Transcript Highlights:

• We'll land it. And with that, I respectfully ask for it. With folks, even through the recess.
• We'll land it. And with that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote.
• We do have local land use authority.
• We still might need to make a little more progress as we had to land the plane.
• We still might need to make a little more progress as we had to land the plane.

Summary: The committee heard testimony on several bills, beginning with SB 41 by Senator Wiener, which would regulate pharmacy benefit managers by increasing transparency, banning patient steering and spread pricing, and requiring full pass-through of rebates. Supporters, including independent pharmacists and health advocates, said PBM practices are driving up drug costs and closing neighborhood pharmacies. Opponents from PBM and health plan groups argued the bill overlaps with recently enacted licensing and reporting requirements, would not lower consumer prices, and may be preempted by ERISA. Members discussed confidentiality issues, consumer savings, and the relationship between SB 41 and the new budget trailer bill; the author asked for an aye vote. The committee then took up SB 378, also by Senator Wiener, aimed at online marketplaces that advertise illegal intoxicating hemp and unlicensed cannabis products. Supporters from labor, public health, and the licensed cannabis industry said online sales are undermining regulated businesses and exposing children to unsafe products. Opponents from tech and hemp industry groups warned the bill is overbroad, could sweep in general-purpose platforms and lawful hemp wellness products, and raises Dormant Commerce Clause and First Amendment concerns. The author said he would narrow the bill, remove industrial hemp references, and address strict liability and standing issues; members largely focused on how to target illegal products without capturing lawful marketplaces. SB 243 by Senator Padilla addressed AI companion chatbots, with supporters including Common Sense Media and transparency advocates warning that these systems can be addictive, manipulative, and dangerous for minors and vulnerable users, citing studies and the death of a Florida teenager. The bill would require disclosures, anti-addiction design limits, self-harm protocols, audits, reporting, and a private right of action. Tech and business groups opposed the measure as overly broad and said its definitions could sweep in general-purpose AI tools; several members supported the goal but questioned the breadth of the definitions and the private right of action. Finally, SB 522 by Senator Wahab would extend just-cause eviction protections to rental units that were previously covered by the Tenant Protection Act but were destroyed in disasters and later rebuilt. Supporters, including Los Angeles city officials and tenant advocates, said the bill would help keep displaced renters housed after wildfires and other disasters. Apartment and realtor groups opposed it, arguing it would remove a key exemption needed to finance rebuilding and could discourage post-disaster reconstruction. Members expressed support for tenant protections in disaster areas, and the author asked for an aye vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• 07:41:21.440> Montford<07:41:22.080> Point swamp in Montford Point swamp in Montford Point
• That school was founded in 1896 as what we call an 1890 land-grant school.
• land grant school. land grant school. uh<08:15:33.040> because<08:15:33.360> when<
• uh because when the land grant schools uh because when the land grant schools were<08:15:36.558>
• And over the years, other land grant schools like Tuskegee Institute.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Monday, February 9, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Zuni did not have any taxable land.
• We are in a lease purchase agreement with the village for the land, so eventually the land will be owned
• The land will be owned by the school.
• We spent a lot of money replacing swamp coolers with dual-unit systems, and we shouldn't have to.
• The only difference is we own the land. We will own the Scar School when it's all said and done.

Transcript Highlights:

• historical stuff that's happened in the basin over my lifetime, with deforestation, with cypress swamps
• Representative Gadbury is an act in Titles 40 and 37 relative to the practice of professional engineering and land
• , so it really is for emergency situations so that you don't have somebody suing you because they landed

Bills: SR134, SR135, SR136, SR137, SR140, SR141, SR142, SCR75, SCR77, SCR12, HB75, HB1199, HB221, HCR89, HCR96, HCR103, HCR108, HCR58, HB9, HB177, HB181, HB198, HB202, HB223, HB225, HB387, HB398, HB457, HB459, HB540, HB591, HB616, HB766, HB775, HB783, HB797, HB895, HB906, HB950, HB975, HB1028, HB1052, HB1057, HB1076, HB1100, HB1139, HB1155, HB1160, HB1182, HB1186, HB1220, HB1222, HB1223, HB1224, HB1228, HB1231, HB1245, HB1256, SCR3, SB393, SB401, SB415, SB426, SB435, SB487, SB488, SB523, SB56, SB163, SB341, SB504, SB322, SCR9, SCR58, SB35, SB65, SB215, SB246, SB249, SB269, SB282, SB296, SB323, SB363, SB369, SB474, SB490, SB492, SB500, SB514, HCR27, HCR28, HCR66, HCR67, HCR72, HCR31, HCR47, HCR41, HB363, HB368, HB377, HB380, HB386, HB392, HB431, HB441, HB559, HB664, HB685, HB715, HB741, HB822, HB856, HB908, HB980, HB990, HB999, HB1010, HB1243, HB54, HB137, HB180, HB192, HB310, HB321, HB396, HB512, HB552, HB578, HB638, HB663, HB708, HB717, HB718, HB1009, HB1082, HB1104, HB1107, HB1198, HB1246, HB27, HB143, HB205, HB259, HB267, HB288, HB308, HB403, HB405, HB414, HB417, HB478, HB546, HB548, HB555, HB557, HB609, HB670, HB672, HB740, HB779, HB786, HB796, HB812, HB848, HB915, HB917, HB921, HB930, HB933, HB1095, HB1096, HB1103, HB1129, HB1154, HB1166, HB1187, HB1195, HB1230, HB316, HB511, HB799, HB1039, HB12, HB66, HB145, HB167, HB196, HB213, HB218, HB222, HB256, HB291, HB326, HB352, HB401, HB430, HB433, HB434, HB448, HB456, HB476, HB481, HB487, HB492, HB549, HB579, HB608, HB621, HB624, HB626, HB632, HB637, HB656, HB722, HB745, HB804, HB818, HB821, HB833, HB864, HB867, HB874, HB893, HB909, HB951, HB968, HB969, HB978, HB979, HB988, HB989, HB1001, HB1005, HB1007, HB1024, HB1032, HB1038, HB1050, HB1051, HB1056, HB1059, HB1077, HB1080, HB1081, HB1086, HB1108, HB1112, HB1153, HB1172, HB1173, HB1175, HB1192, HB1193, HB1204, HB1218, HB1242, HB1244, HB1249, HB1252, HB1254, HB17, HB36, HB41, HB47, HB73, HB126, HB133, HB140, HB159, HB166, HB211, HB226, HB271, HB324, HB337, HB351, HB399, HB571, HB712, HB723, HB726, HB750, HB759, HB844, HB966, HB1006, HB1018, HB1036, SB29, SB42, SB43, SB78, SB208, SB217, SB274, SB300, SB379, SB382, SB387, SB441, SB449, HB74, HB134, HB258, HB359, HB468, HB956, HB1117, SB149

Keywords: SR134, Senate Resolution 134, Isaac Herzenberg, Metairie Park Country Day School, Country Day, javelin, track and field, Class 2A, state championship, high school athletics, student athlete, Louisiana Senate commendation, honorary resolution, sports recognition, University of Nebraska, Baton Rouge, LSU Bernie Moore Track Stadium, sportsmanship, collegiate athletics, condolence resolution

Summary: The Senate met with 23 members present, opened with prayer and the pledge, and then took up a long calendar of resolutions and House bills. Early action included adopting numerous Senate resolutions, such as studies on the Upper Pontchartrain Basin, economic development boards, remote notarization, retirement system investments in China, and several commendations. The chamber also concurred in House Concurrent Resolutions on the Louisiana Maneuvers museum/trail study, roundabout education, plumbing code review, and economic ties with Taiwan, with most of these adopted unanimously or near-unanimously. A special recognition was also held for 2025-26 Teachers of the Year from Senate District 15. On the bill calendar, the Senate advanced a wide range of measures. Several bills dealt with education, public safety, and local government, including allowing virtual school students to participate in school activities, requiring mayoral training, updating rules for justice of the peace jurisdiction, and increasing penalties or fees in certain local matters. Other measures addressed health and human services, such as suicide prevention signage and 988 hotline placement on school IDs, Medicaid and provider payment rules, medical records fees for veterans, mental health protective custody procedures, and housing support for trafficking survivors. The chamber also passed bills on insurance, insurance-related venue rules, prompt payment to contractors, hazardous waste cleanup funding, and motor vehicle insurance requirements for out-of-state vehicles. The Senate also approved several criminal justice and public safety measures, including school threat penalties, autopsy photographs as evidence, impaired driving-related provisions, and restrictions on cell-cultured food products and labeling. Additional bills covered economic development and business regulation, such as wood pellet and brick manufacturing incentives, digital asset custody, CPA licensure pathways, and licensing for motor vehicle/recreational product dealers. Most bills were passed by wide margins, though a few drew notable opposition, including the constitutional and policy measures on gender/sex terminology, child custody arbitration, and the out-of-state vehicle insurance bill. Many bills were amended on the floor before final passage, and motions to reconsider were routinely laid on the table.

Transcript Highlights:

• When you're going through mud and swamp areas and stuff, many, many times our guys are getting stuck.
• Gentlemen, we're going to have to, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to have to bring this in for a quick landing
• I'm deputy city manager, and I work, among other things, with permits and licensing as well as the land

Summary: The committee first took up a long-running audit finding involving the City of Daytona Beach’s unexpended building permit fund balance, which has exceeded the statutory cap for several years and was reported at $10.8 million in the latest audit. Mayor Derek Henry and city staff said the city had analyzed the fund, adopted a corrective action plan, waived more than $5.5 million in permit and inspection fees, used some excess funds for a training facility rehabilitation, and is pursuing a $9.4 million City Hall expansion that they say is allowed under a November 2024 Attorney General opinion permitting construction of a building to house the building code enforcement function. Committee members repeatedly questioned whether the city was simply trying to spend down the money, whether the proposed uses were truly lawful, why the balance kept growing despite fee waivers, and where the interest earnings were going. The mayor and deputy city manager said the city’s growth and staffing needs justified the plan, but several members expressed frustration and skepticism. A public commenter also urged accountability and raised concerns about the city’s spending plans and the size of the remaining balance. The committee then received an Auditor General presentation on the Town of Greenville, which found 31 operational audit findings and described pervasive control failures, possible fraud, waste, and abuse. The findings included election paperwork problems that left a council seat vacant, conflicts of interest, late financial disclosure filings, related-party transactions, inadequate meeting notices and minutes, quorum and voting documentation problems, council members’ involvement in day-to-day operations, missing ethics training, budget adoption and monitoring deficiencies, inaccurate accounting records and bank reconciliations, utility billing and rate issues, grant compliance problems tied to an unfinished grocery store project, weak personnel and contracting controls, improper severance and compensation issues, late vendor payments, weak procurement and P-card controls, vehicle-use and property-control weaknesses, poor public records access, and IT access and fraud-policy gaps. Greenville’s mayor and staff said the audit largely reflected the prior administration and that the current council and staff are taking corrective action. They said the town terminated the former manager, adopted seven new policies since the audit began, and is working with the Auditor General to improve procurement, financial controls, inventory management, grant oversight, and ethics compliance. The town attorney said he had alerted federal authorities earlier about concerns, and committee members noted that FDLE has received a criminal referral and is investigating. Several members praised the new leadership’s cooperation but also suggested the town consider consolidation or dissolution if problems persist.

Transcript Highlights:

• don't think it makes us, as I said in my opening statement, stronger, more prosperous, or more secure. land
• It's another land war in Europe. You know, we have to...
• think it's unfortunate to make such blanket statements about career employees being members of the swamp

Transcript Highlights:

• . >> Lieutenant, you want to clear up to my swamp that I made here? >> Sure, sir.
• swamp that I made here? swamp that I made here? >> Sure,<00:50:40.880> sir.
• But there's somewhat of a no man's land between those two options.
• between those those those two man's land between those those those two options. options. options.
• And that removes the no man's land and the ambiguity that we have right now.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Over here, this is a managed land.
• Box over here this is a managed land Box over here this is a managed land which<02:55:05.000>
• the<02:56:54.600> government's private land as the as the government's private land as the
• <02:57:13.600> not is coming back the federal land not is coming back the federal land not
• because these their Forest Service lands because these their Forest Service lands<03:30:07.760> are

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Thursday, January 16, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• documentation and notice for landlords who choose to restrict them, it also removes evaporative or swamp

Keywords: 904, all

Summary: The Senate considered and concurred in House amendments to a series of bills, then took final passage votes on each. Among the measures discussed were SB 6137, which adds definitions related to in-game decisions and makes it a gross misdemeanor to threaten sports officials, coaches, or participants in wager-related contexts; ESSB 6066, which expands a crash prevention zone on Highway 12 and clarifies WSDOT implementation; ESSB 6162, which expands senior, disabled veteran, and disability property tax relief and adds a reporting requirement; and ESSB 5847, which revises workers’ compensation rules, including provider access, claims manager staffing, and reporting requirements. Other bills addressed asbestos worker protections (SB 6188), portable cooling devices for tenants during extreme heat (ESSB 6200), Climate Commitment Act-related emissions and leakage reporting (ESB 6246), E85 fuel classification (SSB 6269), technical corrections (SB 6291), electric grid and clean energy project development (SSB 6076), Sound Transit permitting certainty (SSB 6309), a sunset amendment to ESSB 6194, and hearing and speech specialist standards of care (SSB 6226). Senators generally described the House changes as clarifying, technical, or strengthening the underlying policy, though some members raised concerns about costs, business leakage, property owner process, or the need to preserve prior votes on the underlying bills. Most concurrence motions passed by voice vote, and the subsequent final passage votes were recorded by roll call. SB 6137 passed with 43 yeas and 6 nays after the chair noted it required a constitutional 60% vote because it was a gambling measure. ESSB 6066 passed 48-1; ESSB 6162 passed 41-8; ESSB 5847 passed 30-18/19; SB 6188 passed 30-19; ESSB 6200 passed 37-12; ESB 6246 passed 29-20; SSB 6269 passed 49-0; SB 6291 passed 49-0; SSB 6076 passed 48-1; ESSB 6194 passed 49-0; and SSB 6226 passed 49-0. The Senate also confirmed several gubernatorial appointments to education boards, including Amy Perez, Carl Bruner, Laura Flores, and Susan Kane, each by unanimous or near-unanimous vote. The chamber then adjourned until 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, the 59th legislative day.

Transcript Highlights:

• , When wood is harvested from state lands, When wood is harvested from state lands, wood<00:46:10.280
• Most of the time it's with the state lands; it's primarily an auction.
• the state lands, it's it's primarily<00:48:38.280> an<00:48:38.400> auction.
• There are some issues with this road in that it is adjacent to mostly public land.
• The road is surrounded by public land.

Bills: HF4156, HF3835, HF3995, HF4383, HF4091, HF4084, HF4311, HF198, HF4486, HF4302, HF4309, HF4032, HF3855, HF3673, HF4265, HF4012, HF4339, HF4298, HF3852

Keywords: infrastructure, wastewater, stormwater, Buhl, state bonds, appropriations, economic development, water infrastructure, grants, capital investment, funding, state regulation, Frazee, North River Drive, infrastructure improvements, HF4383, Minnesota capital investment, bonding bill, Department of Natural Resources, DNR

Transcript Highlights:

• fixes to the Conservation Legacy Permanent Fund and investment fund that provides revenue for the Land
• The Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund, as many of you know, is a really successful program that you all
• The intent of the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund is to get money onto the ground where it's needed most
• to support watershed, land use, and wildlife.
• The changes that HB 184 would... ...land use and wildlife.

Bills: HB63, HB64, HB184, HB200, HB47, HB48, HB2, HB9

Keywords: water project fund, New Mexico Finance Authority, NMFA, Water Trust Board, water infrastructure, wastewater, drinking water, flood prevention, watershed restoration, water storage, conveyance, delivery, water treatment, recycling, reuse, municipal infrastructure, local government finance, capital outlay, grants, loans

Transcript Highlights:

• She says that if anything is going on here, it is that OLS was swamped at the beginning, and she made
• they the bus, but OS in the beginning, they were<03:16:08.000> absolutely<03:16:08.880> swamped
• and<03:16:10.239> I<03:16:10.560> made<03:16:10.800> the were absolutely swamped
• and I made the were absolutely swamped and I made the decision<03:16:11.520> at<03:16:11.840>
• Thank you. position for many land developments and position for many land developments and this<04:12

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• we're seeing it in reality, choking local governments to the point where they cannot function and swamping
• out... ...local governments to the point where they cannot function and swamping out actual human participation

Summary: The committee began as a subcommittee due to the lack of a quorum and heard several privacy- and technology-related measures. The first item was H.R. 117, a resolution urging Congress to reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The author and supporters argued the law is outdated and shields platforms from accountability for harms such as harassment, exploitation, scams, and other online abuse. Witnesses, including a survivor parent and a gender justice advocate, described harms to children, women, and LGBTQ people and urged a two-year sunset to force federal reform. Some members supported the resolution as a call for federal action, while one member said he could not support it because the resolution was too general and lacked specificity about the reforms being sought. No vote was taken because the committee lacked a quorum. The committee then heard SB 898, which would require manufacturers of connected consumer products to disclose how long they will support the software and to notify consumers when products approach end of life. The author said consumers deserve transparency about security updates and continued functionality, and supporters from Consumer Reports and PIRG emphasized cybersecurity risks, consumer confusion, and electronic waste from unsupported devices. Opponents, including business and industry groups, raised concerns about enforcement through the unfair competition law, notice burdens, labeling issues, and compliance challenges, especially for products with long support windows or third-party dependencies. One member expressed support, noting the cybersecurity risks of end-of-life devices, but again no vote was taken because there was no quorum. The committee also heard SB 435, which would narrow the CCPA definition of publicly available information to limit how businesses classify data as public. The author and supporters said the bill would close a loophole that allows data brokers and others to monetize personal information without meaningful consent and could help prevent surveillance and misuse of data, including by government agencies. Opponents argued the bill would upset the balance between privacy and the free flow of information, create compliance uncertainty, and retroactively reclassify information that businesses reasonably believed was public. Some members said they supported the goal of stronger privacy protections, while others said the bill was too broad. The committee again could not vote due to the lack of a quorum. Later, the committee heard SB 923, which would expand Californians’ right to delete personal information to cover data obtained from third parties and require online businesses to offer a web form or similar method for deletion requests. Supporters, including the California Privacy Protection Agency and consumer advocates, said the bill would make deletion rights meaningful and better address data broker practices. Opponents sought an opt-out-of-processing alternative and raised operational and legal concerns, but supporters said deletion is not the same as retention or processing limits. Members largely spoke in favor of the bill’s privacy goals, but no action was taken. The committee also heard SB 947, the “No Robo Bosses Act,” which would require human review for certain automated employment decisions and limit predictive analysis in workplace discipline and termination. Labor groups supported the bill as a safeguard against biased or erroneous AI-driven decisions, while business, public employer, and local government groups opposed it as overbroad and burdensome. Members voiced support for human oversight in employment decisions, but the item was not voted on because the committee still lacked a quorum. Finally, the committee began hearing SB 1114, the SOGI Data Privacy Act, which would restrict disclosure of sexual orientation, gender identity, and intersex data to federal agencies absent a court order or legal requirement; the author and witness framed it as a response to federal efforts to obtain sensitive LGBTQ-related data.

Transcript Highlights:

• we're seeing it in reality, choking local governments to the point where they cannot function and swamping
• out... ...local governments to the point where they cannot function and swamping out actual human participation

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Even our infusion centers, the cancer infusion centers, are swamped.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Whereas someone in Bernalillo County might be in that same land area with many, many legislators with
• comes with a dream and says, 'Oh, if I get capital, then I can go do design or I can purchase the land
• The first thing we need to do is we are in negotiations with UNM on the land, which is the same process
• So we identified the parcel, we negotiated the land, but we can still move forward with the design even
• though the land hasn't been secured.

Transcript Highlights:

• That is what the land-grant university really is. So welcome to your land-grant university.
• And land-grant means a lot to me.
• If your land becomes flooded, you can apply to the county for inundated water land.
• from sovereign lands?
• Uh, these lands from sovereign lands. Dustin, do you want to take a stab at it?

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That is what the land-grant university really is. So welcome to your land-grant university.
• And land-grant means a lot to me.
• If your land becomes flooded, you can apply to the county for water inundated land.
• any other land in the state.
• from sovereign lands?

Summary: The committee met in Fargo and approved the minutes from the March 31 meeting before hearing a series of informational presentations focused on North Dakota agriculture, water, and research. NDSU President David Cook opened with remarks about NDSU’s land-grant mission, emphasizing statewide service through research, teaching, and extension, and highlighting examples such as the Lilac Agriculture startup and the university’s role in applying research to real-world problems. He said he intends to spend time listening across the state to better understand local needs. The committee then received a detailed presentation on a state irrigation and drainage study from Tom Bodine on behalf of Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring. The study projected significant potential for expanded irrigation acreage, especially in counties such as McLean, Williams, Sargent, Burleigh, Mountrail, McKenzie, McIntosh, Dunn, and Bottineau, and estimated major economic gains from irrigation, including higher farm returns and support for value-added agriculture. Members discussed water permits, surface water versus aquifers, infrastructure, drought resilience, and the role of legal drains in improving productivity and generating economic activity. The presenters also noted that the full report is available online. Dr. Greg Lardy followed with NDSU’s required interim report, outlining the university’s agricultural research and extension system, including the State Board of Agricultural Research and Education, seven research-extension centers, and the economic importance of agriculture to the state. He highlighted recent research impacts such as new crop varieties, potato breeding successes, virtual fencing, AI-assisted weed control, weather-network tools, and 4-H programming. He also described NDSU’s budget priorities: restoring the governor’s proposed 10% cuts, additional operating support, and deferred maintenance funding. Committee members asked about the new agricultural field lab, storage sheds, and NDSU’s partnership with Grand Farm. The committee also heard from the North Dakota Water Resources Research Institute and a professor presenting water-related research, including data center cooling, water reuse, smart irrigation, and a feasibility study on co-locating data centers with greenhouse and aquaculture production. Members asked about water use, ownership, and whether the concepts were operational or still speculative. Finally, North Dakota AgTech presented its NSF-funded innovation engine work, describing startup commercialization, on-farm trials, workforce development, and partnerships with NDSU, UND, tribal colleges, and other land-grant institutions. No formal votes were taken beyond approval of the prior meeting minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• We're looking at doing from land bridges to barrier island restoration, marsh creation, pump stations
• We're looking at doing from land bridges to barrier island restoration, marsh creation, pump stations
• Think about Wax Lake Outlet is actually one of the areas building some land forms.
• So, very similar to the Terrebonne Land Bridge. Again, here’s one from Barataria.
• So, and it's really low land.

Summary: The committee met on March 30 and first took up House Resolution 1, which approves the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s annual State Integrated Coastal Protection Plan for fiscal years 2026-2027. CPRA leaders described the plan as a roughly $1.54 billion coastal investment, with most funds directed to construction and project implementation. They outlined funding sources including GOMESA, BP settlement dollars, state surplus, and new coastal sediment revenues, and reviewed major work across the coast such as marsh creation, barrier island restoration, levees, pump stations, shoreline protection, and nonstructural flood mitigation. Members asked about specific regional concerns, including the Sabine River area, the Chafalaya Basin, Bayou Sorrel, and tidal flooding in inland parishes. The committee heard public support cards and then reported H.R. 1 favorably without objection. The committee then considered House Bill 838, as substituted, dealing with vehicle inspection stickers and related inspection requirements. The bill would repeal inspection requirements for assembled vehicles, adjust inspection rules for commercial and student transportation vehicles, allow out-of-state inspections in some cases, and move toward a QR-code-based system tied to the vehicle identification number. OMV officials said the QR code would contain only the VIN and would be used by law enforcement through existing or upgraded ticketing systems, with the change taking effect January 1, 2027. Members asked about privacy, local law enforcement compatibility, unsafe vehicles, and the annual fee structure. The committee adopted the substitute and reported the bill favorably via substitute. Next, the committee heard House Bill 888, also with amendments, on temporary dealer plates and temporary registration plates. Supporters said the bill cleans up last session’s temporary tag law, increases security features for print-on-demand plates, clarifies placement rules for dealer tags, extends certain temporary tag periods from five to ten days, and delays fee changes until the electronic issuance system is implemented. A question was raised about whether the new plates would be readable by license plate recognition cameras, and the sponsor said that would be checked with State Police. The committee adopted the amendment set and reported the bill favorably as amended. The committee also advanced House Bill 885, which authorizes electronic titles, electronic lien recordation, and electronic signatures for motor vehicle transactions. The sponsor and industry witnesses said the bill is intended to modernize vehicle sales, reduce duplicate paper signatures, and make the process more secure and efficient, while preserving anti-fraud protections and allowing the OMV to set rules. Members asked whether the process would be mandatory, how fraud would be handled, and how identity would be verified; the sponsor said the system would become mandatory for participating commercial entities once implemented, with security standards and good-faith protections. The committee reported the bill favorably via substitute. Finally, the committee approved House Bill 723, as amended, allowing certain two- and three-wheeled motorcycles and mopeds to proceed through a red light when sensors fail to detect them. The sponsor framed it as a safety measure to avoid riders being stranded at malfunctioning signals and to reduce rear-end collision risk. The committee also took up House Bill 882 on outdoor advertising, which would increase spacing between billboards on state highways from 150 feet to 1,000 feet, with an amendment preserving certain nonconforming signs rebuilt after acts of God. Supporters said the change would reduce billboard clutter and improve aesthetics, while opponents argued it would hurt smaller billboard owners, shift power to larger companies, and override local control. The committee adopted the amendments and continued debate on the bill, with testimony focused on its economic and local-government impacts.

Transcript Highlights:

• We have even our infusion centers, the cancer infusion centers, they are swamped.

Summary: The Arkansas Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Advisory Council met to introduce members, adopt its rules and procedures, approve prior minutes, and authorize the co-chairs to approve special expenses. The main discussion focused on updating the Arkansas State Plan for Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, with David Cook of the Alzheimer’s Association outlining major changes in prevalence, caregiving burden, diagnostics, and treatment since the prior plan. He noted rising disease and caregiver numbers in Arkansas, the expansion of amyloid PET access, the growing use of blood-based biomarkers, and the availability of FDA-approved treatments such as Leqembi and Kisunla, while emphasizing that access, insurance coverage, and provider education remain major barriers. Members and presenters also discussed the need to better reach rural primary care providers, who may not be aware of new diagnostics and therapies, and the bottlenecks caused by limited specialists and infusion capacity. There was concern about overreliance on blood tests without confirmatory evaluation, and several members stressed the importance of collaboration, public education, and promoting brain health through exercise and diet. The council also heard about existing programs such as the dementia services coordinator, the BOLD grant, caregiver respite grants, workforce training, and a pilot dementia resource center with UAMS Centers on Aging. The council approved a new four-part outline for the next state plan: advancing risk reduction and brain health/early detection, strengthening family caregiver support, improving access to diagnostics and treatment, and supporting access and quality of care, including workforce and crisis response. Members also agreed to consider future agenda items on new treatments, brain health and lifestyle prevention, workforce training, and possible legislative changes to the enabling statute. The meeting ended with discussion of scheduling the next meeting, tentatively set for August 12 in Hot Springs, and adjournment.