Transcript Highlights:

• We know that we need all levels of housing throughout all of our communities in Washington State.
• We know that we need all levels of housing throughout all of our communities in Washington State.
• They must show needs assessments.
• They must show needs assessments.
• They must show needs assessments.

Summary: The committee first received staff briefings on amendments for a series of bills, including measures on child care workforce standards, homelessness programs, community preservation authorities, domestic violence survivor relief, public defense funding, student behavioral health supports, water system ownership changes, nonprofit health carrier surplus assessments, 340B drug pricing reporting, Secretary of State filing fees, step housing, campaign security reimbursements, digital equity programs, a Boys and Men’s Commission, a waste-to-energy facility’s Climate Commitment Act obligations, 6PPD tire substitutes, and an early education scholarship. Staff described the policy changes and, where available, the expected fiscal effects of each proposed substitute or line amendment. The committee then went into caucus before returning for executive session. In executive session, the committee voted out House Bill 1073, then adopted a Couture line amendment to House Bill 1128 exempting private K-12 schools with licensed child care programs from the child care employer definition before reporting the bill out as Second Substitute House Bill 1128. House Bill 1316, 1408, 1591, 1592, 1634, 1906, 1960, 2073, 2145, 2248, 2266, 2301, 2333, and 2365 were also reported from committee, with several amendments adopted along the way. Notable actions included adopting an emergency clause for House Bill 1408, rejecting proposed amendments to House Bill 1591 that would have narrowed relief for survivors and removed retroactivity, adopting a narrower amendment to House Bill 1592’s public defense funding formula, and adopting a substitute to House Bill 2145 that limited 340B reporting to hospitals. The committee also debated and rejected several amendments to the step housing bill, House Bill 2266, including proposals for larger school/daycare buffers, more local oversight, and broader local government authority; the bill still advanced on a 16-13 vote. House Bill 2073, which requires nonprofit health carriers to contribute surplus funds to Cascade Care Savings, advanced over concerns about using one-time money for an ongoing program. House Bill 2248 advanced after an amendment redirected annual license fee deposits to the state treasury rather than the Secretary of State’s revolving fund. House Bill 2333 was narrowed to allow use of campaign funds for personal security reimbursements, and House Bill 2365 advanced with some amendments adopted and others rejected as the committee began discussing additional digital equity oversight provisions.

Transcript Highlights:

• We need revenue. We need money. Our problem is money.
• It would probably need to react to some more specific ideas before we could assess that, but...
• Ultimately, some of us are going to want to consider whether we need to pause or what we need to be pausing—whether
• , gain housing and remain housed.
• So someone needs to have the answer to that.

Transcript Highlights:

• or against House Bill 1109.
• You need to lay out House Bill 1399 before the committee today. You did say House Bill 1399, right?
• House Joint Resolution 99 is left pending. Chair lays out House Bill 1392.
• And that retailer delivers it to my house, to my ranch house in Lavaca County.
• We need to know.

Bills: HB134 , HB135 , HB 1109 , HB 1243 , HB1392 , HB1399 , HJR99 , HB134 , HB135

Committee: House Ways & Means

Transcript Highlights:

• These regulations are a much-needed update to the regulations These regulations are a much-needed update
• There still needs to be investigations done. It needs to be fact patterns that need to be explored.
• And I think that at some point we need to get to that point.
• It is a very difficult and dangerous job, and we need it. We need people willing to do that.
• needs to be considered here is that we need to make technology a partner, and we don't necessarily need

Committee: House Transportation

Transcript Highlights:

• We are currently running through and about to wrap up the environmental assessment.
• And where that goes is depending on where, how much space they're going to need.
• Them on the side of the house. Members, any questions, directors? We really appreciate you.
• So, there is a lot of need out there on our lake and industrial access road programs.
• So we just need to figure out what it's gonna take to make that happen.

Committee: House A&B Transportation Subcommittee

Transcript Highlights:

• We do need legislative authority to accept the grant. We do need the appropriation.
• I'm saying I think we need to be open to those adjustments at the time if we need to. Mr. Chairman.
• We don't need the employees. We might need to reassess to say, I— We don't need the employees.
• It's the flexibility that I talked to Brady about that we need because I might need to transfer to the
• That has brought forward the flexibility we need because otherwise we would need the dollars and the

Summary: The Appropriations Division met in a work session on the draft Rural Health Transformation appropriations bill, 25.1392.01000, with no public testimony taken. Legislative Council and the Department of Health and Human Services walked through the bill, which would appropriate about $397.8 million in federal grant funds over two federal fiscal years, provide transfer authority, allow certain federal funds to be used for salaries and wages without counting against existing transfer limits, and authorize OMB to adjust other agencies’ spending authority if they receive grant awards through HHS. The bill also includes several temporary statutory exemptions to help implement the program, plus recipient acknowledgement/reporting requirements, periodic reports to Legislative Management, and an immediate effective date upon filing. Committee discussion focused heavily on how the federal rural health transformation money can be used and administered. Department officials explained that CMS will review projects for allowability and sustainability, that the state has flexibility to move funds among categories, and that the grant is limited to 10% administrative costs. Members asked about whether the funding could support renovations, equipment, ambulances, bulk purchasing, food distribution, and other rural health ideas, and were told many details will depend on CMS approval and the eventual applications. Questions also addressed cash flow, timing of obligations and reimbursements, FTE funding, and whether grant recipients should be told the program will not continue beyond the federal period; officials said the language is meant to prevent expectations of automatic continuation, not to bar future legislative action. The committee also discussed the bill’s use of a two-year appropriation amount, with staff explaining that the state must appropriate enough authority to cover the federal grant cycle and that unused authority would lapse if the full amount is not received or spent. Members raised concerns about whether the bill’s language could limit creativity or future program design, but department officials and several members emphasized the need for flexibility because CMS may reject overly specific directives. After discussion, the committee voted to recommend the bill draft to the full committee; the motion carried on a roll call vote, and the chair said the full Joint Appropriations Committee would take up the bill at the special session next week.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> 45v federal tax credit that US House 45v federal tax credit that US House speaker<00:03:29.480><
• </c><00:04:14.840><c> and'll</c> Software System that's needed and'll Software System that's needed and'll
• </c> commodity I urge your support for house commodity I urge your support for house file<00:08:33.880
• </c><00:10:49.800><c> ammonia</c> want to say I you know we need ammonia want to say I you know we need
• With that, he said, House File 2793, as amended, is laid over. deployment um but also we need to always

Bills: HF2103 , HF2793

Committee: House Energy Finance and Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• housing and ensuring that... ...housing organization, and we advocate for policies that improve access
• So, different housing conference.
• So, different housing conference, apartment housing conference.
• So I just think we need to keep our minds open to how we will allow landlords to provide housing opportunities
• Even though there are federal housing subsidies... ...has federal housing subsidies to rent.

Transcript Highlights:

• I don't know exactly where the House is on this.
• And we will work through this as we swap houses.”
• “Much-needed grace and latitude, and we will work through this as we swap houses of origin.
• for housing development.
• I believe the latest number is $23 billion need for $24 billion need.

Bills: SB1290 , SB1332 , SB1369 , SB1379 , SB1381 , SB1386 , SB1390 , SB1428 , SB1584 , SB1696 , SB175 , SB1778 , SB1794 , SB1806 , SB1836 , SB201

Committee: Senate Appropriations

Summary: The committee heard and advanced a long series of Senate bills covering criminal justice, courts, education, health, water infrastructure, economic development, and social services. Early measures included SB 1584, which shortens the timeline for submitting sexual assault evidence kits for forensic testing, and SB 1386, a courtroom transparency bill creating a pilot program for audio/video recording in certain courtrooms; SB 1386 drew the most extended debate, with concerns raised about privacy, selective editing, political use of footage, and impacts on victims, witnesses, jurors, and attorneys. The author said the bill was intended to improve the accuracy and context of the record, not to add live streaming or AI transcripts, and both bills advanced. Several education and justice-related bills also moved forward. SB 1381 would require arrested persons to be brought before a judge within 48 to 72 hours and establishes a pilot in Oklahoma County; SB 201 raises each step of the minimum teacher salary schedule by $2,500; and SB 1778 revises the Strong Readers Act by directing a single state-paid screening instrument, adding early intervention and transitional/pull-out reading support, and phasing in changes beginning in 2027. SB 1836, requiring a board-approved mental health screener in routine primary care visits, passed after debate over its costs and implementation. SB 1806, allowing some young adults to remain in or re-enter DHS care until age 21, and SB 1428, creating an Alzheimer’s and dementia coordination office at the Health Department with private funding, also advanced. The committee approved multiple public health and human services funding and coordination measures, including SB 1369 creating a revolving fund for the 988 crisis line, SB 1290 creating a 2-1-1 hotline revolving fund, SB 1794 establishing a statewide real-time behavioral health bed/capacity registry, and SB 1379 creating a two-year private grant program for certified human trafficking service providers. Members questioned fiscal impacts, administrative overhead, and service continuity, but the bills moved on. Other bills passed included SB 1696 to fund local recruitment incentives for new residents in rural and mid-sized communities, SB 1332 creating zero-interest water infrastructure loans for housing-related projects, SB 175 creating a reimbursement fund for abandoned uninsured commercial vehicles, and SB 1390 extending the gross production tax sunset to July 1, 2032.

Transcript Highlights:

• House Bill 2193 will be left pending.
• House Bill 5646 will be left pending.
• HB 101 creates a temporary task force composed of state agency leaders assigned to assess mission needs
• House Bill 101 will be left pending.
• House Bill 290 will be left pending.

Bills: HB101 , HB290

Committee: Senate Veteran Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• Indigenous language proficiency data varies by tribe, and we need stronger alignment across assessments
• What are the incentives that are needed?
• And people say this is what we need to do.
• Participation in school activities is one of the essential needs, critical needs that have been presented
• We need more time. I need more time than that. We'll put staff to work on it.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill before you is House Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5374, including tribal representation and
• the program's impacts on affected tribal areas and to incorporate transportation needs of the affected
• And, as you mentioned, there's timing associated with that when that needs to be done, and there's a
• companion sponsor, Vice Chair Reed, for her support in the House.
• We have two board members there, and this legislation, as amended at the House Technology and Economic

Summary: The committee held public hearings on two transportation-related bills. For Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5374, staff explained that the bill would require tribal governments to be included in Growth Management Act transportation coordination and in preparation of county six-year transportation programs, and would create a tribal traffic safety coordinator grant program through the Traffic Safety Commission. Fiscal impacts were described as indeterminate and scalable, with estimates for staffing, grants, and local government coordination costs. The Association of Counties testified in support, saying the bill would better align existing tribal consultation processes with transportation planning and would not force counties to restart plans already near adoption. For Engrossed Senate Bill 5649, staff said the bill would create a Washington State Supply Chain Competitiveness Infrastructure Program to provide grants and loans for public and tribal ports with public operations, with DOT setting priorities and criteria in collaboration with supply chain stakeholders. Fiscal notes estimated significant staffing and program costs, but the amount would depend on appropriations; no funds were included in the current Senate Transportation budget. The Washington Public Ports Association and representatives from the Port of Everett and Port of Port Angeles supported the bill, arguing it would help ports address congestion, improve freight efficiency, and leverage federal matching funds for major infrastructure projects. The Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board director said many proposed projects would not qualify for FMSIB funding because they are not on strategic freight corridors, which is why a separate program may be needed. Members asked about timing, whether the tribal planning bill would require counties to start over on plans already near completion, and how the port bill would interact with existing funding sources and FMSIB eligibility. Staff and witnesses said the tribal bill was intended to work with existing coordination processes and not force counties to restart, while the port bill was meant to fill gaps where current programs do not apply. The chair then reviewed amendment deadlines for budget and committee bills, and the meeting adjourned for caucuses.

Transcript Highlights:

• The House is actually a negative House.
• phase in 27 the um house the house phase in 27 the um house allowed<00:36:32.480><c> any</c><00:36:32.800
• 00:37:37.599><c> 5%</c><00:37:38.240><c> assessment</c><00:37:38.960><c> with</c> the House proposed
• a 5% assessment with the House proposed a 5% assessment with exemptions<00:37:40.240><c> on</c><00:37
• The House had almost 450 sections in House Bill 2.

Summary: The presentation was an LBA overview of Senate changes to the House-passed state budget, with Michael Kane explaining how Senate Finance updated revenue and spending estimates after April revenue figures and agency discussions. He said the Senate’s revenue outlook was higher than the House’s in some areas, but lower in others, especially video lottery terminal revenue, and that the biggest differences also came from changes to revenue splits between the general fund and education trust fund, lapse estimates, and several policy changes in House Bill 1 and House Bill 2. Kane highlighted several major revenue and policy differences: the Senate changed the business tax, tobacco tax, and real estate transfer tax splits; adjusted liquor revenue dedication; removed the House’s meals-and-rooms distribution cap; delayed the Lakes Region facility proceeds plan; altered the PECARD fund treatment; added a granite patron of the arts tax credit; and changed the treatment of unique funds and video lottery terminal revenue. On spending, he noted Senate changes to judicial, corrections, HHS, human rights commission, and other budgets, including additional settlement costs, higher lapse assumptions, and a different approach to Medicaid premium revenue and retirement savings. He also described Senate additions such as a nursing home bed fee, Hampstead Hospital transition funding, and changes to the YDC claims settlement fund. The presentation focused on comparing House and Senate surplus statements across fiscal years 2025 through 2027, including projected ending balances and rainy day fund transfers. Kane repeatedly emphasized that the numbers were still dependent on final revenues and lapse amounts, and that some balances would be carried forward and trued up later in the biennium. No committee vote or final action was described in the excerpt; it was an informational budget briefing and comparison of the two chambers’ proposals.

Transcript Highlights:

• And consistent with House Rule 27, matters filed in the House which are listed for today's hearing are
• On the House side, we have Josh Tarsky, Alan Silvia, Rodney Elliott, and that's it for the House side
• The first is House 2888.
• I need to mention that the House bills are not on the hearing schedule today; however, they are companion
• Reforms are needed, and they're needed now.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Public Service

Summary: The Joint Committee on Public Service heard testimony on a wide range of retirement, municipal workforce, and public employee labor bills. Early testimony focused on H. 2749, a Plymouth home rule petition to classify Plymouth harbormaster employees as Group 4 for retirement purposes. Supporters, including local officials and retirement board representatives, argued the employees perform law-enforcement and rescue duties comparable to police and fire personnel, that the change would be fair, and that it would have little or no fiscal impact on the town. A separate harbormaster-related bill, H. 2743, was also introduced later in the hearing. The committee also heard testimony on provisions of the Municipal Empowerment Act (H. 56), including a temporary critical-shortage exemption allowing retired state or municipal employees to return to work in hard-to-fill positions, and a renewed OPEB commission to study retiree health care costs. Administration and municipal officials said the measures were needed to address staffing shortages and rising benefit liabilities, while emphasizing the shortage exemption would be time-limited and require proof of recruitment efforts. Related retirement bills drew support and caution: advocates for higher COLA bases and enhanced COLA benefits urged relief for retirees, but some asked the committee to wait for recommendations from the special COLA commission before acting. A major portion of the hearing concerned labor rights at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and the Committee for Public Counsel Services. Union representatives and employees backed bills to extend just-cause protections, promotional rights, and collective bargaining rights to MWRA and CPCS workers, arguing they currently lack protections available to most other public employees. Testimony described unfair discipline, delayed promotions, and high turnover, and committee members indicated prior favorable action on similar MWRA bills and expressed support for addressing CPCS labor rights. The committee also heard from representatives of the Massachusetts Municipal Association and public higher education employees in support of H. 2820, which would require timely funding of ratified state employee contracts, with witnesses describing long delays in receiving negotiated raises and back pay. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the chair repeatedly invited written testimony and closed each panel after questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Three years ago, the House passed House Bill 299, which established education about Alzheimer's disease
• evaluate and make recommendations to the Department of Elder Affairs and Legislature concerning the need
• The information will then recommend core competencies for waiver support coordinators, ways to assess
• This is not appropriate because this is not what families need to know when my son Jeremy and when JJ
• Specifically, it brings in the disciplines of education, healthcare, employment, and housing services

Transcript Highlights:

• The GLO needs the ability to respond to changing needs required for GLO statutory programs such as oil
• In the meantime, we have specialty consultants providing as needed. needed support specific to the projects
• So we needed that flexibility.
• Hey, we need that $500 million, even though we didn't spend it, and gee whiz, we need another quarter
• We need a little more help in information technology, we need some more computers.

Bills: SB1 , SB 1

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• Tell us what we need to know so we can help make the state move forward.
• And but there are some still some things that we do need.
• Hey, the power that's needed for all of the different it.
• But to do that, you need community integration, right?
• You know, we need to be doing more demonstrations, meaning more active.

Transcript Highlights:

• curious what right so house oh the house curious what right so the<00:04:52.240><c> house</c><00:04:52.680
• </c> a long-term need or a short-term need a long-term need or a short-term need and<00:26:25.799><c>
• ><c> more</c> you need presumably You' need more you need presumably You' need more employees<01:29:25.520
• /c><03:57:37.239><c> we</c><03:57:37.479><c> have</c> we need we need help um we have we need we need
• In order to even reach us, they need to have disputed the assessed value at the municipal level.

Summary: The committee first reviewed House Bill 1, focusing on the legislative branch budget, especially the Senate and House lines. Members discussed that the Senate’s fiscal year 2025 adjusted authorized amount was higher than 2024 actual spending, largely due to personnel, benefits, and travel, and one member proposed a $500,000 annual cut. Staff explained that any reduction would need to be allocated across specific line items such as personnel, benefits, and travel, and noted that the Senate budget is entirely General Funds. After discussion of how the adjusted authorized figures were calculated and why the branch no longer staffs some joint committees as it once did, the committee moved on without taking a vote on that section. The committee then heard a detailed presentation from the New Hampshire Retirement System. NHRS officials described their statutory administrative budget, which is funded through the retirement trust rather than the General Fund, and said the FY 2026-2027 increase is driven by IT modernization, cybersecurity, a new strategic plan, and additional staff positions. They also reviewed the system’s funding progress, clean audit opinions, investment performance, and changes to asset allocation, while noting that several recent pension-related laws required major database changes. Members questioned the large increase in salaries and benefits, the need for new employees versus contractors, the purpose of training costs, and the source of the Group Two benefit funding. NHRS said the governor’s budget includes General Funds for Group Two benefit changes, with $5 million in FY 2026 and $27.9 million in FY 2027, and that the figures reflect the governor’s recommendation and related HB 2 provisions. Committee members also asked about employer and employee contribution rates for Group Two police and fire members, which NHRS said were not included in the budget document but were about 31.2% for police and 30.35% for fire, with employee shares around 11.55% and 11.8%. The committee did not make a decision on the NHRS budget during this exchange and indicated it would review the details further before returning to it later. The committee then heard from the Community Development Finance Authority on the State Treasury Department budget line for the required state match to administer the federal Community Development Block Grant program. CDFA explained that its $280,000 annual request for FY 2026 and FY 2027, totaling $560,000, supports administration, technical assistance, contracting, and monitoring of roughly $19 million in annual federal CDBG funds. Members asked about the leverage of the state match, oversight of projects, staffing, and grant prioritization. CDFA said it has 18 employees, uses public hearings and a scoring system to prioritize awards, and conducts both desk and on-site monitoring, with annual audits to ensure compliance. No vote was taken on the CDFA item in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• But this is an urgent need that we feel needs to be addressed.
• Secretary, I need my numbers. All right, Mr. Secretary, I need my numbers.
• the need for a thorough assessment of family history and functioning. ...emphasizing the need for a
• thorough assessment of family history and functioning and for robust documentation of the changes needed
• We know we're going to need to continue to closely assess and monitor our spending so that we can continue

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Ways and Means

Summary: The hearing was a FY27 budget session on Health and Human Services held in Mattapan, hosted by the Joint Committee on Ways and Means. Opening remarks from Senator Lydia Edwards, Representative Brandy Fluker-Reed, Representative Russell Holmes, and Boston Public Library President David Leonard emphasized the significance of holding the first Ways and Means hearing in Mattapan, the importance of community access, and the role of libraries as human services institutions. Committee members and attendees introduced themselves before agency testimony began. MassAbility testified first, describing its mission to support people with disabilities through employment, independent living, and disability determination services. The agency highlighted federal funding uncertainty, a modest FY27 budget reduction, and a proposed reworking of its home care program, which it said is outdated and should better target those most in need. Members questioned the home care cut, staffing reductions, and federal coordination. MassAbility also shared a participant story about recovery and community support to illustrate the impact of its services. The Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing then presented its FY27 request, focusing on interpreter and captioning access, workforce development, emergency communication, aging-related hearing loss, and transition services for deaf and hard-of-hearing youth. Members asked about interpreter shortages, after-hours emergency coverage, ASL education, and community training; the commission said it is expanding mentorship and referral systems but still faces staffing and vendor challenges. The Massachusetts Commission for the Blind followed with a $30.8 million request, describing services for nearly 9,000 consumers, peer support groups, vocational rehabilitation, and Turning 22 services, while noting federal funding uncertainty and a 7% budget cut. Members raised concerns about maintaining services with fewer resources, and the commissioner said the agency had trimmed overhead and could manage the proposal. The Office for Refugees and Immigrants closed the segment, outlining expanded legal, housing, workforce, citizenship, and financial literacy supports for immigrants and refugees, including Know Your Rights trainings, legal defense initiatives, and the Massachusetts Access to Counsel Initiative. Members discussed the effects of federal policy changes, the loss of refugee resettlement funding, and the need for state support to fill gaps. No votes were taken in the portion provided; the hearing consisted of agency presentations and committee questioning.

Transcript Highlights:

• We'll need to we'll the needs of people.
• </c> from the House. from the House.
• So thank you. would need to be made. would need to be made.
• </c> the house. the house.
• Our state needs that money. The break. Our state needs that money.