Transcript Highlights:

• And for those, MCI Framingham, we are at a historically low incarceration rate for women, as you all
• I'm not sure of the specific rate. We can track it down for you, Sheriff."
• I'm not sure of the specific rate in which that is. We can track it down for you, Sheriff.
• So these are our current rates of program completion.
• That's why you have such high rates of vocation that has been met.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The commission approved the July 11 minutes and then received a detailed follow-up presentation from the Department of Correction on facility footprint, mission-driven housing, programming, and technology. Commissioner Jenkins and Deputy Commissioner Peterson explained recent and planned facility changes, including the closures of Walpole, MCI Cedar Junction, and MCI Concord, the transition of the Plymouth Section 35/Mass Act program to Health and Human Services, the return of Bay State to DOC control for possible future use, and the Shattuck Hospital move to East Newton Pavilion. Members asked about operational capacity, the exclusion of support beds from occupancy figures, and the status of mothballed or unused facilities. Framingham drew particular attention because of its historically low women’s population and planned renovations; members raised concerns about the cost and the need to consider the broader women’s correctional system. A major portion of the meeting focused on mission-driven units and evidence-based programming. DOC described specialized units for health services, nursing care, clinical stabilization, mental health, residential treatment, protective custody, reentry, emerging adults, education, and substance use recovery, and noted that security threat group support beds are not used. Staff explained the distinction between general population beds and support beds, and between programming and treatment. They said core recidivism-reduction programs are based on risk-need responsivity and COMPAS assessments, with Spectrum Health Systems as the current vendor, and presented recidivism data showing lower reoffending among participants who completed programs such as violence reduction, criminal thinking, and the Correctional Recovery Academy. For women, they highlighted the pathways model at MCI Framingham, which combines trauma-informed, gender-responsive services, and reported strong outcomes for those engaged for at least 26 weeks. Members asked about how needs are identified and counted, how declinations are handled, and how the department distinguishes completion from ongoing maintenance. DOC said participation is voluntary, individuals are re-recommended over time, and completion is recorded in the system when criteria are met. They also discussed educational supports for learning disabilities and trauma, including IEP/504 coordination, tutoring, and a new school psychologist for testing. Questions were raised about family reunification programming, and DOC pointed to family-focused services, mediation, Read to Me Mommy, and the Brave unit for young fathers. Sheriff Cabral and Sheriff Cochie praised the presentation and emphasized the importance of family reunification and the realities of trauma in incarcerated people’s lives. The final section highlighted the expanded use of tablets across all facilities. DOC said tablets now support free phone calls, emails, video visits, surveys, educational content, medical updates, sick-call requests, and an earned-good-time app, while also helping with communication during facility closures and with ongoing programming. Staff said the tablets are used both for learning and recreation, and that more than half of the incarcerated population uses them monthly for educational purposes. Members discussed whether user feedback or “reviews” of programs could help increase participation, and DOC said tablet-based surveys make that possible. The meeting ended with general agreement that the department has expanded programming and technology substantially and is using them to support reentry, communication, and facility operations.

Transcript Highlights:

• Then you have the tax rate for federal purposes and credits.
• You can also change tax rates, and, you know, the feds have been known to do that.
• They know, for example, that If they raise the rate or lower the rate, it doesn't impact the states in
• change the rate because it's the ultimate tax-paying partner who will pay the tax, and their rate is
• At this point, we've reduced our vacancy rate from 19% just a few years ago to 14%.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's happening at an exponential rate, as you heard from the previous witness.
• in effect at the time the work is performed rather than the prevailing rate.
• the modal rate, which is based off of collective bargaining agreements throughout the state.
• and not the rate within the... ...as they must perform that work at their collective bargaining rate
• and not the rate that is posted at that time.

Summary: The committee heard a series of labor-related bills, with most measures focused on worker training, privacy, wages, and safety. AB 296 would require schools or districts to host apprenticeship fairs at least once a year, with flexibility on how they are run and whether programs outside the county can participate. Supporters said it would help connect students to skilled trades and address workforce shortages; school administrators opposed the bill as an unfunded mandate that could be impractical for elementary schools. The bill was later moved on call, with the committee noting it could not vote until quorum was established. AB 1221 and AB 1331 both addressed workplace surveillance. AB 1221 would restrict invasive monitoring tools, require notice to workers, limit the use and sharing of worker data, and require human review before discipline based on surveillance outputs. Labor groups supported the bill as a response to AI-driven monitoring, while business groups raised concerns about broad definitions, security cameras, investigations, and data-access provisions. AB 1331 focused more narrowly on privacy in off-duty and private spaces, limiting surveillance in places like restrooms, break areas, vehicles, and homes; hospitals and business groups opposed it as too broad and potentially disruptive to safety, cybersecurity, and facility monitoring. Both bills were advanced by committee vote. The committee also heard AB 1181, which would require firefighter turnout gear to be free of cancer-causing chemicals such as PFAS by 2027, and AB 1198, which would require prevailing wage rates on public works to reflect the wage in effect when the work is performed rather than when the project was first advertised. Firefighter representatives strongly supported AB 1181, while the chemical industry asked to continue working on scope and timelines. AB 1198 drew support from labor and contractor groups but opposition from local governments and housing groups concerned about mid-project cost increases; it was passed to Appropriations after a roll-call vote. Other measures approved included AB 1235 on skilled-and-trained workers for CSU construction, AB 1251 on ghost job postings, AB 552 on locating the Agricultural Labor Relations Board office outside Sacramento, AB 1110 on updating Cal/OSHA workplace posters, AB 1136 on expanding high road training partnerships, and AB 1234 on wage claim enforcement. AB 692, which would ban employer debt agreements that require workers to repay training or other costs if they leave a job, drew strong support from nurses and labor advocates and opposition from business and health care groups; it was also passed on a roll-call vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, you know, this is based on contribution rates.
• We see that designated teachers from this program are teaching at campuses with higher rates of poverty
• We see an 88% retention rate for designated teachers versus 80% for their non-designated peers.
• For the first time in these last two years, Dallas ISD is retaining teachers at higher rates than both
• Additionally, we have an above 12% attrition rate.

Bills: SB26, SB 26

Keywords: teacher compensation, education funding, public school educators, teacher retention, teacher designation, SB 26, Texas Property Code, colonia, colonias, Spanish translation, bilingual contract, real estate contract, executory contract, residential property, border county, international border, economically distressed area, consumer protection, language access, translator certified in Spanish

Transcript Highlights:

• initiate the rural health transformation fund in its first year, $128 million in Medicaid provider rate
• How many people is DOC holding, and what is the reimbursement rate? Chair Garcia.
• $52 million for the inpatient hospital rate and about $37 million to the outpatient hospital rate.
• The 3% employee contribution rate is not changed by this bill.
• The 3% employee contribution rate is not changed by this bill.

Summary: The Senate took up the 2026-2027 budget package, beginning with an overview of the $115 billion General Appropriations Bill (SB 2500/HB 500). Appropriations Chair Hooper said the budget is smaller than last year’s, maintains strong reserves, and includes a 3% pay raise for all state employees and 5% raises for state law enforcement, firefighters, correctional officers, and park rangers. Committee chairs then highlighted major spending in their areas, including $34.9 billion for Pre-K-12 education, $11.9 billion for higher education, a $2.1 billion-plus increase in health and human services, $7.9 billion for criminal and civil justice, $16.8 billion for transportation/tourism/economic development, and major environmental and regulatory investments such as Everglades restoration, water quality, and land acquisition. Members asked detailed questions about several items. Topics included the Emergency Management Trust Fund, arts and cultural grants, Florida Forever land acquisition versus conservation easements, teacher salaries and charter school funding, New College funding, ADAP/HIV drug assistance, Medicaid rate reductions for non-critical access hospitals, DOC operational deficits and inmate health/food costs, judicial staffing, and school enrollment supplements. Chairs explained that some reductions reflected shifts in how scholarship and categorical funds are tracked, that the ADAP appropriation would take effect immediately upon enactment but would only cover part of the year, and that hospital reductions were tied to a broader DPP funding increase. Questions also covered lottery staffing, concealed carry licensing workload, and whether vacant positions were being eliminated as part of budget right-sizing. After the budget discussion, the Senate substituted House bills for the Senate budget bills and adopted amendments placing the Senate language onto the House vehicles. The chamber then passed HB 500, HB 503, and HB 5201, and agreed to conference on each. It also passed SB 7028/HB 5205 on retirement, SB 2506 on fuel taxes, SB 2508 on the state agency law enforcement radio system, SB 2510/HB 5401 on court trust funds, SB 2512 on judgeships, SB 2514 on K-12 education, SB 2516 on higher education, and SB 2518 on health, with each bill passing by unanimous or near-unanimous votes and then being sent to conference or requested of the House for concurrence.

Transcript Highlights:

• they're charging, they figure out how to charge higher rates.
• There are new insurance rates since 2021, by the way.
• These insurance companies are charging these rural hospitals rates that really are having a hard time
• Currently, we have the second highest rate of medical malpractice lawsuits of any state in the United
• Insurance rates will go up. Patient care costs will go up.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, and the tax rate on that's 1.25%.
• So this strictly makes the online tax rate the same as the in-person tax rate. That's the bill.
• So this the tax rate on that's 1.25%.
• <00:08:38.719> the strictly makes the online tax rate the strictly makes the online tax rate
• uh the tax rate so in my bill tax rate uh the tax rate so in my bill tax rate is is is 32.5%.<01

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee held a public hearing on SB 60, which would expressly authorize advanced deposit wagering for horse racing in New Hampshire and set the online tax rate at 1.25%, matching the existing rate for in-person horse betting at Seabrook and Belmont. Senator Tim Lang said the bill is intended to clarify that online horse betting is permitted, regulate the activity, and create a revenue stream while keeping the tax rate consistent with brick-and-mortar wagering. Members asked about the rate compared with other states, whether the bill was really about casino front money, and whether geofencing would apply; Lang and later witnesses said the bill is narrowly limited to parimutuel horse racing and would use geofencing to keep wagering within New Hampshire. Peter Bragdon, speaking for Churchill Downs, supported the bill and described advanced deposit wagering as remote betting on horse races under the Interstate Horse Racing Act of 1978. He said Churchill Downs and other operators have long been active in New Hampshire, but the state’s lack of a specific statute has created a gray area. Bragdon said Churchill Downs stopped its own New Hampshire online operations in 2022 after discussions with the Lottery Commission and attorney general, while competitors continued operating, and he framed the bill as a fairness and consumer-protection measure that would clarify the law going forward. He also said the bill would not affect historic horse racing machines and would not create cannibalization of charitable gaming. Lottery Director Charlie McIntyre said the Lottery Commission and attorney general had identified the issue as similar to the earlier fantasy sports situation, where legislation was used to regulate an activity rather than pursue enforcement. He said the commission requested the bill, would serve as the regulator, and would address violations through rulemaking and penalties. McIntyre said operators would maintain customer and transaction records, with the commission reviewing them as needed, and he noted that three operators are currently active in the state and not paying the proposed 1.25% rate. No vote was taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, when you talk about the state's obesity rate, you make it seem as if the poor people are the only
• Well, when you talk about the obesity rate and you talk about this is going to help to fix the obesity
• rate because we're going to stop these people from being able to have sodas and candy and stuff like
• , about the state's obesity rate, about the state's obesity rate, you<00:14:59.440> make<00
• and you talk talk about the obesity rate and you talk about<00:15:09.680> this<00:15:09.920><

Bills: HB589, HB591, HB609, HB614, SB57, SB280, SB332, HB589, HB591, HB609, HB614, SB57, SB280, SB332, HB627

Keywords: Jefferson County, building regulations, zoning, public health, building commissioner, permits, construction, land use, county tax, lodging tax, Henry County, transient accommodations, hospitality industry, local act, sheriff, sheriff's office, task force, abandoned property, stolen property, unclaimed property

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:04:12.200> of to cap property taxes at the rate of to cap property taxes at the rate of
• They increased the base tax and slowed down the rate of depreciation.
• So, now a down the rate of depreciation.
• <00:15:30.520> They<00:15:30.640> can the rate of inflation plus 50%.
• They can the rate of inflation plus 50%.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: Minnesota Senate Republicans held a press conference unveiling a package of affordability and tax-relief bills aimed at property taxes, taxes on tips and overtime, and vehicle registration costs. Leader Mark Johnson said the proposals were meant to counter rising costs for wages, homeownership, and driving, and argued that Democrats’ policies had made life more expensive. Several senators echoed that theme, saying Minnesotans need immediate relief and that the state has room to act because of a reported surplus. Senator Michael Kunesh described a property-tax cap bill that would limit increases for cities and counties to inflation plus 50% of population growth, with higher increases requiring voter approval. He said constituents, including seniors, a disabled veteran, and young people, are seeing unsustainable property-tax hikes, and he argued that state and federal mandates have driven local costs. In response to a question about added county workload from federal SNAP and Medicaid changes, he said the solution is both to pause new mandates and to cap property-tax growth. Senator Karin Housley outlined a proposal to end state taxes on tips and overtime, with deductions up to $25,000 for tips and $12,500 for overtime, phased out at $150,000 for individuals and $300,000 for families. She said the measure would help workers keep more of what they earn and would not cost small businesses directly. Senator John Jasinski proposed rolling back vehicle registration tab fees to pre-2023 levels, saying Minnesota’s fees are far higher than neighboring states and that the change would save drivers money over time. Senator Julia Coleman also supported the package, saying the bills would provide practical relief for families facing high housing, driving, and work-related costs. No votes were taken; the event ended with questions from reporters about fiscal impacts, offsets, and whether the proposals would worsen the state’s structural budget imbalance.

Transcript Highlights:

• similar to the rates that urban customers pay.
• And that's why you've seen us move up to a 90% access rate.
• They were looking for 2.5 million for rate increases. Mr.
• Not the—I need to look on the reimbursement rate itself. Mr.
• If we had not passed a bill last year to increase rates, royalty rates on the greatest, on the best land

Bills: HB2, SB152

Keywords: general appropriation, budget, Medicaid, education funding, public safety, telecommunications, low-income assistance, lifeline, broadband, rural broadband, universal service fund, public regulation commission, PRC, 911 surcharge, telecommunications relay service, VoIP, mobile service, internet affordability, digital equity, digital inclusion

Transcript Highlights:

• and actual COLAs, including the thirteenth checks through 2025 and thereafter based on an inflation rate
• to reduce, and in fact, the bond rating is scheduled to go up.
• But I just think the COLA should be set at ERB's rate, and then it just eliminates the problem.
• That rate has been averaging over the last 10 years anywhere between 6 to 8 percent per year.
• The 6.8 percent is the true inflation rate.

Transcript Highlights:

• So it was a high attrition rate even back then.
• The turn rate at at the CABC is 8.2 months.
• What is your hourly rate? The hourly rate is set by statute.
• And so those rates are calculated pursuant to statute.
• So it's a very low rate, and you only get paid that hourly rate if you win their case at the court.

Transcript Highlights:

• And we've kind of stayed with that rate since 2017.
• There really hasn't been a whole lot of changes to that rate.
• So it's paid at the same rate compared to a bus mile in this funding formula. Yeah.
• They're still going to get funded by the rates. The miles will still be excluded.
• The work that's being done on that, what the House did is that they raised the rate to 225%.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee met to hear and discuss three education bills and related budget items. House Bill 1214 would revise K-12 transportation funding by replacing the current rider-based formula with a new formula tied more closely to district size, square mileage, building counts, and the weighted student payment. Sponsors and DPI said the change would better reflect actual transportation costs, hold districts harmless overall, and likely increase funding by about $4 million beyond current spending; they also said parent-provided transportation and open-enrollment mileage rules would remain largely unchanged. No opposition was heard, and the committee closed discussion without taking final action in the transcript. The committee then reviewed House Bill 1013, the education appropriations bill, and walked through proposed adjustments to program and pass-through grants. The chair proposed keeping or reducing some items, eliminating others, and moving one-time items to the stabilization fund; examples included leaving free meals at $4.5 million for now, keeping the paraprofessional-to-teacher program, reducing some grant lines, and removing several new or one-time grants. DPI also explained that the student information system would remain a flow-through grant for this biennium but would move in-house after July 1, 2026. The committee also discussed adding an FTE for the School for the Blind and making a small equipment swap at the Center for Distance Education. House Bill 1369 was discussed as the main school aid bill, including a proposed 2 percent and 2 percent per-pupil payment increase, higher construction bidding thresholds, elimination of the 12 percent cap, and a transfer of $75 million from Foundation Aid to the School Construction Revolving Loan Fund, with the chair suggesting $100 million instead. DPI explained that the bill also included a policy change returning placement decisions for students with disabilities in congregate care to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with support from the governor’s office. The committee heard testimony from school officials seeking gap funding for Title I losses caused by a switch from free-and-reduced-lunch to census-based allocations, saying districts with many open-enrolled students could lose substantial funding and staff positions. Later, the governor’s office presented a proposed $1.5 million one-time appropriation to help schools buy secure storage for student cell phones if a statewide device policy is adopted; members raised concerns about cost, local control, and whether the money would be enough. The committee also heard student testimony and then recessed without voting on the amendment in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• There is the cremation rate in Oklahoma.
• But that cremation rate is going to continue to rise.
• Turnover rate is essentially zero from year to year.
• rate.
• We're down to about 10% on our turnover rate.

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• basically protects you from catastrophic costs if you were to utilize health care services at a high rate
• pools, so they are necessarily going to increase their rates.
• So there is, and different carriers, there are three ways of rating the policies.
• This is what most of the policies in New Mexico are rated as.
• There is community-based rating, which would essentially have the same premium no matter the age, and

Bills: SB21, SB42, SB81, SB101, SB139

Keywords: SB 21, Medicare supplement, Medigap, open enrollment, guaranteed issue, birthday month enrollment, health insurance, insurance regulation, senior health coverage, elderly, retiree, Medicare beneficiaries, preexisting conditions, underwriting restrictions, premium discrimination, New Mexico insurance law, superintendent of insurance, health care coverage, policy portability, healthcare

Transcript Highlights:

• Also, unit and test completions and their passing rates are another way that they calculate instructional
• Different areas that you looked at, but what are the graduation rates?
• I'd like to see the graduation rates. We should compare that. I mean, there's no reason not to.
• Those graduation rates are very important.
• The other thing I want to say about looking at graduation rate statistics, as we all know, can say a

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• In the severance tax permanent fund, it is invested in below market rate investments.
• Its amortization rate period was 52 years.
• two different rates, we're starting to get up to a pretty significant amount of salary.
• For Pera we're looking at about um between the employer and employee rate over 30%.
• Um, you all did something similar with PA a couple of years ago to pro-rate colas for state retirees

Transcript Highlights:

• I think, you know, the condemnation rate is super low.
• We adopted a mixed system using a moderate rate of impact fees to help address this.
• If this bill passes, that means water and wastewater rates will increase in College Station.
• Most of this is still covered by rate payers in water and wastewater. Most of this is...
• Now he's, you know, whatever his tax rate is... is, he's now having to pay it on $315,000.

Transcript Highlights:

• Representative Chiia: The city of Dallas has been able to double its conversion rate for securing bids
• Representative Lopez: So some of it might be the interest rate.
• Also you get a lower interest rate, okay. And so the lending facility would do that.
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the rate of inflation between May 2019 and May 2024 was
• Additionally, Ben Martin: each of these areas has seen a decline in voucher success rates.

Bills: HB158

Keywords: public funds, lobbying activities, political subdivision, government spending, transparency

Transcript Highlights:

• At any rate, this bill is a little less. a little less involved, and some things that have been done
• So, Texas utilities already implement anti-solar rates and fees in the absence of regulation.
• And then a sound methodology should underpin these rates.
• We have to continue to account for all rate payers in the region and that's what this does. does.
• News and World Report, both the violent crime rate and property crime rate in Austin were higher than

Bills: HB 13, HB143, HB144, HB145, HB366, HB470, HB805, HB912, HB13, HB143, HB144, HB145

Keywords: emergency communication, infrastructure, first responders, grant program, interoperability, Texas Interoperability Council, local governments, HB 143, Texas Railroad Commission, Public Utility Commission of Texas, Natural Resources Code, oil and gas, well site, surface facility, electrical power line, National Electrical Code, NEC, electrical safety, utility disconnect, service disconnection