DeLauro Meets with Local Community Leaders to Discuss Impact of Competing Budget Cuts

New Haven, CT – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3) met with local Mayors, First Selectmen, and Town Managers from the Third Congressional District today to discuss the coming year and how the proposed budgets from the House of Representatives and President Obama will impact Connecticut.

"The new House majority's budget makes more than $60 billion in cuts to many critical programs, such as education, health care, job training, and home heating aid, just to name a few. The President's budget freezes non-security spending but makes targeted investments in areas such as education, infrastructure, energy, and research that will better our country and our economy. One of the most pressing concerns for our cities and towns is that this year there will be no earmarks, meaning that our mayors will need to be more reliant on the federal grants process to secure funding for local projects. But I will do all that I can to ensure that Connecticut gets the funds its needs.

"Education funding is one of the most important areas of debate. Under the President's proposal, Connecticut would see a slight increase next year in Title I funds, while the House budget would cut this funding $5.1 million. Special education state grants for Connecticut would see an approximately $2 million increase next year under the President's budget and a $6.4 million cut under the budget passed by the House last week. Thousands of teachers' jobs are at stake, and hundreds of thousands of children will be affected by these cuts.

"Critical job training programs would be cut in both budgets, with the House cutting $5 billion from the Department of Labor's Employment Services and Workforce Development programs, and the President calling for approximately $1.8 million in cuts to career and technical education grants for Connecticut. Funding for LIHEAP, which helps to keep so many Connecticut residents warm during our harsh winters, would be cut in the President's budget by about $2.5 billion. The Budget for the remainder of the year passed by the House last week would cut LIHEAP contingency funds by $390 million. In 2010, the Connecticut was able to serve 113,385 households with $107.8 million in funding, but there are roughly 460,000 eligible households. So, you can be sure I will continue to oppose cuts to this program.

"Another area that could see cuts in investment in infrastructure— the House majority is looking to rescind funds for TIGER grants from last year, which New Haven received, and high-speed rail funds going to the New Haven-Hartford Springfield line. We could also see less funding for surface transportation, including bridge replacement and rehabilitation in our state, under the majority's proposal. The Presidents budget seeks to make investments in infrastructure, and I will fight to support his proposals.

"Of the two budgets before us, while I oppose some of the cuts therein, I prefer the one put forward by the president. Last week, the House passed its budget for the remainder of the year, a bill the President has threatened to veto. Senate leadership is working to extend funding at current levels, which are set to expire next Friday, for about thirty days to allow time to work on a budget for the remainder of the year. But rest assured, I will continue to work with our mayors and local officials to ensure that our towns continue to get the critical resources required to meet the needs of the people of the Third Congressional district."