Should towns be forced to approve affordable housing projects? The Republican candidate for governor says no. On Thursday, Bob Stefanowski pledged to replace a controversial housing law in favor of more local control.

"We need to do a better job in Connecticut of providing [affordable housing],” Stefanowski said at a campaign event in Fairfield. “This is more about a bill referred to as '8-30g' that simply hasn't worked.”

The state’s “8-30g” law applies to any community with less than 10% affordable housing. It lets developers bypass most zoning rules if their project contains at least 30% affordable units. In most cases, towns can only deny an application if it threatens “public health and safety.” Projects are still subject to environmental permits.

Critics say the 32 year-old law gives predatory developers a free pass to build almost anywhere they want. In Fairfield, where Realtor.com reports the average home costs $799,000, First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick says 8-30g has actually raised prices overall by creating more luxury units.

"They can build whatever they want, however they want, as long as they just add a few pieces -- a few units -- of affordable housing,” she said. “And a ton of market-rate housing."

Kupchick also says the state’s definition of “affordable” is inconsistent.

Housing advocates admit 8-30g needs reform, but they insist the law is needed because many towns make it nearly impossible to build multi-unit housing.

"Single-family lot sizes -- minimum lot sizes -- have gone up and up and up,” said Kiley Gosselin, the executive director of Partnership for Strong Communities. “Where they may have started at a quarter acre lot, we're seeing some towns with some minimum lot sizes of two acres."

Gosselin says affordable housing doesn't have to mean a massive development. Towns can convert older homes into small-scale apartments, and offer rental vouchers to help with the cost.

Gov. Ned Lamont has treaded carefully on the issue. His campaign did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Stefanowski said he supports incentives instead of mandates.

"Perhaps there's a parcel of land that we could look at and provide some state funding to buy that land for the purpose of affordable housing,” he said. "It should be up to the local community, not some developer who may have ulterior motives coming in to jam it down the throat of the local community.”

Stefanowski declined to say whether he would keep the 8-30g law’s 10% quota for affordable housing.

The issue is a political hot potato at the state capitol. Last year, lawmakers expanded affordable housing protections, but critics say the law is watered-down.