The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Malloy executive order will cause pain
State starting fiscal year without a budget
HARTFORD » State parks will remain open because the revenue they generate pays for their summer upkeep, but Gov. Dannel P. Malloy warned Friday that the executive order he signed to cover the state’s bare-bones expenses when the next fiscal year started on Saturday, will cause pain.
He told reporters in his Capitol office that he wished he could put a hold on about $1.4-million in raises for 178 state judges — 3 percent wage hikes — but lacking a budget compromise from the General Assembly, he can’t. He asked state employees who will be voting on contractual concessions over the next couple of weeks to support the givebacks.
“Given that the legislature did not act on either a two-year budget or a short-term solution, I today exercised the limited authorities granted to me as governor and signed an executive order that will allow state government to operate in the absence of an adopted budget,” Malloy said. “This is a regrettable path, and one that I worked very hard to avoid. The executive order offers me less abil-
ity to avoid very deep cuts that will have a very real impact on our state and its citizens.”
While pledging to do what he can to protect social services for the mentally ill and developmentally disabled, he declined to speculate what the cuts might translate to down at the local level. He expects curtailed programming as providers do what they can to stay in business.
Economic development, transportation and municipal aid will be affected more and more, the longer the General Assembly fails to act. Legislative leaders fell short of a budget compromise by the statutory June 7 deadline, then on Thursday admitted they could not reach a deal by the start of the new fiscal year that began at 12:01 a.m. today.
“First, I do not doubt that we can and will get through this,” Malloy said, adding that he met Friday with Democratic House leaders and expects to meet with both Republicans and Democrats next week. “Connecticut’s elected leaders will come together, and we will adopt a full, biennial budget. My administration will continue working every day toward that end — toward a budget that makes the necessary structural changes to achieve balance, now and into the future.