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December 5, 2012 

 

 

From:  The Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations
Contact:  Susan Kniep, President
Website:
http://ctact.org/
Email:
fctopresident@aol.com
Telephone: 860-841-8032

 

The Federation Asks: 

Is State at Risk of Another Downgrade? 

 

 

Yesterday we learned the State has run out of money to pay its bills following State Treasurer  Nappier’s   letter to the governor. In response to Nappier,

 

Gov. Malloy Authorizes Lines of Credit Up to $550M; Will Be Tapped if Needed.

 

 

On January 21, 2012 the Wall Street Journal in their article captioned   Connecticut Balks as Debt Is Downgraded - WSJ.com  reported “Moody's said the new rating, which applies to about $14.6 billion in debt, is based on the state's high fixed costs to cover pensions and service debt, which reflects about a fifth of state spending.”  The article went on to say  State officials said Moody's claims were flat out wrong, taking a shot at the credibility of the ratings firm.   "Connecticut has done all the right things to shore up our finances, and Moody's has responded with a downgrade intended to satisfy their internal corporate need to deflect attention from their historic lack of credibility," said Ben Barnes, the state's budget chief.  “Moody's said its rating change was based on the creditworthiness of the state.   "We understand states aren't happy when their ratings are downgraded," said Nicole Johnson, a senior vice president at Moody's.

“The downgrade comes after Mr. Malloy, a Democrat who plugged a $3.5 billion budget gap last year by enacting the state's largest tax increase and extracting concessions from state workers, faced criticism earlier this week when the state's tax collections came up short by $94.9 million.”  Continue reading this article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204301404577173120933496282.html

 

 

The Federation Notes that Rather than heed the warning of Moody’s in January, 2012, the State has run out of money to pay its bills for which it has to borrow over $500 Million Dollars and is burdened with Million and Billion Dollar Deficits and Long Term Debt as noted within

The State of  Connecticut’s recently released

 [PDF]   Fiscal Accountability Report - Connecticut General Assembly - C

 

 

State Budget Outlook (in millions)

 

FY 13 $

FY 14 $

FY 15 $

FY 16 $

Estimated Expenditures

19,335.8

20,861.7

22,048.7

23,070.7

Estimated Revenue

19,015.1

19,723.6

21,032.3

22,136.6

Surplus/(Deficit)

($320.7)

($1,138.1)

($1,016.4)

($934.1)

% of Estimated Expenditures

-1.7%

-5.5%

-4.6%

-4.0%

 

We recommend you read the aforementioned report in its entirety at http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa/Documents/year/FF/2013FF-20121115_Fiscal%20Accountability%20Report%20FY%2013%20-%20FY%2016.pdf

  

Connecticut Also Ranked Number 1 in the Country in Net Tax Supported Debt Per Capita at $5,096

Read More on Pages 30-31 of the Report at http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa/Documents/year/FF/2013FF-20121115_Fiscal%20Accountability%20Report%20FY%2013%20-%20FY%2016.pdf

  

Debt Service is Listed at $95.7 Million for Fiscal Year 2014; $145.3 Million for Fiscal Year 2015; and $133.7 Million for Fiscal Year 2016.

Debt Service is defined as:  Contractual commitment to pay the principal and interest on existing and projected future debt obligation. 

Read More on Page 7 and 8 of the Report  

 

*************************

To Gain a Greater Understanding of Where our Money is Being Spent Refer to the Following.  We anticipate Fiscal Year 2012 Info Will Soon be Posted.

 

State Salary, Wages and Benefits by Department in Fiscal Year 2011 Obtained from the State's Transparency Website

Agency Description

Salary and Wages $

Fringe Benefits $

Total $

Department of Correction

444,695,126

150,499,233

595,194,360

University of Connecticut

453,742,286

120,302,331

574,044,617

UConn Health Center

374,228,885

116,021,483

490,250,368

Judicial Department

320,597,697

101,124,938

421,722,635

Connecticut State Universities

292,742,800

84,899,594

377,642,394

Department of Mental Heath and Addiction Services

282,672,772

85,163,735

367,836,507

Department of Developmental Services

267,659,871

94,359,954

362,019,825

Department of Children and Families

264,852,703

85,482,076

350,334,779

Department of Transportation

234,917,464

77,790,956

312,708,419

Connecticut Community Colleges

240,815,658

69,686,450

310,502,108

State Department of Education

152,734,960

54,551,415

207,286,376

Department of Public Safety

145,586,321

44,340,744

189,927,065

Department of Social Services

127,095,888

42,877,545

169,973,433

Department of Environmental Protection

74,933,383

23,840,616

98,773,999

Department of Labor

59,569,303

18,902,402

78,471,704

Department of Public Health

56,669,686

18,793,459

75,463,146

Department of Revenue Services

55,888,044

17,617,014

73,505,058

Division of Criminal Justice

46,835,153

13,435,307

60,270,460

Department of Motor Vehicles

43,745,139

15,972,376

59,717,514

Legislative Management

39,468,211

13,121,125

52,589,336

Public Defender Services

37,096,928

11,015,641

48,112,569

Attorney General

31,247,807

8,986,495

40,234,303

Department of Administrative Services

24,195,611

7,843,657

32,039,269

State Comptroller

21,341,150

6,737,135

28,078,285

Department of Veterans' Affairs

20,696,553

7,283,891

27,980,444

Department of Information Technology

19,927,389

6,105,902

26,033,292

Department of Public Works

13,321,325

4,095,109

17,416,434

Office of Policy & Management

13,598,092

3,756,825

17,354,917

Department of Insurance

11,860,959

3,638,701

15,499,660

Office of the State Treasurer

11,676,666

3,630,133

15,306,799

Department of Consumer Protection

11,264,842

3,644,290

14,909,132

Connecticut Housing Finance Authority

10,922,901

3,362,722

14,285,623

Auditors of Public Accounts

10,036,512

2,958,637

12,995,149

Department of Banking

9,738,015

2,988,463

12,726,478

Department of Public Utility Control

9,716,230

3,004,166

12,720,396

Department of Economic & Community Development

9,403,884

2,923,060

12,326,944

Connecticut Lottery Corporation

8,902,893

3,070,683

11,973,575

Worker's Compensation Commission

8,696,211

2,668,102

11,364,313

Board of Education & Services for the Blind

7,878,238

2,854,673

10,732,910

Division of Special Revenue

7,620,099

2,529,466

10,149,565

Military Department

7,606,247

2,460,325

10,066,571

Agricultural Experiment Station

7,586,526

2,350,609

9,937,134

Board for Academic Awards (Charter Oak State College)

6,807,408

2,055,597

8,863,005

Connecticut State Library

6,451,535

2,199,396

8,650,931

Secretary of the State

5,476,665

1,838,072

7,314,737

Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities

5,270,518

1,657,705

6,928,223

Office of the Chief Medical Examiner

4,614,909

1,368,761

5,983,670

Connecticut Innovations Incorporated

4,471,698

1,306,741

5,778,439

Department of Agriculture

4,246,655

1,475,007

5,721,661

Department of Emergency Homeland Security

4,336,528

1,286,908

5,623,436

Department of Higher Education

4,099,752

1,264,629

5,364,381

Elections Enforcement Commission

3,801,714

1,291,520

5,093,234

Office of Protection & Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities

3,176,137

1,035,340

4,211,477

Commission on Culture and Tourism

3,147,597

1,012,627

4,160,224

Commission on the Deaf & Hearing Impaired

2,486,391

921,332

3,407,723

Connecticut Development Authority

2,348,084

687,061

3,035,145

Governor's Office

2,093,220

571,851

2,665,070

Commission on Fire Prevention and Control

2,072,705

546,146

2,618,851

Freedom of Information Commission

1,710,736

533,733

2,244,469

Police Officer Standards & Training Council

1,669,976

509,928

2,179,904

Probate Court Administration

1,579,905

443,609

2,023,514

Teachers' Retirement Board

1,456,980

498,697

1,955,677

Office of State Ethics

1,412,824

438,619

1,851,444

Office of Consumer Counsel

1,188,810

382,069

1,570,879

Office of the Child Advocate

686,662

233,083

919,745

Office of the Healthcare Advocate

680,152

214,147

894,299

Child Protection Commission

647,095

217,895

864,990

Connecticut Siting Council

594,476

182,646

777,122

Soldiers, Sailors, & Marines Fund

568,455

205,533

773,988

Lieutenant Governor's Office

474,602

127,586

602,188

Permanent Commission on the Status of Women

390,543

121,597

512,140

Workforce Competitiveness Office

385,897

98,821

484,718

Commission on Children

330,488

128,549

459,037

Psychiatric Security Review Board

316,524

121,257

437,781

Board of Accountancy

303,884

109,749

413,633

Office of the Victim Advocate

273,894

97,779

371,673

Commission on Aging

241,898

95,817

337,715

Latino & Puerto Rican Affairs Commission

233,462

81,733

315,195

African-American Affairs Commission

179,527

47,729

227,256

Department of Environmental Quality Council

152,199

50,928

203,127

Judicial Review Council

111,411

25,059

136,470

Judicial Selection Commission

72,356

26,603

98,959

Board of Firearm Permit Examiners

71,306

25,725

97,031

Asian Pacific American Commission

34,113

8,965

43,078

Total

4,374,456,119

1,372,237,985

5,746,694,104

 

For more information on the aforementioned go to Compensation http://transparency.ct.gov/html/searchPayroll.asp

 

 

Billion Dollar State Budget Deficits and High Debt, while

Some State Salaries and Benefits Exceed 300,000 Dlrs and Pensions Exceed 250,000 Dlrs
The Federation of - CT Taxpayer Organizations - Dec 4, 2012