Issue Position: Tom O'Dea's Common Sense Commitment to Connecticut

Issue Position

The bonds of trust between State Government and its people have been broken.The citizens of Connecticut deserve a State Government that is resident-friendly, provides exceptional service and operates in a more efficient and effective manner.

Our State Government is too big, too intrusive and too quick to spend the public's money. We need a State Government that stops taking from us and starts working for us. Connecticut is at a crossroads. We can go back to the business-as-usual, one-party legislative control approach or, together, we can recover, reform and reinvent the way our State works.

I commit to work with you to change the direction of our State. In this era of one-party legislative rule in Connecticut, I offer to the public, with full transparency and no fine print, these governing principles: "Common-Sense Commitment to Connecticut."

I believe in one fundamental premise: our State needs leaders with common sense and a dedication to the belief that we all prosper from shared responsibility, hard work and honesty. Together we can get Connecticut to work again. I am prepared to fight for the following principles and policies:

SPEND NO MORE THAN YOU MAKE

Reduce spending to what we can reasonably anticipate in revenue without assessing new taxes
Abide by the constitutional spending cap

BORROW ONLY WHAT YOU CAN AFFORD TO PAY BACK

Cap bonding levels which result in a debt service of no more than 10% of the annual budget
Borrowing should be restricted for public works projects, including school construction, roads and rails, serving the greater public good and creating jobs for Connecticut workers
Eliminate earmarks. Fund all projects by competitive grant to be awarded based upon measured return on investment i.e., job creation/economic development

IF IT'S NOT BROKEN, DON'T FIX IT. BUT IF IT'S NOT WORKING, GET RID OF IT

All State Government programs must be results-based with a 2-year period of review. If it is not achieving stated results, the program is eliminated. If achieving results, it continues for 2 more years

THE MORE GOVERNMENT TRIES TO DO, THE LESS IT DOES WELL

Focus on core government functions: Public safety, education, transportation, public health
Strive for excellence in each government function
Privatize non-core functions

WE SHOULD HAVE ALL THE GOVERNMENT WE NEED, BUT ONLY THE GOVERNMENT WE NEED

Consolidate government services to eliminate duplication, excess and waste

Source