Connecticut Governor Seeks Worker Input To Close Budget Gap

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/Channels/Story.aspx?ID=1339736

1/6/2011
When you’re facing a multi-billion dollar budget gap the best thing to do is look for cost-cutting advice wherever you can. Connecticut’s new Governor is doing just that. Jesse Russell reports:

If you had to make up a $3 billion budget deficit would you leave all of the decisions up to politicians who don’t spend their days on the ground getting dirty, sweating, and dealing with citizens? Or would you instead ask the women and men who are in the trenches and see the waste that happens around them on a daily basis? Connecticut’s new Governor Dan Malloy has done the latter, sending an email out on Wednesday asking state employees for ideas on what changes could be made to help bridge a $3.67 billion budget gap. In an email to employees Malloy took time to praise their hard work keeping the state running and expressing his desire to have a two-way conversation with workers. While Malloy said he wouldn’t commit to the proposals that come in he encouraged new ideas and out-of-the-box thinking. Malloy acknowledged that times are tough, but “strategic smart decisions” and the willingness to “commit to a shared sacrifice” would get Connecticut’s economy back on track.