Conn. considers a raise in taxes

Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell recently spoke in favor of a tax increase to improve transportation, using her first budget address as a call for straight talk and square dealing with the public.

Rell said she will attempt to close a $1.3 billion budget gap with a combination of spending cuts and increased taxes.

"My budget contains some tax increases, not 'revenue enhancements' or 'technical adjustment devices,' as some would call it," Rell said. "I'm telling you the truth.

"I did my best to cut spending. I really did. And I did cut deep. And there will be some who will predict the worst about my cuts almost as soon as I finish my remarks. But when all is said and done, I still needed to raise some taxes."

Rell's major initiative proposes $1.3 billion in transportation infrastructure. She called for $187 million in improvements to exits and other traffic bottlenecks on I-95 between the New York and Rhode Island borders.