Connecticut House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz announced today that he’ll schedule a vote on the state’s two-year budget for next Thursday, September 14. The budget is already more than two months late, leaving Governor Dannel Malloy in charge of state spending under his limited executive authority.
Aresimowicz says he’s calling for a September 14th budget vote because his House Democratic caucus wants to avoid what he says are Democratic Governor Dannel Malloy’s draconian cuts to public education that would take effect if there is no budget by October 1.
“We just can’t let October 1st happen to where public education in the state of Connecticut and the students that rely on it, suffer the way that they may. So they asked us to spend the next eight days up here again, sitting at the table with anybody that’s willing to come to the table to negotiate a budget that we will vote on next Thursday.”
Aresimowicz says his caucus favors a sales tax increase but is yet to have a budget ready for a vote. In the meantime, he’s reached an understanding with Senate Democratic President Martin Looney of New Haven to have a budget vote by next Thursday. Republicans have said they’ll present their revisions and ideas for the $40 billion two-year budget on Thursday.
