In the middle of the night, the Connecticut state Senate passed HB 8002, or “An Act Concerning Housing Growth.” This robust, but controversial, housing bill will empower Councils of Governments (COGs) to make recommendations to participating towns and municipalities on how to build more affordable housing, among other things. Gov. Ned Lamont announced that he will sign the bill in a press release later that morning.
An earlier version of the bill was approved during the regular session but ultimately vetoed by Lamont.
“Connecticut’s housing shortage is among the most severe in the country. It is driving up costs for working families, deterring businesses from investing or growing, and worsening homelessness,” Lamont said in the press release. “Simply put, the status quo is unsustainable.”
Multiple studies estimate the state needs between 100,000 and 150,000 more housing units. The state-commissioned Fair Share Needs Assessment studied the issue using two different methodologies: one determined that the state needs 136,000 housing units, and the other estimated the state needs 359,000 more units.
A CBIA Foundation report pinpoints regulatory constraints and “sluggish” economic growth as the two primary barriers to housing growth.
CBIA states that this shortage is a “significant barrier to economic growth” that makes it hard for people to find jobs in the state, and also “substantially impacts middle-income and moderate-income households who are fully employed but increasingly priced out of suitable housing options.”
A recent point-in-time study found that the homeless population in Connecticut increased from 3,410 in January 2024 to 3,735 in January 2025. The cost of rent in the state has also increased continuously over the past decade.
There are other theories as to why the housing shortage is so severe in the state. During the House’s special session on Wednesday, Rep. Doug Dubitsky, R-Chaplin, argued there are between 100,000 and 150,000 illegal immigrants living in Connecticut, which he says contributes to the shortage of housing.
“While we have made significant steps forward in recent years to increase our housing stock, we need to do more to address this urgent need,” Lamont said. “As I’ve said many times before, we will not be able to reach these housing targets without the support and collaboration of municipalities that can help execute these plans, including through investments in infrastructure.”
In addition to empowering COGs to work with local communities on how to build housing at a regional level, HB 8002 also expands grant opportunities for expanding sewage and water infrastructure to support new developments.
The bill was endorsed by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, the Connecticut Council of Small Towns, and the state’s regional councils of governments—but not state-level Republicans.
“We talk about affordable housing, of course, we all want to tackle that issue,” House Minority Speaker Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, said during the House’s special session. “But to think that we can write a hundred-page bill and add layers of bureaucracy on top of already broken zoning laws… to somehow think that we’re going to get affordable housing out of this piece of legislation is a fallacy.”
In both chambers, the bill passed almost entirely along party lines.
“I appreciate the collaborative input of everyone involved, particularly Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff and House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, as well as all those lawmakers who voted in favor of this legislation,” Lamont said in the press release. “I look forward to signing it into law.”
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