House Bill No. 5002, also known as Public Act No. 25-49, seeks to improve housing reporting and zoning regulations in Connecticut to better serve homeless individuals and promote affordable housing. The bill requires housing authorities to submit annual reports to the Commissioner of Housing and the municipality's chief executive officer, which must now be posted on their websites. This report will include detailed data on existing housing, new construction, rental transactions, and rental price levels categorized by income groups. Notably, the bill introduces new requirements for reporting rental price levels and the number of rental units at various price points while deleting a previous specific item from the report. Additionally, the bill revises zoning regulations to facilitate the development of middle housing on commercially zoned lots, emphasizing environmental impacts and housing diversity.

The legislation also introduces significant changes to affordable housing regulations, including the repeal of Section 8-30j and the establishment of new definitions and requirements for municipalities regarding affordable housing plans. Municipalities must prepare or amend their plans every five years and submit them to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, who will post these plans online. The bill mandates that municipalities identified in the highest eighty percent of the adjusted equalized net grand list per capita create a priority affordable housing plan. Furthermore, it modifies the methodology for determining municipal fair share allocations for affordable housing, requiring municipalities to submit an inventory of vacant and developable land. The bill aims to streamline zoning processes, enhance affordable housing development, and improve community engagement in housing planning.

Statutes affected:
File No. 973: 8-68d, 8-3, 8-30j, 4-68ii, 4-66k, 12-701, 3-129g, 8-2o, 7-148b, 21-83, 29-195, 8-446a
Public Act No. 25-49: 8-68d, 8-3, 8-30j, 4-68ii, 4-66k, 12-701, 3-129g, 8-2o, 7-148b, 21-83, 29-195, 8-446a