By Patrice Peterson
After 15 town hall forums, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has gotten an earful from the people of Connecticut about his proposed budget. Still, the question remains: What would a better budget for middle-class families and small businesses in our state look like?
From Bridgeport to Windham, state employees — from snowplow drivers to social service workers — have attended every forum to talk about working family priorities. Here is what we have said:
We all know that Connecticut has more than a budget problem. We have an economic crisis caused by Wall Street and big bankers. So middle-class families and small business owners should not have to bear the brunt of solving this crisis.
Yes, those at the very top, big businesses and the superrich who rely on our state’s schools, universities, transportation infrastructure, police and fire protection, and other public services are not pitching in. They should contribute their fair share of the taxes to build and maintain the systems and structures we all count on, just as ordinary citizens of Connecticut do.
But, we know that a better budget should do more than ask those at the very top to pay more to support our quality of life. To create jobs, preserve public services, and grow our economy, we need Wall Street and big corporations to change their destructive ways.
We need banks to freeze foreclosures and offer loan modifications to underwater homeowners. Not only will that help middle-class families stay in their homes, it will stem the downward slide of property values in neighborhoods across the state.
More than 80,000 Connecticut homes are projected to fall into foreclosure in the next two years, and 12 percent of homeowners owe more than their homes are now worth. It will cost local communities an estimated $1.5 billion to clean up the devastation that these foreclosures will unleash.
We need big banks to expand small business lending. They should offer neighborhood employers quality, affordable loans instead of promoting predatory credit cards.
The reality is that small businesses create most of the jobs here in Connecticut. But they pay a much higher share of their income in taxes than big corporations, who benefit from special breaks and subsidies.
Bank of America, for example, has choked off lending to small businesses in Connecticut. They made only two loans through the Small Business Administration’s main program last year, for a total investment of less than $75,000.
Governor Malloy and the legislature can do more to get the banks and investment firms we bailed out in 2008 to step up. They should move them to loan some of the billions these corporations are sitting on and help grow good jobs here in Connecticut.
At the same time, discussions over cost savings proposed by the leaders and front-line members of our unions are continuing. At each of his forums, we have told the governor that state government can reduce taxpayer expenses without cutting public services.
We’re willing to partner with the governor and the legislature to take on the well-funded corporate interests who have stood in the way of reform. However, we will not hesitate to stand up for services that people in our state need.
We’ve always done our part in sharing in the sacrifices necessary to help get Connecticut out of past economic crises. But middle-class families and small business owners should not be asked to contribute more than big banks and CEOs to rebuild our broken economy.
As public service employees, we know that we have good ideas about how to cut costs, improve efficiency, and still provide high-quality services.Â
What we want to know is what the governor is willing to do to make sure that big corporations pay their fair share to help solve the crisis they caused.
Patrice Peterson is an adult developmental disabilities teacher with the State of Connecticut and president of CSEA/SEIU Local 2001, one of the 13 unions in the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC).
