Transcript Highlights:

• So let's say you are a trans girl who is transitioning. You are taking estradiol.
• So the only liability here that is created is for the person who is transitioning.
• What we want to do is look at maybe a cap on the administrative fees at $8 to cover legitimate administrative
• As you heard before, one of the bigger costs are the administrative fees.
• It talks about administrative fees.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Refer to the Committee on Licensing Administrative Procedures.
• HB 1982 by Hopper relating to limitations on federal authority and federal agents in the state, including
• the license of federal. and special procedures for executing federal warrants, creating a criminal offense
• HB 2188 by Howard relating to the transition.
• State Capitol refer the Committee on House Administration.

Transcript Highlights:

• ease for Department of administrative ease for Department of Revenue<00:32:12.480> Administration
• on row 84 Hamstead hospital transition. on row 84 Hamstead hospital transition.
• c><01:09:48.400> uh<01:09:48.560> funded federal funds were pos uh funded federal funds
• <01:12:29.120> um<01:12:29.679> federal net change over the bianium. um federal net
• claims administration and settlement claims administration and settlement fund<01:21:12.000>

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Summary: The Legislative Budget Assistant staff presented an overview of the Senate changes to the House-passed budget, focusing on revenue estimates, appropriations, and ending balances across the general fund and education trust fund. The presentation emphasized that the Senate’s budget reflected higher revenue assumptions than the House, driven in part by updated April revenue figures, changes to business, tobacco, and real estate transfer tax splits, and different assumptions about video lottery terminal revenue. The Senate also adjusted lapse estimates upward, especially for HHS, after receiving updated information that lapses could be much larger than originally assumed. The presenter walked through the major differences in the surplus statements for fiscal years 2025 through 2027. Compared with the House, the Senate budget generally showed higher revenues, lower or different appropriations in some areas, and larger balances carried forward, including a larger education trust fund balance and a different rainy day fund transfer. The Senate’s approach also changed several policy assumptions, such as maintaining liquor revenue dedication, removing the House’s meals-and-rooms distribution cap, changing the treatment of unique revenue, and altering the process for meeting a targeted revenue amount by giving the governor more flexibility. On the appropriations side, the Senate removed or modified several House reductions and added funding or adjustments in areas including the judicial branch, corrections, HHS, the Human Rights Commission, and certain settlement costs. The presenter also highlighted Senate changes in House Bill 2 and related budget provisions, including a new arts tax credit, a nursing home bed fee, changes to Medicaid premium assumptions, and differences in how motor vehicle inspection repeal and BLT-related revenue are handled. No votes were taken in the portion shown; the discussion was informational and comparative, aimed at explaining the Senate budget changes before conference committee negotiations.

Transcript Highlights:

• in the first Trump administration, has now been undone by Treasury.
• This is exactly the mindset we need for a CMS administrator.
• It drives up the cost for the federal government. It is a big issue on that.
• Last week, the Trump administration put out a list of federal offices to close. including the only office
• The first Trump administration. put a fix on this. And then the Biden administration let it expire.

Keywords: Michael Falkender, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, IRS, taxpayer privacy, nomination process, committee hearing

Summary: The committee convened to discuss critical issues surrounding the nomination of Michael Falkender for the position of Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. This meeting included a series of remarks from committee members who expressed divergent views on Falkender's qualifications and the implications of his appointment. Senator Wyden voiced strong opposition, arguing that Falkender represents harmful policies expected to be perpetuated under the current administration, especially concerning taxpayer privacy and IRS tactics. Meanwhile, other members defended Falkender, noting his extensive experience, including a commitment to transparency in government operations if confirmed.

Transcript Highlights:

• The federal budget reconciliation could primarily affect student eligibility to receive federal reimbursement
• The agency is pushing hard to maximize federal funding.
• This is the first year in which the administrative rule becomes effective.
• We have no grants to start new initiatives from the state and federal level.
• Also, the sober living, the transitional housing.

Transcript Highlights:

• federal law already tightly regulates. federal law already tightly regulates.
• . administration. administration.
• progress of the energy transition. progress of the energy transition.
• transition is happening globally. transition is happening globally.
• > at administrator and and administrator at administrator and and administrator at the<03:15:18.800

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House first suspended the rules briefly to make announcements, including welcoming former representative Doug Gage to the gallery. It then returned to House Bill 211 on data brokers and personal information, where the Appropriations Committee explained a $50,000 appropriation to the Secretary of State for a consultant-led study on an accessible deletion mechanism for consumers to delete personal data held by data brokers, with interim and final reports due in 2027 and 2028. The committee reported a 9-0-2 vote in favor, and the House agreed to the Commerce and Economic Development Committee’s amendment and ordered third reading. Floor debate on H. 211 focused heavily on the bill’s deletion and exemption framework. Supporters argued the bill is needed to give Vermonters meaningful control over their data and to prevent data brokers from commingling information for unrelated uses. Opponents warned the bill could conflict with existing federal frameworks such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act, Gramm-Leach-Bliley, and the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act, and could make credit, banking, insurance, fraud prevention, and identity verification harder. In response, the sponsor said the bill uses use-case-based exemptions rather than broad entity-level exemptions, noted testimony from banks, insurers, a data broker, a former data broker employee, and the Attorney General, and said no constitutional concerns were raised. The House ultimately adopted the amendment and advanced the bill. After H. 211, the House moved to House Bill 577, establishing the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program. Committee reports from Health Care, Ways and Means, and Appropriations were read into the record, and the Colchester member described the bill as a way to lower prescription drug costs by joining the multi-state Array Rx program. The bill would let any Vermont resident obtain a free discount card for FDA-approved prescription drugs, with claimed savings up to 80% on generics and 20% on brand-name drugs. The House then proceeded to second reading on H. 577.

Transcript Highlights:

• So the McClendon court order is a federal oversight.
• We are currently working with our federal oversight to get that.
• Transition planning and the Resource Reentry Center was the solution we came to.
• We have a special team for them as well, which we call our transition planners.
• It's a smaller proportion that engages in transition planning, and an even smaller proportion.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's the federal definition of career and technical education, and that's the definition that we follow
• Work-based learning is also defined in federal law.
• CTE is different because federal law requires an emphasis on career advisement.
• The second one represents federal investments. The others are state investments.
• And while federal law for federal grants, we have the opportunity right here to prioritize high-quality

Transcript Highlights:

• We will be moving on to HB 1409, related to transit-oriented development.
• Next item is HB 1409, relating to transit-oriented development.
• <02:17:13.479> requirements to clarify that all federal requirements to clarify that all federal
• still apply in the case where Federal still apply in the case where Federal relocation<02:17:16.040
• broadly along the lines of Transit broadly along the lines of Transit supportive<02:18:28.479>

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Housing held a public hearing and moved quickly through a long agenda, beginning with HB 606 on the Department of Hawaiian Homelands. DHHL and several community testifiers strongly supported the bill, describing it as a way to fulfill long-standing promises to Native Hawaiians, reduce the DHHL waitlist, keep families in Hawaii, and support housing production and the broader economy. Testifiers emphasized the cultural and economic importance of stable housing and noted the large number of people still waiting for DHHL homes. The committee then heard HB 1086, also relating to DHHL, which would allow the department to use a $75 million appropriation from the dwelling unit revolving fund as collateral for loans. DHHL, HHFDC, and other supporters said the measure would help DHHL obtain better loan terms and preserve trust funds for other uses. Members asked detailed questions about how the collateral would work, whether other agencies use similar structures, and what would happen if the collateral were drawn upon; staff explained that the funds would be encumbered for the loan and that a similar model had been used for a HUD-backed project. The committee also heard HB 739, which would create the COM homes program to fund counties to buy voluntary deed restrictions from eligible homeowners or buyers. Supporters said the program could help keep local workers in Hawaii by using existing housing stock and cited examples from places like Aspen and Vail. The Attorney General’s office recommended amendments to remove duration requirements to avoid right-to-travel concerns, and the Tax Foundation suggested clarifying the conveyance tax exemption so it also covers the instrument imposing the restriction. Members asked whether tax dollars would be used to buy homes, who would be eligible, and how enforcement would work; supporters said the program is voluntary and income-blind, with restrictions tied to living and working in the state. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• enforcement technology to enforce parking violations and transit-only lanes and transit stops for seven
• information for all public transit stops in the state.
• The goal of this pilot program is to remove a front-end administrative barrier to improve access and
• The goal of this pilot program is to remove a front-end administrative barrier to improve access and
• In the absence of any federal guidance, this bill has done...

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• To my left is Andrea Vernon, who is providing administrative support.
• And in the back, we have Kendall Hamilton, also providing administrative support.
• So this situation, of course, catalyzed the passage of the Federal CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.
• So the curriculum is driven at the federal level.
• Obviously, the federal and state government needs to work together to be successful.

Summary: The Careers and Workforce Subcommittee met for its first meeting of the year, took roll, and heard member introductions centered on the importance of workforce pathways beyond the traditional four-year college route. Members repeatedly emphasized manufacturing, trades, rural workforce needs, apprenticeships, and helping students and adults find multiple paths to good jobs. The chair outlined the subcommittee’s focus on policies that build a skilled workforce and announced the day’s theme would be manufacturing, with presentations from the Florida Department of Commerce, the Florida Semiconductor Institute, and Fleet Force CDL training. Secretary Alex Kelly presented Florida’s manufacturing report, saying manufacturing is a major economic driver and that Florida has become the 10th largest state in manufacturing employment. He highlighted strong job multipliers, rapid growth in manufacturing GDP and establishments, the importance of logistics and ports, and the state’s small-business-heavy manufacturing base. He also stressed the aging manufacturing workforce, the need for modern skills such as robotics, cybersecurity, and data analytics, and the role of public-private partnerships, apprenticeships, and workforce education investments in supporting reshoring and industry growth. Dr. David Arnold described Florida’s semiconductor sector and the Florida Semiconductor Institute’s mission to grow research, workforce, and ecosystem development. He said semiconductors are strategically important, Florida ranks fifth nationally in semiconductor workforce, and the main bottleneck is mid-level technician talent rather than engineers or entry-level workers. He pointed to NeoCity, Valencia College, and other regional partnerships as models, and said the state needs more proactive planning, better instructor capacity, and stronger pathways from K-12 through postsecondary. Evan Agiloff of Fleet Force discussed Florida’s CDL shortage, saying trucking is essential to the supply chain, Florida has about 18,000 open CDL positions, and Fleet Force’s college-based model can quickly move students into middle-class jobs. Members asked about apprenticeships, CTE pathways, semiconductor training, infrastructure needs, and how to expand and better fund workforce programs; no votes were taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• to freeze administrations attempt to freeze federal<00:03:28.959> funds<00:03:29.439> and<
• When the Trump administration froze federal funds, that included Violence Against Women Act grants.
• We have a transitional housing program that is totally funded by federal dollars.
• We have a transitional housing program that is totally funded by federal dollars.
• We have a transitional housing program that is totally funded by federal dollars.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I know this is 100% federal. It's a renewal.
• I know this is 100% federal. It's a reason. Thank you. I know this is 100% federal. It's a renewal.
• Kay Barnhill, Department of Shared Administrative Services."
• "Courtney Trailer, Chief of Staff, Shared Administrative Services." "Mr.
• Wheeler, Chief of Staff, Shared Administrative Services.

Summary: The ALC-Review Subcommittee reviewed seven methods of finance, including university projects at ASU Jonesboro and Mountain Home, Black River Technical College deferred maintenance, UA Batesville’s Farm Project Gateway Center, UAMS PET cyclotron equipment, a new allied health building at UAPB funded by a federal grant, and UCA’s multi-purpose arena design work. The committee also approved an alternative delivery construction project for UAPB’s Allied Health and Sciences Building, with East Harding Construction selected and AMR Architects as designer. Members then approved discretionary grants from the Department of Health and DHS, including support for a heart attack center designation, community health worker training, homeless services funding corrections, behavioral health transition support, and an enabling technology pilot. In the contracts section, the committee reviewed RFQs, construction-related contracts, intergovernmental contracts, and a large slate of out-of-state and in-state contracts covering topics such as seatbelt survey data collection, Medicaid and DHS systems, state hospital staffing and services, veterans’ services, education assessments, and state IT and procurement projects. Several contracts drew extended questioning. Senators and representatives pressed DHS and the Department of Veterans Affairs about heavy reliance on contract nursing and staffing costs, and officials said they were using pay incentives and recruitment efforts to increase state employee staffing. Members also questioned AEDC’s lithium supply chain study and the Department of Education’s security contract, with concerns about projected costs and repeated amendments. The committee held three in-state contracts—Department of Education security services and two DHS staffing contracts—until Friday, then adopted the remaining contracts and received informational reports on contract amendments, executed contracts, and emergency procurements before adjourning.

Transcript Highlights:

• As far as the next question, we are tracking what is happening at the federal level for what the federal
• at the federal level for what<00:26:53.480> the<00:26:53.760> federal<00:26:54.240>
• at what's going to happen at the federal at what's going to happen at the federal level<00:27:10.640
• ing our ability to comply with a federal ing our ability to comply with a federal standard<00:37
• you know musk Trump Administration you know musk Trump Administration whatever<01:02:25.559>

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So ultimately, this bill is going to improve consistency, reducing administrative...
• We primarily serve rural health clinics, federally qualified health centers.
• Shouldn't the school administration have the empowerment to sort that out? They should.
• I am here to share how transitioning to a... I am the Child Nutrition Program Director.
• It will provide immediate relief to the financial burden associated with transitioning.

Bills: HB624, HB1022, HB1203, SB82, SB206, SB305, SB376, SB441

Keywords: school safety, emergency operations plan, crisis management, active shooter, drills, training, classroom security, primary health services, behavioral health, school health providers, medical necessity, student health care, education, school week, instructional time, public schools, performance score, student athletes, cardiovascular health, sudden cardiac arrest

Summary: The House Education Committee met on April 23, 2026, with a quorum present and took up several education-related bills. SB 206 by Chairman Miller would require blood pressure screening for student athletes as part of physical examinations, with amendments narrowing the bill to student athletes and removing BESE rulemaking language. Supporters, including Coach Marcus Scott and the American Heart Association, said the measure could help detect undiagnosed hypertension and prevent serious health events. Rep. Freiberg moved to report the bill as amended, and it passed without objection. The committee also heard SB 305 by Chairman Edmonds, which would require a publicly available statewide career-alignment dashboard showing how degree programs connect to workforce outcomes, including graduation, employment, wages, and job placement data. Edmonds, student task force member Cruz Cassard, and supporters from workforce and business groups said the dashboard would help students understand Louisiana job opportunities and reduce outmigration. Rep. Landry moved to report the bill favorably, and it passed without objection. HB 624 by Speaker Pro Tem Johnson would update public school emergency planning language from “crisis management plans” to “emergency operations plans” and align the law with current safety standards. School safety officials said it was a cleanup bill that would not create new mandates or costs. Rep. Carpenter moved to report it favorably, and it passed without objection. The committee then considered HB 1022 by Rep. Jackson, as substituted, concerning school-based health care services. Jackson said the bill was intended to clarify that medical decisions in school-based health centers should be made by licensed health professionals, not school staff, while preserving parental consent and not expanding services. School-based health center providers and health association representatives supported the bill, citing examples of improved access and continuity of care, but several members raised concerns about consent, the role of school staff, instructional time, and whether the bill could shift authority away from schools or create legal confusion. Jackson said he would work on amendments with stakeholders and legal staff. After discussion, Rep. Landry moved to report the substitute bill, and the committee approved it on a 10-4 roll call vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• State and federal grants.
• It's not a transition. Everybody likes to call it a transition into renewable energies.
• It was only recently eligible under federal funding.
• So it's 18 local, state, and federal grant programs.
• It was canceled by the current administration.

Transcript Highlights:

• Transition through the ETA, and this bill will slow the transition by hurting the economics of renewables
• The Energy Information Administration, rather.
• Transitions are the nature of energy development, and I welcome that.
• This fills an essential gap for the energy transition.
• on a path for energy transition and new technologies. technologies.

Transcript Highlights:

• But the things about what were the impacts from the federal administration come? That.
• But the things about what were the impacts from the federal administration come, what are the macro and
• We would have needed state dollars to be able to draw down federal dollars.
• work with the administration to get feedback.
• With federal cuts, 48 million acres of federal land have been shifted toward state jurisdiction, and

Summary: The meeting began with a lengthy opening discussion with Secretary Karen Ross of the Department of Food and Agriculture, who reviewed the department’s proposed budget, emphasized California agriculture’s record output, and highlighted major priorities including climate-smart agriculture, groundwater management, local food systems, farm-to-school, food hubs, invasive pest prevention, bird flu response, and food safety. She also warned about federal budget cuts, especially at USDA and FDA, and discussed market access challenges abroad, rising input costs, labor shortages, and the need for automation and workforce training. Members raised questions about the future of Farm to School, the California Nutrition Incentive Program/Market Match, local food procurement, and how to better connect farmers to schools, food banks, and food hubs; Ross said the department had strong evidence the program benefits small farms and Title I schools and noted continued interest in building out local food infrastructure. The committee then took up item one on eliminating vacant positions at the Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Parks and Recreation, and Food and Agriculture. The Legislative Analyst’s Office explained that the Governor proposed eliminating 6,000 vacant positions statewide, with the Joint Legislative Budget Committee previously rejecting 650 of them, including 174 in these three departments. LAO and Finance said the vacancies represented a source of budget flexibility, but warned that eliminating them could create program impacts; LAO recommended retaining the special-funded positions at Fish and Wildlife and Food and Agriculture, while weighing the General Fund positions against other priorities. Finance argued the reductions were part of a broader budget-resiliency exercise and that departments could reclassify or shift vacancies to higher priorities. Members focused heavily on the practical impacts of the cuts. Assemblymember Petrie-Norris argued that Fish and Wildlife staffing shortages were already slowing permits needed for housing, clean energy, water, and transportation projects, and questioned the value of saving relatively small amounts of money. Fish and Wildlife officials said the department had prioritized mission-critical work and could still meet permitting obligations, but acknowledged limited-term staffing constraints. State Parks said the proposed ranger and maintenance cuts would not have immediate effects but could slow maintenance and eventually worsen deferred maintenance. Food and Agriculture said some of the eliminated positions supported early pest detection and eradication, but that the department believed it could still meet its mandate and reclassify positions if needed. The chair and several members signaled concern about the Fish and Wildlife and Parks cuts, while also noting the broader need for budget reductions. The committee then moved to item six, hearing an overview from the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation. Staff described the office’s role in CEQA implementation and said the budget requests were baseline funding to maintain existing functions, including IT services and administrative/legislative support, rather than new programs. The chair asked the presenters to move quickly through background material so the committee could get to questions, and the item began with no votes taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• What does coverage under federal law. What does that<00:04:46.960> mean?
• So, did that start in your administration? >> Uh, yes, sir.
• <00:25:56.720> So office transitioned to my office. So office transitioned to my office.
• So these aren't federal. Uh, so do some similar work like that.
• So we distinguished her administration.

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Attendance Roll Call 00:00:30 Personnel Cabinet 00:03:25 Department of Veterans Affairs 00:12:40 Auditor of Public Accounts 00:22:39 State Treasurer 00:42:24, 958, all

Summary: The committee first heard from Personnel Cabinet officials on House Bill 6, which required the Kentucky Employees Health Plan to offer a qualified high-deductible health plan by the 2026 plan year. Officials said the plan was already added for 2025, described it as the lowest-premium option with higher deductibles, and explained that federal rules prevent first-dollar coverage except for limited preventive services. They said 264 members had selected the plan out of about 142,000, and noted it also allows health savings accounts. Members asked about the plan’s benefits, what “catastrophic” meant, the deductible amounts, and whether employees were aware of the option; the cabinet said it would continue to highlight the plan in communications and that the deductible is above $8,000 for individuals and above $16,000 for families. The committee then received an update from the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs on the Bowling Green veterans center. Officials said the current target is to move into the building on October 28, with first admissions about two months later, pending final fixes and certification steps for Medicare, Medicaid, and the VA. They explained that about $7 million in FY25 appropriations lapsed because of construction delays, staffing ramp-up was postponed to avoid unnecessary spending, and the unspent funds should be considered in the next budget request. Members praised the project and asked about annual operating costs; officials said the current operating budget is about $15 million, though they do not expect to spend all of it this year. The commissioner also announced the fifth annual state commanders conference in Lexington, focused on veterans issues and featuring state, federal, and advocacy leaders. State Auditor Allison Ball then outlined her office’s budget priorities. She said the office is primarily a billing agency that charges audited entities for its work, and warned that some agencies are now signaling they may refuse to pay for audits related to kinship care and the medical cannabis application process. She said the office plans to continue requesting outlier credits for unusually burdensome county audit fees, funding for the ombudsman office’s transition and expanded in-office operations, and revenue replacement for local government audits and possibly state audits and special examinations. Ball also said the office conducts about 500 audits, reviews, and examinations a year and wants to restore performance audits with seed funding, as well as add investigators to the ombudsman office to focus more on child abuse and neglect cases. Members discussed the value of performance audits, the possibility of raising certain board thresholds to account for inflation, and the need for additional capacity to handle more audits.

Transcript Highlights:

• Nick is not just a federal bureaucrat.
• So my question was this: there's some federal programs that have federal guidelines that we go by, and
• It's more at the federal level.
• There's some federal programs that have federal guidelines that we go by, and I understand that you're
• It's more at the federal level.

Summary: The committee heard testimony from Nick Moore, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Office of Career and Technical Education, on efforts to better align workforce, education, and human services programs. Moore argued that WIOA, Perkins, and ESSA were designed to function as an integrated talent system, but that federal and state bureaucracy has kept them siloed. He said the Department of Labor and OCTAE are working on more integrated state plan guidance, including a 2026 plan modification timeline, combined Perkins/WIOA plans, and greater use of labor market information to align training with in-demand jobs and Workforce Pell. Moore emphasized reducing overhead, cross-training staff, using common intake and integrated case management, and focusing on the “shadow labor force” of people facing benefit cliffs, child care barriers, or other obstacles to work. He repeatedly urged states to use waivers and flexibility where possible, to consolidate or streamline local workforce structures, and to hold programs accountable through measures such as labor force participation, training-related employment, retention, and cost per successful outcome. Members asked about the balance between flexibility and accountability, the role of employers versus postsecondary institutions, rural “training deserts,” state waivers, and data systems such as Mississippi Spark and Arkansas Launch. Moore said states should use technology and integrated intake to co-enroll eligible participants in multiple programs and better match people to jobs. In response to questions, Moore said some federal rules cannot be waived, but many reporting and administrative requirements can be streamlined, and he encouraged Arkansas to propose ideas for waivers or state-level integration. He also discussed the need for enhanced wage records and state longitudinal data systems to improve workforce planning and economic development. After Moore’s presentation, DHS Secretary Janet Mann and Director Jay Hill gave a brief update on reimbursement rates, saying the department had compiled more than 100 public comments, recommended holding the current rate, and was awaiting executive review; they estimated the process could take 30 to 60 days. The committee then adjourned, noting a later audit presentation scheduled for the afternoon.