Democrats roll back raises for state employees and increase money for hospitals

HARTFORD, Conn. – Democratic leaders said late Friday that they reached a deal on changes to the two-year, $40.3 billion state budget.

House Speaker Brendan Sharkey (D-Hamden) said the revisions take the concerns of the business community into account by eliminating an increase in the data processing tax and delaying the unitary reporting requirement until Jan. 1, 2016. It also gives $30 million back to hospitals and $1 million to non-union nursing homes to provide more equity in pay. And it reduces by $13 million money set aside for raises for state employees.

To balance the budget, leaders identified the need for roughly $41 million in spending cuts.

Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven) said about $12.5 million of that amount would be “spread throughout the budget in very small amounts.” The rest would come from a concurrent reduction in Medicaid.

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