial flexibility even further, and by a thin party-line vote was ratified by the legislature.

Connecticut has never had a revenue problem. The issue, case-in-point, lies within poor financial labor agreements and wasteful spending. Until those two items are addressed, increased revenue streams will simply provide a reprieve before Connecticut’s coffers run dry again.

I urge the legislative majority to consider other options, other than temporarily shifting dollar amounts in certain accounts and raising everyone’s taxes. There is a quality no-tax-increase budget option available, which avoids punishing the taxpayers for the state’s inability to manage Connecticut’s finances.

Sincerely,

Jay Case
State Representative, 63rd District