Transcript Highlights:

• Boston claims more similar tax credit.
• People from Boston claim more of that credit, half of the state.
• property tax deferral program, which would build on our local option property tax deferral programs by adjusting
• them... ...which would build on our local option property tax deferral programs by adjusting them to

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Revenue

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Revenue held a hearing on bills related to senior and disability property tax relief, with a focus on helping older adults and people with disabilities remain in their homes. Testimony supported H. 3968, which would make certain senior and disability property tax exemptions permanent so eligible residents would not have to refile annually, and H. 3198, which would expand the senior circuit breaker tax credit by indexing income and credit limits to cost of living and raising the home valuation cap from $1.1 million to $1.5 million. Representative Scanlan also testified in favor of several additional bills, including a local option motor vehicle excise tax exemption for low-income seniors and veterans, a local property tax cap for low-income seniors, an expanded senior property tax exemption, and a senior property tax deferral program designed to be revenue neutral over time. Witnesses from the City of Boston, the Massachusetts Municipal Association, and the Massachusetts Association of Assessing Officers generally supported local-option property tax relief measures and said they would help seniors age in place while giving municipalities flexibility. Committee members raised concerns about possible abuse or fraud if exemptions became permanent, and about how assessors would verify continued eligibility without annual reapplication. Supporters responded that eligibility could still be tied to real estate transactions and other documentation, and that the current annual filing requirement causes many eligible seniors to miss out on benefits. Mass Senior Action Council members testified that many seniors are struggling with rising property taxes, insurance, and other costs, and urged broader reforms such as freezing assessed values, improving outreach, strengthening the work-off program, and allowing more flexible payment or deferral options. No votes were taken; the hearing concluded after testimony and questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senators, this is a bill that deals with the limit on small claims court, and we've just adjusted in
• This is a bill that deals with the limit on small claims court, and we've just adjusted in this amendment

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You're going to hear some pretty confident claims about the First Amendment as well, and I do want to
• This doesn't reduce control despite people claiming otherwise.
• TikTok's family pairing also gives parents the ability to see or adjust more than 20 settings for their
• by default for accounts under 16 TikTok's family pairing also gives parents the ability to see or adjust

Bills: HB1170 , HB1570 , HB1834

Committee: House Appropriations

Keywords: artificial intelligence, AI, generative AI, AI-generated content, deepfake, synthetic media, content provenance, provenance data, metadata, watermarking, disclosure, transparency, consumer protection, unfair or deceptive acts, unfair competition, Washington RCW, Title 19 RCW, platform regulation, AI detection tool, media authenticity

Transcript Highlights:

• are proposing pay additives in accordance with 110 and 60, performance pay, the competitive pay adjustment
• of 2 percent, and the special pay adjustment of 3 percent, for a total wage increase of 5 percent.
• The state claims the cost is not worth the benefit, but we cannot understand how they put a price tag
• Even the state's own data contradicts their claims.

Summary: The Joint Select Committee on Collective Bargaining met for an informational public hearing on several state employee bargaining units at impasse. The Department of Management Services outlined negotiations for the FDLE special agents, security services/correctional officers, sworn law enforcement officers, Florida Highway Patrol troopers, and Florida State Fire Service units. Across the units, the state said most contract articles had been resolved, with remaining disputes centered mainly on wages, hours of work, grievance language, safety, grooming, travel, and other housekeeping items. The state repeatedly emphasized proposed 2% competitive pay increases plus specialty or special pay increases in some units, insurance held harmless with no added employee cost, and its desire to keep current scheduling practices and remove outdated grievance language referencing the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. No votes were taken. Representatives for the Florida State Fire Service Association argued that firefighters are being asked to perform work far outside their job descriptions, including major construction, and said the state’s work-schedule and on-call practices unfairly avoid overtime and underpay firefighters. They also sought higher on-call compensation, a stronger wage plan with incentives and certification-based increases, restoration of a pay differential for firefighter-EMTs, and added PPE, decontamination, and cancer-prevention protections. The PBA’s Florida Highway Patrol unit said troopers need a larger career development plan, veteran stipends, updated grooming/tattoo rules, safer and newer vehicles, and better pay to address turnover. The PBA’s law enforcement unit focused on vehicle safety, performance evaluation language to prevent case-presentation quotas, and a $7,000 across-the-board raise, while disputing whether certain articles were timely opened. The security services unit said correctional officers, probation officers, and ISS officers need an $8-per-hour starting pay increase, retention bonuses, special pay for death row and close-management assignments, and overtime pay for lieutenants and captains who currently receive comp time and sometimes work beyond their limits. The committee heard the presentations, asked a brief question about correctional officers’ overtime, accepted written materials from the FOP special agent unit, and adjourned without action.

Transcript Highlights:

• are proposing pay additives in accordance with 110 and 60, performance pay, the competitive pay adjustment
• of 2 percent, and the special pay adjustment of 3 percent, for a total wage increase of 5 percent.
• The state claims the cost is not worth the benefit, but we cannot understand how they put a price tag
• Even the state's own data contradicts their claims.

Summary: The Joint Select Committee on Collective Bargaining met to hear impasse presentations from the Department of Management Services and several bargaining units. The department reported that most articles had been resolved in each of the full-book contracts, with remaining disputes centered largely on wages and a handful of non-economic issues. For the FDLE special agents, security services, law enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, and Florida State Fire Service units, the state described its wage offers as generally a 2% competitive increase plus a 3% special pay increase, along with various bonuses, retention funds, or career-development funding in some units. The department also said it wanted to keep existing language on work schedules, seniority, grooming, equipment, grievance procedures, and other items, often characterizing its changes as housekeeping or alignment with current practice. The department noted that insurance had been agreed to with no increased employee cost, and it confirmed that correctional officers do receive overtime pay. Representatives for the Florida State Fire Service Association strongly disputed the state’s position, arguing that firefighters should not be required to perform major construction work, that their work schedules and on-call/callback arrangements unfairly suppress overtime, and that wildfire and fire-rescue employees are underpaid and underprotected. They also pressed for better compensation for EMT/paramedic-certified firefighters, additional protective clothing, on-site decontamination and shower/laundry facilities, and stronger cancer-prevention language. The association said the state had not bargained in good faith and urged the committee to support the union’s proposals. The Police Benevolent Association’s Florida Highway Patrol unit focused on wages and a career development plan, saying troopers remain underpaid compared with other states and are leaving for better-paying agencies. It also sought a veteran stipend, broader grooming/tattoo language, safety improvements for high-mileage vehicles, and changes to seniority and inflation-related pay. The PBA law enforcement unit raised similar safety concerns about aging vehicles, sought limits on performance evaluations tied to case presentations, and requested a $7,000 across-the-board wage increase. The security services unit, representing correctional officers, probation officers, and ISS officers, said its main issue was wages and asked for an $8-per-hour starting pay increase, retention bonuses, special pay for death row and close-management staff, added pay for SOTEC officers, and overtime pay for lieutenants and captains who currently receive comp time instead. No votes were taken, no public testimony followed, and the committee adjourned after taking the presentations under advisement.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so what happened after Marsy's Law was adopted was that there was a little bit of an adjustment period
• so it was, and what happened after Marcy's law was adopted was that there was a little bit of an adjustment
• statutes and jury instructions reference an officer's execution of a legal duty, some defendants have claimed
• Wallace claimed that the officer, Officer Raynor, lacked probable cause for the investigation and that

Summary: The Criminal Justice Committee met with several members excused and first took up SB 350, which clarifies public records protections for crime victims and extends temporary confidentiality to law enforcement officers involved in use-of-force incidents for 72 hours, with a possible written extension up to 60 days. Senator Graal said the bill was intended to align with the Florida Constitution’s victim definition and to address privacy concerns without allowing indefinite withholding. Testimony from Marsy’s Law and the Florida PBA supported the measure, though there were questions about the 60-day period. The committee reported SB 350 favorably. The committee then considered two domestic violence-related bills by Senator Berman. CS/SB 296, after a delete-all amendment, directs a study of a secure web-based alert platform that would give domestic violence victims a unique phone number and code-based emergency alert system, and it expands Florida’s address confidentiality program to dating violence victims. Several speakers, including survivors and advocates, described the need for safer ways to seek help without alerting abusers. The bill was reported favorably. CS/SB 298 similarly expanded confidentiality protections for the Haven Coordinating Council records to cover dating violence victims, and it was also reported favorably. Later, the committee heard SB 398, which updates Florida statutes by replacing the term “child pornography” with “child sexual abuse material,” including conforming changes to the offense severity ranking chart. The bill was reported favorably. The committee also heard SB 156, the Jason Raynor Act, which changes resisting-an-officer language, removes references to lawful or unlawful duty in favor of “any duties,” and adds manslaughter of a law enforcement officer to offenses requiring a life sentence. Law enforcement groups supported the bill, while the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers raised concerns about removing judicial discretion and eliminating a statutory protection against force when an officer knows an arrest is unlawful. Despite those objections, the committee reported the bill favorably. Finally, the committee approved SB 168 on public nuisances, which expands nuisance law to include gambling houses, increases penalties, allows attorney fees, and authorizes foreclosure for unpaid fees, and CS/SB 54, which after amendment focuses on medical examiner procedures and reporting related to violent offenders and toxicology/psychotropic drug review. Both bills were reported favorably. The meeting ended after members recorded additional affirmative votes and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• INSPECTIONS BASED ON A PERCENTAGE AND SO WE DO CONDUCT THOSE AND AS WE HAVE FIND ISSUES WE MAKE ADJUSTMENTS
• SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE TWEAKED OR A VENDOR NEEDS A PARTICULAR INSPECTION COMPANY NEEDS TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS
• YEAR I GOT FROM MY INSURANCE COMPANY THAT I'VE BEEN WITH FOR 50 YEARS IN MY HOUSE 50 YEARS WITH TWO CLAIMS
• IF YOU ARE COMING TO THE STATE OF FLORIDA BECAUSE YOU HAVE A CHILD-SUPPORT CLAIM AND YOU NEED A DVD-R

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The fee adjustment process offers the best opportunity to adjust fees to better reflect impacts and costs
• So this isn't just a funding adjustment.
• Aside from minor adjustments, our LCP had not been updated since adopted in 1980.
• The industry's claim it can set... To be transferred and less likely to be promptly plugged.
• Proponents claim AB 1167 froze the market, but an unchecked market...

Summary: The committee heard a long series of bills, beginning with AB 2026 on groundwater recharge. The author and supporters said the bill would streamline permitting for recharge projects, codify long-standing CEQA exemptions for flood diversions to recharge, and add tribal consultation and other guardrails. Water agencies and local districts supported the measure as a way to capture high-flow water and reduce groundwater subsidence, while environmental groups and some irrigation districts opposed it, warning that the bill’s exemptions and broader diversion authority could harm rivers, Delta resources, and public trust values. The bill was discussed but not voted on because the committee lacked a quorum at that point. The committee then took up AB 1577 on data center energy accountability, which would require monthly reporting of energy-use data and permit-related estimates of energy and water demand. The author and the Little Hoover Commission argued the bill would improve transparency, help protect ratepayers, and give regulators better information for grid planning. Data center industry representatives opposed it as duplicative, burdensome, and uniquely targeted, while local governments, environmental groups, and some utilities supported it or supported it if amended. The bill was later reported out with a due pass recommendation once a quorum was established. Members also heard AB 2245 on a producer responsibility program for lubricant products and containers, AB 2170 on CEQA language-access and environmental review protections for overburdened communities, AB 2059 on rural transportation and VMT mitigation, AB 1808 on Western Joshua tree permitting and fee relief, AB 2182 on industrial energy efficiency program changes, and AB 2231 on streamlining two hospital projects. Testimony was mixed on most of these bills: supporters emphasized affordability, local control, environmental justice, or project urgency, while opponents raised concerns about CEQA scope, regulatory duplication, costs, and environmental impacts. Several measures received due pass recommendations and roll-call votes, including AB 2170, AB 2059, AB 1808, AB 2182, and AB 2231, with some members voting no or not voting and some bills left open for absent members.

Transcript Highlights:

• conduct an engineering and traffic investigation to identify safety improvements, including possible adjustments
• jurisdiction may contract with WSDOT to have it conduct ...safety improvements, including possible adjustments
• short-term fix so that, if they can do it and they have hearings and the public wants it, they can adjust
• On behalf of our 24 member counties for whom we manage risk and claims, we do like this bill.
• And on behalf of our 24 members, member counties for whom we manage risk and claims, we do like this

Committee: House Transportation

Keywords: 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• base grow 8.2% from maintenance increases, which included approximately $1 million in inflationary adjustments
• enhancements to the department's budget, which included a $240,000 reduction to an inflationary adjustment
• So, this inflationary decrease that you see for fiscal year 2025 is a result of a maintenance adjustment
• this number, but I think the first year that we had it on the plan, there was like minimal to no claims
• this number, but I think the first year that we had it on the plan, there was like minimal to no claims

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The committee heard budget presentations for the Department of Administration and the Permanent Building Fund. For Administration, analysts reviewed the agency’s divisions, staffing, dedicated-fund structure, recent budget growth, and the governor’s and JFAC’s recommended changes. The department requested shifts of utility costs from the general fund to dedicated funds, three new positions and funding for Medicaid procurement and contract management, transfers of some positions between divisions, and one-time IT replacement funding. Members also discussed office-space utilization, vacant buildings and land at Chinden and elsewhere, and the department’s efforts to consolidate space and reduce general fund reliance. Director Bailey said the department has reduced or repurposed positions, closed duplicate printing operations, is exploring digital workflows and AI tools, and is trying to move toward a fully dedicated-fund model. He also explained the decision to remove GLP-1 weight-loss coverage from the state health plan due to rapidly rising costs, while noting diabetes coverage remains in place. Committee members questioned the need for higher-level procurement staff for Medicaid contracts, the role of Deloitte and the Department of Health and Welfare in the process, and the status of the MMIS procurement, which Bailey said is currently stayed by the courts after a legal challenge from the second-place vendor. He said the delay will affect MMIS implementation and, in turn, the timing of the broader managed care rollout. Members also asked about vacant state office space, the possible sale of older buildings, and whether agencies such as ITD and Health and Welfare could be moved into state-owned space to reduce lease costs. Bailey said the department is actively working on those facility-planning questions and that agencies at Chinden are paying rent for occupied space. The committee then reviewed the Permanent Building Fund budget, which finances state construction, repairs, and deferred maintenance through dedicated revenue sources and interest earnings. Analysts highlighted the fund’s multi-year project structure, the large deferred maintenance program funded in prior years, and a proposed one-time transfer of $33.75 million in canceled capital project balances to the general fund. They also described a possible redirection of fiscal year 2027 interest earnings to the general fund and a recommended new capital project for an Idaho National Guard readiness center. Administrator Barard reported that the Division of Public Works is managing 595 active projects, with most FY 2025 projects under construction, in design, or complete, and said the division continues to face labor shortages and rising construction costs. Members asked about canceled projects, including the North Idaho reentry center, the Carnegie Library purchase, the ISU pedestrian crossing, the Idaho State Police Lewiston facility, and other projects; staff said some are unlikely to return soon, while others may come back once land or other prerequisites are secured. The committee concluded the hearing and announced it would meet the next day for the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Office of the State Public Defender.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is this to avert a particular lawsuit or a particular claim by some beneficiaries in Delaware?
• , public lodging establishment owners may be unable to remove non-paying guests because they are claiming
• The bill before us today makes a few minor adjustments to the original legislation, particularly regarding
• These adjustments are not about changing the vision, but about strengthening the implementation and ensuring
• It makes an adjustment to parking reduction requirements to require local governments to provide a 20%

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum, opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and recognized several guests and groups in the gallery, including students, business groups, and university basketball coaches. The chamber then moved through a long special order calendar, taking up a series of bills on trust law, school district reporting, debt collection, service of process, lodging and food service establishments, lien waivers, public records protections for Crime Stoppers personnel, foreign ownership/health care licensure issues, diabetes management in schools, platting, fentanyl testing, third-party reservation platforms, electronic landlord-tenant notices, leaving the scene of a crash, background screening for athletic coaches, surrendered infants, and affordable housing. Several bills were temporarily postponed, and multiple House companion bills were substituted where the measures were identical or had only drafting differences. Debate focused on a few measures. Senators questioned the trust code bill’s effect on out-of-state attorneys general; the school reporting bill was described as strengthening arrest and misconduct reporting for instructional personnel; and the service-of-process and lodging bills were presented as technical and consumer-protection fixes. The fentanyl testing bill drew emotional support from the sponsor and families affected by overdose deaths. The surrendered-infant bill prompted opposition over safety, anonymity, and the limited use of baby boxes, while supporters argued it could save lives. The affordable housing bill, updating the Live Local Act, was amended to adjust parking reductions and allow certain properties to use the administrative approval process, with additional limits and exclusions added. Most measures passed overwhelmingly, including the trust code bill, school reporting, debt collection, service of process, lien waivers, public records, foreign-country business interest restrictions, diabetes management in schools, platting, fentanyl testing, third-party reservation platforms, electronic landlord-tenant notices, leaving-the-scene restitution, athletic coach background screening, surrendered infants, and affordable housing. The day’s most divided vote was on the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services bill, which drew extended debate over fluoride policy and other provisions; it passed 27-9. At the end of the session, the Senate agreed to immediately certify all bills passed that day to the House, recognized a Taiwan-related resolution for the journal, made additional announcements, and adjourned until the next scheduled meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, let's move on to number 11, the background check unit fund adjustment.
• Basically, that's just moving... ...background check unit fund adjustment.
• The last one is the population forecast adjustment.
• The last item mentioned by Senator from 32 is population forecast adjustment.
• is reached or the claim is closed.

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum present, approved the journal, and moved through routine orders before taking up committee reports, gubernatorial messages, House messages, and first and second reading calendars. Several bills were advanced, including appropriations measures and enrolled bills transmitted to the House, Governor, or Secretary of State. The chamber then proceeded to third reading and final action on a series of bills, with debate focused largely on budget priorities, Medicaid, firearms preemption, medical education funding, rural health, and kratom regulation. The Senate passed Senate Bill 1420, creating a dedicated funding source for medical education beginning in 2028; Senate Bill 1430, strengthening state firearms preemption enforcement and authorizing penalties and injunctions against local violations; Senate Bill 1432, an appropriation for Health and Welfare indirect support and related modernization items; Senate Bill 1433, a large Medicaid enhancement budget with discussion of MMIS procurement, estate recovery, program integrity, hospital assessment fund alignment, and population/cost growth; Senate Bill 1434, the Division of Welfare budget reflecting SNAP administrative cost changes and Medicaid eligibility system updates; Senate Bill 1437, an appropriation for Idaho State Police tied to DNA collection for sexual battery and domestic violence offenses; Senate Bill 1439, delaying a school facilities model report deadline to 2027; and Senate Bill 1264 as amended, creating a rural health transformation account and legislative oversight committee for federal rural health funds. Most of these measures passed on party-line or split votes, while SB 1437 and SB 1439 passed unanimously. The most extended debate centered on Senate Bill 1264, where supporters said the bill would give the Legislature oversight over already-awarded federal rural health money and help ensure sustainable uses, while opponents argued it would deepen federal debt and create a process that could still leave control with the executive branch. Another major debate was on Senate Bill 1418, the kratom consumer protection bill, which would restrict sales to adults 21 and older, set product limits and labeling standards, and allow inspections and enforcement against synthetic or adulterated products. Supporters framed it as a consumer protection and harm-reduction measure; opponents raised concerns about warrantless inspections, lack of pharmacy board support, and whether the bill would effectively normalize kratom. The transcript ends during continued debate on SB 1418, before a final vote is taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• The amendment adjusts language on lines 1001. Mr.
• The amendment adjusts language on lines 521 through 530.
• The special master found this is an uncontested claim arising from a settlement agreement.
• Civil Justice and Claims Subcommittee and Representative Groh.
• hope to benefit from passage of this claims bill.

Summary: The House opened with prayer, a moment of silence for former member Chester Clem, the Pledge of Allegiance, and quorum verification. Members then adopted the special order report and a Rules and Ethics Committee report amending House Rule 15.3 to allow fundraising under certain circumstances during extended or special sessions. The chamber also recognized Deputy First Class Stefano Gargano as law enforcement officer of the day and several visiting groups in the gallery. On the floor, HB 1405 on a statewide project for missing persons with special needs passed unanimously, 109-0. The House then took up CS/CS/CS/SB 290, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services bill, which drew questions about surplus conservation lands and oversight by the Acquisition and Restoration Council; it passed 94-10. CS/CS/CS/HB 905, the “Fire Act” on foreign influence, foreign-country-of-concern restrictions, critical infrastructure, gifts, contracts, sister city agreements, and related ethics and criminal provisions, passed 80-20 after debate and a germane amendment was adopted over objections. The House also passed CS/CS/HB 1197 on information technology procurement and contracting, aimed at modernizing oversight of major IT projects, by 109-0. CS/CS/CS/HB 399 on land use development and development regulations passed 71-38 after extensive debate over development fees, manufactured homes, and reducing local supermajority requirements for comprehensive plan changes; an amendment to preserve Orange County’s rural boundary vote failed, and a strike-all amendment was ruled out of order. Members then adopted a technical amendment clarifying manufactured homes language. Several local bills also advanced: HB 1103 on local administration of vessel restrictions passed 109-0; HB 4051 and HB 4053 on Santa Rosa County fire protection district assessments passed 84-25 and 83-27, respectively, after compromise amendments; HB 4081 on the East Point Water and Sewer District passed 110-0; and HB 4093 on the Felsmere Water Control District passed 109-0. The transcript ended as the House moved on to HB 4095, with no final action shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2023, the credits claimed was 614,000. In 2024, there were 668,000.
• They're very consistent, with a little over 200 who claimed those.
• support it, but I do think there was some things raised that seem to me to be some simple possible adjustments
• > that seem to me to be some simple that seem to me to be some simple possible<00:23:06.559><c> adjustments
• </c> possible adjustments. possible adjustments.

Bills: SB79 , HB379 , SB253 , HB278 , HB438 , HB233 , SB79 , HB379 , SB253 , HB278 , HB438 , HB233

Committee: House Ways and Means Education

Keywords: sex-based terminology, gender identity, male, female, man, woman, boy, girl, single-sex spaces, women's rights, privacy, safety, fairness, anti-discrimination, vital statistics, birth certificate, intersex, DSD, differences in sex development, transgender

Transcript Highlights:

• The requests are broken down from a couple of years ago from The salary adjustments that we had to make
• So, you're looking at divorces, civil cases, probates, small claims once rendered to judgment, not on
• This is what makes the adjustments to our offender population.
• Any adjustments that we do to ICON, which is the backbone of our correctional system, that's movements
• We are covered by the OIA tort claims on the federal side.

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• they said, in that language, that now the levy will remain at, Now the levy will remain at, and they claim
• assessments come in, So whenever the levies, the new assessments come in, the levies have to be adjusted
• So whenever the levies, the new assessments come in, the levies have to be adjusted so that the school
• That would be one way to adjust that and make sure that those people who are responsible for the harms
• I don't claim them.

Committee: House Government Efficiency

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• in that statutory language was a certain amount of funds appropriated to compensate for validated claims
• Those were claims that we needed to pay before we could get through that administrative rule process.
• sideboards, added some definitions, had a compensation matrix for depredated livestock, deadlines for claim
• and I should go back on the temporary rule— we've already been engaged in compensating for those claims
• And we do expand those as needed, but we have not had to adjust the borders of our designated surveillance

Committee: House Agricultural Affairs

Summary: The House Agricultural Affairs Committee approved the minutes from January 30, 2026, then took up several Idaho State Department of Agriculture administrative rule dockets. The Idaho Hop Growers Commission docket was approved to repeal a rule that was described as duplicative of statute. The committee also approved temporary and pending rules on grizzly bear and wolf depredation compensation, with testimony explaining the rules implement 2024 and 2025 legislation, establish claim procedures, compensation matrices, and conflict-prevention funding, and rely on stakeholder input and coordination with the Office of Species Conservation. The committee then heard extensive presentations on brucellosis and tuberculosis surveillance programs from Dr. Scott Livesley. He explained both are bacterial program diseases managed largely under federal requirements, with Idaho’s rules mainly being updated through zero-based rulemaking to remove duplicative or outdated language without changing the regulatory scope. Members asked about vaccination, electronic ID tags, security of cattle ID data, and whether Idaho should remain a mandatory brucellosis vaccination state; Livesley said the current program would remain in place for now, with future reconsideration dependent on federal changes. The tuberculosis docket was likewise approved after Livesley described Idaho’s surveillance, slaughter testing, and lack of current quarantined herds. Finally, the committee approved revisions to the public exchange of livestock rules. Livesley said the changes would require buying stations and trader lots to submit renewal requests, and would replace a paper sale-yard release form with a single end-of-day electronic report generated by auction software, reducing clerical burden while preserving the needed information. All dockets considered were approved, and the meeting adjourned with the committee scheduled to meet again on Wednesday.

Transcript Highlights:

• Regarding whether the class action plaintiffs' claims were barred by equitable tolling, in November of
• last year the Ninth Circuit decided that the plaintiffs' claims were not barred, and they remanded the
• At the Superior Court level, the Superior Court dismissed the claim, saying it didn't have jurisdiction
• and remanded the APA claim back to the department.
• Do we need to make adjustments? I’m just sharing that for everyone’s benefit.

Committee: Joint Select Committee on Pension Policy

Summary: The Select Committee on Pension Policy Executive Committee approved the September minutes and received updates on two court cases, Fowler and Dolan. Staff explained that Fowler concerns interest calculations for members who transferred from Plan 2 to Plan 3 before 2002; the Ninth Circuit has already found liability, and the remaining issue is damages, which could be significant depending on the expert-driven calculation. Dolan was described as quieter, with briefing completed at the Court of Appeals and oral argument possible later this year or early next year. The committee also heard an actuarial update on the interim work plan, including planned informational briefings on month-of-death policy, a Plan 1 ad hoc COLA, and the OSA demographic experience study, which is still under external audit. Members asked whether updated fiscal notes had been prepared for two bills under study; staff said preliminary analysis had been done and full updates would come if the bills move forward. The committee then discussed how to handle the ad hoc COLA item and agreed to have staff draft a letter endorsing House Bill 1474 and any similar Senate bill for a one-year ad hoc COLA, to be brought back for full committee consideration in November. Staff reviewed the draft November and December work plan. The committee adopted the November agenda, which includes annual updates from the State Investment Board and Retirement Systems, the left one study closeout, and the ad hoc COLA action item. Members also discussed whether excess compensation and 2026 session prep should be handled by email rather than in a meeting, with general agreement to move the session prep to electronic communication and possibly handle excess compensation as an informational item, depending on availability. Constituent correspondence included several messages on climate change and Plan 1 COLAs, including support for the merger bill and COLAs in general. Jacob White of the LEOFF 2 Board reported that the board had only held an educational briefing on excess compensation and overtime, found the data limited, and took no further action. The meeting ended with thanks to staff and an adjournment vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• We were required to be attached to the Claims Predator Bill, which must also be carried in our budget
• Johnson, we remain absolutely committed to the conversation about this claims predator.
• I think we're going to try a few things, and they may not work, and we're going to have to adjust.
• We set up a special medical team of our claims representatives to go into all the homes and to make sure
• I will stay my hat on that claim. So thank you, Mr. Chair, and I'll renew my motion for this bill.

Committee: House Veterans and Military Affairs Division

Transcript Highlights:

• There is a claims kind of adjudication process where they're allowed to dispute the denial of the claim
• and taps claim paid?
• compared to a clean claim. >> And with so you're asking what the percentage of clean claims that are
• Remember, getting a care versus the claim coming in when the claim being paid because we have standard
• You heard us all talk about issues with claim billing, not having a Medicaid ID, not having your claim