Creation of fair rent commission. Powers.

(b) Any town, city or borough may, and any town, city or borough with a population of twenty-five thousand or more, as determined by the most recent decennial census, shall, through its legislative body, adopt an ordinance that creates a fair rent commission. Any such commission shall make studies and investigations, conduct hearings and receive complaints relative to rental charges on housing accommodations, except those accommodations rented on a seasonal basis, within its jurisdiction, which term shall include mobile manufactured homes and mobile manufactured home park lots, in order to control and eliminate excessive rental charges on such accommodations, and to carry out the provisions of sections 7-148b to 7-148f , inclusive, section 47a-20 and subsection (b) of section 47a-23c . The commission, for such purposes, may compel the attendance of persons at hearings, issue subpoenas and administer oaths, issue orders and continue, review, amend, terminate or suspend any of its orders and decisions. The commission may be empowered to retain legal counsel to advise it. (c) Any town, city or borough required to create a fair rent commission pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall adopt an ordinance creating such commission on or before July 1, 2023. Not later than thirty days after the adoption of such ordinance, the chief executive officer of such town, city or borough shall (1) notify the Commissioner of Housing that such commission has been created, and (2) transmit a copy of the ordinance adopted by the town, city or borough to the commissioner. (d) Any two or more towns, cities or boroughs not subject to the requirements of subsection (b) of this section may, through their legislative bodies, create a joint fair rent commission.