ALBANY — The conflict over New York City’s rent laws turned raucous on Tuesday as hundreds of tenant activists flooded the State Capitol, leading to scuffles and dozens of arrests.

For months, activists have cast a looming rewrite of New York’s rent laws as a once-in-a-generation battle.

The state law that regulates almost one million rent-stabilized apartments expires on June 15. With Democrats in control of the Legislature for only the third time in more than half a century, progressive lawmakers are pushing for tenant-friendly provisions.