So it can be argued that the quarter-inch-thick white paper on urban policy just released by the Connecticut Policy Institute could be classified as an in-kind contribution to the Greenwich Republican’s gubernatorial campaign. Ben Zimmer, the executive director of the New Haven-based non-profit founded by Foley, believes that the cost of the “research-driven” document is not an in-kind contribution.
The paper targets jobs, crime, housing and education among “New recommendations to improve the direction of Connecticut’s struggling cities.” Those are the same struggling cities that were the difference in Dannel P. Malloy’s November, 2010 gubernatorial election win over Foley, a Greenwich businessman.
Among the recommendations are:
* Money following students to public schools of their choice in the urban centers.
* Connecticut should “reposition” affordable housing to no longer “concentrate low-income families in distressed neighborhoods.”
* Make more tax breaks available for employers sited in designated enterprise zones.
The full report is on the institute’s website:
http://www.ctpolicyinstitute.org/
This is from James Hallinan, spokesman for state Democrats:
“Governor Malloy has a strong record when it comes to Connecticut’s cities, and the agenda he’s put forth will continue the forward progress cities are making. The Governor’s Small Business Express has helped create and retain thousands of jobs in Connecticut and a $26 million investment in brownfield cleanup is helping cities reduce blight, expand their tax bases, and create jobs. Crime is at some of its lowest points in the last four decades, programs like Project Longevity are working to reduce shootings and gun violence in cities, and murders in Connecticut have dropped to the lowest point in a decade. Governor Malloy successfully passed an education reform package, he’s increased education funding by hundreds of millions of dollars with a focus on the lowest performing schools, and has put forward a plan to move Connecticut to universal pre-kindergarten. Governor Malloy’s 2014 agenda continues to restore the Earned Income Tax Credit to 30%, and the proposed increase to $10.10 for the state’s minimum wage will help more women, minorities, and urban residents rise out of poverty. The Governor’s urban record and agenda speak for themselves.”