Legislators Talk State Issues With Prospect & Cheshire Residents

Prospect/Cheshire – State Representative Lezlye Zupkus (R-89) and State Senator Rob Sampson (R-16) hosted a Town Hall meeting at the Prospect Town Hall and Legislative Coffee Hour at McDonalds’ in Cheshire to discuss the just concluded 2019 legislative session, including the state budget, tolls as well as state and local concerns.

“I always enjoy having an open and engaging discussion with the residents I represent on topics affecting their daily lives,” said Rep. Zupkus. “Residents are frustrated with the current policies that are hampering job growth and causing residents to move. It is an unfortunate story playing out in Prospect and Cheshire, and throughout the state, many of our neighbors are leaving for lower cost states because Connecticut keeps dipping into their wallets one to many times. I understand their frustrations, and I am working to make the necessary structural changes we need to make to create a sustainable and predictable state government that we will attract businesses and people back to our state.”

The legislators fielded questions for an hour on issues ranging from out–of-control state spending to the ever-growing state budget including new state labor contracts pushed through on partisan lines.

Subjects discussed included the Connecticut’s hostile, anti-business environment and tax policies, and their effects on CT businesses. Many people oppose tolls and are worried about our local road traffic if tolls are erected.

Both Rep. Zupkus and Sen. Sampson emphasized there were positive developments out of the State Capitol this session. Because of the outcry from Republican legislators and taxpayers across the state, proposals to institute tolls on state highways, the governor’s plan to shift the teachers’ pension costs on to local towns, and plans to force school districts to regionalize or consolidate were defeated.