Ken Dixon's Blog-O-Rama

Lou Jacobson at Governing/Politics http://bit.ly/cyiGMe
has just posted an article in which he predicts “ominous” times for Democrats in various state attorney general races around the country, included a color coded map of the US. Too bad in the little capsule accompanying his Connecticut prediction (leaning Democratic for George Jepsen over Republican Martha Dean) he refers to Attorney General Dick Blumenthal’s departure as a result of his run for “governor.” Does Dan Malloy know this? Jacobson got it right in the body copy, but…..Oh wait, Jepsen is the former state Senate majority leader, not House. Details…Details..Hey standards for accuracy on the Web are overrated.

“Five-term Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is running for the U.S. Senate. The favorite is Democrat George Jepsen, a former state House majority leader, state party chairman and unsuccessful lieutenant governor candidate. Attorney Martha Dean, who’s running from the right, won the GOP convention endorsement and the primary by a 60-40 margin over moderate Ross Garber. In moderate-to-liberal Connecticut, Jepsen is a strong favorite, though given the turbulence of this election cycle, nothing’s out of the realm of possibility.”

The Blogster, following up on a report last week on the hefty $180 million in damages to public health and property done by deer in Fairfield County each year, had the opportunity to test the two major gubernatorial candidates on the issue. They were vaguely interested, if under-informed. Let’s face it: they want to get elected and asking about deer is way, way out of their comfort zones of “jobs and the economy.” So if you live in a town where there are 60 deer per square mile and you need 10 to 12 per square mile to stop the proliferation of deer ticks that carry Lyme disease, you should go out of your way and ask the candidates (including Independent Tom Marsh, who is on the November ballot) about it when you see them in the field and ask for them to promise to address the problem, possibly by approving a measly $25,000 to subsidize butchering deer that hunters want to donate to food banks; or funding contraception efforts. And yes, chances are, over the next two-months-plus, they will visit your town or city because they want your vote. 

Malloy lives in the Shippan area of Stamford, a peninsula on Long Island Sound that deer can access only by strolling through downtown, or trundling up Cove Road from Cove Island, down the hill to Cummings Park and beyond, into the plush neighborhood. Foley’s Hogwarts-style property in Greenwich has a large pond, or moat, as the Blogster likes to tell him, in the back to possibly thwart deer invasions. The Blogster ambushed Foley and Malloy on the issue last week after speaking with them on another topic.  

Malloy on deer: “I don’t really have an answer. We have to distinguish between what’s a nuisance and a public safety hazard. Some are concerned about safety because they do present a hazard. They are also associated with Lyme disease. Those are the concerns I’m concerned about.” He says he’s “open-minded” about the issue, though. “I’m more focused about restoring jobs and getting the economy going. We’’ll get to the deer problems after that.”

Foley: “There have been some substantial attempts in a passive fashion that have not been particularly effective. There’s always a conflict. Do you take the deer down or not? Do you extend the hunting season? Generally speaking I’m not strong advocate of shooting, or killing… I’m not  anti-deer, nor pro deer. There are certain instances when we should remove them. I know a lot of people infected with Lyme disease.”

In the realm of follow-ups on the gubernatorial trail, the Blogster recalls visiting the home of Ned Lamont back when he was a candidate for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, and noticed that Lamont’s Greenwich manse was surrounded by the kind of anti-deer netting that can cost tens of thousands of dollars, but keeps the critters out of the day-lily bed. But not everyone’s great-grandfather was J.P. Morgan’s right-hand man and can afford it.

The Blogster made a point of following up on Chester First Selectman Tom Marsh’s pre-gubernatorial primary promise to kids at Stamford’s Yerwood Center to give them ice cream on August 10, primary day. Speaking after a mock debate among teams at the West Side community center representing the then 6 candidates, Marsh, a former Republican, announced that since he wasn’t on the primary ballot, kids could eat ice cream that day at his expense. Well, the childrens had something else going on August 10, but Marsh, his wife and his running mate, Waterbury Alderman Cicero Bookerand his wife, recently had a party there for about 40 kids, including chocolate syrup, whipped cream and sprinkly things that Marsh said today are still being consumed in his household. ”We made sundaes and went through 6 gallons in about 20 minutes,” said Marsh. “I would call that a success. My scooping experience from working as a kid at Friendly’s Ice Cream for a summer came in handy.” And thus, Marsh becomes the first gubernatorial candidate to come through with a campaign promise.It only cost him about $75, too.  Next thing you know, he’ll be invited to more than two gubernatorial debates (UConn/CT Daily Newspaper debate October 20 in Storrs; NAACP debate in Stamford October 29). “I think there’s an old political adage that says if you buy people ice cream, you get elected,” Marsh told the Blogser this afternoon in the Capitol parking lot, leaning against his top-down 1992 Jaguar XJS, which he bought used for a fraction of its original cost. That’s wishful thinking.

 State Sens. Ed Gomes of Bridgeport and Anthony Musto of Trumbull, two Democrats, will meet this afternoon to discuss the various tactics and programs that troubled homeowners can use to avoid losing their properties to foreclosure. Also discussing the issue will be Joe Carbone of The Workplace Inc., Jeff Gentes of the Connecticut Fair Housing Center, Todd Fagan of the Housing development Fund and the Rev. Carl McCluster of Homes Saved by Faith. The event will begin at 1 p.m. at The Workplace, 350 Fairfield Avenue. The state is ranked 20th nationally for foreclosure rates and Bridgeport has the highest rate of foreclosures in Connecticut.

 Connecticut’s Congressional delegation has asked President Obama to declare Fairfield County a major disaster area from the June 24 tornado in order to make federal aid available to Bridgeport and Stratford residents, businesses and municipalities.

Here’s the letter, dated Monday: 

“The Honorable Barack Obama

The President of the United States

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We write in strong support of the request submitted by the State of Connecticut on August 20, 2010 for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to declare a major disaster for Fairfield County as a result of severe weather, including a tornado, which occurred on June 24, 2010.  The impacted communities will require both Individual and Public Assistance to recover from the severity and magnitude of the damages.

According to the National Weather Service, an EF 1 Tornado touched down in the City of Bridgeport with winds of at least 100 miles per hour and severe storms impacting neighboring communities, including Stratford and Trumbull.  An example of the tornado’s concentrated damage can be measured in Bridgeport, where nine buildings were partially or fully collapsed, including at least three that were destroyed to their foundation.  Fifty Bridgeport families, mostly renters without insurance, were left temporarily homeless. Some roads within the city still remain closed.

The damages, which are mostly localized in Bridgeport and Stratford, are estimated to exceed $3 million.  Since Connecticut does not have a county government, the financial burden falls disproportionately on the state and these municipalities.  By the State of Connecticut’s estimates, the damage amounts to $15.27 per capita in Bridgeport and $16.91 per capita in Stratford—figures more than five times the current per capita county indicator for federal disaster assistance and more than 12 times the statewide indicator.

The City of Bridgeport is one of the most economically distressed communities in the country.  While the unemployment rate in Fairfield County is 8.0 percent, the City of Bridgeport faces a striking 13.7 percent.  In the East Side of Bridgeport, where the tornado touched down and caused some of the most devastating damage, 42 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.

The severity of damage and the impact on families and businesses in Bridgeport and Stratford is sizable.  Their recovery efforts are compounded by March’s storms and flooding across the state, which was declared a major disaster.  Connecticut is in desperate need of federal assistance to respond to this severe weather event that will only become available with the declaration of a major disaster. Therefore, we strongly support the State’s request for federal assistance and urge you to make this declaration.

We appreciate your consideration and timely attention to this request on behalf of the people of Connecticut.

Sincerely,

Christopher J. Dodd
Joseph I. Lieberman
Jim Himes

Rosa L. DeLauro
John B. Larson
Joe Courtney
Christopher S. Murphy”

The Tax Foundation today released a new report on what states raised – or reduced – which taxes this year and for a change, Connecticut is mentioned only in passing for having its sales-tax-free week, which just ended in the run-up to back to school. Nestled in the report, though, is some potentially bad news for folks who don’t like the bang of fireworks during the Independence Day season, which seems to stretch from mid-June to late-July. Rhode Island, facing a nasty budget deficit, “legalized fireworks on June 14 ahead of July 4, a move that boosted sales tax revenue by approximately $500,000,” the report says. The Blogster hates illegal fireworks, but anticipates that Connecticut lawmakers next year would love to cling to an extra half million dollars in revenue. The full report is online at http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/show/26645.html.

Despite an uptick in tax collections, Gov. M. Jodi Rell – on her way to a vacation in North Carolina – announced via her media staff today that a dropoff in federal funding and higher costs for social services, the deficit in the current budget, which runs through next June 30, is $63.4 million.

           ”Connecticut’s share of newly enacted federal Medicaid and education funding is $193.4 million less than state budget anticipated,” Rell said. “Offsetting the lower than expected federal funding is a net increase in projected state revenues of $390.5 million. That increase includes higher projections for income tax collections – up by $127.5 million – and sales tax collections, up by $153.8 million. Expenses are currently projected to exceed the budget by $171.7 million, in part because of continued high demand for social services and in part because planned savings – such as $50 million in cost-cutting that is supposed to be achieved by the Legislature’s Enhancing Agency Outcomes panel – have not materialized. I will be working with my budget officials to erase the shortfall through administrative actions. The fiscal year has barely begun and we have an opportunity – one we cannot afford to miss – to control this deficit before it grows unmanageable. I will be announcing the details of my budget-cutting plans soon.”

            “I am encouraged by the improvements in the state revenue picture – but it would be a mistake to look at these projections and believe that our problems will resolve themselves,” the Governor said. “The savings assumptions built into the budget must either be achieved as planned or obtained through other means.”