Transcript Highlights:

• And has since killed over 160 million poultry. The illness in cattle remained a mystery.
• Alarmingly, there have been numerous transmissions of the virus from cattle and poultry to farm workers

Transcript Highlights:

• avian influenza, the deadly virus that invaded the U.S. 2022 and has since killed over 160 million poultry
• Alarmingly, there have been numerous transmission... of the virus from cattle and poultry to farm workers

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And is no longer even up to date on what it needs to be to do the work we do, particularly with the poultry

Keywords: 924, joint, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, members, there's, uh, currently an ad valorum tax exemption for farm input products such as poultry

Bills: HB195, HB247, HB255, HJR6, HJR31, HJR34

Keywords: HB 195, Texas Controlled Substances Act, Schedule IV, controlled substances, mifepristone, misoprostol, carisoprodol, Health and Safety Code, drug scheduling, pharmacy regulation, prescription drugs, reproductive health, abortion medication, medication abortion, women's health, prescribing, dispensing, law enforcement, drug control, education reform

Transcript Highlights:

• I am the assistant director for our dairy, meat, and poultry and egg inspection program at MDA, Minnesota

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And it's expanded so much to purchase so many other things that are outside those essentials: the poultry

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The House opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior journal, and introductions of the doctor of the day and numerous guests, including visitors for Lunar New Year, Arizona Statehood Day, school groups, local officials, and community leaders. A proclamation was read honoring Phoenix Ballet and National Ballet Day, and Representative Gress spoke in support of the recognition. The chamber also received committee and membership announcements, including temporary committee substitutions and several bills being re-referred or withdrawn to other committees. On third reading, HB 2190, which would have added Article 5 to Title 32 relating to the Arizona Regulatory Board of Physician Assistants, failed after debate over whether it improperly authorized rulemaking; it was defeated 20-38 with two not voting. The House then took up HB 2206, relating to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program administration, and HB 2396, another SNAP-related bill focused on restricting certain purchases. Members debated the bills at length, with opponents arguing they would burden low-income families, worsen food access in desert areas, and limit personal choice, while supporters said the state should encourage healthier purchases and that existing public benefit programs already include restrictions. HB 2396 passed 34-25 with one not voting and was sent to the Senate. After announcements, including committee meetings, an African-American Legislative Day program, and a birthday acknowledgment for the Majority Leader, the House briefly recessed and then reconvened. Additional desk business was handled, including a first reading of HB 2999, a municipal approval district technical correction bill, and the referral of first-read measures for printing. The House then adjourned until Tuesday, February 17, 2026.

Transcript Highlights:

• On my farm, I grow tomatoes and peppers. and raise poultry.

Bills: HF2446

Keywords: agriculture finance, broadband development, Department of Agriculture, Board of Animal Health, Agricultural Utilization Research Institute, Office of Broadband Development, food safety, food handler license, cottage food, home processed food, livestock dealer, meat packing company, milk marketer, milk marketing license, grain buyer, grain storage, beginning farmer, emerging farmer, farm down payment assistance, livestock investment grant

Transcript Highlights:

• Major businesses that'll be a. affected their own water wells, Sanderson Farms for their poultry processing
• We're one of the largest poultry producers in this state.
• And our operations depend entirely on our reliable source of high-quality groundwater for breeding. poultry
• And then their property values plummet, and it'll be every bank that has poultry loans to be concerned
• You know, your three industries, poultry, livestock. and forestry just or the really that gets the backbone

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Now, if we lost over 60% of our cattle or our poultry, this would be front-page news every day.

Bills: HB630, HB685, HB1318, HB2692

Keywords: outboard motors, certificate of title, vessel regulation, Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, marine documentation, HB 685, municipal utility rates, water rates, sewer rates, local government code, rate discrimination, tax-exempt entities, sales tax exemption, ad valorem tax exemption, nonprofit organizations, charitable organizations, municipal water service, municipal sewer service, utility billing, public utilities

Summary: The Senate Committee on Water, Agriculture, and Rural Affairs met with no quorum at the start, but later reached quorum and took up several bills. House Bill 2692, codifying the San Antonio River Authority’s enabling legislation and making non-substantive modernization changes, received brief supportive testimony from the River Authority and was left pending before later being voted out favorably. House Bill 685, which would prevent municipalities from charging higher water or sewer rates to tax-exempt entities than comparable customers, also drew support and was reported favorably. House Bill 1318, clarifying compensation issues when a municipality decertifies part of a retail water utility’s service area, was heard without opposition and passed out of committee. House Bill 630, exempting certain older outboard motors from title requirements, likewise passed and was placed on the local and uncontested calendar. The committee spent the most time on Senate Bill 2497, relating to filtration systems for certain public drinking water systems. Senator Zaffirini described the bill as a response to ongoing secondary water quality complaints, while TCEQ testified that such contaminants are aesthetic rather than health-based and that the water remains safe to drink if primary standards are met. The Texas Rural Water Association opposed the bill as written, arguing filtration may not solve most water quality problems and could be costly for small systems, while a consumer witness from Floresville supported it and described repeated rate increases and brown water after a filtration system was removed. Members discussed narrowing the bill through a committee substitute and emphasized the need for flexibility and technical expertise; the committee substitute was adopted and the bill was reported favorably, with Senator Kolkhorst later asking to be recorded as voting no. The committee also heard Senate Bill 2850, which would create a pollinator task force to study habitat loss, public education, and best practices for protecting bees and other pollinators. Senator Menendez and invited witness Erica Thompson of Texas BeeWorks highlighted major colony losses and the economic importance of pollinators to Texas agriculture, and Environment Texas and the Texas Beekeepers Association supported the measure. Members discussed monarch butterflies, native grasses, milkweed, and conservation efforts, and the bill was reported favorably and sent to the local and uncontested calendar. After testimony, the committee also voted out several pending items, including House Bill 5560 with a committee substitute addressing water-loss penalties and infrastructure improvements, and then recessed subject to the call of the chair.

Transcript Highlights:

• AND NANCY STEWART WAIVING IN SUPPORT, FLORIDA POULTRY FEDERATION.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• in rural communities and, more importantly, it affects the economic viability of our livestock and poultry
• 01:05:41.599> our<01:05:41.839> livestock<01:05:42.319> and<01:05:42.640> poultry
• viability of our livestock and poultry viability of our livestock and poultry industries<01:05:43.920

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, and so I, having been on the committee when we first did the selling poultry and rabbit meat to restaurants
• 40.960> selling committee when we first did the selling committee when we first did the selling poultry
• rabbit<01:52:42.800> meat<01:52:43.040> to<01:52:43.199> restaurants poultry
• and rabbit meat to restaurants poultry and rabbit meat to restaurants bill<01:52:43.920> back

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• roads out there, that the school bus goes down, the semis that are hauling grain, that is hauling poultry
• to the market, it's hauling feed into them, they've got to maintain those. ...hauling poultry to the

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The definition of uninspected meat is currently defined in RSA 143:14, which covers both poultry and
• The labeling requirements for the purchase of uninspected poultry by licensed restaurants in RSA 143:
• You can non-amenable species, rabbit and poultry, but amenable species, you know, why?
• You can non-amenable species, rabbit and poultry, but amenable species, you know, why?
• You can non-amenable species, rabbit and poultry, but amenable species, you know, why?

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first held a work session on HB 505, which would allow the sale of freeze-dried foods produced in homestead food operations. Members raised concerns about the bill’s broad language, especially the provision stating freeze-dried food would not be considered potentially hazardous. Several suggested narrowing the bill to specific products such as processed foods, berries, fruit, dairy products, ice cream, or vegetables, and requiring use of commercial freeze-drying equipment rather than dehydrators. There was also discussion of oxygen absorbers, moisture control, sanitation, and whether the issue should be handled in statute or rules. By the end of the discussion, members generally agreed the topic should be treated in a separate section of law rather than folded into the existing homestead food license, and the chair said the matter would be sent to the food safety subcommittee, with the possibility of a study committee if more time was needed. The committee then moved to HB 277, a technical correction to the animal cruelty statutes. Representative Bixby explained that current law refers to a “colt,” which applies only to male baby horses, leaving fillies unaddressed; the bill would replace “colt” with “foal” and make related wording changes so the restriction applies to any horse under 90 days old not being nursed by its dam. The New Hampshire Farm Bureau testified in support, saying the change was requested to clarify and modernize the statute and that the issue had been identified during work on related animal cruelty legislation. No votes were taken in the portion provided. The chair recessed the work session until 11:00 a.m. and announced that Representative Ktoa would take over the hearing on HB 277.

Transcript Highlights:

• We grow some beautiful beef, pork, poultry in Kentucky as well.
• :01.679> pork, We grow some beautiful uh beef, pork, We grow some beautiful uh beef, pork, poultry
• <00:22:05.360> So<00:22:05.679> to<00:22:06.159> be Poultry in Kentucky as well

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee first handled several referred administrative regulations, including a package from the Board of Respiratory Care described as a substantive housekeeping update to its regulations and incorporated materials. There were no questions from members, and the committee also heard from the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure, which was present in case questions arose but did not require action. Members then took up an amendment to the state health plan for facilities and services, specifically 900 KAR 5:02. Wesley Duke explained that a previously proposed criteria related to mega-voltage requirements, originally suggested by the Kentucky Hospital Association, was now being removed because the association no longer considered it necessary. The committee moved to accept the agency amendment, with a motion and second, and approved it without opposition. The committee next considered Senate Joint Resolution 23, a “food is medicine” resolution sponsored by Senator Shelley Funke Frommeyer. Supporters from the Kentucky Department of Agriculture and the Kentucky Hospital Association described the initiative as a voluntary, statewide effort already adopted by 52 hospitals, aimed at improving patient health while supporting Kentucky farmers and local food systems. Members discussed access to healthy food, grocery-store availability, school nutrition, and the need to reduce barriers to local procurement; the resolution was adopted unanimously after a roll call vote, with one senator briefly explaining a late vote due to weather. Finally, the committee began hearing Senate Bill 12, which would allow mid-level practitioners to serve as the leader of a Level IV trauma center under physician direction. The sponsor and witnesses from Appalachian Regional Healthcare argued the change would help address rural trauma-care shortages, align with national standards, and improve access without changing scope of practice or other trauma-center requirements. Several members raised questions and comments about rural access, liability, costs, and the broader health impacts, but no vote on the bill was taken in the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm also an Alabama poultry farmer with hen houses.

Bills: SB166, HB365, HB272, HB232, HB234, SB278, SB277

Keywords: Ten Commandments, public education, displays, funding, Alabama law, STEM, science education, technology education, engineering education, math education, workforce development, career pathways, Alabama STEM Council, Department of Workforce, education policy, higher education, community colleges, K-12 education, teacher pipeline, STEM careers

Transcript Highlights:

• We have one of the largest poultry and livestock industries in the U.S. and we know that avian flu influenza

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Redefined cottage food to be any food that is not meat, meat products, poultry or poultry products, seafood

Summary: The Senate met with a quorum, heard an invocation, dispensed with the previous journal, and received a House message. Members also recognized Dr. Namita Bardwaj as doctor of the day. The chamber then adopted Senate Resolution 554 honoring Christopher “Chris” Jake Stone of Santa Fe for his heroism during the 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting, with several senators and the lieutenant governor offering remarks about his sacrifice and the ongoing impact on his family and community. The Senate also signed a number of bills and resolutions and adopted Senate Resolution 533 recognizing the Texas Legislative Internship Program class, with multiple senators highlighting individual interns and the program’s role in developing future public servants. The floor then took up and passed several bills, often by suspending the regular order and the three-day rule. These included HB 1639 on a study of cancer incidence among female firefighters; HB 102 granting early registration for students in military-related programs; HB 4325 increasing civil penalties for barratry; HB 5342 creating a 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline trust fund and related funding study; HB 3370 allowing late timberland appraisal applications after an owner’s death; HB 3376 requiring certain guardians to complete dementia/Alzheimer’s training; HB 132 extending confidentiality protections to information about hostile acts by foreign adversaries; and HB 1978, which sought to restrict ERCOT interconnections, but its motion to pass to engrossment failed on a 20-11 vote. Additional measures passed included HB 511 on unsolicited voter registration mailings, HB 2187 on nurse staffing, retaliation, and overtime protections, HB 2510 creating offenses for unlicensed assisted living operations, HB 694 on DFPS notification timelines, HB 1893 making license plates in law-enforcement video nonconfidential for public information requests, HB 2733 updating barratry and solicitation laws for digital communications, HB 4506 allowing opt-in electronic zoning notices, HB 3751 transferring a TxDOT property to DPS, HB 3033 creating a grant program for nonprofits supporting injured or killed DPS employees, HB 4273 on Medicaid fraud prevention and eligibility verification, HB 3211 on vision care benefits, HB 4529 exempting certain DoD-certified child care facilities from state licensure, HB 2522 easing fingerprinting requirements for certain vehicle dealers, HB 4219 tightening public information request response requirements, and HB 4783 requiring a report on opioid antagonist programs. The Senate also received a House message noting passage of SB 9, and a nominations committee report was announced for future consideration.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill also requires transparent and accurate labeling for meat, milk, poultry, and egg products.
• And while we're waiting, Nancy Stewart, Florida Poultry Federation, waving in support; Jim Spratt, Florida

Summary: The committee first took up CS for CS for CS for SB 462 on transportation. A substitute amendment was adopted that would require counties receiving transportation surtax proceeds to report how the money is used to the Office of Economic and Demographic Research, prohibit certain airport fees tied to collegiate aviation flight training, create a Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority pilot program, and dedicate $10 million annually for a traffic signal modernization program. The amendment also removed several provisions from the bill, including a sales-tax transfer to the State Transportation Trust Fund, a bid-protest-related contracting requirement, and repeal of the Metropolitan Planning Organization Advisory Council. A late-filed amendment was tabled, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee then heard CS for CS for CS for SB 628, Lucy’s Law, which strengthens boating safety penalties for leaving the scene of a vessel accident and reckless operation. After the sponsor withdrew a pending amendment, the committee heard emotional testimony from Lucy’s parents and others in support, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee next considered CS for CS for SB 700, the Florida Farm Bill, under a strike-all amendment. The bill’s major provisions included removing non-purity additives from public water systems, requiring clearer labeling for meat, milk, poultry, and eggs, criminalizing drone harassment over farmland, updating agriculture disaster recovery programs, creating an honest services registry for charities tied to countries of concern, expanding FFA-related scholarships and school infrastructure, and allowing the state to repurchase certain former agricultural lands converted to solar fields. Testimony included strong support from agriculture and related groups, opposition from the Florida Bankers Association over a private right of action related to financial discrimination, and criticism from speakers opposed to fluoride removal. The bill was amended and then reported favorably despite some opposition. The committee also reported favorably SB 796, which authorizes DEP general permits for distributed wastewater treatment systems to replace failing septic tanks. The committee then took up a large strike-all for CS for SB 1618, a K-20 education package. The amendment combined provisions on VPK flexibility, early grade success, agriculture education, financial literacy, reading intervention, teacher assignment transparency, restrictions on spending public funds for political or social activism, emergency opioid antagonists, corporal punishment consent, teacher certification pathways, and other higher-education and workforce items from SB 1624, including guardrails for certain private religious postsecondary institutions. Members questioned the new prohibition on using public funds for political or social activism, with the sponsor saying it was intended to keep public schools from being a battleground for ideology; Equality Florida and the ACLU opposed that section. The amendment was adopted and the bill was reported favorably. Finally, the committee began extensive debate on CS for SB 7016, a major initiative-petition reform bill. The sponsors said the bill responds to fraud and abuse documented in a large Office of Election Crimes and Security report and would impose tighter rules on petition circulators, including Florida residency and U.S. citizenship requirements, training, shorter submission deadlines, stronger penalties, new identification requirements on petitions, and a 25% invalid-signature trigger for investigations by election-crimes officials. Senators raised numerous questions about due process, public records, penalties, the treatment of volunteers and former felons, the verification process, and the practical effect of the new deadlines and thresholds. The discussion was ongoing when the transcript ended, and no final vote on SB 7016 is shown in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill also requires transparent and accurate labeling for meat, milk, poultry, and egg products.
• Nancy Stewart, Florida Poultry Federation, waving in support.

Summary: The committee first took up CS for CS for CS for SB 462 on transportation, adopting a substitute amendment that would require counties receiving transportation surtax proceeds to report how the money is used, prohibit certain airport fees tied to collegiate flight training, create a Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority pilot program, and fund a traffic signal modernization program with $10 million annually from the State Transportation Trust Fund. The amendment also removed several provisions from the bill, including a sales tax transfer to the trust fund, a bid protest-related contracting requirement, and repeal of the Metropolitan Planning Organization Advisory Council. A late-filed amendment was tabled, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee then heard CS for CS for SB 628, “Lucy's Law,” on boating safety, which would strengthen penalties for leaving the scene of a vessel accident and reckless vessel operation. Lucy’s parents gave emotional testimony in support, describing the fatal 2022 boating crash and urging stronger accountability. The sponsor withdrew pending amendments, and the bill was reported favorably. CS for CS for SB 700, the Florida Farm Bill, was next; the strike-all amendment covered a broad range of agriculture-related changes, including water fluoridation restrictions, labeling rules, drone restrictions over farmland, disaster recovery programs, an honest services registry, FFA-related provisions, and agricultural land preservation. Testimony included support from agricultural and gun-rights groups, opposition from banking, dental, and local-government advocates, and a lengthy public debate over fluoridation and financial discrimination. The committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. SB 796 on general permits for distributed wastewater treatment systems was reported favorably with little debate. The committee then took up CS for SB 1618 on K-12 education, adopting a delete-all amendment that combined a wide range of education provisions, including VPK flexibility, agriculture education, financial literacy, reading intervention requirements, teacher assignment reporting, restrictions on spending public funds on political or social activism, postsecondary and workforce-related changes, and other school and college system updates. Several speakers opposed the activism-related funding restriction, while the sponsor said the bill was intended to keep publicly funded schools focused on education; the bill was reported favorably. Finally, the committee considered SB 7016 on initiative petitions, adopting a strike-all amendment that would sharply tighten petition circulation rules and increase penalties. The proposal would require circulators to be Florida residents and U.S. citizens, impose training and registration requirements, shorten petition submission deadlines, require more identifying information on petition forms, limit sponsors to one amendment per election cycle, and create new enforcement and investigation triggers, including a 25% invalid-signature threshold. Sponsors argued the changes were needed to address fraud and protect the integrity of constitutional amendment petitions, while senators raised concerns about due process, public-records issues, burdens on volunteers, and the impact on voters and sponsors. The bill was not reported in the portion provided, and the discussion remained ongoing at the end of the transcript.