Raised Bill No. 1113, introduced in the January Session, 2023, concerns the establishment of fair rent commissions in towns, cities, or boroughs within the state. The bill proposes to amend Section 7-148b of the general statutes, effective October 1, 2023. The amendment includes a change in the population threshold for towns, cities, or boroughs required to create a fair rent commission. The current threshold of twenty-five thousand is reduced to five thousand, as determined by the most recent decennial census. This means that smaller municipalities will now be mandated to establish fair rent commissions to investigate, conduct hearings, and address complaints regarding rental charges, excluding those accommodations rented on a seasonal basis.

The bill also adjusts the deadline for required municipalities to adopt an ordinance creating a fair rent commission from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024. Once an ordinance is adopted, the chief executive officer of the municipality must notify the Commissioner of Housing and provide a copy of the ordinance. Additionally, the bill allows for the creation of joint fair rent commissions by two or more towns, cities, or boroughs that are not subject to the requirement to create individual commissions. The purpose of the bill is to ensure that municipalities with a population of at least five thousand have mechanisms in place to control and eliminate excessive rental charges.

Statutes affected:
Raised Bill: 7-148b