Standard & Poors’s, one of the nation’s three bond ratings agencies, announced on Thursday that it has downgraded New Haven’s bond rating to BBB+ from A-.

The Elm City has seen its bond ratings at all three major agencies fall recently, due to budget deficits and high fixed costs from pension obligations. Citing similar monetary concerns, Moody’s downgraded the city from A1 to A2, and just over two months ago, Fitch lowered its bond rating from A+ to A.

Lower bond ratings tend to make investors wary of trusting the city with their money. Lower bond ratings can  also make it more difficult for the city to borrow money, which it likely will need to do to shore up its current budget deficit.

However, S&P famously lowered the federal government’s bond rating from AAA to AA+ two years ago, following a divisive fight over whether Congress should raise the debt ceiling. Despite dire predictions of the lower rating’s negative consequences, experts after the fact said that the U.S.’s downgraded bond rating bore little effect on its ability to sell stable bonds or borrow money.

MICHELLE HACKMAN