WOODBRIDGE — Connecticut is too expensive for young people to remain in the state.
That was one of the subjects here tonight as Rep. Vin Candelora talked to residents about Connecticut’s budget and economy. Students entering the workforce can’t afford to put down roots in Connecticut, said Candelora, talking about taxes, home prices and the legislative policies that make it tough for entrepreneurs to start businesses. One audience member at Amity High School described his struggles in starting a boating-related business here because of red tape thrown at him by state agencies. It was a scenario all too familiar to Candelora who was joined by Rep. Themis Klarides, member of the legislature’s Finance committee. Together, the two lawmakers described the legislature’s anti-business tendencies and its voracious appetite for spending that dramatically outpaces population growth in the state. Consider this: population has grown by 6.8 percent since 1998, but Connecticut spending increased by 270 percent over the same period. From there, Candelora and Klarides talked about staggering unemployment figures (8.4 percent) and the more than 20,000 businesses that have closed within the last two years. Even worse, the two-year budget adopted by the majority party at August’s end contains structural holes that will likely force legislators to tackle yet another whopping budget deficit in the near future. Already, analysts say the budget adopted a few weeks ago is in deficit.
