Hundreds of state employees, activists, and community residents joined together on Wednesday for a second rally at the State Capitol to protest the $300 million of proposed social services cuts in Governor Rell’s budget. The latest cuts include the proposed closure of Cedarcrest Hospital in Newington, the elimination of detox beds at Blue Hills Substance Abuse Services in Hartford and Connecticut Valley Hospital in Middletown and the elimination of Stride, a successful re-entry program for formerly incarcerated individuals. As a result of the Retirement Incentive Program that is a component of the labor deal between Rell and state employee unions, 3,000 clients will see their case management services end on July 1. The union is willing to take on a bigger caseload with fewer case managers if the state will streamline the paperwork that consumes so much of their time. Rell continues to resist calls for a progressive income tax on the state’s wealthy residents and corporations, which would make many of the service cuts in her proposal unnecessary. The General Assembly, which is controlled by a super majority of Democrats, will vote on its own budget plan which includes a progressive income tax as early as next week.