Patch Voter Guide: Lt. Governor

Editor's Note: This is the second installment of Patch's interactive voter guide for the upcoming election. You can expect to see coverage here on every national, state and local race affecting Ridgefield. Click here for instructions on how to use this guide. Click here for more articles in the 2010 Patch Voter Guide.

The Situation

• Mark Boughton and Nancy Wyman join their counterparts Tom Foley and Dan Malloy Nov. 2 in an election that will decide Connecticut's next governor administration.

Fast Facts:

• Boughton served as a State Representative for Connecticut's 138th District for three years and is currently the Mayor of Danbury — the longest-serving mayor in the city's history.
• Wyman has served as Connecticut's Comptroller since 1994 and served as a State Representative for the 53rd District from 1987 to 1995.

The Rundown

• Candidate            Mark Boughton                        Nancy Wyman
  
• Age                          46                                                      64
• Residence            Danbury                                           Tolland
• Political Party   Republican                                       Democrat
• Website                www.boughtonforct.com              www.nancywyman.com
• E-Mail                   None provided                                wyman2010@gmail.com
• Phone                    267-362-9671                                 860-550-5822
• Family                   Married to Phyllis           Married to Michael, two daughters
• Education:
  
  • Boughton graduated with a bachelor's degree from Central Connecticut State University in New Britain and then went on to receive his master's degree from Western Connecticut State University in Danbury. Wyman graduated from the Long Island College Hospital School of Radiologic Technology in Brooklyn.

• Professional                     
  
  • In terms of current or former occupations, Boughton is in his fifth term as the mayor of Danbury, has served as a state rep, ran a local cabinetry business and worked as a social studies teacher at Danbury High School for 14 years. Wyman has been the state's Comptroller since 1994 and is a Radiologic Technician.

The Exchange

Patch posed the following questions to each candidate. Questions are in bold, and candidate responses are in italics. The candidates were given a 300-word upper limit.

How do you see yourself as a partner in the governor's office? What goals do you have for the office and what will you do to meet those goals?

• Wyman: My priority as Comptroller has always been to be the voice of fiscal honesty and responsibility on behalf of Connecticut's taxpayers and that will be my first goal as Lieutenant Governor. I joined Dan Malloy as his partner because he shares my commitment to fiscal discipline, long-range economic planning and affordable health care for all Connecticut residents. We will pursue an agenda to create long-term solutions that improve people's lives and save tax dollars. Jobs are obviously at the top of the list because putting people to work is the only way we will expand our economy. Connecticut lost more than 100,000 jobs during the recession and we will not truly recover until we get them all back. One way to create jobs is to lower the tax burden by reducing the cost of government through streamlining and downsizing where appropriate. In order to sustain those jobs, we must also cut the costs of health insurance. We know that small businesses generate the great majority of job growth in our state, and what I continually hear from business owners is that one of the biggest obstacles to hiring more workers is the cost of providing employee health coverage. We strongly believe that we must allow small businesses to group together in the same way to buy health insurance. As Dan Malloy's partner, I look forward to continuing and expanding my agenda of fiscal responsibility on behalf of the citizens of Connecticut.
• Boughton: The State of Connecticut faces some of the most difficult challenges in the history of our state. We are in the throes of an economic crisis that has created record unemployment, a $4 billion dollar deficit in our state budget, and struggling municipalities throughout our state — Tom Foley has asked that I be a full partner in tackling these challenges. A Foley-Boughton administration will work each and every day to put the people of Connecticut first. As two outsiders to the political tricks and insider mentality that currently permeates the Capital, Tom Foley and I will open the doors to your state government, and provide the transparency and the service that you deserve.

With unemployment and foreclosure rates up and serious budget woes across the state, what can you do to narrow that deficit, bring more jobs and create a more positive outlook for Connecticut's economy?

• Boughton: As Lieutenant Governor, I will work closely with our new Governor, Tom Foley, to focus in on creating a pro-business atmosphere in Connecticut that will help create jobs for our residents. That means that we will reduce redundant paperwork and suffocating mandates that are imposed on our small and medium sized businesses everyday. That also means that we will have a robust recruiting and retention program for business in Connecticut. We work to reduce electric energy rates across the board. Electricity costs in Connecticut are far above the national average. The cost of energy in Connecticut is a major barrier to economic development. Finally we will attack the bureaucracy that stifles creativity and innovation among the businesses in Connecticut. We will speed the permit process and reduce lead time on reviews of permit applications. By taking these steps immediately we can begin to grow our economy and create employment opportunities for our residents.
• Wyman: Dan and I know that the only way to deal with the deficit and increase jobs is to engage all players in Connecticut's economy and state government to help us find solutions. Our agenda will include:
   
  
  • Reducing health care and energy costs to make the state more business-friendly
  • Making statewide improvements in infrastructure and transportation
  • Investing in research and development with the potential to generate 30,000 direct jobs and 75,000 spin-off jobs
  • A hands-on business recruitment effort based on Dan's experience bringing outside businesses and their jobs to Stamford
  • Investing in high-tech and bioscience industries while working to revitalize the state's manufacturing industry
    
  Regarding state government, we have set a goal of reducing the number of state agencies by one-third through consolidation and elimination of duplicate services. We will also be seeking input from all agency heads and employees to find budget savings from the bottom up, and will work with the state employee unions to streamline staffing without layoffs.
  
  These are the kind of concrete, real-world plans that Dan and I will bring to the Governor's office, and the kind of vision that will help spark Connecticut's economy.

Transportation is another big issue facing the state. What do you think can be done to ease congestion and commuter issues and how do you see yourself being a part of the solution?

• Wyman: Congestion on Connecticut's state roads and interstate highways restrains economic activity, costs us jobs, increases pollution, and diminishes our quality life. Our state's infrastructure is aging, and to a large degree behind the times. The Malloy/Wyman administration's priorities will include:
• Repairing our highways, especially in high-usage areas like Fairfield and New Haven counties.

• Updating and improving the aging rail infrastructure between Boston and Washington that forces trains in that corridor to slow down.
• Creating new strategies to reduce congestion and provide attractive mass transportation options, especially in New Haven and Fairfield counties and parts of the I-84 corridor.

• Boughton: Tom Foley and I agree that investing in our transportation infrastructure will enhance our economic viability and help us create more jobs for our residents. We will work with our employers to create flexible works hours. We will develop sustainable revenue streams to fund improvements to our highway, and we will improve our rail system to move more freight on rail.