Public hearing sign-ups at the crack of dawn, long waits, followed by three minutes in the spotlight was what was in store for those giving testimony at the State Capitol this past week.

In the next two weeks, many committees will wrap up their screening and approval of bills for public hearings, as the deadline for any new ideas will be February 20th. This week committees kicked off the first of what will be hundreds of public hearings this session, which created a madhouse for parking, a crowded café and limited access to legislators as the members of the public were also in the mix trying to track down their elected officials and grab some face time to discuss what was on their minds.

As the pace at the LOB picked up, across the highway at the Capitol, the second floor (Governor/House Offices) and third floor (Senate and Lt. Gov. Offices) were somewhat quiet. Governor Lamont is knee deep in creating a new face for CT state agencies through creative appointments of individuals with some serious business ties and experience - as opposed to the normal political appointments made during the first year of a new Governor's tenure. A few of those appointees started to flow through the legislature's executive nomination process this week, with loads of questions and probing on how they would change the way government works and what specific topics they would or would not support. Almost all had been astute enough to yield to the Governor and focused their responses on the Governor's first State of the State budget speech where he will introduce his two-year budget plan.

Meanwhile, some other appointees were "featured" in the media - vetting their past experiences, their backgrounds and even their marital status! Nothing is private these days - especially with public officials and the new reality of social media.

Back at the LOB, it's interesting to see how all the new partnerships at the committee level are really working smoothly. Many wondered how Senate Republicans would react to their return as committee Ranking Member status, and it appears in almost all cases, it's working seamlessly. Maybe the last two years of "shared leadership" created a better collaborative relationship for the session ahead. Still, several committees are struggling, not because of personalities, but philosophies, and there's a lot of focus on moving a large "progressive" agenda forward and fast. While there's a huge difference in philosophy between the large Progressive Caucus and the teams of the moderate Democrat and Republican caucuses, it has been cordial so far.

Next week is packed with public hearings, anticipation for the Governor's budget release is building and we're expecting a flood of fully drafted bills to start appearing for all those committee bills approved for a public hearing this past week.

So the sun was out a lot this week, people were working together and life is normal under the state flag - for now. Let's see how next week turns out as large public audiences are expected to arrive to speak their peace.