Transcript Highlights:

• We appreciate the state’s partnership with counties like ours to really try to mitigate the disastrous
• We appreciate the state's partnership with counties like ours to really try to mitigate the disastrous
• Corporations are reaping the benefits of federal cuts to families, and we have enough in California to mitigate

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• other ones spread to all the islands and then you have to have all the programs and the costly mitigation
• other ones spread to all the islands and then you have to have all the programs and the costly mitigation
• other ones spread to all the islands and then you have to have all the programs and the costly mitigation

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Higher Education met on February 13 and heard several bills, with most testimony focused on House Bill 2340, an emergency appropriation for the University of Hawaii to expand and sustain the Maui wildfire exposure study and Maui Health Registry. Supporters described the program as a critical, community-based response to the Maui fires that provides health screenings, mental health support, referrals, and workforce training. Testifiers said the study has identified serious health issues, including respiratory problems, heavy metal exposure, high blood pressure, diabetes, and anemia, and several emphasized that the program has saved lives and should be expanded to reach more children and underserved residents. Committee members also noted broad written support from medical, public health, and community organizations. The committee then heard House Bill 65, HD1, on human and community resilience, which would fund development of a Human and Community Resilience Institute. The dean testifying for the University of Hawaii said the institute would take a data-driven, community-based approach to food and nutritional security, especially given Hawaii’s high food insecurity rate and the loss of SNAP-related positions. House Bill 6005, also on the agenda, drew testimony in support from the Hawaii Farm Bureau and others, though the transcript excerpt does not include the bill’s full description. The committee also heard House Bill 1605, HD1, expanding the Hawaii National Guard state tuition assistance program to graduate degrees; the Department of Defense, Hawaii Army National Guard, and University of Hawaii supported it, and members clarified that it is a state program separate from the federal GI Bill, though it may sometimes be combined depending on eligibility. Later, the committee heard House Bill 1967, HD1, on permitting workforce development, which would implement recommendations of the speed task force by creating a permitting workforce pipeline with community colleges and coordinating with state and county permitting agencies. The Office of Planning and Sustainable Development and the University of Hawaii supported the measure. House Bill 2139, HD1, on invasive species, would fund research on treatment methods for the Queensland Longhorn Beetle; DLNR, the Farm Bureau, CGAPS, University of Hawaii at Hilo researchers, farmers, and others supported it, citing damage to native trees, culturally important plants, and crops such as cacao, and noting promising early results from nematode biocontrol trials. The final bill heard was House Bill 2383, HD1, establishing a statewide workforce PELL grant framework for short-term training programs; the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, the Workforce Development Council, and the University of Hawaii testified, and a committee discussion followed about how responsibilities would be divided among DIR, WDC, and the governor’s certification role. No votes or final committee actions were taken in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• grouted<00:28:43.440> rip<00:28:43.840> wrap<00:28:44.240> to<00:28:44.399> mitigate
• grouted rip wrap to mitigate erosion. grouted rip wrap to mitigate erosion.

Keywords: 00:05 Call to Order and Roll Call 00:34 Approval of Minutes 00:56 Information Items 05:40 Project Rpt from Postsecondary Institutions 14:00 Project Rpt from Finance and Administration Cabinet 20:40 Lease Rpt from Finance and Administration Cabinet 24:53 Rpt from OFM – Ky Infrastructure Authority 40:38 Office of Financial Management 47:39 Remaining 2025 Meeting Dates 48:05 Adjournment, 958, all

Summary: The meeting began with routine business, including a quorum call, approval of the April minutes, and several informational reports. Those information items covered upcoming general obligation debt for Bullitt, Jefferson, and Warren counties; Kentucky Communications Network Authority updates tied to House Bill 6; Eastern Kentucky University asset preservation reallocations under House Bill 1; and School Facilities Construction Commission debt activity, including 20 prior debt issues totaling about $386 million with roughly 85% locally supported debt service and 15% SFCC participation. Members then discussed concerns about a Kentucky Communications Network Authority project, focusing on a reported discrepancy between an appropriation of $12.927 million and an apparent payment of about $8.532 million on a project with a cost estimate of $12.449 million. Several members asked for more detailed written information before the next Capital Projects meeting, noting that a lawsuit is pending and that they wanted to better understand the basis for the request and the spending to date. The committee also heard and unanimously approved a donor-funded Northern Kentucky University project to renovate tennis courts, with possible pickleball additions, after questions about why approval was needed, the project’s estimated $3 million cost, and its expected minimal ongoing operating costs. The committee next received Kentucky State University pool allocation reports for three projects: a $2 million McCullen Hall renovation, a $1.75 million walkway and miscellaneous repairs project, and a $2 million academic services building roof-and-window project. A member asked specifically about curb cuts and accessibility in the walkway project, and Kentucky State said existing curb cuts would be repaired and additional accessibility issues would be reviewed by engineers. The lease report from the Finance and Administration Cabinet included one lease modification requiring approval for the Attorney General’s office in Franklin County and one no-action modification for the Board of Cosmetology; the Attorney General lease was approved by roll call vote. Finally, the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority presented five loans and 37 grants, with action taken on the loan and grant items. The loans included a Hodgenville wastewater treatment plant increase, a Grant County sewer district treatment plant loan, a Mount Sterling dam rehabilitation loan, and two Morganfield drinking water loans for granular activated carbon treatment, one with full principal forgiveness. Members asked about the Morganfield project’s purpose and were told it was a remediation effort for a water-quality concern, and they also raised questions about engineering fees, which KIA said are compared against a U.S. Rural Development fee schedule that is industry accepted. The committee also reviewed cleaner water program grant reallocations from county allocation pools.

Transcript Highlights:

• What we are trying to do is also mitigate the amount of malpractice, mitigate the amount of patients
• that are hurt, and mitigate the amount of deaths that occur.

Transcript Highlights:

• So again, a public health approach is to give people the tools they need to mitigate their risks, and
• their risks and they need to mitigate their risks and one<01:19:23.760> of<01:19:23.880> it
• okay thank you your mitigate okay thank you your representative Representative Priest, thank you, Mr
• Luckily, they were able to mitigate any of the impacts of that.
• <04:05:45.040> the so that we can help um mitigate the so that we can help um mitigate the

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Finance Division III work session focused on the Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Public Health Services budget. Department staff said Public Health has a relatively small budget compared with other DHHS divisions, is supported mostly by federal and other non-General funds, and contains nearly 100 accounting units and more than 50 federal grants. They emphasized that the governor’s budget did not include significant cuts, but that federal funding uncertainty and the winding down of pandemic-era resources were major factors affecting the division. The division also explained that some apparent budget growth reflects reorganizations, including moving the Bureau of Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery and some programs from other DHHS divisions into Public Health. The presentation described Public Health’s mission as serving the entire state through food and water safety, disease surveillance, emergency response, maternal and child health, chronic disease prevention, WIC, community health center support, and public health data collection. Members asked about bird flu, and staff explained that human-health response would involve Public Health’s lab, infectious disease, and emergency preparedness units, while animal-health issues are handled with the Department of Agriculture; they also noted ongoing milk testing requested by FDA and USDA. The division said its organizational structure includes bureaus for Family Health and Nutrition, Infectious Disease Control, Public Health Protection, Emergency Preparedness, Prevention and Wellness, Statistics and Informatics, and Public Health Laboratories, with about a 15% vacancy rate. Committee members questioned whether the division’s budget and staffing had really grown since pre-COVID, and staff responded that full-time authorized staffing is about the same as in 2018, with the increase largely due to federal pandemic funding that has since receded and to program transfers between divisions. They said Public Health’s General Fund share is about $24 million out of roughly $1.1 billion in DHHS General Fund spending, or about 2.2% of the department total. Members also asked about the 3,000-position cap and unfunded positions; staff explained that the cap remains in chapter law through June 30, 2025, that 394 positions were unfunded in the governor’s budget, and that the division expects flexibility to move money from personnel lines and fill unfunded positions to manage changing needs. No votes or formal actions were taken in this portion of the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• If a warning is given, the employer has 30 days to mitigate and correct, and it stays as a warning.
• and correct and it days to mitigate and correct and it stays<01:17:31.480> as<01:17:31.600>
• <01:20:30.639> the<01:20:31.000> amount<01:20:31.159> of workplaces mitigate
• the amount of workplaces mitigate the amount of injuries<01:20:31.719> that<01:20:31.840>
• program long term what is a mitigation program long term so<03:52:21.359> it's<03:52:21.479><

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're trying to do everything we can to find ways to help mitigate this from happening in the future.

Keywords: 997, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Building a resilient transportation system that mitigates disruptions and drives down costs for businesses

Transcript Highlights:

• In those cases where an individualized assessment shows that no combination of conditions can mitigate
• This creates a disconnect between the attempt to mitigate safety concerns and the outcome, which allows
• combination of conditions can mitigate combination of conditions can mitigate the<01:26:19.840><
• <01:26:34.320> to disconnect between the attempt to disconnect between the attempt to mitigate
• safety concerns and the outcome mitigate safety concerns and the outcome which<01:26:36.560> allows

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• you know, work very closely with districts around crisis prevention and or crisis response and mitigation
• you know, work very closely with districts around crisis prevention and or crisis response and mitigation
• > other evidence-based practices that other evidence-based practices that could<00:45:47.520> mitigate
• <00:45:50.000> Um could mitigate the use of seclusion.
• Um could mitigate the use of seclusion.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• an employer that does not utilize E-Verify employment verification shall not be eligible for any mitigation
• an employer that does not utilize e-verify employment verification shall not be eligible for any mitigation

Keywords: 994, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They'll develop statewide resiliency policies, support hazard mitigation policies.
• They'll develop statewide resiliency policies, support hazard mitigation policies.

Bills: HB179, HB354, SB57, SB137, HB431, HB179, HB354, SB57, SB137, HB431

Keywords: campus chaplain, chaplain, school chaplain, volunteer chaplain, public schools, public K-12 education, public charter schools, local control, teacher support, student support services, religious volunteer, faith-based support, church-state separation, background check, sex offender registry, school volunteer, education policy, district attorney, compensation, constitutional amendment

Transcript Highlights:

• service, and that requires sustained long-term investment in generation, transmission, and wildlife mitigation
• service, and that requires sustained long-term investment in generation, transmission, and wildlife mitigation

Bills: HB303, SB96, HM6

Keywords: public utility, certificate of public convenience and necessity, certificate of need, Public Regulation Commission, PRC, utility regulation, ratemaking, energy storage, battery storage, grid reliability, renewable energy, transmission, distribution, generation plant, utility expansion, service territory, mutual domestic water consumer association, economic development department, clean energy, fossil fuel reduction

Transcript Highlights:

• So there is currently mitigation happening in some of these areas.
• And so it's essentially a network that helps us anticipate areas of concern and hopefully to mitigate

Bills: SB64, SB19, SB44, SB83

Keywords: special education, office of special education, deputy secretary, public education department, IEP, individualized education program, students with disabilities, IDEA, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, dyslexia, dyslexia screening, structured literacy, reading intervention, multilayered system of supports, MTSS, student assistance team, free appropriate public education, FAPE, special education compliance, charter schools

Transcript Highlights:

• million is for search and analytics technology, very important technology to help us combat and mitigate
• on some legislation right now that's going to totally help us combat by making sure that we can mitigate

Summary: The committee received a presentation on the Governor’s fiscal year 2026-2027 public safety budget, which totals $8.2 billion for the public safety silo and includes funding for the Departments of Law Enforcement, Juvenile Justice, and Corrections, along with courts and legal affairs. The Governor’s Office highlighted recurring reductions and vacancy eliminations, while agency heads outlined their major requests: FDLE sought funding for fentanyl enforcement, career offender registry staffing, alert-system upgrades, alcohol testing modernization, officer wellness, criminal intelligence, and immigration-related intelligence work; DJJ requested money for the Florida Scholars Academy, uniforms, residential services, a new Broward detention center, and facility maintenance; and DOC requested major increases for officer pay, additional staff, facility construction and maintenance, communications upgrades, inmate health care, pharmaceuticals, and food service. Members questioned FDLE about immigration enforcement and public records burdens, and DOC about staffing, capacity, mental health services, contraband, housing, and whether prison beds were being used for immigration detainees. Public testimony also urged better prison conditions and basic necessities for incarcerated people. The committee then took up and reported favorably CS/SB 156, the Jason Rayner Act, which would strengthen penalties and clarify that a person may not resist an officer with violence when the officer is performing official duties. An amendment conforming the bill to House language was adopted, and the bill passed with Senator Smith voting no. The committee also adopted an amendment and reported favorably CS/SB 54, which concerns use of substances affecting cognitive function and limits certain medical-record disclosures to information relevant to investigations of violent offenders; Senator Smith voted no on that measure as well. Next, the committee considered Senator Berman’s bills on domestic and dating violence. CS/SB 296 would direct a study of a secure web-based alert platform for victims, including a discreet phone-number/code system and geolocation support, and would expand the Address Confidentiality Program to dating-violence victims. The bill drew emotional support testimony from survivors and advocates describing the dangers victims face when trying to leave abusive situations, and it was reported favorably. Its companion, CS/SB 298, would extend public-records protections in the Address Confidentiality Program to dating-violence victims; it was also reported favorably. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• All other requirements of applications are still in place, including mitigation.
• about: what is changing some of the environmental outlook out there, and what can we do to maybe mitigate

Summary: The committee heard first from Deputy State Climatologist Karen Bumbacco, who reviewed the weather and snowpack conditions that contributed to Washington’s 2025 drought. She said the state had a very warm and dry water year, with April through September ranking among the warmest and driest periods on record, and that three straight years of below-normal snowpack and precipitation had compounded drought impacts, especially in the Yakima Basin. She also explained that a weak La Niña could bring a wetter-than-normal winter, though temperature forecasts were less certain, and noted that long-term climate projections point to continued snowpack decline and earlier runoff timing. Department of Ecology staff Rea Burns and Caroline Melor then described the state’s drought declaration process and response. They said Washington’s statutory drought threshold is less than 75% of normal water supply plus a hardship finding, and that Ecology extended the Yakima drought declaration in April and expanded it statewide in June. They discussed reliance on federal monitoring data and staffing at NRCS, USGS, Reclamation, and NOAA, and said federal staffing and funding instability has created concerns for snowpack and water data. They also reviewed drought response funding, noting that grants have supported projects in the Yakima and Dungeness basins and that the drought emergency account still has a balance available for current needs. Burns gave a detailed update on the Yakima Basin, saying it experienced unprecedented conditions this year, including nearly empty reservoirs, curtailment orders sent to about 1,500 water users, and the first time even the most senior 1855 surface water rights were turned off. She said widespread compliance occurred, though the process exposed areas for improvement, especially coordination with federal partners. Committee members asked about the long-term basis for climate projections, the 75% drought threshold, federal impacts, drought insurance, reservoir storage, and whether the state should consider more drought funding or new storage projects. No votes or formal actions were taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• We commend you all for the steps that you're taking to mitigate the impact that are happening for our
• We know how to mitigate that; we know what that number is or was and what it will be.

Transcript Highlights:

• ago, we found a way to address issues of uncompensated care by expanding employee pools for risk mitigation
• I know YouTube has taken steps in recent years to try to mitigate harms to children and adults, to be

Bills: HF2435

Keywords: healthcare, dementia services, public health funding, opioid prevention, women's health, community health boards, mental health

Transcript Highlights:

• ADVERSELY DETERMINED THAT THESE REFORMS TO THE VEXATIOUS LITIGANT LAW WILL ENABLE FLORIDA COURTS TO MITIGATE
• PREPONDERANCE OF EVIDENCE THAT THE CHILD WOULD NOT HAVE MADE IT, MAYBE THAT WOULD FACTOR IN AND MITIGATE

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• stakeholders. to proactively manage sediment in Lake Houston of both water supply as well as flood mitigation
• The other issue, which the previous speaker spoke about, is flood mitigation. that happened at the end

Bills: HB 1089, HB 1163, HB 1177, HB 1238, HB1318, HB1400, HB1407, HB1532, HJR7, HJR7

Keywords: coastal protection, environmental management, Gulf Coast, storm risk management, funding, Texas General Land Office, healthcare, insurance reform, patient access, insurance regulation, affordable care, health insurance, consumer rights, coverage transparency, claims process, insurance regulations, aggregate production, environmental impact, financial responsibility, reclamation