As Legislators Head Into Special Session, Madison Stands To Lose More Than $100,000 In State Aid

As the special session of the legislature convenes Thursday to deal with a projected $1.6 billion deficit in the state budget, Madison stands to lose more than $100,000 in state funding, according to the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities.

This includes $26,829 for Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) funds, and an additional $80,347 in reimbursement the town expected to receive in road repair funds, for a total $107,176. The town usually receives about $2.5 million from the state, much of that in Educational Cost Sharing funding.

Madison First Selectman Fillmore McPherson expressed dismay at the $107,176 in proposed cuts, but he also said they were "manageable," because of the town's sound financial condition.

Conservative budgeting pays off

"The $80,000 in town aid from roads hurts," he said. "It's distressing but probably manageable as a result of our conservative budgeting."

Madison Selectman Joseph MacDougald said the cuts, and the prospect of additional cuts, is upsetting.

"We are seriously concerned about the potential disruption," MacDougald said. "This type of uncertainty is upsetting. We certainly hope most of the funding will continue unabated, but there is a lot we don't know right now."

CCM estimates account for only part of the cuts in municipal aid proposed

 The municipal cuts calculated by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) include only $24.6 million of the estimated $54 million that could be cut from municipal aid under the Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's proposal to deal with the budget shortfall, created when state unions failed to ratify an earlier plan proposed by the governor that involved union concessions.

“It was always my hope that the [State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition] SEBAC [of 15 unions] Agreement would be ratified and we could move forward with the process of getting our state’s fiscal house in order and creating new jobs,” said Gov. Malloy in a prepared statement. “But that looks increasingly unlikely. Calling both chambers into session ...  is necessary to close the budget deficit that we will be facing.

"I am loathe to make the decisions facing us at this juncture – including layoffs, programmatic and municipal aid cuts – but I am left with no choice. Working with the legislature, we will have a balanced budget and one that, while making painful cuts and difficult decisions, will be balanced honestly without tricks or gimmicks.”

In addition to cutting $54 million in municipal aid, Malloy also is recommending personnel reductions of 6,466 positions, including 1,000 positions which are vacant and will be eliminated, and 5,466 layoffs. He also has proposed eliminating funds for tourism districts, which will save about $1.6 million, eliminating funding for the After School Program which will save about $4.5 million. Other cuts have been proposed for Youth Service Bureaus, bilingual education, a Young Parents Program, and supplemental aid for the blind and visually handicapped, according to CCM.

The Legislature's Special Session will start Thursday at 10 a.m. Gov. Malloy has said "that all options are on the table to close the budget deficit, except additional tax increases and the use of “surplus” funds.

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