Transcript Highlights:

• Primary sector growth boosts retail businesses, stabilizes school enrollment, and justifies enhanced
• Now, what does this do for the school? What does it do for roads and bridges?
• And then the other part of our advantages are partnerships and then our priorities.
• I talked about our priorities.
• The target audience of these activities ranges from middle school to high school to university students

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Primary sector growth boosts retail businesses, stabilizes school enrollment, and justifies enhanced
• Now, what does this do for the school? What does it do for roads and bridges?
• And then the other part of our advantages are partnerships and then our priorities.
• I talked about our priorities.
• So the target audience of these activities ranges from middle school to high school to university students

Summary: The committee met in Grand Forks, approved the February 26 minutes by voice vote, and recessed for a tour of the Mincota Power Cooperative headquarters before returning for presentations on large energy consumers, especially data centers. The first presentations focused on how North Dakota should respond to rapid growth in energy-intensive projects, with speakers emphasizing the need for reliable transmission, local decision-making tools, and factual information for county and township officials who are being asked to weigh major projects with limited staff and technical support. The North Dakota Transmission Authority director said local governments are being asked to make high-impact decisions on pipelines, transmission lines, large agriculture, wind, solar, carbon dioxide pipelines, direct-air capture, and data centers, and urged development of simple statewide decision tools and support from the League of Cities and Association of Counties. The Department of Environmental Quality’s air division director said North Dakota’s air remains among the cleanest in the nation, but large data centers can create air-quality concerns because of diesel backup generation; he said the department is requiring air monitors at some facilities and expects grid power and, potentially, cleaner natural gas backup to reduce emissions. Members asked about emissions standards, misinformation, monitoring costs, and staffing succession at DEQ. The Department of Water Resources director said North Dakota’s water law is based on common ownership and prior appropriation, and that data centers generally use relatively small amounts of water, often in closed-loop systems. He said the Missouri River and groundwater supplies are ample for projected needs, that the department’s permitting process protects senior water rights, and that even a worst-case data center scenario would use a very small share of Missouri River flow. Members asked about downstream impacts and compared data center water use with fracking. Later, McLean County State’s Attorney Ladd Erickson urged the committee to study how other states regulate data centers, warned against litigation-driven delays and overly broad local ordinances, argued reclamation bonding should be handled at the state level if at all, and said data centers can bring jobs and tax base but should remain subject to local zoning. The committee ended the morning session for lunch and later heard an EERC update from CEO Charles Gorecki on the center’s 75 years of work in energy and environmental technologies, especially oil and gas development and related research.

Transcript Highlights:

• And then the old-school models of, you know, you know. Right.
• Throughout my career, patient safety and regulatory compliance were always my highest priorities.
• Throughout my career, patient safety, and regulatory compliance were always my highest priorities.
• and programs, requires schools to notify the Bureau of certain events such as bankruptcy, prohibits
• schools from withholding documents required for licensure or certification because the student owes a

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• or often going back and going to school or often going back to<00:08:38.479> school.
• to school. to school.
• we're thinking about our school we're thinking about our school districts,<00:38:02.960> when
• But in this moment our schools.
• the county, the city and the school. the county, the city and the school.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Next up, we have our high school Pages joining us this morning.
• Representative, please state your name and your high school mascot.
• I go to Old Town High School.
• Line 51 is a grant to the Browerville Public Schools.
• Cloud, which is our number one economic development priority.

Bills: HF2730, HF2257, HF2768, HF1932, HF2437

Keywords: local government debt, municipal bonds, county bonds, capital improvements, public financing, bond issuance, public hearing, notice period, bond guarantee, Minnesota Public Facilities Authority, volume cap, private activity bonds, housing finance, residential rental bonds, LIHTC, low-income housing tax credits, redevelopment, courthouse financing, jail financing, law enforcement center

Transcript Highlights:

• Rural schools and businesses often lack the capacity to build these systems alone, and House Bill 4479
• When I was a young lawyer out of law school, I worked here 30 years ago.
• We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit representing 13 counties in 42 school districts in South Texas.
• Throughout high school and college, I experienced homelessness.
• unstable housing, trying to work, attend school, and lead student organizations.

Summary: The subcommittee heard testimony on a broad agenda of workforce, labor, and workers’ compensation bills. HB 4676 would require political subdivision workers’ compensation networks to follow the same notice, access, and complaint rules as certified TDI networks; supporters said public employees and first responders deserve equal access to care, while municipal risk pool representatives opposed added regulation and said existing 504 networks already perform well. HB 4479 would create a rural workforce development grant program at TWC to support college-and-career readiness and local workforce alignment, and HB 3844 would define “opportunity youth” in state law to improve data, coordination, and access to services for disconnected young Texans; both drew strong support from rural, education, and chamber witnesses. HB 5545 would clarify federal tax treatment for wage-replacement benefits in non-subscriber injury benefit plans, with proponents calling it a win for employers and injured workers. HB 5118 would direct TWC and DIR to study AI and automated employment decision tools in hiring, including bias and oversight concerns. HB 1667 would move existing PTSD workers’ compensation language into a broader Labor Code chapter so more first responders, including state and campus officers, could qualify for benefits; supporters called it a technical fix to extend coverage more evenly across agencies. The committee also heard several first-responder and workers’ compensation bills. HB 2369 would speed up claims handling for injured first responders by allowing a single medical evaluation, giving carriers 60 days to accept or deny a claim, and letting workers seek treatment while disputes proceed; law enforcement supporters said it would help injured officers return to work faster, while opponents warned it would revive extent-of-injury waiver problems and increase litigation. HB 4483 would reclassify certain workers’ compensation maintenance taxes as surcharges to reduce retaliatory taxes imposed by other states on Texas-domiciled carriers, and HB 875, as revised by committee substitute, would create a small-project exception to municipal workers’ compensation and bonding requirements for certain low-value construction contracts in small cities; both were presented as cost-saving measures for Texas employers and local governments. HB 4415 would extend anti-retaliation protections for workers’ compensation claimants from first responders to all public employees and expressly waive sovereign immunity for those claims, with supporters describing it as closing a loophole that leaves public workers without the same remedy available in the private sector. The committee also took testimony on HB 5400, which would expand remedies for sexual harassment victims by removing the requirement to first file an administrative charge, extending the filing deadline from 300 days to two years, clarifying retaliation, and eliminating current damages caps. Supporters, including employment lawyers and a parent of a victim, said the current deadlines and caps prevent many survivors from obtaining counsel or full relief, especially younger workers and those in small workplaces or franchises. Across the agenda, witnesses repeatedly emphasized access to care, fair treatment for injured workers, rural workforce development, and stronger protections for vulnerable employees. After each bill was laid out and testimony heard, the chair generally closed the public hearing and left the bill pending; no final votes were taken, and the subcommittee adjourned after completing the agenda.

Transcript Highlights:

• It doesn't get at the real and urgent priority of holding the Department of Homeland Security accountable
• We should instead be focused on the real priorities of Minnesotans.
• You could actually go to your local and state authorities and say, what are your top priorities?
• You could actually go to your local and state authorities and say, what are your top priorities?
• that all of our communities are safe that all of our communities are safe during<00:15:17.040> school

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• from your district will be visiting your offices later this morning to discuss their legislative priorities
• And uh welcome. their legislative priorities for this their legislative priorities for this session.<
• Well, uh, do great work while you're gone and also we might know where you're going to school next year
• <00:20:22.559> next<00:20:22.799> year where you're going to school next year where
• you're going to school next year in<00:20:23.520> between.

Keywords: Senate streaming session for Thursday, January 22, 2026, 960, senate, all

Summary: The Maryland Senate convened with an invocation by Reverend Abi Johni of Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church, followed by the roll call establishing a quorum with 44 members present. The chamber then featured numerous introductions and recognitions, including legislative interns, a shadowing student, a constituent assisting this session, visiting advocacy groups such as the Maryland Bankers Association, the Transportation Association of Maryland, and the Maryland Association of CPAs, as well as several pages and other guests. Members also announced upcoming caucus and delegation events, committee briefings, and weather-related schedule contingencies. On the legislative side, the Senate received bill introductions, including Senate Bill 314 on immunity from liability for donations of pet supplies in judicial proceedings, and a bond initiative for a neighborhood community track and field project, which was referred to the capital budget subcommittee. The main floor action was consideration of Rule 116; after brief discussion, the Senate adopted the rule by a unanimous 44-0 vote, completing adoption of the Senate rules. Committee announcements noted upcoming hearings and briefings: Finance planned briefings on health insurance subsidies and private passenger auto insurance; Education, Energy, and the Environment scheduled briefings on climate-smart agriculture and federal policy impacts; Budget and Taxation planned an interagency commission briefing; and Judicial Proceedings announced 12 bill hearings, including two lengthy bills. The Senate also journalized the invocation, recognized the new leadership of the Maryland Legislative Black Caucus, and adjourned until the next pro forma session, with the adjournment also honoring Edward Risinger, a former Baltimore City Council member who had recently died.

Transcript Highlights:

• we're using AI to do things like prepare lessons and teaching resources and modifying content through school
• And that is our immediate priority.
• Those obviously our highest priority.
• I've had success in recruiting attorneys right out of law school.
• There are many, many students out there who when they're in law school, they're interning with and it

Transcript Highlights:

• That's what I said last week is our top priority.
• That is my top priority and the top priority for the entire judiciary.
• And so my view is that this needs to be a top priority not only of this committee, but of the House,
• But we're, we're at the point now where even those folks who went to law school hoping to be a judge.
• Of the business court that's at Texas A&M Law School.

Transcript Highlights:

• and in particular Senator Marty, Senator Putnam, and Senator Verbeten, to talk about our caucus's priorities
• for this session. ...to talk about our caucus's priorities for this session.
• The first and top priority for us is balancing the budget, and we're going to do that equitably for communities
• life more affordable for Minnesotans, such as the child tax credit, middle-class tax cuts, universal school
• What does that look like if you want to pass policy that aligns with DFL priorities?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So gas taxes for old school road and bridge fund, transportation fund, services, gas taxes are restricted
• Commissioners start identifying priorities for staff.
• It depends upon what priorities you think law enforcement is and how reasonable it is to provide a budget
• it's general fund, transportation fund, and then a big one that most people don't talk about is a school
• it's general fund, transportation fund, and then a big one that most people don't talk about is a school

Summary: The Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee met to review how county budgets are developed and how constitutional officers fit into that process. Davin Suggs of the Florida Association of Counties gave an overview of county budgeting, explaining the statutory framework, the role of property taxes and TRIM notices, the fiscal-year timeline, fund balances and reserves, and the Department of Revenue’s oversight. He emphasized that county budgets include the board’s budget plus the budgets of constitutional officers, and that relationships and communication are critical to resolving budget issues. A panel of constitutional officers then described their offices’ budget processes and responsibilities: Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons discussed law enforcement budgeting and the importance of negotiated agreements with county commissions; Alachua County Property Appraiser Aisha Solomon explained the June 1 budget deadline, valuation methods, and the appeal process for property assessments; Manatee County Clerk and Comptroller Angelina Coleniso outlined the clerk’s court and finance duties, the county-side budget process, and the clerk’s personal liability under section 129.09 for unlawful expenditures; Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Early described the cyclical nature of election costs, staffing, equipment, and the impact of turnout and election law changes; and Columbia County Tax Collector Kyle Keene explained that tax collectors’ budgets are reviewed by the Department of Revenue, with fee offices funding themselves through service charges and budget offices relying on county support. Members asked about personal liability for unlawful spending, conflicts between clerks and county commissions, property valuation and storm damage adjustments, reserve levels, and whether tax collectors can retain excess fees. Responses noted that clerks must refuse illegal expenditures, property appraisers use market-based assessments with VAB and court review available, counties should maintain healthy fund balances for cash flow and emergencies, and tax collectors generally must zero out year-end balances and distribute excess revenues to taxing authorities. The committee took no votes and adjourned after thanking the panelists for their testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• Her grandfather had an eighth-grade education, and her father was a high school educator.
• Let me just ask you a question or two to start with about the priorities at SBA.
• And let me just ask you about another priority.
• My nearest town had 600 people in it, and my high school had eight small towns.
• I'd be interested in what your priorities would be for SBIR as a program and whether you would...

Transcript Highlights:

• San Ysidro High School, which is our continuation high school... ...this is a high school where students
• , high schools, college campuses, elementary schools, graduations, homes, neighborhoods—everywhere—is
• And this is a close issue in our community as well, where we had a school shooting at Saugus High School
• They don't have school shootings. They are not going in and killing their kids.
• First of all, she's a four-sport athlete at West High School in Torrance.

Summary: The Assembly convened after a quorum call, prayer, and pledge, then handled routine procedural business including re-referrals of several Senate bills, removal of AB 1156 from the inactive file, and withdrawal of ACR 210 to the second reading file. The chamber also heard multiple guest introductions, including family members of members and two CIF Scholar Athletes of the Year, Ryan Liu and Mona Sugawara, before moving to the daily file and consent calendar. The main floor item was ACR 191, which designated June 5 as National Gun Violence Awareness Day in California. Assemblymember Stephanie and several colleagues spoke in strong support, sharing personal and district-level experiences with gun violence, highlighting the impact on children, schools, graduations, and communities, and urging continued state and federal action. Speakers emphasized prevention, safe storage, community violence intervention, and the need to resist complacency; the resolution was adopted by voice vote after 55 co-authors were added. On the consent calendar, ACR 206 and several Senate concurrent resolutions were adopted, with ACR 206 passing 60-0. The Assembly also heard an adjournment in memory for Michael George Savan, a longtime Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department commander, Marine Corps Reservist, and former Lomita mayor and councilmember. The house then announced the next session schedule and adjourned until Monday, June 8 at 1 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• It allows our school districts temporary flexibility on their school start time.
• Starting this school year.
• School years.
• If you still believe, as a school district, that library support personnel or any other is the priority
• school-wide events.

Transcript Highlights:

• Priority number one for the state is raising wages.
• Priority number one for the state is raising wages.
• It is priority number one that we raise wages, and that's what this bill will do.
• Priority number one for the state is raising wages.
• Priority number one for the state is raising wages.

Bills: SB1108, SB1205, SB1241, SB1286, SB1366, SB1431, SB1473, SB1477, SB1478, SB1479, SB1492, SB1517, SB1563, SB1586, SB1665, SB1671

Keywords: cash transactions, mandatory rounding, swedish rounding, public notice, Arizona Revised Statutes, motor vehicle booting, private property, fees, dispute process, regulations, SB1241, private permitting provider, private permit, private certificate of completion, building permit, building plan review, inspection, single-trade residential construction, residential construction, municipal permitting

Transcript Highlights:

• I've talked to—I’m proud to represent Edison High School, which is Minneapolis Public Schools High School—and
• Osceola Area Schools is Minnesota's fifth largest school district, with over 20,000 students.
• Cloud School District.
• and into high school.
• starting in high school starting in high school in<01:17:49.120> high<01:17:49.280> school

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The Education Finance Committee met remotely on February 16, 2022, with a quorum present and approved the minutes from the previous day by voice vote. Chair Dabney said the committee was spending the week on public school staffing shortages, especially efforts to increase and retain BIPOC teachers, and introduced testimony on the Collaborative Urban and Greater Minnesota Educators of Color Grant Program (CUGMEC) and the broader Increasing Teachers of Color Act. Testifiers from St. Thomas, Augsburg, and Hopkins described the history and impact of the legacy educator-of-color programs. Kathleen Campbell said the original Q program was created to address underrepresentation, remove financial barriers, and provide mentorship and culturally relevant support; she argued that when the grant became competitive in 2017 without additional funding, support was spread too thin and student capacity dropped. Audrey Lensmeyer described Augsburg’s East African Student-to-Teacher Program, rooted in community advocacy in Cedar-Riverside, and said it has produced strong completion and licensure outcomes. Keenan Jones shared his path from paraprofessional to teacher and district leader, emphasizing the importance of scholarships, mentorship, and outreach to high school students, including a statewide co-enrollment Intro to Teaching course. Representative Hassan then presented House File 3079, saying the bill aims to attract, prepare, complete, and retain more teachers of color and American Indian teachers through several grant and program changes, including Closing the Educational Opportunity Gap grants, Cook Mac funding, teacher mentorship and retention updates, and revisions to CUGMEC. He said the bill responds to a severe shortage of BIPOC teachers and that the requested investment is small relative to the state surplus. Student and educator testimony followed, including a third-grade student from Crookston and Ava Roots, both of whom described the importance of having teachers who reflect students’ cultures and experiences. Natalia Benjamin, the 2021 Minnesota Teacher of the Year, also testified about retention challenges for educators of color and racialized workplace treatment. The committee indicated it intended to lay over HF 3079 for possible inclusion in a future omnibus bill, and Representative Richardson moved the bill to be laid over for further consideration.

Transcript Highlights:

• We talked about the composition priorities for additional members, and I just want to spend a little
• We talked about the composition priorities for additional members, and I just want to spend a little
• Priorities for additional members.
• hub of Cape Verdean, and because they just elected a Cape Verdean mayor and their city council and school
• way of electing folks from Cape Verdean background, not only to the city council, but also to the school

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The meeting focused on organizing the Cabo Verdean Cultural Center Commission, including confirming quorum, approving prior minutes, electing leadership, and planning next steps. Once quorum was reached, members approved the minutes from the prior meeting and unanimously elected Senator Liz Miranda and Representative Kip Diggs as co-chairs. There was also discussion of whether vice chairs should be added later, with several members favoring a mix of legislative and appointed/community representation. A major portion of the discussion centered on expanding the commission membership and identifying candidates who reflect regional, gender, and professional diversity, with emphasis on arts, culture, history, philanthropy, development, and construction. Members suggested numerous names from Boston, Brockton, New Bedford, Fall River, Cape Cod, Taunton, and other communities, and there was broad interest in including people connected to cultural organizations, universities, and the business/development community. Members also discussed whether designees could count toward quorum, but no rule change was adopted during the meeting. The commission also discussed its operating structure and public process. Members agreed to submit two or three recommended names by November 13, and to reconvene on November 25 at 4 p.m. to finalize recommendations and continue building the commission. They also discussed meeting cadence, with support for alternating formal meetings and site visits or listening sessions every other month, plus possible subcommittees to handle research between meetings. The chair noted that the commission is public-facing, will keep records and minutes, and will need to consider the organizational vehicle or advisory structure that will support Cape Verdean clubs and associations in the broader project. The meeting adjourned after these next steps were outlined.

Transcript Highlights:

• of Matthew members, so the way this works is that there's a certain order or priority in a judgment,
• This is a problem that shows up from time to time, because we don't specify the priority order for this
• And as a public school mentor and football coach, we watched as parents would neglect getting help because
• which means they are often without legal authority to make decisions like enrolling the child in school
• children in kinship care situations, compared to children in foster care with non-kin, have better school

Bills: HB557, HB732, HB1892, HB1954, HB2301, HB3180, HB3405, HB3650, HB3758, HB4035, HB4621, HB4795, HB4870, HB5069, HB5137, HB5149

Keywords: child support, arrears, court enforcement, contempt, legal protections, healthcare, insurance, cost reduction, accessibility, regulations, impotency, marriage annulment, Family Code, Texas law, family law, Texas legislation, dissolution of marriage, annulment, marriage, child custody

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:10:38.800> lunch been doing is looking at um school lunch been doing is looking at um
• school lunch programs<00:10:39.440> and<00:10:39.600> helping<00:10:40.120> um<00
• in terms of resource ing uh priority in terms of resource ing uh scaling<00:18:59.880> up<00:
• they had purview over how the dollars were being spent and how the priorities were being focused.
• One first and um we have to hit Priority One first and that's<00:49:29.599> any<00:49:29.920>

Keywords: 1183, house