Republican state Reps. Themis Klarides, Charles Ferraro and Kathy Kennedy held a pre-session coffee hour on the morning of Jan. 30 at Orange Town Hall to talk with residents about the issues that will be discussed during the upcoming legislative session, which started Feb. 5.
Klarides said, “Of course until we settle the issue of tolls it is going to keep dominating the legislative landscape. But there are other matters outside of the budget cuts that need to be made to balance just this year also up for discussion: marijuana legalization and sports gambling to name a couple.”
“Tolls will be one of the major topics being discussed before and during the legislative session,” Ferraro said. “Tolls are the number one thing Democratic lawmakers want to pass in Hartford. Instead of looking at ways we can save taxpayers’ money, they are always looking at ways to increase revenue sources. We need to make our state more affordable and stop the unnecessary revenue grabs.”
Kennedy added that she enjoyed listening to Orange constituents express their concerns about state issues, including tolls, job training, the effect of the minimum wage on small businesses and the state budget.
“The issue that dominated the conversation was tolls. People just do not trust government, they think a truck-only toll option will inevitably lead to tolls for all cars at every location,” she said.