Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim, left, swears in three members of the city's new Fair Rent Commission. Photo courtesy of the city of Bridgeport
Bridgeport is now the latest Connecticut city to set up a local Fair Rent Commission to adjudicate cases where a tenant objects to a big rent increase.
Mayor Joe Ganim’s office announced the commission was being reformed after the Bridgeport City Council re-adopted a fair rent ordinance under a new law that state legislators passed last year.
Bridgeport’s seven-member body “will help to mediate disputes between landlords and renters regarding rents that might be deemed ‘excessive,’ Ganim’s office said. If that doesn’t work, the commission will have the power under state law to set a rent it feels is fair.
“The establishment of the Fair Rent Commission is exactly what Bridgeport needs to address the issues that many of our residents face in terms of affordable housing,” Ganim said in a statement. “The fact that many Bridgeport households are possibly using half of their income on housing-related needs makes our residents vulnerable. I am thankful to all of those involved in the re-establishment of the Fair Rent Commission. And as we do our part here in Bridgeport to address the affordability crisis, I call on elected officials in other towns and cities throughout the state to do the same.”
Nearly 40 Connecticut towns and cities have similar bodies.
