Transcript Highlights:

• We will move on to General Schwarzer. Good evening. General Tom Schwarzer: Good evening.
• I'm Major General Tom Schwarzer, the Adjutant General of the Texas Military Department.
• Chair: ...move on to General Schwarzer. Good evening. General Tom Schwarzer: Good evening.
• I'm Major General Tom Schwarzer, the Adjutant General of the Texas Military Department.
• I'm Major General Tom Schwarzer, the Adjutant General of the Texas Military Department.

Bills: SB 1

Keywords: campground safety, youth camp regulations, flood safety, emergency evacuation, health and safety standards, 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Near General Fund Outlook... NGFO, or Near General Fund Outlook.
• You see General Gov on the screen.
• Supplemental operating budget included 1% of general fund appropriations for fiscal 26 and 0.9% of general
• These would be an assumption of general fund monies left unspent.
• They've generally been an hour to even an hour and a half.

Keywords: 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• General fund only. General fund only. $48 to $50 billion a year. General fund only.
• I think that, in general, firms will tend to do some combination of the two.
• Is it going into the general fund? This funding would support Medi-Cal.
• I said generally that was not the case; that those are free general fund dollars that we could use to
• So the rate is set to generate the $2.3 billion.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary...
• Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary...
• the General Laws.
• As you said, it increases unrestricted general government aid by 10%.
• Unrestricted general government aid. Thank you.

Summary: The House first adopted several ceremonial resolutions congratulating three Eagle Scouts, then concurred in Senate amendments to House bills affecting the town of Milford’s alcohol licensing law and the town of Middleton’s charter. It also passed to enact a Senate bill on maintenance of private roads in Gloucester and engrossed a House bill allowing Plymouth to create a special revenue account for land acquisition. The chamber later observed moments of silence for former Lynn City Councilor Richard “Rick” Ford, Portuguese American community leader Louis Pedroso, and Quincy veteran Mildred “Millie” Cox, and welcomed several guest groups and dignitaries, including students from Fall River, D.A.R. Good Citizen award recipients, and a British minister visiting the State House. Most of the floor session centered on FY27 budget amendments, especially housing and shelter policy. Members debated and rejected multiple Republican amendments that would have tightened eligibility for the HomeBASE and emergency shelter programs by requiring citizenship or limiting access to U.S. citizens with Massachusetts residency, with supporters arguing the changes would reduce costs and opponents saying the programs already have strict eligibility rules and that the proposals would exclude lawful residents and vulnerable families. The House also rejected an amendment to block Housing and Livable Communities grants from being conditioned on MBTA Communities Act compliance, with supporters calling it a reprieve for noncompliant towns and opponents saying the law is helping address the housing shortage. A consolidated housing/environment amendment was then adopted 154-0, funding major housing, shelter, clean water, climate, and food assistance accounts. The chamber also defeated amendments to create a data center commission and to eliminate the vocational-technical school admissions lottery, though the latter was withdrawn after debate. Another rejected amendment would have suspended public policy and public benefit charges on electric and gas bills; opponents said that would eliminate low-income and senior bill relief. The House then turned to education-related amendments, rejecting proposals to change special education reimbursement formulas and to raise the reimbursement rate from 75% to 80%, with opponents arguing the ideas needed committee review and cost analysis. Finally, the House began debating an amendment to fully fund regional school transportation by removing “subject to appropriation,” but the transcript ends before any final vote on that item.

Transcript Highlights:

• First, it aligns Missouri's general personal injury time...
• So I would say generally no, I would still be against that.
• So it's what we call general liability claims.
• So it's what we call general liability claims.
• Generally speaking, but not always.

Summary: The committee first heard House Bill 1645, which would reduce Missouri’s general personal injury statute of limitations from five years to two years for claims after August 28, 2026, while also extending the civil statute of limitations for child sexual abuse claims from 10 years to 20 years after the victim turns 21. Representative Overcast and supporters from the insurance and business communities argued the change would improve Missouri’s business climate, lower insurance costs, and align the state with most others; opponents, including trial lawyers and victim advocates, warned that shortening the filing window would harm injured adults and sexual abuse survivors who need more time to come forward. Representative Sites supported the child sexual abuse expansion but said broader retroactivity work was still ongoing. No vote was taken in the hearing itself, but the bill drew both support and opposition testimony. The committee then heard House Bill 1610 and House Bill 2182, both of which were described as similar proposals to shorten the general civil statute of limitations, with HB 1610 moving from five years to three years and HB 2182 moving from five years to two years. Supporters repeated the same business-climate and insurance-rate arguments, while opponents repeated concerns about access to justice and the time needed to investigate complex injuries. Several witnesses from the insurance, chamber, farm bureau, railroad, and business groups testified in support, and some said they preferred two years over three. The chair noted the testimony was largely repetitive across the bills, and the hearings concluded without recorded votes in the transcript. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 2714, which would change Missouri from a pure comparative fault system to a modified comparative fault system, barring recovery if a plaintiff is found more than 50% at fault. The sponsor and supporters said the bill would make Missouri more business-friendly and more consistent with neighboring states, while opponents from the trial bar argued it would unfairly cut off recovery for injured people and that juries already apportion fault under current law. Testimony focused on how fault percentages are determined, the effect on settlements and trials, and examples such as car crashes and product liability cases. The hearing ended with continued opposition testimony and no final committee action reported in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• representation of the contents general representation of the contents of<00:03:31.680><c> article</c
• To that we add an and the general fund.
• And to that, we add an general fund.
• I know and say this often: the DOC's budget is 97% from the state general fund.
• The DOC's budget is 97% from the state general fund.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• General.
• General, Office of Inspector General.
• I am the Inspector General. With me today is Sean Spillane, my Chief Deputy Inspector General.
• I'd like to hear from the Inspector General as well as the wardens.
• Now, my question to our Office of Inspector General and to...

Summary: The hearing focused first on sexual abuse, harassment, and retaliation in California’s women’s prisons, with testimony from CDCR wardens, the Office of Inspector General, advocacy groups, and formerly incarcerated survivors. Legislators and witnesses described a pattern of staff misconduct, fear of retaliation, gaps in reporting, and the need for stronger accountability, better investigations, and more outside access for survivor support organizations. CDCR said it has expanded training, body-worn and stationary cameras, outside partnerships, and PREA-related response procedures, while the Inspector General requested additional funding and staff to monitor more grievances and staff sexual misconduct cases under SB 1069. Members pressed CDCR on why accused staff are not always placed on leave, how cases are referred to prosecutors, and whether current protections are enough; several members argued the state should aim to investigate all complaints and do more to prevent retaliation and repeat abuse. The second issue was rehabilitative and reentry programming in women’s prisons. CDCR’s Division of Rehabilitative Programs and the wardens highlighted education, vocational training, substance use treatment, peer support, and community reentry programs, citing increased enrollment and recent graduates earning diplomas, degrees, and certifications. They said these programs are intended to reduce recidivism and improve public safety. Formerly incarcerated advocates and community providers argued that current offerings are still too limited, outdated, and not aligned with today’s job market, especially around digital literacy and transferable credentials, and they urged more funding for community-based, trauma-informed, gender-responsive programming. A coalition representative asked for a $20 million continuation and expansion of the Wright Grant program, and members discussed additional budget requests for reentry and related women’s services.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's COs and General Obligation bonds? And anticipation notes, though.
• General Obligation bonds are voted for by the taxpayers.
• So, can general obligation bonds pay off previous COs?
• I serve as the General Counsel and Director of Public Policy for the Baptist General Convention of Texas
• Generally, if you have a question, you're talking to a real person.

Bills: HB1453, HB1718, HB2043, HB2207, HB2798

Keywords: local governments, anticipation notes, certificates of obligation, public works, flood control, financial management, local government, municipal financing, private activity bonds, closing definition, real estate finance, bond issuance, government regulation, bond election, general obligation bonds, GO bonds, political subdivision, city bonds, county bonds, school district bonds

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> resources for next generation AI. resources for next generation AI.
• </c><00:32:00.799><c> uh</c> just the ethics of AI in general uh just the ethics of AI in general uh
• </c> talking about the impact of generative talking about the impact of generative AI<00:48:56.480><c
• </c><00:50:54.559><c> generative</c><00:50:55.040><c> AI</c> closer to 80% today. generative AI closer
• This is just generative AI.

Bills: HF1316, HF4369

Keywords: HF1316, child support, new hire reporting, centralized work reporting system, independent contractors, payors, employers, payor of funds, withholding orders, income withholding, child support enforcement, Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families, gig economy, rideshare drivers, delivery drivers, 1099, W-9, W-4, newly hired workers, rehired employees

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm Bartlett Cleland, general counsel for NetChoice.
• Chair, as we get closer to talking about the bill generally.
• when we literally have the less generous when we literally have the most<00:21:57.919><c> generous</
• This is going to generate a lot of revenue for the state that way.
• Our data centers generally will travel around the country in building these.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Right, next up is Lauren, Deputy Solicitor General for the Attorney General, on Zoom, I believe.
• for the Attorney solicitor general for the Attorney General<00:02:33.640><c> on</c><00:02:33.840><c>
• generation generation make<00:18:00.120><c> them</c><00:18:01.080><c> either</c><00:18:01.440><c> set
• </c> attorney the deputy attorney general attorney the deputy attorney general didn't<01:16:07.400><c
• </c><01:21:15.960><c> making</c> suggested by the Attorney General making suggested by the Attorney General

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Judiciary Committee heard SB 1231, which would repeal the Parentage Uniform Act of 1973 and update Hawaii’s parentage laws, including parts of the Uniform Parentage Act of 2017. Supporters said the current statutes are outdated and do not adequately address assisted reproduction, surrogacy, and modern family formation. The Attorney General’s office supported the bill with technical amendments, including conforming changes to the Probate Code and child support provisions, and several testifiers urged passage as a needed modernization of the law. A major point of disagreement was Part 10, which concerns donor anonymity. Some supporters, including members of the task force, the Uniform Law Commission, fertility and family law practitioners, and LGBTQ+ advocates, backed the bill as written or said it should move forward even if Part 10 is removed. Others, including donor-conceived adults, parents, and advocacy groups, opposed Part 10 and urged the committee to adopt the 2024 version of Article 9 or delete Part 10 entirely, arguing that anonymous donation harms donor-conceived people’s access to genetic, medical, and identity information and that anonymity is not realistic in the DNA-testing era. One task force member and attorney said she supported the bill but preferred removing Part 10 if necessary to pass the rest. The hearing included extensive public testimony both in support and opposition, with many individuals describing personal experiences with adoption, IVF, surrogacy, and donor conception. No committee vote or final action on the bill was taken during the portion of the hearing provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• And the money from that would go into a statutory revision fund as opposed to the general revenue fund
• at least twice a year, and that we have 30 days to appoint a chairman after the convening of the General
• In excess of $250,000 or more to do a general republication.
• This is the first time the General Assembly is seeing it, to my knowledge?
• The general republication really funds us for that 10 years. It gives us that amount.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And also we've had discussions in General Laws Committee on bills.
• So is your position that the Attorney General is asking for this?
• So intent of the General Assembly, intent of a legislator.
• Our purpose here is not to generate…” “The purpose of our purpose here is not to generate litigation
• or generate legal fees.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The act defines motor fuel in part as any liquid product used for the generation of power in an internal
• Larger projects will generate more competitive bids from contractors, lowering costs and helping attract
• The bill establishes requirements and conditions for the use of portable solar generation devices and
• It requires a customer to notify their electric utility prior to installing a portable generation device
• Streamlining consumer-owned utility procurement requirements for clean energy generation, energy storage

Summary: The Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee first held a public hearing on SB 6269, which updates the Motor Fuel Quality Act to broaden the definition of motor fuel to include gaseous fuels and electricity and remove the separate alternative fuel definition. Staff and the Department of Agriculture said the change would let WSDA inspect and test hydrogen and other newer fuels; Commerce and Douglas County PUD supported the bill as needed for hydrogen fueling infrastructure. The bill drew no opposition testimony, and the hearing closed with the chair noting broad support. The committee then heard SB 6223, which would authorize community-scale weatherization projects under the low-income weatherization program. Supporters from community action, Spark Northwest, Commerce, and Washington Conservation Action said the bill would let the state weatherize multiple homes at once, improve health and safety, reduce energy burdens, and help meet climate and grid goals more quickly. Staff said the bill has a fiscal note for rulemaking and administration. The hearing ended with strong support and no opposition testimony. In executive session, the committee adopted proposed substitutes and passed SB 5982, SB 6050, SB 5965, SB 6010, SB 5984, SB 6076, and SB 5652 to the Rules Committee or Ways and Means, depending on the bill. Amendments were adopted on SB 5965 to adjust carryout bag provisions, while amendments on SB 6010 were not adopted. SB 5982 would update CETA-related utility definitions and reporting, SB 6050 addresses distributed energy resources and utility rules, SB 5965 revises carryout bag requirements, SB 6010 concerns EFSEC tribal consultation, SB 5984 regulates AI companion chatbots, SB 6076 streamlines procurement for certain clean energy projects, and SB 5652 concerns environmental and health mitigation in large port districts. The committee also noted it would not take action that day on SB 5975 and SB 5466.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate rule eleven point two zero issue one or more subpoenas to compel the assistant Attorney General
• Harmeet Dhillon, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Michael E.
• The letter, as I mentioned earlier, was directed to the Attorney General and to the Governor.
• The Attorney General, through a personal letter to the DOJ and through the The actions of his counsel
• It was only directed to the Attorney General and to the governor.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We have Major General Thomas Seltzer. Adjutant General of the State of Texas. We have Ms.
• Would Major General Seltzer please take over? Thank you, Mr. Chair.
• General, I move that Senator Hancock be vice chair. I second.
• Thank you, General. We will now proceed to the testimony.
• Vice Chair, Major General, and Mrs. Tomlin and Mrs. Pumphrey.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's another appropriation from their general fund?
• They generally know the attorneys in their communities.
• Like we don't generally get involved in that.
• Like we don't generally get involved in that.
• That's different from fees, which we consider revenue generators.

Summary: The Judiciary Interim Committee met to begin its study of charitable gaming and the ownership of alcoholic beverage establishments by licensed charitable gaming organizations, a study directed by Senate Bill 2334. Legislative Council gave an overview of the constitutional and statutory framework for charitable gaming, site authorizations, rent limits, proceeds, and recent legislative changes. The Attorney General’s Gaming Division then clarified the financial flow of gaming, explaining that in fiscal year 2025 North Dakota had about $2.5 billion in gross gaming proceeds, with roughly 88-90% paid back in prizes and about $256 million available to organizations after taxes; most of that activity came from electronic pull tabs. Members asked for more detail on winnings, replays, rent, and the breakdown of manufacturer/distributor revenues, and the AG’s office agreed to provide supplemental information. The committee also heard from the League of Cities and the Association of Counties about local site authorization. Cities said they have a limited role in approving gaming sites, can adopt policies after public hearing, may charge up to $100, and can set certain conditions, including local nexus requirements, but cannot require donations or force a specific charity or site. The League said it had worked with stakeholders on a model policy to provide more consistency, though members raised concerns that local requirements could become too restrictive for charities serving broader areas. Counties said the issue is mostly a city matter, with little county involvement beyond minimal site fees and general site approval. The North Dakota Gaming Alliance testified in support of the study and provided IRS-related material suggesting charities may use asset diversification, while emphasizing it had not taken a position on whether charities should own bars. Members questioned whether bar ownership is being used for site stability or to channel charitable gaming dollars, and whether city policies might disadvantage charities with broader missions. The committee also discussed the relationship between gaming organizations, manufacturers, and distributors, including restrictions on incentives and interference, and asked for more information on those entities and their ownership. Later in the meeting, the Racing Commission gave its regular update on live racing, pari-mutuel wagering, ADW providers, purse and promotion funds, a new TRPB contract, and concerns about cease-and-desist actions from other states. Finally, the State Hospital superintendent briefly reported on the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s support services, including the SORT team, training, and security assistance for the hospital campus.

Transcript Highlights:

• Our general fund balance, I mean, our general fund revenues are at $19 million.
• , unless they're exempt, is deposited into the general revenue fund.
• On the SCRF is being deposited into the general revenue fund and collected by the comptroller, not for
• The committee substitute solely amends the Government Code to exempt the SCRF from the General Revenue
• During the last biennium fiscal year 22-23, $6.08 million was generated from these permit fees.

Bills: HB1589, HB2208, HB2297, HB2560, HB2725, HB3080, HB4417, HB4473, HB4520, HB4662, HB4888, HB4905, HB4906

Keywords: HB 1589, toll road, toll project, toll project entity, voter approval, local control, county election, commissioners court, Transportation Code, Chapter 372, road construction, highway funding, infrastructure, public referendum, ballot measure, transportation policy, Texas toll roads, regional mobility, toll collection, vehicle registration

Transcript Highlights:

• But most small businesses do not start off generating very much revenue.
• But most small businesses do not start off generating very much revenue.
• It amends Massachusetts General Law, specifically 23J.
• So, as I mentioned, our Attorney General, as well as Iowa and three other states' attorneys general,
• Third, to report critical safety incidents to the Attorney General.

Summary: The House Bonding Committee met to hear testimony on H. 5527, the Mass Wins Act, with Secretary of Economic Development Eric Paley opening by describing the bill as a follow-on to Mass Leads. He said the proposal includes $305 million in bond authorizations, with $180 million for new programs and $125 million to expand existing ones, plus $140 million in deauthorizations of unused or redundant authorizations. He highlighted investments in applied AI and quantum, robotics, business expansion capital, defense innovation, global business attraction, ag tech and food science, downtowns, and the creative economy, and said the bill is intended to support geographic equity and small business growth across the Commonwealth. Committee members questioned the administration on several policy sections, including the MassCEC climate-tech certification language, housing-related provisions tied to 40B compliance and site plan review, the removal of the LCSW exam, AI transparency and federal preemption concerns, and the effect of lower LLC filing fees. Paley generally said some contested sections were added by the Economic Development Committee rather than the administration, defended the MassCEC discretion language as necessary for climate certification, and said the administration would follow up on committee-added provisions. He also said the bill’s housing provisions were meant to help address the state’s need for more homes and that the deauthorizations were housekeeping measures that did not affect current capital plan projects. Public testimony covered a wide range of topics. AARP and local advocates urged a statewide ban on cryptocurrency ATMs, arguing they are heavily used in scams, impose high fees, and drain money from seniors and local economies. Housing groups supported codifying site plan review and adding parking reform and YIGBY-style housing on faith-owned land. Building trades asked to include off-site fabrication in prevailing wage law. The Massachusetts Public Banking Campaign backed the bill and urged inclusion of a public bank concept. Several witnesses supported Section 106, the Transparency and Frontier AI Act, as a way to require safety plans, audits, incident reporting, and whistleblower protections for the largest AI companies, while an AI startup group argued the section would overregulate smaller firms and should be separated from the bond bill. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• No, this is the general revenue part of it. Is this a general revenue? Okay. All right.
• minority students, and are generally higher in districts with higher letter grades.
• Generally in the southern and eastern parts of the state.
• Retention rates are generally highest in the northern and western parts of the state.
• “We don't send it out generally other than the committees.”

Summary: The committee first approved the May 18 meeting minutes and then received a presentation from Legislative Audit on Arkansas Department of Education grant distributions. Auditors explained that the fiscal year 2025 report summarizes $4.6 billion in grants from state, federal, and miscellaneous sources, across school districts, charter schools, education cooperatives, and other entities, and that the report only shows amounts distributed, not how recipients ultimately used the money. Members asked about specific recipients and programs, including ClassWallet, Economics Arkansas, and CDC surveillance funding; department staff clarified that the Economics Arkansas grant is written into special language and that the CDC-related funding supports student surveys used by state agencies. Questions also focused on bonus and incentive programs such as master principal and National Board Certified teacher bonuses, with department staff saying the bonuses are generally tied to completion of the program or certification rather than classroom performance, though they would follow up on details. The committee then heard a Bureau of Legislative Research update on Consumer Price Index projections from Moody’s Analytics and S&P Global. Dr. Carlos Silva explained the difference between CPI-U and core CPI and said the estimates show inflation slowing over the forecast period, with some near-term variation between the two data providers. Members asked about the historical accuracy of prior projections, and he said the forecasts generally tend to move toward about 2 percent over time, though recent shocks have caused earlier estimates to understate actual inflation. The bulk of the meeting was devoted to the final adequacy report on teacher recruitment, retention, and salaries. BLR staff reviewed Arkansas teacher demographics, shortage areas, educator preparation pipelines, licensure exceptions, survey results from teachers and principals, and teacher support programs. They reported that Arkansas had about 32,800 teachers and 473,000 students in 2025, with an average of 11.9 years of experience and a slight increase in National Board Certified teachers. The report found shortages in multiple subject areas, especially special education, math, science, foreign language, and social studies, and identified 65 districts as high-need geographically. Survey results showed school leadership as the strongest positive factor in recruitment and retention, while workload and salary were the biggest negatives; 30 percent of responding teachers said they were considering leaving the profession. The committee also reviewed teacher salary data showing a statewide average salary of $60,254 in 2025, Arkansas ranking 45th nationally by NEA methodology, and a long-term inflation-adjusted decline in district salaries, though LEARNS Act increases improved the trend. Members asked for additional follow-up information on survey methodology, alternative licensure costs, coursework, incentives for ESL and special education endorsements, exit data, and how salary comparisons are calculated.