Hartford rolls out new program to crack down on negligent landlords

A first-of-its-kind program to protect more than 30,000 households from health and safety violations in their rental units launches this month in Hartford.

By Oct. 31, all dwellings with 40 or more units per building, including hotels, motels, rooming houses and group living facilities, must submit a rental licensing application to the city of Hartford. It’s the first phase of a three-year program designed to crack down on negligent landlords.

“This is the first time that a comprehensive preemptive and proactive approach like this has been taken,” Bronin said at a City Hall press conference Thursday. “This is a tool that allows us to proactively get ahead of a problem when a property owner is not holding up their end of the bargain, (when) the property owner is not keeping their building up to code and is not delivering a safe, healthy, clean building for the residents who live here.”

Bronin said landlords should be aware of the new requirements.

“Every single building owner of a building with 40 or more units has already received legal notice that they’re obligated to apply for a residential license,” Bronin said. “Nearly 100 of those buildings have applied, but there are still a couple of dozen that have not yet submitted those applications.”

Bronin said landlords who fail to meet the Oct. 31 deadline will receive a $1,000 penalty “immediately,” followed by a notice of violation that, if not remedied within a short period, will result in a $100 fine per day, per unit.

“As you can imagine, for a 40 unit building, that adds up pretty quick,” Bronin said.

Bronin said the city is conducting a thorough review of all applications. He said that in the event that processing takes longer than 60 days, the city will issue a provisional license to affected buildings.

“No buildings are going to be penalized, no residents are going to be inconvenienced if any delays happen on our end,” Bronin said.

City Councilwoman Shirley Surgeon said the program is not meant to go after landlords.

“This is about making sure the residents of the city of Hartford are safe,” Surgeon said. “How can we send our kids to school when they’re not living in a safe and healthy environment?”

Director of Blight Remediation and Housing Code Enforcement Judith Rothschild said Hartford is “The only city or municipality in the state of Connecticut that is as proactive and as overwhelmingly inclusive of the code issues that may come up in a property.”

Mold, insect and rodent infestations, structural issues, roof leaks, plumbing problems and heating issues are among the most common problems reported to Rothschild’s office.

Hartford residents can report suspected housing violations online or by calling 860-757-9311 but, Rothschild said, at times, tenants are too afraid to report their landlord to the city. She said the Rental Licensing Program is designed to investigate conditions before a complaint is filed.

“No one in the city should be living in conditions which are dangerous to themselves or their family,” Rothschild said. “It is not acceptable to the city of Hartford, nor is it acceptable in the state of Connecticut or under our Hartford laws.”

Under the program, all buildings must pass separate inspections by the city Building Enforcement, Housing Code Enforcement and the Fire Marshal’s office. The license also requires a lead inspection report for buildings constructed before 1978, a heating facility inspection report and in addition to other reports requested at the discretion of the director of licenses and inspections, according to the application.

Rothschild said licenses will last four years. “However, it only stays good if the owner continues in compliance with the health and safety codes in the interim of the license,” she said.

“We’re thorough in the beginning. We continue to monitor the buildings and answer all complaints in the interim,” Rothschild said. “We’re here to accomplish safety and health in our buildings.”

Hartford adopted the Rental Licensing Program as part of an updated Housing Code in 2019.

Initially, the programs rollout was set to start in 2021, but Rothschild said the city pushed licensing deadlines back to 2023 due to compliance and implementation issues.

“We did not have the level of compliance that we required. We also didn’t have, during that period of time, everything in place to make this program work the way that it was intended and needs to work,” Rothschild said.

Bronin added that the COVID-19 pandemic also impacted the process.

“The original process was overtaken by the pandemic as well, which complicated a lot of implementation efforts, including the implementation effort that requires large scale in person inspections,” Bronin said. “I’m not saying we wouldn’t have pushed the date back either way, but there’s no question that the pandemic slowed us down.”

Under the current schedule, the four-part phase-in will conclude in 2026. However, the city may demand completion of the residential licensing program at any time for buildings cited for five or more housing code violations, regardless of a dwelling’s scheduled phase-in date.

City officials encouraged residents who know of or are currently living in housing that is unsafe or unsanitary to contact the city through the 311 program.

“No one should be afraid to report an issue in their unit. No one should be afraid of retaliation,” Director of Community Engagement Janice Castle said.

“Do not wait two weeks, uh, three weeks, months to hear back (from nonresponsive landlords),” Castle added. “We should be the first call.”