Multitaskers Pass Budget and Play Cards at the Same Time

Lawmakers worked into the early morning hours Tuesday to pass a new spending plan.

The Connecticut Senate gave final legislative approval to a two-year, $37.6 billion budget plan just after 2 a.m.

Late Monday night, the state House of Representatives passed the bill by an overwhelming 103-45 margin, in between rounds of solitaire, evidently, according to an Associated Press photo. The AP photographer's shot shows at least two people with green screens lined with cards.  

After a two-month impasse, lawmakers added close to $26 million to the bill late Monday, including funding for several pet programs.

The plan cuts the sales tax from 6 percent to 5.5 percent in January, with the understanding that it could return to 6 percent if state revenue sinks. The budget hikes taxes for single tax filers earning more than $500,000 per year and couples filing a combined salary of $1 million per year.

Lawmakers also approved a bonding bill, which allows the state to borrow nearly a $1 billion to cover the deficit from the last fiscal year.

“There are tax cuts, reform of state tax and, at the same time, we've deeply cut state spending in smart ways we cut over $3 billion,” said Sen. Donald Williams Jr., a Democrat who issued a statement early Monday with Speaker Christopher Donovan stating that they hoped to solve the budget crisis before Sept. 1.

But, Legislative Republicans complain that the budget doesn’t cut spending enough.

“At the end of the day, this budget spends too much money, raises too much in taxes and also delays too many important decisions for a later point in time,” Republican Senator McKinney said.

The spending plan now needs approval from Gov. M. Jodi Rell. Her staff said she is reviewing the package.

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