HARTFORD, CT — (Updated 3:56 p.m.) Gov. Dannel P. Malloy isn’t done signing legislation, but House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz says he wants to override the governor’s two vetoes.
Malloy has vetoed two bills, one that would extend the manufacturing apprentice tax credit to small businesses, and another that would limit the executive branch’s authority to cut education funding.
“We need to continue to up our investment in job creation and economic growth, and advance manufacturing is a fast growing area that is looking to hire every day, but there is a shortage of skilled workers ready to go,” Aresimowicz said of the bill Malloy vetoed Wednesday. “This incentivizing credit for employers will work in concert with the enhancements we are making at our Vo-tech schools and community colleges.”
The bill passed unanimously through both chambers. To override the veto they will need two-thirds support.
Senate Republican President Len Fasano and House Minority Leader Themis Klarides agreed with Aresimowicz that it needs to be overridden.
They sent a letter to Aresimowicz and Senate President Martin Looney Thursday calling for their support to override the veto.
“The governor’s veto message makes it clear that Governor Malloy simply cannot bring himself to lower taxes in any situation,” the two Republican leaders wrote. “His misguided progressive views won’t allow him to accept even this bill which garnered strong bipartisan support.”
Malloy pointed out in his veto message that the bill would be a $650,000 revenue loss to the state.
Republicans and the business community said the loss would be more than made up by an increase in economic activity.
“This bill is about small business and jobs,” Connecticut Business and Industry President and CEO Joe Brennan said. “While the governor is absolutely correct with his concerns about the state budget, we believe the best way to solve the state’s fiscal issues is through economic growth and job creation.”
As far as the education funding bill is concerned, “We saw the local turmoil created by the governor when he ordered reductions to education aid and blindsided towns mid-year,” Aresimowicz said. “Some say an override may not be necessary, but I think it is important that the legislature remove any doubt of this reoccurring.”
Fasano has previously said he doesn’t believe they need to override the bill because there is similar language included in the budget the governor already signed. However, on Thursday he said he wouldn’t mind overriding both of the vetoes.
“If we’re going to do it for one we might as well do it for both,” Fasano said.
Aresimowicz said he will reach out to other caucus leaders to be sure the necessary two-thirds veto override threshold will be met on each of the bills.