The tax issue has been a sharp source of debate during the campaign, in part because during his first term, Malloy signed the largest tax increase in state history. Malloy said that was necessary to close a projected budget deficit. Since then, the state has had four consecutive balanced budgets and placed more than $500 million in the rainy-day fund for fiscal emergencies. That fund had been depleted as a result of the deep recession and stock market collapse in 2008 and 2009. A centerpiece of Malloy's case for re-election has been that the measures he enacted in 2011 set the stage for stability and growth.