Crumbling Foundation Bill Moves Out of Legislative Committee

HARTFORD, CT — Members of the eastern and north central Connecticut legislative contingent said homeowners whose foundations have been compromised by faulty concrete received some "additional good news: on Friday, as House and Senate members from both sides of the aisle held a joint news conference to discuss recent legislation centered on crumbling foundations.

The lesislation is SB-806, "An Act Allowing Municipalities to Establish a Grant Program to Replace or

Repair Concrete Foundations," and it would establish a grant program to those homeowners of residential buildings for the repairs or replacement of faulty foundations, state Rep. Timothy Ackert said.

Additionally, a written evaluation from a professional engineer must be obtained and submitted to the Department of Consumer Protection, he said.

“This bill is a collaborative effort to move us towards a resolution on this issue," Ackert said. "It’s also an important bill, because it is aimed at helping these homeowners fix their foundations and it is a huge start in the right direction."

Earlier this week, members of the Public Safety and Security Committee voted in favor of moving SB-806
out of committee and onto a full legislative debate.

Ackert applauded the decision to move the proposal out of the committee process and ontofuture discussions.

“This is a first step in a solution to fixing those homes that have been affected by defective concrete in their
foundations,” Ackert said. “I will continue to work on behalf of those residents to get this bill passed
and signed by the governor. I will not leave this session without providing these residents with some piece of
legislation that helps fix this situation.”

Some provisions to the current bill include:

• Requires insurance companies to pay the Insurance Commissioner $12 per year for each homeowner and renter insurance policies to then be deposited into the Crumbling Foundations Assistance Fund.

• The funds collected will be used to assist with the remediation process. This fee is scheduled to sunset in 2025.

• Enables CRCOG to enter into a contract with the CT Housing Finance Authority to develop and implement a long-term low interest loan program.

• Enables municipalities to bond funds for remediation and abatement of crumbling foundations.
• Requires the State Building Inspector to waive education fees for any municipality that waives its pplication fee for a building permit to repair or replace a concrete foundation that has deteriorated due to pyrrhotite.

Many homes within communities in eastern and north central Connectocut had been built using pyrrhotite, an iron sulfide material which has led to foundations falling apart. It is estimated that there are more than 30 municipalities in Connecticut which have been directly affected as a result of crumbling foundations.

“Homeowners living with a crumbling foundation are one step closer to receiving real relief,” said Rep. Sam
Belsito. “The state can no longer kick this issue down the road. We need to act this session to pass a
bill that provides relief and this will bill will help accomplish that.”

“This is the first piece of legislation that actually deals with remediation, despite the fact it is coming about a
year late. I look forward to rolling my sleeves up, and getting to work with my legislative colleagues to
create a better solution for this issue,” said Rep. Kurt Vail.

“I am delighted to see that there is bipartisan support to help the people affected by the crumbling
foundations problem,” said Rep. Tom Delnicki. “Senate Bill 806 that passed from
the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee is a good first step to help resolve this very critical
issue, and I am glad that we are having this conversation and taking some action.”

“I am glad that something is being done legislatively to combat this issue,” said Rep. Prasad Srinivasan. “We need to engage all stakeholders from individuals to municipalities, insurance companies, banks,
and the federal government. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has turned down our
pleas for help twice, but we will continue to reach out. This problem is a slow moving hurricane that needs
better help to implement a solution. We pay our federal taxes; I strongly believe it’s time our state gets our
due aid.”

It is estimated that the cost for remediation can vary anywhere between $150,000 and $250,000 with the only known fix, to date, is to re-pour the foundation.

The bill will now move onto the State Senate for further debate.

Patch File Photo