Bills: HB1532 , HB2731 , HB3483 , HB4308 , HB4580 , HB4582 , HB5509 , HB5663

Committee: Senate Local Government

Keywords: Lake Houston, dredging, maintenance district, flood control, environment, public works, HB 2731, roadside vendors, solicitors, county regulation, border counties, Mexico border, Transportation Code, unincorporated areas, right-of-way, public highway, parking lot, livestock sales, live animals, vendor regulation

Summary: The Senate Local Government Committee briefly convened and then immediately moved to recess. Senator Paxton made a motion to recess subject to the call of the chair, which was accepted. No bills, testimony, or substantive policy issues were discussed during the meeting. With no other business before the committee, it stood in recess subject to the call of the chair.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's an interest and great support in the community to do work in the area of memory care and see
• money, no extra funding, but a volunteer board within that district to focus solely on this memory care
• And so basically this would be a way to try to collect grants for brain and memory care services to the

Bills: HB1532 , HB2731 , HB3483 , HB4308 , HB4580 , HB4582 , HB5509 , HB5663

Committee: Senate Local Government

Keywords: Lake Houston, dredging, maintenance district, flood control, environment, public works, HB 2731, roadside vendors, solicitors, county regulation, border counties, Mexico border, Transportation Code, unincorporated areas, right-of-way, public highway, parking lot, livestock sales, live animals, vendor regulation

Summary: The committee heard and discussed several local-government-related bills, mostly with committee substitutes. House Bill 2731 would let certain border counties regulate roadside vendors selling live animals in unincorporated areas and along public rights-of-way; the substitute narrowed the bill to live animal sales only and excluded livestock and other roadside commerce. House Bill 3483 would streamline TCEQ review of special utility district revenue bonds by removing tax-bond requirements that do not apply to SUDs. House Bill 4308 would create a county industrial development district framework, limited in the substitute to certain counties including Fort Bend County, to help finance industrial sites and related infrastructure. House Bill 5663 would create a Wood County Hospital District memory-care-focused district with no taxing power, intended to help pursue grants and other funding for a new facility. House Bill 4582 addressed attainable housing in Dallas and Tarrant counties, allowing local reimbursement tools for developers under a uniform, optional framework. House Bill 5509 would let municipalities suspend or revoke a hotel’s certificate of occupancy if law enforcement and a criminal court both find probable cause of human trafficking, with the substitute adding due-process protections. House Bill 1532 created a Lake Houston dredging and maintenance district funded by revenue from dredged material sales and revenue bonds, with no taxing authority or eminent domain. House Bill 23, heard as pending business, would revise the process for local governments to rescind development documents and adjust third-party reviewer liability and eligibility rules. House Bill 4580, concerning property tax exemptions for charitable organizations such as the Houston Rodeo, was amended to remove language about exempting revenue from property use and instead focus on land used for agricultural, youth, and educational support. Public testimony was generally supportive on the bills heard, with witnesses including county officials, utility and water association representatives, hotel industry representatives, and housing developers. Several speakers emphasized the need for faster financing or permitting tools, flood mitigation, housing affordability, anti-trafficking enforcement, or local economic development. Some members raised concerns about scope, precedent, consultation with affected senators, and due process, particularly on House Bill 4582 and House Bill 5509, but the committee largely accepted the committee substitutes as improvements. No public testimony was offered on several bills, and most measures were left pending before later being voted out. The committee took recorded votes on multiple pending bills and reported them favorably, often with committee substitutes adopted in lieu of the filed versions. House Bills 1532, 2731, 3483, 5509, 5663, and 4580 were reported out, with 1532 and 5663 passing unanimously and 3483, 2731, and 5509 also receiving favorable votes despite one present-not-voting on 3483. House Bill 23 and House Bill 4582 were left pending subject to call of the chair. The committee then recessed until adjournment or later.

Transcript Highlights:

• of the state foster care system or juvenile justice system.
• So I think we need to be Very careful on how we look at this.
• Care for those people.
• I would like to continue caring for the Medicaid patients in my practice.
• The bill amends Government Code 540 to allow Medicaid-managed care organizations to provide medical care

Bills: HB136 , HB451 , SB425 , SB466 , SB905 , SB1986 , SB2311 , SB2450 , SB2805 , SB2826 , SB2919 , SB3001 , HB136

Committee: Senate Health & Human Services

Keywords: Medicaid, lactation, healthcare, consultation, reimbursement, maternal health, infant care, commercial sexual exploitation, child sex trafficking, human trafficking, child welfare, foster care, DFPS, Department of Family and Protective Services, juvenile probation, risk assessment, needs assessment, trauma screening, child abuse prevention, exploitation screening

Transcript Highlights:

• with free or subsidized child care.
• cannot afford to pay for child care.
• who regularly care for children or are essential to a licensed child care or family child care center
• I was thinking, like, why just family care? Family care on that one.
• I care about you, Chair West, and I care about what your family went through and all the families that

Bills: HF2436

Committee: House Children and Families Finance and Policy

Keywords: child welfare, economic assistance, child care, grant program, video security cameras

Transcript Highlights:

• Relative Foster Care Payments, again, it's a no-cost item that puts kinship care into part of the program
• There are ways we can ensure children are safe and well cared for in high-quality child care environments
• Child care environments.
• child care is in the personal home of the provider.
• centers. burden on my care centers.

Bills: HF2436

Committee: House Children and Families Finance and Policy

Keywords: child welfare, economic assistance, child care, grant program, video security cameras

Transcript Highlights:

• And so I think long-term, when it comes to the cost of taking care of the health care professionals that
• That means Medicaid can pay for ongoing care in the community and not just short episodes of crisis care
• Senate Bill 1494 prohibits a health care provider, health care institution, or drug manufacturer from
• We're going to take care of it.
• There's health care providers... What? Oh, there's health care per... I was...

Bills: SB1052 , SB1115 , SB1118 , SB1120 , SB1121 , SB1124 , SB1171 , SB1172 , SB1174 , SB1175 , SB1214 , SB1233 , SB1235 , SB1316 , SB1345 , SB1372 , SB1399 , SB1458 , SB1494 , SB1496 , SB1564 , SB1602 , SB1621 , SB1628 , SB1630 , SB1631 , SB1668 , SB1672 , SB1814 , SB1821

Committee: House Health & Human Services

Keywords: assisted living, health care, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, physician orders, informed consent, AHCCCS, remote work, state agency, employment, public health, housing, zoning, middle housing, urban development, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, historic preservation, radiation protection

Transcript Highlights:

• coordination and home care nursing services.
• </c> hospitals to their homes through care hospitals to their homes through care coordination<00:01:25.439
• and home care nursing coordination and home care nursing services.<00:01:27.840><c> The</c><00:01:28.080
• </c> their needs, take care of their needs. their needs, take care of their needs.
• There was no care of all their needs.

Bills: HF3738 , HF2295 , HF3520 , HF3666

Committee: House Human Services Finance and Policy

Keywords: pediatric care, hospital discharge, home care, healthcare accessibility, nursing services, family support, mental health, crisis services, Dakota County, mobile crisis response, public safety, treatment services, rehabilitation, behavioral health fund, client eligibility, home and community-based services, case management, waiver services, county services, disability advocacy

Transcript Highlights:

• I just think we need to be very careful with that.
• I just think we need to be very careful with that.
• The requirement for health care providers to determine...
• I had a conversation with my primary care doctor.
• And health care doesn't happen in isolation.

Bills: S1082 , S1168 , S1756 , S1156 , S1480

Committee: Senate Health Policy

Keywords: provider disputes, health plan, dispute resolution, Medicare, Medicaid, healthcare regulation, background screening, athletic coaches, youth sports, criminal history, expungement, Florida statutes, medical freedom, vaccination, ivermectin, healthcare practitioner liability, immunization exemptions, ambulatory surgical centers, patient safety, licensure

Summary: The committee took up several health-related bills. SB 1082, on a statewide provider and health plan claim dispute resolution program, was presented as a way to let providers and insurers use the federal independent dispute resolution process for emergency out-of-network claims under state-regulated commercial plans. A late-filed amendment clarified when providers and health plans could access the state program, and the bill was reported favorably as a committee substitute. SB 1168, which would centralize background screening clearinghouse functions at the Agency for Health Care Administration, also passed as amended after an amendment requiring sealed and expunged records to be included in screenings for qualified entities. Supporters said centralization would improve turnaround times, reduce duplication, and save costs; the sponsor said the bill also addresses coaches’ background screening language from last session. The committee then approved SB 1156, which moves ambulatory surgery center regulation out of the hospital-focused chapter of law into a standalone section, and SB 1480, as amended by a strike-all, which would grandfather certain temporary certificate holders practicing in areas of critical need if federal designation changes affect those areas. Testimony on SB 1480 emphasized continuity of care for patients in underserved communities, and the bill was reported favorably. The final and most heavily debated measure was SB 1756 on medical freedom, which would require state-approved educational materials on childhood vaccines, require practitioners to provide those materials and alternative schedules before vaccination, expand school immunization exemptions to include conscience-based objections, clarify that the Surgeon General cannot order vaccination during a public health emergency, and authorize pharmacists to provide ivermectin behind the counter without a prescription with written information and safeguards. The sponsor argued the bill strengthens parental choice and informed consent. Committee members raised concerns about vaccine-preventable disease risks, immunocompromised children, school outbreaks, and the impact of adding a new exemption. A Department of Health representative said the department would need to provide details on the history of exemption consultations and noted that removing the earlier consultation requirement had not been shown to increase outbreaks. The committee adopted a friendly amendment to give physicians the same liability protection as pharmacists for ivermectin dispensing, but rejected a substitute amendment that would have required a consultation for exemption requests. Public testimony was overwhelmingly opposed to the bill, with physicians, pediatric specialists, cancer advocates, parents of immunocompromised children, and public health groups warning that it would lower vaccination rates and endanger vulnerable Floridians. The bill remained pending after testimony, with the committee continuing to hear public comment.

Transcript Highlights:

• In addition, it provides the pharmacist care services as it applies to pharmacy rules.
• Page three and four addresses the pharmaceutical care, allowing the pharmacist to decline participation
• throat] excuse me, care, [clears throat] excuse me, allowing<00:03:14.959><c> the</c><00:03:15.120><
• Um, that's part of those pharmacist care services. Yes. Thank you.
• </c> you're talking about pharmacist care you're talking about pharmacist care services.<00:08:55.760

Bills: SF0121

Committee: Senate Labor, Health & Social Services

Keywords: pharmacy, collaborative care, healthcare, prescriptions, patient safety, Wyoming Pharmacy Act, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We made sure that everyone who is being cared for 365, they get the care that they need for 365 days.
• We made sure that everyone who is being cared for 365, they get the care that they need for 365 days.
• We made sure that everyone who is being cared for 365, they get the care that they need for 365 days.
• We made sure that everyone who is being cared for 365, they get the care that they need for 365 days.
• That everyone who is being cared for 365, they get the care that they need for 365 days.

Bills: HF2434

Committee: House Human Services Finance and Policy

Keywords: healthcare, personal care assistance, worker retention, disability services, state funding, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• The language in the bill is Care Peter, and so the intention is Care Peter.
• The language in the bill is Care Peter, and so the intention is Care Peter.
• </c> care and adoption background studies. care and adoption background studies.
• innovative care care model is a proven innovative care model<01:43:15.360><c> with</c><01:43:15.679>
• of patients' care.

Bills: HF2434

Committee: House Human Services Finance and Policy

Keywords: healthcare, personal care assistance, worker retention, disability services, state funding, 1183, house

Bills: HB145 , SB29 , SB37 , SB64 , HB279 , HB292 , SB35 , SB40 , SB43 , SB48 , SB96 , SB143 , HB132 , SB20 , SB21 , SB101 , SJR1 , HJM1 , HM7 , HM17 , HM4 , HM22 , HM23 , HM24 , HM26 , HM2 , HM16 , HM32 , HM13 , HM47 , HM20 , HM51 , HM1 , HM31 , HM35 , HM36 , HM46 , HM53 , HM54 , HM39 , HM29 , HM43 , HM59 , HM30 , HM52 , HM11 , HM14 , HM21 , HM34 , HM50 , HB2 , SB264 , SB241

Keywords: high-wage jobs, tax credit, job creation, New Mexico, economic development, SB29, math requirements for teaching license, teacher licensure, teacher endorsement, mathematics methods, elementary education, secondary education, special education, early childhood education, reciprocity, Public Education Department, Mathematics and Science Education Act, mathematics instructional leadership framework, professional learning plan, K-3 screening

Transcript Highlights:

• And when suicide or overdose happens, we take care of that in the moment. And we don't look back.
• So, whether it be a pain management clinic or primary care doc these guys, the patients just stopped

Bills: HB3043 , HB3044 , HB3078 , HB3940 , HB4117 , HB3428 , HB4275 , HB3257 , HB3901 , HB4298

Committee: House Health and Human Services Oversight

Keywords: HB3043, Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, ODVA, seasonal employees, project labor, pro rata jobs, unclassified service, state personnel law, state employee benefits, paid leave, paid holidays, retirement benefits, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, temporary workers, veterans affairs, Title 72, Oklahoma Personnel Act, budget reporting

Transcript Highlights:

• Sometimes we don't know the gaps, and when suicide or overdose happens, we take care of that in the moment
• , or overdose happens, we take care of that in the moment and we don't look back.
• So whether it be a pain management clinic or primary care doctor, these guys, the patients just stopped
• Members, House Bill 4298 is a request bill from DHS so that whenever there's any rule changes for child care

Bills: HB3043 , HB3044 , HB3078 , HB3940 , HB4117 , HB3428 , HB4275 , HB3257 , HB3901 , HB4298

Committee: House Health and Human Services Oversight

Keywords: HB3043, Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, ODVA, seasonal employees, project labor, pro rata jobs, unclassified service, state personnel law, state employee benefits, paid leave, paid holidays, retirement benefits, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, temporary workers, veterans affairs, Title 72, Oklahoma Personnel Act, budget reporting

Summary: The Health and Human Services Oversight Committee opened with prayer and then heard a series of bills, most of them request bills from state agencies or related to veterans and military matters. House Bill 3043 would let the Oklahoma Dental Board Association hire temporary or PRN workers during peak periods; it passed 11-1. House Bill 3044 would continue an existing tax-return checkoff for donations and passed 12-0. House Bill 3078 would create an online donation option for the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs during license and tax transactions and passed 12-0. House Bill 3940 made a number of cleanup and policy changes to a prior Oklahoma National Guard measure, including retention, benefits, discipline, museum operations, and state active duty pay issues; it passed 11-0. House Bill 4117 would define family resource centers in statute and emphasize faith-based partnerships, workforce development, and braided funding; it passed 12-0. The committee also advanced House Bill 3428, which would require certain businesses to post information about veterans’ benefits in a conspicuous place to help more eligible veterans enroll in benefits; members discussed raising the employee threshold from 50 to 100, but no amendment was adopted during the meeting, and the bill passed 10-2. House Bill 4275 would allow counties and cities to employ case managers and peer support specialists while maintaining certification, to support sheriffs and first responders, and it passed 12-0. House Bill 3257 would treat 100% disabilities caused by VA medical malpractice as service-connected for state benefit purposes, aligning state law with federal treatment, and it passed 12-0. Two public health bills also advanced. House Bill 3901 would authorize psychological autopsies in suicide and overdose cases to better understand causes and improve prevention; members discussed whether the process should include notifying prescribing physicians when patients die from opioid overdoses, and the bill passed 12-0. House Bill 4298 would allow DHS child care rule changes to be distributed by mail and electronically, reflecting current practice, and it passed 12-0. The committee adjourned after reporting all measures do pass.

Transcript Highlights:

• for child care centers.
• caring and capable and compassionate.
• be there taking care of their children.
• We have many deserts where there is no real child care.
• be there taking care of their children.

Bills: SB6078 , SB6089 , SB5859 , SB5861 , SB6065 , SB5956 , SB5901

Committee: Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education

Keywords: SB 6078, child care, childcare, daycare, licensed child care provider, Department of Children, Youth, and Families, DCYF, prelicensing, licensing support, resource guide, child care center, family home child care, family home provider, outdoor nature-based child care, school-age child care, early learning, provider application, local permit notice, city permit, county permit

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, we need to get that fixed, and I know you guys will take care of that.
• I don't care how much it costs, it's costing me nothing.
• And so whenever, whenever somebody invests nothing, why should they care?
• It's, I don't, why should I care? Why should I care how much it costs me?
• And so we try to regulate it instead of letting the free market take care of it.

Bills: HB 741 , HB 1199 , HB 2070 , HB 2402 , HB 2542 , HB 2665 , HB 2789 , HB 3096 , HB 3396 , HB 3595 , HB 3747 , HB 4116 , HB 4127

Committee: House Human Services

Keywords: child welfare, relative caregiver, monetary assistance, Department of Family and Protective Services, child custody, family law, emergency power, nursing facilities, assisted living, generator requirements, health and safety, emergency generators, power outage, emergency generator, assisted living facilities, power source, child abuse, neglect registry, court findings, Medicaid

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm a child care provider.
• I'm a child care provider.
• , high-quality care.
• , high-quality care.
• an organizer with our union because unionized care is quality care.

Bills: SB5808 , HB2254 , HB2385 , SB6006 , SB6351 , SB6198 , SB6260 , SB6353 , SB5949 , SB6129 , SB6228 , SB6231 , SB6229 , SB6173

Committee: Senate Ways & Means

Keywords: health insurance, premium assistance, funding, healthcare access, state budget, HB 2254, Washington, Health Care Authority, partnership access line, psychiatric consultation line, first approach skills training, behavioral health, mental health, assessment, administrative costs, health carriers, self-funded plans, multiple employer welfare arrangement, MEWA, employers

Transcript Highlights:

• So I want to be careful.
• They're serving as an adjunct for health care.
• To be clear, naturopathic care was never instead of any physician's care.
• It was complementary and collaborative care.
• For this type of care and that Floridians have safe alternatives to traditional medical care, and this

Bills: S0688 , S1414 , S0186 , S0902 , S0196 , S1574 , S0878 , S1092 , S1032 , S1684 , S1686 , S1760

Committee: Senate Health Policy

Keywords: cytomegalovirus, education, maternal health, newborn care, infectious diseases, student health, epilepsy, seizure disorders, school safety, training requirements, medical marijuana, low-THC cannabis, neurofibromatosis, healthcare, state regulations, child care facilities, public safety, grant program, uterine fibroids, health database

Summary: The committee took up several health-related bills and confirmations. It first heard SB 1414 on congenital cytomegalovirus education, which would require the Department of Health to develop and distribute educational materials to expectant and new parents through maternity, prenatal, newborn, and OB-GYN settings; an amendment removed a section on required instruction for medical professionals, and the bill was reported favorably as a committee substitute. The committee then approved a block of appointees on tabs 2 through 7 and separately confirmed Chavon Harris as Secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration after her testimony on Medicaid accountability, transparency, managed care oversight, rural health, behavioral health, and the state’s technology modernization efforts. Senators asked Harris about Hope Florida, Medicaid redeterminations, the CORE project, an anti-marijuana ad campaign at DCF, and compliance with a federal Medicaid-related court order; she said she would follow up on some issues. The confirmation was recommended favorably, with Senator Berman voting no. The committee next passed SB 186 on student health and safety, which expands epilepsy and seizure-disorder training requirements to more school personnel, including bus drivers and charter school staff, and requires seizure-first-aid posters and updated Department of Health education efforts. It also approved SB 902 on Department of Health issues after amendments narrowed the bill’s scope and added provisions on medical marijuana regulation, early childhood intervention, practitioner accountability, and autism workforce development; one speaker raised concerns about marijuana dispensary location restrictions and low-THC ratios. SB 196 creating a uterine fibroid research database was also reported favorably after an amendment protecting patient privacy; the bill drew emotional testimony from a patient describing severe symptoms and the need for more research. SB 688 on naturopathic medicine was approved after committee discussion about scope of practice, referral obligations, and whether naturopathic care should be adjunctive to conventional medicine; supporters described complementary care and access issues, while opponents worried about delayed treatment for serious disease. Later, the committee passed SB 1574, “Maddie’s Law,” to add biliary atresia screening to newborn screening using the same blood specimen already collected at birth and to launch an education campaign; parents of a child affected by the disease testified that earlier screening could have prevented severe harm. SB 878 on clinical laboratory personnel was reported favorably to address staffing shortages by allowing Florida to rely more directly on federal CLIA standards for qualified lab workers. SB 1092 on podiatric medicine was approved after an amendment narrowed it to cellular/tissue-based products and podiatrists’ use of certain therapies; the bill also addresses continuing education, informed consent, and advertising disclosures. SB 1032 on medical marijuana was amended and passed, aligning physician certification and card renewal timelines, setting 70-day and 35-day supply limits, and reducing the fee for honorably discharged veterans while preserving funding for FAMU; Senator Harrell opposed it, saying the longer timeframes were too much of an expansion. The committee also heard SB 1760 on Medicaid coverage transparency from Senator Brodeur, who said the bill focuses on accountability and fiscal responsibility, but the transcript cuts off before further discussion or action on that measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• , leading to better care quality.
• So first, small businesses want to provide health care and health care coverage for their employees.
• on preventive care and making sure people are getting care early on to reduce costs.
• Delayed care and worse health outcomes.
• So if you if you care about patient's care... This is the best way to help with the patient's care.

Bills: HB138 , HB335 , HB388 , HB138

Committee: House Insurance

Keywords: health impact analysis, cost analysis, coverage mandates, health insurance, legislative analysis, health care data, education, funding, classroom resources, teacher support, student outcomes, health benefits, provider dentists, payment reimbursement, insurance code, noncontracting, dental care, reimbursement, health benefit plans, noncontracting providers

Transcript Highlights:

• was intended to do is to provide better information to stakeholders and policy makers on how health care
• So the increase of insurance more to take care of an administrative fee you're talking about well I'm
• Uh, and administrative cost apply both to the plans and to the physician. and health care providers.
• That's the cost for you to, to take care of. doing the wig, the mandate.
• We have Texans who, for example, are covered by Medicaid and Medicare. care so this will just provide

Bills: HB138 , HB335 , HB388 , HB138

Committee: House Insurance

Keywords: health impact analysis, cost analysis, coverage mandates, health insurance, legislative analysis, health care data, education, funding, classroom resources, teacher support, student outcomes, health benefits, provider dentists, payment reimbursement, insurance code, noncontracting, dental care, reimbursement, health benefit plans, noncontracting providers