The Connecticut General Assembly’s “short” session wrapped on May 8, which means that lawmakers were limited to “budgetary, revenue and financial matters,” per the state constitution and legislative rules.
Nevertheless, budgetary matters can concern a host of issues, and lawmakers proposed more than a thousand bills — from labor unions demanding pay for striking workers, an omnibus environment package (known as the ‘Green Monster’) and even levying taxes to fund the 250th anniversary of America’s founding.
And while these ideas would or will have a negative impact on improving Connecticut’s business climate status — which ranks among the worst in the nation — the legislature also passed several ‘good’ bills that await Gov. Ned Lamont’s approval.
Here is a breakdown of what we at Yankee Institute saw during the short session. Let’s start positively…
The Good Bills that Passed
Adopting the Nurse Licensure Compact
This bill (H.B. 5058) simplifies the licensing process for nurses and expands mobility. In essence, by joining the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC), a nurse can obtain one license that allows them to practice in all compact group states. Prior to session, Connecticut was one of only nine states yet to join the NLC.
This legislative change matched with Yankee Institute’s recommendation in Reforming Connecticut Healthcare after COVID.
The Expansion of Telehealth
In the same spirit of improving Connecticut’s healthcare system, H.B. 5198 extends the changes made during the Covid-19 pandemic by expanding the ability of residents to access medical professionals and reducing the physical burdens on healthcare facilities. This will allow out-of-state providers and certified professions, like therapists and counselors, to provide telehealth care, which will benefit state residents, especially those in rural areas or without easy access to in-person facilities.
This legislative change matched with Yankee Institute’s recommendation in Reforming Connecticut Healthcare after COVID.
Property Tax Exemption for Disabled Veterans
As the heading suggests, H.B. 5491 establishes a property tax exemption on a home or motor vehicles for permanently disabled military veterans due to active duty. This exemption will also be passed onto a significant other or child if a veteran passed away. Supporting our veterans, who sacrificed to protect our freedoms, is, simply, the right thing to do — and easing their tax burden is a good start.
Shortening Wheelchair Repair Wait Times
According to the Wheelchair Repair Task Force, turnaround repairs took nearly 50 days to complete. Now, with S.B. 308, the state is requiring a job’s completion to be within 10 days. While regulation is typically a nuisance for businesses, this goal will improve the lives of our wheelchair-bound residents and loved ones.
Preventing Foreign Political Spending
Election outcomes have come under scrutiny in the past decade; but our American republic depends on their reliability. Therefore, to make elections more secure, S.B. 253 or An Act Concerning Foreign Political Spending aims to prevent “foreign interference in state referenda and elections and allow for greater enforcement of violations.”
The Bad Bills that Died
Capital Gains Surcharge & Other Tax Bills
This bill, S.B. 35, would have established a capital gains surcharge on “certain” taxpayers in order to buoy the General Fund and Special Transportation Fund. As YI President Carol Platt Liebau stated in public testimony: “A capital gains surcharge also makes Connecticut especially unattractive to the wealthy. Raising the tax creates an incentive for investors to retain underperforming investments when better opportunities exist. They distort the market and inhibit the growth of industries that are worthier of investment, hurting all of us.”
Meanwhile, H.B. 5113 would have increased the highest marginal rate of the personal income tax and establish a capital gains surcharge to provide funding for certain child-related, municipal and higher education initiatives. As YI President Liebau rightly noted in her testimony that “If [the rich] leave altogether, they stop paying taxes. And that significantly erodes funding for all the programs government wants to fund.” In a state where the wealthy face a gift, mansion and luxury tax, it’s not prudent to give them more ammo to pack their bags and move elsewhere.
One ‘Fair’ Wage
As noted in Yankee Institute’s testimony on SB 221, one fair wage is a misnomer. The concept essentially mandates a minimum wage for tipped workers — like bartenders and wait staff — which might look equitable on paper. In reality, however, the mandate could limit workers’ income. Customers may be less inclined to tip workers if they are receiving higher pay, which could be devastating (for example, a bartender may average $60,000 per year, but only just over $34,000 prior to tips). Additionally, “one fair wage” would raise expenses on local eateries who are already struggling to survive post-pandemic. The higher expenses on businesses would need to be recouped — and there’s only one way they can sustain themselves: By charging higher prices to customers. The ripple effect of “one fair wage” would burden our bars and restaurants, reduce workers’ take-home pay, and put eating out beyond the reach of many consumers.
The ‘Green’ Monster
H.B. 5004, also dubbed by Yankee Institute as the ‘Green’ Monster, was significantly watered-down from its original 12-point proposal that would have increased energy costs, encouraged harmful “environmental” lawsuits, harmed nuclear energy development and eventually ended all fossil fuel use in Connecticut. Additionally, this would have compounded Connecticut’s housing woes and skyrocket energy prices, which are already some of the nation’s highest.
Raising Taxes to Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday
This reads like a Babylon Bee headline — but it was proposed. To the history student, the concept seems antithetical to the Spirit of 1776, which was sparked by over-taxation of the British Parliament on American colonists. That aside, even Jeffrey Beckham, secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, opposed the bill, testifying that it “would make Connecticut a less attractive destination at a time where we are trying to increase tourism.” As I wrote in the Daily Caller, “For Connecticut to possibly raise taxes flies in the face of those who spilled their blood to establish the country we have inherited and, too often, take for granted.” And as Yankee Institute noted in testimony before the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, raising taxes to celebrate America “misses the point entirely.”
Requiring Pensions for Police Officers and Firefighters Employed by Municipalities
YI’s Labor Fellow Frank Ricci testified that S.B. 334 is “not about dignity and respect, it is about passing another unfunded mandate onto the taxpayers without regard for property taxes or the current law,” adding that “this bill seeks to flip the table on the taxpayers in a bad faith attempt to circumvent the very agreements [municipalities] negotiated.” Bottom line: it saves municipalities another burden championed by big labor.
The Bad Bills that Passed
Expanding Paid Sick Days
H.B. 5005 expands the type of employees who receive annual paid sick leave, broadens the definition of family members for leave purposes, increases the rate at which leave is accrued and broadens the way leave days can be used. Mandating more paid sick days will increase the costs of doing business, which will be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices and it could also lead to negative economic consequences such as job losses, reduced investment and decreased competitiveness.
Paying Striking Workers
Forcing working Connecticut residents to pay for big labor workers to go on strike seems fanciful — but it did pass the General Assembly. While Gov. Ned Lamont has publicly opposed the idea, the fact remains that the bill, as YI President Liebau said in a public statement, is “vague and misleading” and “clearly rewards labor unrest and will make it more expensive for families to live in our state or run a business here.”
SEBAC Gets a $200 Million Raise
Though not technically a bill, it’s still worth nothing that on March 29, Gov. Lamont and the State Employee Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC) — a group that is comprised of 15 state government unions — agreed to terms on a wage re-opener that will see most state employees receiving more than $200 million in raises, step increases, lump sum payments and fringe benefits in accordance with the terms laid out in their 2022 contract.
As YI’s Meghan Portfolio reported, “Costing more than $1.8 billion in its first four years, the 2022 five-year SEBAC agreement left out wage hikes for its final year. However, the contract obligated the state to revisit salary negotiations after January 2024 through a mechanism known as a ‘re–opener,’ which prompted talks but not necessarily the provision of pay raises.” Again, like other bad bargains, this SEBAC agreement is costly in a state that cannot necessarily afford more from its taxpayers. However, it needs approval from the Legislature.
There is still time to act on some of the pieces of legislation before Gov. Lamont approves or vetoes them. To do so, visit Yankee Institute’s ‘Take Action’ page here.
