Welcome to the new State Legislative News section of the Chapter affairs extranet.
UPDATED 8/22/10
Session Update
Regular Sessions: Ten States, Federal & DC are currently in session.
Current and forthcoming Special Sessions: Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania
2011 Filed and Prefiled Bills: Florida, Virginia, and Kentucky
2011 Legislature Convene Dates will be posted shortly
Legislative Update (visit our Legislative Tracking page for more information)
1) Connecticut Cigarette Tax Yielding More Funds Than Originally Estimated
The state has collected more money than expected from the $1-a-pack tax hike on cigarettes that started in October. At the same time, Connecticut merchants are selling fewer cigarettes. The state Office of Policy and Management predicted that the tax would raise an additional $99.3 million in the 2009-10 fiscal year. Actual revenue exceeded that prediction by $5 million, agency spokesman Jeffrey R. Beckham said. Total revenue in that fiscal year from state cigarette taxes — now $3 a pack — was about $380 million, Beckham said. The OPM also had predicted that if no tax increase had been imposed, merchants would sell about 115 million packs between Oct. 1, 2009, and June 30, 2010. The actual number of packs sold in that period was about 108 million, Beckham said.
2) Feds Approve Three-Year Extension of IowaCare
Federal authorities have approved a three-year extension of the IowaCare program, under which poor residents who don’t qualify for regular Medicaid can get limited health-care benefits. Gov. Chet Culver’s office announced the decision today. “The extension of the IowaCare waiver means the 40,000 Iowans who rely on this program will retain basic health care services until the new federal health care package comes online in 2014,” Culver said in a press release. “This is good news for Iowans who depend on IowaCare, but it’s also good news for Iowa taxpayers as the state would have faced a health-care funding shortfall of up to $100 million per year without this agreement.”