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The regular  session of the 2010 Connecticut General Assembly ended last night with a compromise on the adjustment to the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 fiscal year budgets. The compromise did not include any major program cuts or tax increases other than a reassignment of a surcharge on utility bills from energy funds to the general fund.

Some legislation that passed of interest to engineering firms:

• HB 5197  will continue the PE license statute which was due to expire as part of the state’s sunset law.
• HB 5208, An  Act Concerning Expedited Permitting for Economic Development. This bill creates a mechanism for  expeditiously reviewing state and municipal permits required for projects (1)  located on contaminated land or (2) that create a specified number of jobs.  The mechanism is an interagency team for issuing necessary permits and licenses within 90 days after the applications were filed.
• HB 5498  creates some preferences for micro businesses in state contracting. Micro  businesses are those with annual gross revenues under $ 3 million.
• SB 25  cancels some existing bond authorizations and creates pools of authorizations for development projects in Bridgeport, New Haven and Hartford. The bill also  authorizes an additional $ 40 million in Clean Water revenue bonds, increasing  the FY 11 authorization from $ 80 million to $ 120 million.
• SB 124 updates a number of statutes concerning work on Long Island Sound and coastal  permitting.
• SB 132 allows corporations to register with DCP for the joint practice of engineering, architecture, surveying and landscape architecture or combinations of those  professions.

Other bills  died:

• HB 5327  would have allowed state agencies and municipalities to use reverse auctions for design services.
• HB 5474  would have ConnDOT prepare plans for electronic tolls.
• HB 5534  would have created a commission to recommend raising taxes, including the sales  tax on design services.
• SB 445 would have required agencies to compare lists of tax delinquents before allowing  persons to apply for licenses, permits, etc.
• A number of  bills were introduced which would have created legislative oversight of the DEP permitting process.

You can read copies of these bills at: www.cga.ct.gov.

It is less than seven months to election day and we are providing information to  candidates for governor about issues of importance to our members including: contracting out, taxes and infrastructure funding. In 2011, the new Governor and General Assembly will be faced with a tremendous fiscal problem: there are huge  deficits greater than 18% of the budget built into the 2011-13 budgets. How  those deficits are addressed should be the overriding issue of the coming  election.

Steven D. Trinkaus, P.E. Civil Engineer

TRINKAUS ENGINEERING, LLC

Experts in Low Impact Development Analysis & Design

Certified Professional in Erosion & Sediment Control

Certified Professional in Storm Water Quality

114 HUNTER’S RIDGE ROAD SOUTHBURY, CT 06488

203−264−4558 203−264−4559 (fax)

E−mail: strinkaus@earthlink.net

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