Hartford (WTNH) - Nearly two weeks after Election Day, there's an orientation underway at the state Capitol.

It's the first day of class and, as always, the freshmen are a little nervous.

"It's intimidating," said Representative-elect, Barbara Lambert (D-Milford).

(click read more)

Who wouldn't be intimidated when you're learning how to write the laws of the State of Connecticut? More than two dozen senators and representatives newly elected two weeks ago began basic training with a little help from School House Rock and "How a Bill Becomes a Law."

After that, it's lectures on how committees work, a tour of the Capitol complex and a mock session in the hall of the House. It's a busy day but nothing compared to the hard work to come when they take office in January.

"We're looking at some challenging times. Like the Governor said, we're facing some serious potential decreases in revenue - up to billions of dollars, and I suspect there's going to be a lot of changes," said Representative-elect, Chris Coutu (R-Norwich).

Yes, the switch from budget surpluses to projected deficits is the biggest change, but Barbara Lambert of Milford says she and her colleagues were elected because they could deal with issues just like that.

"Yes, it's a big challenge, but even as an alderman from Milford, what happened was we made a lot of strong cuts last year," Lambert said.

And there are plenty of other concerns about the job too. Some of them are being addressed in training, like how to deal with all the people who now want your time or a favor from you, and the effect that being a state lawmaker has on your family and on your free time.