That is according to today’s story in the Hartford Business Journal by Greg Bordonaro and Brad Kane.

UIL, the holding company for United Illuminating as well as Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation (CNG), The Southern Connecticut Gas Company (SCG), and The Berkshire Gas Company (BGC), hired 23 lobbyists and NU, owner of  Connecticut Power & Light Co., hired 16 for the General Assembly session that starts Feb. 8.

Both companies – especially NU – will be under the gun to spend more money to prepare for major storms, for which they want customers as opposed to stockholders pay, no matter what the history of the issue might be.

“Other groups with the most hired guns include the Connecticut Hospital Association (19), Connecticut Voices for Children (17), Connecticut Fund for the Environment (16), AT&T (16), the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (14) and the Connecticut Education Association (14), according to HBJ’s analysis of data from the Office of State Ethics,” says the story.