Transcript Highlights:

• While TPLF contracts regularly impose rates from 15% to over 100%.
• While TPLF contracts regularly impose rates from 15% to over 100%.
• While TPLF contracts regularly impose rates from 15% to over 100%.
• It's just disclosing the contract the same way that an insurance policy is disclosed.
• the claimants um that are in contract the claimants um that are in contract with<02:07:02.960>

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• the contract especially for long-term long-term long-term Subs<00:35:18.880> represent<00:35:
• I can't come in,' because you're not under contract, you're not under those things, and so because you
• you're not under those things contract you're not under those things and<00:36:14.400> so<00:
• I was also a substitute teacher before I got my first contracted job.
• job I was also a long-term contracted job I was also a long-term sub<00:47:12.200> and<00:47:

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Are those kind of things built into sort of that contract and that understanding that if they miss a
• <01:02:35.640> and built into sort of that contract and built into sort of that contract and
• contract is you know that the contract contract is you know that the contract is<01:03:07.720>
• <01:03:57.119> with really hard to develop a contract with really hard to develop a contract

• negotiating contracts so if employ negotiating contracts so if employ employes<01:08:30.839>

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Looks like savings due to a competitive contract rebidding process for PBM.
• Speaker: The pharmacy benefit contract started this a year ago or last January and it's a six-year contract
• So the pharmacy benefit contract started this a year ago or last January, and it's a six-year contract
• So, it's something that we have in our contract.
• So, it's something that we have in our contract.

Bills: SB1, SB 1

Keywords: appropriations, budget, state funding, education, healthcare, infrastructure, campground safety, youth camp regulations, flood safety, emergency evacuation, health and safety standards, 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It establishes that when a contractor follows the plans and fulfills the contract, there is a presumption
• ><00:02:29.000> the follows the plans and fulfills the follows the plans and fulfills the contract
• , there is a presumption that contract, there is a presumption that they<00:02:32.040> have<00
• He has a staff of 100 people, 30 contracted medical and food services individuals.
• , sign contracts, sign contracts, join<00:53:41.560> the<00:53:41.640> military, join

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They don't have control that the Reserve has contracted with the National Guard.
• They don't have control that the Reserve has contracted with the National Guard, and they have to use
• The Guard has it by state agreement and contract, and when they typically have the money, they provide
• Chair, then shouldn't the provision of Wi-Fi then be done as part of said contract negotiation?
• In the room, what's the average age of a captain or major that would be reviewing this contract?

Bills: HB2006, HB2165, HB2245, HB2348, HB2806, HB2901, HB2902, HCR2016

Keywords: sample ballots, elections, primary election, general election, mailing deadline, ballot mailing, county election officials, board of supervisors, secretary of state, early voting list, election administration, voter information, postal service, USPS processing center, city elections, town elections, special district elections, Arizona election law, ballot proofing, party chair

Transcript Highlights:

• I think that like that's what I was—I mentioned that the next frontier is soil and water contracts or
• I think that like that's what I was—I mentioned that the next frontier is soil and water contracts or
• <00:40:55.280> or The next frontier is soil and water contracts, or soil and water things.
• So, if we lock up things for soil or water conservation, like, what do those contracts look like?
• So, if we lock up things for soil or water conservation, like, what do those contracts look like?

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The meeting opened with roll call and approval of the prior minutes, including a requested correction to Thomas Han’s statement about a Granite State Division of the Society of American Foresters subcommittee studying the timber yield tax and current use forest land tax assessment formula. The correction was adopted, and the minutes were then approved as amended. The main agenda item was a hearing of landowners on forest taxation and carbon credits. Several scheduled speakers canceled, so the committee received a letter from Ross Karen, a Coos County landowner and forester, who opposed carbon credit sales because of “leakage” and argued that diverse local markets and productive forests are better than carbon sales. Aean Kelly of White Mountain Lumber and the Randolph Town Forest also testified, saying many Coos County landowners and forest managers have declined carbon credit offers because they do not fit New Hampshire’s working-forest tradition. He argued that carbon agreements should be treated on a level playing field with traditional harvesting and that, if they are to be encouraged, they should face a fiscal adjustment comparable to the timber tax. Kelly also gave a detailed history of the timber tax, explaining that it was created in 1948 to replace uneven local property taxation on standing timber, discourage clearcutting, and stabilize the tax base while preserving working forests. He said the tax was intended to be collected when timber is harvested, not to stop logging, and that a later commission found the 10% rate roughly matched the revenue towns lost. In response to questions, he said pre-1948 assessments varied widely by town and tax collector, and that carbon projects today are already being valued by sophisticated models, so he believes carbon should be included in the assessment system. He also said short-term carbon agreements may simply monetize existing forest value, while 100-year agreements raise enforceability concerns. No votes or other formal actions were taken beyond approving the amended minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is it on line 18 where it says he's employed or contracted by city, parish, or the local school system
• Is it on line 18 where it says he's employed or contracted by city parish or the local school system?
• It says they have to be employed or contracted by the city, parish, or other local school system.
• Are any, in your experience, are there sometimes some of the parents that are contracting with an attorney
• My district and I fought over a service that would have cost them $10,000 to contract with a teacher

Summary: The Senate Education Committee met to hear several education-related measures. It reported favorably, without objection, on House Bill 1215, which would transfer certain removed historical statues and monuments to the Office of State Parks, prohibit re-erection in the parish where they were removed, and require interpretive signage. The committee also advanced House Bill 682, which creates a school guardian program for honorably discharged veterans employed or contracted by local school systems or charter schools; testimony emphasized that guardians would be unarmed, trained, and used for mentoring and school safety. House Bill 1079, giving enrollment preferences in charter schools to children in early childhood programs, military families, foster children, and children in custody disputes, was also reported favorably, as was House Concurrent Resolution 81, directing the Department of Education to study options for districts facing declining enrollment. The committee then took up House Bill 1084, which would allow public postsecondary institutions to raise tuition and mandatory fees by up to 15 percent annually, with higher increases requiring Board of Supervisors approval. The bill drew extended debate over affordability, TOPS, student retention, and whether universities should have more autonomy to set prices. Members raised concerns about fee burdens on families and whether the state should first study the issue; supporters argued the bill would increase transparency and let institutions respond to funding needs and market conditions. Senator Mazzell offered an amendment lowering the cap from 15 percent to 10 percent, and the committee adopted the amendment before reporting the bill favorably as amended. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 342, which would shift the burden of proof in special education due process hearings from parents to local education agencies. The author and parents testified that the current system places an unfair burden on families of children with disabilities, who often lack access to records and legal resources, and that schools already control the documentation and should have to show compliance with IEP obligations. Jefferson Parish school officials opposed the bill, arguing it would increase legal costs, require more staff and attorney time, and potentially lead to more hearings; they also questioned the fiscal note. The Legislative Fiscal Office said the fiscal impact was indeterminable, and the committee continued hearing testimony from parents and school representatives as the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• So the project was, the contract was awarded earlier this year. Standards as well.
• The 10% usually equates to the dollar value of the contract. Which is what?
• And so I realized that you may build into the contract. I did a little work in this area myself.
• Because these were big-time contracts.
• How much is the state currently spending on these types of third-party contracts?

Summary: The subcommittee heard a series of budget and trailer bill presentations focused on labor and public employment programs. The first item covered EDD Next modernization, where EDD described progress on customer service improvements, fraud prevention, language access, and the Integrated Claims Management System. The LAO urged stronger legislative oversight as the project enters its most difficult phase, and members questioned the revised schedule, total cost, change orders, stress testing, SB 1090 implementation, and how race and ethnicity data will be protected. EDD said the overall project cost remains about $1.2 billion, that the work is being phased with disability insurance and paid family leave first, and that fraud has been greatly reduced since pandemic-era programs ended. Members also asked for follow-up information on SB 590 outreach and equity impacts. The committee then reviewed the California Workforce Development Board’s request to reduce staffing as one-time grant workloads wind down, along with trailer bill language to streamline reporting requirements. The board and Department of Finance said the staffing reductions reflect the end of surge funding and that the proposal would consolidate roughly 10 to 12 reports into one annual report, with additional reporting only if new funds are appropriated for certain programs. Senator Durazo questioned the policy direction of reducing workforce staffing, while the administration said the positions were tied to temporary grant programs and that current staffing is sufficient for ongoing duties. Members also asked about the board’s role in AI-related workforce planning and the rationale for using state funds for the High Road Construction Careers Program. A major portion of the hearing focused on the Subsequent Injury Benefits Trust Fund reforms and related staffing request at DIR. The administration and LAO described rapid growth in applications, backlog, and liabilities, saying the program’s eligibility has expanded beyond its original intent and that liabilities could reach about $30 billion by 2030 without reform. The trailer bill would tighten eligibility, apply the changes to open cases, and use the QME process and contemporaneous evidence to document preexisting disabilities. Members raised concerns about fairness to pending claimants, evaluator capacity, and the relationship to other SIBTF legislation, while the LAO said the proposal largely aligns with its prior recommendations. DIR also presented a request to eliminate vacant positions under a statewide vacancy sweep, which drew criticism from members who argued the cuts could weaken enforcement and backlog reduction efforts; the committee asked DIR to return with more detail on impacts and on its use of temporary-help authority. The final items addressed a request for additional Cal/OSHA investigative staff and a trailer bill to make permanent the revised Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board petition timeline. DIR said the BOI staffing would help investigate fatalities and serious injuries more quickly, while members emphasized the importance of family contact and timely investigations. For the WCAB item, the chair explained that the 2024 change to Labor Code section 5909, which starts the 60-day decision clock when a case is transmitted rather than when a petition is filed, has reduced pending cases and should be made permanent; the remaining backlog was reported at 460 cases, down from 637 before the change.

Transcript Highlights:

• So they do that through contracting with the managed care plans.
• So they do that through contracting with the managed care plans.
• I already mentioned in lieu of services through managed care contracts.
• There's so many applications and so many contracts we had signed.
• contract with somebody to complete the application.

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And we do see growth and contraction. We do see the opportunities to attract new businesses.
• And we do see growth in contraction. We do see the opportunities to attract new businesses.
• And so what we did as a body allowed federal contract, I think it was federal contract.
• And so what we did as a body allowed federal contract, I think it was federal contract.

Keywords: Commission on Unemployment Compensation, 976, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You can sit in contracts, you can go sit in the field if you're in contracts, learn about other areas
• We are working with tribal relations and OLR to get tribes who contract with our homes information when
• We license all the homes in the state, but we don't contract with all of them.
• So tribes may contract with a home that we license.
• You may want to have this information related to your contract.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There was some belt-and-suspenders language put in so that existing contracts couldn't be modified.
• Um, there was some belt-and-suspenders language put in so that existing contracts couldn't be modified
• There was some belt-and-suspenders language put in so that existing contracts couldn't be modified.
• <00:15:32.639> couldn't<00:15:32.959> be so that existing contracts couldn't be so
• that existing contracts couldn't be modified.<00:15:34.240> Um<00:15:34.480> I<00:15:34.720

Keywords: Meeting Start: 00:00 Roll Call: 00:38 HB 576 discussion: 01:56 HB 576 voting: 06:54 HB 593 discussion: 08:25 HB 593 voting: 21:58, 958, all

Summary: The House Standing Committee on Economic Development and Workforce Investment met with a quorum and first considered House Bill 576, which would create the Kentucky Talent Recruitment Grant Program. Representative Robert Duvall said the bill is intended to address Kentucky’s workforce shortage by funding local recruitment efforts for out-of-state talent, with grants of up to $500,000 to cities, counties, and nonprofits, a required 20% local match, and performance-based payments. He said the program is modeled on existing efforts already operating in Kentucky and cited projected economic and tax benefits. The committee substitute removed an appropriation and emergency clause so funding would go through the regular budget process, and members approved the committee substitute, the bill, and a title amendment with favorable expression. The committee then took up House Bill 593, sponsored by Representative Josh Bray, which addresses data centers and utility costs. Bray said the bill is designed to protect ratepayers from subsidizing data center infrastructure and to ensure projects either bring their own generation, use power purchase agreements, or pay upfront for any needed transmission or generation upgrades. He explained that the committee substitute made mostly technical changes, including giving municipal utilities more time to set tariffs, clarifying terms, adding exemptions for certain TVA- and DOE-related projects, and preserving existing contracts and net metering arrangements. Members asked about local control, the $75,000 prepayment, and TVA authority; Bray said the prepayment covers utility due diligence and screens speculative projects, local requirements must be certified before incentives apply, and TVA is federally regulated. The bill received supportive comments from several members, who emphasized protecting utility bills and ratepayers, and it passed the committee with favorable expression.

Transcript Highlights:

• agreements, you would, as a landowner, have to agree to the terms and conditions of whatever the contract
• Those contracts would have to be executed in order for this to move forward.
• So, electronic contracts, they are in statute, state cost-share, because the conservation district can
• So if I enter a contract with them— ...and I place that hog trap on my land anywhere, is that going to
• you correctly, you are potentially open and willing to amending that because if it's a five-year contract

Bills: HB4338, HB3977, HB2100, HB2975, HB3056, HB3406, HB3720, HB4316, HB3405, HB1907, HB3142, HB3173, HB3270, HB3728, HB2440, HB2596, HB3466, HB3469, HB4338, HB3977, HB2100, HB2975, HB3056, HB3406, HB3720, HB4316, HB3405, HB1907, HB3142, HB3173, HB3270, HB3728, HB2440, HB2596, HB3466, HB3469

Keywords: HB4338, Oklahoma Brine Development Act, brine unitization, produced water, produced water unit, oil and gas wastewater, produced water recycling, reclaimed water, constituent elements, brine rights, solution gas, Corporation Commission, unitization, royalty interests, surface owner, oil and gas produced water, recycling and reuse, wastewater disposal, mineral extraction, lithium extraction

Transcript Highlights:

• I've recently completed my contract with the development group, so 60 days ago I retired.
• operating without any bylaws and without any conflict of interest policies, and without any written contract
• board member for using another company to price gouge CDR for expenditures related to emergency contracts
• Our contract with the state of Florida is a flat daily rate, Senator, our contract with the state of
• affected our internal financials and profit margin because we have a flat daily rate with the state by contract

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Higher Education met to hear confirmation testimony for a large slate of university and state college trustees. Most of the discussion centered on the nominees’ backgrounds, ties to their institutions, and priorities such as student success, workforce development, financial sustainability, research growth, housing, and maintaining or improving university rankings. Several University of Florida trustees emphasized campus improvements, “One UF” integration, institutional neutrality, and ambitions to move UF into the top tier nationally. Other nominees highlighted goals for Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic, UCF, Florida State, Florida Poly, the Florida Prepaid College Board, and several state colleges, with recurring themes of affordability, economic mobility, cybersecurity, and keeping Florida students in-state for college and careers. Public testimony was heard on the Florida A&M appointment, where Elijah Hooks spoke in opposition to the current administration and described his expulsion, arrest, and trespass from the university after protesting the selection of President Marva Johnson. During questioning of FAU nominee Tina Vidal-Duart, senators asked about her prior service on the Hope Florida Foundation board and about reports concerning CDR Health’s contracting practices; she said she was not aware of the foundation issues at the time and noted that CDR’s state contract was a flat daily rate, so subcontractor pricing affected only the company’s internal margins. Other nominees received little or no questioning. At the end of the meeting, the committee voted to confirm all nominees except Tina Vidal-Duart separately. Senator Bracy Davis requested the separate vote and opposed her confirmation, citing concerns related to her Hope Florida Foundation board service. Despite that objection, the committee ultimately voted to report Vidal-Duart favorably as well. The committee also noted that one University of West Florida nominee would be taken up at a later hearing because he was unable to attend.

Transcript Highlights:

• your on-site school-based kitchen, central kitchen like APS, which delivers to multiple sites, or contracted
• School-based kitchens, central kitchens like APS, which deliver to multiple sites, or contracted food
• kitchen infrastructure prior to the passage of the Universal School Meals legislation and have to contract
• Tolman said, contract with food service management companies.
• And PED should require contracts between schools and food quality standards discussed above.

Transcript Highlights:

• with small businesses, not just because of the procurements that we place with them, but also the contracts
• Additionally, through a small, less I guess, contracted, we have procurement cards where we go out and
• Additionally, 83% of that, totaling $607 million of our total procurement contracted dollars, does go
• So what we do is let out contracts for bid, so anybody can submit a proposal.
• entity to see what kind of work is available. ...and explore if there are opportunities to earn contracts

Transcript Highlights:

• clarifies that the bill would apply to any inmate confined to a facility either operated by or under contract
• beds that are in construction as well as the ones that are in the process of awarding the final contracts
• cases, we have to actually design the facility before we put it together, before we go in with a contract
• The rest is in the bid process or hasn't been awarded yet in a contract, but those contracts will be
• There's not enough contract capacity, there's not enough vendor capacity to pull that project off in

Bills: HB1826, HB2854, HB3006, HB4614, HB5261, HB5639

Keywords: mental health, women's health, county jail, depression screening, criminal justice, HB 2854, Pokuaa-Flowers Act, parole, mandatory supervision, electronic monitoring, releasee, parole officer, hospital visit approval, general hospital, law enforcement notification, DSHS, Department of State Health Services, corrections, public safety, liability immunity

Transcript Highlights:

• The first is in our managed care organization, so our managed care contract includes requirements for
• whatever vendor holds that contract, which is Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota, to participate
• They contract with providers and develop that with the providers themselves.
• So a couple of things that we're looking to do here is hiring or getting a contract with a psychiatrist
• And then in Section 5, it really requires that we shall ensure the capitation rates under our contracts

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The Senate Appropriations HR Division met with all members present to review the medical services portion of the HHS budget. Sarah Aker, Executive Director of Medical Services, walked the committee through several budget items, including HCBS cost-to-continue adjustments, the DD bed assessment, expansion of value-based purchasing, targeted rate increases for home health and QSP services, and the cross-disability waiver. Members generally supported the targeted increases for home health and QSP, and Aker explained that the cross-disability waiver funding would support startup work, service design, and infrastructure ahead of a planned July 1, 2028 implementation. The committee spent significant time on rate-setting and provider payment issues. Members discussed ambulance rate rebasing, with several senators expressing concern that the proposed increase was too high relative to peer states; the committee ultimately moved toward reducing that item to $1 million rather than zero so it could be revisited in conference committee. They also discussed a House-added critical access hospital networking grant and similarly leaned toward reducing it to $1 million. Aker explained the department’s value-based purchasing plans, including use of a vendor selected through RFP, and clarified how the department’s existing Medicaid managed care and hospital value-based programs work. A major portion of the meeting focused on long-term care and basic care payments, including a House-added extension of the $5 per day basic care add-on and a proposed shift in nursing facility incentive grants toward a withhold-based model. Senator Mathern indicated he would bring an amendment to delay or modify the withhold change, and Aker said the department would prefer language that directly addresses whether a withhold may be implemented. Members also discussed 1915(i) services, FMAP changes, the Medicaid legacy system modernization carryover, and a House-added legislative intent section on medical assistance. The committee adjourned for the morning with plans to return later to continue Human Services budget work and revisit unresolved items in conference committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• Now it's up to the feds to step in and begin to look at a lot of these military contracts that are currently
• It establishes a three-year teacher contract and a 10-year professional certificate.
• requires student performance to make up half of the evaluations and establishes a three-year teacher contract
• require student performance to make up half of the evaluation and establish a three-year teachers contract
• of the district school superintendent to reassign the teacher during the period of the contract.

Summary: The Senate convened with an opening prayer, pledge, and several recognitions, including visiting student groups, chambers of commerce, and apprenticeship participants. Senators also observed a moment of silence for a fallen Walton County deputy and later for the late John Pasadoma. The chamber then moved through a long third-reading calendar and special order calendar, with most bills passing overwhelmingly and several amendments adopted along the way. Among the major measures, SB 234 on criminal offenses against law enforcement officers passed 37-0 after debate and an amendment clarifying “good faith” in an officer’s duties; SB 7020 on open government and cybersecurity information passed 37-0; SM 1488 urging Congress to create a U.S. sovereign wealth fund was adopted by voice vote; SB 944 reducing insurance overpayment claim deadlines for psychologists passed 37-0; SB 878 expanding misdemeanor probation treatment provisions to controlled substances passed 36-1; SB 538, the state court system package, passed 37-0; SB 480 on nonprofit agricultural organization medical benefit plans passed 32-4; SB 472 on correctional-facility education credit for licensure passed 37-0; and SB 56 on geoengineering and weather modification passed 28-9 after extensive debate about enforcement, federal preemption, and the bill’s purpose. Later, the Senate passed CS/HB 421 on peer support for first responders 37-0 after substituting the House companion, and SB 164 on vessel accountability advanced with a technical amendment. SB 166 on administrative efficiency in public schools drew the most extended debate and multiple amendments; it changes testing, promotion, teacher evaluation, certification, and facilities rules, and passed 37-0. The chamber also passed SB 282 on warranty association financial requirements 36-0, SB 316 creating series LLCs 35-1, and SB 384 on annexing state-owned lands 36-0. At the end of the day, the Senate waived rules to immediately certify all passed bills to the House, received budget schedule guidance from Appropriations Chair Hooper for SB 2500 and SB 2502, and adjourned until April 9.