Connecticut state law expressly preempts municipalities from enacting breed-specific dog regulations, prohibiting any city or town ordinance that bans, restricts, or regulates dogs based on breed alone.
Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 22-339d, enacted in 2013, prohibits any municipality from adopting any ordinance regulating dogs based on breed, type, or appearance. Connecticut joined the majority of states in banning breed-specific legislation (BSL). Municipalities may still regulate dangerous dogs based on individual behavior under Sec. 22-358, but classification must depend on the specific dog's conduct, not breed. Animal control officers handle dangerous dog determinations through individualized hearings rather than blanket breed prohibitions.
Municipal ordinances violating preemption are unenforceable and void. Affected dog owners may seek declaratory judgment or injunctive relief to invalidate any breed-specific local rule.
New Haven County, CT
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Meriden, CT
Meriden prohibits parking in the front yard of residence-district lots and limits driveway use to approved paved surfaces. Off-street parking in residential ...
New Haven County, CT
New Haven County has no operational government (abolished 1960), so fence height limits are set by each town under the state zoning enabling act, Conn. Gen. ...
New Haven County, CT
New Haven County has no operational county government (abolished 1960). Fireworks are regulated statewide under Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 29-356 and Sec. 29-357....
New Haven County, CT
Connecticut counties have no operational government, so STR parking rules in New Haven County are set by each of the 27 municipalities under their zoning reg...
New Haven County, CT
Connecticut has no statewide STR occupancy cap and New Haven County (abolished 1960) has no operational government to set one. Each of the 27 New Haven Count...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in New Haven County.
See how other cities in New Haven County handle breed restrictions.
See how Meriden's breed restrictions rules stack up against other locations.
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