Connecticut Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Connecticut, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Did Connecticut's transfer of interest earned on federal ARPA funds into the General Fund break the law on legislative oversight of pandemic relief money?
No. Interest earned by the State Treasurer on invested ARPA money defaults to the General Fund unless a statute says otherwise, and Special Act 21-1 says nothing about interest. The federal Treasury's…
Can Connecticut's legislature change the state bond cap calculation after committing to bondholders that no future law would alter it?
Yes, but narrowly. AG Jepsen concluded that the May 9, 2018 amendments adding three new exclusions to the $1.9 billion bond cap were valid because the covenant locking the cap in place did not actuall…
Can the Connecticut State Teachers' Retirement Board cancel a teacher's pension credit if it learns from somewhere other than the state Department of Education that the teacher was working without proper certification?
No. The AG concluded that under § 10-183rr the STRB cannot rescind any credit a teacher has earned, even for service in a position the teacher was not properly certified for. The board may only suspen…
Can a Connecticut school board pay a reemployed retired teacher fringe benefits like health insurance, annuities, or a car allowance on top of the 45% salary cap in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-183v(a)?
No. The AG concluded that a retired teacher reemployed under § 10-183v(a) while drawing a Teachers' Retirement System pension may receive nothing more than 45% of the maximum salary for the assigned p…
Can the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services (DAS) sign service contracts for state agencies under its own Chapter 58 procurement authority, or does it have to use the personal-service-agreement procedures in Chapter 55a?
Yes, DAS can use Chapter 58. The AG concluded that DAS's contracting authority under Title 4a, Chapter 58 reaches all types of services because § 4a-50(3) defines 'contractual services' broadly with a…
Did the Connecticut $3,000 property tax exemption for disabled veterans (§ 12-81(20)) require the veteran to have served during wartime, the way the parallel exemption in § 12-81(19) does?
No. The AG concluded that § 12-81(20) imposes no wartime-service requirement. The text says only that the applicant must have 'served, or is serving' in the armed forces and meet a disability rating o…
Does Stamford's local zoning code apply to a state-owned parking garage and adjoining transit-oriented development project that the state plans to lease to a private developer?
Mostly no. The AG concluded that local zoning did not apply to the state-owned parcel where the state would build and own the parking garage, nor to the state-owned parcel that would be leased to a pr…
Can a Connecticut school district hire a retired educator as superintendent for one year, with the retiree continuing to draw teachers' retirement benefits, when the position sits in a central administrative office rather than in a school building?
Yes, in a priority school district. The AG concluded that the statutory definition of 'teacher' in § 10-183b(26) included superintendents, and a state-funded central administrative office in a priorit…
When a Connecticut municipality refinances its pension deficit funding bonds, do all the contribution and 'deemed appropriated' rules in § 7-374c(c)(3) carry over, and can refunding proceeds also pay off other municipal debt?
Probably yes, with caveats. The AG concluded the better reading of § 7-374c was that the 'deemed appropriated' provision applied to refunding bonds, even though the statutory text only literally refer…
Could Connecticut's parole board or Department of Correction release an inmate before the inmate finished a court-ordered mandatory minimum sentence?
Generally yes. The AG concluded that the Board of Pardons and Paroles and the Commissioner of Correction were limited only when a sentencing statute used the phrase 'in any manner' (or similar express…
Does the State Teachers' Retirement Board pick its own chair, or does Connecticut law require the Governor to appoint that person?
The Governor must appoint the chair. The AG concluded that Conn. Gen. Stat. § 4-9a, enacted in 1977, required the Governor to appoint the chair of every executive branch board and commission not liste…
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Attorney general opinions in Connecticut are written by the Connecticut Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.