Connecticut public financing opinion announced

The news about the Second Circuit’s opinion on the Connecticut public financing program is everywhere, including over at Reason.

Today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit overturned the subsidies that Connecticut provides to publicly funded candidates for state office so they can match the campaign spending of their privately funded opponents. The court ruled that Connecticut’s matching funds impose an unconstitutional burden on freedom of speech because they are triggered by the spending of privately financed candidates and independent groups. In effect, the subsidies punish nonparticipating candidates for exceeding spending limits, which the Supreme Court has ruled unconstitutional when they are imposed directly.

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