Following up on my last message regarding flag collection, I want to make you aware of a hardworking Weston High School freshman who is providing our community with an honorable service as he works to attain the distinguished Eagle Scout ranking.

Alex Gulino of Weston Boy Scout Troop #788 will be establishing permanent collection sites in Weston for worn American flags in need of proper retirement.

Alex has arranged for blue collection bins to be stationed at the following locations and town gatherings:

• Current permanent site: Weston Town Hall, 56 Norfield Road
• Current permanent site: Norfield Congregational Church, 64 Norfield Road
• May 25-27: Weston Memorial Day Fair, Kiwanis food booth
• Weston Memorial Day Parade, in front of Weston Town Hall
• Weston July 4th Celebration
• Starting in September: Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 285 Lyons Plan Road
• Election Day
• Weston Veterans Day Celebration

There will be index cards inside the bins where you can document a brief history about the worn flag that will be read at the retirement ceremony.

If you are unable to transport a flag to these locations, please contact Alex at (203) 226-8482 to make arrangements.

This motivated young man’s efforts are admirable, and he would appreciate your help in making his collection a success.

In a recent poll of CEOs, Connecticut was ranked as the 6th worst state for jobs, down from last year’s rank of 7th. This decline will continue until we stop running businesses out of the state with excessive taxes, regulations and poor fiscal management.

“Lower taxes and realistic regulations don’t send businesses elsewhere. Connecticut is at the bottom of the list,” said one CEO polled. “Connecticut is the worst, poor leadership,” said another.

These quotations are indicative of an anti-business culture that has resulted in a sluggish economy, an unemployment rate above the national average, and persistent budget deficits that have prevented a meaningful economic rebound.

Find out more about this new poll by clicking here.

Please know that I’m doing my best to fight for businesses and jobs here in Connecticut. We need a vibrant and diverse economy to get our state back on the track to prosperity; to do that, we must stop treating business like the enemy by creating a friendly, stable and predictable business climate.

In a strong sign of support, the Government Administration and Elections Committee unanimously voted for State Rep. John Shaban’s (R-135) proposal to give the Connecticut Secretary of the State the discretion to combine municipal special elections with regular elections, if the two races would otherwise fall within 30 days of each other.

“This common sense measure is designed to save money, time and expense, while preserving citizens’ right to petition for a special election,” said Shaban.

Last November the Town of Easton was forced to run two elections within a two week span.

Because of the strict timing requirements under existing state law, that special election could not be joined with the upcoming “regular” election, thus forcing the town to incur the expense of organizing an election on October 26 – only to do so again two weeks later.

At the public hearing in February, Easton Town Clerk W. Derek Buckley testified in support of the proposal saying passage of this small, but important change to existing election statutes would help municipalities better utilize their limited resources while protecting election integrity.

The bill, which is also supported by the Registrars of Voters Association of Connecticut, now moves to the House of Representatives for a full floor debate.

The legislature is currently deliberating Governor Malloy’s $43.8 billion budget proposal, which calls for a 9.5% spending increase and $3.1 billion in borrowing, in an attempt to address over $2 billion in projected deficits.

Given the gloomy fiscal outlook, and with some Democratic legislators calling for tolls and tax increases, it is even more troubling that Connecticut has attained another dubious distinction.

According to the Tax Foundation, a non-partisan tax research group, Connecticut has the latest “Tax Freedom Day” of any state in the nation. Tax Freedom Day is the date each year when the average citizen has made enough money to pay their combined local, state and federal tax bills.

With one of the highest tax burdens per capita of any state in the nation it’s no wonder our Tax Freedom Day comes later than any other state – May 13 – which marks an eight day extension from last year:

http://taxfoundation.org/article/tax-freedom-day-2013-april-18-five-days-later-last-year

To put the above in perspective, most of us will spend more on taxes in 2013 than we will on food, clothing and housing combined.

As a member of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, I am at the center of this ongoing budget debate and will continue to push for common sense budget reforms.

SHELTON – As Ranking Member of the Environment Committee, State Rep. John Shaban (R-Easton, Redding, Weston) was invited to the grand opening of the new Winters Brothers Recycling Center in Shelton along with Governor Malloy and several other local leaders.

“This is an impressive facility, and a model for the next generation of recycling plants needed in our state and nation.” Rep. Shaban is also an attorney with an environmental law degree.

Founded in the 1950′s, Winters Bros. is a family owned and operated business, with a history of serving the Connecticut market area for their solid waste collection, recycling and transfer station needs. The improved “single stream” technology will enable the plant to accept combined municipal waste, sort and bundle the paper, plastic and metal materials, and then sell the materials back into the private sector supply chain.

“Single stream capture and recycling has been our goal for some time” Shaban noted. “Our continuing recycling efforts will produce capital investments, jobs and a cleaner environment, a classic ‘win-win’ by anyone’s standards.”

It is that time of year again – find your rods, dust off your lures, and get ready for Opening Day of trout fishing season!

This is a great opportunity for many Connecticut families to get outdoors and interact with nature and wild life.

The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) began its annual spring trout stocking earlier this year and expects to have 376,000 fish stocked throughout the state by Opening Day this Saturday, April 20.

Over 200 truckloads of fish will be released into 101 lakes and ponds and 203 rivers and streams throughout Connecticut.

Anglers can purchase their 2013 fishing licenses directly online, or at one of the many participating town halls, tackle retailers and DEEP offices.

WESTON – Weston State Rep. John Shaban (R-135) with State Sens. John McKinney (R-28) and Toni Boucher (R-26) invite their constituents in Weston to attend an April 23rd town hall-style meeting where they will outline issues and priorities for the 2013 legislative session.

The event will be held at the Weston Public Library at 56 Norfield Road in Weston. The hour and a half long session begins at 7:30 p.m.

The Weston Delegation will discuss the current state budget situation, the looming deficit, and Gov. Dannel Malloy’s proposal to grab the town’s property tax revenue leaving Weston with a four million dollar budget hole.

Anyone with questions ahead of the event can call Rep. Shaban’s office at 800-842-1423 or Sens. McKinney and Boucher at 800-842-1421.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation is announcing that a weekend tree and brush removal operation will require closure of Route 58 (Black Rock Road) in Easton and an accompanying detour.

Aquarion Water Company has scheduled the removal of storm-damaged and hazardous trees located near Route 58 in Easton. This operation will be performed between Division Street and Route 136 and will require implementing a detour for both north and southbound motorists traveling on Route 58 (Black Rock Road). The detour will be in place on both Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7, 2013.

The following detour will be in effect during this timeframe:

Northbound traffic will travel to Division Street, continue on North Street to Redding Road and proceed to Route 136 (Westport Road), and return to Route 58. Southbound traffic will follow the reverse detour route. Burr Street to Route 58 will also be closed. Traffic from Burr Street will follow the northbound detour.

LANE CLOSURE INFO
Traffic control personnel and signing patterns will be utilized to guide motorists through the detour. The detour will be in place from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Saturday and Sunday).

Here is the presentation Rep. John Shaban and Sen. John McKinney gave to Easton residents on April 2nd on the state budget.