Cockayne vows action on unfunded mandates

Press release from Mayor Ken Cockayne:

In an effort to get a handle on the growing number of unfunded mandates, passed on to municipalities and local taxpayers by the General Assembly, Mayor Ken Cockayne, today asked each Department Head in the City of Bristol to supply his office with any unfunded mandates that they believe hinders their ability to perform their duties. "Unfunded mandates are killing local governments as well as taxpayers," Cockayne continued, "It is time the members of the General Assembly deal with this issue and use their time in the next legislative session to offer us some relief."

In addition to unfunded mandates, the newly-elected Mayor also asked his Department Heads to provide him with a list of any state laws they felt should be reformed to allow them to perform their jobs in order to execute our responsibility to serve the citizens of Bristol."

"Over the past six years, as a member of the Bristol City Council, we have heard numerous calls for assistance regarding the impact of unfunded mandates," Cockayne added, "Now as Mayor, I am working to advance the progress on this issue, and work with the members of our local legislative delegation to try an alleviate some of these burdens."

The Mayor intends to prepare these issues into a legislative package on behalf of the people of Bristol and share them with our Representatives in Hartford, as well as the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, the lobbying arm used by many local governments.  "I urge every member who serves on a board or commission in Bristol to work with their respective department head to help develop a comprehensive report to our Legislators," Cockayne concluded, "Unfunded mandate relief is a key to holding the line on taxes and I am hopeful that our legislators in Hartford will hear our concerns."

Copyright 2013 All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Nicastro praised for axing unfunded mandate

Back in early April, one of Bristol's representatives to the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency, John Pompei, was so pleased with the work that state Rep. Frank Nicastro did to strip away an unfunded mandate on local governments that he wrote a letter praising the lawmaker's efforts.
Nicastro had shepherded through a measure that wiped out a requirement that cities and towns provide all sorts of paper records about proposed subdivisions to regional planners -- a costly process -- and replaced it with a provision that the material could be sent electronically instead. The material was also required to be sent via certified mail, which added to the cost.
Pompei, a Republican, said the new rule -- which is now state law -- will save municipalities lots of money. But the legislature's fiscal office said it would result in less than $1,000 in savings for towns and cities statewide.
Even so there is at least one unfunded mandate that quietly vanished this term.


Copyright 2012. All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Welch takes aims at mandates

Press release from state Senate hopeful Jason Welch, a Republican in the 31st District:
BRISTOL, CT – Jason Welch unveiled today his plan to relieve burdens placed on municipalities by state unfunded mandates. He referred to his plan as “the Three Bucket Plan”.
Welch said: “The solution to the problem of unfunded mandates is common sense. We do not need a task force. We need action. A lot good people have already done the heavy lifting here, such as the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which made the case for eliminating or postponing unfunded mandates back in February of 2009. Hartford not only failed to act on CCM’s recommendations, legislators proposed more than 40 new unfunded mandates last year, all the while our towns and cities suffered.”
Welch groups unfunded mandates into three categories or “buckets” as he calls them. The first bucket gets filled with those mandates that we keep. He proposes no changes to municipal requirements to comply with those mandates, but rather seeks to reform them. In this bucket go the state’s prevailing wage law for which he wants to raise the minimum threshold to $5 million. Also in this bucket falls the binding arbitration system, which he wants to streamline and provide municipalities with increased abilities to reject certain awards.
The second bucket consists of good mandates that are not necessary. A municipality’s requirement to comply with mandates in this bucket is suspended for 2010 and in following years until the economic climate changes. Into this bucket, Welch places a number of mandates such as, in-school suspension, property revaluation, state prequalification, municipal web postings and continuing education.
The final bucket consists of mandates that ought to be eliminated such as health coverage for adult children and the requirement that municipalities store the belongings of evicted tenants.
Welch reminded that “eliminating mandates does not mean municipalities will no longer provide a particular service or process. It simply means they have the freedom to do what they think is best for their residents. If they get it wrong, I am sure the residents will let them know.”
Welch called for action on his plan now, rather than waiting until November 2, 2010, when the election will be held. Welch seeks to be the Republican nominee to the State Senate race for the 31st District, which includes Bristol, Plainville, Plymouth and parts of Harwinton. 
*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Democrats promise action on mandate relief

Democrats vow action on mandate relief. See the story.
*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Hamzy says GOP has championed unfunded mandates issue

Press release from state Rep. Bill Hamzy, a Plymouth Republican whose 78th District includes northwestern Bristol:

Rep. Hamzy Response to The Bristol Press, March 3^rd article “Legislators under gun for mandate relief”

The Bristol Press yesterday published a front-page article titled, “Legislators under gun for mandate relief,” which asserts none of Bristol’s state legislators, “champion the idea of lifting expensive requirements forced on cities and school systems across Connecticut.”
This is simply not true.  Allow me to set the record straight. 
The truth is, unfortunately, unfunded state mandates on municipalities have become a partisan issue in Hartford.  In this day and age of budget deficits at the state and local level, there is simply not enough money to send what is requested to municipalities. Fortunately, our local leaders understand this. Unfortunately, the state continues to demand of local governments that they be required to do certain things and then doesn't pay the cost for these services. This is what is called an unfunded state mandate. In the last two years I, along with the rest of the House Republican caucus, have submitted more than a dozen proposals to either suspend or eliminate some unfunded mandates to give towns more flexibility to spend the money we do send them.  These bills and amendments have either been ignored by the Democrats or voted down by them. In fact, during the 2008 legislative session, the House Republican Caucus proposed that any new unfunded or underfunded state mandate on municipalities require a two thirds vote of the legislature, a proposal which I specifically supported and was mentioned in the article.
Speaker Donovan could allow debate on current municipal relief proposals, but chooses not to. Instead, he creates a “legislative commission,” thus scoring political points this session without any meaningful legislative action.
I agree with Mayor Ward that, “decisions about how best to use limited amounts of revenue should be left up to city leaders rather than being dictated from Hartford.” We in Hartford are not elected to determine how best to run the City of Bristol; the Mayor, City Council, Board of Finance and the Board of Education are. 
As the article mentioned, it is true that municipalities have long complained about unfunded mandates. Yet it is also true the House Republican caucus has time and again championed their cause and represented their voice in Hartford.  Hopefully, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will decide to offer real substantive relief to cities and towns immediately.  It is way past due. 

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Legislators under fire on mandate relief

City leaders are growing increasingly irritated that Bristol’s legislators haven’t done more to remove costly unfunded mandates.
Mayor Art Ward said he can’t seem to find anyone in the General Assembly to champion the idea of lifting expensive requirements forced on cities and school systems across Connecticut. Click here for the story.
*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Nicastro to head mandate relief effort

State Rep. Frank Nicastro said he is "very excited" to have been tapped by the House speaker to serve as co-chair of a panel that's going to look into unfunded mandates and state grants during the next year or so. He said it's a great opportunity.
“We’re looking to see what we can do immediately in this up and coming budget year,” he said, “but we’re also looking ahead to” the next few years.

“We sure as heck can’t get everything done” in such a short time, but the panel will “try to get what we can get,” Nicastro said.

Read all about it in Thursday's Bristol Press. Here's the link.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Wright wants answers on mandates

In response to complaints about unfunded state mandates, state Rep. Chris Wright, a Bristol Democrat, sent the following letter to Mayor Art Ward and School Superintendent Philip Streifer this morning:

Dear Mayor Ward and Dr. Streifer,

Thank you for the list of mandates which the state has placed on the City of Bristol in the area of education.  I understand that the cost of these programs is of grave concern to the city and like all homeowners, I have no desire to see unnecessary expenses added to the city budget.  However, before voting on any of the proposals which you have listed, I would like some information on how these savings will be achieved.  Since the list which you have provided is quite extensive, I will limit my questions to some of the large ticket items.

 -                      In the area of Special Education, is it anticipated that savings will be made through the reduction or elimination of current programs?  If so, which programs will be affected and what will the effect be on the students currently enrolled in them?  For instance, will they be mainstreamed into other classes?

-                      In the area of Adult Education, are savings anticipated through a reduction or elimination of  GED or related classes, and what effect will this have on people currently in these classes?

-                      In the area of English Language Learners, is it anticipated that savings will be made by reducing or eliminating classes for individuals attempting to learn English, and what is the expected effect of these cuts?

-                      In the area of Continuing Education for teachers, is this cost simply the result of a state mandate, or is this included in the contract which the city currently has with its teachers?  In other words, would the elimination of this mandate itself bring a savings to the city, or would Bristol then have to re-negotiate with its teachers to achieve these savings?

-                      In the area of providing transportation for non-public school students, it is probably safe to assume that the elimination of this service will lead at least a few parents to enroll their children in public schools.  How many additional students do you foresee coming into the public school system, and how much is being budgeted for this contingency?

-                      Finally, in the area of Teacher/Administrator evaluations, is it your plan that Bristol, at least for the time being, not conduct performance evaluations on its teachers and administrators?  If this is not the plan, how is it anticipated that these savings will be achieved?

 Thank you for work and dedication to the schoolchildren of our city.  I look forward to your responses to me questions.

*******

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Mandates cost city schools more than $14 million annually

Superintendent Philip Streifer outlined all of the partially funded and entirely unfunded mandates that weigh down the city’s $100 million education budget.

In testimony he offered to the legislature, Streifer said the tally for educational mandates alone come to more than $14.7 million annually.

That includes nearly $1million yearly to pay for transportation for students who don’t attend public schools.

Among the many other mandates are $130,000 in drug education required for health staffers, $500,000 annually for evaluations of teachers and administrators and $700,000 for special education.

See the entire list starting on page 3 of this link.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Hamzy: State should do more

State Rep. Bill Hamzy, a Plymouth Republican whose 78th District includes part of Bristol, weighed in with this response to the mayor:
    Thanks for your email and I do appreciate the frustration that you have with what's happened over the last couple of years.  I completely share that frustration.  As I have been saying for the last three years, everyone knew in early 2007 that our economy was on the brink of a very severe recession.  As you might remember, a conscious decision was made by the Governor and the legislative majority to ignore it and make no adjustments to our state's budget.  That decision has had severe ramifications. 

    Since that time, everyone has talked about the need to restructure government, to cut spending to create jobs and to relieve municipalities of unfunded mandates.  Well, what has happened since?  I'll tell you what has happened; Nothing.  The proof is in the pudding.  Other than transferring money from one account to another and scrounging all of the furniture the state owns for loose change, there have been no meaningful changes in how our state government functions.   

    As I've said repeatedly, no one likes to make unpopular or difficult decisions.  Just like raising children, no one wants to say no to their child.  But, when that's not done, the results are predictable.  We are more than two years into this recession and the primary problem is that there has been no acknowledgement by the legislative leaders of this reality.  They still believe that if we maintain the status quo, this will all blow over and we can go back to doing what we were doing.  (As a prime example of this, just look at the press conference Speaker Donovan had last week when he formed a task force to consider restructuring state government.)  Another task force?  Another task force to consider restructuring state government?  That's leadership?  That's a joke.

    But it's not funny because we're talking about the economic future of this state.  This is the state my parents immigrated to.  This is the state where I was born and raised and where I chose to make my home.  This is the state that I'd like my children to be educated in and hopefully choose to make their home.  But, none of that will happen if there are no economic opportunities.  And there will be no economic opportunties if taxes keep going up to pay for a bloated and inefficient state government.

    It's way past the time to establish task forces or to keep saying what people want to hear.  It's time to make some very unpopular decisions based on some common sense principles;

    Don't spend more than you make.

    Borrow only what you can afford to pay back.

    Provide all the government we need, but only the government we need.

    If a government program doesn't work, get rid of it.

    I do not believe you can be a responsible public servant and fulfill your duties by just opposing proposals made by other legislators.  That is why each time I have voted against a proposal, I have offered an alternative which I would support.  In concluding, I honestly believe that this state is on the precipice of a potential economic disaster.  We will not avoid this by putting our heads in the sand, maintaining the status quo and hoping it will go away as has been the approach over these last couple of years.  We will mitigate this by making some very politically unpopular decisions in order to put our state on better footing for the long term.  As a start, that means eliminating unfunded mandates on municipalities, eliminating government programs which exist because they have a politically powerful ally and expanding the partnership we have with our non-profit agencies to deliver services more cost effectively. 

    Unfortunately or fortunately, we have no other viable option.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Ward begs for mandate relief

Here is a note that Mayor Art Ward sent to the city's legislative delegation yesterday:

DO SOMETHING - As the mayor of the 11th largest community in the State of Connecticut, I am totally frustrated with the lack of consideration by the Governor, the General Assembly and our local legislative delegation for the budgetary concerns of our communities.

We are acutely aware of the economic constraints of the community, the state and the nation resulting from the ongoing recession but we are also totally perplexed with the lack of a plan or a direction from either the state or the nation with regard to the responsibility of the communities to deliver unfunded mandated services to our citizens.

The debate for the delivery of any of these unfunded mandates can readily be substantiated but the fact of the matter exists as to whether or not the cities/towns have the financial resources to provide the unfunded dictates of Hartford or Washington.  

This is a plea to our state legislature and our congressional delegation to grasp the reality that their actions, or lack thereof, are determining the ability of the local governments to comply with the needs of their communities.

While we are told that all of our concerns are paramount in the legislative process, the cites and towns are not experiencing any realistic, workable consideration for monetary relief from the constraints of unfunded mandates or any other viable alternatives to the dictates imposed upon our citizens.

I have testified about my views on this lack of awareness before numerous state committees and commissions, I have written and expressed my views to our state and federal representatives numerous times over the past two years and I am more frustrated over the lack of realistic acknowledgement of this quagmire than I am over whatever the ultimate decisions might be. 

Truthful, forthcoming, realistic decisions or discussions would afford the communities the ability to make sound, rational budgetary plans for the future of the taxpayers of our communities.
Most communities will soon be engaging in the annual budgetary process and uncertainty in these worst of economic times will definitely surface as the financial ogre determining this dilemma.

I respectfully request that our cities and towns be afforded accurate, financially responsible information and that we benefit from realistic, mutual, truthful approaches to the delivery of services to our citizens.
******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Mills eyes budget woes

Here's what Republican city Councilor David Mills had to say about the budget situation following yesterday's meeting with department heads at City Hall:

It was a very sobering meeting today, but nothing unexpected. I really believe that the unfunded or partially funded mandates need to be publicized. They are continually being referred to, yet very few know or understand what they are.
The mandate outlined today by Dr. Streiffer concerning professional development of staff that could cost upward of $400-$500,000 for our community is ridiculous. It is another example of our legislators being totally out of touch with their constituents.If 30-40% of his budget is mandated by the State, then any costs have to be deducted from the remaining 60% which is very limiting. Translating this into dollars means 30-40 million dollars are set in our local budget by the State, and this is only for education.
Unfortunately, most of the burden to reduce budgets fall on the municipal employees.We should look at all possibilities before staff reductions are considered.Contracts have been negotiated in good faith, and when salaries were not increased substantially in the past, employees were offered more attractive working conditions or increased benefits in lieu of additional monies.
These benefits are now very expensive, and make up a large portion of our budget. They are also subject to negotiations which puts the burden on our Mayor and Personal director as well as the Union negotiators.It is not a pleasant position to be in, but I am confident that everyone is up to the task.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Mayor meets with state delegation to seek fiscal relief

In a rare news release, Mayor Art Ward had this to say:

In the effort of affording our community the ability to sustain itself through these difficult economic times, I met with our State legislative delegation, State Senator Thomas Colapietro, Representative William Hamzy, Representative Frank Nicastro and Representative Christopher Wright, the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Philip Streifer and Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce, Michael Nicastro on Wednesday, December 9^th.

The meeting addressed a review of potential actions to be considered if a Special Session of the State Legislature is convened, as Governor Rell has proposed. This Special Session would have a direct impact on the operations and delivery of services, as presently provided though our local government, if proposed cuts in municipal aid to cities and towns is enacted. Considerable attention centered on the renewed call for consideration of relief from the lists of both partially unfunded and totally unfunded mandates.

As always, we welcome and appreciate the ideas and suggestions of all our citizens, our business community and anyone concerned with the economic vitality of our community.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Details on unfunded mandates

For those who wondered what unfunded mandates the city is constantly complaining about, take a look at the website compiled by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Rell picks municipal panel. Ward not among her choices.

Gov. Jodi Rell issued this release today:

Governor Rell: Cooperation is Key
In Addressing Reduction of Municipal Aid
Municipalities Given Strong Voice
In Mandate Relief, Other Cost-Saving Recommendations

Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that six municipal leaders from cities and towns – both large and small – will work closely with state officials and lawmakers to identify local savings and recommend mandate relief to help close an estimated $466.5 million state budget shortfall.

The Governor appointed the municipal leaders to a special bipartisan panel she has created to offset an $84 million reduction, or 3 percent decrease, in municipal aid. The Governor called the reduction “one of the most painful cuts” contained in the deficit mitigation plan she recently presented to the Legislature. The Governor has called lawmakers back into special session on December 15 to address the deficit.

“Our municipal leaders have been on the front line of this fiscal crisis and know better than anyone how devastating this recession has been,” Governor Rell said. “Their input is essential as everyone in Connecticut – families, businesses and government – cope with a still volatile economy.

“In good times, our cities and towns have shared in our successes. This time, we are asking them to be part of the solution – and we are listening. Their recommendations of where we can prudently cut back and what mandates are the most onerous are part of the cooperation needed to get the state, their towns and our families back on firm financial footing,” the Governor said.

Governor Rell has previously proposed steps such as a temporary suspension of binding arbitration and requiring a two-thirds vote of the Legislature before any further mandates are imposed. She is asking that the panel begin meeting this week.

The following municipal leaders appointed by the Governor are:
· Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch
· Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton
· East Hartford Mayor Melody Currey
· Vernon Mayor Jason McCoy
· Somers First Selectwoman Lisa Pellegrini
· Portland First Selectwoman Susan Bransfield

Legislative leaders have been asked to appoint six members to the panel, which will be co-chaired by Office of Policy and Management Secretary Robert Genuario and Department of Administrative Services Commissioner Brenda Sisco. To date, legislative members are:
· Rep. John Frey (House Republicans)
· Sen. Robert Kane (Senate Republicans)

“I urge the majority party to make its appointments promptly so that this panel can begin working on finding cost-savings solutions rather than overburdening the already overburdened taxpayer of Connecticut,” Governor Rell said.


*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Ward wants to serve on state panel

Mayor Art Ward sent this email to the city's legislative delegation yesterday:

According to today's news article, the Governor is formulating a committee which will include (6) six CT Mayors to evaluate the impact of her proposed cuts to municipalities. If this committee is not formed yet, I am ready, willing and able to serve on it and would appreciate it if you could propose my interest to the Governor.
Sincerely, Mayor Art Ward

Gov. Jodi Rell said she would appoint a special panel today. We'll see if Ward's on it.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

City upset at possible cut in state aid

The prospect of losing as much as $1.5 million in aid from state budget cuts put on the table by Gov. Jodi Rell has city leaders up in arms.
“Municipal aid cuts would be disastrous for our city,” second-term city Councilor Cliff Block said Monday.
Mayor Art Ward postponed plans for a municipal budget kickoff meeting this week pending more information about the possible mid-year reduction in state aid that would leave Bristol short of assistance it’s already counting on.
City Councilor Ken Cockayne said, “It is awful that we are at the mercy of the state.”
City officials said the state could lift some of its costly mandates so that cities and towns could get by with less money, but given the cold shoulder that mandate relief has received in Hartford this year officials hold out little hope for help.
Rell has called a special legislative session for December 15 to close an anticipated $466 million budget cap. Among the measures she’s calling for is to slice municipal aid by 3 percent, a move she called “the most difficult cut of all.”
“In good times, municipalities shared in the state’s largesse,” the governor said. “In this economy, they must be part of the solution and so it is important they are represented at the table to help us make these difficult choices.”
The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which launched a radio campaign against the move Monday, said, “Cutting more state aid in mid-year wouldn’t be a savings. It would merely shift more of the state budget deficit onto local governments and local property taxpayers.”
It said cutting municipal aid means higher property taxes across the state.
City Comptroller Glenn Klocko said there is “so much hardship that’s coming” that it’s bound to hurt.
He said it is like somebody standing on the beach where things are pretty calm but seeing a wave building way out at sea – and rolling toward the short.
“You know it’s coming,” Klocko said, and the impact will be severe.
City Councilor Kate Matthews said that mandate relief is crucial.
“It is time for our State lawmakers to get serious about granting municipalities like Bristol relief from unfunded state legislative mandates. If they did this, Bristol would be better able to bear a 3% decrease in state funds,” Matthews said.
“Our state legislature should now fight for relief of unfunded mandates, which will not cost the state any moneys,” Block said. “This the only way our city could absorb these cuts.”
“For over two years ourmMayor,City Council, and the Board of Education have been pressuring our state legislators to pursue these mandates but to no avail. This is the wakeup call,” Block said.
Cockayne said he doesn’t blame Rell for proposing the cut since “our state seems to be hemorrhaging money. We have been borrowing to balance the budget and it was just a matter of time for cuts like this to happen.”
He said he hopes the curtailing mandates could be part of the answer.
Without mandate relief, a 3 percent cut “will likely result in cuts to city services that our residents cannot afford to lose,” Matthews said.
Cockayne said the city “must continue to be vigilant in addressing our own spending and we must look for other ways to balance our own budget.”
Ward said he guarantees a “vigilant, diligent and responsible means of addressing only the most essential services” in trying to cope with aid cuts.
“Nothing will be considered to be exempt from consideration,” the mayor said.
“The delivery of services other than those of absolute necessity will be curtailed or eliminated while others will experience extreme cutbacks,” Ward said.
Klocko said the Board of Finance “has a very difficult task before them. I don’t envy their position.”

******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Ward welcomes Alford's help on mandate relief

The two major mayoral candidates each agree that convincing state lawmakers to lift costly mandates on municipalities is crucial for Bristol and other cities.
“Fund the mandates or do not force them on municipalities like Bristol that face severe budget shortfalls over the next few years,” said Republican mayoral hopeful Mary Alford.
“We do not need gasoline in the form of mandates thrown on the budget fires,” she added.
Mayor Art Ward, a first-term Democrat who is seeking reelection in the November 3 election, has been one of the most visible local government leaders pushing state legislators this year for action.
Ward said he remains baffled why the Democratic-controlled legislature and Republican Gov. Jodi Rell have done so little to lend cities and towns a hand in these cash-strapped times.
Ward said that lifting unfunded mandates “costs nothing” for the state but would do more than anything else to ease the financial crunch on Connecticut’s municipalities.
Alford said that “any new state unfunded mandate can force drastic changes. It is up to those in power in Hartford, the Democrat majority, to take action that will save jobs and preserve public services.”
Ward said he has begged legislators to explain why they won’t back mandate relief, but they never offer a real answer.
Alford said that “if the Democrats in Hartford proceed to pass more unfunded mandates, it will become a greater hardship than already exists for budget makers next year and in the years to come. Give us a break, Hartford.”
Ward said he’s glad to have support from Alford. He said he hopes the General Assembly listens to the bipartisan voices in every town and city that are calling for relief.
The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities has been pushing for mandate relief as well.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Alford: Cities need mandate relief

Press release from Republican mayoral contender Mary Alford:

Alford: State Mandates deserve State Funding

With a financial tidal wave looming in Bristol’s future, Republican Mayoral Candidate Mary Alford called on the Bristol State Delegation to join Republican House Minority Leader Larry Cafero in his plea to either “Fund the mandates or do not force them on municipalities like Bristol that face severe budget shortfalls over the next few years. We do not need gasoline in the form of mandates thrown on the budget fires!” Alford said.

“Any new state unfunded mandate can force drastic changes. It is up to those in power in Hartford, the Democrat majority, to take action that will save jobs and preserve public services”, she said.

This year’s budget in Bristol relied upon $2.5 Million taken from the undesignated fund balance (a reserve account) to close the spending gap created by City Hall. “As your Mayor, I’d like to see our services and the jobs needed to implement them remain”, said Alford.

“There are many creative ways to reduce costs and to cut spending, but they just can’t be forced into effect. We need to achieve these measures with cooperation from everyone and consideration for all those affected. If the Democrats in Hartford proceed to pass more unfunded mandates, it will become a greater hardship than already exists for budget makers next year and in the years to come. Give us a break Hartford! ”, Alford concluded.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Some mandate relief may be coming

The New London Day has the story.

I would say, though, that the idea of dropping printed legal notices in newspapers is a terrible one. It would eliminate the one tried-and-true method of letting the public know what's going on at city and town halls across the state.

If they all had busy, active, wonderful websites that residents routinely checked, I might agree that the requirement is archaic. But let's face it, most of the government's websites are a snooze and few people use them.

*******

Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com