American

                                Association of

Connecticut State University

                                       Professors

     Phone: (860) 832-3790 * Fax (860) 832-3794 * Email: aaup@ccsu.edu

BETTY GALLO & CO. LOBBYING FIRM

After several years of experience lobbying the Connecticut General Assembly, Betty Gallo established the firm Betty Gallo & Co. in 1981.  Her firm has represented the CSU-AAUP since 1986, focusing primarily on the passage of CSU-AAUP contracts, funding for the CSU System, funding for CT Aid to public college students, and collective bargaining issues, including working with other state employee unions when necessary. She has also worked on issues affecting part-time professors, the teacher education program, and possible higher education mergers.

Betty, Kate Robinson, and other part-time lobbyists at Betty Gallo & Co. monitor the work of the General Assembly on a day-to-day basis to ensure the union officers know about any issue that will have an impact on their members, the CSU system, or its students. They read every bill filed and scrutinize documents such as the budget, contracts submitted by other unions, CSU’s budget proposals, testimony from CSU, and any bonding proposal affecting the System.  They then follow the issues through the legislative process, alerting the union officials to public hearings on important issues, committee action, and vote counts.

A member of Betty’s lobbying team attends every committee meeting, hearing, subcommittee meeting, special commission or study group involved with issues of interest to CSU-AAUP. They actively lobby for such priority issues as the union’s contract, talking to all committee members considering the issue and determining their position on the issue. They alert the union if there is a problem with approval of the contract and identify swing votes on the issue that can be moved by calls, letters or e-mails from our members.

Betty also acts as an advisor to the union on issues such as putting together grassroots or press campaigns and deciding which positions to publicly advocate before a committee or within SEBAC. She usually attends monthly meetings of the CSU-AAUP Council to report on the status of pending legislation, identify steps the union can take to influence the situation, and to educate the Council about big issues the union will face in the coming months.

Betty Gallo & Co. played a critical role in CSU-AAUP’s legislative success this past session. The General Assembly approved the new Contract with the largest salary increases of any contract that had been passed this year in the state and appropriated over $1 million in funding for new full-time faculty lines.

Connecticut State University American Association of University Professors

CCSU, Marcus White Hall, Rooms 310, New Britain, CT 06050 * Phone (860) 832-3790 * Fax (860) 832-3794