🔒Lawmakers need more power over state employee contracts

State employee unions approved a concessions package last week that will purportedly save the state nearly $1.6 billion over two years.

Kudos to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the state employees who agreed to the deal, which requires wage freezes, furloughs and health and pension benefit adjustments in exchange for layoff exemptions and an extension to state employees' current benefits contract.

But while the Democratic governor and his strong base of union supporters celebrate their short-term victory, the deal is a bad one for the state long term.

Not only does it prolong generous healthcare and other benefit contracts (which were set to expire in 2022 but would be extended to 2027) it also guarantees 3.5 percent wage hikes in 2020 and 2021.

No evidence exists that Connecticut will be in a position to guarantee pay increases four or five years from now. In fact, our fiscal crisis is far from over, and any budget agreed to this year likely won't solve our long-term problems.

Rising debt and retiree pension and healthcare benefit costs will saddle the state with fiscal stress for years to come. Lawmakers must have the flexibility and power to deal with this without being held hostage by guaranteed labor contracts.

The only way to truly reform state government is to eliminate contract negotiations with state employee unions and allow legislators, who supposedly represent the interests of taxpayers, to vote on wage and benefit changes.

Any business that operated like state government has for decades — allowing generous short- and long-term benefits to politically powerful groups without adequately saving for them — would be bankrupt, which Connecticut arguably is.

CT’s crossroads

To be clear, we don't dispute that the state needs government employees to carry out taxpayer business and services. There are many hardworking state employees who deserve our thanks.

However, Connecticut is at a crossroads and there may soon be no turning back, at least not for decades to come. We are losing population, wealth and businesses. Major tax hikes passed within the last seven years have had the opposite effect — we are bleeding state revenue instead of gaining it. Meantime, rising debt and legacy costs are forcing us to cut important services and underinvest in key areas like transportation and infrastructure.

Property taxes, which are already among the most onerous in the nation, are poised to increase for many communities as municipal aid ebbs. Indeed, the very high quality of life Connecticut has been known for is at risk. Increasing taxes, as many union leaders have called for, will only exacerbate Connecticut's decline.

This is no longer just a political argument — we must deal with economic reality.

There were some positive steps taken as part of the recent concessions deal, which still needs legislative approval. The agreement, for example, requires workers to pay more for their healthcare and pension benefits and creates a hybrid pension/defined-contribution plan for future employees.

But it only makes a dent in closing a projected $5.1 billion deficit over the next two years and doesn't go far enough in changing the state's long-term trajectory. More importantly, we can no longer afford to be straightjacketed by long-term contract agreements.

We understand there are potential legal pitfalls in reducing or eliminating collective bargaining rights, but we need political leaders willing to take those calculated risks.

We need a government that works for taxpayers first, and puts the interests of our state's long-term fiscal and economic health ahead of powerful state employee unions.