Betty Gallo has headed her own government relations and lobbying firm since 1981.  The firm represented over 28 clients during the 2011 General Assembly session including the American School for the Deaf, the American Association of University Professors – Connecticut State University Chapter, Legal Services, the Partnership for Strong Communities and the Connecticut chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.  Ms. Gallo has lobbied the Connecticut General Assembly for 34 years. 

From 1976 to 1980, Ms. Gallo was Executive Director and chief lobbyist for Common Cause/Connecticut.  In 1980, she ran for the General Assembly as the Democratic candidate in the 19th district, West Hartford.  She has sponsored the CT Lobbying Conference, a full day training session to teach people how to lobby the Connecticut General Assembly for 29 years, providing training for over 2,000 lobbyists.

Kate Robinson has been lobbying since 2001. She has been especially active in issues related to mental health and concentrates on housing issues.  She was previously Clerk of the Planning and Development Committee of the Connecticut General Assembly and was the manager for two State House campaigns. Kate holds a B.F.A. from the University of Connecticut and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Trinity College.  She has lobbied on issues relating to education, energy security, housing and mental health.  Kate serves on the Housing Authority in West Hartford.

Joe Grabarz is returning in January for his fifth session as a lobbyist for Betty Gallo & Company. Joe represented a district of Bridgeport for two terms in the Connecticut House of Representatives, where his advocacy of gay rights is credited with passage of Connecticut’s landmark gay right’s legislation which had been debated for more than 15 years. In 1993, Grabarz left the General Assembly when he accepted the position of Program Director for the Human Rights Campaign Fund. He joined the effort to pass meaningful health care reform in 1993, working in New England and Washington with three organizations and the White House to manage and direct field staff and supporting organizations. Joe has worked as the Executive Director of the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union and the Empire State Pride Agenda.

Brie Johnston has recently joined Betty Gallo & Company as a Lobbyist.  She served the Connecticut General Assembly as the Clerk of the Appropriations Committee and Legislative Assistant to State Representative Toni Walker.  She has also been the Clerk of the Human Services Committee and the Assistant Clerk of the General Law Committee. Her leadership qualities were recognized when she was named House Clerk Team Leader; responsible for training and providing supervision for other clerks.  She has managed three successful House Democrat campaigns.  Brie has volunteered for and worked at a non-profit housing organization, Appalachia Service Project, as a Supply Manager and Finance Coordinator.  She holds a Bachelors of Arts from the University of Connecticut in Political Science, and loves to sing.

Don Branson has been with Betty Gallo & Co. since 2003 as the Director of IT Services. He works with client organizations to help them effectively utilize information technology to meet their goals. This includes managing the grassroots contacts databases and on-line legislative action centers as well as being the systems administrator for a vairety of offices, consulting on website design and development, and technology planning for organizations.  Don holds a Masters degree in Sociology from Minnesota State University-Mankato and spent seven years as a Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Connecticut teaching courses on Social Problems, Deviant Behavior, and Political Sociology.  

Greater Mutsikwi’ started working as the Office Manager for Betty Gallo & Company in June 2004. Prior to that she worked as the building receptionist for the Lyceum. She also worked as a Legislative Assistant for the House Democrats in early 2004. Greater was born and raised in Zimbabwe and she holds a degree from the University of Hartford in Communications and English.

Together, we bring more then 50 years of experience to our work. We have all built good working relationships with legislators in positions of influence from both parties. We believe strongly that it is important for us to be at the Capitol full-time. When the legislators are there, we are there.

The offices of Betty Gallo & Company are at The Lyceum, in Hartford Connecticut. PDF with directions and map is available here.