Two recently released legal memos from Yale Law School’s Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic (WIRAC) are making headlines—and for good reason.

These memos don’t just confirm what workers, union leaders, educators, and advocates have been saying for years about Connecticut’s so-called “fiscal guardrails”—they prove that these policies are not only harmful but unconstitutional.

If you’ve ever been told “there’s just no money” to fund your contract, hire more staff, or fix unsafe buildings, this is for you.

What Are the Fiscal Guardrails?

In plain terms, fiscal guardrails refer to a set of budget restrictions passed in 2017 that limit how much Connecticut can spend—even during massive budget surpluses. These include:

• Bond Lock
  A five-year promise to Wall Street not to change certain budget laws—even if conditions change.

• Statutory Spending Cap
  A spending restriction that goes beyond the state constitution, limiting growth even when urgently needed.

These measures were sold as “fiscal responsibility.” In practice, they’ve blocked our ability to:

• Invest in public services

• Fund fair contracts

• Respond to crises like the pandemic or inflation

What Do the Legal Memos Say?

Yale’s legal experts make two major points:

• The Bond Lock is unconstitutional.
  It violates the principle of legislative sovereignty—the idea that elected lawmakers must be free to govern based on the current needs of the people, not be shackled by past deals with Wall Street.

• The Spending Cap isn’t even legally triggered.
  According to the memo, the statutory rules legislators are following were never properly enacted under the state constitution.
  → There is no legal reason for budget cuts or withheld funding.

Why This Matters for CSEA

Connecticut’s fiscal guardrails have resulted in years of underinvestment in public services and public workers. They’ve been used as an excuse not to:

• Raise wages for paraeducators and long-term care workers

• Fund affordable healthcare for child care providers

• Negotiate fair contracts for state and municipal employees

• Invest in fully staffed schools, safe buildings, and modern infrastructure

Now, legal experts confirm: these rules were never legitimate to begin with.

We’ve Been Right All Along

Union members, educators, students, and allies have been organizing and speaking out for years. Just this month, over 200 CSEA members rallied at the Capitol to demand the legislature declare a fiscal emergency and repeal these harmful roadblocks.

These memos give our movement the legal and moral high ground to keep pushing forward. It’s time to:

• ✅ Repeal the unconstitutional Bond Lock

• ✅ Replace harmful caps with budget policies that meet today’s needs

• ✅ Invest in workers and services—not just surpluses and debt payments

The Takeaway

We were right to fight back.
Now we have the legal proof to win.

Let’s keep organizing, keep speaking out, and demand a budget that works for the people—not hedge funds and bondholders.

Because when we fight together, we win.