HB 5376 Connecticut House · 2026 Regular Session

AN ACT CONCERNING AFFORDABLE HOUSING APPLICATIONS.

HB 5376 creates a task force to study whether a faster appeals process is needed for people who disagree with decisions made by historic district commissions. It also adds a new requirement for affordable housing applications using nonstandard, prefabricated, or proprietary construction: applicants must submit a preliminary life safety report certified by a licensed engineer, or the commission may deny the application. The task force, made up of legislative leaders and officials, must report by January 2027 on its findings. This bill directly affects homeowners challenging historic district decisions and developers applying for affordable housing with alternative construction methods. The changes aim to clarify application standards without altering existing building codes.

Issues: ✗ Housing

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 26, 2026 Last action Apr 7, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Raised Bill → INS Joint Favorable Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was converted from a 'Raised Bill' to a 'Joint Favorable Substitute,' indicating it has been amended by the Insurance and Real Estate committee. The substantive content remains focused on affordable housing safety, requiring a preliminary life safety report for nonstandard construction assemblies before a commission can deny an application. A minor technical correction was made to the text, changing 'provisions' to 'provision' in the new subsection.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains unchanged, continuing to apply to commissions reviewing affordable housing applications for nonstandard construction.

TECHNICAL

Corrected a grammatical error in the new subsection by changing 'any provisions' to 'any provision'.

Changed the bill type from 'Raised Bill' to 'Substitute Bill' and updated the committee reference to 'INS Joint Favorable Subst.'.

Adjusted the page numbering and footer layout to reflect the substitute version.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 7, 2026

Lower · Passed

REF. BY HOUSE TO COMMITTEE ON Housing

lower

Mar 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Joint Favorable Substitute

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Insurance and Real Estate

lower

7 primary · 0 co-sponsors