Transcript Highlights:

• These include fuel suppliers.
• For fossil fuel suppliers, that threshold in statute is currently set at 25,000 metric tons annually
• For fossil fuel suppliers, that threshold in statute is currently set at 25,000 metric tons annually
• of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions associated with the fossil fuels if combusted or oxidized.
• Essentially, the paper distributors are the ones that get a fuel distribution license, and they don't

Bills: HB2675 , HB2681 , HB2714 , HB2688 , HB2481 , HB2116 , HB1408

Committee: House Appropriations

Keywords: accounts, finance, business regulation, transparency, audits, cannabis, license fees, regulatory framework, revenue generation, legalization, HB 2714, caseload forecasting, food assistance, SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, state food assistance, budget forecasting, caseload forecast council, caseload forecast supervisor, Washington State

Transcript Highlights:

• municipal law enforcement officers in the three impacted towns to make a one-time irrevocable election to switch
• 06.000><c> to</c> make a one-time irrevocable election to make a one-time irrevocable election to switch
• 00:08:09.039><c> group</c><00:08:09.440><c> G</c><00:08:10.080><c> on</c><00:08:10.400><c> or</c> switch
• from group F to group G on or switch from group F to group G on or before<00:08:11.680><c> December<

Keywords: 927, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Yeah, I know you started, and I know you've now switched to a laptop because the numbers have grown so
• Yeah, I know you started, and I know you've now switched to a laptop because the numbers have grown so
• Unnecessarily flipping the tax switch on... ...analysis.
• Unnecessarily flipping the tax switch on and then off in a single tax year would create undue uncertainty

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We've looked at other states that have made the switch one way or the other to evidence-based learning
• And our switch is not only to say that we're going to use evidence-based learning, but we're defining

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: House and Senate leaders announced a conference committee agreement on a literacy bill that both chambers had previously passed, saying the compromise combines the strongest parts of each version. The speakers said the bill responds to poor third-grade reading outcomes and aims to improve early literacy instruction for the next generation of students, with implementation planned for the 2027-2028 school year. The bill would require K-3 reading curricula to meet Department of Elementary and Secondary Education guidelines and be evidence-based, provide free approved curriculum options for districts that need them, and allow waivers for districts already using acceptable evidence-based programs. It also would remove unproven teaching methods, support student progress monitoring, require dyslexia screening, publish relevant data, and provide professional development and apprenticeship opportunities for teachers. One speaker described the measure as effectively ending guessing-based reading instruction and returning to phonics-focused teaching. The conferees said the bill was developed through weeks of negotiation and had unanimous votes in both chambers on the earlier versions. Senators Lewis and O'Connor, though absent, were said to support the compromise and would sign the conference report. The leaders said they expected strong support when the compromise bill comes to the House and Senate floors later in the week.

Transcript Highlights:

• Representative Monks, I'm going to switch you places for the next one.
• church representative birch okay they will be recorded as a nay uh representative monks I'm gonna switch

Summary: The Ways and Means Committee met to consider three RS measures. RS 33784, introduced by Representative Monks for Representative Palmer, expressed legislative support for the Idaho National Guard’s modernization at Gowen Field, including the transition from A-10 aircraft to F-16s. The committee first voted to introduce it, then later reconsidered that action and approved a motion to introduce RS 33784 with a recommendation that it be sent to the floor for second reading. The committee also considered RS 3379, a cleanup bill related to last year’s school choice legislation. Monks said it clarified age eligibility, allowed purchases from multiple vendors for schooling products, and specified the tax credit source without changing funding levels. Representative Birch opposed the motion, saying he had not supported the underlying bill and thought proportional budget cuts should have been included. The committee voted to introduce RS 3379, with Birch and Church recorded as nays. Finally, RS 33752, a replacement for former House Bill 495, was presented by Representative Ehlers. It concerns merging the board of denturity with the board of dentistry and makes one change to specify that the denturist board seat must go to a licensed denturist if available. After noting the measure had already received a public hearing in Health and Welfare, the committee voted to introduce it with a recommendation for second reading. The chair then announced the committee was likely to meet again within 24 hours and adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Those particular units will use various types of fuel sources that are a lot different than the fuel
• States and... ...spent nuclear rods that are in cooling ponds all of the United States and use that fuel
• It's usable fuel.
• It's usable fuel.
• Madam Chair, Senator Leach, I believe we are taking a lot of that used fuel, and we are re-reusing it

Summary: The committee took up House Bill 2308, which would prohibit a dental insurer or its holding company from owning interests in dental practices regulated by the Arizona Board of Dental Examiners. The sponsor and Arizona Dental Association argued the bill is meant to prevent vertical integration and insurer control over provider care, while Delta Dental opposed it, saying the measure would block nonprofit insurers from investing in clinics for indigent care and create divestment burdens. After discussion of possible exemptions and market-share caps, the committee passed HB 2308 on a 7-0 vote. The committee then considered House Bill 4001, as amended, which creates a licensing and enforcement framework for alternative nicotine products beginning in 2028, increases penalties for sales to minors, restricts youth-oriented marketing, and licenses manufacturers and distributors. Supporters, including the sponsor, Border Security Alliance, Arizona Petroleum Marketers Association, and Vapor Technology Association, said the bill would improve supply-chain transparency and help curb illegal products and youth vaping. Opponents, including the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, argued it should instead use a full tobacco retail licensing model and that the bill’s enforcement structure lacks sufficient resources. The committee adopted the amendment and passed the bill 6-1. House Bill 2873, as amended, was also approved unanimously. The strike-everything amendment allows a person or organization that filed a city or town referendum petition to withdraw it before ballot qualification, applies the rule retroactively to withdrawals filed on or after January 1, 2026, and bars tallying or canvassing votes for referenda with a withdrawal notice. The sponsor described it as a common-sense governance fix, and the committee gave it a 7-0 do-pass recommendation. The committee next heard House Bill 2408, which revises Arizona Board of Nursing complaint procedures, confidentiality, investigation timelines, expungement authority, and related disciplinary processes. Nursing board officials opposed parts of the bill, warning that changes to nursing education oversight and tighter deadlines could weaken patient safety and increase costs and liability, while the Arizona Nurses Association and several nurses supported the bill as a way to prioritize serious complaints, improve timeliness, and allow expungement in appropriate cases. After adopting the amendment, the committee passed HB 2408 on a 5-2 vote. The committee also passed House Bill 2342, which limits HOA restrictions on backyard shade structures, and House Bill 2323, which extends Arizona’s motor vehicle lemon law protections to lessees, both by unanimous votes. Finally, the committee began hearing House Bill 4010 on creating a Board of Genetic Counselors, with the sponsor and supporters describing it as a licensure and patient-safety measure; the transcript ends during testimony on that bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• The amendment repeals two taxes: the business rent tax, beginning October 1, and the aviation fuel tax
• The amendment also delays the imposition of the scheduled tax on natural gas fuel from January 1, 2026
• The amendment repeals two taxes: the business rent tax, beginning October 1, and the aviation fuel tax
• The amendment also delays the imposition of the scheduled tax on natural gas fuel from January 1, 2026
• The amendment repeals two taxes: the business rent tax, beginning October 1, and the aviation fuel tax

Summary: The House met on the final day of session, swore in Representatives Boyles and Hodgers, and observed a moment of silence for the Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, as well as for Representative Rosenwald’s father. The chamber then moved into final budget work, with leaders outlining the plan to take up H.J.R. 5019, HB 7031, HB 5017, HB 5015, and then the general appropriations act once the Senate transmitted it. H.J.R. 5019, a proposed constitutional amendment to expand the budget stabilization fund, was explained and amended to raise the rainy day fund cap, require annual deposits, and allow withdrawals for critical state needs by a two-thirds vote; it passed 100-1. The House then adopted the conference report on HB 7031, the tax package. The bill repeals the business rent tax and aviation fuel tax, delays the natural gas fuel tax, creates or expands several sales tax holidays and exemptions, including permanent exemptions for disaster-preparedness items, hunting/fishing/camping items, and ammunition and firearms-related purchases, and makes changes to property, corporate income, local tax, and economic development provisions. Members debated the removal of recurring housing trust fund and transit-related revenue streams, the new ammunition exemption, and the data center tax changes; supporters argued the package reduces taxes and preserves annual budget flexibility, while opponents raised concerns about housing, transportation, and gun violence. The conference report passed 93-7. HB 5017, creating a debt reduction program funded by a recurring transfer to retire state bonds early, passed unanimously. HB 5015, the state group insurance conforming bill, which directs DMS to develop a formulary management plan and codifies the administrative health insurance assessment, also passed. The House then began explanation and questions on the fiscal year 2025-26 general appropriations act, described as a $115.1 billion budget that is down $3.8 billion from the current year and includes more than $12 billion in reserves. Subcommittee chairs summarized major spending areas, including pre-K-12 funding increases, health care funding for Medicaid, KidCare, nursing homes, opioid treatment, and mental health, transportation and economic development funding, environmental and water projects, higher education, state administration, justice, and information technology. Questions focused on school vouchers, inflationary pressures on school districts, and the adequacy of funding for housing, transportation, and other priorities.

Transcript Highlights:

• Chair, if I could switch to the comp coach compensation component of the bill Representative.
• I understand it's complicated for students to switch in the middle of a semester.
• So and if there's a parent out there that wants to switch there, student every 2 months play different

Transcript Highlights:

• So there's discussion of perhaps switching that to $4.2 million, but we're sending it over with a split
• So there's discussion of perhaps switching that to 4.2, but we're sending it over with a split.
• Adjustment or equipment. $525,000 from the SIP is added for a state radio law enforcement redundant switch

Bills: HB1603

Committee: Senate Appropriations

Keywords: Native American, grave protection, repatriation, cultural heritage, tribal compliance, 908, all

Summary: The Appropriations Committee met with a quorum and announced it would begin meeting at 8 a.m. for the rest of the week to work through a growing bill list. The committee first approved House Bill 1603, a companion to the Historical Society budget dealing with NAGPRA, including a $500,000 matching grant to be divided among North Dakota’s five tribes and a committee to address repatriation of human remains and cultural items. The vote was unanimous, 15-0. The committee then considered House Bill 1225, which would increase penalties for reckless endangerment involving a firearm and create a mandatory prison term. After debate over public safety concerns versus the bill’s fiscal note and prison costs, the committee adopted a do not pass recommendation by a 9-6-1 vote. Members also discussed House Bill 1018, the State Historical Society budget, and approved an amendment that adjusted one-time funding items, including NAGPRA compliance, museum exhibits, military gallery funding, local historic grants, and line-of-credit repayment. The amended bill then received a due pass recommendation by a 14-2 vote. The committee next approved House Bill 1468, a behavioral health facility grant for St. Hayes, which supporters said would expand in-state access to acute and adolescent behavioral health care and reduce the need to send patients out of state. The bill passed 14-1. It then amended and passed House Bill 1485, increasing the personal needs allowance for certain Medicaid recipients by $15 and indexing it to inflation; the amendment and the bill as amended both passed 14-2. Finally, the committee approved House Bill 1016, the Adjutant General/National Guard budget, after adopting an amendment that funded disaster relief, response equipment, IT and website costs, and staffing changes for the watch center; the amended bill passed 14-2. The committee adjourned after completing six bills and planned to resume the next morning at 8 a.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• We are getting fuel surcharges from our vendor, which is Worldwide Express, which uses UPS.
• We are going to start charging them the price that they would actually cost based on that new fuel surcharge
• On that new fuel surcharge, it's anywhere from $20 to $30 to, I think, $50 in some areas.

Committee: Joint Statute Law Committee

Keywords: 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• But beyond serving as the alma mater for many exceptional individuals, Cal Poly fuels economic vitality
• Cal Poly fuels economic vitality through partnerships that advance entrepreneurship, agricultural technology
• this chamber and in Washington, D.C., fighting for reforms that would allow us to remove dangerous fuels

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• AB 623 Dixon, fuel reduction...
• AB 623 Dixon fuel reduction. AB 623, Dixon, fuel reduction reports, holding committee.

Summary: The Assembly Appropriations Committee met on January 22, 2026, for its regular order hearing and suspense-file hearing. In regular order, the committee approved consent-calendar bills AB 683, AB 763, AB 1126, and AB 1278 on unanimous due-pass motions, and AB 34 and AB 442 on a second unanimous due-pass motion. The committee then heard and advanced several bills, including AB 35, which would create an APA exemption for Proposition 4-funded programs to speed implementation of water, wildfire, energy-storage, and grid-support projects; AB 748, establishing pre-approved housing programs for local agencies; AB 939, allowing immediate transfer of certain affordable homeownership units to qualified nonprofit housing organizations; AB 643, adding a narrow organic-waste-derived agricultural fertilizer product to SB 1383 procurement options; and AB 96, removing the high school diploma requirement for certified Medi-Cal peer support specialists. Testimony on these bills was largely supportive, with sponsors and coalition representatives emphasizing reduced delays, lower costs, and improved housing, environmental, or behavioral-health outcomes. The Department of Finance offered general budget comments but no bill-specific positions. The committee voted the bills out, with AB 643 and AB 96 receiving no recorded opposition in the transcript and AB 939 passing with some members noting support and interest in coauthoring. The committee also received a presentation-only discussion of AB 1091, a proposal to authorize eight-letter specialty license plates, which the author said could generate revenue for rural programs such as the Williamson Act; the bill was not acted on at that time. After public comment, the committee moved to the suspense-file hearing on 53 bills. Using a substituted motion for due-pass and due-pass-with-amendments items, the committee held some bills and advanced many others, often with amendments that narrowed scope, deleted provisions, or required reports or studies. Bills held in committee included AB 405, AB 298, AB 333, AB 296, AB 1091, AB 1241, and AB 577, among others. The committee reported moving 43 bills to the Assembly floor, with several on A roll calls and others on B roll calls or with amendments, and noted that amendment language would be posted later online.

Transcript Highlights:

• obligations, the state of Chihuahua has converted, uh, continued to divert water from the Rio Conchos to fuel
• The fuel cycle, all of that stuff will need to be rebuilt in this country.
• addition to large scale, is trying to push forward, you can see the manufacturing come here and the fuel

Committee: House S/C on State-Federal Relations

Transcript Highlights:

• Last, the A4 remove funding for sustainable aviation fuel.
• Last, the A4 remove funding for sustainable aviation fuel.
• Last, the A4 remove funding for sustainable aviation fuel.
• Last, the A4 remove funding for sustainable aviation fuel.
• </c><01:51:51.119><c> storage</c> generators and the diesel fuel storage generators and the diesel fuel

Committee: Senate Environment, Climate, and Legacy

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, we've switched that.
• Uh we've switched<04:27:13.680><c> that</c><04:27:13.840><c> the</c><04:27:14.000><c> revenue</c><04:
• 27:14.239><c> is</c><04:27:14.399><c> now</c> switched that the revenue is now switched that the revenue
• Operators want 30% because that's the incentive for them to switch.
• <04:51:16.400><c> to</c> switch to switch to VTS.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first took up SB 63, which concerns funding for the division of travel and tourism and its relationship to the meals-and-rooms tax calculation. Members asked for confirmation that the bill would not affect municipal distributions under RSA 78-A:26. Jennifer Ramsey of the Department of Revenue Administration explained that the amendment does not change meals-and-rooms distributions, but instead corrects the calculation for the travel and tourism appropriation by adding back the municipal fund transfer before applying the 3.15% floor. Chris Shay of the Office of the Attorney General agreed with that explanation. The committee also discussed the complexity of the meals-and-rooms statutes and the possibility of a future cleanup effort. The committee then voted 19-0 to recommend SB 63 ought to pass; it will not go on consent because it has a fiscal note. The committee next considered SB 60, relative to advanced deposit account wagering. Rep. Murphy moved ought to pass, explaining that the bill would regulate advanced deposit wagering on horse racing and impose a 1.25% revenue share on wagers from New Hampshire residents, generating roughly a quarter-million dollars in new lottery revenue in the first year. The motion passed 19-0, and the bill will not go on consent because of its fiscal note. The committee then voted 19-0 to recommend SB 147 ITL, with members noting that live racing facilities are in decline and the market is shrinking. SB 160, which updates raffle ticket pricing and prize limits for bingo-related gaming, also passed ought to pass 19-0 and will not go on consent. The committee then took up SB 73, which revises coverall bingo rules and increases prize limits. An amendment, 2025-1470H, was offered to raise the total prize amount to $5,000; members supported it as a reasonable compromise, and the amendment was adopted unanimously. The bill as amended then passed ought to pass 19-0, again with a fiscal note preventing consent placement. After those votes, the committee moved into a work session on SB 83, where members began discussing the bill’s video lottery terminal provisions, including the meaning of “maximum wager,” the absence of a cumulative betting cap, and concerns that the bill combines several distinct policy changes—tax treatment, VLT rules, renaming, and a self-exclusion database—into one measure. No vote was taken on SB 83 during the work session, and members indicated they would continue discussion later after reviewing side-by-side materials.

Transcript Highlights:

• "Um, so in fiscal 28, we've got the fuels going up 5%.
• </c> &gt;&gt; Um, so in fiscal 28, we've got the fuels &gt;&gt; Um, so in fiscal 28, we've got the fuels
• [clears throat] "That's one quick question on the motor fuels.
• The highway consumption of fuels." "I'm sure it's right there.
• </c> long-term secular decline as fuel long-term secular decline as fuel economies<02:31:58.240><c> have

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The meeting focused on reaching consensus on official Kentucky revenue estimates for fiscal years 2026 through 2028, using updated S&P Global economic forecasts compared with the September presentation. Staff explained that the updated forecast relied partly on alternative data because of the federal government shutdown, and they walked through changes in national and Kentucky economic assumptions across control, optimistic, and pessimistic scenarios. The control forecast was described as slightly more optimistic in the near term but more cautious in fiscal 2027 and 2028, with GDP growth revised up for the current year and down somewhat in the outer years. The pessimistic scenario now assumed a two-quarter recession beginning in the current quarter, while the optimistic scenario was given a higher probability weight than before. The presenters highlighted several Kentucky-relevant variables that changed since September, including weaker manufacturing employment, weaker housing starts, weaker consumer sentiment, and lower expected non-farm employment in fiscal 2026. At the same time, wage and salary disbursements were revised upward in fiscal 2027, reflecting higher disposable income from tax changes, and real consumer spending was expected to be stronger in the near term. They also discussed assumptions about tariffs, business profits, the Federal Reserve, unemployment, oil prices, retail sales, vehicle sales, exports, and consumer sentiment, noting that some indicators were little changed while others shifted materially. Consumer sentiment was attributed to affordability concerns, tariff impacts, and a general sense of malaise, but was expected to improve in later years from a low base. Members asked follow-up questions about why the forecast worsened in later years and about the consumer sentiment assumptions. Staff responded that the forecast assumed larger take-home pay and refunds from tax withholding changes, along with some easing of tariff effects, which they believed would help offset a negative wealth effect from stock market declines. They also noted that S&P Global’s December forecast, which had already been published, was essentially consistent with the presentation and that the firm believed its earlier assumptions had tracked recent data well. No vote or final action was recorded in the portion provided, but the discussion was aimed at settling the revenue estimates that will underpin the upcoming branch budget bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• I don't know what the technical term is, but we will have spent fuel.
• I don't know what the technical term is, but we will have spent fuel, and we will have a presentation

Summary: The committee came to order with a quorum present and the chair explained that he would be handling the rule review himself because the vice chair was unavailable. He said the Department of Environmental Quality had worked with the committee to make the rules easier to understand, and members were encouraged to review the plain-English summaries alongside the actual rules. The chair noted that the committee would need to decide whether to pass or reject the rules, and that there would be no subcommittee process. The chair also previewed upcoming business, saying the committee would review the rules the following week and would hear a presentation related to Representative Hill’s bill concerning radioactive waste/spent fuel from rods. He said the topic would touch both energy and environmental issues, and that an RS would also be considered. Representative Wisniewski clarified the meeting date and the chair corrected the schedule, noting the speaker would come on February 4th. No votes were taken and no formal action was completed in this meeting. The chair answered questions, clarified the schedule, and then adjourned the committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• The state did increase the fuel tax rate in 2025, and cities will receive a share of this increase.
• Declining fuel tax revenues: statewide gasoline consumption is projected to continue to decrease, and
• But you have things like energy and fuel infrastructure, vehicle and equipment incentives, for example
• But you have things like energy and fuel infrastructure, vehicle, and equipment incentives, for example
• , school transportation. and fuel infrastructure, vehicle and equipment incentives, for example, school

Committees: Joint Transportation , Joint Joint Transportation Committee

Keywords: 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• These are fuel breaks around communities.
• So in the community, around the community, with fuel breaks.
• And fuel breaks have again and again demonstrated their effectiveness.
• demonstrate that we made a lot of success on vastly scaling out those projects around communities, fuel
• It means more proactive fuel reduction to protect homes and communities.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• system for heating and cooling in their HVAC system, replacement of windows, roofs, and associated fuel
• <00:36:27.359><c> and</c><00:36:28.000><c> uh</c><00:36:28.599><c> associated</c><00:36:29.599><c> fuel
• </c> windows, roofs and uh associated fuel windows, roofs and uh associated fuel oil<00:36:31.280><c>
• ><c> with</c><00:36:32.560><c> propane</c> oil replacement of fuel oil with propane oil replacement of
• fuel oil with propane system<00:36:33.839><c> and</c><00:36:34.079><c> installation</c><00:36:34.560

Committee: Senate Taxes

Keywords: 1187, senate, all