Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has announced he’s vetoing a controversial housing bill amid opposition from towns in Fairfield County and along the Long Island coastline.
Lamont said on Monday that it's a good bill, but he reluctantly decided to veto it so lawmakers could meet in a special session to fix some of its provisions.
Opponents had criticized the bill as a heavy-handed state mandate to build affordable housing by overriding local zoning.
“I think for the housing to continue growing successfully, it has to be led by our towns. It has to be led by our first selectman. It has to be led by our mayors. I don‘t think it works if it's us against them. That was their sense when they looked at this bill right now,” he said.
“We are going to have a better bill, and I’d like to see that bill on my desk again after a special session this fall,” Lamont said.
The new bill would reinforce that local officials would take the lead to decide where new housing would be built.
“We want them to be very specific about where they want that housing to go, the diversity of housing. We’ll obviously give preference to those that are in transit-oriented districts,” Lamont said.
Speaker Matt Ritter and House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, the architect of the bill, expressed disappointment in the veto.
In a joint statement, they said they’ll keep fighting for policies that address housing costs and homelessness in the state.
They are happy with the veto and ready to collaborate on a new bill, said CT169Strong, the grassroots group that led the opposition.
Lamont has also vetoed a bill that would have given unemployment benefits to striking workers. He said it was bad for business.
The bill's proponents responded that they will raise the issue again in another legislative session and hope to eventually have it signed into law.
