Gov. Ned Lamont is expected to sign new legislation passed by the House and Senate to reduce housing costs in Connecticut by increasing supply and addressing the state’s shortage before its pressures grow worse.
Groups ranging from the National Low Income Housing Coalition to the Connecticut Business and Industry Association have raised the question of Connecticut’s housing shortages, which are increasingly harming the general public. To meet state housing demands, Connecticut needs anywhere from 90,000 to more than 110,000 housing units; without those units, current households experience financial harm, limit the employment market and have a negative impact on the state’s economy and resident spending power.
In response, after months of deliberation and collaboration, the legislature passed what lawmakers called the most significant housing support bill in years. Its three focuses include increasing housing supply, providing additional protections for renters and better supporting homeless individuals in state communities.
Senator Martha Marx, a New London Democrat who co-chairs the legislature’s Housing Committee, said Connecticut residents could not afford to wait any longer for policymakers to take action on the state’s housing needs.
“We need to address the housing crisis, and we need genuine, impactful progress,” Marx said in a statement. “Through this bill, we’re addressing private housing, public housing, affordable housing, and most importantly, MORE housing. That’s the answer to this crisis, and I’m excited to join Governor Lamont when he signs this bill into law for that purpose.”
To increase housing supply, with the knock-on effect of reducing rent in many markets, the bill’s primary focuses include incentivizing the construction of more housing near transit systems, allowing middle housing development in commercially zoned areas under certain conditions and funding affordable development projects.
The legislation also creates a first-time homebuyer savings program, receiving individual and employer contributions to support home buying expenses, and asks towns to begin considering meeting 25% of suggested affordable housing allocations from the state, advancing plans that could spur development statewide.
The bill adds renter protections including the expansion of fair rent commissions to all towns with populations of at least 15,000, including flexible use of joint and regional commissions. The legislation also calls for three years of increased support for direct rental assistance programs through nonprofit provider grants and re-establishes the Open Choice Voucher pilot program for summer 2026 to expand rental opportunities.
Legislators included new support for Connecticut residents experiencing homelessness through a pilot program delivering portable showers and laundry facilities. The bill also prohibits the installation of “hostile infrastructure,” meaning architecture preventing people from sitting or lying in an area or structure, on municipal land.
Senate President Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven, said the state’s housing crisis impacted families, businesses and Connecticut’s economy.
“Businesses struggle to find workers when those workers can’t find stable or affordable housing, harming their productivity and sending qualified, skilled workers elsewhere for employment,” Looney said. “This bill is Connecticut’s strongest effort to support new housing in years, and its impacts will provide relief in communities in every county – making life easier for working families and bolstering our economy in the process.”
