Connecticut Lawmakers Move to Repeal Single-Stair Building Code Law After Fire Officials Raise Safety Concerns

Connecticut lawmakers are moving to repeal a 2024 law that would have allowed single-stairway exits in some residential buildings, following strong opposition from fire officials across the state.

The Senate debated Senate Bill 298 on Wednesday and was expected to pass the lengthy omnibus bill that includes the repeal of the 2024 measure, according to legislative proceedings. The original law passed as part of the 2024 bond package and required the next state building code to allow a single stairway as a means of egress in small residential buildings.

The state’s Codes and Standards Committee, which reviews changes to building and fire codes, negotiated with local fire officials and approved a compromise measure late last year that would have allowed single stairs for buildings of up to four stories, according to committee records. Current state building code allows for single stairs in buildings with up to three stories.

However, fire officials later presented their safety concerns to state lawmakers on the Legislative Regulation Review Committee, which was charged with final approval of the new state building codes. The committee ultimately lacked sufficient support for the single-stairway change and removed the measure the night before their Tuesday meeting to approve it.

House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, D-East Hartford, who advocated for the single-stair legislation in 2024, expressed disappointment with the outcome. “It was another attempt to take an incremental approach making some reforms on issues that impact housing and housing cost. I can understand that this was a more difficult one, but I’m disappointed that we’re not going to be able to move forward with it,” Rojas said.

Rojas asked the state Department of Administrative Services to withdraw the single-stair change to prevent delays in approving the rest of the updated building code document. The new codes are expected to be implemented in mid-2026 and typically take more than a year to approve, according to the legislative timeline.

Supporters of single-stair legislation argue it makes building more housing on smaller lot sizes easier and that modern technology makes it safe. “It’s frustrating from a policy standpoint, which is tried and true, that single stair is safe, it’s smart, it’s going to unlock a lot of really great missing middle housing in Connecticut,” said Pete Harrison, Connecticut director for the Regional Plan Association. “Delaying that over some really kind of unfounded concerns is really unfortunate.”

Several other states have adopted single-stair legislation, including Texas, Colorado, Montana and New Hampshire, according to policy tracking. Cities such as Memphis, Honolulu and Seattle have passed ordinances allowing single stairs in some residential buildings.

Fire marshals and firefighters across Connecticut testified in opposition, saying the change would make it harder for people to escape during fires and could create dangerous situations where residents evacuating down stairs encounter emergency responders going up.

“Fire codes were created not by great ideas but from major losses of life and unfortunate lessons,” said Greg Priest, the fire chief of West Hartford and a representative of the Joint Council of Connecticut Fire Service Organizations, during a September meeting of the Codes and Standards Committee.

The original proposal before the Codes and Standards Committee would have allowed new buildings with up to five stories of residences and up to four units of housing per floor to have just one stairway as an exit, provided the building had certain fire-resistant technology, according to committee documents. Buildings with commercial space on the first floor could have reached six stories under the proposal.

Committee members had compromised to allow single stairs for up to four stories, with requirements for fire-resistant technology and other safety measures, before the measure was ultimately withdrawn from consideration.