Malloy Highlights Changes to State Government

Gov. Dannel Malloy and state agency leaders met on Tuesday to discuss a report about efforts to reduce government costs since Malloy took office and highlighted some of the successes.

The report, titled “Changing How Connecticut State Government Does Business,” includes initiatives to make state government leaner, cheaper and more efficient.

"We’ve made a lot of progress, but we still have a long way to go,” Malloy said.

The state has cut more than $2 billion from the current two-year services budget and started funding the Rainy Day fund again.

The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection report says taxpayers will save $1.52 million per year through reduced state energy bills.

The time it takes for the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue a vehicle title went from 145 days to 22 days.

The Department of Administrative Services Leasing Unit eliminated or renegotiated property leases, reducing the state’s leasing costs and saving $121,672 in the second half of Fiscal Year 2011 and $913,540.30 in Fiscal Year 2012 for Connecticut taxpayers.

Because of the mild winter and storage capacity, the state saved money on road salt stockpiles.
The state Department of Transportation saved taxpayers $4 million by partnering with the state Department of Emergency Services and Protection to improve radio communications coverage.

The state Department of Consumer Protection reduced several employees, saving nearly $1.2 million while offering the same level of oversight.

The Department of Revenue Services reorganized, going from five to four bureaus, and saving $8.25 million in operational savings.

The Department of Children & Families reduced its operating budget by $38 million, reduced the use of congregate care, implemented a statewide Strengthening Families engagement model and increased family and community-based programming for children and families.

“This report isn’t an exhaustive list of every change happening in Connecticut.  In fact, we’re sure there are important changes happening in agencies that we haven’t captured in this report, which is why we hope to do more of these in the future,” Malloy said.  “The information in this report represents a snapshot of the things that are often overlooked, but can matter a great deal, the organizational, back-office structures that make up state government.  While mistakes are certainly inevitable, these changes are a clear indicator that progress is being made.”

The report includes 82 individual initiatives from 26 different agencies.
 

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