Malloy Revises Budget, Reinstates $300 Worth of Property Tax Credit

On his 100th day in office, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced that he was revising his  to reinstate $300 worth of a property tax credit that he initially eliminated and that he was also readjusting the new income tax brackets called for under his budget, which he said “lessens the burden on the vast majority of the middle class.”

Malloy attributed the revisions to the 17 Town Hall-style meetings he held across the state that put him face-to-face with Connecticut residents and allowed them to comment on his proposal. The governor’s “tour” began Feb. 21 in Bridgeport and concluded April 12 in Middletown; filled the auditorium of Manchester Community College.

“At various points along the way, people wrote that maybe I wasn’t listening – that maybe I was just on a venting tour – and that in the end I wouldn’t change anything in my budget proposal,” Malloy said in a release Thursday afternoon. “With all due respect, the people who said that weren’t listening to what I was saying.  All along, I’ve been saying the same thing: this budget is based on a set of principles from which I will not back down. But I also said that within the framework of those principles I’ve been trying to find the right balance, and that I was open to listening to people’s ideas.”

Malloy’s revised income tax brackets shift a greater tax burden toward Connecticut residents earning incomes over $100,000 who file their taxes singularly and joint filers with incomes over $150,000 (see the attached PDF).

Manchester Mayor Louis Spadaccini said Thursday that he was “glad” to see at least part of the $500 reduction to the Connecticut property tax credit reinstated.

“I think that will definitely be helpful to Manchester residents, reinstating at least part of the tax credit,” said the Republican mayor. “That was something that we were very conscious about when we were proposing our municipal budget, because we knew it was one more tax this year that our residents would have to pay.”

State Rep. Geoff Luxenberg, D-Manchester, said Thursday that he was also pleased to see part of the property tax credit restored, and that it showed that Malloy was wiling to listen to Connecticut residents.

“I think it’s great. I think it shows that the governor cares about middle class families and promoting the American Dream via home ownership. It also shows that he’s listening,” Luxenberg said. “He traveled around the state and he listened to feedback. He got overwhelming feedback that eliminating that credit was just going to be too hard.”

Malloy’s recommended biennium budget calls for total spending of $17.94 billion for the 2011-12 fiscal year, and $18.37 billion in fiscal year 2012-13. Malloy’s proposal plugs an estimated $3.2 billion deficit in the coming year, contains across-the-board spending cuts and tax increases, requires the consolidation of about 30 percent of state agencies and changes in the state’s revenue structure to eliminate dependence on borrowing or one time revenue to meet operating expenses.

Malloy’s proposed budget must still be approved by the General Assembly.