Saud Anwar

Senator Anwar Confident as Housing Committee Votes to Draft Three Proposals as Committee Bills

As the Housing Committee voted to draft three proposals he introduced as committee bills today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) was confident in their ability to provide stronger protections and better standards of living across Connecticut. Among the proposed bills introduced by Sen. Anwar are efforts to establish a “right to housing” in Connecticut, create opportunities for workforce housing development across the state and give additional protections to individuals who have suffered family violence or sexual assault.

“We need to provide better housing in our state, as access to housing is indicative of success and lack of access harms countless individuals,” said Sen. Anwar. “Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in a stable environment, which is why I am confident that we can create a better future in Connecticut for those struggling with housing insecurity. We can, and should, provide better resources for our friends and neighbors in the community. I look forward to supporting the right to housing, development of workforce housing and efforts to provide victims of violence with increased security.”

The three bills proposed by Sen. Anwar include:

• Establishing the “right to housing,” which includes but is not limited to the rights to housing affordability for members of the public, developing further rehousing assistance for people who become homeless, and protecting individuals from housing loss.
• Establishing a workforce housing development program in opportunity zones and other parts of the state by using tax credits, fee waivers and property tax abatement.
• Protecting victims of family violence or sexual assault by allowing persons with valid orders of protection to replace their home’s locks or request their landlord change the locks to their home.