How to Participate in Public Hearings
As the public hearing process gets into full swing, I wanted to share with you how you can participate in the process and why your participation in it matters.
Public hearings give you the opportunity to share your opinion or story as lawmakers introduce new concepts and reintroduce some old bills. In previous years, public hearing participants crowded into the statehouse to make their voices heard on all sorts of issues like taxes, tolls, and marijuana.
Because the statehouse and Legislative Office Building remain closed to the public due to COVID, this process will be taking place virtually.
How can I find out when a public hearing is taking place?
You can find the schedule of committee meetings and public hearings for the week by accessing the CGA Bulletin at cga.ct.gov. The Bulletin can be found under “CGA Daily Records”:
The Bulletin is updated almost daily, and features important information on upcoming public hearings:
By clicking on “On-line Testimony Registration Form”, you can sign up to testify via Zoom during the public hearing. The registration period closes the day before the public hearing at 3:00 PM, so if you do plan to testify over Zoom, keep that in mind before you try to sign up.
There is also an option to testify over the phone, and instructions on how to do so in the Bulletin.
These public hearings, especially those on controversial subjects, can go on for hours at a time, so keep in mind that you can always provide written testimony.
How can I give written testimony?
Sending in written testimony is probably the easiest way you can provide your input, and all pieces of written testimony are read by members of the committee after they have been submitted.
Committee members frequently receive written testimony that is the exact same information copy-and-pasted and sent in by multiple different people. However, the most impactful testimony is often one that shares a personal story or a unique perspective.
When writing your testimony, be sure to let members of the committee know specifically how a bill will affect you. When you send your testimony to the committee, make sure you send it to the email listed on their committee page, accessed by using the drop-down navigation bar on the top of the CGA homepage:
After you click the relevant committee, scroll down to the “Contact” tab on their page and click “Public Hearing Testimony”:
Be sure to send in your testimony as a PDF or Word document, to include the word “SUPPORT” or “OPPOSE” and the bill number in the subject line, and to copy me on your email (Tammy.Nuccio@housegop.ct.gov) so I can make sure the committee has received it.
Please remember that all testimony, oral or written, eventually becomes public record and is available online.