Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, speaking less than 12 hours after lawmakers approved his two-year $40.2-billion budget, said "large-scale" layoffs could exceed 4,000 state workers -- and other possible "programmatic changes" are looming in state government if state-employee unions fail to agree to $1 billion in cost savings for the next fiscal year.
He said he would meet with lawmakers in the next 24 hours to go over options drafted by his administration -- including layoffs from the state's work force, which includes about 55,000 workers, 45,000 of whom are unionized.
Pink slips are expected to go out Friday in the absence of a deal for $2 billion in state-employee cost-savings over the next two years. Malloy told a meeting of news executives at his residence Wednesday morning that he would have to find $1 billion in cuts to cover the $1 billion shortfall in the first year.
Asked if such cuts for include aid to cities and towns, Malloy said, "Everything's on the table."
"The budget will be balanced, one way or another," he said.
Benjamin Barnes, his budget director, said the cost of paying out departing employees would be lower than the costs of paying fringe benefits over the next 12 months.
Malloy began the session by noting that he has been told this is the earliest anyone can remember a biennial state budget's being approved, and exceeded even his target date of May 6. The Senate approved the budget early Tuesday, and the House approved it that night.
