By: Alysha Gardner, Senior Policy Analyst, Partnership for Strong Communities
“Fair Rent Commissions are totally unique to Connecticut; they’ve been allowed since 1969 to provide what’s basically individualized rent stabilization to tenants at the local level. The idea is that they function as the conscience of the community… That people who live in a municipality can develop a shared understanding of what is and is not done there.” – Sarah White, CT Fair Housing Center
“I like what [Sarah] said about being the conscience of the community, because we are lay people, we’re not attorneys, we’re not professional advocates or anything like that… We are inclined to look at what is fair, what is reasonable, what is the human impact of something that we see.” – Peter Cunningham, Chair of Hamden Fair Rent Commission
The Partnership for Strong Communities’ July 2025 IForum, “Fair Rent Commissions in Action,” revealed both the promise and the reality of fair rent commissions (FRC) in Connecticut. Hearing from tenants, landlords, advocates, and commissioners, we learned how FRCs can bring neighbors together to act as community bulwarks against the housing affordability crisis, and what investments are necessary for these institutions to succeed.
- Opening Remarks: Mayor Justin Elicker, City of New Haven
- Fair Rent Commissions 101: Sarah White, CT Fair Housing Center
- Panel: How to Build a Commission
- Panel: Real People, Real Stories from FRCs
- FRC Network Launch
A Test of Access
Chelsea Ross, Executive Director of the Partnership, opened with a simple but revealing exercise. Imagining they had just received a 30% rent increase, attendees pulled out their phones to try to find their town’s Fair Rent Commission complaint form. Poll results were sobering: 20% could not determine if their town even had an FRC, another 10% found one but could not locate a complaint form, and 10% more found the process would be difficult for tenants to navigate.
“Tenant rights and stability are still determined not by their circumstances, but by their zip code,” Ross observed, highlighting how more than 75,000 Connecticut families who rent have no protection from excessive rent increases simply because their town does not have a Fair Rent Commission. Current law only requires municipalities with populations of 25,000 or higher to create an FRC. HB 5002, which Governor Lamont vetoed in June, would have expanded FRCs to all towns of at least 15,000 people, expanding protections to 25 additional towns and an estimated 37,000 families who rent.
The Power of Community
The day’s most powerful moments came from tenants themselves, whose stories illustrated both the vital importance of Fair Rent Commissions and the organizing power of affected residents.
Hope Vaughn, a New Haven resident and vice president of the Quinnipiac Avenue Tenants Union, shared her experience challenging a $200 rent increase despite unsafe living conditions including “helicoptering windows” that could fall freely and no locks on her first-floor unit.
“The day I called, Wildaliz [Bermudez, Executive Director of New Haven’s FRC] got back to me right away,” Hope recalled. “I was a concerned resident… she didn’t leave me waiting and wondering, ‘Oh my God, I’m not going to sign this lease.’ The Fair Rent Commission was really on point—they were expedient.”
Vaughn’s case demonstrates what is possible with a well-staffed, responsive FRC. New Haven is one of only a handful FRCs in the state with dedicated staff to administer and support the city’s FRC. Most towns ask existing staff in other city departments, such as Social Services, Legal, or Land Use and Planning, to take on management of the Commission in addition to their existing duties.
Within two months, Vaughn had a hearing. Her rent increase was denied, and many unsafe conditions were addressed. But she also witnessed the power of collective action, supporting fellow tenants facing eviction and helping them access both the FRC and legal representation through the Connecticut Tenants Union.
Perhaps no story better captured the transformative potential of organized tenants than a recent victory in East Lyme. Alicia Chandler, now a commissioner on East Lyme’s FRC, described how residents of Windward Village—many in their 80s—faced rent increases up to 90% when their building was sold to new owners.
“These are tenants that have been in our building for 20 plus years,” Chandler explained. “Of course, it sent us into great panic mode. Everybody was trying to figure out what are we going to do?”
Beth Sabilia from the Center for Housing Opportunity in Eastern Connecticut, who supported the organizing effort, painted a vivid picture: “We met about 30 people in a hallway at Windward Village on the third floor with their walkers and canes and hearing aids, and they didn’t understand.”
What happened next was remarkable. These tenants, despite their age and vulnerabilities, organized. They wrote letters, packed Board of Selectmen meetings, picketed in downtown Niantic. When one selectman suggested it would take a year to establish an FRC, they refused to accept that timeline.
“In the scheme of municipal action it was, quite frankly, a miracle,” Sabilia noted. By August 31, 2024—just weeks after organizing began—East Lyme had adopted an FRC ordinance. The commission began holding hearings in December.
John Souza, a landlord commissioner from West Hartford, provided a unique perspective, emphasizing that FRCs can benefit good-faith landlords by providing a forum for resolution outside of costly court proceedings. Many FRCs require an even number of both landlords and tenants serving on the Commission, encouraging fair resolutions in potentially high-conflict tenant-landlord relationships. Souza’s presence on the panel and as a commissioner reminded attendees that effective FRCs serve the entire community, not just tenants.
Building Effective Commissions
The first panel revealed crucial insights about what separates a truly effective Fair Rent Commission from one that exists only on paper.
Wildaliz Bermudez, Executive Director of New Haven’s FRC—the longest continuously operating commission in the state—emphasized the importance of proactive outreach and adequate staffing. “When I first started, it was just me,” she recalled. Her solution? Partner with colleges for interns, table at community events, visit churches and libraries, and meet people where they are.
“We are the conduit to allow for this type of facilitation, this type of conversation, and potentially negotiation to occur,” Bermudez explained, noting that for many tenants facing mega-landlords with extensive property holdings, “it’s the first time that the tenant has the ability to connect with an actual human being.”
The importance of dedicated resources emerged as a consistent theme. Peter Cunningham, chair of Hamden’s FRC, stressed: “Any town that can spare any resources at all to have people behind the scenes making it work—it really can’t be overstated.”
Meanwhile, Jean Cerica from Naugatuck’s FRC, established just in 2023, demonstrated how newer commissions can quickly become effective through careful planning. Her commission created a handbook, developed landlord-tenant checklists, and established clear procedures. “Consistency leads to fairness,” she noted, emphasizing how standardized practices ensure equitable treatment.
Sarah Mervine, an attorney with Yale New Haven Health Medical Legal Partnership, echoed this call for equitable treatment with practical advice for Commissions: ensure both parties get timely notice of hearings; don’t grant continuances [hearing postponement] at the last minute; do due diligence beforehand to read up and fact-check the evidence that will be presented in the hearing.
The Path Forward
The event concluded with the announcement of a major milestone: the official launch of the statewide Fair Rent Commission Network, supported by a two-year grant from the Connecticut Department of Housing. Led by Wildaliz Bermudez and supported by the Partnership, this network will provide training, share resources, and help municipalities strengthen their FRCs.
Sarah White’s historical overview reminded us that Fair Rent Commissions are not new—they have been part of Connecticut’s housing landscape since 1969, born from the advocacy of “moms on welfare who went to the legislature” demanding protection from unsafe conditions and rent gouging. The recent renaissance in FRCs, doubling in number over just two years, shows that communities across Connecticut are ready to reclaim this tool.
Having an FRC on paper is not enough. As public municipal website data show, only half of towns with FRCs make contact information easily accessible. One in four do not have complaint forms available online. Only ten commissions offer materials in both English and Spanish, despite serving diverse communities. Towns with regular standing meetings hear six times as many cases as those who schedule meetings only in response to complaints.
Your Role in Strengthening Tenant Protections
Fair Rent Commissions represent more than just a procedural safeguard—they embody our collective conscience about what we owe our neighbors. When they work well, they provide swift, accessible justice. When they do not, they leave our most vulnerable residents facing impossible choices between unaffordable rent, unlivable conditions, and displacement or homelessness.
The stories from this IForum show what’s possible when communities organize and municipalities invest in these critical bodies. Every Connecticut town deserves a Fair Rent Commission to serve as the conscience of the community.
Ready to strengthen or establish a Fair Rent Commission in your town? Contact the statewide Fair Rent Commission Network at StatewideFRCNetwork@gmail.com or reach out to the Connecticut Fair Housing Center for resources and support. Whether you’re a tenant facing an unfair increase, a municipal leader looking to protect residents, an FRC Commissioner looking to strengthen your Commission, or simply an engaged member of your community, there’s a role for you in ensuring that Fair Rent Commissions fulfill their promise as guardians of housing stability.
Thank you to everyone that was able to join us for our July 2025 IForum. If you could not attend, we invite you to watch the recorded event at the Partnership’s YouTube channel.
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