Lamont Endorses Connecticut Eviction Reform Bill

Ned Lamont broke his long silence on eviction reform Thursday, publicly endorsing a bill that would require Connecticut landlords to give a reason before removing a tenant from their home.

The governor appeared at a press conference alongside members of the Connecticut Tenants Union, housing advocates, state legislators, and faith leaders to announce his support for Senate Bill 257, which would largely end no-fault evictions in buildings with five or more units. The move marks a significant political shift for Lamont, who had previously stayed out of a debate that has circulated through the General Assembly for multiple legislative sessions without his backing.

“Your apartment is your home. Your apartment is dignity. Your apartment is respect,” Lamont said Thursday. “This bill is about a little bit of respect for folks who are playing by the rules.”

No-fault evictions typically occur at the end of a lease period when a landlord wants a tenant out without claiming any specific wrongdoing. Tenant advocates argue that larger landlords have increasingly used these evictions to clear out buildings at once and reset rents at higher rates. Lamont pointed to news coverage of mass evictions and what he called an increasingly tight housing market as the reasons he decided to speak out now.

“I think the market has gotten really tight. I think in some cases, some of the landlords got a little arrogant,” Lamont said. “People are playing by the rules, all the rules in the lease, and you can’t treat them different.”

The bill still faces real opposition. Republicans have argued it violates landlords’ property rights and could discourage people from renting out units altogether. Landlord associations have pushed back hard, saying the legislation would strip housing providers of their most effective tool for handling problem tenants.

Jessica Doll, executive director of the Connecticut Apartment Association, released a statement criticizing the measure. “When a tenant violates their lease or creates an unsafe situation that is disruptive or threatening to other apartment residents, ending the lease at its end date is the only reasonable tool housing providers have to protect their communities,” Doll said. She noted the bill has failed in each of the past two legislative sessions and argued that nothing has changed to make it more workable now.

Landlords have maintained that no-fault evictions serve a legitimate purpose in situations where a tenant is disruptive but hasn’t technically broken any specific lease term, offering the example of someone smoking in shared hallways.

The timing of Lamont’s endorsement carries political weight beyond the housing debate. The governor is seeking a third term and faces a primary challenge from Rep. Josh Elliott, a Democrat from Hamden who has positioned himself to Lamont’s left and has specifically criticized the governor’s housing record. Lamont’s decision to step into this fight gives him a more progressive credential to point to heading into a primary season that is already shaping up to be contentious.

Whether the governor’s backing can move the bill past its bipartisan opposition remains an open question. Doll and other critics have pointed to the measure’s repeated failures as evidence that the legislature itself is not convinced. But tenant advocates have argued that Lamont’s public support changes the political math in Hartford in ways that could matter as the current session progresses.

Senate Bill 257, if it passes, would represent one of the more significant shifts in Connecticut tenant law in recent memory. Housing stability advocates have argued for years that no-fault evictions destabilize families, disrupt children’s schooling, and hollow out communities. Lamont echoed those concerns directly on Thursday, framing the bill not as a regulatory burden on landlords but as a basic matter of dignity for renters who are holding up their end of the bargain.

For tenants across Connecticut watching their rent climb and their lease renewals grow less certain, the governor’s voice in this fight may be the development they have been waiting for.