Rell letting budget plan through unsigned

Gov. M. Jodi Rell said today the legislature’s $37.6 billion spending proposal will become law in five days, but without her signature.

Rell said, however, she will use her line-item veto power to strip away “pork-barrel” spending in the measure.

“Democrats have repeatedly called this budget a ‘compromise,'” Rell said at a news conference on the Capitol steps. “It is hardly a compromise.”

She said the new budget “calls for more borrowing and vague plans for future savings.”

Following the House vote Monday, the Senate voted to accept the spending plan in the early hours Tuesday morning.

Reader response:

“When are our solitaire playing, baseball game watching legislature going to wake up and realize that the state does not need more borrowing and more spending? The size of state government is huge and needs to be cut back. In the private sector costs have to be scaled back whenever revenues are reduced in order to survive. The taxpayers are getting fed up with ever increasing spending with no thought given to scaling back. Any legislature who voted for this budget should be turned out of office. However, as long as Democrats have the backing of the unions, nothing meaningful will be done to cut down the size of state government.” — Adrian L Bludeau CPA, P.C.

“In all due respect, our elected officials have no respect for the people of CT who are paying the dear price of this horrible economy, and adding a tax and spend budget to add insult to injury. People are out of work, losing their home, left uninsured, and the state continues to spend like the good times are rolling. Increasing the income tax for higher earners (thank God we still have them, as they are the only ones spending) hurts both individuals and business. Add to that our outrageous property tax burdens and sales tax, it is becoming prohibitively expensive to live here. We used to call Massachusetts taxachsetts, but Connecticut has long been placing higher tax burdens on their citizens and this is getting outrageous. No wonder Harry Gray became a Floridian! No wonder we can’t attract business or keep our young people. It is time to vote them all out. Good for you Jody for not signing and use that red pen to delete all the pork!” — Mary