Blumenthal (right) with tenants union members Asia Foley and Sinclair McCutcheon: "The reach of this legislation would be very broad in protecting tenants." Connecticut’s senior U.S. senator stood side by side with members of the city’s first officially recognized tenants union to announce proposed legislation to make it easier nationwide for renters to organize and collectively bargain with their landlords.That bill is called the Tenants’ Right to Organize Act.Last Thursday, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal joined a half dozen members of the Blake Street Tenants Union, along with leaders of Connecticut Tenants Union, to announce his co-sponsorship of that proposed federal legislation.The press conference was held by the interior parking lot of 311 Blake St., a 70-unit apartment building that is owned by an affiliate of Ocean Management. The tenants there are represented by a tenants union that, back in December 2022, became the first such renter collective to be legally recognized by city government.As Blumenthal explained on Thursday, the proposed bill would support tenants union organizing in the following ways:• By explicitly prohibiting landlords from retaliating against tenants who participate in or try to organize such unions.• By providing federal ​“resources” — aka, money — to support tenants union organizing. Per a draft version of the law, that would include no less than $1 million for a nationwide outreach and training program for tenants in housing covered by this law, as well as $40 per unit per year for tenant resident councils.• By covering all tenants who live ​“government-supported housing” — which includes not just public housing and Section 8 voucher holders, but also renters who live in properties for which the landlord has secured financial support from government-sponsored organizations like Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Blumenthal said that a quarter of all rental housing across the country would fall into this ​“government-supported” category.“The reach of this legislation would be very broad in protecting tenants,” he said.“Tenants need tools to protect themselves” from ​“predatory landlords,” he continued. He promised to fight for the passage of this proposed legislation upon his return to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.The Tenants’ Right to Organize Act was introduced in September by Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, and has been co-sponsored by fellow Sens. Blumenthal, Chris Murphy, Bernie Sanders, Ron Wyden, Tina Smith, and Elizabeth Warren.Independent of this bill, Connecticut now has 17 tenants unions statewide. More than half a dozen of those are located in New Haven.Blake Street renters Claudia Potosme, Asia Coley, Sophie Kandul, and Sinclair McCutcheon stood behind Blumenthal in support of the proposal, along with Connecticut Tenants Union organizers Luke Melonakos-Harrison and Peter Fosouk.Kandul spoke about how, when she moved into her Blake Street apartment roughly a year ago, the heat didn’t work and she struggled to get the landlord to make needed repairs. ​“Immediately, the tenants union community swelled around me” to provide support, she said. Ultimately, the union struck a collectively bargained lease with Ocean — the first of its kind in the state. The tenants said that conditions at the complex have improved since then.“All we ask for is safety, security, stability,” and ​“strengthening our community,” said Kandul.She, Melonakos-Harrison, and Fosouk said that the Blake Street Tenants Union is also working to try to buy 311 Blake from Ocean, which has put the property up for sale.Fosouk said the union has partnered with the local nonprofit Home, Inc., and is working on putting together a bid. “Connecticut is at the forefront of the national tenants rights movement,” Melonakos-Harrison said. The Blake Street union’s attempted purchase of this property — and Blumenthal’s backing of this national tenants organizing bill — will only further improve the quality of life for renters.At Tuesday's presser ... ... tenants union leaders Sophie Kandul, Peter Fosouk, and Luke Melonakos-Harrison. Blake Street Tenants Union crew: Claudia Potosme, Asia Coley, Sophie Kandul, and Sinclair McCutcheon, with pup Nacho.