Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

Transparency in Connecticut began with the Yankee Institute.� It was then followed by the State due to a proposal by Former Farmington State Representative Demetrios S. Giannaros and last week East Hartford Mayor Marcia Leclerc launched a local transparency project providing her constituents with� Taxable Wages, Budgeted Wages, 2011 Base Pay, Medical Costs and Town Checkbook on the town�s website. As the former Mayor of East Hartford and current President of FCTO who had made the proposal to Mayor Leclerc, I want to commend her for her leadership in beginning what the Federation hopes will be the catalyst for all Connecticut towns to follow.� It is now incumbent upon taxpayers within all Connecticut towns to encourage their local elected officials to provide similar transparency.� ��Please click on the following heading for further information�..� Susan Kniep

Leaders in Government Transparency in Connecticut

The Yankee Institute, Former Farmington State Representative Demetrios S. Giannaros, and East Hartford Mayor Marcia Leclerc
The Federation of Connecticut - Taxpayer Organizations - Oct 9, 2011

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Did Your School Succeed or Fail?

Click on State, District and School NCLB Results

Then Select Your District or Town and View Results

For More Information on NCLB Click on

No Child Left Behind - Csde.state.ct.us

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9 American cities going broke

Retirements Increase Need For State Worker �Double Dipping�

Gallery: The Most and Least Taxing States to Live and Retire In � Connecticut is Number 1 �by Joel Stonington� Bloomberg� Thursday, October 6, 2011� States facing shrinking revenues approved $23.9 billion in new taxes and fees in 2010. They imposed a further $6.2 billion in taxes in 2011 and proposed $13.8 billion in new taxes for 2012, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers. "Many jurisdictions, many states, many counties, are broke," said Carol Kokinis-Graves, senior writer analyst at Riverwoods (Ill.)-based tax and accounting firm CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business. Along with cutting services, states are getting creative in finding additional revenues. (Think: taxes on yoga classes and lots more "sin" taxes.)�. Does your state lead the pack in levying taxes on income, property, consumption, inheritance, and whatever else it can dream up? Read on to see which states make you pay the most � and the least.� Continued at �.

http://finance.yahoo.com/retirement/article/113611/most-least-taxing-states-bloomberg

Nobel Peace Prize goes to 3 women activists, including Liberia's Sirleaf� By Hannah Allam, Shashank Bengali and Adam Baron� McClatchy Newspapers Oct. 7, 2011 ��"The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded Friday to three women activists, two from Liberia and one from Yemen, in recognition of their nonviolent campaigns toward peace and women's rights in conflict zones. The 2011 laureates are: Africa's first democratically elected female president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, of Liberia; Leymah Gwobee, also of Liberia; and Tawakkul Karman, a Yemeni civil society campaigner." Continued at �.. http://www.sacbee.com/2011/10/07/3967382/3-women-activists-including-liberias.html

The 2013 Tax Cliff Business had better enjoy the next 16 months.

Wall St Journal� President Obama unveiled part two of his American Jobs Act on Monday, and it turns out to be another permanent increase in taxes to pay for more spending and another temporary tax cut. No surprise there. What might surprise Americans, however, is how the President is setting up the U.S. economy for one of the biggest tax increases in history in 2013. Continued at �. http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424053111904353504576567460396287134-lMyQjAxMTAxMDAwODEwNDgyWj.html?mod=wsj_share_email

OP-ED | Fox Knocking On Henhouse Door by Terry Cowgill Oct 8, 2011 Who should decide whether a teaching candidate is professionally fit to preside over a classroom in Connecticut�s public schools? Continued at � http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/op-ed_fox_knocking_on_henhouse_door_cea_wants_to_set_teaching_standards/

From Citizens Against Government Waste

Click to read �.. October Wastewatcher and

CAGW Releases Analysis of Senate Defense Bill

Public Pensions Wrestle With Return Rates (Michael Corkery / Wall Street Journal)

New pension rules will nearly double debt on Connecticut�s ...

balance sheet By Zachary Janowski - Connecticut owes its employees billions of dollars in future pension benefits, a fact that is currently hidden in the footnotes of its financial reports, but a few changes on the way will make these debts more transparent. In addition to the money invested in the state�s pension funds, Connecticut owes employees about $25 billion in future pensions. Adding this deficit to the balance sheet will nearly double the state�s liabilities from $32 billion to $57 billion. Connecticut already has more liabilities than assets. The state�s net assets will fall from negative $9.3 billion to negative $34.3 billion. Continued at �. http://www.raisinghale.com/2011/09/30/new-pension-rules-will-nearly-double-debt/

Banks Repay TARP With Funds Meant to Spur Small-Business Loans ... Oct 6, 2011,� Wall St Journal, BY EMILY MALTBY AND ANGUS LOTEN

More than half of $4 billion in federal funds disbursed this year to spur small-business lending by community banks was used to repay bailout funds that the banks received under the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The Small Business Lending Fund was meant to raise capital at smaller banks, which tend to lend more heavily to small businesses, in the hopes of jump-starting growth and employment. But instead of directly lending to small businesses, many of the banks used the money to rid themselves of higher-cost TARP debt and tougher restrictions. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204138204576603100469929700.html

Robert Reich: Follow the Money: Behind Europe's Debt Crisis Lurks ...� �Another Giant Bailout of Wall Street Big Wall Street banks have lent German and French banks a bundle.� The Street's total exposure to the euro zone totals about $2.7 trillion. Its exposure to to France and Germany accounts for nearly half the total.� And it's not just Wall Street's loans to German and French banks that are worrisome. Wall Street has also insured or bet on all sorts of derivatives emanating from Europe -- on energy, currency, interest rates, and foreign exchange swaps. If a German or French bank goes down, the ripple effects are incalculable.� Read complete article at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-reich/europe-debt-crisis_b_996528.html

Secret panel can put Americans on "kill list'

By Mark Hosenball | Reuters � Thu, Oct 6, 2011 American militants like Anwar al-Awlaki are placed on a kill or capture list by a secretive panel of senior government officials, which then informs the president of its decisions, according to officials.

There is no public record of the operations or decisions of the panel, which is a subset of the White House's National Security Council, several current and former officials said. Neither is there any law establishing its existence or setting out the rules by which it is supposed to operate. �Continued at �. http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/10/06/us-cia-killlist-idUKTRE79475C20111006

4 generator failures hit US nuclear plants� Oct 9, 2011 AP

ATLANTA (AP) -- Four generators that power emergency systems at nuclear plants have failed when needed since April, an unusual cluster that has attracted the attention of federal inspectors and could prompt the industry to re-examine its maintenance plans. Continued at �.. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_NUCLEAR_PLANTS_GENERATORS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-10-09-13-11-36

The Multibillion-Dollar Leak Draft of 'Volcker Rule' Hits Internet, Rocking Wall Street, Washington; 'Proprietary Trading' on Line� By SCOTT PATTERSON And VICTORIA MCGRANE Wall St Journal Oct 7, 2011� Bankers, lobbyists and lawmakers from Wall Street to Washington scrambled to dissect, analyze and react to a leaked proposal - View Document - for one of the most controversial elements of the Dodd-Frank financial-overhaul law: the "Volcker rule."� Billions of dollars are at stake for big banks, which have been working for months to shape the rule aimed at curbing risky trading activities that played a part in the financial crisis.� The latest frenzy erupted late Wednesday when a website posted a 205-page draft of a memo, dated Sept. 30, that laid out critical elements of the proposed Volcker rule. Continued at �.. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204294504576615382298044922.html

Top court upholds Soros insider conviction

State tax revenue falters as economy weakens�� CNNMoney.com By Tami Luhby October 7, 2011 This spring, hopeful that the national economy was gaining strength, state officials built a budget that relied on tax revenues jumping by $4 billion during its 2011-13 budget. But last month, State Economist Arun Raha lowered that forecast by $1.4 billion after seeing the economy deteriorate over the summer. Also weighing on his assessment were the European debt crisis and political gridlock in the nation's capital.� Continued at �.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/07/news/economy/state_tax_revenue/index.htm

For the first time in years, charitable contributions to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have been down by almost 10 percent

The children of St. Jude need your help

Shortfall for State and Local Public Pension Systems Today: Over $4 Trillion (blog - Josh Rauh / Kellogg Finance)

New $1.4 Trillion US Stimulus Is in Sight: Douglas Holtz-Eakin� Bloomberg Business Week� Oct 7, 2011 �.. Why not try a new direction in economic policy? There is bipartisan consensus that the private sector -- not the government -- is the key to more jobs and faster growth. Obama is on record saying the private sector needs to be �the main engine of job creation.� Similarly, House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor argue that �we must dedicate ourselves to pro-growth policies that help create middle-class jobs, make it easier for existing businesses to thrive and allow more start-up companies to flourish.�� So it is mysterious that Congress and the president haven�t done more to unleash a potent force for faster economic growth: a reduced tax on repatriated earnings, or the profits U.S. companies are holding abroad that are exempt from federal income taxes. One proposal, the House Freedom to Invest Act of 2011, would reduce the tax on repatriated dollars to a maximum of 5.25 percent (from 35 percent). A similar bill was introduced in the Senate yesterday by Republican John McCain and Democrat Kay Hagan that would let companies bring profits back to the U.S. at an 8.75 percent tax rate, or 5.25 percent if they increase their payrolls by a specified amount. Continued at �.. http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-10-07/new-1-4-trillion-u-s-stimulus-is-in-sight-douglas-holtz-eakin.html

Unemployed risk a permanent pay cut By Chris Isidore at CNNMoney.com October 8, 2011It's common to take a pay cut after a job loss. But the reduced income is likely to be permanent for workers who become unemployed during an economic downturn, a new study from the Brookings Institution shows. Of workers who lost a job during a time of high unemployment (and had been on the job for three years or more), 75% were still earning less than they did before their job loss, even 20 years later, according to the study. The pay hit is likely to be about $112,000 on average, or 19% of their lifetime earnings. Continued at �. http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/06/news/economy/unemployed_income/index.htm

17 Countries, but Even More Unknowns�

By GRETCHEN MORGENSON

Despite assurances from the Treasury secretary and others, investors still know little about the risks of American banks� exposure to Europe�s woes.

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WALL STREET PROTESTS

'Occupy Wall Street' comes to Hartford

Cantor Decries �Growing Mobs� as Wall Street Protests Spread

Wall Street, Heal Thyself� The smartest way for bankers to defuse their critics is to listen to them

Anti-Wall Street Protests Ignore Legitimate Gripe: Caroline Baum

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Local government jobs evaporate By Tami Luhby , CNNMoney.com, October 7, 2011 Educators and other local government workers are not celebrating the rosier-than-expected jobs report released Friday. While the nation added 103,000 jobs last month, public schools lost 24,400 positions -- the most of any category. Local government in total shed 35,000 jobs. Continued At �.. http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/07/news/economy/local_government_jobs/index.htm

An Ugly Forecast That�s Been Right Before ��By JEFF SOMMER New York Times� Oct 8, 2011

The Economic Cycle Research Institute, whose predictions have an excellent track record, says the nation may already be in another recession.�� Continued at �.. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/09/your-money/a-recession-forecast-that-has-been-reliable-before.html?_r=1&ref=business

Controversial decision awaits as hearings on oil sands pipeline ends Renee Schoof, McClatchy Newspapers, October 7, 2011: "With the formal debate over on Friday, a decision on an oil pipeline that will cross America's heartland and open up a greater market for Canada's oil sands now rests with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In the last of nine public hearings, people got three minutes each to tell two State Department officials their views about whether the pipeline from the oil sands to Texas refineries is in the nation's best interest."� Continued at �. http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/10/07/126569/controversial-decision-awaits.html

Clamping Down on Rapid Trades in Stock Market ��By GRAHAM BOWLEY NY Times� Oct 8, 2011� Regulators are weighing rules to rein in high-speed, computerized trading, and Europe, Canada and the United States are considering fees aimed at limiting trading volume. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/09/business/clamping-down-on-rapid-trades-in-stock-market.html?ref=business

Our Guide to Obama's Floundering Foreclosure Programs by Lois Beckett | @loisbeckett ProPublica� The Obama administration's efforts to address the foreclosure crisis have resulted in struggling programs, recycled ideas and little chance of significant improvement. Continued at �. http://www.propublica.org/article/our-guide-to-obamas-floundering-foreclosure-programs

More coverage: Eye on Loan Modifications

Fukushima nuclear plant worker dies

Solyndra loan deal: Warning about legality came from �� within Obama administration By Joe Stephens and Carol D. Leonnig, Energy Department officials were warned that their plan to help a failing solar company by restructuring its $535 million federal loan could violate the law and should be cleared with the Justice Department, according to newly obtained e-mails from within the Obama administration. The e-mails show that Energy Department officials moved ahead anyway with a new deal that would repay company investors before taxpayers if the company defaulted. The e-mails, which were reviewed by The Washington Post, show for the first time concerns within the administration about the legality of the Energy Department�s extraordinary efforts to help Solyndra, the California solar company that went bankrupt Aug. 31.� Continued at �. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/solyndra-obama-and-rahm-emanuel-pushed-to-spotlight-energy-company/2011/10/07/gIQACDqSTL_story.html