
HARTFORD, CT — Democratic leaders in the state Senate were blindsided Friday when three of their members voted in favor of the Republican budget proposal, which was offered as an amendment to the underlying Democratic budget.
Sens. Joan Hartley, Gayle Slossberg, and Paul Doyle bucked their party and voted for the Republican budget proposal, which they say included the structural changes they had called for when they voted in favor of the labor package. The Republican amendment passed on a 21-15 vote, and was shortly followed by a vote on the amended budget, which also passed 21-15.
The trio did not tell Senate President Martin Looney or Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff they would vote in favor of the Republican budget.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said he would veto the Republican budget.
“I believe the amended budget that passed in the Senate today is unbalanced, and if it were to reach my desk I would veto it,” Malloy said. “It relies on too many unrealistic savings, it contains immense cuts to higher education, and it would violate existing state contracts with our employees, resulting in costly legal battles for years to come.”
Malloy said the Senate vote was a surprise to him, but it doesn’t change his position.
“It may represent a shift in the dynamic of the General Assembly. But it isn’t a shift for me. I have consistently been in favor of reaching a sensible, realistic budget – one that is balanced honestly and that continues to make progress on Connecticut’s long-term fiscal challenges,” Malloy said before 9 p.m.
Democratic Presser – 3 Senate Dems Vote in Favor of GOP Budget
Sen. Bob Duff and Senate President Martin Looney said they were taken by surprise by their members decision to vote in favor of Republican budget which passes 21-15
Posted by CTNewsJunkie.com on Friday, September 15, 2017
The House was waiting to take up the Republican budget Friday at 5:30 p.m. and staff member for the House Democratic caucus said they were expected to debate the budget.
Doyle said during the debate that he didn’t care if he didn’t get re-elected as a result, because it was the right thing to do for the state of Connecticut.

The Democrat’s budget proposal was a two-year, $41.4 billion plan that would have increased spending 4.1 percent in 2018 and 1.5 percent in 2019. The Republican’s two-year, $40.7 billion state budget, which increases spending 2.5 percent in 2018 and 1.1 percent in 2019.
While the Democratic budget proposal was technically balanced for the next two years, according to the fiscal note released by the Office of Fiscal Analysis earlier Friday, the plan would have created deficits of $1.44 billion, $2.16 billion, and $2.7 billion in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
The Republican budget proposal largely uses savings from changes they hope to make to the labor agreement in 2027 and applies those savings to the current two budget years. The Republican budget document wasn’t ready before debate on the budget bill began around 3 p.m. Friday. OFA, however, said shortly after 3 p.m. that the Republican plan would also create large budget deficits in future years. According to the OFA analysis, the GOP plan would create deficits of $1.24 billion, $2.14 billion, and $2.81 billion in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
“The state of Connecticut is certainly in a bad place today,” Doyle said. “That’s without dispute.”

He said he thought Connecticut needed a bipartisan budget, adding after the vote that it was the most difficult decision of his career.
He said he made the decision this morning and believes the future of the state of Connecticut was hanging in the balance.
“People won’t be happy with me, but I think it’s in the best interest of the state of Connecticut,” Doyle said.
Senate Democratic leaders, however, were outraged.
Duff said the Republican budget has $1.5 billion of unknown labor savings and is “full of gimmicks.”
He said they haven’t even had enough time to digest it because they received it a few hours before the debate.
“I don’t even know what’s in this thing,” Duff said.
The Republican budget doesn’t have the bonding and insurance surcharges for crumbling foundations and it doesn’t have the additional money for the city of Hartford.
Looney said they were focused on getting an agreement on their budget and weren’t focused on the Republican budget.
“We weren’t told some members were voting ‘yes’ — there were speeches written well in advance of debate,” Duff said. “The question was asked and we didn’t get a clear answer.”
Senate Republican President Len Fasano, R-North Haven, said if they had listened to the demands their members made during the July vote on the labor savings then they would have included them in their budget proposal. Fasano said they included all 12 demands made by the trio of Democratic Senators.
“They believe the same thing we do — that we have to have structural change,” Fasano said.
Like the Democratic legislative leaders, Fasano said he did not know that the trio of Democrats was going to vote in favor of the Republican budget.
The Working Families Party was swift in their condemnation of the Democratic Senators.
Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!
“Just moments ago, as our legislature inched closer to a budget deal, three corporate Democrats in the State Senate betrayed the people of Connecticut, potentially prolonging a stalemate that could drive Connecticut into the red and have devastating consequences for working families,” the party said in an email.
They encouraged their supporters to call their lawmakers and “stop this cruel and senseless budget.”
GOP Press Conference – State Senate Passes GOP Plan
Republicans speak to reporters after getting their budget passed by the state Senate
Posted by CTNewsJunkie.com on Friday, September 15, 2017
More State Budget news

Stefanowski Talks Abortion, Employee Raises & Budget In First Press Conference
For a half-hour Wednesday, Bob Stefanowski stood outside the state Capitol and fielded questions on abortion rights and state employee raises in a sign the Republican candidate plans to run a more conventional campaign in this year’s rematch with Gov. Ned Lamont.
Keep reading
Lamont Signs The Budget
Alongside Democratic legislative leaders, Gov. Ned Lamont signed the $24 billion budget adjustment Monday that includes $600 million in tax relief. That’s more than they anticipated they would be able to offer Connecticut residents this Election year because revenue came in higher than expected, but it still creates about an $800 million deficit in 2024. …
Keep reading
ANALYSIS | It’s A Wrap: The Winners and Losers of the 2022 Session
It was a short legislative session, but the House and the Senate were able to move a lot of business this year, including the passage of a $24-billion budget with around $600 million in tax cuts.
Keep reading
Connecticut Acts To Help Its Lead-Poisoned Children
After decades of inertia, Connecticut is finally moving to help its thousands of lead-poisoned children and prevent thousands of other young children from being damaged by the widespread neurotoxin.
Keep reading
Bill Bolstering Contracting Oversight Board In Jeopardy After Lamont Administration Raises Concerns
It passed unanimously in the Senate, but a bill that would give the State Contracting Standards Board greater oversight over state contracting appeared stalled in the House Wednesday on the last day of session. “The governor and I have not talked about the bill,” House Speaker Matt Ritter said. “The commissioners have sent us a…
Keep reading
Senate Approves Tax Cuts, Sends $24B Budget to the Governor
The state Senate gave final approval late Tuesday to a $24 billion election year budget plan that includes around $600 million in tax relief while enabling the state to make an $3.5 billion payment on its unfunded pension debt. Senators voted 24-12 at around 10:30 p.m. to send the midterm budget adjustment to the desk…
Keep reading
House Green-Lights $24B Budget
On a party-line vote early Tuesday, the House passed a $24 billion budget adjustment package containing more than $600 million in tax cuts which Democrats heralded as “historic” and Republicans derided as temporary. Lawmakers voted 95 – 52 at around 12:20 a.m. to send the 673-page budget document to the Senate for consideration before the…
Keep reading
Budget Materials
The General Assembly is preparing to debate adjustments to the $24 billion state budget. Below are a few of the documents we’ve been provided as back-up materials. The budget, HB 5506. Town runs. Car tax impact on municipalities. Finance Committee Power Point.
Keep reading
Lawmakers May Vote for First Pay Increase in 20 Years
With legislative retirements mounting, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle were considering Monday raising the salaries of General Assembly members for the first time in more than two decades and indexing their pay in the future. During a morning press briefing, House Speaker Matt Ritter told reporters that funding for pay raises had been…
Keep reading
Amid Surging Revenue, House Prepares to Vote on Budget Adjustments
Connecticut’s House of Representatives was expected to vote Monday on a $24 billion budget adjustment package, buoyed by revised revenue predictions that exceeded expectations by more than $350 million. The revised consensus figures released Monday confirm the surge in revenues that enabled Gov. Ned Lamont and legislative Democrats to reach an agreement last week on…
Keep reading
Dems Detail Budget Deal With $500 Mil in Tax Cuts, Extension of Gas Tax Holiday
Legislative Democrats and Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration announced Wednesday the details of a $24.2 billion budget adjustment package, which they say provides around $500 million in tax relief including extending a gas tax holiday until December. Lamont and legislative leaders outlined the agreement during an afternoon press conference in the state Capitol building. Both chambers…
Keep reading
Health Care Workers Call for New Hires
After a record number of health care workers are expected to retire this year, health care staff called on Gov. Ned Lamont to commit to filling 1,000 vacant positions by August 1 of this year. A record 1,137 state workers who notified the state that they will retire this year comes at a moment of…
Keep reading
Senate Joins House And Votes To Give Raises, Bonuses To State Employees
The Senate gave final approval by a 22-13 vote on a plan to give unionized state workers a set of raises and bonuses. The plan, negotiated by Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration and a coalition of public sector labor unions, provides three years of 2.5% raises and step increases as well as a total of $3,500…
Keep reading
House Advances Labor Deal In Historic Vote
Lawmakers in Connecticut’s House of Representatives signed off on a plan to give state workers a set of raises and bonuses Thursday in a mostly partisan vote on a negotiated labor agreement. The House voted 96 to 52 in support of the deal with 1 Republican, Rep. Tom Delnicki of South Windsor, joining all Democrats…
Keep reading
Republicans Propose Last-Minute Tax Package
Legislative Republicans pitched a $1.2 billion tax relief plan Thursday which reduces state income, sales and gas taxes and proposes to join other states in suing the federal government to challenge restrictions on spending pandemic relief funds. House and Senate Republicans announced the plan during a state Capitol press conference Thursday morning. It cuts the…
Keep reading
The Budget Battle Begins To Take Shape
Tax collections have improved and pushed Connecticut’s budget surplus to $4 billion, but the state budget still relies heavily on federal funding and without it the state would end up running a “sizeable operating deficit.” The Office of Policy and Management told state Comptroller Natalie Braswell Wednesday that if not for the use of the…
Keep reading