Transcript Highlights:

• Rickerson, what are your thoughts on the load forecast for 130 to 250?
• So the load forecast doesn't include all of that.
• forecasts are really moving forward.
• forecasts are really moving forward.
• It’s reasonable to question how that fits into the load forecast, but the load forecast doesn't include

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:31:00.760> so with the uh November 24th forecast so with the uh November 24th forecast
• Our non-MA forecasted program, so Behavioral Health Fund is in here.
• Looking at the November forecast, of course, we had increased spending in the November forecast that
• In the November forecast, we saw both.
• deeper um but we do publish our forecast deeper um but we do publish our forecast in<01:37:27.480

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee convened for an opening discussion of the 2025 Human Services session, with members emphasizing bipartisan collaboration, the committee’s mission to strengthen support systems for Minnesotans, and a focus on helping vulnerable people thrive. The chair and members welcomed new and returning senators and staff, including new pages and interim committee administration, and several members briefly introduced themselves and their backgrounds in public service and human services work. Members identified the main issues they expect to address this session: workforce shortages in human services professions, long-term care, program integrity, and efforts to limit waste, fraud, and abuse so funding reaches people who need it most. The chair also previewed upcoming hearings on eligibility and redeterminations for people with disabilities, MnCHOICES reassessments, assisted living and provider payment delays, and updates on direct care and treatment, noting that more detailed discussion would come in later meetings. The committee then received a budget overview from fiscal analyst Kyle Raymond. He explained the combined Health and Human Services budget area, noted jurisdiction changes tied to the creation of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families and the planned separation of Direct Care and Treatment, and said some figures may differ from the November forecast because of those shifts. He outlined the major funding sources for the budget area, including federal funds and the general fund, and said the presentation would focus on the fiscal year 2026-2027 budget the legislature will be considering.

Transcript Highlights:

• The forecast and modeling is based on actual costs to the VBR system.
• The forecast and modeling is based on actual costs to the VBR system.
• The forecast and modeling is based on actual costs to the VBR system.
• The forecast and modeling is based on actual costs to the VBR system.
• The forecast and modeling is based on actual costs to the VBR system.

Bills: HF500, HF718, HF1096, HF1246, HF1469

Keywords: nursing home, employment standards, worker rights, Minnesota Statutes, labor compensation, workforce development, job training, economic stability, low-income, career pathways, education funding, Summit Academy, employment, STEM programming, GED preparation, Neighborhood Development Center, NDC, small business, entrepreneurship, business training

Transcript Highlights:

• forecast by $69.4 million. forecast by $69.4 million.
• Looking ahead, road fund revenues are forecasted to decline over the first three quarters of FY26.
• -cent per gallon drop in the tax rate. receipts are also forecasted to decline. receipts are also forecasted
• Weight distance taxes are forecasted to continue their slow decline.
• And while that lower than forecasted.

Keywords: 00:32 Call to Order and Roll Call 02:30 Road Fund Report 17:22 Approval of Minutes 18:07 High Growth Counties Projects 56:00 Adjournment, 958, all

Summary: The Budget Review Subcommittee for Transportation met without a quorum at first, then later approved the July 15 minutes by voice vote after quorum was reached. The committee heard an update from the Transportation Cabinet on the road fund for FY 2024-25. Cabinet staff reported road fund revenue came in $38.5 million above the enacted estimate, with motor vehicle usage tax receipts setting an all-time high for the fifth straight year. Motor fuels tax revenue was below estimate and down from the prior year, while overall road fund collections totaled $1.86 billion, essentially flat year over year. Staff said the road fund ended FY25 with a $61.6 million surplus, which under the budget bill must be appropriated to state construction. Members discussed the gas tax formula, with Senator Higdon arguing it no longer works well because revenues fall when fuel prices fall, and the chair noting the committee may need to revisit the formula. The committee then received an update on High Growth County projects in the 2024 highway plan. KYTC said $16 million in HGC authorizations had been made, nine projects already had construction funds authorized or were otherwise underway, 12 more were scheduled to be let by the end of 2025 with estimated construction costs above $250 million, and one additional project was expected to be awarded through alternative delivery. The cabinet said it anticipated authorizing the full $450 million appropriated by the General Assembly. Members praised the effort and emphasized the need to get projects to market before the next budget cycle. Jason Sala of KYTC also explained why transportation projects take time, citing planning, design, right-of-way acquisition, and utility relocation as major steps that can delay delivery. He said these processes are complex and require coordination with property owners, utilities, consultants, contractors, and local governments. Eric Pelfrey then briefed the committee on professional and personal service contracts, saying they are used to expand cabinet capacity for design, inspections, right-of-way appraisal, safety, and related work. He reported that authorizations and payments for these contracts have trended upward over the past decade, and that the number of contracts has also increased. In response to questions, Pelfrey said design-build can speed some projects by overlapping steps, but it does not eliminate right-of-way or utility work when those are required; he said KYTC has been using alternative delivery more often, but project complexity still limits how quickly work can move.

Transcript Highlights:

• is, in its full form, going to be delayed because our budget forecaster, I think they're called Global
• Insights, is going to be issuing their part of the state budget forecast late.
• So typically we would expect to get the state budget forecast on February 28th.
• . state budget forecast late and so state budget forecast late and so typically<00:14:47.920> we
• on February 28th state budget forecast on February 28th my<00:14:52.240> understanding<00:14:

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: Minnesota House Democrats reacted to the Minnesota Supreme Court’s ruling that a quorum in the House is 68, saying the decision confirms that neither party can act alone and that Republicans and Democrats must negotiate to organize the chamber. They argued that the GOP’s actions over the prior two weeks were illegitimate once Secretary of State Steve Simon determined there was no quorum, and said all committee activity and the election of a presiding officer during that period were not valid. A major focus was the status of Rep. Brad Tabke’s seat in Shakopee. Democrats said Republicans were trying to use a temporary one-seat advantage to oust Tabke despite his election win, recount victory, and court ruling, which they said found it mathematically impossible that he lost. They said they would not return to the Capitol unless Republicans agreed not to remove him and to respect the voters’ will. Democrats said they were still open to a negotiated power-sharing deal and emphasized that such agreements should be in writing. They described their current offer as allowing Republicans to run the chamber while they hold a one-seat advantage, with committee members from the DFL not voting, and then moving to full power sharing if the House returns to a tie. They said the special election timeline was not changed by the court ruling and that the governor could still issue the writ on February 5, with the session having begun on January 14.

Transcript Highlights:

• , and then we have a slight increase forecasted for our draw ticket revenue.
• So what we forecasted on instant games, we fell short of that by 2.6%.
• Ahead of what we had forecasted.
• And then total net proceeds, we are ahead of what we had forecasted by 9.5%. It's.
• We are ahead of what we had forecasted by 9.5%.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And the Fog Observation and Geographic Forecasting Act would require the National Weather Service to
• improve fog forecasting with the goals of increasing vessel safety, helping the shipping industry, and
• Korea and Russia and we also have two bills before us that aim to improve weather forecasting the first
• by Senator Cruz improved forecast of coastal marine Well, there is something that Washington and Texas
• Forecasting Act, S1378 Tame Extreme Weather and Wildfires Act, as omitted by the Schatz Substitute, as

Transcript Highlights:

• The November budget forecast was released back in November, and we're expecting a new forecast to come
• The November budget forecast was released back in November, and we're expecting a new forecast to come
• was released back in November forecast was released back in November and<00:05:12.600> we're<
• 00:05:12.800> expecting<00:05:13.199> a<00:05:13.320> new<00:05:13.560> forecast
• <00:05:14.039> to and we're expecting a new forecast to and we're expecting a new forecast

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It is a forecast where we're making assumptions based on what we think will occur, and so that isn't
• that those tribal current forecast that those tribal Nations<00:12:25.560> will<00:12:25.800>
• <00:12:46.000> where transition um it is a forecast where transition um it is a forecast where
• So, um, we have some key drivers that we're seeing in the February forecast.
• increases the disability waiver forecast increases the disability waiver forecast by<00:16:38.160

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And finally, in the long-term forecast, get back to 3% per year.
• So all of that colored what we did in the general revenue forecast, and there's not a lot to say about
• We've fine-tuned things based on our most recent information, but largely we retain the forecast adopted
• So a couple of things have happened, even though our forecasts really didn't change materially.
• So the bottom line is we continue to see a revenue forecast that will not support the spending at its

Summary: The Legislative Budget Commission met with a quorum present to hear the constitutionally required Long-Range Financial Outlook and consider a series of budget amendments. Amy Baker of the Office of Economic and Demographic Research presented the outlook, describing Florida’s continued population growth, strong wage growth, an aging population, housing-market softening, and low consumer sentiment. She said the general revenue forecast was largely unchanged from March, but the state’s funds available had improved because of legislative actions in 2025 that increased the balance forward. She also noted strong reserves, a projected current-year Medicaid deficit of about $125 million, and a three-year outlook that remains positive in the first year but turns negative in years two and three. She highlighted the risk of co-occurring catastrophic events, using a normalized Great Miami Hurricane scenario to illustrate potential state losses. The outlook was adopted after brief comments from House and Senate members emphasizing fiscal restraint and efficiency. The commission then approved multiple budget amendments, mostly without objection. The Agency for Health Care Administration received amendments to realign funding for Florida KidCare based on estimating conference results, to provide $85 million in budget authority for disproportionate share hospital payments, and to adjust Medicaid and long-term care appropriations, including placing surplus funds into reserve. The Department of Health received $6.3 million in additional authority for newborn screening. The Department of Corrections and the Department of Management Services each received $2.2 million in Private Inmate Welfare Trust Fund authority for repair invoices and pending projects. The Department of State was authorized to release $2.5 million in nonrecurring general revenue for cultural and museum grants and America 250 commemorative grants. The Department of Transportation received approval for a project roll-forward and for work program changes, including advancing I-95 widening in Duval County and the I-4 corridor in Polk and Osceola counties. The meeting ended with a motion to adjourn.

Transcript Highlights:

• out all of the finance committees in the first column, and then there's a column for the February forecast
• base and then there is February forecast base columns for each of the following bienniums as well.
• So this is the February forecast base number plus the change from base.
• base and then there is February forecast base and then there is February<00:03:48.319> forecast
• <00:04:03.200> base So this is the February forecast base So this is the February forecast

Bills: HF601

Keywords: agriculture, depredation compensation, livestock, crop damage, elk, wolves, wildlife management, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• to grow over the forecast horizon, the amount of federal funding we receive is also set to grow.
• is forecast to grow over the forecast is forecast to grow over the forecast Horizon<00:08:08.240
• <01:16:52.400> a<01:16:52.440> $5 forecast a forecast of roughly a $5 forecast a forecast
• The conversation we're having today is not an influence on that forecast, and so that forecast will show
• right now getting ready for a forecast right now getting ready for a forecast and<01:20:56.040><

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• SALT cap will result in a general fund revenue loss of about $52 million per year over those same forecast
• As these are a continuation of the current law, there is no impact to Forecast because, as the Secretary
• mentioned, some of these we felt were going to be extended and were already built into the forecast.
• We list this as an upside risk to the forecast because we have built into the forecast our own clean
• We will have the full consensus of these impacts in that forecast that we're presenting on August 19th

Transcript Highlights:

• While that act's been around since or been in effect since 2003, this is the forecast since you left
• town, or the first one to actually build that into the actual forecasted revenues.
• While that act's been around since or been in effect since 2003, this is the forecast since you left
• town or the first ones to actually build that into the actual forecasted revenues.
• to the September most recent forecast.

Summary: The Senate Transportation Committee met on October 16, 2025, for a budget and revenue overview, a traffic safety presentation, and a discussion of potential transit and active transportation grant programs. Committee staff reviewed the adopted 2025-27 transportation budget, noting $15.5 billion in expenditures, the large share for WSDOT, and the mix of revenue sources including fuel tax, vehicle-related fees, federal funds, Climate Commitment Act revenue, and new 2025 revenues from SB 5801 and SB 5802. Staff said the 2025 session produced a balanced four-year plan, preserved major project schedules, maintained highway preservation funding, and added money for culverts, local preservation, and other priorities. They also described a September forecast showing lower motor fuel consumption than previously expected, but still enough revenue growth to keep the transportation plan balanced. For the 2026 supplemental, staff said agency requests were relatively modest overall, with most capital requests reflecting reappropriations and timing shifts rather than new projects, while WSDOT’s addendum identified much larger future needs for maintenance, preservation, paving, culverts, and safety work. Senators asked for more detail on how revenues are distributed by fund type and geography, how much of the maintenance and preservation request is actual maintenance versus equipment, whether paving needs could be supported through bonding, and how electric vehicle sales trends might affect forecasts. The committee then heard a remote presentation from Dr. Jessica Chikino of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety on traffic safety trends and countermeasures. She said U.S. traffic fatalities have risen sharply over the past decade, with especially large increases for pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists, and argued that the U.S. lags other high-income countries in roadway safety. Her presentation highlighted IIHS’s “30 by 30” goal to reduce fatalities 30% by 2030 through safer speeds, stronger impaired-driving countermeasures, better pedestrian protection, and safer commercial vehicles. She discussed research linking higher speed limits to higher fatality risk, the benefits of lower urban speed limits, speed safety cameras, traffic calming, lighting, pedestrian beacons, and safer intersection design. She also described ongoing work with Bellevue on smart signal technology and pedestrian safety pilots. Committee members thanked her for the presentation and said they would share the materials with others. In the final work session, the committee revisited transit and active transportation grant concepts that had been included in the Senate budget proposal but did not advance in 2025. Barb Chamberlain of WSDOT’s Active Transportation Division explained how grant programs need runway, staff capacity, applicant readiness, and clear criteria, and compared program design to getting a plane off the ground. She discussed the proposed Senior Transportation Emphasis Program and regional trails/cycle highways concepts, noting that some projects could be structured as funding-first programs while others would work better as project-line or project-first models. She said regional trail projects are already eligible under existing programs but often score lower because current criteria emphasize safety and population served. Justin Leighton of the Washington State Transit Association then reviewed transit grant programs and argued that transit safety and security needs remain underfunded, including operator barriers, lighting, shelters, behavioral health coordination, and non-uniformed security staff. He said many transit capital programs are oversubscribed, that operator barrier retrofits alone could cost $20 million to $30 million, and that agencies face uncertainty about how recent sales tax changes apply to security-related contracts. No votes were taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• The plainest way to explain this is that we have a plan that aligns with forecasted programs within this
• The total appropriations spending by this bill to align with the February 14 forecast is $137,099,000
• Referring to the A1 amendment that is the governor's revised budget after the February forecast, and
• So any forecasted spending change that we had in the original budget needed to be repriced according
• to the February forecast.

Transcript Highlights:

• Residential and small commercial consumers will benefit from more accurate load growth forecasting and
• So that's one of the mechanisms behind interpreting forecasted load solutions, whether we're thinking
• We have House bill 5066 which is driving that forecast.
• Of course, the bottom bracket there is just your base forecast, but then you see the addition of new
• So those are all areas. of load growth that we're seeing in that future load forecast.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And so, you know, I think we were all surprised by the load forecast that emerged in the last year or
• They were not in the forecast at the level of growth that we are now seeing in forecasts.
• The forecasting people who were out there see data centers as the largest single source of load growth
• We have recommendations regarding forecasting, and then a couple of them have to do with getting more
• factors, and we set those forecasts against three analyses that looked at the And we set those forecasts

Summary: The Joint Committee on Energy Supply, Energy Conservation, and Energy Resilience opened by electing Senator Shoemake as chair and Representative Alex Ibarra as vice chair. Members then moved into a series of work sessions focused on data centers, transmission, and workforce needs tied to Washington’s clean energy and grid planning challenges. Kate Bruns and Glenn Blackman presented preliminary findings from the governor’s Data Center work group, created under Executive Order 25-05. They said the group met for six months, received more than 1,000 public comments, and included representatives from agencies, industry, tribes, labor, utilities, environmental groups, and research institutions. The presenters emphasized that data centers are expected to be the largest source of load growth over the next five to ten years, creating concerns about grid capacity, ratepayer impacts, forecasting, water use, backup generation, and compatibility with Washington’s energy and climate laws. They described nine recommendations, including protecting existing energy and climate policy, improving forecasting, seeking more clean power and transmission, and encouraging flexible data center operations. A proposed tax incentive change that would have expanded eligibility while tying the exemption to new clean electricity sources narrowly failed in the work group. Members asked about tribal consultation, cooling technologies, and local benefits from data centers; the presenters said tribal consultation was ongoing and a final report would follow. Keegan Moyer of West Tech then outlined a regional transmission study showing major strain on the Western grid from load growth, electrification, resiliency needs, and limited transmission capacity. He said the 10-year study identified about 12,000 line miles of needed projects across the West, with roughly $56 billion in estimated costs, including planned projects, reliability upgrades, and new interregional transfer projects. He stressed that many projects are upgrades within existing rights-of-way, but new corridors are still needed, and he previewed recommendations on permitting, equipment procurement, cost allocation, and project sponsorship. In response to questions, he discussed the difficulty of crossing jurisdictional “seams,” the role of federal coordination, landowner compensation, eminent domain as a last resort, and the limited role of public financing beyond a federal GRIP grant. Stephanie Scott of Commerce presented the transmission workforce study, which focuses on substation technicians, line workers, and line clearance tree trimmers. She said current workforce levels are far below what will be needed under a clean energy expansion scenario, and that active projects are essential because apprenticeship training depends on thousands of hours of hands-on work. She highlighted barriers such as high upfront CDL and pre-apprenticeship costs, the need for wraparound supports, and the importance of expanding access for women, people of color, and tribal communities. Members asked about tribal utility apprenticeship programs, utility-run training pipelines, and whether the study included funding sources; Scott said the report would include an inventory of apprenticeship programs and tribal considerations, but revenue ideas were outside the study scope. Finally, Brant Johnson of Grid United described the North Plains Connector as a case study in large transmission development. He said the project, a 420-mile, 3,000-megawatt HVDC line connecting Montana and North Dakota, has relied on early stakeholder engagement, route changes, tribal consultation, and coordinated federal and state permitting to reduce risk and shorten timelines. He said the project aims for permits by the end of 2026 and construction beginning in 2028, with an earliest commercial operation date of 2032. In response to questions, he discussed the challenges of crossing regional seams, interconnection queues, land acquisition and compensation, eminent domain, and financing, noting that the project is primarily privately financed with a $700 million federal grant covering a portion of costs.

Transcript Highlights:

• They are not short-term forecasts.
• Frank will touch on some of the forecasts that we've looked at.
• And these forecasts, again, give us...
• However, unfortunately, forecasts for regional inflation, long-term forecasts at least for regional inflation
• There wasn't much change in the forecast for real wage growth.

Summary: The committee approved the July minutes and then received an informational presentation from the Office of the State Actuary on the financial condition of the state retirement systems. The actuary reported that employer contribution rates are generally declining, helped by strong investment returns and reduced funding for PERS 1 and TERS 1, while funded ratios have continued to improve; on a combined basis the plans were reported at 100% funded in 2024, with open plans above 95% and legacy plans varying by system. The presentation also reviewed projected rates and funded ratios under current assumptions, noted that pension costs are taking a smaller share of the state general fund, and discussed risks from investment volatility, policy changes, and demographic experience. Committee members asked about savings from lower rates, deferred asset smoothing, and how Washington compares with other states. The committee then considered the state actuary’s recommendation on long-term economic assumptions and adopted all four recommendations by roll call votes: inflation at 3.0%, general salary growth at 3.5%, membership growth for Plan 1 funding at 1.0%, and investment rate of return at 7.25%. The actuaries explained that the inflation and salary growth increases were driven largely by higher long-term inflation expectations, while the investment return recommendation matched the current statutory assumption. Members discussed the timing of the Pension Funding Council’s decision, the effect of tariffs and inflation uncertainty, and how assumption changes would affect future contribution rates and budgets, particularly for open plans. Staff then gave an update on the LEOFF 1 study, explaining the difference between being “ahead of schedule” and truly overfunded, and summarizing responses received from DRS, the State Treasurer, and the State Investment Board on the merger and restatement proposals. DRS said both bills could be administered, though the merger bill’s COLA banking provision would be challenging until its new system is ready; the Treasurer urged caution, especially about the restatement bill and the use of one-time funds; and the Investment Board said removing assets from the trust would have some transaction costs but likely small impacts. The committee discussed whether to invite additional agencies and local government groups to testify, and staff said more responses, including from Ice Miller and the State Actuary, were expected for the October meeting. Finally, the committee heard a briefing on PERS 1/TERS 1 COLA policy and related bills from the last session. Staff reviewed the committee’s prior ongoing COLA recommendation, the SCPP-endorsed bills that would have created a one-time 3% COLA followed by an ongoing COLA, the Senate merger bill, and a separate ad hoc COLA bill. Public testimony largely supported Plan 1 COLAs and stable contribution rates, while several speakers urged caution about transferring LEOFF 1 surplus assets or merging legacy plans, and others raised concerns about climate risk and the pension fund’s investments. No further committee action was taken on the COLA item during this portion of the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• So if you just looked at what we did in the forecast last year, we showed a forecast of about 140-150
• So looking at the way that we model and forecast - forecasting load, forecasting weather.
• Weather forecasting has become integral to really being able to forecast the amount of supply that's
• That's going to be the 2026 load forecast.
• Geren, as you know, was largely about the forecast of getting ahead of the forecast of demand in the

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:10:03.320> um inherently included in the forecast um inherently included in the forecast
• <00:10:43.120> even that most recent kind of forecast even that most recent kind of forecast
• November and February forecasts.
• 45.920> forecasts<01:34:46.920> but<01:34:47.080> the November and February forecasts
• year budget and economic forecast year budget and economic forecast however<01:35:08.080> after

Bills: HF3

Keywords: legislative auditor, reporting, accountability, state finance, executive agency oversight, 1183, house