HARTFORD, Conn.—Gov. M. Jodi Rell says she's launching a new program to encourage current and former state employees to share ideas on how state government can save money.
Rell says she's creating the Innovative Idea Initiative because no one knows better than front-line state workers about how government works.
But this isn't the first time state employees have been asked to submit cost-saving ideas, with the best ones eligible for cash awards. Another program was created by state law in 1992. It operated from 1995 to 2003.
In the now-defunct system, a panel including state employee unions and agency officials reviewed the savings measures. But Rell wants a different setup where unions will not be represented -- a move that's being criticized by organized labor.
