The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Pandemic creates confusion on public testimony in legislature
The shortcomings and headaches of virtual legislative meetings in the COVID pandemic are starting to crystalize for lawmakers, with growing concerns that upcoming public hearings via Zoom and YouTube Live have the potential to degenerate into prolonged nightmares of garbled testimony and frustrating silences.
Already, the General Assembly’s 24 committees are experiencing glitches ranging from the simple failure of lawmakers to “un-mute” themselves, to disconnections during the middle of discussions because some towns and cities have less-dependable internet connections.
On Friday, during a review of the Connecticut Port Authority by the legislative Transportation Committee, Rep. Christine Conley, D-Groton, sustained an interruption in her video just as she was framing a question for agency officials.
“The internet here in Groton, Connecticut, is untimely, but it is what we have to deal with,” she said. After shutting off her computer video to possibly strengthen her bandwidth, the audio-only function on her computer failed.
“Representative Conley, again, I think we’ve lost you,” said state Rep. Roland Lemar, D-New Haven, co-chairman of the committee. Finally, Conley called back on a phone line.
Lawmakers are worried that the problems they are experiencing will likely be multiplied as the public becomes more involved in the legislative process over the next few weeks.
The Public Health Committee’s first scheduled public hearing of the session on Monday will include a bill that would prohibit the sale flavored tobacco and vaping products. Live public comments will be limited to three minutes each, although written testimony is encouraged.
It will be a crucial test run, but some members of the panel on Friday weren’t even sure how the public can participate. Details are available through the legislature’s daily Bulletin, after being voted into the pandemic-era rules of the General Assembly on Jan. 6. The Capitol complex remains closed to
the public in the pandemic.
Veteran state Rep. Christie Carpino, R-Cromwell, told her committee colleagues on Friday that it would make sense for members of the public to testify on a variety of bills at the same time, rather than in separate hearings that will take multiple hours.
“As we started this process, we’re trying to do it the best we can,” said Sen. Mary Daugherty Abrams, D-Meriden, who cochairs the committee with Rep. Jonathan Steinberg, D-Westport. “This is one of the places where we realized we really need to do a better job.”
Sen. Tony Hwang, R-Westport, ranking member of the committee, said he saw little guidance available for those who want to present testimony. “For example, what’s required for them to sign up for a slot for testimony? How long of a time do they have? Where do they go into a waiting space? This is obviously new,” he said.
Steinberg said he hopes to create a frequently-asked-questions link on the committee’s website, stressing the three-minute limit on testimony.
“A citizen can testify on any of the bills on that day’s agenda when their turn comes up,” Steinberg said, adding that the first hour of hearings will be dedicated to public officials and agency experts because they are usually mostexpert to answer lawmaker questions.
He said that committee leaders will be slightly flexible in letting people exceed the three minutes.
“Even more so when we have long public hearings, I want to make sure that people are being respected for those three minutes, but do not abuse it,” Steinberg said.
Committee members were particularly
concerned about the inevitable long day when a hearing is held on mandatory school vaccinations. Last year, before the legislative session was abandoned in the pandemic, the committee held a 24-hour-long public hearing on the issue that drew 4,000 parents and children. The proposal passed the committee but died when the Capitol closed on March 12.
Rep. Josh Elliott, D-Hamden, a committee member, said he was concerned that out-of-state residents might sign up to prolong hearings. “What are we going to do to prevent this from being a 72hour or 20-day hearing?” Elliott asked with a smile on Zoom.
“Well, I would say don’t make future plans, on some of these bills, for the following morning,” Steinberg replied. “We will have some bills, probably no more than one or two, that will definitely try everyone’s endurance. And it is our obligation to give everyone an opportunity to testify and that’s precisely what we’re going to do. We’re just going to grin and bear it and listen to everybody until everybody has had a chance to speak.”
“It’s ostensibly feasible that this could be like, the public could filibuster our hearing, No?” Elliott continued.
“That’s the process,” Steinberg said. “It might not be ideal. We want to try to keep any committee meeting or hearing from being manipulated by any outside party, but we are going to bend over backwards in favor of access. That’s our guiding principle. It may mean on some occasions we feel as if something has been orchestrated, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles.”