Geballe to Leave Lamont Administration. Governor Loses Top Aide and DAS Commissioner.

Josh Geballe, Commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) and the state’s Chief Operating Officer, is leaving state government, Daily Ructions can reveal. An announcement is expected Tuesday.

Geballe was tapped by Lamont to lead DAS and its diverse portfolio of state government functions at the start of the administration. Lamont charged Geballe with modernizing state technology. At the end of Lamont’s first difficult year he added to Geballe’s portfolio by making the Guilford Democrat his COO.

Geballe emerged as the essential force in state government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic when it arrived in Connecticut in early 2020. Geballe, who enjoyed a successful business career before joining state government, was often the administration’s knowledgeable voice in those uncertain weeks.

Capitol insiders will lament Geballe’s departure. He was a source of a reliable information in an administration that many continue to find bewildering in its execution of policy.

Published February 1, 2022.