AFSCME COUNCIL 4 IS PROTECTING THOSE WHO PROTECT CONNECTICUT: Secured Legislation Directing Comptroller to Examine Path Toward Defined-Benefit Retirement Security for All Municipal Police
Contact AFSCME Council 4 Communications:
Logan M. Williams, Communications Assistant
For Immediate Release
AFSCME COUNCIL 4 IS PROTECTING THOSE WHO PROTECT CONNECTICUT: Secured Legislation Directing Comptroller to Examine Path Toward Defined-Benefit Retirement Security for All Municipal Police
New Britain, CT – AFSCME Council 4—Connecticut’s #1 law enforcement union—is proud to announce a decisive step forward for our municipal police officers across Connecticut. After years of relentless advocacy, a coalition of Connecticut’s public safety unions, including AFSCME Council 4, The Uniformed Professional Firefighters Association of Connecticut (IAFF), and the Connecticut Police & Fire Union has secured passage of landmark legislation in both the State Senate and State House, directing the State Comptroller to conduct a formal study examining the considerations and framework necessary to ensure that every municipality provides municipal police officers with a defined benefit pension that is greater than or equal to the retirement benefits offered under the Connecticut Municipal Employees’ Retirement System (CMERS). This law represents meaningful progress in righting a years-old injustice and securing reliable pension protection for Connecticut’s municipal police officers and firefighters after years of dedicated service to their communities.
For decades, the job of a municipal police officer has grown more dangerous and more complex. Today’s officers are not just crime fighters—they are crisis responders, mental health first contacts, mediators, and they are asked to do their job in increasingly volatile environments. They respond to shootings, domestic violence, overdoses, violent assaults, and more on a daily basis—the unpredictable chaos of modern policing often forces them into split-second, life-or-death situations that take a tremendous toll.
Yet, for too long, our officers have been asked to make these incredible sacrifices without the recognition, support, or long-term security their service deserves. For years, municipalities have attempted to cut corners on the backs of the very officers who put their lives on the line to protect their communities. While officers face rising violence, staffing shortages, and unprecedented public scrutiny, local governments sought to answer their sacrifice by watering down pensions and chipping away at retirement security.
Each year, AFSCME Council 4 has warned lawmakers of this growing crisis: far too many of Connecticut’s municipal police officers were serving without a guaranteed pension. That meant officers who worked decades of night shifts, missed holidays, endured physical wear, and carried the emotional weight of the job were being forced into retirement without a stable, predictable income. While they protected their communities, too many municipalities refused to protect them.
By requiring a comprehensive study from the Comptroller, this legislation begins the serious work of evaluating long-term solutions that strengthen recruitment, retention, and retirement stability across Connecticut. The forthcoming report will provide lawmakers and municipalities with the data and policy roadmap necessary to address disparities in retirement security responsibly and sustainably.
The legislation also sends an unmistakable message to municipalities that have historically refused to provide defined-benefit pensions: retirement security is not optional. Denying pensions is not fiscal responsibility—it is short-sighted policymaking that drives experienced officers out the door, weakens departments, and disrespects the men and women who risk their lives in service to their communities.
We believe this report by the Comptroller will prove what law enforcement officers and their unions have always known to be true: providing a fair, defined-benefit pension to every municipal police officer makes sound fiscal sense and will help rescue municipalities from a crisis of their own making. Cutting retirement benefits does not save money; it accelerates turnover, drains morale, and forces towns to spend scarce taxpayer dollars recruiting, hiring, and training replacements again and again. Every time a seasoned officer leaves for a department that offers stability and security, a community loses years of training, judgment, and hard-earned institutional knowledge. Secure pensions keep experienced professionals on the job, preserve continuity, and strengthen public trust in law enforcement across Connecticut. They give officers a reason to build long careers in the communities they know best— made up of the streets, the neighborhoods, and the families they have sworn to protect.
This legislation now moves to the desk of Governor Ned Lamont. AFSCME Council 4 strongly urges the Governor to sign this bill into law immediately, cementing progress for the courageous men and women who risk their lives in service to Connecticut's communities.
This step forward did not come easily. It was the result of the tireless advocacy and powerful solidarity of the more than 2,000 AFSCME Council 4 municipal police officers, who never gave up the fight.
Each day, our officers risk their lives to serve their communities. They are more than law enforcers; they are our mentors, protectors, neighbors, and friends who understand the people and challenges around them. What truly sets them apart is not just their bravery but their character, as they serve with fairness, respect, and an unwavering commitment to protecting others. Our officers have always upheld their oath and continue to do so each day—through this law, the State of Connecticut has finally begun to uphold its obligation to them.
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