QUESTION 1-
H.J.R. 100: Resolution Approving a State Constitutional Amendment to Protect Transportation Funds Ballot Question Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to ensure (1) that all moneys contained in the Special Transportation Fund be used solely for transportation purposes, including the payment of debts of the state incurred for transportation purposes, and (2) that sources of funds deposited in the Special Transportation Fund be deposited in said fund so long as such sources are authorized by statute to be collected or received by the state?
Explanatory Text On July 25, 2018, the GAE Committee met and approved the explanatory text that appears below.
Content and Purpose of the Proposed Amendment. If this amendment is approved, it would impose constitutional protections on state transportation funding. These protections, commonly referred to as the “transportation lockbox,” are currently established only in the Connecticut General Statutes. Specifically, this constitutional amendment, like the statutory lockbox, would do the following:
1. preserve the state’s Special Transportation Fund (STF) as a permanent fund;
2. require that the fund be used exclusively for transportation purposes, which include paying transportation-related debt; and
3. require that any funding sources directed to the STF by law continue to be directed there, as long as the law authorizes the state to collect or receive them.
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Background: The STF. By law, the STF is a dedicated fund primarily used to finance state highway and public transportation projects as well as operate the Department of Motor Vehicles and Department of Transportation. The law directs a number of revenue sources to the fund, such as (1) state fuel taxes, (2) most transportation-related fees and motor vehicle-related fines, and (3) a portion of state sales and use taxes. STF resources are pledged to secure bonds for transportation projects and must be used first to pay debt service on these bonds.
QUESTION 2
S.J.R. 35: Resolution Proposing an Amendment to the State Constitution to Protect Real Property Held or Controlled by the State Ballot Question Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to require (1) a public hearing and the enactment of legislation limited in subject matter to the transfer, sale or disposition of state-owned or state controlled real property or interests in real property in order for the General Assembly to require a state agency to sell, transfer or dispose of any real property or interest in real property that is under the custody or control of the agency, and (2) if such property is under the custody or control of the Department of Agriculture or the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, that such enactment of legislation be passed by a two-thirds vote of the total membership of each house of the General Assembly?
Explanatory Text On July 25, 2018, the GAE Committee met and approved the explanatory text that appears below.
Content and Purpose of the Proposed Amendment. If this amendment is approved, it would limit the General Assembly’s ability to pass legislation that requires a state agency to transfer (sell or otherwise convey) any state real property (land or buildings) or property interest to non-state entities. It does this by imposing the following conditions:
1. a legislative committee must first hold a public hearing to allow for public comment on the property transfer; and
2. the legislation must address only the property under consideration.
In addition, for property that belongs to the state Department of Agriculture or the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the legislation must pass by at least two-thirds of the membership of the state House of Representatives and of the state Senate.
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Further Explanation. The Connecticut General Statutes establish various procedures that state agencies must follow to transfer state real property. Alternatively, the General Assembly may transfer property through legislation, known as “conveyance bills,” without subjecting the transfers to the statutory procedures. The constitutional amendment would prohibit the General Assembly from transferring property by passing these types of bills, unless the above conditions were met. The amendment would not apply to transfers made by state agencies under the statutory procedures
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