Transcript Highlights:

• Working with them to see if we can get that down to zero because we don't want this to be burdensome.
• To try to bring it down to zero because we don't want to add any addition, you know, any, any.
• I'm going to go down. I'm going to go down through a list of just a few things.
• Like how many words they were able to reduce down, how many...
• But that's not us slowing down or speeding up the process. That's the agency's process.

Bills: HB512, HB2248, HB2679, HB2832, HB3112, HB3368, HB3490, HB3512, HB3623, HB3666, HB3700, HB3711, HB3770, HB3963

Keywords: grievance procedures, state agency, employee rights, workplace regulations, employment law, employees, employment actions, appeal, state employees, workplace rights, disciplinary actions, employment conditions, employment disputes, job protections, public information, transparency, government accountability, information access, notification requirements, federal funding

Transcript Highlights:

• Our fiscal office takes it down as factual.
• We revised down to 5 to 11. I would suggest to you that shows sort of the...
• We revised down to 5 to 11.
• And I will tell you, we dropped it down.
• And I will tell you, we dropped it down.

Summary: The Senate Finance Committee met on May 18, 2026, with eight members present and began by noting the state’s projected REC budget deficit and the need to consider fiscal impacts carefully. The committee first advanced HB 12, which extends the $250,000 surviving spouse benefit to reserve officers killed in the line of duty. Members noted the bill is prospective and that it draws from the same capped fund as other related bills, but it was reported favorable without opposition. The committee also adopted an amendment and reported HB 874 favorable as amended; the bill allows colleges, technical schools, the Louisiana Bar Association, and additional credentials to be added to LA Wallet, with the amendment changing mandatory language to permissive language. HB 951 was then reported favorable, creating an employer-facing workforce unit within Louisiana Works, to be funded through repurposed state and federal funds and existing staff, with a floor amendment expected to rename the unit. The committee also reported HB 979 favorable with amendments after reducing the proposed increase in survivor benefits because members learned several bills were drawing from the same $5 million fund, and HB 1193 favorable as amended, after striking a section that would have extended IDIQ authority to supply contracts for CPR. The committee then heard HB 909, which would require commercial payers to cover behavioral health crisis services. Representative Spell and LDH officials said the measure is intended to support crisis response centers and steer patients away from emergency rooms when appropriate, and they testified that it should be cost-neutral or absorbed within existing funding. Despite concerns raised by Senator Andrews about premiums, the bill was reported favorable after discussion of its potential savings and a possible pilot in Acadiana. HB 222, requiring Medicaid to cover dental procedures when needed to complete another medically covered procedure, was also reported favorable; LDH said it would absorb the cost within its existing budget and draw down federal matching funds. HB 291, which prevents health plans from penalizing hospitals when an out-of-network physician is involved in an otherwise covered hospital service, generated extensive debate over a disputed fiscal note and the No Surprises Act. OGB officials said any network “leakage” could cost the plan money, while supporters argued the policy is preventative and that the fiscal estimates were speculative. The committee adopted amendment 3941 to exempt OGB from the bill, then reported HB 291 favorable as amended. Later, the committee took up HB 145, which expands the authority of the law enforcement and firefighter survivor benefit board to cover extraordinary medical and dental expenses. Because members learned it also draws from the same fund as HB 12 and HB 979, an amendment reduced the amount from $50,000 to $25,000, and the bill was reported favorable as amended. HB 430, a local bill for Lafayette to continue paying health insurance costs for surviving families of fallen officers until Medicare eligibility, was reported favorable. Finally, HB 821, which establishes the Louisiana Center for Safe Schools within the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement Administration and transfers related duties from the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security, was introduced and discussed as a move with a one-time general fund expenditure already included in HB 1. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• What's the balance between cracking down on fraud and serving the people?
• The Capitol schedule is winding down, but there's a lot to do and a lot happening. >> Absolutely.
• Um, but you know, what's the balance between cracking down on fraud and serving the people?
• And so you crack down hard on those who are fraudulent.
• And then someone's going to say, no, you didn't crack down hard enough. That's the hard part.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We are down in fiscal years 28 and 29. These are unfunded years.
• Go down to fiscal year 29, and you'll see at the bottom there's a bunch of I-40 projects.
• Is our anti-distraction campaign, just like telling people, just drive, put it down, slow down, and buckle
• I get a lot of complaints about the main highway that goes down my legislative district.
• I wasn't trying to buck anyone in line, just trying to wave a flag down here.

Transcript Highlights:

• But as we head down this journey, and it will take Highlands or any university, they could give 45% of
• Well, the chances of survival go down by 10%.
• And you have that down. All right. Committee, does everybody follow that? Okay. Okay. And then, Mr.
• The reason I ask is that I know my public radio station down in Las Cruces, KRWG.
• Slow down, you're talking too fast. Oh, I'm sorry, I get nervous, Senator.

Transcript Highlights:

• direction on how to phrase wind direction on how to phrase wind deviation<00:02:24.000> from<
• <01:09:01.440> And inflation rate from 10% down to 3%.
• And inflation rate from 10% down to 3%.
• He said he thinks the committee is heading down a pretty scary path.
• we're heading down a a pretty scary<01:37:48.480> path.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And you started talking about infamous, and I started to stand up and I sat back down again.
• Welcome to the committee, and thank you for the drive down. That would take six hours.
• Not one time has somebody called to invite us to a meeting to sit down and talk about our concerns.
• Stone, for making the drive down here.
• We want to appreciate everybody coming down, especially the 6-hour drive from Roseau.

Transcript Highlights:

• No copper landline customer whose home or business burned down or who were evacuated by fire.
• A wildfire or a high wind public safety power shut off, or simply a downed power line.
• Motion by Kaloski. second by Bonta all right what are we okay calm down a good first year I know what
• A few items that is going down. I want to share a couple of data points.
• Conversely, the cost of wireless has gone down 44%. That is the data.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Who wishes to testify, please make your way down so that we can recognize you, and welcome.
• religious or freedom of expression in which any limitation of association, access has been handed down
• ... expressing their opinion on something, and what we were told was that the state there had come down
• from the top down?
• I jumped up and down and squealed. I was so excited, and I. became their best customer.

Bills: HB256, HCR19, SB2101, SB2334, SB2633, SB2637, SB2713, SB2781, SB2782, SB3059, HB1130

Keywords: severe weather, adaptation plan, vulnerability assessment, environmental protection, state agencies, federal agents, transparency, law enforcement, identification, public trust, immigration enforcement, HCR 19, Texas concurrent resolution, federal immigration enforcement, masked agents, facial coverings, visible identification, uniforms, badges, name tags

Transcript Highlights:

• Go in and get a down helicopter, um, Uh, you know, just anything that came up, any emergency mission
• Oftentimes they don't get the help and ultimately wind up in a completely different category which is
• OK, we'll have to sit down and chat. Yeah. All right. That, that, that's all I have. Thank you.
• In the last year and a half, we've had two US Supreme Court cases down, come down from the federal bar
• At that point, he feels let down. Most of the time, they want continued assistance.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so I think it really boils down to how are we effective... ...that the state is bearing.
• And so I think it really boils down to how are we effectively utilizing our resources within the agency
• And line 68, you go down from a minimum of 40 hours to 20 hours of theoretical instruction. ...you go
• down from a minimum of 40 hours to 20 hours of theoretical instruction, and then line 86, it's up to
• Seeing down, Senator Collins, you recognize to close. Thank you, Chair.

Summary: The Health Policy Committee met with a quorum and took up a long agenda of health care, Medicaid, and patient-access measures, along with confirmation votes. The committee first reconsidered and amended SB 1606 on patient access to records, clarifying portal obligations, deleting a section affecting nursing home facility records, and setting a January 1, 2026 effective date; the bill then passed favorably as a committee substitute. The committee also recommended confirmation of a block of appointees and separately confirmed Chavon Harris as Secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration after Harris testified about priorities including financial accountability, managed care oversight, transparency, and quality improvement. Senators asked about audit findings and Medicaid managed care performance, and several witnesses and committee members voiced support for her appointment. The committee then advanced a series of bills, most of them with amendments, including claims bills SB 28 and SB 22 for South Broward Hospital District settlements, SB 772 on undesignated glucagon in schools, SB 998 on death certification by physician assistants and APRNs, SB 1412 on home health administration flexibility, SB 1800 creating a Parkinson’s disease research consortium at USF, SB 306 on managed care network access during holidays and after hours, SB 1768 on stem cell therapies by physicians, SB 1602 on pediatric readiness in emergency departments, SB 1156 on the home health aide program for medically fragile children, SB 1490 on Children’s Medical Services and managed care administration, and SB 1182 on Medicaid coverage of continuous glucose monitors. Most of these bills received support from industry, advocacy, or provider groups and were reported favorably as committee substitutes. The most debated measure was SB 1270, a broad strike-all amendment combining provisions on mRNA vaccine documentation, vaccination-status protections in the Patient Bill of Rights, medical marijuana reporting and background-screening definitions, compact language, and volunteer immunity. The committee heard extensive testimony both for and against the vaccine-related provisions, including concerns about discrimination, patient safety, provider discretion, and medical liability. After additional technical amendments and a time-certain motion, the bill passed favorably as a committee substitute, with Senators Davis and Osgood voting no and Senator Harrell expressing a weak yes. At the end of the meeting, senators recorded their votes on selected tabs, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• bills would enhance punishments for the murders of our children and continuing our efforts to crack down
• Maria was 11 years old and her uncle and aunt lived just two doors down. but they couldn't save her or
• Gonzalez and Jocelyn Nungaray's case face a capital murder because they were able to prove months down
• It just slows it down so it's like a dollar, a penny. Right, a penny a gallon.
• And so in Kaylee's case, we actually did wind up reducing the case down as a result. of how difficult

Bills: SB251, SB608, SB487, SB535, SB761, SB955, SB957, SB958, SB988, SB990, SB1019, SB1021, SB1120

Keywords: criminal law, magistrates, Bell County, judicial authority, legal framework, evidence collection, sexual assault kits, reporting, law enforcement, transparency, confidentiality, victim protection, stalking, indecent assault, invasive visual recording, criminal justice, privacy rights, SB 535, Texas criminal procedure, rape shield

Transcript Highlights:

• . down. down.
• and seeing what's going on down here. and seeing what's going on down here.
• you, Dane, for bringing them down here. you, Dane, for bringing them down here.
• down here and travel, we get paid. down here and travel, we get paid.
• . down. down.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We kept writing, we kept publishing, we kept coming down here to testify.
• We kept writing, we kept publishing, we kept coming down here to testify.
• We kept writing, we kept publishing, we kept coming down here to testify.
• I'm picking up what you're putting down.
• We've been not to assault or kick a city that it's down.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Look down on the poor in spirit, God. Look down on those who are in need of you.
• So if you have a guest that comes in, just wave me down. All right.
• We have prices that have, where inflation was down and now it's back up again.
• Senators Hoffman, Gobble down, and how do you vote?
• If this passes, it could slow down fee increases.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So are you guys going to be able to draw down federal dollars for this? Absolutely. Okay.
• Our fiscal office takes it down as factual.
• We revised down to 5 to 11.
• You asked a couple of questions, kind of, how do we break this down to make it simple, right?
• And I will tell you, we dropped it down.

Bills: HB12, HB145, HB222, HB291, HB430, HB821, HB874, HB909, HB951, HB979, HB1193

Keywords: survivor benefits, law enforcement, reserve officer, auxiliary officer, public safety, firefighters, medical expenses, dental expenses, disability benefits, Medicaid, dental coverage, healthcare access, medical necessity, Louisiana Department of Health, health insurance, provider agreements, contracting actions, participating facilities, network status, survivors benefits

Transcript Highlights:

• If you can go down to the second floor rotunda, they've got a lot of things set up down there on the
• second floor, so come down and see that.
• Been almost cut in half down to 75 days.
• If we vote this down, it disappears this year.
• Actually, you downs could sit.

Bills: HB1427, SB1403, SB1448, SB1489, SB1546, SB1557, SB1614, SB1377, SB1990, SB1439, SB1630, SB1632, SB1696, SB1796, SB1824, SB1362, SB1849, SB2066, SB2071, SB2104, SB933, SB1633, SB1224, SB1246, SB1280, SB1303, SB1346

Keywords: tax credit, clean-burning fuel, hydrogen fuel cells, compressed natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, environmental impact, vehicle modification, renewable energy, job incentives, tax rebates, Oklahoma Quality Jobs Program, employment growth, wage requirements, Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act, consumer protection, unfair trade practices, deceptive practices, exemptions, statutory exemptions, Corporation Commission

Transcript Highlights:

• I mean, we wind up just willy-nilly giving approval to state, to not have to manage a budget.
• And we have those discussions with agencies and our DFA counterpart all the time and can shut down bars
• And I think don't we have two appointments coming down with the SIC? So, so Mr.
• So we'll flag that down. Page 11. Mr.
• Again, if they can draw down additional federal funds, they can... ...of Family Representation.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So you've got to make sure that that is delineated down to the pole. Yes, sir. I think, Mr.
• Sorry for getting down here so late. That's okay; thank you for being responsive.
• Because we've got to chase this rabbit down. Mr.
• But certainly, I would never go down that path.
• It melts down easier and is more cost-effective. Thank you.

Bills: SB410, SB795, SB2510, SB728, SB2689, HB143, HB143

Keywords: Gulf Coast Protection District, navigation safety, special districts, state governance, Texas legislation, Gulf Coast, flood protection, storm risk management, coastal restoration, natural resources, prescribed burns, self-insurance, fire management, liability protection, rural land management, beverage container recycling, deposit return system, container deposit, bottle bill, recycling refund

Transcript Highlights:

• WHAT ARE WE DOING TO SIT DOWN AND THE MUNICIPALITIES WHO COME TO MEETINGS AND ASK US FOR FUNDING ALL
• WHAT ARE WE DOING TO SIT DOWN AND SAY WHY ARE YOU BEING SO UNREASONABLE.
• AND PROMOTES TREATMENT IN LOOKING AT WINDS 4782, FOR A COUNTY OR MUNICIPALITY AND I WILL THROW ONE OUT
• LET'S NOT DOLE DOWN OUR COMMUNITIES, LET'S LIFT THEM UP. >> I RESIDE IN SENATOR LET'S LIFT THEM UP. >
• FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO MAY BE FOLLOWING DEVELOPMENT FOR THE HOUSING MARKET, IT HAS SLOWED DOWN SOME.

Keywords: 999, senate, all