House Republican Press Release

March 16, 2005

Press Office: 860-240-8700

Rep. DelGobbo Urges Rewrite of Bill That Tramples State Constitutional Spending Cap

Says Legislation is Slap in the Face of 80 percent of Statewide Voters Who Approved Spending Cap

NAUGATUCK—State Representative Kevin M. DelGobbo (R-70^th, Naugatuck) today urged the legislative majority to rewrite legislation, S.B. 707, that would trample the state spending cap approved by 80 percent of Connecticut voters statewide.

“Right now, the legislature is considering a proposal to ignore the constitutional spending cap by a simple legislative vote,” said Rep. DelGobbo. “This is a testament to the General Assembly’s willful disregard of the voters of this state. The statewide referendum we all supported in 1992 directed that the spending cap be included in our state constitution for all time, not some law that the legislature could repeal at its whim.”

DelGobbo noted the proposed legislation would create a $14 a day nursing home users tax in hopes of increasing federal reimbursement to the state for Medicaid nursing home patients by $119 million per year. In turn, the state would increase payments to nursing home operators—but exempt those payments from the state spending cap.

Rep. DelGobbo said “The spending cap requires a declaration of exigency by the governor and a three-fifths vote by the legislature before it can be exceeded. The spending cap should not be disregarded with the wink of an eye, but only by specific procedures in special cases.”

Rep. DelGobbo said the legislature also could reduce spending elsewhere so it stays under the spending cap when it increases payments to nursing homes.

He added, “The basic truth is this: disregarding the constitutional spending cap inevitably will mean higher taxes on already overburdened Connecticut families and small businesses. It will mean more jobs leaving our state. It will perpetuate an unsustainable budget framework that hurts every citizen. This is what voters feared in 1992. Not only would we face a personal income tax, but other higher taxes as well.”

“If the legislature throws out the spending cap on this issue, where does it end?” asked Rep. DelGobbo. “We must never return to runaway budget increases of 10 percent or more that the legislature approved before voters adopted the constitutional spending cap in 1992.”

State Rep. Kevin DelGobbo represents the 70^th Assembly District including part of Naugatuck in the state House of Representatives.