COVID disrupts lobbying at Capitol
HARTFORD — In a normal year, the spacious atrium of the Legislative Office Building on a weekday morning would be bustling with lawmakers heading to committee meetings, lobbyists stationed in various high-visibility locations, and members of the public craning their necks at all the activity.
But in the second legislative session of the coronavirus pandemic, the State Capitol complex remains closed to the public, including the 526 registered lobbyists who are now depending on technology to get their messages across to state lawmakers.
Lobbying, a profession that depends on knowledge, access and relationships, has been disrupted, but is adjusting to the age of COVID.
While established lobbyists are coping with the challenges of contacting lawmakers, younger ones might be at a disadvantage. Traditionally, a lot of lobbying takes place during chance, sponstaneous encounters in the hallways of the Capitol and adjacent Legislative Office Building. Now, the hundreds of lobbyists and legislative liaisons from state agencies need to make appointments with elected officials.
The toughest part might be the curtailing of casual conversations that build relationships between lawmakers and lobbyists, especially lobbyists and legislators who are early in their careers.
“The lack of contact can take a toll, because sometimes a random meeting can lead to a question in my mind I had about something,” said Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk. “But the folks who lobby at the Capitol for various clients, whether it’s affordable housing, banks, or the environment, they are still contacting us to set up meetings at the beginning of the session. That aspect hasn’t skipped a beat, except it’s not in person and you don’t have the personal touch. The upside is I can do these Zoom meetings without being a suit and tie.”
Duff said the downside is that knowledge about issues, the stockin-trade of lobbyists who try to affect legislation, is being hindered by the lack of personal contact.
Kate Robinson, principal at Gallo & Robinson, LLC, whose clients are primarily nonprofit special service providers, said the lobbying landscape has changed greatly from 2019.
“The ability to monitor what’s happening and how things evolve is so challenged in this environment,” she said. “There is no spontaneity because everything is purposeful with communications. The ability to walk through the atrium and run into other lobbyists, lawmakers and staff persons in five six minutes time has been taken away. And the only substitute is to contact very specific individuals, who may or may not respond to email and text. It really is like being blindfolded.”
So far, powerful committee chairmen and staff have been accommodating, even welcoming, even as the doors to the LOB and Capitol remain locked. “Some chairman even prefer old-school conference calling, too,” Robinson said.
Carroll Hughes, president of Hughes & Cronin Public Affairs Strategies, said there are advantages and disadvantages in lobbying during the pandemic.
“It’s much more labor intensive because you have to watch everything,” said Hughes, who is in his 46th legislation session. “You have to follow the Zoom of every committee. We have to watch everyone, because you’re never sure what is being brought up.”
Unlike in-person committee meetings, the age of Zoom means lobbyists, lawmakers and news reporters cannot see people interacting and cannot gauge the sentiment of people who, in normal circumstances, would fill an LOB meeting room, of which there are 10 in the LOB. “A legislator used to be able to walk around the Capitol and learn about a controversial issue in 15 minutes,” Hughes said. “If they don’t feel as knowledgeable about certain issues, they have to be more-cautious.”
“You can’t have casual conversations, which normally both lawmakers and lobbyists can learn things,” said Hughes, who heads a five-lobbyist operation including his wife, Jean Cronin, representing statewide clients including Connecticut’s police chiefs and package stores. “We are relying a lot more on written documents,” he said. “If you are not a good writer or communicator, you’re at a disadvantage on these procedural issues. You have to read quickly and summarize. A traditional hallway lobbyist may be at a disadvantage.”
As the legislative session goes deeper into the winter and spring, with the adjournment date of midnight June 9, Hughes predicted that many lobbyists will be texting talking points and facts to lawmakers during the middle of floor debates in the House and Senate.
Chris Healy, a former newspaper reporter and Republican state chairman who is now executive director of the Connecticut Catholic Conference, said the legislative leaders should be able to come up with a hybrid system for the public, considering the soaring, sevenstory atrium they work in. “I understand the risk, I understand people are worried. But it’s not like they’re working in a broom closet,” he said.