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HB 6953 Connecticut House · 2025 Regular Session

AN ACT REQUIRING MUNICIPALITIES TO PROVIDE A PENSION TO POLICE OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS THROUGH PARTICIPATION IN THE MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM OR ANOTHER COMPARABLE PENSION SYSTEM.

HB 6953 requires all Connecticut municipalities to provide police officers and firefighters with a defined pension plan by June 30, 2027, either through the Municipal Employees' Retirement System (MERS) or a comparable alternative offering equal or better benefits. This affects approximately 87 municipalities that currently do not offer such pensions to these public safety workers, with an estimated annual cost of $98.6 million if all enroll in MERS. The bill mandates municipalities to transition employees from existing retirement systems into compliant plans, while directing the Comptroller to study transition requirements and submit a report by January 1, 2026. The legislation imposes a state-mandated cost on local governments without requiring new state funding.
Issues: ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesMandates $98.6M annual municipal pension funding for public safety workers, increasing government spending on essential public services.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentMandates pension benefits for police/firefighters, strengthening employment benefits and retirement security per defined requirements.95% confidence
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 13, 2025 Last action Apr 7, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Raised Bill → LAB Joint Favorable Substitute · 3 edits
MINOR
The bill was amended to change the effective date from October 1, 2025 to from passage, and added a new requirement for the Comptroller to conduct a study and submit a report by January 1, 2026 on how municipalities can transition to defined pension plans for police officers and firefighters. The language was also updated to consistently use 'defined pension plan' instead of 'defined benefit plan'.
Scope change
The bill's scope remains the same regarding which municipalities and employees are covered, but the timeline for compliance has been accelerated and a new administrative study requirement was added.
TIMELINE

The effective date was changed from October 1, 2025 to 'from passage', meaning the requirements begin immediately upon the bill becoming law.

REQUIREMENT

A new section requires the Comptroller to conduct a study on transitioning municipalities to defined pension plans and submit a report by January 1, 2026.

TECHNICAL

The term 'defined benefit plan' was changed to 'defined pension plan' for consistency throughout the bill.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
9
Key actions
1
Committee
2
Mar 20, 2025
Lower · Passed
Joint Favorable Substitute
lower
Feb 13, 2025
Committee
REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Labor and Public Employees
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.