http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2011/02/12/news/doc4d55ea58e7609304609976.txtA coalition of human service organizations and labor groups has proposed a number of tax options it believes the state should consider as it looks for the additional revenue it will need to balance its biennial budget.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who will present his budget next week, has already said he will cut almost $2 billion in spending, leaving $1.7 billion in revenues needed to close a projected $3.7 billion deficit.
The Better Choices for Connecticut coalition puts a heavy emphasis on reforming the state’s personal income tax by making it more progressive and adding a state earned income tax credit for the poorest 20 percent of the state’s population for a total of $855 million in new revenue.
Based on data tabulated by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, the coalition said middle-income and low-income residents now pay close to 12 percent of their income in state and local taxes, while the richest families pay less than 5 percent.