Conservation Funding Cut in Hartford But Only Partially

The Connecticut General Assembly voted to cut $2 million from the Community Investment Act as part of Governor Malloy’s plan to reduce the state’s deficit. That counts as a victory of sorts for conservation because the governor’s proposal was to cut $5 million. Amy Patterson, the head of the Connecticut Land Conservation Council, which led the effort to try to save the Community Investment Act funding, sent out this statement this morning:

“Late last night, the members of the House and Senate approved Governor Malloy’s Deficit Mitigation Plan, which includes a cut of $2Million from the Community Investment Act (CIA) fund – down from the $5Million in cuts that had been proposed last week (but still more than the $1.1Million we had heard was proposed earlier this week).
“Thank you for taking action! Your advocacy in support of the CIA, which provides critical funding for open space acquisition, farmland preservation/dairy support, affordable housing, and historic properties preservation, was heard loud and clear! Unfortunately, with continuing tough economic times ahead, the protection of CIA funds needs to remain an annual priority for all of us.
“Please take a minute to contact Governor Malloy and all of the legislators that you reached out to last week, thanking them for their support of this critical source of funding now and in the future!
“Together we DO make a difference!”

You can find contact information for the governor and key legislators in this post about the issue from last week.

– Tom Andersen, Director of Communications and Community Outreach