DOLING OUT MONEY IS DIFFICULT, CAN'T PLEASE EVERYONE

Fairfield County is biggest winner under Malloy town aid plan

March 8, 2011

By Keith M. Phaneuf

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's municipal aid plan has hit a snag after an analysis showed 15 percent of all communities--including more than a dozen of Connecticut's poorest--lose funding, while Fairfield County towns are the biggest winners.

The administration conceded this week that this was an unintended consequence of the Democratic governor's bid to protect municipalities from taking a fiscal hit as state officials try to close a $3 billion-plus gap in state finances.

But Democratic lawmakers, who control both the House and Senate, as well as municipal leaders, are pressing the administration to settle on a fix now, noting that most communities will adopt their next budgets at least a month or two before the state's spending plan for 2011-12 is resolved.

"The administration was very receptive in terms of understanding the issue and wanting to rectify it," said Sen.Gary D. LeBeau, D-East Hartford, whose community stands to lose nearly $2.9 million next fiscal year, an amount equal to about 6 percent of its current state aid package. "But we need to find a way to hold these towns harmless and we need to find it soon."

East Hartford, which is ranked 162nd out of the state's 169 towns in terms of wealth based upon both the value of its taxable property and the personal income of its residents, isn't alone.

Of the 27 communities that would lose resources next fiscal year under the Malloy plan, 21 are in the bottom half in terms of wealth, 13 are in the bottom third, and 5 are among the poorest 10.

"The fact of the matter is towns are putting their budgets together now," James Finley, executive director of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, said Friday, adding that absent an immediate solution, many communities might build a loss in state aid into their budget -- and cut vital programs or increase property taxes to cover it. "This is sort of prime time right now."

"This budget is a delicate balancing act and there are no easy answers," Roy Occhiogrosso, Malloy's senior adviser, said Monday. "The governor is trying to find the right mix. Some answers will have to be found along the way and this may be one of them."

Malloy, who inherited a deficit projected between $3.2 billion and $3.67 billion for 2011-12, a gap equal to one-fifth of current spending, said on numerous occasions he hoped to avoid passing that burden onto municipalities, calling the property tax the most regressive levy in Connecticut.

The governor, a former mayor of Stamford, recommended no cuts to the nine major statutory grants to cities and towns, and kept the overall aid level at $2.8 billion in the $19.74 billion budget he proposed for next fiscal year.

That plan would eliminate a $47.9 million program that reimburses communities for a portion of the property taxes they cannot collect on exempt manufacturing equipment and machinery, while maintaining the exemption.

But the governor also wants to provide communities with several new sources of revenue, which are worth an estimated $85 million next fiscal year and $129 million by 2012-13. These come from subjecting aircraft, boats and commercial vehicles to property taxes, doubling a levy on real estate conveyances and sharing a portion of state sales and hotel taxes collected within each community.

The problem, though, is that for some communities, those potential revenue gains aren't enough to counter the lost grant tied to manufacturing.

"This is a pretty significant revenue problem," said Rep. Jeffrey Berger, D-Waterbury, whose community ranks 165 in terms of wealth, yet still stands to lose more than $937,600 next fiscal year.

And an analysis by the administration's budget office showed a second problem that could pose as many political challenges for the governor as fiscal ones: The communities that do benefit the most from this trade-off are among Connecticut's wealthiest.

Greenwich, which ranks first in wealth under the Education Cost Sharing program's formula, gains the most under the governor's plan, picking up an extra $7.1 million next fiscal year.

Malloy's home community of Stamford, which ranks 27th in terms of wealth, enjoys the fourth-highest jump in resources under the governor's plan, gaining just over $2 million.

Among the 12 top winners in the budget are the four wealthiest communities in the state, seven of the top 31, and only one -- West Hartford -- that falls outside of the wealthiest 51.

Sen. L. Scott Frantz, R-Greenwich and a member of the finance committee, said the shift in town aid should be considered in the context of the overall tax burden: Fairfield County has the highest median income in the state, and will bear the brunt of Malloy's proposed increase in income tax rates.

Malloy's budget director, Office of Policy and Management Secretary Benjamin Barnes, told the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee during a public hearing Monday that he was aware of the wealth debate, and optimistic a solution could be found. "I'm not yet come to the conclusion that these issues are so significant that they should undermine our efforts" to close the deficit, he said.

But Barnes also did not offer any timetable for resolving the dispute. Traditionally, the state budget isn't adopted before the final days of the legislative session, and the regular 2011 session adjourns on June 8.

Further complicating matters, Malloy is proposing more than $1.5 billion in new tax hikes, including five new income tax rates topped by a 6.7 percent levy on earnings above $500,000 for singles and $1 million for individuals.

TOP 10 PUBLIC EMPLOYEE SCANDALS ... PLUS ONE FOR NEW FAIRFIELD

Top 10 Public Employee Scandals 03/04/2011 ... what were the top public employee scandals for New Fairfield ... ?

Most of our state and local public employees are undoubtedly upstanding citizens, yet the growing scope of government power leads some to do incredibly selfish things.  Here are the Top 10 Public Employee Scandals:

1.  Prince George’s County corruption:  This Washington, D.C., suburb is a cesspool of corruption.  County Executive Jack Johnson was recently indicted on conspiracy, extortion, and bribery charges relating to a pay-for-play scheme, taking money, trips, meals, drinks, hotel rooms, airline tickets, rounds of golf, mortgage payments, and campaign contributions from developers.  Unrelated to Johnson’s scandal, Ulysses Currie—the state senator representing the Maryland county—was indicted last September for taking $245,000 in bribes.  And Currie’s campaign treasurer Olivia Harris pled guilty to stealing $157,350 from Currie’s campaign account.

2.  Bell , Calif. , salaries:  The mayor and former city manager of Bell , Calif., along with six other city officials, were arrested last year and charged with illegally paying themselves huge salaries.  Bell is a mostly Hispanic working-class town of 40,000 near Los Angeles, yet City Manager Robert Rizzo was receiving an $800,000 salary.  Rizzo, booked on 53 counts of misappropriation of public funds, and the other officials were charged with taking $5.5 million from the city coffers.

3.  Kickbacks for jailed kids:  Former Pennsylvania juvenile court Judge Mark Ciavarella was found guilty of 12 counts of racketeering and conspiracy in February for sending youthful offenders to detention centers in exchange for $2 million in kickbacks from the builder of the for-profit facility.  While the disgraced judge said the money was a “finder’s fee,” the state Supreme Court threw out thousands of juvenile convictions from Ciavarella’s court.
4.  Washington, D.C., shopping spree:  Harriette Walters, a tax assessments manager in Washington, D.C., was sentenced in 2009 to 78 months in prison for approving $48 million in false tax refunds, which she used to go on expensive shopping sprees and to lavish gifts on friends and family members.  Walters, whose annual salary was $81,000, spent more $1.4 million at Neiman Marcus for jewelry, clothing, and designer handbags.

5.  New York pension scandal:  Former New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi pleaded guilty last year to corruption charges for accepting more than $1 million in expenses, fees, and donations from a California businessman in return for allowing the businessman to earn $18 million in fees for investing $250 million of the state’s pension fund.  Despite his guilty plea, Hevesi is allowed to keep his own $105,000 annual pension.

6.  Philadelphia housing authority scandal:  Philadelphia Housing Authority’s Executive Director Carl Greene had to step down from his $300,000-a-year job after using taxpayer dollars to throw wild parties that included belly dancers, and secretly spending $500,000 in agency money to settle four sexual harassment claims against him.  Federal housing officials recently suspended millions of dollars in funding to the agency while investigators unravel the corruption.

7.  New Orleans housing authority scandal:  Elias Castellanos, chief financial officer of the New Orleans Housing Authority, was sentenced to four years in prison for using taxpayer money to buy a million-dollar mansion in Florida.  Castellanos stole $245,217 by padding invoices and $655,710 by submitting invoices under his wife’s maiden name.

8.  Crooked TSA agents:  Two Transportation Security Administration agents were charged with grand larceny, possession of stolen property, and official misconduct for stealing $160,000 in cash from bags at New York’s Kennedy Airport.  Davon Webb, 30, and Couman Perad, 36, who were arrested after stealing $39,000 from a single bag on Jan. 30, admitted to authorities that they swiped cash from checked bags on a regular basis.

9.  Corrupt Dallas cop:  Dallas policewoman Theadora Ross was arrested for stealing $250,000 in rewards meant for people making tips to a Crime Stoppers program.  Her job was to evaluate the tips and select those eligible for the reward.  Instead, she steered the money to a friend and split the proceeds.

10.  Seattle school scam:  Seattle Public Schools spent $1.8 million on a contract for work that was never done.  Silas Potter Jr., who managed the district's small-business program, is being investigated for funneling money to friends and leaders of the Seattle black community, according to the Seattle Times.  Investigators are trying to unravel the corruption, but Potter vanished when asked to talk with auditors.

CLOSER TO HOME ... NEW FAIRFIELD ISN'T A BASTION OF PURITY ... WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW ... BUT I WOULDN'T PUT A LOT OF FAITH ON TAKING THE BET ON THE SIDE OF PURITY AND NO CORRUPTION. 

IF THIS IS ANY INDICATION OF WHAT 'A' FUTURE MAY LOOK LIKE ... THEN ASK YOURSELF ...

WHAT THE LIBRARY OF THE FUTURE WILL BE OFFERING?  DON'T LET THE BABY LAUGHING DISTRACT YOU ... BUT ITS THE BABIES OF TODAY THAT WILL BE USING THESE CONVENIENCES OF TOMORROW.  SO, THE QUESTION STILL STANDS, "WHAT WILL BE THE SERVICES OF TOMORROW'S LIBRARIES?" AND THE FOLLOW UP QUESTION IS, "WHAT WILL THE SCHOOLS OF TOMORROW BE TEACHING?"  NOW IS THE LAUGHING BABY ... LAUGHING AT YOU OR PERHAPS ... A LONG SHOT ... WITH YOU.  IF YOU THINK THE LAUGHING BABY IS LAUGHING WITH YOU ... LOOK HOW FAR AND HOW FAST THE iPHONE AND iPAD HAVE CHANGED THE WAY WE COMMUNICATE AND DEAL WITH MULTIMEDIA COMMUNICATIONS. IT'S THESE BABIES AND THEIR FUTURE WE MUST GUARANTEE! 

UP, UP, AND AWAY ...

Selectman and education officials to present budgets to Board of Finance

John Pirro, Staff Writer

Published 07:40 p.m., Wednesday, March 2, 2011

NEW FAIRFIELD -- Selectman and school officials will present their 2011-12 budget requests to the Board of Finance on Saturday.

The $47.56 million proposal includes a $38.3 million request by the Board of Education, up some $1.8 million from the current fiscal year, and $9.252 million on the town side, a cut of about $300,000.

The finance board will meet weekly to begin whittling away at the proposals before the two packages are submitted to taxpayers, Finance Director Jay Waterman said, which means the estimated tax rate of 24.31 mills -- up 1.03 mills from the current level -- will also come down.

"I don't know how much they can whittle on the town side," said First Selectman John Hodge, noting the budget request from the Board of Selectman represents a .17 percent decrease from the plan taxpayers approved last year.

The town plan makes cuts in appropriations for several departments, including the town clerk, assessor, library, police, fire, and social and senior services.

Payments to intergovernmental agencies and for property and casualty insurance are also lower than the current year. The decreases are partially offset by hikes in spending for the Board of Selectmen, building inspector, and the health and finance departments.

"We've cut the town budget by almost a half-million dollars in the last four years," Hodge said, while at the same time increasing the town's annual surplus.

Part of the reason is the town has taken in some $4.7 million in grants over the same period, he said. "For a town our size, that's a lot."

Contracted services and higher utility costs are responsible for most of the increases in the education budget, Waterman said.

The meeting is set to begin at 9 a.m. in the Community Room of the Senior Center.

Contact John Pirro at jpirro@newstimes.com or 203-731-3342.

'DROP-OUT FACTORIES' AND 'ACADEMIC SINKHOLES' ... HOW DOES THIS TRANSLATE INTO MONEY?

PREVIEW OF WAITING FOR SUPERMAN ... <<-- CLICK HERE
Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim reminds us that education "statistics" have names: Anthony, Francisco, Bianca, Daisy, and Emily, whose stories make up the engrossing foundation of WAITING FOR SUPERMAN. As he follows a handful of promising kids through a system that inhibits, rather than encourages, academic growth, Guggenheim undertakes an exhaustive review of public education, surveying "drop-out factories" and "academic sinkholes," methodically dissecting the system and its seemingly intractable problems.
Or, more specifically, how we've generally failed to educate our children.

Equal parts sickening, fascinating, and inspiring, 'Waiting for 'Superman'' (the title refers to a child's dream of being rescued) takes firm aim at our national education system and asks a few simple but angry questions. Like, for example, how can one of the richest and most privileged countries in the world fail so resoundingly at educating its youngest generations? How long must our system fracture before someone comes up with a plan that actually works? Why do so many politicians promise education reforms ... but practically never follow through? And, perhaps most importantly, what can a dedicated parent actually DO to help ensure their kids a legitimate and high-quality education?

Guggenheim makes his points by introducing us to all sorts of people who are directly affected by our floundering education system -- and for the most part, it's just not pretty. We meet Washington D.C. Education Chief Michelle Rhee, who has some revolutionary new ideas on how to keep teachers happy and inspired ... but the teachers' union doesn't like them. We get to know a small handful of great kids, all of whom seem smart and sweet and dedicated ... oh, but there simply isn't enough room for those kids at the (relatively) local charter school.

And then there are the chalkboard heroes: the average hard-working educators who are sincerely and passionately dedicated to educating our young ... who are constantly short on resources, egregiously underpaid, and unacceptably under-appreciated. One interview subject, a teacher named Canada, is so effortlessly inspiring and simply noble that he may inspire your own kids to become an educator. The only place a man like this can make a difference is in a charter school, which (obviously) has a rather high enrollment list, and therefore its pupils must be chosen by lottery.

Imagine being the low-income parent who must entrust her child's secondary education to a bunch of bouncing lottery balls. A country that spends billions on weapons but comparatively little on the education of our future leaders ... well, you do the math. And Guggenheim captures it all: the overworked and well-intentioned teachers, the beleaguered bureaucrats, the desperate parents, and the confused kids. Waiting for Superman works well enough as a basic primer on how our education system got so damn broken in the first place, but it also offers some ideas and hopes for the future of American education.

Full of refreshingly honest insights and some powerfully upsetting statistics, the film seems angry and critical, but never hopeless. We'd like to think that every kid in America has his own fair shot at a strong education ... but we know they don't. Not really. Movies like Waiting for Superman would like to change that.