Issue Position: State Budget

Issue Position

Connecticut is nearly bankrupt-we face multibillion-dollar deficits as far as the eye can see, we have nearly maxed out the state's credit, and Hartford has resorted to one-shot revenues and yet more borrowing, rather than tackle the problem head on. They have left that for the next governor.

Given the crisis we face, our next governor must call on everyone to make tough sacrifices and enact sweeping reforms that transform the way our government does business, restore our fiscal house to order, and ensure our children do not suffer an even worse crisis down the road. In short, our next governor must be a political entrepreneur with the courage to stand up to established interests.

As governor, I will be just that. I have already initiated a line-by-line, top-to-bottom review of the state budget so that on day one, I can begin squeezing out every last efficiency. I will consolidate purchasing and contracting, automate processes, merge duplicative functions, streamline agency business processes, and tune state laws and regulations to maximize federal funding.

As governor, I will also institute a comprehensive review of the state's more than $5 billion in tax expenditures, making sure each one justifies its cost. These expenditures are rarely examined, and considerable waste exists. For instance, the Insurance Reinvestment Tax Credit has cost an average of $400,000 per job created. The Film Tax Credit has cost well over $100 million, an exorbitant price tag hard to justify in light of its benefits.

Finally, as governor I will transform the way our government does business, achieving better results at lower cost. Rather than sending our elderly citizens to costly nursing homes, I will prioritize more affordable home care, allowing them to remain independent. Rather than sending non-violent substance abusers to prison for years, we will send them to drug treatment, saving money and easing their transitions back into society. Rather than institutionalizing troubled children at exorbitant cost, I will enhance community interventions that support these children and preserve their families.

In the long run, though, we cannot cut ourselves out of these problems, nor can we tax ourselves out of them. We must grow the economy. More new jobs, more new businesses, more new taxpayers-that is the answer.

Source