Off Year For State Pols Is All of A Sudden On in New Britain

The odd number years are off years for state politicians as new legislative terms begin and - in 2011-  a new Governor takes office.

That will not be the case in New Britain in the early weeks of 2011 as the new Governor has summoned the state senator for a commissionership and the Legislature has selected the 25th State Rep for Democratic State Auditor.

A short time after March 1 the familiar names of DeFronzo and Geragosian will be gone from the New Britain state House delegation. State Rep. Tim O'Brien (D-24) will be the senior member and incoming Human Services Chair  Rep. Peter Tercyak (D-26) the only veteran of past legislatures left. State Rep. Betty Boukus (D-22), who represents a sliver of the city in District 15, will also remain to represent New Britain voters.  While it may seem longer for the current crop of NB legislators, these kinds of State House changes occurred here just eight years ago when incumbents stepped down and DeFronzo defeated Tom Bozek for the Senate seat.

What is different now is the new system of public financing.  Given a six-week election cycle the special elections here and elsewhere will again test the citizens' election program. Participating candidates will need to meet 75% of the donor and dollar requirements of a normal election cycle.  The candidates will need to be very good and very fast at securing the small dollar contributions to do the public financing.

On top of new faces in the Legislature the coming reapportionment will most certainly alter the borders for Legislative and local voting districts by 2012.  New Britain voters will be seeing a lot of changes in who represents them and where they live on the political map.

Related stories from Herald and CT Mirror

 http://www.newbritainherald.com/articles/2010/12/29/news/doc4d1aad3a6706c379794614.txt

http://www.ctmirror.com/story/8829/geragosian-ward-named-new-state-auditors

DeFronzo's Assignment: An Agency Where "There Is Something For Everybody"

State Senator Don DeFronzo, an early supporter of Dan Malloy in the 2010 gubernatorial race, is heading for the state Department of Administrative Services (DAS). The agency DeFronzo will lead is generally not in the headlines but has evolved into an omnibus branch of the executive that is a key to how state government runs itself and does business with others.

Here is how the agency introduces itself:

DAS has statutory responsibilities and administrative authority in the areas of personnel recruitment, selection and workforce planning; fleet operations; state workers’ compensation administration; procurement of goods and services; collection of monies due the state; surplus property distribution; contractor prequalification and supplier diversity; consolidated human resources, payroll, fiscal and equal employment opportunity services for small agencies; as well as printing, mail and courier services for state government. 

In addition, we have proudly added to our agency the Claims Commission, the State Marshal Commission, the State Property Review Board, and the Insurance and Risk Management Board.  DAS is also a partner agency for Core-CT which is Connecticut state government's integrated financial, human resources and payroll system.  The services we provide cross state agencies, municipalities, vendors, colleges and universities, non-profit organizations and the public at large.  There is something here for everybody.

As if that isn't enough there are strong indications that Governor-elect Malloy may try to extend DAS' responsibilities and give DeFronzo an even bigger portfolio to manage in the Departments of Information Technology (DOIT) and  Public Works (DPW).  Such a consolidation would be up to legislative approval in the General Assembly.

At issue is whether a bigger DAS would bring the efficiencies and savings sought by the new administration as it seeks to spend less and deliver services.

Take That Bristol: The Case For Buses Over Rail

Buses Are the Answer: Developing a vibrant bus network would cost peanuts, compared with high-speed rail options.

By William A. Collins

Trains will never
Leave the gate;
Buses seem
A wiser fate.

With all due respect to President Barack Obama and the $8 billion he's dishing out to the states for high-speed rail, it's too late.

Fast trains have been overtaken by gradual events. America has become too populous and too spread out to allow enough rights-of-way to be acquired ever again.

Unlike Europe and Japan, we didn't develop compact cities and towns. Instead, we sprawled them all over the countryside. OK, there's plenty of room to run new lines in Nebraska and Idaho, but try Illinois or Georgia. It won't work.

Still, the principle of getting travelers off planes is sound. Osama bin Laden has seen to that. Air travel has always been plagued with traffic congestion, mercurial fares, skyrocketing fees, baggage loss, bad weather, and mechanical glitches. Now there are unpredictable security lines as well. How many of us relish a plane trip anymore? Automatic check-in has helped, but not enough. What to do?

One alternative to shorter flights is, as I've argued before, the bus. Yes, the much maligned bus.

New bus systems have already captured the fancy of transit riders in Cleveland and the San Fernando Valley. Other burgeoning bus hotspots around the world include Beijing, Bogota, Brisbane, and Curitiba. Increasingly, these schemes are staving off additional subways wherever roads are wide enough to provide an exclusive lane.

But it's not just local ridership that's growing. Long-distance coach travel is swelling too. "Chinatown buses," for many years a cheap option for traveling between major Northeast Corridor destinations such as Boston, New York, and Washington, DC, have expanded to 30 cities, reviving the ghost of Greyhound past.

The Interstate Highway System laid the foundation for long-haul bus service during the Eisenhower administration. Most countries didn't have that kind of historic culture-altering, budget-busting initiative.

Back then, it was called the "Defense" Transportation Act, as was every other boondoggle of the day. It didn't do much to deter the Soviets but it sure was great for road builders and automakers.

As fate would have it, it could also now be great for buses. We just need a little additional subsidized infrastructure. So let's think what federal transportation subsidies could do if reallocated.

Since express buses can't creep into every city, they need a dedicated terminal out on the interstate for picking up, dropping off and transferring passengers to other routes. They also need local transit services in each city to meet the express and scoot its arrivals into town. For the system to really succeed, it requires nifty new vehicles with real rest rooms, TV, internet, snack bar, and an attendant to approximate existing train and plane rides. And unlike trains, we even have American companies that can still manufacture these buses.

Of course such a system would cost money. But the cost would be peanuts compared to new rail lines, expanded airports, or added highway lanes. Amtrak, for example, wants to spend $117 billion over the next 30-years on high-speed rail just on the East Coast.

And the benefits would be huge. Like trains, buses with their more frequent schedules and convenience could attract air travelers away from short air hops and draw drivers out of their cars for the longer hauls.

Nor would these buses have to speed to reach their destinations in a timely fashion. Highway speed limits are high enough. More important are the low fares, convenient schedules, comfort, reliable connections and easy access.

Sure, high-speed trains have advantages, especially over longer routes. But it's time for our nation to face reality. There's no money and no lobby for trains and 'they're not likely to appear.

Express buses are a far cheaper, better bet for getting large numbers of riders off those short-trip airplanes.

OtherWords columnist William A. Collins is a former state representative and a former mayor of Norwalk, Connecticut.

from Other Words, formerly Minuteman Media: a project of the Institute for Policy Studies

http://www.otherwords.org/articles/buses_are_the_answer

Shared with permission under Creative Commons

Mayor's Blame Game Makes Getting To Yes On Downtown Development Difficult

The Stewart Administration remains intent on branding City Council Democrats as naysayers over bonding and construction of a new police station at the corner of Main and Chestnut streets.

The Mayor's latest pronouncement reported in this Herald story over the timing of bonds for a police station  portrays the Council as getting in the way of financing the station that the Mayor  narrowly views as the linchpin for downtown revitalization.  The police department most certainly needs a new facility but making a public safety edifice the centerpiece of economic resurgence to the exclusion of other ideas has many residents and officials scratching their heads.

Majority Leader Phil Sherwood countered that the Council has given approvals to move forward with a new station every step of the way. When more than $30 million of public money is being put up, however, Sherwood and the Council would be shirking their responsibilities if they did not ask questions and do the oversight that is required of them.

More troubling in the Herald story is the assertion that an estimated project budget on how development funds will be expended by developers is not being shared nor has it been made public:

"During the last council meeting (Phil) Sherwood and (Michael) Trueworthy advocated for clarity on the details of the project and asked the mayor for a budget on the project. Stewart told council members the figures are projected and are public knowledge. Both aldermen said they have yet to see a budget on the police station but it is reportedly over budget. Both agree that the bonds are of a great benefit to the city." 

The way forward on downtown development is for the Mayor to engage the Council and the public in a  transparent way as planning and design proceed.  A big picture on downtown development that draws on the city's educational, business, health care and cultural assets, needs to emerge if real progress and development is to be achieved.

A continuing back and forth between the Mayor and Council gets in the way of getting to a good vision for the future of downtown. And Stewart's continual sniping, his latest statement on bonding included, is no help at all.

Rep. O’Brien Opponent’s Negative Campaign Is Repudiated By Voters

The voters of Assembly District 24 covering parts of New Britain and Newington not only re-elected State Rep. Tim O’Brien last Tuesday by an overwhelming margin. They rejected a malicious campaign by Republican challenger Cris Carillo.

Carillo, a pawn in a GOP attack strategy, relied on mailers developed by New Britain-based CT Republicans that stamped the word “guilty” over O’Brien’s face for taking “our hard-earned money” accompanied by misleading statements on the state budget. It should be remembered that Carillo attacked O’Brien for not delivering enough state aid for New Britain while calling for major cuts in state spending. Though a novice he learned how to talk out of both sides in a hurry under the tutelage of the state and local GOP leaders who’ve made personal attack politics their stock in trade.

In a second mailer against O’Brien the face of convicted murderer Steven Hayes appears and asks: “Do you think O’Brien would still try to repeal the death penalty if his family or someone close to him was brutally victimized?” That appalling statement was due to O’Brien’s opposition to the death penalty, a position held by the Catholic Church, among others.

These vile messages, paid for by the taxpayers under the Citizens’ Election Program, got Mr. Carillo exactly 26% of the vote in New Britain. They also sullied young Mr. Carillo’s reputation and character in the minds of most voters who responded to O’Brien’s issue-based and positive campaign with a strong vote for his representation against a well-financed opponent.

This may be good time for some disinfectant to remove any leftover literature over at Republican State Central on Ellis Street.  (from www.newbritaindemocrat.org)

This mailer used by the campaign of Republican Cris Carillo in New Britain to attack State Rep. Tim O;Brien. The Republican State Central Committee, based in New Britain, used it as a template against other Democratic legislators around the state.

Urban Oaks Farm Invites You To Harvest Moon Festival October 23

The 225 Oak Street farm -- recognized for heirloom herbs and organic crops -- invites you to its first Harvest Moon Festival on Saturday, October 23rd from noon to 8 pm.

The farm has turned the former Sandelli Florist property into a sustainable enterprise in the heart of the city, improving the neighborhood in the process.

Farmers' market with good food to eat and entertainment.  Admission is free.

www.urbanoaks.org

CT Capital Report polling: Science of push button survey has skeptics

No question political junkies can't get enough of polls in the run up to elections. In 2010, Connecticut is seeing an extraordinary amount of polling because of the high stakes U.S. Senate race and an open seat for Governor.

In addition to the well-established Quinnipiac Poll, national outfits such as Rasmussen are measuring voter sentiment in the Nutmeg state in a big way.  These have more than made up for the loss of the Courant/UCONN poll that was Connecticut's authoritative opinion survey for a long time.

Last week  the news and opinion aggregation site, CT Capitol Report, entered the handicapping for this year's "horse races" and immediately gave pundits more material to analyze and write about. We can all take heart that the polling is home grown from www.merrimanriver.com.  But do we need more info on the horse races or journalistic attention focused on issues and how candidates are responding to them?

I was among the CT residents phoned by the CT Capitol's survey that called about the Governor's race, which the poll ultimately found to be a "dead heat."  This was a push-button poll wherein a recorded voice asked me a series of questions on my choice for governor and got the vitals on my political identity.  As I dutifully gave the answers of a liberal Democrat I wondered about the efficacy of a survey that did not involve a back and forth with another human being, just required whoever answered the phone to punch in answers if there was enough patience to stay on the line for five minutes or so.

The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza discusses the pros and cons of the CT Capitol Report survey methodology in this recent story from the Washington Post's "The Fix".

Cillizza suggests voters take CT Capitol Report's and other automated polls with a grain of salt:

In a standard telephone poll, the interviewer may seek to add another layer of randomness by asking to speak for a specific person in a household, such as whoever most recently celebrated a birthday. Automated polls do not attempt to do that. Establishment pollsters argue that by stripping a level of randomness from the polling process, auto-dial pollsters must more heavily weight their samples to achieve demographic diversity --- rendering the results almost meaningless.

The CT Capitol Report polling also told us that the 5th Congressional District is the most anti-Obama and trending Republican of any of CT's five districts. Too bad towns like New Britain and Meriden will skew these results.


It's kind of ironic that in the age of dying newspapers and diminished journalism voters--the online ones anyway -- may be getting Too Much Information (TMI) that focuses less on the issues and how candidates will address them.


Sources:


 http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/parsing-the-polls/parsing-the-polls-of-auto-dial.html

http://www.ctcapitolreport.com/