Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has vetoed legislation passed by both chambers of the state legislature that would have held property owners liable for removal costs if a tree fell from their yard onto a neighbor’s property.
Malloy wrote in a June 6 explanation of his veto of House Bill 5220 that the law was written with worthy intent, but that he felt it left too little recourse to the tree owner faced with a request from a neighbor to cut down a branch or tree.
As a result, Malloy felt property owners would feel too much pressure to trim a tree or branch based solely upon a neighbor’s request, which could lead to the removal of healthy trees.
The bill would have held a tree owner liable for removal if a neighbor had notified him that the tree was “diseased or likely to fall,” and if the property owner failed to cut the branch or tree within 30 days of that notice, and the tree or branch did fall.
The governor noted that current law allows a neighbor to trim parts of a tree that cross his property line.
