Business lobbyists point to few wins
As legislative session ends, CBIA leader blames too much time ‘on defense’ against union-backed bills
In a year when businesses may feel bruised following several run-ins with the General Assembly’s Democratic majority, their lobbyists can point to a few wins in the 2022 legislative session that just ended.
Chris Dipentima, president of the Connecticut Business & Industry Association, credited the legislature for leveraging a significant budget surplus to pay down unfunded pension liabilities and provide tax relief to residents. It will bring relief to businesses looking for a strong fiscal outlook for the state and no tax increases in the offing, he said.
“That was a smart use of budget surplus dollars and a reminder of the crucial role the 2017 bipartisan fiscal reforms played in getting us to this point,” Dipentima said.
It’s a stark contrast to two rounds of tax increases in the Malloy administration and strongly opposed by business, he said.
Overall, the three-month legislative session that ended at midnight Wednesday was largely a “disappointment for employers, particularly small businesses,” Dipentima said.
Eric Gjede, CBIA’S vice president of public policy, said employer groups “spent too much of the session on defense trying to address legislation that fails to address the labor shortage and undermines our recovery.”
As an example of its legislative blocking, CBIA said it thwarted union-backed bills such as allowing striking workers to tap unemployment insurance after two weeks on the picket line and regulations of workplace schedules.
The legislature’s Democratic leadership pushed back, defending their legislation as a modest defense of workers’ rights or advancing economic growth. The Connecticut AFL-CIO, the state’s federation of unions, calls Connecticut the “most unequal” state even as it is among the wealthiest.
Businesses lost a high-profile fight over legislation that prohibits employers from requiring workers to attend workplace meetings where politics and religion are discussed. Democrats say it’s intended to shield workers from anti-union messages during organizing drives and businesses say it’s overly broad and would make it difficult for managers to freely discuss company policy.
Dipentima said he hopes Gov. Ned Lamont vetoes the legislation, sending a message to the legislature’s Labor and Public Employees Committee to tap the brakes on legislation that businesses see as favoring organized labor at the
expense of small business.
Legislation that in previous years advanced from the Labor Committee generally died before the legislature adjourned, while more of the committee’s bills now end up on the governor’s desk, Dipentima said.
He also criticized lawmakers for budgeting $40 million for the state’s federal unemployment loan debt, or 8% of the $495 million balance. Dipentima called it a “major missed opportunity to support small businesses.”
“State and federal unemployment taxes will jump 22% by 2026, money better invested by employers in addressing the labor force crisis, the biggest threat to Connecticut’s economic recovery,” CBIA said.
Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said at a Capitol news conference Thursday that business will benefit from expanded child care and increased funding to help women return to the workforce after dropping out during the pandemic.
The budget includes more than $150 million, much in federal pandemic rescue funding, for the state Office of Early Childhood.
The CBIA and many business groups backed legislation that increased child care funding. Employees who are generally low-paid, are “the workforce behind the workforce,” Dipentima said.
Gov. Ned Lamont said business will benefit from federal money for public works, particularly transportation, that’s beginning to flow into Connecticut. The state must put up 20% to 30% “so we’re being very careful getting to the front of the line when it comes to competitive bids,” he said at a Capitol news conference Thursday.
The goal is to shave 15 minutes off the Metronorth Railroad commute from Stamford to New York and the return trip, the governor said.
Businesses see as a clear win an apprenticeship tax credit extension for manufacturers that lawmakers tucked into the state budget sent to Lamont for his signature. It was vetoed by thengov. Dannel P. Malloy in 2018.