Transcript Highlights:

• It supports local and regional clean energy and economic resilience.
• Well, that claim doesn't hold up.
• Illinois is advancing policy requiring data centers bring their own new clean capacity.
• Please also restore the language requiring data centers to use 100% clean energy.
• Please also restore the language requiring data centers to use 100% clean energy by 2035.

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 2515, which addresses emerging large energy use facilities, especially data centers. Staff explained that the bill requires utilities to adopt tariffs or policies for data centers, adds reporting and sustainability requirements, sets renewable energy targets, and creates a sales tax exemption for certain eligible data center equipment in eastern Washington. The House sponsor said the bill is intended to protect ratepayers, grid reliability, water resources, and Washington’s climate goals as data center growth accelerates. Tribal representatives and several environmental and labor witnesses urged restoring provisions removed from the House version, especially authority to curtail data center load during energy emergencies and to refuse service if reliability or affordability would be harmed; they also asked for stronger water reporting and protections for salmon. Utility, business, and data center industry witnesses supported the bill’s general framework but raised concerns about implementation, costs, and some of the added requirements, while some opposed the tax exemption and the loss of earlier protections. No final action on 2515 was taken during the hearing portion shown. The committee then heard and acted on several bills in executive session. It passed Substitute House Bill 1302, which allows municipal utilities to waive connection charges for industrial symbiosis projects. It also passed House Bill 2338 on community-scaled weatherization projects after rejecting an amendment, and House Bill 2367 on eliminating preferential treatment for a coal-fired plant after rejecting an amendment. Substitute House Bill 2496 on tribal consultation by the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council was amended and then passed, while amendments to change public meeting and tribal summary provisions were rejected. Engrossed Substitute House Bill 2225 on AI companion chatbots, House Bill 2426 on PCHB efficiency and appeals, House Bill 2606 on the Office of Privacy and Data Protection, Engrossed House Bill 2575 on reducing reporting obligations, and Engrossed Second Substitute House Bill 2215 on Climate Commitment Act compliance for fuels were also advanced, with some amendments adopted and others rejected. The committee then reopened public hearing on House Bill 2416, which would treat a Spokane waste-to-energy facility differently under the Climate Commitment Act by allocating no-cost allowances in the second compliance period and requiring a decarbonization and waste-reduction plan. Spokane city officials, labor, environmental groups, and Ecology generally supported the bill as a balanced approach that protects ratepayers while allowing the facility to decarbonize, though Avista raised a concern about language implying a utility compliance obligation. After that, the committee resumed testimony on House Bill 1170, which requires large AI providers to offer provenance tools and disclosures for AI-generated or altered images, video, and audio. Supporters said the bill would help workers and consumers identify synthetic media and prevent impersonation and misinformation, while industry and civil liberties witnesses argued the bill is technically difficult, uses new definitions, and may be unworkable or premature compared with California’s evolving approach.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate Bill 26 is an uncontested claim bill on behalf of Kristen and Leah McIntosh.
• Our beaches in many of our areas are... ...making sure that our beaches are clean.
• environmental... ...going as a state with providing clean environmental policies and allowing local
• I've handled a claims bill for somebody who was wrongfully convicted for over 30 years.
• I've handled a claims bill for somebody who was wrongfully convicted for over 30 years.

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum, opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and heard several member introductions before taking up the special order calendar. The chamber first postponed CS/SB 80 on state land management, then moved through a series of bills, often substituting House companions when identical or nearly identical. Early actions included unanimous passage of HB 295 on a comprehensive waste reduction and recycling plan, which directs DEP to develop a recycling and waste-diversion roadmap, and passage of CS/CS/SB 492 on land development and mitigation banking after amendments addressing out-of-service credits and former phosphate mine lands; that bill passed 35-3 after debate over possible constitutional concerns. The Senate also passed HB 255 on aggravated animal cruelty, adding a sentencing multiplier and a searchable FDLE database of convicted animal abusers, and HB 711 establishing the Spectrum Alert for missing children with autism, with $190,000 in nonrecurring implementation funds and a July 1, 2026 implementation date. The chamber then approved HB 1089 to add Duchenne muscular dystrophy to newborn screening, and HB 393 revising the My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program to expand eligible mitigation projects, lower the approval threshold, and clarify ownership and reimbursement issues. Members discussed funding levels and whether insurance premium credits would be required, but the bill passed unanimously. The Senate also passed HB 1145 on workforce education, HB 827 on a statewide study of automation and workforce impact, and HB 181 on parole guidelines, all without recorded opposition. CS/CS/SB 976 on court-appointed psychologists also passed unanimously, as did HB 1451 on sexual cyber harassment, which broadened protections against non-consensual and digitally forged intimate images. Later, the Senate approved HB 1156 creating the Home Health Aid for Medically Fragile Children Program, after clarifying training requirements and hearing support that the measure would help families keep medically fragile children at home while compensating trained parents. The chamber also passed HB 1091 on substance abuse and mental health care, with an amendment allowing designated facilities to retain stabilized patients who still meet involuntary examination criteria. Throughout the day, senators used questions and debate to probe charter school governance in CS/CS/SB 822, which was substituted with HB 443 and amended to expand charter autonomy over conduct codes, enrollment, reporting, and facility use while maintaining sponsor oversight; that bill was placed on the calendar for third reading rather than voted on in the excerpt. Several other measures, including SB 716, SB 76, and the final SB 1252 item, were postponed or not reached before the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• These increases are, for the most part, being driven by increases in weeks compensated, claim duration
• The analysis determined that the frequency and type of cleaning could be adjusted, which resulted in
• a reduction of the total number of staff needed to complete the cleaning.
• So for the $40 million for the Clean California Litter Abatement Program, we don't find that it meets
• Okay, so the Clean California program, which I did hear your comments.

Summary: The Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 5 held an informational hearing on the Governor’s May Revision proposals for labor, public safety/judiciary, and transportation, and no votes were taken. In Part A on labor, the Employment Development Department described funding for EDD Next document management work, updated UI loan interest costs, disability insurance and paid family leave benefit increases, WIOA adjustments, UI and school employee benefit changes, an EMT training reappropriation, and a technical correction tied to an EDD Next reversion. PERB discussed reduced funding requests for AB 288 due to litigation and a proposal to implement AB 1 covering legislative employees. DIR presented proposals for legal unit reclassifications, two major IT modernization projects, a new Cal/OSHA emerging technologies unit, a COIA reappropriation, and trailer bill language requiring electronic payment of employer assessments and removing a salary cap for the DWC administrative director. CalHR proposed consolidating employee assistance services into a statewide contract with enhanced support for first responders, and CalPERS and CalSTRS presented budget adjustments tied to investment costs, state contributions, and benefit overpayments. Members focused heavily on the unemployment insurance debt and interest payments, asking why the administration had no concrete plan to pay down principal. Finance and LAO explained that the state’s UI tax structure has long been insufficient and that any long-term solution would need to address both the outstanding federal loan and the structural imbalance in employer taxes. Questions also centered on EDD Next costs and timelines, with the chair asking for clearer long-term project cost estimates and Finance noting that future maintenance and operations costs will continue after implementation. On DIR’s emerging technologies unit, members asked whether it would address AI-driven workplace harms; DIR said the unit would focus on physical workplace safety issues involving AI, robotics, autonomous equipment, and related guardrails, while LAO noted broader labor-practice questions would likely fall outside Cal/OSHA’s scope. In the CalPERS discussion, members raised concerns about transparency in private equity and external management fees, while CalPERS said higher fees reflect a strategy of greater private-market and active-management exposure and are offset by higher net returns. Members urged more information on specific investments and future reporting. For CalSTRS, Finance presented routine contribution and overpayment adjustments, but members also raised broader transparency concerns that CalSTRS staff said they would follow up on separately. Public comment in Part A was dominated by strong support for an immigrant worker emergency relief fund, along with support for apprenticeship and workforce proposals and PERB staffing. The chair and members said they would follow up on where the immigrant relief proposal should be considered, noting it may belong in another policy area. The hearing then moved into Part B with an overview of Judicial Branch-related May Revision items, including court interpreter funding, appellate court security, workload cap changes, lactation room implementation delays, and a reduction to the state court facility construction backfill.

Transcript Highlights:

• Why is your agency claiming 2.5% of this grant money? Mr.
• two and a why is your agency claiming two and a half%<00:37:48.160><c> of</c><00:37:48.359><c> this<
• The other thing is, it's going to be an environmental disaster to clean up these windmills and these
• We have the technology to provide clean base-load electricity, and we're thumbing our nose at it and
• </c> have the technology to provide clean have the technology to provide clean base<00:48:52.359><c>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• a pest, and by reorganizing it and adding this specific type of rat that we now have in Idaho, it cleans
• I certainly do not have a full scope of the history and the extent to which some of the claims in here
• So that would clean up that language. And 36 states already report statewide.

Summary: The committee first considered RS 33512, a bill to update Idaho’s pest-control code by specifically including rats as pests county commissioners may address, correcting language that had inadvertently included mammals, and restoring the term jackrabbits. Members offered several amendments and substitute motions, including proposals to add wolves or remove specific animal references, but the committee ultimately adopted an amended substitute that removed the word “coyote” from the language and then voted to introduce the RS. The committee then heard HCR 27, a resolution honoring Idahoans connected to the Wake Island attack during World War II, including Morrison-Knudsen workers who were taken prisoner or killed. The sponsor asked for a due-pass recommendation, and the committee agreed and sent the resolution to the floor. Next, HCR 29 was presented to recognize the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as terrorist organizations for purposes of future state policy; after discussion in which some members expressed concern about the scope and basis of the claims, the committee nevertheless voted to send the resolution to the floor with a due-pass recommendation. Finally, the committee considered HB 575, which would require civil asset forfeiture reporting to be centralized and published by the State Controller’s Office, with annual reporting by law enforcement agencies. The sponsor said the change would improve transparency and could be absorbed without new costs, and noted a forthcoming amendment to remove the word “civil” so the reporting would cover asset forfeitures more broadly. With no public testimony, the committee voted to send HB 575 to general orders.

Transcript Highlights:

• are doing to help these children and their parents, that these facilities are safe, that they are clean
• , are they going to put... ...that these facilities are safe, that they are clean, are they going to
• determinations for properties with multiple ownership interests, providing protest procedures and procedures to claim

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Chair: since the fiscal section was dropped, is this now 781 clean or 781 FN with no fiscal note?
• that between 1 and 67 complaints claim that between 1 and 67 complaints that<03:59:52.000><c> were</
• </c> of so that would say any person claiming of so that would say any person claiming so<04:05:43.159
• to be AG neighbor's Uncle claiming to be AG grieved<04:05:47.279><c> by</c><04:05:47.439><c> an</c><
• It says any person claiming to be grieved by a violation of this section may initiate a civil action

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 763, an early bill concerning AED access at athletic events and venues. Representative Morris offered amendment 0743H to clarify the bill by removing charter schools from the language and tying AED placement to American Heart Association guidance, emphasizing that AEDs should be readily accessible within a reasonable walking distance rather than mandated on every field. The amendment and then the bill as amended both passed 17-0, and the bill was reported out as Ought to Pass with Amendment. The committee then considered House Bill 781, requiring school districts to adopt cell phone-free education policies, and a related bill, House Bill 131. HB 781 was amended to include charter public school boards, cover other personal electronic communication devices, require at minimum restrictions on student personal cell phones during class instruction, allow superintendent-approved exceptions for medical or language needs, protect students with medical needs or disabilities under Section 504, and set an effective date of July 1, 2025. Some members argued the amendment was too prescriptive and limited local control, while supporters said it still left districts flexibility outside classroom instruction. The amendment passed 16-1, and the bill then passed Ought to Pass as Amended 16-1. HB 131, described as a mirror bill, was then retained by a 17-0 vote. House Bill 398, a title bill requiring Holocaust and genocide studies to include impacts on people with disabilities, was moved to ITL after Representative Selig reported the genocide commission believed the topic was already being covered. That motion passed 17-0. The committee also agreed to hold several bills for later consideration, including HB 754, HB 1221, HB 360, and HB 699, citing the need for more review or missing copies. Finally, the committee took up House Bill 361, prohibiting mandatory mask policies in schools. Supporters argued the bill would preserve individual choice while preventing statewide or districtwide mandates in future public health emergencies, and cited a Department of Health and Human Services letter saying masks remain effective but decisions should be based on individual choice and risk assessment. Opponents emphasized local control and the need for districts to respond to different public health conditions. The transcript cuts off before the final vote on HB 361 was completed.

Transcript Highlights:

• their first ever State team claimed their first ever State title<00:44:25.200><c> at</c><00:44:25.359
• </c><04:17:17.080><c> that</c> across the aisle are making claims that across the aisle are making claims
• We are so proud to claim that Sojourner Truth made her home in Michigan for the last 27 years of her
• Her unwavering commitment helped pave the way for Michigan women to claim their rightful place in the
• </c> pay the way for Michigan women to claim pay the way for Michigan women to claim their<05:28:41.680

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We know claims remained unresolved.
• It it<01:12:37.280><c> simply</c><01:12:37.760><c> cleans</c><01:12:38.239><c> up</c><01:12:38.560><c
• and it simply cleans up some duplicative and conflicting<01:12:41.120><c> language</c><01:12:42.080>
• We don't know how many claims that we'll have to pay and how much.
• claims of the victims who were abused at claims of the victims who were abused at the<01:17:59.679><c

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That's something I would suggest that we cleaned up before you come back to the committee.
• That we cleaned up before you come back to the committee.
• And if it was a clean bill for taxis or passenger transport, And if it was a clean bill for taxis or
• The definition included examples relating to Israel, claiming the existence of a state of Israel as a
• The definition included examples relating to Israel, claiming the existence of a state of Israel as a

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I think we see really, for some carriers, appalling prior authorization and claims denial rates. but
• I think we see really, for some carriers, appalling prior authorization and claims denial rates.
• you know, for whatever reason, has needed to raise premiums to be able to continue to pay future claims
• front, they do been sitting on claim front, they do make<01:16:57.120><c> attempts</c><01:16:57.600>
• You better come in and clean this box out, or it's going to eventually escheat to the state.

Bills: HF1546, HF2403, HF2389, HF2398

Keywords: fire safety, public safety, statewide fire code, code cleanup, repeal, obsolete statutes, matches, strike-anywhere matches, safety matches, match packaging, match storage, tent safety, flame resistant tents, public assembly tents, flammable materials, fire code modernization, Minnesota Statutes chapter 325F, commerce policy, financial institutions, insurance regulation

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:54:54.079><c> The</c> hasn't created the chaos they claim.
• The hasn't created the chaos they claim.
• Um, we had to replace the doors, clean up the house.
• </c> Um, we had to replace the doors, clean Um, we had to replace the doors, clean up<01:10:31.280><c
• </c><03:10:49.279><c> only</c> them in the US Constitution claimed only them in the US Constitution claimed

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And importantly, this bill does not excuse improper claims or expand liability for health plans.
• These were 61 pregnancy claims dating from January 2023 to January 2025.
• Upon this discovery, our biller immediately fixed the claims and sent them back.
• My biller has then spent over 100 hours fighting each of these claims.
• Currently, we have 31 outstanding claims. I want to be very clear here.

Summary: The Senate Health Committee heard several bills focused on health care access, research funding, consumer protection, and insurance administration. SB 895 by Sen. Wiener would create the California Foundation for Science and Health Research and place a bond measure on the November 2026 ballot to support scientific and health research in California; supporters from UC, labor, and patient groups said it would protect jobs, public health, and the state’s research leadership amid federal funding cuts, while the committee later voted 6-0 to pass it as amended and re-refer it to Natural Resources and Water. SB 944 would make acupuncture a permanent Medi-Cal benefit regardless of federal matching funds; acupuncture providers, patients, health systems, and API community advocates testified in strong support, and the committee voted 6-0 to pass it as amended and re-refer it to Appropriations. The committee also considered SB 987, which would create a California Health Access Fund to capture state savings if federal Medicaid changes under H.R. 1 reduce Medi-Cal enrollment and redirect those funds to care for people who lose coverage and to reimburse safety-net providers. Support came from disability, consumer, family physician, emergency physician, hospital, and reproductive health groups; members discussed prioritizing indigent care, prevention, and safety-net needs, and the bill was moved on a unanimous vote to Appropriations. SB 964 would let a licensed provider adjust the dose or frequency of an already covered medication up to two times without prior authorization when clinically appropriate, with Crohn’s and Colitis advocates describing delays that harmed patients and insurers warning about safety and cost concerns; after committee discussion about off-label use and clinical safeguards, the bill passed 11-0 and was sent to Appropriations. Later, SB 1099 clarified local governments’ authority to provide state or local public benefits to all residents under PRWORA, with city and county counsel and local officials saying it would preserve flexibility for homeless outreach, street medicine, crisis lines, and other low-barrier services; it passed 11-0 and was re-referred to Human Services. SB 1033 would require protein product manufacturers to test for heavy metals and disclose results, prompted by Consumer Reports findings and supported by consumer, health, and women’s health groups; industry witnesses asked for narrower scope and source-level testing, and the committee voted 11-0 to pass it as amended and send it to Environmental Quality. The committee then began SB 1049, which would give providers a 90-day window after a plan’s latest action to correct certain claim errors and prevent denials based solely on missed filing deadlines; the author said it would address honest billing mistakes and recoupments, and the bill was introduced with support from medical groups and ongoing discussions with health plans.

Transcript Highlights:

• So you see a current activity projected at another $75.3 million for claims in the current year.
• And that was to make sure that we're covering claims up to the 90th percentile.
• We're still covering 90% of the projected claims at that point. It's just fund balance changes.
• So we have an administrative fee for them actually processing claims and handling the plan.
• And then the other portion of that is the actual claims cost.

Summary: The committee met as JFAC for a statewide budget overview and related process presentations. Keith Bybee of LSO walked members through the general fund outlook, emphasizing that projected revenues for FY 2026 and FY 2027 are below current budgeted spending, creating a structural imbalance that will require either budget reductions or use of one-time cash and reserve balances. He highlighted major statutory cost drivers over the last several years, including public defense, IT services, Medicaid expansion, public schools, and water resources, and reviewed cash reconciliation items, transfers, supplementals, rescissions, and the governor’s proposed use of various fund balances and interest earnings to help balance the budget. Members asked about the deficit, corrections costs, tax conformity timing, fire suppression deficiency funds, and whether stabilization funds should be used; Bybee stressed that the Legislature has options but must decide whether to rely on short-term money or make longer-term structural changes. Janet Jessup then explained the budget hearing process and the Legislative Budget Book, including historical summaries, fund analyses, organizational charts, five-year snapshots, performance measures, and enhancement/outcome reporting. Morgan Poloni followed with an overview of deficiency warrants and supplemental appropriations, explaining that deficiency warrants cover certain authorized expenses after they occur and are typically used for items like fire suppression or pest control, while supplementals adjust the current year appropriation and can apply to general, dedicated, or federal funds. She noted that deficiency warrant requests have grown in recent years, largely due to pest control, and that supplemental and rescission bills may require emergency clauses to take effect immediately. Francis Lippett presented on state health insurance costs, saying FY 2024 spending on health and dental insurance was $646.2 million and that costs are rising faster than in prior years. She explained how the state uses employee premiums, a sweep account, and reserve balances to stabilize the plan, and said the FY 2027 appropriation is expected to rise about 14 percent, with employee premiums projected to increase 7.3 percent to maintain the current 80/20 cost split. Members asked about why premiums are charged for benefit-eligible employees who decline coverage, how reserve targets are set, how school district employees fit into the state plan, and how the state selects its insurance carrier; the Division of Insurance administrator said the plan is administered by Regence under a multi-year contract and that the state will rebid the plan within the contract term.

Transcript Highlights:

• Chair, I bring you Senate File 3434, the claims bill.
• Yesterday the claims joint committee met and reviewed the list of claims, and so after that committee
• And I don't know what level of detail you would like me to go into on the claims themselves.
• </c><00:03:31.239><c> Um,</c> the joint subcommittee on claims.
• Um, the joint subcommittee on claims. Um, yes,<00:03:32.560><c> Mr.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Meanwhile, clean hydrogen made from renewable energy sources is a clean and safe fuel source that can
• Clean hydrogen can be used to transition existing power infrastructure into clean energy infrastructure
• Meanwhile, clean hydrogen made for renewable energy sources is a clean and safe fuel source that can
• help us meet our clean energy targets.
• Clean hydrogen can be used to transition as existing power infrastructure into clean energy infrastructure

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• To clean energy, this workforce will be critical.
• Any. to clean energy, this workforce will be critical.
• We need clean, affordable energy, not dirty, expensive gas.
• Clean energy and affordable. correlating drop in prices.
• You are clean up here. Happy to be cleaning up. And I hope that's what we can do as a state.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on a wide range of late-file energy bills, with much of the discussion focused on battery storage siting, gas system expansion, propane consumer protections, gas workforce safety, and a Taunton home-rule petition on water rates for manufactured housing communities. Representative Sweeney urged support for H. 4689 and H. 4690, which would impose a moratorium and setback requirements for lithium battery storage facilities, citing fire risk, proximity to homes, and environmental concerns. Several local officials and residents from Oakham, Tewksbury, and other communities described proposed battery projects near homes, schools, wetlands, and conservation land, while industry and clean-energy advocates argued the bills would effectively block storage development and conflict with state energy goals and existing fire-safety standards. The committee also heard strong support for S. 2290/H. 3547, a bill to prevent gas expansion near environmental justice communities, from environmental justice advocates, municipal officials, and clean-energy groups. Testimony emphasized rising gas bills, the cost of new pipelines, methane and health impacts, and the need to avoid locking in long-term gas infrastructure costs. Witnesses also discussed related bills on gas workforce safety, gas shut-off valves, and gas meter replacement plans, with labor representatives supporting safety-focused measures and opposing changes they said would weaken inspections, while consumer and environmental advocates argued that some utility replacement practices are unnecessarily expensive and should be reined in to reduce ratepayer costs. Other testimony included support for H. 3518 on propane gas ratepayer protections, with the witness arguing for clearer contract terms and website price disclosure, and support for S. 2652, which would authorize Taunton to create a separate water billing rate for manufactured housing communities because residents there are effectively paying higher water costs through rent due to a single master meter. No committee votes or final actions were taken during the hearing, and members mostly asked brief clarifying questions or made no comment after testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• We claim to be a pro-business state. We claim to be pro-freedom. We claim to be pro-veteran.
• We claim to be pro-people.
• We claim that we’re conservatives. We claim all of these things.
• I just want to clean up a couple of things while I'm up here.
• a violation under this section to explain the basis of the claim.

Keywords: 977, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The governor's office made many claims that there was a race-neutral nature of their map.
• Did they make any of these claims under oath?
• Were they required to make their own... ...make any of these claims under oath?
• That claim... But this is the Florida Senate.
• That's why I think the bogus claim that these maps are race neutral is absolute nonsense.

Summary: The Senate convened in special session and took up Senate Bill 8D, later substituting identical House Bill 1D, to establish Florida’s congressional districts. The opening prayer and Pledge of Allegiance were followed by procedural remarks, then extensive floor discussion focused almost entirely on the redistricting proposal, its timing, and its legal basis. Senator Gaetz, explaining the bill, said the Governor had transmitted the map two days earlier, argued that mid-decade congressional redistricting is not prohibited by law, and said the Governor’s stated reasons were to address population growth and to draw race-neutral districts. He also said the legislature could accept, reject, or amend the proposal. Much of the debate centered on the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Louisiana decision and whether it affected Florida’s Fair Districts Amendment and the Voting Rights Act. Senators Smith, Rouson, Sharief, Polsky, Arrington, Bracey Davis, Bernard, Nathan, and others questioned the short notice, lack of public hearings, the use of partisan data, the absence of sworn testimony, and whether the map diluted minority voting strength or fragmented communities of interest. Gaetz repeatedly said he was not offering legal opinions, that the Governor’s counsel believed the Fair Districts race-based provisions were inconsistent with federal law, and that any legal challenge would be for the courts. He also said the Governor’s mapmaker reported using census and demographic data, along with political data as one of many inputs, and claimed the map’s compactness was comparable to the current map. A motion by Senator Smith to temporarily postpone consideration of the bill failed on a 12-23 vote. After the Senate returned from a 30-minute break to review the new Supreme Court decision, debate continued. The chamber then substituted HB 1D for SB 8D, read the House bill, and advanced it to third reading. The transcript ends during debate on final passage, with Senators Rouson and Bernard speaking in opposition and arguing the map was procedurally rushed, legally vulnerable, and politically motivated.

Transcript Highlights:

• The governor's office made many claims that there was a race-neutral nature to their map.
• Did they make any of these claims under oath? Were they required to make their own?
• Make any of these claims under oath?
• It was clean, compact, and uncontroversial.
• That claim... But this is the Florida Senate.

Keywords: 998, house, all