CBIA Economist Addresses Spending Cap Commission

CBIA economist Peter Gioia will appear before the state’s Spending Cap Commission August 15.
Gioia will discuss the importance of creating a workable cap to control government spending and reduce the burden on state taxpayers while providing core programs and services.
The 24-member commission was created during last December’s special budget session.
It is chaired by former state budget director William Cibes, Jr. and former state representative and Finance Committee chair Pat Widlitz.
The commission is charged with developing recommended definitions of the key terms “increase in personal income;” “increase in inflation;” and “general budget expenditures.”
The spending cap was overwhelmingly approved by voters in 1992 as an offset to the income tax that was passed the previous year.
It was created to keep state spending growth in most budget appropriations in line with actual personal income increases and inflation.
There have always been some budgetary exceptions from the cap, such as debt payments and spending necessary to comply with court orders.
But over the last few years, more and more expenses have been shifted and deemed exempt from the cap by generous interpretations of exempt expenditures.

For more information, contact CBIA’s Louise DiCocco (203.589.6515) | @LouiseDiCocco