HARTFORD -- Connecticut state government has twice as many managers as the national average, and a hand-picked group of advisers told Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Monday that must end.
Malloy has decried a top-heavy state government since he was a Democratic candidate for governor, and now he has pledged to do something about it after taking the oath of office less than one week ago.
Malloy received the recommendation as part of more than 1,800 pages of policies and priorities for his new administration. Some recommendations will be included in Malloy's budget proposal next month, but others are long-term proposals that would be enacted over the next four years.
The report by Malloy's transition team covered 12 areas, including taxes, transportation, energy and housing. The section on the performance of state government said that it "is excessively hierarchical with multiple layers of management.''
While Connecticut has one supervisor or manager for every six front-line employees, the national average of state governments is one supervisor for 12 workers. Those statistics were gleaned from a bipartisan commission that recently studied state government.
"The need to move to a flatter organizational structure with more authority vested in front-line workers must be addressed,'' the transition team's report said.
More than 35 members of Malloy's transition team gathered at the state Capitol to review the reports, and Malloy himself carried the thick reports in two boxes down to his office after the session ended. He told reporters that the layers of management would be reduced over a number of years.
"I didn't know until relatively recently -- earlier than today -- how out of whack we were with other states,'' Malloy said, adding that state government is "too top-heavy, too top-down.''
When asked by a reporter if any of the managers could be reassigned to other positions, Malloy responded, "Any openings in journalism?''