Transcript Highlights:

• </c> between employer and employees to pay between employer and employees to pay for<00:04:37.240><c>
• </c><00:37:41.839><c> pay</c><00:37:42.079><c> the</c> this bill the state would pay pay the this bill
• </c><00:38:39.599><c> for</c><00:38:39.800><c> the</c> would pay would would still pay for the would
• They can give all they want as long as they're paying for them, but we'll pay for 12, and that makes
• They can give all they want as long as they're paying for them, but we'll pay for 12, and that makes

Keywords: Meeting Start: 00:02 Attendance Roll Call: 00:49 Approval of Minutes: 01:55 CERS Retiree Health Subsidy Proposal: 02:14 SB 58: 24:05 TRS Sick/Annual Leave Proposal: 32:53 Adjournment: 48:00, 958, all

Summary: The committee first approved the prior month’s minutes after a roll call established a quorum. It then heard testimony on a draft proposal from Senator Robbie Mills to increase CERS retiree health subsidies for members retiring on or after July 1, 2003. The bill would raise the non-hazardous subsidy from $14.63 to $40 per month per year of service and the hazardous-duty subsidy from $21.94 to $50, with employee contribution rates adjusted based on the health trust’s funded status. Supporters from sheriffs, firefighters, police chiefs, and the Kentucky League of Cities said the change would improve recruitment and retention, better align the subsidy with the cost of a single health plan, and preserve the system’s financial footing through shared employer-employee costs and funding triggers. Committee members asked about the fiscal impact, the effect of funding levels above 150%, and how the subsidy would work for rehired retirees or employees who later take private-sector jobs. Mills and other witnesses said preliminary actuarial work was still forthcoming, that the bill was intended to be revenue-neutral or close to it, and that the subsidy would continue to be paid monthly; they also noted existing 2008 rules for rehired retirees and said the benefit would still be available even if a retiree later had other insurance. One member suggested looking at stable accounts as an additional option for special-needs planning in a later bill. The committee then heard Senate Bill 58 from Senator Robin Webb, which would allow state employees to designate a Special Needs Trust as a beneficiary for retirement benefits. Webb said the measure would help employees provide for disabled dependents without jeopardizing SSI or Medicaid eligibility, and that the bill follows federal special-needs trust rules. He said the proposal could be revenue neutral, but actuarial analysis was still pending and KPPA had asked for electronic rather than paper transfer provisions. Members questioned whether the authority already exists, how the trust would work, and whether stable accounts should also be considered; Webb said he would follow up with additional information.

Transcript Highlights:

• Clarify: you stated that pilots will turn them off to get out of paying taxes.
• Hybrid and EV owners pay $110 or $85 on their tags each year to cover the gas tax they don't pay because
• Since 2021, EV owners have been paying an extra $110 on their tags.
• For some families, paying all at once is very difficult.
• So what we're doing with the EVs is that you pay the flat $110.

Bills: SB1312, SB1323, SB1599, SB1863, SB1932, SB1950, SB1956, SB1958, SB1966, SB1970, SB2052

Keywords: vehicle registration, automatic payments, Service Oklahoma, taxes, motor vehicle, prepayment program, memorial designation, highway, Sheriff Marty Grisham, transportation, Oklahoma Statutes, memorial bridge, dedication, Oklahoma, commemoration, memorial highway, road designation, John Skelley, motor carrier, administrative hearing

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> platforms like Meta and Alphabet pay platforms like Meta and Alphabet pay little<00:04:04.480><c
• The difference is paid households pay.
• </c> paying the tax. paying the tax. Representative<00:34:55.040><c> Joy.</c> Representative Joy.
• Let's just look at people who are pay.
• </c> higher taxes, you can opt in and pay higher taxes, you can opt in and pay more<00:42:50.640><c>

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• one of not paying rent?
• This is about who pays for when Mr.
• Who pays that expense? The owner pays that expense. This is about property rights.
• I pay my bills.
• Everybody is paying more than they can afford to pay rent in Texas, and this is just going to be a bigger

Bills: HB15, HB171, HB204

Keywords: flood risk, campground, safety regulations, civil penalty, guest safety, Harris County, flood control, governance, expansion, public health, local governance, environmental management

Transcript Highlights:

• fees and you pay professional fees.
• If you don't pay for it in one place, you pay for it in another.
• These smaller lots and smaller homes are paying the same fee that some of the larger homes are paying
• The homebuyer has to pay $315,000.
• to be paying property taxes on that.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uber pays for this car and pays for me to eat. That's just one story.
• I'll try to pay attention here to the right box.
• that $10,000, we'll pay it right now, but you're not going to pay your attorney's fees.
• They have plenty of opportunity to pay that $5,000, avoid the consumer paying the cost of an attorney
• We pay the defense attorney's bills.

Summary: The committee met to hear five banking and insurance-related bills. HB 1549, an Office of Financial Regulation agency bill to help more efficiently regulate financial institutions, was amended to match Senate companion language and then passed unanimously. HB 1231 would extend physician payment and prior-authorization protections similar to a prior dental law, including limits on virtual credit card payments as the sole payment method; physicians and medical groups supported it as a way to reduce fees and retroactive denials, while insurers were not heard in opposition, and the bill passed unanimously. The committee then heard HB 999, which would make gold and silver legal tender and allow transactions in bullion through electronic debit mechanisms. The sponsor and several proponents framed it as an inflation hedge and economic freedom measure, while questions focused on definitions, transaction costs, and vendor participation. The bill passed on a mostly party-line vote, with one member voting no. The committee also approved HM 4363, a memorial urging Congress to establish a sovereign wealth fund; the sponsor described it as a way to steward national wealth, and the memorial passed with one dissenting vote. Finally, the committee took up HB 1551, which would create a prevailing-party attorney fee framework in insurance contract disputes. The sponsor argued it would restore balance, deter meritless litigation, and help consumers with valid claims recover fees, while insurers, business groups, and defense attorneys warned it would revive one-way fee shifting, increase litigation, and raise premiums. Consumer advocates and some members supported it as necessary to give policyholders meaningful recourse. After debate, the bill passed favorably, with one member voting no.

Transcript Highlights:

• A lot of times right now, a lot of the PBMs are paying themselves more than they're paying everyone else
• Anything paying more than it should comes down, and anything paying less than it should comes up.
• Somebody's got to pay for it.
• So what it's saying is my team members would have to pay triple the co-pay on a 90-day fill because they
• a co-pay.

Keywords: 923, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We just disagree on how to pay for it.
• It's about 60 cents on the Hour of pay; they're not on the dollar.
• And then again, they would not have to pay the $0.60.
• They don't have to pay this.
• and we're going to be paying this.

Transcript Highlights:

• If I want to pay it up front, if I owe $3,600, pay it early, I guess.
• If they pay earlier, they don't pay early.
• If they pay earlier, they don't pay early.
• would pay $1,140.
• If they don't pay before the early pay discount, they're going to pay $1,200.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 2401, which would require physicians to complete continuing education on nutrition and metabolic health as part of the state’s rural health transformation effort. HHS supported the bill, saying it would help physicians better address chronic disease and preserve federal grant points tied to the state’s application. A member of the public also testified in favor, arguing that better nutrition education could improve diabetes outcomes and reduce costs. The committee then adopted an amendment to add the Board of Occupational Therapy Practice to the background-check statute so the occupational therapy compact could proceed, and it passed the bill as amended on a roll call vote. The committee next heard House Bill 1621, which would require the Presidential Fitness Physical Fitness Test in elementary, middle, and high school physical education courses. HHS said the bill was part of the rural health transformation application and could help preserve federal funding, but members raised many questions about the test’s criteria, adaptive options for students with disabilities, equipment needs, and whether the bill should apply to non-public schools. Senator Clemens offered an amendment to limit the requirement to public schools, but it failed. Senator Hogan then offered an amendment to clarify exemptions and allow DPI to align implementation with federal guidance; that amendment passed. A further amendment adding language allowing DPI to establish criteria for and exceptions to the test also passed. The committee then approved the bill as amended on a roll call vote. The committee also considered House Bill 1622, which joins North Dakota to the physician assistant licensure compact. HHS said the compact would improve access to care, especially in rural areas, support military families, and help preserve rural health transformation funding. Members noted the compact had been discussed in a prior session and that many earlier concerns had been resolved. After brief discussion about the compact process and its consistency with other interstate compacts, the committee voted to do pass the bill. Finally, the committee began Senate Bill 2402, which expands pharmacists’ prescriptive authority and therapeutic substitution powers. HHS and the Board of Pharmacy supported the bill as a way to improve access to care and maintain rural health transformation funding. Senator Roers introduced a detailed amendment negotiated with the Board of Medicine and Board of Pharmacy to narrow and clarify the bill, including notification requirements, limits on certain drug categories, and patient-protection language for therapeutic substitution. The Board of Pharmacy then testified in support of the broader bill and explained the CLIA-waived testing provisions and the repeal of the older, narrower pharmacist-testing language. The hearing and amendment discussion were still underway when the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• They must pay the loan, all the money that they were provided.
• Those operators must pay the costs.
• Medicaid enrollees do not currently pay premiums.
• And over time, what I'm hearing you say is that a private pay, someone who's paying privately for their
• It ups my insurance so that I can pay... ...get a surtax.

Bills: SB241, SB145, HB2

Keywords: child care, child care assistance, child care subsidy, early childhood education, early childhood care, daycare, preschool, pre-K, Head Start, Early Head Start, Children's Code, early childhood education and care department, ECECD, child care facilities, licensed child care, registered child care, copayments, waitlist, subsidy, federal poverty level

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:10:38.800><c> for</c> having to choose between paying for having to choose between paying for
• They’d rather have just more money in their pocket so that they could pay their bills themselves.
• </c><00:26:11.919><c> the</c> to the utilities so that they pay the to the utilities so that they pay
• Government comes in and pays those people directly when they cannot pay their higher utility bills, and
• Government comes in and pays those people directly when they cannot pay their higher utility bills, and

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: House File 771, as amended, was laid over for possible inclusion. The bill would create a state supplemental grant program to build on LIHEAP, with the goal of expanding energy assistance beyond the winter season to cover summer cooling needs and reduce utility shutoffs. Representative Craft said the proposal would use existing LIHEAP systems, help more eligible households, and support related services like weatherization. The committee adopted the author’s amendment, DE2, without objection. Supporters testified that energy costs remain unaffordable for many Minnesotans, especially in rural areas and among low-income households, seniors, and people using delivered fuels. Annie Levenson-Faulk of the Citizens Utility Board said only about a quarter of eligible households receive assistance, summer shutoffs are common, and cooling needs have grown significantly. Trisha Leite of the Minnesota Rural Electric Association, Amanda Macky of Minnesota Valley Action Council, and Ken Schum of the Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association all supported the bill, saying year-round assistance would help households, reduce disconnects, stabilize demand for aid, and ease pressure on utility rates. Michael Schmitz of the Department of Commerce said Minnesota has received about $112 million in LIHEAP funds so far this year and is awaiting additional federal money; he also noted recent funding has been lower than in prior years and inflation has reduced its value. Members discussed the scale of utility shutoffs, the increase in cooling demand, and whether the bill addresses root causes or serves as a temporary fix. Representative Weiner argued that the state should focus on keeping more money in taxpayers’ pockets and reducing the need for subsidies, while Representative Craft responded that the underlying issue is low incomes and widening wealth inequality, and that policies like the child tax credit are better ways to address poverty. The chair also asked how LIHEAP dollars flow, and Commerce said most benefits are paid directly to utilities on behalf of households rather than as direct cash payments to recipients.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is why we say that EWA companies like Daily Pay sell for frequency of pay disconnects by facilitating
• Once a user has made a transfer, we pay them their remainder pay or the amount of their full paycheck
• For the vast majority of daily pay users, we actually send this remainder pay the day before payday.
• You got an advance for $200 but you want your full pay on Friday and you'd rather pay us back at the
• following pay period.

Transcript Highlights:

• They include any benefits, pay, or compensation.
• Everybody gets the same pay raise, whoever gets the office.
• office and the pay increase that was passed for the office.
• To increase pay, it is in passive voice.
• Why you want to pass the buck on pay increases when a lot of.

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Going to pay it back. It says cost savings.
• That loan ends right before we'd start paying on this one.
• And you're paying the other one out of your appropriation? Yes.
• So you're just going to be paying this back out of your appropriation? Yes.
• This is pay plan appropriation and performance fund requests.

Summary: The committee considered several appropriation and transfer requests, beginning with a $273,000 temporary appropriation for the Department of Labor and Licensing to cover administrative costs for its enterprise licensing platform, funded by license and application fees. It then reviewed two large Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act requests: $280 million for the Department of Transportation for the final quarter of the fiscal year, and $195 million for the State Broadband Office to support the Arkansas BEAD broadband grant program, including an extra help position and grants to internet service providers. The broadband item drew extensive questions about awardees, contract amendments, accountability, build-out timelines, backup plans if providers default, the definition of broadband serviceable locations, and the cost per location. The State Broadband Director said no providers had requested amendments, the program would use milestone-based disbursements and a four-year build-out period, and the first tranche would serve 51,566 homes and businesses with $126.1 million in grants. Both Section B and Section C items were approved. In Section D, the committee approved a $458,000 transfer within the Department of Correction from the female work release program to the Tucker Unit water treatment plant, a $25 million transfer within the Department of Education to cover declining enrollment, teacher incentive, school recognition, and Easter Seals funding, and a $229,000 transfer for the Department of Shared Administrative Services to support two project management office positions. The education transfer prompted questions about how declining enrollment funding is calculated, how many districts receive it, and how long districts can continue to receive it; agency staff said 152 districts were on the preliminary list and the formula is based on the prior two-year average ADM compared with the previous year. The committee also gave favorable advice on a proposed $4.7 million loan for the Office of State Technology to implement ServiceNow and related IT modernization tools; agency officials said the loan would be repaid through cost recovery rates over five years and would replace an existing loan that is ending, with expected savings from consolidating applications but no precise savings estimate yet. The committee then reviewed cash fund and federal grant requests, including $200,000 for wage and hour claimant payments, $15 million for unclaimed property claims, $8,000 for a heritage program grant, and $1.1 million for a College and Career Coaches grant to expand services in rural districts. It also reviewed pay plan and budget manual items without objection. The most extensive report discussion focused on the Medicaid trust fund, where DHS and DFA officials said the balance has been declining and that the state may need to add capital back into the fund. Senators and representatives asked about the current balance, the projected year-end level, the role of the $100 million set-aside, the impact of outstanding Medicaid rules from the prior session, and whether future federal funding could help reduce long-term Medicaid costs. Officials said they are still working through more than 10 outstanding rules with CMS and do not yet have a final price tag for those changes. The meeting ended after the reports were reviewed and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• So these folks will be paying over 11% of pay for their pension plan benefit.
• </c><01:27:27.360><c> a</c> but they'd be paying 2.88% of pay for a but they'd be paying 2.88% of pay
• </c> Medicare that people are already paying. Medicare that people are already paying.
• We can no longer have these workers pay 11.8% of their pay.'
• pay to MSRS for paying 11.39% of their pay to MSRS for this.<02:08:25.920><c> That</c><02:08:26.159>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Funding for the pay raise that the initial teachers, our beginning teachers received, we're paying that
• But let me end my comments with this remark: something's wrong when we're paying the salaries we're paying
• the teachers and we can pay $6 to $8, $9 million for a football coach, or we can pay $1.17 million to
• The merit pay, the state paid for.
• Why are we paying health benefits?

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Our goal is to be able to have enough money to pay our claims.
• We ran out of money, the reinsurance start paying.
• and the reinsurers pay based on what we project we're going to pay in the next 30 days.
• We can pay on those claims.
• So we pay to have the house deodorized.

Summary: The Assembly Insurance Committee held an oversight hearing on the California Fair Plan, focused on the plan’s rapid growth, its financial stability after the January Southern California wildfires, and its role as the insurer of last resort. Fair Plan officials explained that the plan was created in 1968, is a not-for-profit involuntary association of licensed property insurers, and is intended to be a temporary safety net until policyholders can return to the admitted market. They emphasized that the plan is not a state agency or taxpayer-funded, but is regulated by the Department of Insurance and supported by member-company assessments if claims exceed available funds. Victoria Roach and Armand Feliciano said the Fair Plan has grown sharply since 2018 and especially after market pullbacks by major insurers, reaching about 575,000 policies and roughly $600 billion in exposure by spring 2025. They noted that growth is increasingly occurring in lower wildfire-risk areas, where the plan can sometimes be cheaper than the voluntary market, and said this undermines depopulation back into the private market. They also discussed recent policy expansions, including coverage for farms, higher residential and commercial limits, and pending or proposed changes such as AB 290, SB 525, and AB 226, which would add tools like a line of credit and bond access. A major portion of the hearing addressed the January wildfire losses and the plan’s financial response. Fair Plan officials said they assessed member insurers for $1 billion after determining claims and cash flow would exceed available resources, and that the process was approved quickly and paid smoothly, with more than 80% of the assessment collected within 10 days. They also described the reinsurance tower, the plan’s limited surplus, and the need for actuarially sound rates to reduce future reliance on assessments. On claims handling, they said the plan has received over 5,500 claims from the fires, has paid more than $2.9 billion so far, expects total payments near $4 billion, and has focused on advancing payments quickly for total losses and other urgent needs. Members questioned the plan’s solvency, the growth in non-wildfire areas, claim denials, smoke-loss coverage, and how depopulation works. Roach said most closed claims without payment were duplicates rather than denials, and that smoke claims require direct physical loss under the policy, with coverage determined case by case. Public commenters from the California Building Industry Association and the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of California said the Fair Plan’s growth reflects a weak voluntary market, inadequate rates, and insurer fear of future assessments, and urged support for rate increases and AB 226. The hearing concluded with no vote, but with a commitment from Fair Plan officials to follow up on unanswered questions and continue providing more transparency through public data and website disclosures.

Transcript Highlights:

• So they go, she said, I'll pay 150 this month and I'll pay 150 next month.
• So they go, she said, I'll pay 150 this month and I'll pay 150 next month.
• </c><00:55:13.599><c> 150</c> I'll pay 150 this month and I'll pay 150 I'll pay 150 this month and I'll
• You have to pay the insurance. You have to pay the taxes.
• You have to pay the insurance. You have to pay the taxes.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• very low premiums or maybe not paying very low premiums or maybe not even<00:03:12.360><c> paying</c
• </c> meaning state tax dollarss have to pay meaning state tax dollarss have to pay double<00:04:33.639
• </c><00:14:14.000><c> I</c> regardless of their ability to pay I regardless of their ability to pay I
• </c> particular exemptions from paying particular exemptions from paying premiums<00:18:41.159><c> now
• is paying into the provider<00:48:17.200><c> tax</c><00:48:17.559><c> which</c><00:48:17.760><c> pays

Bills: HF10, HF27

Keywords: undocumented immigrants, state funding, MinnesotaCare, scholarship ineligibility, state assistance, permit to carry, concealed carry, handgun permit, firearm permit, pistol training, sheriff, application process, electronic filing, mail application, fax submission, certified mail, certified delivery, gun rights, Second Amendment, firearms regulation

Transcript Highlights:

• This is just pay the fine, is that correct? Mr.
• Chairman and Representative Shepherd, this is just about paying the fees.
• Is this just about paying the fee or paying the fines? Representative Sauter: Mr.
• Is this just about paying the fee or paying the fines? Representative Sauter. Mr.
• They don't pay their traffic...

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The committee heard House Bill 927 from Representative Mark Sauter, who described it as a public safety and accountability measure aimed at unpaid traffic infractions. He said the bill responds to a growing backlog of unpaid traffic fines, estimated at about $23 million and roughly 125,000 cases, and would reinstate driver’s license suspension for unpaid traffic infractions after a delayed effective date. He emphasized that the bill was developed with input from courts, law enforcement, ITD, and DMV, and includes protections such as payment plans, limited driving privileges for work and medical emergencies, and a carve-out for non-traffic matters like parking tickets. Committee members asked about interstate enforcement, probation/payment plan practices, and whether the bill covered fines, fees, or parking violations. Sauter clarified that the bill applies only to traffic infraction costs and does not address parking tickets or other non-traffic infractions. Matthew Condi of AAA testified in support, saying the bill balances mercy with accountability and supports traffic safety by encouraging payment of citations. Representative Nicholson moved to send House Bill 927 to the floor with a do pass recommendation. The motion carried without opposition, and the committee adjourned after noting a future meeting would be scheduled when a Senate bill arrives.