Advocates and key lawmakers said Monday they want to see towns plan and zone for a set number of new housing units — a policy that would be enforced by the state government — as one of several measures meant to make sure families can afford a place to live.
The proposal, which resembles sections of a fair share plan proposed in the past, was part of the legislative agenda shared by Growing Together Connecticut, a consortium of advocates and religious groups, during a press conference in Hartford.
The agenda includes proposals to reform zoning, put more money toward homelessness services, create a state-level child tax credit and make it harder for people to get evicted.
“Unlike many other areas of life, where the federal government plays a big role, here in Connecticut, we have 100% control over zoning, and the cost of meaningful changes are almost nothing,” said Erin Boggs, executive director of the Open Communities Alliance, one of the leading organizations in Growing Together CT.
House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, D-East Hartford, and chairs of the Planning and Development and Housing committees spoke in favor of the proposals Monday. Lawmakers from the House and Senate have said they plan to prioritize housing this session, and attendance at the press conference signaled that the proposals have political weight from key Democrats behind them.
Experts say the United States is in a housing crisis following years of underbuilding. In Connecticut, that crisis is particularly acute.
Tens of thousands of renters are paying more than half of their income to housing costs, and the state’s housing market is the most constrained in the nation, lawmakers were told by consultants last week. Homelessness has been on the rise.
State housing experts have tied the lack of housing in Connecticut to restrictive local zoning laws that make it hard to build multifamily housing on the vast majority of the state’s residential land.
“On housing, towns have the power and the authority to do something about it, and it should be a partnership with the state,” Rojas said. “There’s a lot of discussion in this building about local control and making sure towns maintain that control, and I agree with that — to a point, though. We cannot be absolutist about this, because right now, local control is the status quo, and the status quo is that we are one of the most constrained housing markets in the country.”
Zoning reform has long been a political hot potato in Connecticut. Opponents to proposals to make changes have said they dilute local control and impose one-size-fits-all solutions on unique towns.
““I don’t think there’s any dispute that Connecticut has a tight housing market, and rising homelessness,” said Housing Committee ranking member Rep. Tony Scott, R-Monroe, in an emailed statement. “But there are differences in what we all think will work best to solve these problems.”
He said the focus needs to be on other issues such as addressing homelessness.
“I’ve said it before and it’s still true — a one-size-fits-all mandate from the state regardless of local ability, will not work,” Scott said.
Housing Committee co-chair Rep. Antonio Felipe, D-Bridgeport, pushed back against some of the common opposition related to local zoning. Felipe said he also spoke in his capacity as the chair of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus.
“I believe in local control, too. I don’t believe in local constraint,” Felipe said.
“They’re calling on these towns to take the lead, and that’s a nice way to put it. Do your part is what I’m going to ask. Do what you are supposed to be doing and make sure that people can live comfortably in your communities.”
The Growing Together proposal, called Towns Take the Lead, would divide up the need for more housing between towns. Municipalities would then be responsible for planning and zoning for a set number of units, and documenting their goals in the affordable housing plans required to be submitted to the state every five years under Connecticut statute 8-30j.
Within a year of submitting the documents, which are next due in 2027, towns would need to put their plans in action by changing their zoning.
It has similarities to past proposals for a fair share policy that requires towns to plan and zone for a set number of units based on regional housing needs. Under fair share, enforcement would occur through lawsuits certain groups would be allowed to file against towns.
Under the new policy, it’s not clear how the law would be enforced, although speakers mentioned the possibility of attaching certain state funding priorities to compliance.
Some of the proposals in Growing Together’s legislative agenda have already gotten attention this session. They’re calling for additional funding to the homeless response system, which shelter providers asked for early in the session.
The group also supports changes to Connecticut’s eviction law that would require landlords to offer a reason when they evict someone. Such a measure would largely end no-fault evictions, or evictions that typically occur at the end of a lease.
The group also wants to see limits on the use of criminal records to deny people housing. They’re proposing banning the use of older criminal records.
The last two pieces of the group’s legislative agenda aim to financially stabilize families through the establishment of a statewide child tax credit and make sure families don’t lose their benefits because of small increases in income.
“Another root cause of the housing affordability crisis is our state’s growing income and wealth inequality,” said Emily Byrne, executive director of Connecticut Voices for Children. “Connecticut residents need more money in their pockets, full stop.”
Lawmakers said the set of proposals work together to make sure people don’t lose their homes.
Antoinette Humes, a New Haven resident, spoke about her experiences with homelessness and why the state needs more housing resources. She said when she was in an emergency shelter, it was only open at night. She had to find places to go and stay warm during the day.
She also spoke about the difficulty she’s had paying for her housing, even when she’s had a job.
“Connecticut needs more deeply affordable housing,” she said.