Transcript Highlights:

• </c> to Ways and Means. to Ways and Means.
• </c> its way. So then I called my husband. its way. So then I called my husband.
• He wants this to be done in a measured way and the right way.
• and the right way.
• them in different ways.

Bills: HF3418 , HF3739 , HF3791 , HF3356 , HF3695 , HF3430

Committee: House Transportation Finance and Policy

Keywords: pedestrian safety, traffic safety, roadway improvements, nonmotorized transportation, crosswalks, sidewalks, bike lanes, complete streets, Vision Zero, Toward Zero Deaths, MnDOT, Department of Transportation, Department of Public Safety, local road authority, county roads, city streets, tribal transportation, capital improvements, safety design solutions, grant program

Transcript Highlights:

• This is impacting our economy in a massive way.
• Fundamentally, feeling misgendered and disrespected in different ways.
• And in particular, I would say that the way we've wanted to make sure that Matter.
• The way that people are being targeted for exclusion or simply suspicion.
• And that goes a long way.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We know what the best way to teach reading is. We know what the best way to teach math is.
• We know what the best way to teach reading is. We know what the best way to teach math is.
• way.
• way.
• We've come a long way in assessments.

Bills: HB8

Committee: House Public Education

Keywords: HB 8, Texas public school accountability, school accountability, public school transparency, STAAR, state assessments, instructionally supportive assessment program, Student Success Tool, Texas Education Agency, TEA, accountability ratings, A-F ratings, through-year assessment, benchmark testing, norm-referenced assessment, college career military readiness, CCMR, local accountability plan, school district performance, campus turnaround

Summary: The House Committee on Public Education met to hear House Bill 8, which would replace STAAR with a new assessment and accountability system beginning in the 2027-28 school year. The chair described the bill as reducing testing time, limiting benchmark tests, adding beginning-, middle-, and end-of-year assessments, requiring faster score turnaround, involving Texas teachers in test development, and tightening accountability timelines and transparency rules. Members also discussed provisions on A-F ratings, cut scores, CCMR, local accountability plans, and TEA reporting requirements. Committee members and invited witnesses split sharply on the bill’s approach. Supporters, including the chair, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath, and Ed Trust’s Nicholas Munyon Penny, argued the bill would reduce high-stakes pressure, provide quicker and more actionable data, limit over-testing, and better align assessments to Texas standards while preserving criterion-referenced accountability. They said the new system would help teachers and parents intervene sooner and would improve transparency, including parent access to student responses and automatic rescoring in some writing cases. Opponents, including Rep. Hinojosa and student witness Ella Moran, argued the bill still increases testing and replaces one high-stakes test with multiple TEA-created tests. Moran testified that STAAR creates anxiety, disrupts instruction, and does not reflect real learning, while Hinojosa said the House had previously passed a better bill based on a nationally norm-referenced model and criticized the new proposal as a concession to the Senate. Questions also focused on AI scoring of writing, rescoring rates, and whether the bill’s new accountability rules would be reliable and fair. The committee did not take a final vote during the portion provided, but the chair said a vote on HB 8 would be called after public testimony later in the day.

Transcript Highlights:

• There was no way. And you couldn't get to a person.
• There is a better way, and AB 1542 is that way.
• There is a better way, and AB 1542 is that way.
• abusive way, but it's... ...make it even more narrow, so that we're not using this in an abusive way
• I think there's a way to make it more narrow, personally.

Committee: House Privacy and Consumer Protection

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The concern works both ways.
• So if you're not on the Senate floor, please be making your way this way.
• I have never felt that way.
• It would put people in harm's way.
• I have my first child on the way.

Bills: SB7 , SB14 , SB 7 , SB 14

Committee: Senate State Affairs

Keywords: gender designation, civil penalties, private civil rights, multiple-occupancy spaces, Texas Women's Privacy Act, law enforcement, confidentiality, personnel files, employee records, misconduct, abortion, civil liability, abortion-inducing drugs, qui tam actions, Texas Citizens Participation Act, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, healthcare regulations, impact fees, water conservation, reuse projects

Transcript Highlights:

• So I think it's a creative way and safe way to add housing, especially in a place like your district.
• that we can lower these costs, find ways where we can help increase Ways that we can lower these costs
• , find ways where we can help increase supply, which is what this does.
• It doesn't impede that in any way, of course.
• If I've in any way suggested...

Summary: The House first established a quorum after several members were absent, then moved into bills for perfection. House Bill 261, dealing with anti-Semitism in public schools and higher education, drew extensive debate. The sponsor described rising anti-Jewish incidents and said the bill would require educational institutions to adopt nondiscriminatory policies, use the IHRA definition as a guide, and treat failures to address harassment as Title VI issues. An amendment from the gentleman from Pulaski was adopted to clarify that protected First Amendment speech, religious expression, and political viewpoints would not be reported or cataloged. Supporters said the bill was needed to protect Jewish students; opponents argued it singled out one group, could chill speech about Israel and Palestine, and created unequal reporting requirements. The House ultimately ordered the bill perfected and printed as amended. The chamber then took up House Bill 2384 on housing affordability and building codes. The sponsor said the bill would lower housing costs by rolling back energy-code mandates to 2009 standards, setting clearer permitting timelines, and allowing certain multifamily buildings to use a single staircase. Supporters argued current codes raise costs, discourage builders, and contribute to Missouri’s housing shortage. Opponents raised concerns about local control, preemption of municipal energy standards, and public safety, especially the single-stair provision; the sponsor responded that the design has been used safely in other states and cities. A Pulaski amendment requiring municipalities with online ordinances to keep only one hard copy available was adopted, and after debate the previous question was moved and approved. The House then adopted the committee substitute and ordered the bill perfected and printed. House Bill 1766, addressing personal property tax, was also perfected and printed. The sponsor said the bill would apply Hancock/CPI-style tax limitations to personal property tax growth, arguing that rapidly rising vehicle values had created a windfall for political subdivisions and unfairly increased taxpayer burdens. Supporters said the bill would slow growth without eliminating it, while opponents argued local governments need revenue to keep up with inflation and that the measure would reduce resources for schools and other services. Finally, the House began consideration of House Joint Resolution 154, which would place into the Missouri Constitution a Medicaid work requirement mirroring federal policy. The sponsor said adults ages 19 to 64 would need to work, volunteer, participate in a work program, or attend school for 80 hours a month to remain eligible, and the discussion began with questions about whether the constitutional change was necessary and how documentation requirements would work.

Transcript Highlights:

• It is in no way a simple balance.
• At the same time, services are working to find ways of reaching young people in new ways, and this is
• At the same time, services are working to find ways of reaching young people in new ways, and this is
• Ways of reaching young people in new ways, and this is placing pressure on organisations with already
• They're going to find ways onto them.

Summary: The Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee held an informational hearing on the impact of social media on LGBTQ+ youth, focusing on benefits, risks, and possible safeguards. Chair members framed the discussion around the tension between protecting young people from addictive design, harassment, hate speech, exploitation, and mental health harms while preserving access to affirming resources, community, and crisis support that many LGBTQ+ youth rely on online. Members emphasized that the hearing was meant to inform future policy rather than relitigate prior bills, and several members of the LGBTQ+ Caucus attended or participated. The first panel featured lived experience and advocacy testimony from Madi Roby of Alliance for Trans Youth Rights, Shea Gardner of LGBT Tech, and Casey Pick of the Trevor Project. Roby described social media as essential to exploring identity, finding trans language and safety information, and connecting to Trevor Project resources during a family crisis, while also acknowledging online hate and bullying. Gardner argued that lawmakers should regulate harms more precisely rather than impose broad age-based exclusions, warning that account bans and age-gating could cut off access to community, privacy-protective pseudonymity, and crisis resources. Pick testified that LGBTQ+ youth are more likely than peers to attempt suicide, that social media can be both a lifeline and a risk, and that Trevor Space and other moderated online spaces can improve mental health and reduce isolation; she also cautioned against policies that would push youth into less visible, less moderated spaces. Committee members questioned the witnesses about algorithmic feeds, addictive design, age verification, and whether platforms should be required to do more to protect youth. Several lawmakers distinguished between personalized feeds and addictive features such as infinite scroll and autoplay, and asked for more targeted prescriptions. Witnesses generally supported stronger privacy protections, limits on data collection and use, better reporting and moderation tools, digital literacy, and design changes that reduce harmful engagement patterns without eliminating access to community. The discussion also touched on the loss of LGBTQ-specific 988 services at the national level and the importance of maintaining alternative support pathways. The second panel presented research from Common Sense Media, UC Irvine, Hope Lab, and LGBTQ+ Health Australia. Researchers reported that LGBTQ+ youth often arrive online with higher depressive symptoms and limited in-person support, encounter homophobic and transphobic content at high rates, and may self-censor because of fear of harassment. At the same time, many said social media helps them feel less alone and find affirmation. Dr. Sean Young emphasized a harm-reduction approach, noting that online environments can be designed to support health and that policymakers should measure whether restrictions actually reduce harm or simply displace it. Dr. Amy Green echoed that social media is both harmful and supportive for LGBTQ+ youth, underscoring that the policy goal should be to make youth safer rather than less visible online.

Transcript Highlights:

• in no way responsible for the broken air conditioner this week.
• You help us find our way through the details.
• And in that, we have to... ...way driver.
• And a huge shout-out—there's no way that we can really thank you, but we'll try.
• Thank you to each and every member of the Ways and Means staff.

Summary: The Senate continued debate on the FY27 state budget, with several distinguished introductions and a series of amendment actions. Early amendments from Senator Collins on restoring DCF social worker funding and educator pay were withdrawn without objection. The Chair then sustained a point of order that a group of tax-related amendments, including proposals on teacher tax relief, tips, overtime, estate tax, and income tax rates, were out of order because they would create money bills that must originate in the House; the Senate voted 35-4 to uphold that ruling. Senator Tarr’s gas tax suspension amendment and several other amendments were defeated, while Senator Fattman’s amendment extending domestic violence leave protections to contract employees was adopted unanimously, 39-0. The Senate also adopted Senator Fernandes’ amendment creating a commission to study the adequacy, reliability, and distribution of unrestricted general government aid (UGA), after debate focused on inequities in local aid distribution and the need for a modern formula. The chamber then took up House No. 5375, the Chapter 90 municipal roads and bridges bill, and passed it to be engrossed. Additional amendments were considered on the budget, including a community programming amendment and a Senate Ways and Means amendment, both adopted, after which the Ways and Means amendment as amended was adopted and the underlying budget was ordered to a third reading. The Senate also handled several procedural matters, including concurrence in a House referral for a bill on poverty-related legislation and ordering a sick leave bank bill for Carla Johnson to a third reading. After extensive closing remarks from the Ways and Means chair, minority leader, and others praising the collaborative budget process and highlighting investments in local aid, education, public safety, and other priorities, the Senate voted on final passage of House No. 5501, the FY27 appropriations bill. The roll call showed 40-0 in favor, and the bill was passed to be engrossed. The Senate then adopted an order to reconvene the following Tuesday at 11 a.m. and adjourned in memory of Trooper Kevin Thomas Traynor.

Transcript Highlights:

• way responsible for the broken air conditioner this week.
• You help us find our way through the details.
• And in that, we have to... ...way driver.
• And a huge shout-out—there's no way that we can really thank you, but we'll try.
• Thank you to each and every member of the Ways and Means staff.

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> doing is we're looking for ways doing is we're looking for ways to<00:04:17.120><c> build</c><00
• </c><00:24:01.280><c> In</c> the US and China in many ways. In the US and China in many ways.
• </c> your decision either way. your decision either way.
• </c><00:51:18.400><c> You</c> help in any way. You help in any way.
• I think that's the way investors.

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Call to Order and Roll Call 00:00:22 Forging the Future: Kentucky's National Leadership in Metals Manufacturing 00:01:33 Improvements to Kentucky’s Incentive Programs 00:52:05, 958, all

Summary: The committee met for its third interim meeting, approved the prior meeting minutes, and heard a presentation from the Metals Innovation Initiative (MI2) on Kentucky’s metals industry. Speakers described metals manufacturing and recycling as a major economic backbone for the Commonwealth, including steel, aluminum, stainless steel, and copper operations, with broad impacts across production, fabrication, supply chains, and related businesses. They emphasized that the industry supports high-paying jobs, significant capital investment in Kentucky, and is aligned with broader efforts to expand U.S. manufacturing. A central theme was workforce development. MI2 leaders said the industry faces a persistent talent gap and that current education programs do not always produce the skills needed for modern metals jobs. They argued for stronger exposure and awareness, more direct industry involvement, and a dedicated metals career pathway through high schools, area technology centers, career and technical centers, and KCTCS. They also described pilot efforts in Logan, Warren, and Carroll counties that would introduce students to metals careers in middle school, move them into credits and pathways in high school, and connect them to internships, apprenticeships, and postsecondary training. Recycling and supply-chain security were the other major topics. Testimony stressed that recycled inputs are far cheaper than raw ore extraction and that recycling is increasingly important to competitiveness, environmental performance, and keeping materials from leaving the U.S. Speakers also raised concerns about China’s large steel and aluminum capacity and said unfair trade and global market manipulation make it harder for Kentucky producers to compete. Committee members and presenters framed MI2 as a collaborative effort among industry, state government, and academia to strengthen workforce pipelines, recycling, and long-term industry growth. No votes or formal actions were taken beyond approving the minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• Vice Chair Collins is literally finishing a meeting and is on his way.
• Low bid isn't always the right way to go.
• There are, in many ways, similarities.
• And there was... ...and it had to do with a right-of-way.
• And I'll give you the Ways and Means example that I learned early on.

Committee: Senate Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , but the bill did pass out of Ways and Means.
• I don't know if this is just the DFL's way of obstructing the end of session.
• , but the bill did pass out of Ways and Means.
• I don't know if this is just the DFL's way of obstructing the end of session.
• Um being on ways I Thank you Mr. Chair.

Committee: House Rules and Legislative Administration

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Chief, we go back a long way.
• The only way to survive a 26-foot wall of water is to get out of the way.
• The only way to do it, our HydroMet system and the way we do the displays is just one way to do that.
• But there has to be a way. I've heard that there is a way they can communicate based on some...
• We've tried to solve it as a state way before I got here, way before you got here.

Committee: House Disaster Preparedness & Flooding, Select

Keywords: 997, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's the way we talk to the media. It's the way we talk to the public.
• Bush, no, and either way.
• Let me ask it this way.
• Yeah, either way.
• It's a long way away.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We need to find a way to retrench.
• We need to find a way to retrench.
• We need to find a way to retrench.
• Um, that's a much superior way.
• Uh that way it forces the boards to way.

Committee: Senate Health and Human Services

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> other ways of heating the same building? other ways of heating the same building?
• This basic most cost-effective way.
• </c> Community solar gardens are only a way Community solar gardens are only a way for<01:02:43.839><
• The industry was told that the way.
• </c> in a reliable and an affordable way. in a reliable and an affordable way.

Committee: Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment, and Climate

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Gallin should be on the way. Do you think of this? Huh? I don't. Mr. Gallin should be on the way.
• This was a way to ensure that a veteran is not out of pocket if the claim does not go the way that they
• All right, he's on his way up. I have a question for staff. All right, he's on his way up.
• Sive-Marquez-a-way, cases usually end up in diversion— Representative Marquesa way, cases usually end
• our own campaigns in the same way.

Bills: SB1003 , SB1060 , SB1134 , SB1275 , SB1327 , SB1429 , SB1618 , SB1634 , SB1654 , SB1803 , SCR1002 , SCR1005 , SCR1023 , SCR1027

Committee: House Federalism, Military Affairs & Elections

Keywords: election, canvass, certification, ballot tabulation, write-in candidates, registration, voting procedures, voter registration, temporary absence, absentee voting, residency, military voters, overseas voters, election law, Arizona Revised Statutes, political signs, campaign materials, public safety, municipal regulation, veterans

Transcript Highlights:

• That's the way it should be. That's the way it should...
• We see that in a lot of ways.
• Will things be the way it is, the way it needs to be?
• Will things be the way it is, the way it needs to be?
• But I can tell you that, I don't know. be the way it is, the way it needs to be.

Bills: HB1168

Keywords: abortion, abortion-inducing drugs, medication abortion, mifepristone, misoprostol, methotrexate, pro-life, pro-choice, reproductive health, unborn child, trafficking, felony, contraception, pharmacist, pharmacy, Title 63, Oklahoma statutes, abortion pill, drug distribution, criminal penalty

Summary: The Senate first came to order after repeated quorum calls, then devoted a long portion of the meeting to farewell remarks for Senator Darcy Jech. Jech reflected on his 12 years in the chamber, his rural district, campaign experiences, major events during his tenure, and the importance of relationships, compromise, and service. Numerous senators followed with personal tributes, praising his steadiness, humility, faith, work on devotions and the Rural Caucus, and his reputation as a thoughtful, respectful colleague and family man. After the farewell segment, the Senate moved to executive nominations. The chamber unanimously confirmed Sharon Shell Millington as Director of the Office of Juvenile Affairs, Clayton Bullard as Cabinet Secretary of Health and Mental Health, and Clayton Bullard as administrator of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. The Senate then approved a slate of Tier 2 nominations, including appointments to the Home Inspector Examiners Committee, the Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology board, the State Fire Marshal Commission, the State Board of Health, the State Board of Licensed Social Workers, the Forensic Review Board, the Oklahoma State Credit Union, the Health Care Workforce Training Commission, the Alarm, Locksmith, and Fire Sprinkler Industry Committee, and the Board of Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselors. No debate or opposition was recorded on the nominations, and the votes were overwhelmingly or unanimously in favor. After announcements, the Senate agreed to recess and then adjourned until Monday, May 4 at 1:30 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• My story started years earlier with childhood trauma—trauma that shaped the way I saw myself, the way
• What this program offered me was not just a way to express myself, but a way to reconnect with myself
• Representative Way: no. Representative Way? Representative Weninger? Present.
• I mean, you can vote any way you want to vote, obviously.
• Representative Way? No. Representative Weninger? Mr.

Bills: SB1112 , SB1517 , SB1537 , SB1584 , SB1673 , SB1776

Committee: House Appropriations

Keywords: mental health, hearings, acquaintance witnesses, patient rights, treatment evaluation, barbering, cosmetology, appropriation, funding, licensing, board operations, peace officer, training, public safety, traffic offenses, judicial system, corrections, recruitment, state budget, crime victims

Transcript Highlights:

• And it's not that way now; it's gotten better.
• I mean, I would be okay with it either way.
• The governor's still going to appoint, but I'll, if you want it that way, I'll write it that way.
• And Bi-State, boom, boom, going your way.
• Charles has some sort of bus line that way.

Committee: House Joint Committee on Transportation Oversight

Summary: The House Transportation Committee first announced that House Bill 1873 had been pulled at the sponsors’ request and would not be heard. The committee then took up House Bill 2759, which would require MoDOT to publish engineer’s estimates after a project is awarded or rejected, with the sponsor and supporters framing it as a transparency and accountability measure that would help taxpayers and contractors understand why bids are accepted or rejected. Supporters, including the Missouri Asphalt Paving Association and a state public advocate, said the bill would not affect bidding because the estimate would be released only after award, and argued that other states already do this without higher costs. MoDOT opposed the bill, saying its estimates are meant to reflect fair market value at the time of letting and that releasing them could let contractors pattern bids around MoDOT’s numbers, potentially setting an artificial floor or otherwise distorting competition. Committee members questioned both sides closely about whether publishing the estimate after award would still influence future bids, whether rejected bids are already explained, and whether the bill would help identify problems with project scope or estimating. The sponsor said the bill had been refined and referenced an amendment to make clear the disclosure would occur at award or rejection, not before bidding. No vote was taken during the hearing. The committee then heard House Bill 2837, which would change how vacancies on the Bi-State Development Agency board are filled by returning to a system where the governor appoints from within the district rather than from lists submitted by the St. Louis city mayor and county executive. The sponsor argued the current process gives too much control to St. Louis City and County and does not adequately represent growing areas such as St. Charles County. Opponents from the City of St. Louis, St. Louis County, Citizens for Modern Transit, and a state public advocate argued the change would weaken local control for the jurisdictions that actually fund and use the transit system, noting that St. Charles, Jefferson, and Monroe counties do not pay the same transit taxes and in some cases do not receive service. The hearing ended after testimony in opposition, with no vote taken and the committee adjourned.