Connecticut governor Ned Lamont has signed HB 6646, an act concerning crumbling concrete foundations. Introduced to the Connecticut General Assembly by the Planning and Development Committee and passed in the Connecticut House of Representatives last month, the act disregards the termination date of the Connecticut Foundation Solutions Indemnity Company (CFSIC), the captive insurance company formed alongside section 38a-91vv of the general statutes. This section relates to the establishment of a captive insurance company to aid homeowners whose residency foundations have deteriorated owing to the presence of pyrrhotite, an iron and sulphur mineral which when exposed to water and air can break down to form secondary minerals that expand and cause concrete structures to crack. The CFSIC is licensed to assist homeowner claims resulting from the natural disaster of pyrrhotite-affected residential foundations through property claim adjustment standards and educational resources. The independent captive company has persevered through concerns of under-funding to pledge to replace around 1,300 homes by 2024. The act also authorises the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority to make loans to CFSIC, as well as requiring the now-permanent CFSIC to submit a report on the damage caused by pyrrhotite to the concrete of non-residential buildings in the State of Connecticut. Under the act, the Commissioner of Consumer Protection is required to adopt regulations around standards of testing of aggregate produced by quarries to be used in concrete.
