Rosenthal Presses Campaign

For More State Aid

By Steve Bigham

Andrea Spencer of Grand Place joined many other Newtown residents this week when she pulled out her pen and paper and began writing her state legislators. She was acting on a request from First Selectman Herb Rosenthal, who this week urged people to let their voices be heard.

“We need to let Hartford know that it can not continue to place such a huge tax burden on the local property owner,” Mr Rosenthal said during Tuesday’s public hearing on the budget. “Unfortunately, our Legislative Council and town officials end up being the whipping boys for the failures of the state.”

The comments resonated with Mrs Spencer, the mother of two school-age children. As she explained this week, the under-funding of the Newtown school system has reached an all-time low, almost to the point where she is now considering sending her kids to private school.

“I want to reach out to those who can make a difference. To have 27 kids in a classroom is just unacceptable. Class size is a big issue and now they’re going to cut out four teachers from the budget. I’m looking into the Sylvan Learning Center and other private schools,” Mrs Spencer said. “I have a lot to say. I’m fuming.”

But there may be good news on the horizon. This week, Mr Rosenthal testified on behalf of a proposal coming out of State Controller Nancy Wyman’s office that, if approved by the senate, would provide Newtown with $303,000 in additional revenue sharing funds for next year. The proposed Bill 1376 calls for the state to disperse $41 million worth of surplus to the municipalities. Last year, the state handed out $34 million in surplus. In January, however, Gov John Rowland’s budget proposal did not include any revenue sharing provisions.

The official name of the proposed bill is “An act concerning the budget reserve fund.”

Mr Rosenthal has been working closely with the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM), which is working hard to promote the idea of providing more revenue to the towns.

“We probably won’t know [if the bill will be approved] until June 6 at earliest. Everything I’m hearing is that some form of revenue sharing will be made available,” Mr Rosenthal said.

However, that money will not likely be added to the Board of Education’s operating budget, although it could be used to fund major repairs to the NHS athletic fields. CCM has suggested that towns use the money for capital projects because towns will only get revenue sharing money when the state has a surplus.

“If you used it in the operating budget and then didn’t get that money the following year then you might have to start in the hole one year,” Mr Rosenthal explained. “I’m going to recommend to the selectmen and council that we increase the revenue side of the budget by $300,000 and also increase the appropriation in the cap reserve fund. That way if we get the revenue we can put it in there. If we don’t get it, we don’t spend it, so we haven’t hurt ourselves.”

There is a second item being discussed in Hartford these days that, if approved, would bring in as much as $171,000 directly to the Board of Education. The bill has to do with special education funding and the rate at which the state reimburses towns.

“Right now we have to spend $35,000 before we get reimbursed by the state. That’s five times our tuition costs. The proposed bill would reduce that to $21,000 [or three times the school district’s average per-pupil expenditure], and anything above that would be reimbursed.”

“This one keeps going back and forth. It almost passed in the last session. There is a lot of support for it,” Mr Rosenthal said. “At one time I thought it looked very good. Now it’s more like 50-50, but it will pass if there’s enough pressure brought to bear.”

Gov Rowland has not only proposed no increase in state reimbursements for local costs for special education, but also proposes to cut the Special Education Equity grant by 50 percent ($5.75 million).

A third proposal would give Newtown an additional $62,000 in state aid from the Mashantucket Pequot Fund. Gov Rowland had proposed cutting this funding out, as well, but state legislators are reportedly against the idea.

In addition, Mr Rosenthal said residents should tell their state legislators to expedite the removal of the funding cap on the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) Grant. Since 1995, the amount that each town’s allotment under the ECS Grant can grow each year has been capped. This means that grants to towns with growing enrollments or declining wealth have fallen significantly below the intended level. For 2000-2001, the six percent ECS funding cap is denying $116.7 million in state education aid to 96 cities and towns. No community can receive a year-to-year increase beyond what the cap allows. The cap is scheduled to be eliminated in 2003-2004.

Mr Rosenthal said residents should also request that money be increased in the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) grants.

Email Addresses

The following is a list of names and email addresses of key legislators in Hartford:

Senate Leadership:

President Pro Tempore: Senator Kevin Sullivan

Kevin.B.Sullivan@po.state.ct.us

Majority Leader: Senator George Jepson

Jepson@senatedems.state.ct.us

Minority Leader Senator Louis DeLuca

Louis.DeLuca@po.state.ct.us

 

House Leadership:

Speaker of the House: Rep Moira Lyons

Moira.Lyons@po.state.ct.us

Majority Leader: Rep David Pudlin

Dave.Pudlin@po.state.ct.us

Minority Leader: Robert Ward

Roberts.Ward@housegop.state.ct.us

Local Legislators:

Senator John McKinney

John.McKinney@po.state.ct.us

Representative John Stripp

John.Stripp@housegop.state.ct.us

Representative Pat Shea

Pat.Shea@housegop.state.ct.us

Representative Julia Wasserman

Julia.Wasserman@housegop.state.ct.us