Transcript Highlights:

• Supervisor, Carson National Forest; and Sean Sanchez, the Forest Supervisor of the Santa Fe National
• Forest.
• The goals are to promote, of course, the continued traditional uses of forests and forest products by
• for active forest management to improve the condition of those forests.
• Every forest puts together a 20-year plan that guides all management within that national forest.

Transcript Highlights:

• Eliseo Lee Alcon, and whereas Eliseo leaves behind his traditional Native New Mexican Hispanic family
• Preservation and enhancement of the Native New Mexican land-based Spanish land grant and the Secchia
• We also have Corporal Jonathan Sanchez, who's a native of Santa Fe, an Afghanistan combat veteran who
• I would hope because I sent a letter off to the Fed saying I really want you guys to clean up our forest
• Down by the river, but at the same time, we also need to clean up our forests.

Transcript Highlights:

• forest and landscapes.
• You have a Forest Service program. You have an NRCS program.
• All of that, of course, has to be core. that's coming off of all of our forests.
• You see palm trees that shouldn't even be there; they're not native to the area.
• Paul Mason with Pacific Forest Trust. I want to make three brief points.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Summary: The joint Senate hearing of the Natural Resources and Water Committee and the Emergency Management Committee focused on wildfire resilience, with members discussing the SB 254 report on enhancing California’s response to natural catastrophes. Opening remarks emphasized the scale of wildfire damage, the need for prevention and preparedness, and concerns about the affordability and insurability crisis. Senators repeatedly contrasted the relatively small share of funding going to community hardening with the much larger amounts spent on utility wildfire mitigation and landscape-scale projects, and several members raised concerns about CEQA delays, one-time funding, and the need for more sustainable, ongoing financing. The Legislative Analyst’s Office presented an overview showing about $4.7 billion in state wildfire resilience appropriations from 2018-19 through 2025-26, with funding shifting from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to the General Fund and then to Proposition 4. LAO noted that only about $65 million had been specifically targeted to community hardening, while most funding went to forest health, fuels, research, and related programs. LAO also said one-time funding will decline in coming years and that future GGRF support is uncertain, though General Fund use is not legally precluded. Members asked about maintenance costs, polluter-pays ideas, and whether performance metrics should focus more on property and community risk reduction than acres treated. Cal Fire’s State Fire Marshal described the state’s community wildfire preparedness strategy, centered on home hardening, defensible space, and neighborhood-scale mitigation. He said roughly 4 million homes are in the wildland-urban interface, most built before modern fire-resistant standards, and argued that the state must move from response to prevention. He said Cal Fire is incorporating the SB 254 recommendations into its updated action plan, has streamlined some fuel-reduction projects under a recent executive proclamation, and is shifting some grant funding toward maintenance of existing treatments. Cal OES described the AB 38 pilot and FEMA hazard mitigation work, saying the pilot helped build tools and standards for home hardening but that federal approval delays remain a major barrier; the agency reported 155 hardened properties, 19 under construction, and 370 assessed and waiting. The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force said it has coordinated more than $6 billion in state and federal investments, is moving toward regional block grants and better data-driven prioritization, and is developing separate community and landscape strategies. The hearing ended with discussion of modeling, data gaps, utility coordination, contractor capacity, and possible legislative or budget changes to better align funding and metrics with community safety outcomes.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:35:11.440> Hawaiian committee um K haa native Hawaiian committee um K haa native Hawaiian
• betterment of native betterment of native Hawaiians<00:36:13.200> um<00:36:13.599> and
• The Hawaiian native Hawaiian youth suicide epidemic, we have sex trafficking of native women here.
• <00:52:40.040> hawaian various entities on our native hawaian various entities on our native
• I'm a Native Hawaiian descendant of the native inhabitants of Hawaii prior to 1778.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on HB 1233, relating to storm management systems, which would add safety and maintenance requirements for detention and retention ponds. Supporters, including Alison Schafers of the Ki Injury Prevention Coalition and Kristen Herstead of the Hawaii Lifeguard Association, said the measure is needed because poorly maintained ponds can become hidden drowning hazards, especially for children, and argued that fencing, signage, and life-saving equipment would have minimal cost. Schafers described the death of her daughter in a detention pond and said the bill reflects recommendations in the Hawaii Water Safety Plan. Members asked about whether the issue should be handled at the county level; testifiers responded that a statewide standard is needed, though counties would likely handle permitting. No vote was taken on the bill during the excerpted discussion. The committee then heard HB 867, relating to recreational facilities, which would require accessible playgrounds. The Department of Land and Natural Resources said it submitted comments and that state parks do not generally have recreational facilities affected by the bill, while most such facilities are under county jurisdiction. The Hawaii State Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Disability Communication Access Board, and the Disability Rights Center all supported the bill’s intent but recommended changes, including replacing the term “special needs” with “accessible,” focusing the requirement on new and renovated playgrounds, and specifying wheelchair-accessible swings. Testifiers emphasized that accessible play spaces promote inclusion for children with disabilities and benefit all children. No final action or vote was reported. The committee also took up HB 1358, relating to a public land trust working group. DLNR supported the measure and said it had provided written comments, while the Office of Hawaiian Affairs strongly supported the bill and described longstanding problems with incomplete land inventories, self-reported revenue data, and disputed public land trust payments. OHA said an audit it funded suggests the state owes more than current payments reflect, and other supporters said the bill is needed for transparency, accountability, and a complete inventory of public trust lands, including submerged lands. Committee questions focused on how the public land trust information system is maintained, who updates it, and how revenue reporting works; DLNR said the system is older, has limited dedicated IT staffing, and relies on agency self-reporting rather than independent verification. No vote or final committee action was announced in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm Scott Ral of the Forester Commission. I have with me Mr.
• He is, and he's an Alabama native.
• have awarded a bid at Little River, and we're looking at three bridge replacements at Geneva State Forest
• These are single-lane dirt roads through the state forest. Okay, any other...?
• ...through the state forest. Okay, any other questions for the Forestry Commission?

Keywords: 924, joint, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Heather McMillan, Urban and Community Forester with DLNR.
• McMillan Urban and Community Forester McMillan Urban and Community Forester with<00:09:05.720> dlnr
• doing this new mission and planting coconuts, we're not only reclaiming our identity as kanaka or as Native
• doing this new mission and planting coconuts, we're not only reclaiming our identity as kanaka or as Native

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard two measures relating to dogs and coconut trees. On SB 301 SD1, which would add penalties for dog owners whose dogs destroy property on land zoned for a use, testimony was overwhelmingly supportive. Ranchers, farmers, and other testifiers described dogs attacking livestock, trespassing on property, and in some cases injuring people and killing goats or chickens. Several speakers urged stronger penalties, owner accountability, and in some cases insurance requirements. The Hawaii Farm Bureau also supported the bill, saying it would strengthen existing law and help protect agricultural producers. The committee noted there were 13 testimonies in support, none opposed, and no comments. The committee then heard SB 1582, which recognizes the coconut palm as an official sustainable staple food source in the state. Testimony was uniformly supportive from DLNR, the Hawaii Farm Bureau, Niu Now, and individual speakers who described the cultural, spiritual, and practical importance of niu/coconut in Hawaiian life, as well as its value as a food source and the need to protect it from the coconut rhinoceros beetle. Several speakers also emphasized biosecurity and continued funding for invasive species control. The committee stated there were 20 testimonies in support, none opposed, and no comments. In decision making, the committee recommended both measures be passed as is. SB 301 SD1 was adopted with four votes in favor and one no vote. SB 1582 was adopted unanimously, with five votes in favor.

Transcript Highlights:

• The most effective tool to reduce catastrophic wildfire risk is responsible long-term forest management
• Working forest management plans developed by landowners serve as living long-term plans for sustainable
• forest stewardship.
• Under current law, a planned harvest area sustainable forest stewardship.
• I respectfully ask for an aye vote. allowing landowners to manage forests more comprehensively.

Summary: The Assembly convened, established a quorum, offered a prayer and Pledge of Allegiance, and then took up a long third-reading file with several guest introductions and ceremonial resolutions. Early floor action included AB 713, allowing undocumented students equal access to campus jobs at UC, CSU, and community colleges, and AB 1049, streamlining California Food Assistance Program applications for low-income immigrant families; both passed. The body also defeated an amendment to AB 1421, a bill to begin studying a statewide mileage-based road user charge, before passing the measure. AB 1171, modernizing part-time community college faculty health insurance access, also passed with strong support. The Assembly then approved a series of policy bills on animals, domestic violence, telehealth for autism services, forestry, false lien filings, tianeptine restrictions, housing, common interest development fee transparency, prison sexual abuse accountability, PBM reporting, foster youth benefits protections, illegal dumping and abandoned RV removal, condo financing/liquidated damages, public contracting, pension-related study language, climate resiliency research funding, and a disposable vape reduction measure. Most passed with broad margins; AB 762 on vapor inhalation devices drew the most debate, with supporters emphasizing landfill fires and public health and opponents warning about revenue losses and illicit-market growth, but it still passed. AB 1406 on condo development financing drew extensive discussion about housing affordability and consumer protections before passing. The chamber also adopted three resolutions: ACR 120 declaring January 2026 Positive Parenting Awareness Month, ACR 121 designating January 2026 National Mentoring Month, and ACR 122 designating Anesthesiologist Week. Later, the Assembly concurred in Senate amendments on AB 1485, extending welfare-tax exemption treatment to federally recognized tribes holding land for conservation, and adopted the consent calendar, which included several additional bills and SCR 6. The session ended with adjournment until February 2, 2016, after which several members recorded vote changes from the floor.

Transcript Highlights:

• Alex Luma on behalf of Pacific Forest Trust, Defenders of Wildlife, California Native Plant Society,
• Good morning, Alex Luma on behalf of Pacific Forest Trust, defenders of wildlife, California of Plant
• One is that GGRF has committed $200 million annually to various wildfire prevention and forest health
• To make our forests and landscapes healthy.
• forest issue to any length.

Summary: The Budget Subcommittee No. 4 hearing focused on the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) and cap-and-trade reauthorization, with members and panelists discussing how to balance climate goals, affordability, and legislative oversight. The chair emphasized the hearing as a broad review of past GGRF spending and future options, while the LAO outlined how GGRF revenues are generated, how variable they have been, and the tradeoffs between continuous appropriations and annual budget control. Two academic panelists, Dr. Kyle Meng and Danny Cullen Ward, argued that cap-and-trade remains an effective climate policy, but stressed that future revenue will depend heavily on market design, allowance allocation, and price levels. They also raised the idea that GGRF could be used more directly for affordability, especially by lowering electricity costs, and for targeted investments in technologies that the market would not otherwise support. Committee members pressed the panelists on where revenues come from, how much has actually been spent, and whether continuous appropriations reduce oversight. CARB staff said more than $33 billion has been generated to date and a little over $11–12 billion has been spent, with the rest committed or in process, and noted that project timelines can be lengthy. Members also asked about ways to lower electricity rates, reduce wildfire-related utility liabilities, and support electrification. The panelists said transportation fuels are the largest source of GGRF revenue, that industrial emitters receive a smaller share of free allowances, and that reducing wildfire liability and investing in grid-scale batteries could help lower costs and speed decarbonization. Public commenters largely urged the Legislature to preserve or expand continuous appropriations for specific climate programs. Speakers supported funding for nature-based solutions, natural and working lands, urban greening, agricultural climate solutions, waste and composting programs, clean transportation, AB 617 community air protection, clean cars, transit, affordable housing near transit, and dairy digesters. Several groups argued these programs are cost-effective, provide public health and affordability benefits, and should receive dedicated shares of GGRF. Others urged reducing free allowances and using more GGRF revenue to directly lower energy costs for households. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• The time has come for California to finally honor Native American Day as a paid state holiday.
• keep forests and ecosystems healthy.
• Assembly Bill 2494 by Assembly Member Rogers and an act relating to the State Forest.
• And a lot of it is due to the shifting definitions of what we've done to forest management.
• and to work through proper forest management techniques.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Summary: The Assembly convened in session, established a quorum, offered a prayer and pledge, and then moved through a very large third-reading file while urging members to be at their desks for their bills. The day featured many support measures on housing, health care, public safety, local government, labor, education, and consumer protection, with repeated reminders that absent authors would have their bills skipped. Several bills were passed temporarily or retained on file, but the chamber spent most of the time taking up individual measures and voting on them. Among the bills discussed were measures on land surveying, nurse midwifery access, historic-district transit zoning, EV charging infrastructure, foreclosure equity protections, tribal inclusion in interstate cannabis commerce, outdoor advertising permitting delays, commercial building permit timelines, DUI penalties, farmworker disadvantaged-community designation, restaurant reservation bots, open-space tax exemptions, pop-up business permits, anti-hate training for officials, sideshows and street takeovers, utility rate transparency, CalWORKs eligibility, dynamic electricity rates, interior designer licensure, compost contamination, modular housing standards, small claims limits for businesses, Native American Day as a paid state holiday, rural maternity care funding, protective orders tied to defendant release, immigrant service provider privacy under Safe at Home, mentally disordered offender evaluations, compounded weight-loss drug regulation, plasma donation center rules, missing persons DNA database updates, AI chatbot safeguards for children, an official state apology to California Native peoples, foster youth housing navigation, CTE teacher credentialing, Medi-Cal protections against federal cuts, CalFresh protections, public hospital physician employment authority, child care, and film tax credit changes for post-production work. Testimony was generally supportive from authors, who framed the bills as cleanup, modernization, consumer protection, or targeted equity measures. A few measures drew notable opposition or debate, especially AB 2624 on Safe at Home privacy protections for immigrant service providers, where opponents argued it could chill journalism and transparency while supporters said it was needed to protect people facing doxing and threats. AB 2208 and AB 2299 were presented as responses to federal HR 1 impacts on Medi-Cal and CalFresh, and AB 2023 on AI chatbots drew emotional support centered on child safety and a reported suicide case. The chamber also heard strong advocacy for Native American recognition bills, rural health access, and housing affordability. Most bills passed with little or no opposition, often unanimously. Recorded votes included AB 1933 (48-0), AB 1696 (49-0), AB 2415 (54-0), AB 1820 (50-0), AB 1957 (53-0), AB 2506 (60-0), AB 2024 (58-0), AB 2418 (61-0), AB 1578 (44-17), AB 1600 (46-9), AB 1661 (44-10), AB 1715 (46-7), AB 1755 (66-0), AB 1787 (43-5), AB 1796 (45-6), AB 1812 (47-1), AB 1815 (57-0), AB 1827 (59-0), AB 1841 (64-0), AB 1868 (61-0), AB 1882 (64-0), AB 1889 (69-0), AB 2624 (49-19), AB 1897 (57-1), AB 1990 (52-0), AB 2009 (65-0), AB 2018 (60-0), AB 2023 (58-8), AB 2115 (65-0), AB 2162 (60-0), AB 2206 (62-0), AB 2208 (42-17), AB 2237 (54-0), AB 2241 (62-0), AB 2246 (56-1), AB 2249 (51-0), AB 2299 (51-1), AB 2311 (65-0), and AB 2314 (68-0). The session ended with the Assembly still working through the file, including the opening of AB 2319 on film tax credits.

Bills: SB2097, SB2317, SB2319, SB2177, SB2190, SB2424, SB2524, SB2627, SB3084, SB895, SB896, SB3102, SB3157, SB3215, SB2050, SB2090, SB2211, SB2572, SB2096, SB2025, SB2127, SB2046, SB2262, SB2354, SB2387, SB2487, SB2955, SB3234, SB2851, SB2573, SB2391, SB3282, SB3055, SB2189, SB2194, SB3152, SB2635, SB888, SB2203, SCR1, SCR2, SCR3, SCR4, SCR5, SCR6, SCR7, SCR8, SCR9, SCR10, SCR11, SCR12, SCR13, SCR14, SCR15, SCR16, SCR17, SCR18, SCR19, SCR20, SCR21, SCR22, SR3, SR5, SR6, SR7, SR8, SR9, SR10, SR11, SR12, SR13, SR14, SR15, SR16, SR17, SR18, SR19, SB2010, SB3118, SB3276

Keywords: sustainable agriculture, climate adaptation, food system resilience, grant program, Hawaii agriculture, agriculture, insurance, small producers, state support, biosecurity, farm coverage, public-private partnerships, agricultural policy, grant funding, food security, climate resiliency, housing development, zoning exemption, government assistance, affordable housing

Bills: SB2097, SB2317, SB2319, SB2177, SB2190, SB2424, SB2524, SB2627, SB3084, SB895, SB896, SB3102, SB3157, SB3215, SB2050, SB2090, SB2211, SB2572, SB2096, SB2025, SB2127, SB2046, SB2262, SB2354, SB2387, SB2487, SB2955, SB3234, SB2851, SB2573, SB2391, SB3282, SB3055, SB2189, SB2194, SB3152, SB2635, SB888, SB2203, SCR1, SCR2, SCR3, SCR4, SCR5, SCR6, SCR7, SCR8, SCR9, SCR10, SCR11, SCR12, SCR13, SCR14, SCR15, SCR16, SCR17, SCR18, SCR19, SCR20, SCR21, SCR22, SR3, SR5, SR6, SR7, SR8, SR9, SR10, SR11, SR12, SR13, SR14, SR15, SR16, SR17, SR18, SR19, SB2010, SB3118, SB3276

Keywords: sustainable agriculture, climate adaptation, food system resilience, grant program, Hawaii agriculture, agriculture, insurance, small producers, state support, biosecurity, farm coverage, public-private partnerships, agricultural policy, grant funding, food security, climate resiliency, housing development, zoning exemption, government assistance, affordable housing

Transcript Highlights:

• Good morning, Alex Loomer on behalf of Pacific Forest Trust, Defenders of Wildlife, California Native
• For example, Forest Health, which I know is priority for a number of members that's one that does have
• One is that GGRF has committed $200 million annually to various wildfire prevention and forest health
• You do a forest treatment and it's not just like a one and done and you can leave it and you've done
• And forest health investments are very cost-effective in terms of carbon reductions.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Forest Service.
• Over a third of that is in forest land.
• Engaging and managing in those forests—those forests are a pathway, as we learned in the Dixie and Caldor
• It's different because shrublands are not forests. They don't act like forests.
• They don't behave like forests. Fire doesn't work the same way as it does in forests.

Summary: The hearing focused on California wildfire resilience, with the first panel discussing statewide funding, policy, and strategic priorities, and the second panel shifting to home hardening and defensible space. The LAO outlined the state’s wildfire risk, the large increase in resilience spending in recent years, and the fact that most funding has been one-time rather than ongoing. Testimony emphasized that wildfire risk varies greatly by region, that the state must balance response spending with prevention, and that success should be measured more carefully than by acres treated alone. Witnesses also noted the importance of local, federal, utility, and Proposition 4 funding sources, as well as the need for long-term maintenance and strategic prioritization rather than scattered projects. Cal Fire leadership and other witnesses stressed that California’s wildfire problem is not uniform: forested areas, chaparral, and wildland-urban interface communities require different strategies. In Northern California and forested watersheds, speakers emphasized fuels reduction, prescribed and cultural burning, strategic fuel breaks, watershed protection, and maintaining forest health. In Southern California, testimony focused on wind-driven fires, ember intrusion, ignition prevention along roads and power lines, and the limits of large-scale vegetation clearing. Several witnesses argued that the state should invest where it can leverage local and regional partnerships, support capacity-building programs like Regional Forest and Fire Capacity, and improve data systems to track treatment effectiveness and project outcomes. Members repeatedly pressed witnesses on how to prioritize limited funds, asking what should be done more of, less of, and first. The chair argued that protecting homes and communities through hardening and defensible space should be a major priority, especially near structures, while also acknowledging the need for broader landscape work and watershed protection. There was discussion of incentives such as insurance discounts, property tax treatment, and community certification for hardened homes, along with the need for multiple payers rather than relying on the state alone. Cal Fire reported new and expanding data tools, including treatment trackers, defensible space inspection dashboards, and a fuels treatment effectiveness program that evaluates whether nearby treatments affected wildfire behavior. No votes were taken because the hearing was informational only.

Transcript Highlights:

• In the field events, Scotty Vines, the Colorado native, brought an impressive native, brought an impressive
• The SBA's office has proved to be a valuable resource to Native American Indians, Alaskan Natives, and
• Too often, Native businesses and Native business owners face challenges that make it harder to get their
• Native American-owned businesses are economic...
• By helping American Indians, Alaskan Natives, and Native Hawaiians launch, grow, and expand their small

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• By farming, and Native American culture.
• not apply when the BLM or the Forest not apply when the BLM or the Forest Service<00:43:49.520><
• sales, hazardous fuels reduction, forest sales, hazardous fuels reduction, forest health<01:36:27.040
• is wild horse uh population in Forest is wild horse uh population in Forest Service<01:40:51.520
• <01:41:11.760> service the how that affects forest service the how that affects forest service

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• years old who are Native American.
• And if you looked at our ranch, you knew natives had been all over this ranch at a prior time.
• We've also got issues with our rivers being choked with non-native species.
• Our forests are just waiting for the next catastrophic fire. or flood.
• They have not agreed to put it in the pasture range forest PRF yet We're not giving up.

Transcript Highlights:

• DHSCM and the state forester have made those comments to, you know, our national forest partners.
• I'm not saying that's because of the forest over-forestation, but I do think...
• fight through forest management.
• Forest Service were as aggressive as our State Forester, we might be getting something done.
• Forest Service to the table on this.

Transcript Highlights:

• I am here with my friends from Forest Lake asking for, and I want to thank you first for hearing this
• bill and for everything that you've done in the past for Forest Lake and veterans because it really
• This is a huge project in Forest Lake.
• Our Native News initiative includes a Native news art focus as well as the North Star Journey piece,
• news uh initiative includes a our native news uh initiative includes a native<01:08:55.000> news<

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Urban forests are critical for resilience within our communities, and through our grants, we plan to
• Urban forests are critical for resilience within our communities.
• Forty-three of those are IRA funds through the Forest Service, where we continue to provide a variety
• of urban forest grants.
• have the roadmaps to increase urban forest canopies.

Summary: The subcommittee heard presentations on the administration’s Proposition 4 spending plans for extreme heat mitigation and outdoor access, then took up SB 54 implementation, SB 707 textile producer responsibility, and recovery needs related to the Los Angeles fires at state parks. For the extreme heat chapter, agencies described funding for the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program, urban greening, urban forestry, fairground upgrades, and technical assistance for community-based climate programs. Witnesses emphasized that these are existing programs with strong demand, that technical assistance is important for reaching disadvantaged and tribal communities, and that the proposed funding would expand outreach and implementation capacity. Members asked for more detail on where funds have gone geographically, examples of successful projects, tree-planting totals, and how fairgrounds could better support fire staging and emergency preparedness. The LAO said the timing of the administration’s proposed funding generally made sense because the programs are already established, and no votes were taken. For outdoor access, State Parks, Fish and Wildlife, and Natural Resources described funding for new parks in underserved communities, deferred maintenance, state lands access, and several new or pending programs. State Parks said the park development program would fund roughly 48 projects and that deferred maintenance funding would address high-priority health, safety, and access needs. Fish and Wildlife said its lands program would improve visitor amenities and access on properties that often lack basic facilities. The Natural Resources Agency also outlined three newer outdoor-access proposals: expanding recreation in disadvantaged communities, enhancing natural resource values and trail access, and a nature/climate/education facilities grant program. The LAO distinguished between existing programs, which are ready to move forward, and the newer proposals, where the Legislature may want more input before funds are allocated. Members also raised concerns about park police vacancies, the need to track outcomes for accessibility investments, and whether Prop. 4 could help with wildfire-related recovery at state parks. CalRecycle then presented on SB 54, the plastics and packaging producer responsibility law, and members pressed hard on the delay in regulations. CalRecycle said it has held workshops, formed an advisory committee, selected the producer responsibility organization, and completed required baseline and covered-material reports, but needs more time to address complex comments and novel features such as source reduction and eco-modulated fees. Members expressed frustration that a statutory deadline was missed and asked for a concrete timeline; CalRecycle said it expects regulations in place by 2026, ahead of the PRO’s January 1, 2027 plan deadline. Finance said the Beverage Container Recycling Fund is currently healthy enough to support short-term loans for implementation. The committee also reviewed SB 707, the textile EPR law, which would create the nation’s first textile producer responsibility program; staff said the proposal would add positions and loan authority, and members noted the statutory deadlines for PRO approval, needs assessment, and later regulations. The hearing ended with discussion of the January Los Angeles fires’ damage to Topanga State Park and Will Rogers State Historic Park, where State Parks described extensive losses, emergency response work, and ongoing damage assessment. Members asked about FEMA eligibility, state funding sources, and community engagement in rebuilding, and the department said it is still assessing costs and will work with the public on reimagining the parks.

Transcript Highlights:

• , and Native Hawaiians as part of that.
• with me is a great willingness to understand and to work through many of the challenges that are Our native
• like implementing the compacts of free association and working to support the interests of Alaska Natives
• , Native Hawaiians, and American Indians.
• We see It in Maine in our forests and in our oceans.