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Funding
for Education
and Property Tax Relief:
State
education funding is essential to ensuring quality
education in our local schools and, at the same
time, helping to keep property taxes down. I am
happy to report that the state budget I voted to
support in 2004 increased aid for education, which
has helped our local officials with school budgets.
This budget also increases other important municipal
aid funding. Until comprehensive property tax reform
is passed, this assistance will remain important to
making ends meet in local budgets.
Here
are the increases statewide:
| Increased
State Education Funding: |
$40,000,000 |
| Other
increased State Funding to cities and
towns: |
$52,000,000 |
| Total
INCREASED education and property tax
relief: |
$92,000,000 |
Click
here to see estimates of the FY2004-05 increased
State Aid
to New Britain.
Click
here to see estimates of the FY2004-05 increased
State Aid
to Newington.
Affordable
Prescription Medicines:
I
voted to oppose the state budget in 2003 that
created two very harmful changes to the ConnPACE
prescription drug program:
-
The
"Asset Test" made the application
forms for ConnPACE more complicated and made
some seniors ineligible.
-
The
"Asset Recovery" was even worse -
threatening to seize the homes of seniors who
received ConnPACE when they passed away.
I
am happy to report I advocated for and voted for a
budget that REPEALED THESE CHANGES.
Of
course, there is more work to be done. The new
federal prescription drug program simply does not
provide seniors with the quality of coverage that
the state ConnPACE program provides. That's why I
believe that the State should continue to work to
expand access to the ConnPACE program, to provide
coverage where the federal program falls short. We
can do this by increasing the eligibility limits for
ConnPACE, so more seniors and persons with
disabilities qualify, and even allowing seniors and
persons with disabilities farther up the income
scale to get into ConnPACE with a prorated premium.
The
goal is simple, to ensure that all seniors and
persons with disabilities in the state will be able
to afford the prescription medications they need. |
