Transcript Highlights:

• And we'll learn from it.
• And we'll learn from it.
• That's me learning more of what my role is now.
• And in every disaster, we learn from it.
• , but also the new knowledge: AI, machine learning.

Summary: The joint Senate and House disaster preparedness and flooding hearing opened with quorum calls, prayer, testimony time limits, and remarks from legislative leaders emphasizing decorum, respect, and the goal of learning from the July 4 flood to prevent future loss of life. Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick and Speaker Dustin Burrows said the special session and hearings were intended to hear directly from local officials and residents, and that the state would pursue immediate and longer-term legislation and continue working beyond the current session. The committee then heard invited testimony from Kerr County, Kerrville, Kendall County, Real County, and the Upper Guadalupe River Authority, followed by member questions. Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, Sheriff Larry Leitha, and emergency management coordinator William B. Thomas described the flood as a sudden, unprecedented event that overwhelmed local systems before many officials or residents understood the danger. They said the county received multiple National Weather Service and IPAWS alerts, but the rain fell in remote upstream areas with limited gauges, and the flood rose too quickly for normal response. They detailed the emergency response, including dispatchers handling heavy call volumes, deputies and volunteer firefighters conducting rescues, and state and federal partners assisting. County officials said 108 people died, including 37 children, and two remained missing. They called for better real-time flood detection, stronger rural emergency management resources, improved broadband and cell coverage, and more funding for swift-water rescue and warning systems. Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring and City Manager Dalton Rice said the city had floodplain rules, emergency plans, and prior preparedness efforts, but the event exposed gaps in communications and regional warning capacity. They urged the Legislature to fund a flood warning system, whether sirens, automated alerts, or a hybrid, and asked for support for predictive weather modeling, broadband expansion, a hazard mitigation fund, and disaster recovery resources. The Upper Guadalupe River Authority said it had long funded gauges and pursued flood-warning and mitigation projects, including a new software-based flood prediction system and possible retention dams, and planned to dedicate reserve funds to feasibility studies and infrastructure improvements. Kendall County Judge Shane Stolarczyk said his county’s emergency action plan and early alerts helped prevent deaths there, and he recommended easier access to alerting tools, a river-wide warning system, simpler grant applications, and regional coordination. Real County Judge Bella Rubio said rural counties face major challenges because of limited cell service, broadband, staffing, and funding, especially for camps and visitors along the Frio and Nueces rivers, and argued that reliable alert systems should be treated as a necessity, not a luxury. Members asked about the timeline of the flood, low-water crossings, communications failures, sirens, bridges, and funding, and several witnesses said the key lessons were better communications, better warning systems, and more investment in rural flood mitigation and emergency response.

Transcript Highlights:

• That we now use Wyoming entities for virtually all of the incidental or ancillary holding entities or
• that. that we now use Wyoming entities that. that we now use Wyoming entities for<00:10:38.720> virtually
• > of<00:10:39.839> the<00:10:41.040> um<00:10:41.760> incidental for virtually
• all of the um incidental for virtually all of the um incidental or<00:10:42.959> ancillary<00

Bills: HB0086

Keywords: county officials, election code, misconduct, removal, government accountability, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We've been meeting with them, some of them several times a week since that, in person, virtually, trying

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There is virtually no evidence base to justify long-term outcomes of interventional pain management.
• <01:24:05.440> There<01:24:05.600> is<01:24:05.760> virtually<01:24:06.159><
• There is virtually no pain management.
• how to do IV therapy in where you learn how to do IV therapy in moving<01:58:05.440> ambulance
• IV placement itself is learned after graduation through employer orientation or continuing education

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Again, understanding that they will best learn from their mistakes in a community setting.
• I've learned and I've coached and I'm a mom and I've babysat, but fundamentally people including kids
• I think it's important to help them learn from their behavior rather than just to punish them for the
• But it's something we all can learn from.
• So that's one of the things I've learned in corrections over the years is you do want the ability to

Transcript Highlights:

• and Brown Louisianians who live in denser urban neighborhoods, where a school's own radius covers virtually
• and Brown Louisianians who live in denser urban neighborhoods, where a school's own radius covers virtually
• and Brown Louisianians who live in denser urban neighborhoods, where a school's own radius covers virtually

Summary: The committee first approved the April 28 minutes and announced that Senate Bill 499 was voluntarily deferred. It then heard several House bills, beginning with HB 168, a reentry/transitional housing program for female parolees near release; supporters said it would improve public safety and reduce recidivism, and the bill was reported favorably without objection. HB 322, a cleanup bill from the Maggie Grace Act clarifying that victims or families requesting transcripts would not be charged, was also reported favorably without objection. HB 622, which aligns Louisiana criminal history information practices with federal rules, was amended and then reported favorably. HB 821, moving the School for Safe Centers from GOSEP to the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement, was reported favorably as well. The committee then took up HB 364, which directs State Police to partner on public awareness efforts about the illegality of discharging firearms, especially around holidays. An amendment removed a proposed printing cost and shifted the bill toward PSAs; the bill was reported favorably with amendments. HB 568, which strengthens enforcement of drug-free school zone laws by creating a clearer offense for openly smoking or vaping illegal drugs in school zones and setting a specific penalty for marijuana, drew extensive debate. Supporters, including the author and governor’s office, said it was needed to protect children and families and to give law enforcement a workable deterrent. Opponents argued it would impose harsh, geography-based penalties, sweep in medical cannabis patients and veterans, and worsen racial and fiscal disparities. After roll-call, the committee reported HB 568 favorably by a 3-2 vote. The committee also approved HB 296, a cleanup bill removing long-defunct programs from statute, without objection. HB 823, creating an Orleans Parish DA pilot diversion program for unhoused people accused of nonviolent offenses, was supported by Covenant House and others as a way to avoid criminalizing homelessness and was reported favorably without objection. Finally, HB 1038, a major bill revising the authority and liability structure of city marshals and local governments, prompted extensive testimony. The bill and amendments would limit some marshal powers in smaller jurisdictions, require local approval for certain staffing/insurance matters, and allow local governments to restore powers by ordinance. Supporters said it would reduce liability, clarify authority, and address problems in some marshal offices; opponents, including multiple marshals and law enforcement supporters, said it would undermine elected marshals, hurt small offices, and was too broad and under-studied. The transcript ends amid that hearing, with no final committee action shown on HB 1038.

Transcript Highlights:

• the same, the missions are virtually the same, the missions are different<01:17:29.840> and<01
• Um other facilities we're<01:33:24.719> learning<01:33:25.040> that<01:33:25.199> we
• that we may need for DOE we're learning that we may need for DOE um<01:33:28.239> includes<01
• We gave them a plaque at the end of the summer, and we learned a lot from that first year, and we're
• at the end of the summer and we learned at the end of the summer and we learned a<03:04:20.640><

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And we don't say bison; we say Bison, if I understand it correctly, so I'm learning to do that.
• I'm learning to do that. But in that path, it's been great.
• And so we'll be doing a lot of work of listening to learn to lead to ensure that we are the land-grant
• It's also about a second part of that mission, which really focuses on teaching and learning, which is
• He's learning a lot.

Summary: The committee met in Fargo and approved the minutes from the March 31 meeting before hearing a series of informational presentations focused on North Dakota agriculture, water, and research. NDSU President David Cook opened with remarks about NDSU’s land-grant mission, emphasizing statewide service through research, teaching, and extension, and highlighting examples such as the Lilac Agriculture startup and the university’s role in applying research to real-world problems. He said he intends to spend time listening across the state to better understand local needs. The committee then received a detailed presentation on a state irrigation and drainage study from Tom Bodine on behalf of Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring. The study projected significant potential for expanded irrigation acreage, especially in counties such as McLean, Williams, Sargent, Burleigh, Mountrail, McKenzie, McIntosh, Dunn, and Bottineau, and estimated major economic gains from irrigation, including higher farm returns and support for value-added agriculture. Members discussed water permits, surface water versus aquifers, infrastructure, drought resilience, and the role of legal drains in improving productivity and generating economic activity. The presenters also noted that the full report is available online. Dr. Greg Lardy followed with NDSU’s required interim report, outlining the university’s agricultural research and extension system, including the State Board of Agricultural Research and Education, seven research-extension centers, and the economic importance of agriculture to the state. He highlighted recent research impacts such as new crop varieties, potato breeding successes, virtual fencing, AI-assisted weed control, weather-network tools, and 4-H programming. He also described NDSU’s budget priorities: restoring the governor’s proposed 10% cuts, additional operating support, and deferred maintenance funding. Committee members asked about the new agricultural field lab, storage sheds, and NDSU’s partnership with Grand Farm. The committee also heard from the North Dakota Water Resources Research Institute and a professor presenting water-related research, including data center cooling, water reuse, smart irrigation, and a feasibility study on co-locating data centers with greenhouse and aquaculture production. Members asked about water use, ownership, and whether the concepts were operational or still speculative. Finally, North Dakota AgTech presented its NSF-funded innovation engine work, describing startup commercialization, on-farm trials, workforce development, and partnerships with NDSU, UND, tribal colleges, and other land-grant institutions. No formal votes were taken beyond approval of the prior meeting minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• He has never learned of Jesus' teachings or that it is a sin to bear false witness.
• One week ago I was in New York when I learned that the next special session was starting the next day
• Imagine learning about women by talking mostly with men or learning about Republicans by talking mostly
• will preface my question just simply by noting that that I'm an attorney and one of the things you learn
• In 2021, I learned my baby had a fatal fetal anomaly, but my doctor couldn't even help me transfer my

Bills: HB7, SB 8

Keywords: abortion, healthcare, jurisdiction, civil action, qui tam, prohibition, state law, sex designation, restroom access, civil penalties, private civil right of action, women's privacy

Transcript Highlights:

• > So when we look at these provisions together, it is these terms are so broad that they capture virtually
• terms are so broad that<01:36:58.239> they<01:36:58.639> capture<01:36:59.280> virtually
• /c><01:36:59.920> all<01:37:00.239> uses<01:37:01.199> of that they capture virtually
• all uses of that they capture virtually all uses of AI,<01:37:02.719> including<01:37:03.280>
• However, there are instances where we're using AI, for example, that I've just learned about in preparation

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Fortunately, by the time I was sued, the media learned about Jordan's death in a dispute I had had with
• first case without a hearing, and the second judge also dismissed the other petition after a brief virtual
• dismissed the other petition after a dismissed the other petition after a brief<00:31:39.360> virtual
• 40.320> But<00:31:40.480> the<00:31:40.640> truth<00:31:40.799> is, brief virtual
• But the truth is, brief virtual hearing.

Bills: HB0103, HB0070, HB0091

Keywords: First Amendment, free speech, lawsuits, immunity, public participation, strategic lawsuits, foreign censorship, digital innovation, constitutional rights, Wyoming GRANITE Act, extraterritorial laws, civil actions, speech protection, legal jurisdiction, joint liability, artificial intelligence, social scoring, biometric data, privacy rights, government regulation

Transcript Highlights:

• interested landowners routinely stop conversations with me and my staff about land protection after learning
• We have a virtual testifier, Jenny Max, administrator, NISWA.
• We have a virtual testifier, Jenny Max, administrator, NISWA.
• We have a virtual testifier, Jenny Max, administrator, NISWA.
• We have a virtual testifier, Jenny Max, administrator, NISWA.

Bills: HF1698, HF632, HF1352, HF2197, HF618, HF1248, HF1697

Keywords: property tax, exemption, leased land, public use, commercial property, HF632, Minnesota property tax, conservation easement, conservation restriction, assessed value, property valuation, tax assessment, real property, land conservation, farmland preservation, natural areas, riparian buffer, water quality, water quantity, county assessor

Transcript Highlights:

• The Maryland Legislative LGBTQ+ Caucus is meeting tomorrow morning bright and early at 8:00 a.m. virtually
• The Maryland Legislative LGBTQ+ Caucus is meeting tomorrow morning bright and early at 8:00 a.m. virtually

Keywords: House streaming session for Monday, March 9, 2026, 957, house, all

Summary: The House convened with prayer, established a quorum, and approved the previous day’s journal. The main formal action was the reading and adoption of a House resolution honoring the women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion for their World War II service, with remarks emphasizing their role in clearing a massive mail backlog, supporting troop morale, and breaking barriers for African American women in the military. The resolution was read in full and presented on March 9, 2026. The chamber then handled introductory legislation and Senate messages on consent calendars. House Bills 1632 through 1642 were read the first time and referred to the appropriate committees, and Introductory House Bond Initiatives 62 through 65 were referred to Appropriations. Senate Bill 439 was introduced in the House and referred to Economic Matters, and Senate Bill 69 was introduced and referred to Government, Labor, and Elections. No objections or recorded votes were noted on these referrals. The remainder of the meeting consisted largely of caucus and guest announcements. Members announced upcoming caucus meetings, a high school shadow day, an Iftar dinner hosted by the Muslim and Women’s Caucuses, a Women’s Caucus election with in-person and remote voting times, and other constituent and guest recognitions, including District nights and visits from AFSCME Maryland Council 3, the Junior League of Annapolis, foster youth participants, and student pages. The House then adjourned on motion of the Majority Leader until Tuesday, March 10 at 10:00 a.m.