A plan to get CT health benefits to a select few is abandoned

One section of a sprawling budget bill finalized over the weekend and released Monday would have provided state health coverage to a few unpaid members of quasi-public authority boards, including the Democratic chair of New Haven.

Senate President Pro Tem Martin M. Looney of New Haven and House Speaker Matt Ritter of Hartford, both Democrats, defended the benefit as an incentive to attract more and better members to quasi-public boards.

But they unceremoniously jettisoned it before the bill was called for a debate in the House, the first of the two chambers that would consider a 235-page bill making spending and revenue adjustments in the second year of the budget biennium.

“People raised concerns about the costs,” Ritter said.

The questions went beyond the $1.1 million projected cost, though the net cost to the state would be zero, as the quasi-publics would have had to absorb the cost.

House Minority Leader Vincent J. Candelora, R-North Branford, called it a classic legislative “rat” — a surprise addition to a bill for the benefit of a select few.

“This notion that that’s going to attract better quality candidates is something that wasn’t vetted through the process,” Candelora said. “It’s come out of nowhere. And it’s an unfortunate rat to see in this document.”

Ritter acknowledged that the idea never had been raised in a bill subjected to a public hearing, and he could not explain the choice of only four of the more than dozen quasi-public authorities.

“I don’t know why it singled out four,” Ritter said.

The lucky four were the Airport Authority, Port Authority, Lottery Corporation and SERC, the State Education Resource Center. The health coverage would have begun July 1.

Sources said the suggestion for the provision was first floated three days ago, coming from Senate Democrats.

Vinnie Mauro, who stepped down last year as the chief of staff to Looney, the leader of the Senate Democratic majority caucus, would have been one of the beneficiaries of a benefit worth an estimated $22,600 annually. Mauro remains an influential player as the Democratic chair of New Haven.

Mauro, who is on the Airport Authority, said he did not seek the provision and was happy to see it struck once his name became attached as a beneficiary.

In an interview before the provision was abandoned, Looney said the benefit would have had a broader impact than on Mauro. He declined to comment further.

Ritter was uncertain if Mauro influenced the Senate in dropping the plan.

“I can’t speak to any individual, because if you look at the boards, we probably all know somebody on there,” Ritter said.

Ritter said he expected the issue to get another look next year.

“I will just say that this has been a debate for a couple of years about trying to get people to serve on the more complicated quasi-public agencies, to get better people to step up and do it and might have an actual expertise in the area,” Ritter said.

But, he added, that should come through the regular process.

“It should maybe just be a regular bill with a public hearing and get the solicitation next year on it,” Ritter said.