Connecticut Senate Bill SB00004 Comm Sub / Bill

                     
 
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General Assembly  Committee Bill No. 4  
January Session, 2023  
LCO No. 4702 
 
 
Referred to Committee on HOUSING  
 
 
Introduced by:  
(HSG)  
 
 
 
AN ACT CONCERNING CONNECTICUT'S PRESENT AND FUTURE 
HOUSING NEEDS. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General 
Assembly convened: 
 
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) For purposes of this 1 
section, "consumer price index" means the twelve-month average 2 
change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers in the 3 
northeast region as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 4 
United States Department of Labor in October of each calendar year. 5 
(b) During any tenancy other than week to week, a landlord shall not 6 
increase the rent (1) during the first year after the tenancy begins, (2) at 7 
any time after the first year of the tenancy without giving the tenant 8 
written notice of such increase not less than ninety days prior to the 9 
effective date of the rent increase, (3) during any twelve-month period 10 
in an amount greater than four per cent plus the consumer price index 11 
above the existing rent as calculated under subsection (c) of this section, 12 
or (4) during any public health emergency declared pursuant to section 13 
19a-131a of the general statutes and for a period of one year immediately 14 
following the expiration of such emergency. 15    
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(c) Not later than November first of each year, the Commissioner of 16 
Housing shall calculate the maximum annual rent increase percentage 17 
allowed pursuant to subdivision (3) of subsection (b) of this section and 18 
post such maximum annual rent increase percentage on the Department 19 
of Housing's Internet web site. 20 
(d) A landlord shall not be subject to the provisions of subdivision (3) 21 
of subsection (b) of this section if (1) the first certificate of occupancy for 22 
the dwelling unit was issued less than fifteen years from the date of the 23 
notice of the rent increase, (2) the landlord is charging reduced rent to 24 
the tenant as part of a federal, state or local program or subsidy, or (3) 25 
the Commissioner of Housing has not calculated and posted the 26 
maximum annual rent increase percentage required under subsection 27 
(c) of this section. 28 
(e) Any landlord who increases rent in violation of the provisions of 29 
subsection (b) of this section shall be liable to the tenant in an amount 30 
equal to three months' rent plus any actual damages suffered by the 31 
tenant. 32 
Sec. 2. Section 47a-1 of the general statutes is repealed and the 33 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 34 
As used in this chapter, [and] sections 47a-21, 47a-23 to 47a-23c, 35 
inclusive, as amended by this act, 47a-26a to 47a-26g, inclusive, 47a-35 36 
to 47a-35b, inclusive, 47a-41a, 47a-43, [and] 47a-46 and [section] 47a-7b 37 
and section 1 of this act: 38 
(a) "Action" includes recoupment, counterclaim, set-off, cause of 39 
action and any other proceeding in which rights are determined, 40 
including an action for possession. 41 
(b) "Building and housing codes" include any law, ordinance or 42 
governmental regulation concerning fitness for habitation or the 43 
construction, maintenance, operation, occupancy, use or appearance of 44 
any premises or dwelling unit. 45    
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(c) "Dwelling unit" means any house or building, or portion thereof, 46 
which is occupied, is designed to be occupied, or is rented, leased or 47 
hired out to be occupied, as a home or residence of one or more persons. 48 
(d) "Landlord" means the owner, lessor or sublessor of the dwelling 49 
unit, the building of which it is a part or the premises. 50 
(e) "Owner" means one or more persons, jointly or severally, in whom 51 
is vested (1) all or part of the legal title to property, or (2) all or part of 52 
the beneficial ownership and a right to present use and enjoyment of the 53 
premises and includes a mortgagee in possession. 54 
(f) "Person" means an individual, corporation, limited liability 55 
company, the state or any political subdivision thereof, or agency, 56 
business trust, estate, trust, partnership or association, two or more 57 
persons having a joint or common interest, and any other legal or 58 
commercial entity. 59 
(g) "Premises" means a dwelling unit and the structure of which it is 60 
a part and facilities and appurtenances therein and grounds, areas and 61 
facilities held out for the use of tenants generally or whose use is 62 
promised to the tenant. 63 
(h) "Rent" means all periodic payments to be made to the landlord 64 
under the rental agreement. 65 
(i) "Rental agreement" means all agreements, written or oral, and 66 
valid rules and regulations adopted under section 47a-9 or subsection 67 
(d) of section 21-70 embodying the terms and conditions concerning the 68 
use and occupancy of a dwelling unit or premises. 69 
(j) "Roomer" means a person occupying a dwelling unit, which unit 70 
does not include a refrigerator, stove, kitchen sink, toilet and shower or 71 
bathtub and one or more of these facilities are used in common by other 72 
occupants in the structure. 73 
(k) "Single-family residence" means a structure maintained and used 74    
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as a single dwelling unit. Notwithstanding that a dwelling unit shares 75 
one or more walls with another dwelling unit or has a common parking 76 
facility, it is a single-family residence if it has direct access to a street or 77 
thoroughfare and does not share heating facilities, hot water equipment 78 
or any other essential facility or service with any other dwelling unit. 79 
(l) "Tenant" means the lessee, sublessee or person entitled under a 80 
rental agreement to occupy a dwelling unit or premises to the exclusion 81 
of others or as is otherwise defined by law. 82 
(m) "Tenement house" means any house or building, or portion 83 
thereof, which is rented, leased or hired out to be occupied, or is 84 
arranged or designed to be occupied, or is occupied, as the home or 85 
residence of three or more families, living independently of each other, 86 
and doing their cooking upon the premises, and having a common right 87 
in the halls, stairways or yards.  88 
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) For purposes of this 89 
section, "consumer price index" means the twelve-month average 90 
change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers in the 91 
northeast region as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 92 
United States Department of Labor in October of each calendar year. 93 
(b) No owner shall increase the rent of a dwelling unit (1) in an 94 
amount greater than four per cent plus the consumer price index above 95 
the existing rent during any twelve-month period as calculated under 96 
subsection (c) of this section, or (2) during any public health emergency 97 
declared pursuant to section 19a-131a of the general statutes and for a 98 
period of one year following the expiration of such emergency. 99 
(c) Not later than November first of each year, the Commissioner of 100 
Consumer Protection shall calculate the maximum annual rent increase 101 
percentage allowed pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of this 102 
section and post such maximum annual rent increase percentage on the 103 
Department of Consumer Protection's Internet web site. 104    
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(d) An owner shall not be subject to the provisions of subdivision (1) 105 
of subsection (b) of this section if (1) the first certificate of occupancy for 106 
the dwelling unit was issued less than fifteen years from the date of the 107 
notice of the rent increase, (2) the owner is charging reduced rent to the 108 
resident as part of a federal, state or local program or subsidy, or (3) the 109 
Commissioner of Consumer Protection has not calculated and posted 110 
the maximum annual rent increase percentage required under 111 
subsection (c) of this section. 112 
(e) Any owner who increases rent in violation of subsection (b) of this 113 
section shall be liable to the resident in an amount equal to three months' 114 
rent plus any actual damages suffered by the resident. 115 
Sec. 4. Section 21-64 of the general statutes is repealed and the 116 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 117 
As used in this chapter and section 3 of this act: 118 
(1) "Mobile manufactured home" means a detached residential unit 119 
having three-dimensional components which are intrinsically mobile 120 
with or without a wheeled chassis or a detached residential unit built on 121 
or after June 15, 1976, in accordance with federal manufactured home 122 
construction and safety standards, and, in either case, containing 123 
sleeping accommodations, a flush toilet, tub or shower bath, kitchen 124 
facilities and plumbing and electrical connections for attachment to 125 
outside systems, and designed for long-term occupancy and to be 126 
placed on rigid supports at the site where it is to be occupied as a 127 
residence, complete and ready for occupancy, except for minor and 128 
incidental unpacking and assembly operations and connection to 129 
utilities systems; 130 
(2) "Mobile manufactured home park" or "park" means a plot of 131 
ground upon which two or more mobile manufactured homes, occupied 132 
for residential purposes are located; 133 
(3) "Mobile manufactured home space or lot" means a plot of ground 134    
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within a mobile manufactured home park designed for the 135 
accommodation of one mobile manufactured home; 136 
(4) "Licensee" means any person licensed to operate and maintain a 137 
mobile manufactured home park under the provisions of this chapter; 138 
(5) "Resident" means a person who owns, or rents and occupies, a 139 
mobile manufactured home in a mobile manufactured home park; 140 
(6) "Department" means the Department of Consumer Protection; 141 
(7) "Owner" means a licensee or permittee or any person who owns, 142 
operates or maintains a mobile manufactured home park; 143 
(8) "Dwelling unit" means a mobile manufactured home; 144 
(9) "Person" means an individual, corporation, limited liability 145 
company, the state or any political subdivision thereof, agency, business 146 
trust, estate, trust, partnership or association, two or more persons 147 
having a joint or common interest, and any other legal or commercial 148 
entity; 149 
(10) "Premises" means a dwelling unit and facilities and 150 
appurtenances therein and grounds, areas and facilities held out for the 151 
use of residents generally or whose use is promised to the resident; 152 
(11) "Rent" means all periodic payments to be made to the owner 153 
under the rental agreement; 154 
(12) "Rental agreement" means all agreements, written or oral, and 155 
valid rules and regulations adopted under subsection (d) of section 21-156 
70, embodying the terms and conditions concerning the use and 157 
occupancy of a dwelling unit or premises. 158 
Sec. 5. Section 47a-23 of the general statutes is repealed and the 159 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 160 
(a) When the owner or lessor, or the owner's or lessor's legal 161    
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representative, or the owner's or lessor's attorney-at-law, or in-fact, 162 
desires to obtain possession or occupancy of any land or building, any 163 
apartment in any building, any dwelling unit, any trailer, or any land 164 
upon which a trailer is used or stands, and (1) when a rental agreement 165 
or lease of such property, whether in writing or by parol, terminates for 166 
any of the following reasons: (A) By lapse of time; (B) by reason of any 167 
expressed stipulation therein; (C) violation of the rental agreement or 168 
lease or of any rules or regulations adopted in accordance with section 169 
47a-9 or 21-70; (D) nonpayment of rent within the grace period provided 170 
for residential property in section 47a-15a, as amended by this act, or 171 
21-83; (E) nonpayment of rent when due for commercial property; (F) 172 
violation of section 47a-11 or subsection (b) of section 21-82; (G) 173 
nuisance, as defined in section 47a-32, or serious nuisance, as defined in 174 
section 47a-15 or 21-80; or (2) when such premises, or any part thereof, 175 
is occupied by one who never had a right or privilege to occupy such 176 
premises; or (3) when one originally had the right or privilege to occupy 177 
such premises but such right or privilege has terminated; or (4) when an 178 
action of summary process or other action to dispossess a tenant is 179 
authorized under subsection (b) of section 47a-23c for any of the 180 
following reasons: (A) Refusal to agree to a fair and equitable rent 181 
increase, as defined in subsection (c) of section 47a-23c, (B) permanent 182 
removal by the landlord of the dwelling unit of such tenant from the 183 
housing market, or (C) bona fide intention by the landlord to use such 184 
dwelling unit as such landlord's principal residence; or (5) when a farm 185 
employee, as described in section 47a-30, or a domestic servant, 186 
caretaker, manager or other employee, as described in subsection (b) of 187 
section 47a-36, occupies such premises furnished by the employer and 188 
fails to vacate such premises after employment is terminated by such 189 
employee or the employer or after such employee fails to report for 190 
employment, such owner or lessor, or such owner's or lessor's legal 191 
representative, or such owner's or lessor's attorney-at-law, or in-fact, 192 
shall give notice to each lessee or occupant to quit possession or 193 
occupancy of such land, building, apartment or dwelling unit, at least 194 
three days before the termination of the rental agreement or lease, if any, 195    
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or before the time specified in the notice for the lessee or occupant to 196 
quit possession or occupancy. 197 
(b) The notice shall be in writing substantially in the following form: 198 
"I (or we) hereby give you notice that you are to quit possession or 199 
occupancy of the (land, building, apartment or dwelling unit, or of any 200 
trailer or any land upon which a trailer is used or stands, as the case may 201 
be), now occupied by you at (here insert the address, including 202 
apartment number or other designation, as applicable), on or before the 203 
(here insert the date) for the following reason (here insert the reason or 204 
reasons for the notice to quit possession or occupancy using the 205 
statutory language or words of similar import, also the date and place 206 
of signing notice). A.B.". If the owner or lessor, or the owner's or lessor's 207 
legal representative, attorney-at-law or attorney-in-fact knows of the 208 
presence of an occupant but does not know the name of such occupant, 209 
the notice for such occupant may be addressed to such occupant as "John 210 
Doe", "Jane Doe" or some other alias which reasonably characterizes the 211 
person to be served. 212 
(c) A copy of such notice shall be delivered to each lessee or occupant 213 
or left at such lessee's or occupant's place of residence or, if the rental 214 
agreement or lease concerns commercial property, at the place of the 215 
commercial establishment by a proper officer or indifferent person. 216 
Delivery of such notice may be made on any day of the week. 217 
(d) With respect to a month-to-month or a week-to-week tenancy of 218 
a dwelling unit, a notice to quit possession based on nonpayment of rent 219 
shall, upon delivery, terminate the rental agreement for the month or 220 
week in which the notice is delivered, convert the month-to-month or 221 
week-to-week tenancy to a tenancy at sufferance and provide proper 222 
basis for a summary process action notwithstanding that such notice 223 
was delivered in the month or week after the month or week in which 224 
the rent is alleged to be unpaid. 225 
(e) A termination notice required pursuant to federal law and 226 
regulations may be included in or combined with the notice required 227    
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pursuant to this section and such inclusion or combination does not 228 
thereby render the notice required pursuant to this section equivocal, 229 
provided the rental agreement or lease shall not terminate until after the 230 
date specified in the notice for the lessee or occupant to quit possession 231 
or occupancy or the date of completion of the pretermination process, 232 
whichever is later. A use and occupancy disclaimer may be included in 233 
or combined with such notice, provided that such disclaimer does not 234 
take effect until after the date specified in the notice for the lessee or 235 
occupant to quit possession or occupancy or the date of the completion 236 
of the pretermination process, whichever is later. Such inclusion or 237 
combination does not thereby render the notice required pursuant to 238 
this section equivocal. Such disclaimer shall be in substantially the 239 
following form: "Any payments tendered after the date specified to quit 240 
possession or occupancy, or the date of the completion of the 241 
pretermination process if that is later, will be accepted for use and 242 
occupancy only and not for rent, with full reservation of rights to 243 
continue with the eviction action." 244 
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, 245 
no owner or lessor, and no owner's or lessor's legal representative, or 246 
the owner's or lessor's attorney-at-law or attorney-in-fact, shall, between 247 
December first and March thirty-first of any year, deliver or cause to be 248 
delivered a notice to quit possession for any reason set forth in this 249 
chapter or chapter 812, except for serious nuisance as defined in section 250 
47a-15. 251 
Sec. 6. Section 47a-42 of the general statutes is repealed and the 252 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 253 
(a) Whenever a judgment is entered against a defendant pursuant to 254 
section 47a-26, 47a-26a, 47a-26b or 47a-26d for the recovery of 255 
possession or occupancy of residential property, such defendant and 256 
any other occupant bound by the judgment by subsection (a) of section 257 
47a-26h shall forthwith remove himself or herself, such defendant's or 258 
occupant's possessions and all personal effects unless execution has 259    
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been stayed pursuant to sections 47a-35 to 47a-41, inclusive. If execution 260 
has been stayed, such defendant or occupant shall forthwith remove 261 
himself or herself, such defendant's or occupant's possessions and all 262 
personal effects upon the expiration of any stay of execution. If the 263 
defendant or occupant has not so removed himself or herself upon entry 264 
of a judgment pursuant to section 47a-26, 47a-26a, 47a-26b or 47a-26d, 265 
and upon expiration of any stay of execution, the plaintiff may obtain 266 
an execution upon such summary process judgment, and the defendant 267 
or other occupant bound by the judgment by subsection (a) of section 268 
47a-26h and the possessions and personal effects of such defendant or 269 
other occupant may be removed by a state marshal, pursuant to such 270 
execution, and delivered to the place of storage designated by the chief 271 
executive officer for such purposes. 272 
(b) Before any such removal, the state marshal charged with 273 
executing upon any such judgment of eviction shall give the chief 274 
executive officer of the town twenty-four [hours] hours' notice of the 275 
eviction, stating the date, time and location of such eviction as well as a 276 
general description, if known, of the types and amount of property to 277 
be removed from the premises and delivered to the designated place of 278 
storage. Before giving such notice to the chief executive officer of the 279 
town, the state marshal shall use reasonable efforts to locate and notify 280 
the defendant of the date and time such eviction is to take place and of 281 
the possibility of a sale pursuant to subsection (c) of this section. Such 282 
notice shall include service upon each defendant and upon any other 283 
person in occupancy, either personally or at the premises, of a true copy 284 
of the summary process execution. Such execution shall be on a form 285 
prescribed by the Judicial Department, shall be in clear and simple 286 
language and in readable format, and shall contain, in addition to other 287 
notices given to the defendant in the execution, a conspicuous notice, in 288 
large boldface type, that a person who claims to have a right to continue 289 
to occupy the premises should immediately contact an attorney, and 290 
clear instructions as to how and where the defendant may reclaim any 291 
possessions and personal effects removed and stored pursuant to this 292 
section, including a telephone number that may be called to arrange 293    
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release of such possessions and personal effects. 294 
(c) Whenever the possessions and personal effects of a defendant are 295 
removed by a state marshal under this section, such possessions and 296 
effects shall be delivered by such marshal to the designated place of 297 
storage. The plaintiff shall pay the state marshal for such removal in 298 
accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of section 52-261. Such 299 
removal and delivery shall be at the expense of the defendant and may 300 
be recovered by the plaintiff. If such possessions and effects are not 301 
reclaimed by the defendant and the expense of such storage is not paid 302 
to the chief executive officer within fifteen days after such eviction, the 303 
chief executive officer shall sell the same at public auction, after using 304 
reasonable efforts to locate and notify the defendant of such sale and 305 
after posting notice of such sale for one week on the public signpost 306 
nearest to the place where the eviction was made, if any, or at some 307 
exterior place near the office of the town clerk. The chief executive 308 
officer shall deliver to the defendant the net proceeds of such sale, if any, 309 
after deducting a reasonable charge for storage of such possessions and 310 
effects. If the defendant does not demand the net proceeds within thirty 311 
days after such sale, the chief executive officer shall turn over the net 312 
proceeds of the sale to the town treasury. 313 
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, no state marshal 314 
may remove a defendant or occupant, or such defendant or occupant's 315 
possessions and effects, between December first and March thirty-first 316 
of any year unless the judgment of eviction binding upon such 317 
defendant or occupant to be executed by such marshal was entered due 318 
to serious nuisance, as defined in section 47a-15, by such defendant or 319 
occupant. 320 
Sec. 7. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) As used in this section, 321 
"tenant screening report" means a credit report, a criminal background 322 
report, an employment history report or a rental history report, or any 323 
combination thereof, used by a landlord to determine the suitability of 324 
a prospective tenant. 325    
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(b) No landlord may demand from a prospective tenant any 326 
payment, fee or charge for the processing, review or acceptance of any 327 
rental application, or demand any other payment, fee or charge before 328 
or at the beginning of the tenancy, except a security deposit pursuant to 329 
section 47a-21 of the general statutes or a fee for a tenant screening 330 
report as provided by subsection (c) of this section. 331 
(c) A landlord may charge a fee for a tenant screening report 332 
concerning a prospective tenant if the fee for such tenant screening 333 
report is not more than the actual cost paid by the landlord for such 334 
report. The landlord shall waive any fee for such report if the 335 
prospective tenant provides the landlord with a copy of a tenant 336 
screening report concerning the prospective tenant that was conducted 337 
within thirty days of the prospective tenant's rental application and that 338 
is satisfactory to the landlord.  339 
(d) A landlord may not collect a tenant screening report fee from a 340 
prospective tenant until the landlord provides the prospective tenant 341 
with (1) a copy of the tenant screening report, and (2) a copy of the 342 
receipt or invoice from the entity conducting the tenant screening report 343 
concerning the prospective tenant. 344 
Sec. 8. Subsection (a) of section 47a-4 of the general statutes is 345 
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 346 
1, 2023): 347 
(a) A rental agreement shall not provide that the tenant: (1) Agrees to 348 
waive or forfeit rights or remedies under this chapter and sections 47a-349 
21, 47a-23 to 47a-23b, inclusive, as amended by this act, 47a-26 to 47a-350 
26g, inclusive, 47a-35 to 47a-35b, inclusive, 47a-41a, 47a-43 and 47a-46, 351 
or under any section of the general statutes or any municipal ordinance 352 
unless such section or ordinance expressly states that such rights may 353 
be waived; (2) authorizes the landlord to confess judgment on a claim 354 
arising out of the rental agreement; (3) agrees to the exculpation or 355 
limitation of any liability of the landlord arising under law or to 356 
indemnify the landlord for that liability or the costs connected 357    
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therewith; (4) agrees to waive his right to the interest on the security 358 
deposit pursuant to section 47a-21; (5) agrees to permit the landlord to 359 
dispossess him without resort to court order; (6) consents to the distraint 360 
of his property for rent; (7) agrees to pay the landlord's attorney's fees 361 
in excess of fifteen per cent of any judgment against the tenant in any 362 
action in which money damages are awarded; (8) agrees to pay a late 363 
charge prior to the expiration of the grace period set forth in section 47a-364 
15a, as amended by this act, or to pay rent in a reduced amount if such 365 
rent is paid prior to the expiration of such grace period; (9) agrees to pay 366 
a late charge on rent payments made subsequent to such grace period, 367 
in an amount exceeding the amounts set forth in section 47a-15a, as 368 
amended by this act; or [(9)] (10) agrees to pay a heat or utilities 369 
surcharge if heat or utilities is included in the rental agreement. 370 
Sec. 9. Section 47a-15a of the general statutes is repealed and the 371 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 372 
(a) If rent is unpaid when due and the tenant fails to pay rent within 373 
nine days thereafter or, in the case of a one-week tenancy, within four 374 
days thereafter, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement in 375 
accordance with the provisions of sections 47a-23 to 47a-23b, inclusive, 376 
as amended by this act. 377 
(b) If a rental agreement contains a valid written agreement to pay a 378 
late charge in accordance with subsection (a) of section 47a-4, as 379 
amended by this act, a landlord may assess a tenant such a late charge 380 
on a rent payment made subsequent to the grace period set forth in 381 
subsection (a) of this section in accordance with this section. Such late 382 
charge may not exceed the lesser of (1) five dollars per day, up to a 383 
maximum of twenty-five dollars, or (2) five per cent of the delinquent 384 
rent payment or, in the case of a rental agreement paid in whole or in 385 
part by a governmental or charitable entity, five per cent of the tenant's 386 
share of the delinquent rent payment. The landlord may not assess more 387 
than one late charge upon a delinquent rent payment, regardless of how 388 
long the rent remains unpaid. Any rent payments received by the 389    
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landlord shall be applied first to the most recent rent payment due.  390 
Sec. 10. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 47a-6a of the general statutes 391 
are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective 392 
October 1, 2023): 393 
(a) As used in this section, (1) "address" means a location as described 394 
by the full street number, if any, the street name, the city or town, and 395 
the state, and not a mailing address such as a post office box, (2) 396 
"dwelling unit" means any house or building, or portion thereof, which 397 
is rented, leased or hired out to be occupied, or is arranged or designed 398 
to be occupied, or is occupied, as the home or residence of one or more 399 
persons, living independently of each other, and doing their cooking 400 
upon the premises, and having a common right in the halls, stairways 401 
or yards, (3) "agent in charge" means one who manages real estate, 402 
including, but not limited to, the collection of rents and supervision of 403 
property, (4) "controlling participant" means [an individual or entity 404 
that exercises day-to-day financial or operational control] a natural 405 
person who is not a minor and who, directly or indirectly and through 406 
any contract, arrangement, understanding or relationship, exercises 407 
substantial control of, or owns greater than twenty-five per cent of, a 408 
corporation, partnership, trust or other legally recognized entity owning 409 
rental real property in the state, and (5) "project-based housing 410 
provider" means a property owner who contracts with the United States 411 
Department of Housing and Urban Development to provide housing to 412 
tenants under the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program, 42 USC 413 
1437f(o). 414 
(b) Any municipality may require the nonresident owner or project-415 
based housing provider of occupied or vacant rental real property to 416 
[maintain on file in the office of] report to the tax assessor, or other 417 
municipal office designated by the municipality, the current residential 418 
address of the nonresident owner or project-based housing provider of 419 
such property [,] if the nonresident owner or project-based housing 420 
provider is an individual, or the current residential address of the agent 421    
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in charge of the building [,] if the nonresident owner or project-based 422 
housing provider is a corporation, partnership, trust or other legally 423 
recognized entity owning rental real property in the state. [In the case 424 
of a] If the nonresident owners or project-based housing [provider, such 425 
information] providers are a corporation, partnership, trust or other 426 
legally recognized entity owning rental real property in the state, such 427 
report shall also include identifying information and the current 428 
residential address of each controlling participant associated with the 429 
property. [, except that, if such controlling participant is a corporation, 430 
partnership, trust or other legally recognized entity, the project-based 431 
housing provider shall include the identifying information and the 432 
current residential address of an individual who exercises day-to-day 433 
financial or operational control of such entity.] If such residential 434 
address changes, notice of the new residential address shall be provided 435 
by such nonresident owner, project-based housing provider or agent in 436 
charge of the building to the office of the tax assessor or other designated 437 
municipal office not more than twenty-one days after the date that the 438 
address change occurred. If the nonresident owner, project-based 439 
housing provider or agent fails to file an address under this section, the 440 
address to which the municipality mails property tax bills for the rental 441 
real property shall be deemed to be the nonresident owner, project-442 
based housing provider or agent's current address. Such address may 443 
be used for compliance with the provisions of subsection (c) of this 444 
section. 445 
Sec. 11. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) The Commissioner of 446 
Housing shall, within existing appropriations, develop standardized 447 
rental agreement forms that may be used by landlords and tenants in 448 
the state. Such forms shall contain the essential terms of a rental 449 
agreement between any landlord and any tenant, be designed to be 450 
easily read and understood and shall include plain language 451 
explanations of all terms and conditions of the agreement, including, 452 
but not limited to, rent, fees, deposits and other charges. The 453 
commissioner shall make such forms available in both English and 454 
Spanish and shall post such forms on the Department of Housing's 455    
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Internet web site not later than July 1, 2024, and shall revise such forms 456 
from time to time at the commissioner's discretion. 457 
Sec. 12. Section 47a-58 of the general statutes is repealed and the 458 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 459 
(a) Any enforcing agency may issue a notice of violation to any 460 
person who violates any provision of this chapter or a provision of a 461 
local housing code. If an enforcing agency issues an order to a registrant, 462 
such order may be delivered in accordance with section 7-148ii, 463 
provided nothing in this section shall preclude an enforcing agency 464 
from providing notice in another manner permitted by applicable law. 465 
Such notice shall specify each violation and specify the last day by which 466 
such violation shall be corrected. The date specified shall not be less than 467 
three weeks from the date of mailing of such notice, provided that in the 468 
case of a condition, which in the judgment of the enforcing agency is or 469 
in its effect is dangerous or detrimental to life or health, the date 470 
specified shall not be more than five days from the date of mailing of 471 
such notice. The enforcing agency may postpone the last day by which 472 
a violation shall be corrected upon a showing by the owner or other 473 
responsible person that he has begun to correct the violation but that 474 
full correction of the violation cannot be completed within the time 475 
provided because of technical difficulties, inability to obtain necessary 476 
materials or labor or inability to gain access to the dwelling unit wherein 477 
the violation exists. 478 
(b) When the owner or other responsible person has corrected such 479 
violation, the owner or other responsible person shall promptly, but not 480 
later than two weeks after such correction, report to the enforcing 481 
agency in writing, indicating the date when each violation was 482 
corrected. It shall be presumed that the violation was corrected on the 483 
date so indicated, unless a subsequent inspection by the enforcing 484 
agency again reveals the existence of the condition giving rise to the 485 
earlier notice of violation. 486 
(c) Any person who fails to correct any violation prior to the date set 487    
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forth in the notice of violation shall be subject to a cumulative civil 488 
penalty of five dollars per day for each violation from the date set for 489 
correction in the notice of violation to the date such violation is 490 
corrected, except that in any case, the penalty shall not exceed one 491 
hundred dollars per day and the total penalty shall not exceed seven 492 
thousand five hundred dollars. The penalty may be collected by the 493 
enforcing agency by action against the owner or other responsible 494 
person or by an action against the real property. An action against the 495 
owner may be joined with an action against the real property. 496 
(d) In addition to the penalties specified in this section, the enforcing 497 
agency may enforce the provisions of this chapter or a local housing 498 
code by injunctive relief pursuant to chapter 916. 499 
(e) (1) Any penalty imposed by an enforcing agency pursuant to the 500 
provisions of subsection (c) of this section, and remaining unpaid for a 501 
period of sixty days after its due date, shall constitute a lien upon the 502 
real property against which the penalty was imposed, provided a notice 503 
of violation is recorded in the land records and indexed in the name of 504 
the property owner no later than thirty days after the penalty was 505 
imposed. 506 
(2) Each such notice of violation shall be effective from the time of the 507 
recording on the land records. Each lien shall take precedence over all 508 
transfers and encumbrances recorded after such time. 509 
(3) Any municipal lien pursuant to the provisions of this section may 510 
be foreclosed in the same manner as a mortgage. 511 
(4) Any municipal lien pursuant to this section may be discharged or 512 
dissolved in the manner provided in sections 49-35a to 49-37, inclusive. 513 
(f) Any enforcing agency imposing a penalty pursuant to subsection 514 
(c) of this section shall maintain a current record of all properties with 515 
respect to which such penalty remains unpaid in the office of such 516 
agency. Such record shall be available for inspection by the public. 517    
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(g) Each enforcing agency empowered to enforce any provision of 518 
this chapter or any provision of a local housing code shall create and 519 
make available housing code violation complaint forms, written in both 520 
English and Spanish, for use by any occupant of a dwelling unit seeking 521 
to file a complaint against the owner of such unit, or other responsible 522 
party, concerning such violations. 523 
Sec. 13. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) As used in this section: 524 
(1) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Housing. 525 
(2) "Eligible workforce housing opportunity development project" or 526 
"project" means a project for the construction or substantial 527 
rehabilitation of rental housing (A) located within an opportunity zone 528 
in this state, (B) designated under subsection (e) of this section for 529 
certain professions that work within the municipality in which the 530 
project is located and for low and moderate income families and 531 
individuals, and (C) that may incorporate renewable energy technology 532 
and be transit-oriented. 533 
(3) "Substantial rehabilitation" means either (A) the costs of any 534 
repair, replacement or improvement to a building that exceeds twenty-535 
five per cent of the value of such building after the completion of all 536 
such repairs, replacements or improvements, or (B) the replacement of 537 
two or more of the following: (i) Roof structures, (ii) ceilings, (iii) wall 538 
or floor structures, (iv) foundations, (v) plumbing systems, (vi) heating 539 
and air conditioning systems, or (vii) electrical systems. 540 
(4) "Opportunity zone" means an area designated as a qualified 541 
opportunity zone pursuant to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, P.L. 542 
115-97, as amended from time to time. 543 
(5) "Eligible developer" or "developer" means (A) a nonprofit 544 
corporation; (B) any business corporation incorporated pursuant to 545 
chapter 601 of the general statutes, (i) having as one of its purposes the 546 
construction, rehabilitation, ownership or operation of housing, and (ii) 547    
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either certified under this section or having articles of incorporation 548 
approved by the commissioner in accordance with regulations adopted 549 
pursuant to section 8-79a or 8-84 of the general statutes; (C) any 550 
partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, joint 551 
venture, trust, limited liability company or association, (i) having as one 552 
of its purposes the construction, rehabilitation, ownership or operation 553 
of housing, and (ii) either certified under this section or having basic 554 
documents of organization approved by the commissioner in 555 
accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to section 8-79a or 8-84 556 
of the general statutes; (D) a housing authority; or (E) a municipal 557 
developer. 558 
(6) "Authority" or "housing authority" means any of the public 559 
corporations created by section 8-40 of the general statutes, and the 560 
Connecticut Housing Authority when exercising the rights, powers, 561 
duties or privileges of, or subject to the immunities or limitations of, 562 
housing authorities pursuant to section 8-121 of the general statutes. 563 
(7) "Nonprofit corporation" means a nonprofit cor poration 564 
incorporated pursuant to chapter 602 of the general statutes or any 565 
predecessor statutes thereto, having as one of its purposes the 566 
construction, rehabilitation, ownership or operation of housing and 567 
having articles of incorporation approved by the Commissioner of 568 
Housing in accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to section 8-569 
79a or 8-84 of the general statutes or certified under this section. 570 
(8) "Municipal developer" means a municipality that has not declared 571 
by resolution a need for a housing authority pursuant to section 8-40 of 572 
the general statutes, acting by and through its legislative body. 573 
"Municipal developer" means the board of selectmen if such board is 574 
authorized to act as the municipal developer by the town meeting or 575 
representative town meeting. 576 
(9) "Low and moderate income families and individuals" means 577 
families or individuals who lack the amount of income necessary, as 578 
determined by the Commissioner of Housing, to enable them to rent 579    
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mixed-income housing without financial assistance. 580 
(10) "Market rate" means the rental income that such property would 581 
most probably command on the open market as indicated by present 582 
rentals in the opportunity zone being paid for comparable space. 583 
(b) There is established a workforce housing opport unity 584 
development program to be administered by the Department of 585 
Housing under which individuals or entities who make cash 586 
contributions to an eligible developer for an eligible workforce housing 587 
opportunity development project located in a federally designated 588 
opportunity zone may be allowed a credit against the tax due under 589 
chapter 208 or 229 of the general statutes in an amount equal to the 590 
amount specified by the commissioner under this section. Any 591 
developer of a workforce housing opportunity development project 592 
shall be allowed an exemption from any fees under section 29-263 of the 593 
general statutes, as amended by this act, and any eligible workforce 594 
housing opportunity development project shall be assessed using the 595 
capitalization of net income method under subsection (b) of section 12-596 
63b of the general statutes, as amended by this act. 597 
(c) The Commissioner of Housing shall determine eligibility criteria 598 
for such program and establish an application process for the program. 599 
The Department of Housing shall commence accepting applications for 600 
such program not later than January 1, 2024. A developer may apply to 601 
the Department of Housing for certification as a developer qualified to 602 
receive cash investments eligible for a tax credit pursuant to this section 603 
in a manner and form prescribed by the commissioner. To the extent 604 
feasible, any eligible workforce housing opportunity development 605 
project shall incorporate renewable energy or other technology in order 606 
to lower utility costs for the tenants and be transit-oriented. Any eligible 607 
workforce housing opportunity development project once constructed 608 
or substantially rehabilitated shall be rented as follows: (1) Fifty per cent 609 
of the units shall be rented at the market rate, (2) forty per cent of the 610 
units shall be rented to the workforce population designated under 611    
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subsection (e) of this section, where such project is located at a rent not 612 
exceeding twenty per cent of the prevailing rent of the opportunity zone 613 
where such development is located, and (3) ten per cent of the units shall 614 
be rented to families or individuals of low and moderate income 615 
receiving rental assistance under chapter 128 or 319uu of the general 616 
statutes or 42 USC 1437f, as amended from time to time. The program 617 
shall provide for a method of selecting persons satisfying such income 618 
criteria to rent such units of housing from among a pool of applicants, 619 
which method shall not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, 620 
national origin, ancestry, sex, gender identity or expression, age or 621 
physical or intellectual disability. 622 
(d) A workforce housing opportunity development project shall be 623 
scheduled for completion not more than three years after the date of 624 
approval by the Department of Housing. Each developer of a workforce 625 
housing opportunity development project shall submit to the 626 
commissioner quarterly progress reports and a final report upon 627 
completion, in a manner and form prescribed by the commissioner. If a 628 
workforce housing opportunity development project fails to be 629 
completed on or before three years from the date of approval of such 630 
project, or at any time the commissioner determines that a project is 631 
unlikely to be completed, the commissioner may request the Attorney 632 
General to reclaim any remaining funds contributed to the project by 633 
individuals or entities under subsection (b) of this section and, upon 634 
receipt of any such remaining funds, the commissioner shall reallocate 635 
such funds to another eligible project. 636 
(e) The developer shall obtain the approval of the zoning commission, 637 
as defined in section 8-13m of the general statutes, of the municipality 638 
and of any other applicable municipal agency for the proposed 639 
workforce housing opportunity development project. After all such 640 
approvals are granted, the municipality may, not later than thirty days 641 
after such approval, by vote of its legislative body or, in a municipality 642 
where the legislative body is a town meeting, by vote of the board of 643 
selectmen, designate the workforce population that forty per cent of the 644    
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project shall be dedicated to. Such designation may include volunteer 645 
firefighters, teachers, police officers, emergency medical personnel or 646 
other professions of persons working in the municipality. If the 647 
municipality does not vote within such time period, the developer shall 648 
designate the workforce population. 649 
(f) For taxable income years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, 650 
the Commissioner of Revenue Services shall grant a credit against the 651 
tax imposed under chapter 208 or 229 of the general statutes, other than 652 
the liability imposed by section 12-707 of the general statutes, in an 653 
amount equal to the amount specified by the Commissioner of Housing 654 
in a tax credit voucher issued by the Commissioner of Housing pursuant 655 
to subsection (g) of this section. 656 
(g) (1) The Commissioner of Housing shall administer a system of tax 657 
credit vouchers within the resources, requirements and purposes of this 658 
section, for individuals and entities making cash contributions to an 659 
eligible developer for an eligible workforce housing opportunity 660 
development project. Such voucher may be used as a credit against the 661 
tax to which such individual or entity is subject under chapter 208 or 229 662 
of the general statutes, other than the liability imposed by section 12-707 663 
of the general statutes. 664 
(2) In no event shall the total amount of all tax credits allowed to all 665 
individuals or entities pursuant to the provisions of this section exceed 666 
five million dollars in any one fiscal year. 667 
(3) No tax credit shall be granted to any individual or entity for any 668 
individual amount contributed of less than two hundred fifty dollars. 669 
(4) Any tax credit not used in the taxable income year during which 670 
the cash contribution was made may be carried forward or backward 671 
for the five immediately succeeding or preceding taxable or income 672 
years until the full credit has been allowed. 673 
(5) If an entity claiming a credit under this section is an S corporation 674    
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or an entity treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes, the 675 
credit may be claimed by the entity's shareholders or partners. If the 676 
entity is a single member limited liability company that is disregarded 677 
as an entity separate from its owner, the credit may be claimed by such 678 
limited liability company's owner, provided such owner is subject to the 679 
tax imposed under chapter 208 or 229 of the general statutes. 680 
(h) The Commissioner of Housing shall adopt regulations in 681 
accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes to 682 
implement the provisions of this section, including, but not limited to, 683 
the conditions for certification of a developer applying for assistance 684 
under this section. 685 
Sec. 14. Section 12-63b of the general statutes is repealed and the 686 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023, and 687 
applicable to assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 2023): 688 
(a) The assessor or board of assessors in any town, at any time, when 689 
determining the present true and actual value of real property as 690 
provided in section 12-63, which property is used primarily for the 691 
purpose of producing rental income, exclusive of such property used 692 
solely for residential purposes, containing not more than six dwelling 693 
units and in which the owner resides, shall determine such value on the 694 
basis of an appraisal which shall include to the extent applicable with 695 
respect to such property, consideration of each of the following methods 696 
of appraisal: (1) Replacement cost less depreciation, plus the market 697 
value of the land, (2) capitalization of net income based on market rent 698 
for similar property, and (3) a sales comparison approach based on 699 
current bona fide sales of comparable property. The provisions of this 700 
section shall not be applicable with respect to any housing assisted by 701 
the federal or state government except any such housing for which the 702 
federal assistance directly related to rent for each unit in such housing 703 
is no less than the difference between the fair market rent for each such 704 
unit in the applicable area and the amount of rent payable by the tenant 705 
in each such unit, as determined under the federal program providing 706    
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for such assistance. 707 
(b) In the case of an eligible workforce housing opportunity 708 
development project, as defined in section 13 of this act, the assessor 709 
shall use the capitalization of net income method based on the actual 710 
rent received for the property. 711 
[(b)] (c) For purposes of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this 712 
section and, generally, in its use as a factor in any appraisal with respect 713 
to real property used primarily for the purpose of producing rental 714 
income, the term "market rent" means the rental income that such 715 
property would most probably command on the open market as 716 
indicated by present rentals being paid for comparable space. In 717 
determining market rent the assessor shall consider the actual rental 718 
income applicable with respect to such real property under the terms of 719 
an existing contract of lease at the time of such determination.  720 
Sec. 15. Section 8-395 of the general statutes is repealed and the 721 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 722 
(a) As used in this section, (1) "business firm" means any business 723 
entity authorized to do business in the state and subject to the 724 
corporation business tax imposed under chapter 208, or any company 725 
subject to a tax imposed under chapter 207, or any air carrier subject to 726 
the air carriers tax imposed under chapter 209, or any railroad company 727 
subject to the railroad companies tax imposed under chapter 210, or any 728 
regulated telecommunications service, express, cable or community 729 
antenna television company subject to the regulated 730 
telecommunications service, express, cable and community antenna 731 
television companies tax imposed under chapter 211, or any utility 732 
company subject to the utility companies tax imposed under chapter 733 
212, [and] (2) "nonprofit corporation" means a nonprofit corporation 734 
incorporated pursuant to chapter 602 or any predecessor statutes 735 
thereto, having as one of its purposes the construction, rehabilitation, 736 
ownership or operation of housing and having articles of incorporation 737 
approved by the executive director of the Connecticut Housing Finance 738    
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Authority in accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to section 739 
8-79a or 8-84, (3) "workforce housing development project" or "project" 740 
means the construction or substantial rehabilitation of dwelling units for 741 
rental housing where (A) ten per cent of the units are affordable 742 
housing, (B) forty per cent of the units are rented to the workforce 743 
population designated by the developer, in consultation with the 744 
municipality where such project is located, at a rent not exceeding 745 
twenty per cent of the prevailing rent of the area where such 746 
development is located, and (C) fifty per cent of the units are rented at 747 
a market rate and includes, but is not limited to, an eligible workforce 748 
housing opportunity development project, as defined in section 13 of 749 
this act, (4) "affordable housing" means rental housing for which 750 
persons and families pay thirty per cent or less of their annual income, 751 
where such income is less than or equal to the area median income for 752 
the municipality in which such housing is located, as determined by the 753 
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, (5) 754 
"substantial rehabilitation" means either (A) the costs of any repair, 755 
replacement or improvement to a building that exceeds twenty-five per 756 
cent of the value of such building after the completion of all such repairs, 757 
replacements or improvements, or (B) the replacement of two or more 758 
of the following: (i) Roof structures, (ii) ceilings, (iii) wall or floor 759 
structures, (iv) foundations, (v) plumbing systems, (vi) heating and air 760 
conditioning systems, or (vii) electrical systems, and (6) "market rate" 761 
means the rental income that such unit would most probably command 762 
on the open market as indicated by present rentals being paid for 763 
comparable space in the area where the unit is located. 764 
(b) The Commissioner of Revenue Services shall grant a credit against 765 
[any] the tax [due] imposed under [the provisions of] chapter 207, 208, 766 
209, 210, 211 or 212 in an amount equal to the amount specified by the 767 
Connecticut Housing Finance Authority in any tax credit voucher 768 
issued by said authority pursuant to subsection (c) of this section. 769 
(c) The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority shall administer a 770 
system of tax credit vouchers within the resources, requirements and 771    
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purposes of this section, for business firms making cash contributions to 772 
housing programs developed, sponsored or managed by a nonprofit 773 
corporation, as defined in subsection (a) of this section, which benefit 774 
low and moderate income persons or families which have been 775 
approved prior to the date of any such cash contribution by the 776 
authority, including, but not limited to, contributions for a workforce 777 
housing development project. Such vouchers may be used as a credit 778 
against any of the taxes to which such business firm is subject and which 779 
are enumerated in subsection (b) of this section. For taxable or income 780 
years commencing on or after January 1, 1998, to be eligible for approval 781 
a housing program shall be scheduled for completion not more than 782 
three years from the date of approval. For taxable or income years 783 
commencing on or after January 1, 2024, to be eligible for approval, a 784 
workforce housing development project shall be scheduled for 785 
completion not more than three years from the date of approval. Each 786 
program or developer of a workforce housing development project shall 787 
submit to the authority quarterly progress reports and a final report 788 
upon completion, in a manner and form prescribed by the authority. If 789 
a program or workforce housing development project fails to be 790 
completed [after] on or before three years from the date of approval of 791 
the project, or at any time the authority determines that a program or 792 
project is unlikely to be completed, the authority may reclaim any 793 
remaining funds contributed by business firms and reallocate such 794 
funds to another eligible program or project. 795 
(d) No business firm shall receive a credit pursuant to both this 796 
section and chapter 228a in relation to the same cash contribution. 797 
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent two or more 798 
business firms from participating jointly in one or more programs or 799 
projects under the provisions of this section. Such joint programs or 800 
projects shall be submitted, and acted upon, as a single program or 801 
project by the business firms involved. 802 
(f) No tax credit shall be granted to any business firm for any 803    
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individual amount contributed of less than two hundred fifty dollars. 804 
(g) Any tax credit not used in the [period] taxable income year during 805 
which the cash contribution was made may be carried forward or 806 
backward for the five immediately succeeding or preceding taxable or 807 
income years until the full credit has been allowed. 808 
(h) In no event shall the total amount of all tax credits allowed to all 809 
business firms pursuant to the provisions of this section exceed ten 810 
million dollars in any one fiscal year, provided, each year until the date 811 
sixty days after the date the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority 812 
publishes the list of housing programs or workforce housing 813 
development projects that will receive tax credit reservations, two 814 
million dollars of the total amount of all tax credits under this section 815 
shall be set aside for permanent supportive housing initiatives 816 
established pursuant to section 17a-485c, and one million dollars of the 817 
total amount of all tax credits under this section shall be set aside for 818 
workforce housing, as defined by the Connecticut Housing Finance 819 
Authority through written procedures adopted pursuant to subsection 820 
(k) of this section. Each year, on or after the date sixty days after the date 821 
the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority publishes the list of 822 
housing programs or projects that will receive tax credit reservations, 823 
any unused portion of such tax credits shall become available for any 824 
housing program or project eligible for tax credits pursuant to this 825 
section. 826 
(i) No organization conducting a housing program or [programs] 827 
project eligible for funding with respect to which tax credits may be 828 
allowed under this section shall be allowed to receive an aggregate 829 
amount of such funding for any such program or [programs] project in 830 
excess of five hundred thousand dollars for any fiscal year. 831 
(j) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent a business 832 
firm from making any cash contribution to a housing program or project 833 
to which tax credits may be applied which cash contribution may result 834 
in the business firm having a limited equity interest in the program or 835    
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project. 836 
(k) The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, with the approval of 837 
the Commissioner of Revenue Services, shall adopt written procedures 838 
in accordance with section 1-121 to implement the provisions of this 839 
section. Such procedures shall include provisions for issuing tax credit 840 
vouchers for cash contributions to housing programs or projects based 841 
on a system of ranking housing programs. In establishing such ranking 842 
system, the authority shall consider the following: (1) The readiness of 843 
the project to be built; (2) use of the funds to build or rehabilitate a 844 
specific housing project or to capitalize a revolving loan fund providing 845 
low-cost loans for housing construction, repair or rehabilitation to 846 
benefit persons of very low, low and moderate income; (3) the extent the 847 
project will benefit families at or below twenty-five per cent of the area 848 
median income and families with incomes between twenty-five per cent 849 
and fifty per cent of the area median income, as defined by the United 850 
States Department of Housing and Urban Development; (4) evidence of 851 
the general administrative capability of the nonprofit corporation to 852 
build or rehabilitate housing; (5) evidence that any funds received by 853 
the nonprofit corporation for which a voucher was issued were used to 854 
accomplish the goals set forth in the application; and (6) with respect to 855 
any income year commencing on or after January 1, 1998: (A) Use of the 856 
funds to provide housing opportunities in urban areas and the impact 857 
of such funds on neighborhood revitalization; and (B) the extent to 858 
which tax credit funds are leveraged by other funds. 859 
(l) Vouchers issued or reserved by the Department of Housing under 860 
the provisions of this section prior to July 1, 1995, shall be valid on and 861 
after July 1, 1995, to the same extent as they would be valid under the 862 
provisions of this section in effect on June 30, 1995. 863 
(m) The credit which is sought by the business firm shall first be 864 
claimed on the tax return for such business firm's taxable income or year 865 
during which the cash contribution to which the tax credit voucher 866 
relates was paid. 867    
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Sec. 16. Section 29-263 of the general statutes is repealed and the 868 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 869 
(a) Except as provided in subsection (h) of section 29-252a and the 870 
State Building Code adopted pursuant to subsection (a) of section 29-871 
252, after October 1, 1970, no building or structure shall be constructed 872 
or altered until an application has been filed with the building official 873 
and a permit issued. Such application shall be filed in person, by mail or 874 
electronic mail, in a manner prescribed by the building official. Such 875 
permit shall be issued or refused, in whole or in part, within thirty days 876 
after the date of an application. No permit shall be issued except upon 877 
application of the owner of the premises affected or the owner's 878 
authorized agent. No permit shall be issued to a contractor who is 879 
required to be registered pursuant to chapter 400, for work to be 880 
performed by such contractor, unless the name, business address and 881 
Department of Consumer Protection registration number of such 882 
contractor is clearly marked on the application for the permit, and the 883 
contractor has presented such contractor's certificate of registration as a 884 
home improvement contractor. Prior to the issuance of a permit and 885 
within said thirty-day period, the building official shall review the plans 886 
of buildings or structures to be constructed or altered, including, but not 887 
limited to, plans prepared by an architect licensed pursuant to chapter 888 
390, a professional engineer licensed pursuant to chapter 391 or an 889 
interior designer registered pursuant to chapter 396a acting within the 890 
scope of such license or registration, to determine their compliance with 891 
the requirements of the State Building Code and, where applicable, the 892 
local fire marshal shall review such plans to determine their compliance 893 
with the Fire Safety Code. Such plans submitted for review shall be in 894 
substantial compliance with the provisions of the State Building Code 895 
and, where applicable, with the provisions of the Fire Safety Code. 896 
(b) On and after July 1, 1999, the building official shall assess an 897 
education fee on each building permit application. During the fiscal year 898 
commencing July 1, 1999, the amount of such fee shall be sixteen cents 899 
per one thousand dollars of construction value as declared on the 900    
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building permit application and the building official shall remit such 901 
fees quarterly to the Department of Administrative Services, for deposit 902 
in the General Fund. Upon deposit in the General Fund, the amount of 903 
such fees shall be credited to the appropriation to the Department of 904 
Administrative Services and shall be used for the code training and 905 
educational programs established pursuant to section 29-251c and the 906 
educational programs required in subsections (a) and (b) of section 29-907 
262. On and after July 1, 2000, the assessment shall be made in 908 
accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (d) of 909 
section 29-251c. All fees collected pursuant to this subsection shall be 910 
maintained in a separate account by the local building department. 911 
During the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1999, the local building 912 
department may retain two per cent of such fees for administrative costs 913 
incurred in collecting such fees and maintaining such account. On and 914 
after July 1, 2000, the portion of such fees which may be retained by a 915 
local building department shall be determined in accordance with 916 
regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (d) of section 29-251c. No 917 
building official shall assess such education fee on a building permit 918 
application to repair or replace a concrete foundation that has 919 
deteriorated due to the presence of pyrrhotite. 920 
(c) Any municipality may, by ordinance adopted by its legislative 921 
body, exempt Class I renewable energy source projects from payment 922 
of building permit fees imposed by the municipality. 923 
(d) Notwithstanding any municipal charter, home rule ordinance or 924 
special act, no municipality shall collect an application fee on a building 925 
permit application to repair or replace a concrete foundation that has 926 
deteriorated due to the presence of pyrrhotite. 927 
(e) Notwithstanding any municipal charter, home rule ordinance or 928 
special act, no municipality shall collect any fee for a building permit 929 
application for the construction or substantial rehabilitation of (1) an 930 
eligible workforce housing opportunity development project, as defined 931 
in section 13 of this act, or (2) a workforce housing development project, 932    
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as defined in section 8-395, as amended by this act. 933 
Sec. 17. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023, and applicable to assessment 934 
years commencing on or after October 1, 2023) The legislative body of any 935 
municipality or, in a municipality where the legislative body is a town 936 
meeting, the board of selectmen may, by ordinance, exempt from real 937 
property tax any workforce housing development project, as defined in 938 
section 8-395 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, to the extent 939 
of seventy per cent of its valuation for purposes of assessment in each 940 
of the seven full assessment years following the assessment year in 941 
which the construction or substantial rehabilitation, as defined in 942 
section 8-395 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, is 943 
completed. 944 
Sec. 18. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) Beginning with the fiscal 945 
year commencing July 1, 2025, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 946 
Management shall pay a state grant in lieu of taxes to any municipality 947 
that has opted to partially exempt from real property tax a workforce 948 
housing development project under section 17 of this act and submitted 949 
an application for such grant. A municipality shall apply for such grant 950 
annually on a form and in a manner prescribed by the secretary. On or 951 
before January first, annually, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 952 
Management shall determine the amount due to such municipality, in 953 
accordance with this section. 954 
(b) Any grant payable to any municipality that applies for a grant 955 
under the provisions of this section shall be equal to seventy per cent of 956 
the property taxes that, except for any exemption applicable to any such 957 
housing authority property under the provisions of chapter 128 of the 958 
general statutes, would have been paid with respect to such exempt real 959 
property on the assessment list in such municipality for the assessment 960 
date two years prior to the commencement of the state fiscal year in 961 
which such grant is payable, for a maximum of seven assessment years. 962 
The amount of the grant payable to each municipality in any year in 963 
accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately in the 964    
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LCO No. 4702   	32 of 37 
 
event that the total of such grants in such year exceeds the amount 965 
appropriated for the purposes of this section with respect to such year. 966 
Sec. 19. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) The Connecticut Housing 967 
Finance Authority shall develop and administer a program of mortgage 968 
assistance for (1) developers for the construction or substantial 969 
rehabilitation of eligible workforce housing opportunity development 970 
projects, as defined in section 13 of this act, and (2) developers for the 971 
construction or substantial rehabilitation of workforce housing 972 
development projects, as defined in section 8-395 of the general statutes, 973 
as amended by this act. In making mortgage assistance available under 974 
the program, the authority shall utilize any appropriate housing 975 
subsidies. 976 
Sec. 20. (Effective from passage) The Department of Housing shall, 977 
within available appropriations, conduct a study on methods to (1) 978 
increase housing options for apprentices and other newly hired 979 
employees, and (2) enable such apprentices and other newly hired 980 
employees to reside in the municipalities in which they work. Not later 981 
than January 1, 2024, the Commissioner of Housing shall submit a 982 
report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general 983 
statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 984 
having cognizance of matters relating to housing. Such report shall 985 
include recommendations on methods to increase such housing options 986 
and any legislation necessary to implement such recommendations. 987 
Sec. 21. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2023) (a) As used in this section: 988 
(1) "Affordable housing deed restrictions" means deed restrictions 989 
filed on the land records of the municipality, containing covenants or 990 
restrictions that require the dwelling units in a multifamily building to 991 
be sold or rented only to low-income residents; 992 
(2) "Environmental justice community" has the same meaning 993 
provided in section 22a-20a of the general statutes; 994    
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LCO No. 4702   	33 of 37 
 
(3) "Family violence" has the same meaning as provided in section 995 
46b-38a of the general statutes; and 996 
(4) "Low-income resident" means, after adjustments for family size, 997 
individuals or families whose income is not greater than eighty per cent 998 
of (A) the state median income, or (B) the area median income, 999 
whichever is less, for the area in which the resident resides, as 1000 
determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban 1001 
Development. 1002 
(b) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, in 1003 
coordination with the Commissioner of Housing, shall establish a pilot 1004 
program to provide grants for retrofitting projects for multifamily 1005 
residences built before 1980 and located in environmental justice 1006 
communities that (1) improve the energy efficiency of such residences, 1007 
including, but not limited to, the installation of heat pumps, solar power 1008 
generating systems, improved roofing, storm doors and windows and 1009 
improved insulation, or (2) remediate health and safety concerns, such 1010 
as mold, vermiculite, asbestos, lead and radon. 1011 
(c) On and after January 1, 2024, the Commissioner of Energy and 1012 
Environmental Protection shall accept applications, in a form to be 1013 
specified by the commissioner, from any owner of a residential dwelling 1014 
unit for a grant under the program. Any such grant may be awarded to 1015 
an owner of a residential dwelling unit that is (1) subject to binding 1016 
affordable housing deed restrictions, (2) not owner-occupied, and (3) 1017 
occupied by a tenant, or if vacant, to be occupied by a tenant not more 1018 
than one hundred eighty days after the award of such grant. If such 1019 
dwelling unit is not occupied within one hundred eighty days of the 1020 
award of the grant, the amount of funds received by the owner under 1021 
such grant shall be paid to the commissioner by the owner. 1022 
(d) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection shall 1023 
prioritize the awarding of grants that benefit any resident or prospective 1024 
resident who is (1) a low-income resident, (2) a veteran, (3) a victim of 1025 
family violence, or (4) experiencing homelessness or who has 1026    
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LCO No. 4702   	34 of 37 
 
experienced homelessness. 1027 
(e) The commissioner shall exclude from the program any owner of a 1028 
residential dwelling unit determined by the commissioner to be in 1029 
violation of chapter 830 of the general statutes. 1030 
(f) The sum of two hundred million dollars is appropriated to the 1031 
program from the General Fund for each of five fiscal years, beginning 1032 
in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. 1033 
(g) On or before October 1, 2027, the commissioner shall file a report, 1034 
in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, 1035 
with the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having 1036 
cognizance of matters relating to housing (1) analyzing the success of 1037 
the pilot program, and (2) recommending whether a permanent 1038 
program should be established in the state and, if so, any proposed 1039 
legislation for such program. 1040 
(h) The pilot program established pursuant to this section shall 1041 
terminate on September 30, 2028. 1042 
Sec. 22. (Effective from passage) The Commissioner of Housing shall, 1043 
within available appropriations, establish a pilot program to provide 1044 
temporary housing for (1) persons experiencing homelessness, or (2) 1045 
veterans who need respite care. Such program shall be implemented in 1046 
not fewer than three municipalities, each with a population of not less 1047 
than seventy-five thousand, and shall provide not fewer than twenty 1048 
housing units for eligible persons who need respite care because they 1049 
are recovering from injury or illness. The commissioner shall establish 1050 
eligibility criteria for persons eligible to participate in the pilot program. 1051 
The commissioner may contract with one or more nonprofit 1052 
organizations to administer the program. Not later than January 1, 2025, 1053 
the commissioner shall submit a report on the pilot program, in 1054 
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, 1055 
to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having 1056 
cognizance of matters relating to housing. The pilot program shall 1057    
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terminate on January 1, 2025. 1058 
Sec. 23. (Effective from passage) (a) There is established a task force to 1059 
study the potential growth of affordable housing in the state through 1060 
the conversion of underutilized commercial and retail properties, 1061 
including, but not limited to, shopping malls, hotels and warehouses, 1062 
into such housing. 1063 
(b) The task force shall consist of the following members: 1064 
(1) Two appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, 1065 
one of whom represents an affordable housing advocacy organization; 1066 
(2) Two appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of 1067 
whom represents a community development corporation; 1068 
(3) One appointed by the majority leader of the House of 1069 
Representatives; 1070 
(4) One appointed by the majority leader of the Senate; 1071 
(5) One appointed by the minority leader of the House of 1072 
Representatives, who represents retail or commercial property owners; 1073 
(6) One appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, who 1074 
represents a local chamber of commerce; 1075 
(7) The Commissioner of Housing, or the commissioner's designee; 1076 
and 1077 
(8) The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development, 1078 
or the commissioner's designee. 1079 
(c) Any member of the task force appointed under subdivision (1), 1080 
(2), (3), (4), (5) or (6) of subsection (b) of this section may be a member 1081 
of the General Assembly. 1082 
(d) All initial appointments to the task force shall be made not later 1083    
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than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy shall 1084 
be filled by the appointing authority. 1085 
(e) The speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro 1086 
tempore of the Senate shall select the chairpersons of the task force from 1087 
among the members of the task force. Such chairpersons shall schedule 1088 
the first meeting of the task force, which shall be held not later than sixty 1089 
days after the effective date of this section. 1090 
(f) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the 1091 
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to housing 1092 
shall serve as administrative staff of the task force. 1093 
(g) Not later than January 1, 2024, the task force shall submit a report 1094 
on its findings and recommendations to the joint standing committee of 1095 
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to housing, 1096 
in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. 1097 
The task force shall terminate on the date that it submits such report or 1098 
January 1, 2024, whichever is later. 1099 
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following 
sections: 
 
Section 1 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 2 October 1, 2023 47a-1 
Sec. 3 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 4 October 1, 2023 21-64 
Sec. 5 October 1, 2023 47a-23 
Sec. 6 October 1, 2023 47a-42 
Sec. 7 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 8 October 1, 2023 47a-4(a) 
Sec. 9 October 1, 2023 47a-15a 
Sec. 10 October 1, 2023 47a-6a(a) and (b) 
Sec. 11 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 12 October 1, 2023 47a-58 
Sec. 13 October 1, 2023 New section    
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LCO No. 4702   	37 of 37 
 
Sec. 14 October 1, 2023, and 
applicable to assessment 
years commencing on or 
after October 1, 2023 
12-63b 
Sec. 15 October 1, 2023 8-395 
Sec. 16 October 1, 2023 29-263 
Sec. 17 October 1, 2023, and 
applicable to assessment 
years commencing on or 
after October 1, 2023 
New section 
Sec. 18 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 19 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 20 from passage New section 
Sec. 21 October 1, 2023 New section 
Sec. 22 from passage New section 
Sec. 23 from passage New section 
 
Statement of Purpose:   
To promote fair and equitable housing opportunities in every 
community in the state. 
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except 
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not 
underlined.] 
 
Co-Sponsors:  SEN. LOONEY, 11th Dist.; SEN. DUFF, 25th Dist. 
SEN. ANWAR, 3rd Dist.; SEN. CABRERA, 17th Dist. 
SEN. COHEN, 12th Dist.; SEN. FLEXER, 29th Dist. 
SEN. FONFARA, 1st Dist.; SEN. GASTON, 23rd Dist. 
SEN. HOCHADEL, 13th Dist.; SEN. KUSHNER, 24th Dist. 
SEN. LESSER, 9th Dist.; SEN. LOPES, 6th Dist. 
SEN. MAHER, 26th Dist.; SEN. MARX, 20th Dist. 
SEN. MCCRORY, 2nd Dist.; SEN. MILLER P., 27th Dist. 
SEN. MOORE, 22nd Dist.; SEN. RAHMAN, 4th Dist. 
SEN. SLAP, 5th Dist.; SEN. WINFIELD, 10th Dist. 
REP. NOLAN, 39th Dist.  
 
S.B. 4