Transcript Highlights:

• WHICH IS THE SALES TAX RATE REDUCTION WE PASSED OFF THE FLOOR UNANIMOUSLY IN WEEK SIX.
• PROPERTIES ARE IN 80 TO 120 PERCENT AND THEY ARE RATE HOUSING.
• IT WILL HAVE 80 AND 120 IN MANY AREAS OF THE STATE IS MARKET RATE HOUSING.
• IN MANY INSTANCES AS MENTIONED EARLIER THIS UNITS ARE ENDING UP BEING RENTED FOR MARKET RATES BECAUSE
• EVEN THOUGH THE RENT WOULD THEN EXCEED THE PREVAILING MARKET RATE AND KEEP IN MIND THE CITY DOES NOT

Transcript Highlights:

• Some are through just like the user rates, some may be special assessed.
• When it studies rates, it's easier to come up with more of a defined...
• When it studies rates, it's easier to come up with more of a defined...
• On the department shall increase rates limits 2% for inflation.
• Actually, I think if we change provider rates, that's across the board.

Bills: SB2015

Committee: Senate Appropriations - Human Resources Division

Summary: The committee first discussed a wastewater infrastructure bill, centered on whether state support should be provided as a grant or through the existing Clean Water State Revolving Fund as a low-interest loan program. Department of Environmental Quality official David Brushwine explained that the SRF already finances wastewater projects, can leverage federal funds with state bond proceeds, and could accommodate the Washburn, Lincoln, and Peasant projects if they are ready to proceed. Members noted that losing federal grant support would make projects harder for local residents to afford because costs would be recovered through utility rates or special assessments, but the projects would still be eligible for loans. Senator Magrum indicated he would likely concur with the budget after this discussion, and the bill was set aside for later consideration. The committee then turned to a proposed amendment for a four-plex housing project for people with disabilities or other special needs. Senator Mathern described Sections 7 and 8 as creating a design consultation appropriation and a revolving loan fund modeled on existing hospital and nursing home loan programs, while Section 9 would transfer $3.3 million from the state infrastructure fund. Members debated ownership, rent subsidies, repayment terms, and whether the state should finance the project directly or leave it to a private developer with Department of Human Services oversight. Concerns were raised that the state should not own the housing and that the proposal needed more work to be workable, but the committee ultimately reached consensus to adopt Sections 7 and 8 and leave out Section 9 for further conference committee discussion. The committee also reviewed provider inflation and long-term care rate issues, with members discussing whether to support a 2% and 1.5% inflation adjustment and how to handle the $5-per-day basic care rate. Staff explained that the $5 payment was already in the base budget, but members debated whether it should remain ongoing or be treated as one-time funding and paired with a study of rate rebasing. The committee agreed to have draft language prepared to remove the $5 from the base budget and add study language, then moved the bill forward for drafting.

Transcript Highlights:

• THREE CREATES TRANSPARENCY AND RATE REGULATION.
• THE BILL SEEKS TO INCREASE RATES CHARGED TO CONSUMERS BY ALLOWING THE OFFICE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO
• RHETORIC FILINGS, FOR IT LIMITS NUMBERS OF USE TO 2 PER PERIOD AND INSURANCE COMPANIES COMPLETE A RATE
• FILING AFTER TWO CERTIFICATIONS SO CONSUMERS ARE PAYING AN ACCURATE RATE SUPPORTED BY NUMBERS.
• AS LENDERS WOULD WANT TO INCREASE THEIR INTEREST RATE.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> or billing or simply reimbursement rates or billing or simply reimbursement rates that<00:56:22.880
• But the utilization rate in New Hampshire is only 8% right now.
• We do lots of things here that we expect will make some changes in their property tax rate, maybe, but
• ,</c> some changes in their property tax rate, some changes in their property tax rate, maybe,<04:21:
• The obesity rate stood at only 13.4%. But the obesity rate has soared, reaching 40.2%.

Committee: Senate Health and Human Services

Transcript Highlights:

• That flat rate residential services.
• </c><00:20:49.120><c> will</c> Removing the tiered flat rate will Removing the tiered flat rate will
• </c><00:54:31.760><c> cost-effective</c> The flat rates are not cost-effective The flat rates are not
• rates and um their rates and um I<01:27:10.240><c> think</c><01:27:10.440><c> in</c><01:27:10.560><c
• </c> would have a DWRS rate cut to get bank. would have a DWRS rate cut to get bank.

Committee: Senate Human Services

Transcript Highlights:

• Improvements that I've just mentioned and associated benefit theft rates.
• Participation rates. Thank you very much, Department of Finance.
• The program has proven to be quite popular, as we saw from the burn down rate. burn down rate, so it's
• The findings were primarily focused on the eligibility worker rate.
• As a result, California's poverty rate remains a serious concern.

Transcript Highlights:

• Miss Punelli, how are those rates set? Is that in statute, or is that how the room rates are set?
• Miss Punelli, how are those rates set? Is that in statute, or is that how the room rates are set?
• Miss Punelli, how are those rates set? Is that in statute, or is that how the room rates are set?
• Miss Punelli, how are those rates set? Is that in statute, or is that how the room rates are set?
• Miss Punelli, how are those rates set? Is that in statute, or is that how the room rates are set?

Committee: House Human Services Finance and Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• &gt;&gt; rate<00:33:51.960><c> was</c><00:33:52.200><c> $10.50</c> &gt;&gt; rate was $10.50 &gt;&gt;
• </c> This 30-year loan has an interest rate This 30-year loan has an interest rate of<00:44:35.280><c
• Our taxes were increased rate-wise 9% about 4 or 5 years ago.
• Our taxes were increased rate-wise down.
• </c> additional 9% increase in rate. additional 9% increase in rate.

Summary: The committee first handled routine business, including a quorum call, approval of minutes, and informational items on school district financing and KCTCS equipment purchases. It then considered two KCTCS capital projects after initially rolling them together and later unrolling them: a Fire Commission Fire Academy maintenance building project that had grown from an original $2 million authorization to $4.7 million because of design changes, soil issues, and higher mechanical costs, and a $1.5 million renovation of the Blake Lee building at Somerset Community College for a health science simulation lab. Members questioned the large cost increase on the fire academy project and the adequacy of front-end due diligence, while KCTCS said the project was bid and ready to proceed and that a 15% contingency had been included. Both projects were approved by roll call vote, with the Blake Lee project ultimately approved after the committee unrolled the items and took them separately. The committee next heard and approved a University of Kentucky public-private partnership for the Hamburg East Medical Office Building, a five-story, 220,000-square-foot facility with a not-to-exceed budget of $275 million. UK said the project is intended to expand outpatient access, consolidate some services, and support projected growth in patient volume; the building will house multiple specialties, urgent care, therapy, imaging, and a retail pharmacy. Members asked about possible community uses, consolidation of services, and whether the project would free up other space, and UK said it hopes to consolidate some services and free campus space. The project was approved by roll call vote. The committee then approved three UK lease renegotiations: a specialty pharmacy and infusion services lease at Wellington Way in Lexington, a Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences lease at Conte Terrace, and a College of Social Work lease at McGrath Park Way. Members asked about rising lease rates, occupancy, and whether space needs should be reduced; UK and the lessor’s representative said the pharmacy space remains busy, the ophthalmology lease was lower than before, and the social work lease had been negotiated down from a higher request. The committee also approved a Department of Military Affairs project amendment for a Mutual Field Maintenance Shop Restoration project, increasing federal funding by $1 million to $4.5 million because of higher construction costs, and approved a Kentucky State University Shanty Hall renovation project funded by bond and HBCU Title III funds. Finally, it approved a new lease for the Office of Mines and Minerals in Pike County, a new lease for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services in Pulaski County, and a lease renewal for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services in Kenton County after questions about rent increases and office utilization; the cabinet said the Kenton County space still has limited vacancy and remains in use by field staff. The meeting ended as the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority began presenting six sewer and water loans and six cleaner water program grant reallocations, with members agreeing to roll those items for later consideration.

Transcript Highlights:

• Homeownership affordability continues to be a challenge for us statewide, with higher interest rates,
• The higher rents and market-rate rents help subsidize and pay for the entire locally owned program.
• You know, in Thief Falls we have a current vacancy rate of 0.3%.
• and interest rates are uh inflation and interest rates are creating<01:06:29.079><c> a</c><01:06:29.240
• </c><01:22:23.679><c> of</c><01:22:24.320><c> uh</c> rates of two to six times the rate of uh rates of

Committee: Senate Housing and Homelessness Prevention

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> $888,000 so a wage replacement rate $888,000 so a wage replacement rate that's<01:53:52.159><c>
• That middle table for those newly negative-rated employers has slightly higher rates than for the positive-rated
• That middle table for those newly negative-rated employers has slightly higher rates than for the positive-rated
• rated employers positive rated positive rated employers positive rated meaning<02:09:12.679><c> that
• </c> rated um it has a slightly higher rates rated um it has a slightly higher rates than<02:10:01.239

Committee: House Labor, Industrial and Rehabilitative Services

Transcript Highlights:

• amount at the same rate as the interest for delinquent taxes.
• I think we're willing to come to some agreement about that commercial rate.
• The standard going rate right now, they say, is a million dollars per thousand acres.
• And the commercial rate is already set for land, so assessors will use that commercial rate.
• It would be taxed at agricultural rate.

Committee: House Utilities

Transcript Highlights:

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

Summary: The Senate took up the 2026-2027 budget package, beginning with an overview of the $115 billion General Appropriations Bill (SB 2500). Appropriations Chair Hooper said the budget reduces overall spending from the prior year, preserves reserves, and includes a 3% pay raise for state employees and 5% raises for law enforcement, firefighters, correctional officers, and park rangers. Committee chairs then highlighted major spending in their areas, including K-12 education, higher education, health and human services, criminal and civil justice, transportation/economic development, and environmental/agricultural programs. Major items discussed included school funding increases, workforce and university investments, Medicaid and child welfare funding, corrections operating deficits, housing and hurricane recovery, Everglades and water quality projects, and state employee compensation. Members asked detailed questions about several budget items. In education, senators discussed teacher salaries, declining enrollment supplements, scholarship funding growth, and charter school capital outlay. In higher education, they asked about Bright Futures, New College funding, and the EASE grant program. In health and human services, senators focused on the iBudget waiver, Medicaid hospital rate reductions, the ADAP HIV drug program, and the use of opioid settlement funds. In criminal justice, questions centered on DOC deficits, inmate health care and food service costs, public defender and state attorney funding, and whether the budget would prevent the need for National Guard support. In environmental and state agency budgets, senators discussed Florida Forever land acquisition, conservation easements, cultural grants, the Emergency Management Trust Fund, and election security funding. After the budget presentations and questions, the Senate substituted House bills for the Senate budget bills and adopted amendments to place Senate language onto the House vehicles for conference. The chamber passed HB 5001, the appropriations bill, by a 36-0 vote and agreed to conference. It also passed the implementing bill, collective bargaining and state employee bills, retirement legislation, fuel tax and SLERS bills, the court trust fund bill, judicial certification bill, K-12 and higher education conforming bills, and other related measures, generally by unanimous votes. Several motions were adopted to request the House to pass the Senate versions or include them in budget conference.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill notably does not reduce the interest rate charged on the loans.
• The interest rates seem to roll over and roll over on that amount.
• They miss that first month, and then that interest rate and it's a higher amount.
• They miss that first month, and then that interest rate and it's a higher amount.
• a $1,200 loan, that would come to about a 12% real effective interest rate.

Summary: The committee heard public testimony on several bills. SB 5976 would revise the Washington Commercial Electronic Mail Act by narrowing liability for misleading email subject lines and changing damages and Consumer Protection Act claims. Business, retail, hospitality, and e-commerce witnesses supported the bill, saying recent litigation has created uncertainty and exposed routine marketing emails to excessive penalties. Consumer advocates and the Washington State Association for Justice opposed it, arguing the current law protects consumers from deceptive marketing and that the bill would weaken enforcement and class actions. SB 6111 would require age verification and parental consent for minors creating social media accounts, restrict providers’ use of minors’ data, and authorize enforcement by the Attorney General and a limited private right of action. The sponsor and several parents, medical professionals, and advocacy groups supported the bill as a response to social media harms, including addiction, depression, cyberbullying, eating disorders, and exposure to harmful content. Technology and civil liberties witnesses opposed it, warning about privacy, data security, constitutional concerns, and the difficulty of implementing reliable parental consent and age verification. The committee also heard SB 6250, which would raise the maximum small loan amount from $700 to $1,200 and index it to inflation. The sponsor and a lender representative said the change would update an outdated limit and preserve existing consumer protections. Opponents, including legal aid, poverty, housing, labor, AARP, and community advocates, argued the higher cap would increase debt burdens and fees for low-income borrowers and older adults. Staff also briefed SB 6257, which would allow illness-related tolling for trainee real estate appraiser licensing timelines, and SB 6289, which would direct Commerce to create a statewide economic development and competitiveness strategic plan; SB 6289 drew supportive testimony from Commerce, ports, economic development groups, and business interests. The committee also held confirmation hearings for several Gambling Commission and Lottery appointees, who described their backgrounds and service, but no votes or final actions were taken in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• that they have with hospitals based on their capitation rate.
• How do we fix the reimbursement rate for Medi-Cal providers so that they continue to take care of the
• to exceed Medicare rates and brought them close to average commercial rates so that hospitals wouldn't
• Have asthma rates gone up?
• I want you to go out and find out if there's asthma rates.

Committee: Senate Rules

Transcript Highlights:

• Market-rate folks can raise rents to make things pencil.
• rates, I get better insurance rates.
• I get better credit card rates. I get better insurance rates.
• They tend to evict at a higher rate.
• They tend to evict at a higher rate.

Committee: House Housing

Summary: The committee held a work session on land banking and shared homeownership models, with members and staff discussing ways to use public land and nonprofit partnerships to expand permanently affordable housing. Commerce’s Dave Anderson outlined recent policy changes that may support these models, including ADUs, middle housing, lot splitting, condominium reforms, church land housing, and public land transfer policies. He described community land trusts and limited equity housing cooperatives as ways for households to build some equity without owning land outright. Representatives asked about statewide numbers and implementation, and Commerce said it is preparing a guidebook for local planners. Pierce County staff described the Pierce County Community Development Corporation’s rapid acquisition fund, public-to-public land transfers, and land banking loans. They said the county used general fund and 1406 sales tax dollars to acquire properties, preserve a manufactured home park through resident ownership, and assemble public surplus and underutilized sites for future affordable housing. Committee members asked about the entity’s advantages over private developers, funding sources, coordination with housing authorities, and whether similar models exist elsewhere. The presenter said the main advantage is the ability to receive public property transfers at no cost and hold land while development plans are assembled. Amy Manning of the Spokane Regional Land Bank said land banks help move vacant, blighted, or underutilized properties into affordable housing and community use, but holding costs and taxes can make projects harder to finance. She described EPA brownfield assessments, Commerce planning grants, donated properties, and work with the City of Spokane on surplus and underutilized land. Victoria O’Beynion of the Northwest Cooperative Development Center then testified on limited equity cooperatives, especially in manufactured housing communities, saying they preserve affordability, support resident governance, and can build modest equity over time. She cited growth in cooperative acquisitions since 2020 and said recent legislation allowing manufactured homes in cooperatives to be titled as real property has improved access to traditional financing. The committee then shifted to maximizing existing housing stock. Dave Anderson reviewed the state’s recent housing laws and said implementation is still unfolding, with local code updates and planning cycles taking years. He noted growth in ADUs, room rentals, and multifamily production, but also concerns about short-term rentals and corporate ownership of single-family homes. Members asked for follow-up data on implementation timelines, vacancy, corporate ownership, and eviction patterns. Sightline’s Katie Gould presented on mobile dwelling units, arguing that RVs and tiny houses on wheels are a low-cost, fast-to-install housing option that is often blocked by zoning, and described cases where people were forced into precarious or illegal arrangements. AARP’s Kathy McCall closed by emphasizing aging in place, housing cost burdens on older adults, and the need for more accessible, lower-cost options such as ADUs, missing middle housing, and manufactured home community preservation.

Transcript Highlights:

• And this is taxed using a volumetric rate.
• Same question for you around rate recovery and all that.
• That's just how insurance rates are developed.
• And that cost of capital was showing up in higher rates for our rate payers.
• So a balance of contributions to rate... Passed on to rates.

Summary: The committee first heard updates on the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) and related funding. Department of Ecology staff explained how MTCA and the hazardous substance tax support cleanup, prevention, stormwater, and local assistance programs, but said forecasted revenues have declined while appropriations and transfers have outpaced incoming funds. Ecology said the operating account will require underspending to stay balanced this biennium and that the problem is ongoing, with further reductions possible if forecasts worsen. Ecology also reviewed the state cleanup program, noting there are more than 14,500 cleanup sites in Washington and that new sites continue to be discovered faster than they are cleaned up. A question from Representative Lee raised the long-term issue of declining fossil-fuel-based revenue, and Ecology agreed that this is a future structural concern even though the current shortfall is driven more by forecasts and transfers than by fuel-use decline. The Pollution Liability Insurance Agency described its underground storage tank and heating oil programs, saying it has modernized from a reinsurance model to a financial assurance model with stronger state oversight and cleanup milestones. Russ Olson said the agency’s dedicated petroleum tax account is in strong financial condition, but emphasized the importance of preserving that funding source. He also discussed the loan and grant program for historic commercial releases and a new heating oil loan/grant program, while noting the agency is working on equity concerns where liens can be disproportionate to property values in smaller communities. Practitioners and advocates then offered differing views on MTCA’s performance: one attorney urged a collaborative review process to make cleanups faster, less expensive, and more certain, while another consultant argued the program is too conservative and process-heavy and should focus more narrowly on actual exposure and realistic cleanup standards. Environmental and community groups countered that MTCA is essential for cleanup, pollution prevention, stormwater control, and public participation, and that it is especially important for environmental justice communities such as the Duwamish Valley. Port and city representatives stressed that MTCA grants and cleanup funding are critical for large redevelopment projects, but said long timelines, permitting delays, and funding uncertainty can slow projects and jeopardize commitments. The committee then shifted to utility wildfire risk. Staff summarized recent legislation, including requirements for utility wildfire mitigation plans, creation of a wildfire mitigation standards work group, authorization for captive insurance by local governments and PUDs, securitization authority for disaster costs, and the existing wildfire response and resilience account. Chelan County PUD and Puget Sound Energy described extensive mitigation efforts such as vegetation management, grid hardening, undergrounding, AI smoke cameras, weather stations, enhanced operating settings, public safety power shutoffs, and community outreach. Both said wildfire risk is rising and insurance costs are increasing, and Chelan PUD asked the Legislature to restore funding to the wildfire response and resilience account. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner said a 2022 utility liability market study found insurance availability is tightening as perceived risk rises, and reported that a 2025 work group recommended restoring community resilience funding, requiring insurers to share wildfire risk scores and mitigation steps with property owners, and creating a grant program based on insurance industry wildfire standards. A PNNL scientist added that wildfire probability is increasing in parts of Washington and that mitigation requires long-term, landscape-scale coordination. The final speaker began describing California’s approach to wildfire risk, but the transcript cuts off before that presentation concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• Two preferences provide preferential business and occupation tax rates for travel agents.
• Large travel agents with annual incomes over $250,000 pay a reduced B&O tax rate of 0.9%.
• First, the legislature should continue the 0.275% preferential tax rate for small beneficiaries.
• Pay a reduced B&O tax rate of 0.9%.
• This is a 33% rate. And small beneficiaries saved 1.2 million in fiscal year 2024.

Summary: The committee met on December 3, 2025, with a quorum present and approved the September 17 minutes. Members first voted to suspend the 2026 JLARC lodging tax expenditure report for one year, based on staff’s explanation that the report is self-reported, not verified, and less useful than State Auditor accountability audits; the motion passed. The committee also approved renaming the JLARC I-900 subcommittee to the “Committee to Hear SAO Performance Audits,” while keeping the opening script noting that the performance audit process exists under Initiative 900. The committee then heard follow-up updates on two prior performance audits. The Department of Health presented a draft strategic management plan in response to findings on hospital inspections, complaints, adverse event review, and hospital data access. JLARC staff reiterated that 72% of hospital inspections were late, that DOH did not verify third-party inspection standards or review adverse event reports, and that complaint data suggested possible language-access barriers. DOH said it concurred with the recommendations, had improved on-time inspection compliance to about 49%, planned annual updates starting in July 2026, and would work on accreditation oversight, complaint-language access, and data accessibility, though members pressed for firmer deadlines and questioned the three-year timeline for language access improvements. The Liquor and Cannabis Board also reported on its cannabis market study recommendation. JLARC staff said the agency’s data were incomplete and unreliable, limiting oversight of production, recalls, tax collection, and diversion. LCB said it had improved its current CCRS system but still relied on self-reported data, and it presented a decision package for a new traceability system estimated at about $9 million over three fiscal years. LCB described a plant-tagging and serialization approach tied to production, processing, testing, and retail, but acknowledged it did not currently have sufficient staff to fully implement the system without additional funding. The committee also received briefings on JLARC’s recommendation-tracking tools and the 2024 public records reporting summary, including a high-level review of agency response rates, request volumes, costs, and litigation. Finally, JLARC presented the proposed final report on the Office of Privacy and Data Protection, concluding that OPDP meets its statutory responsibilities and has high user satisfaction, but that its mandate should be updated to better match its current capacity and focus; the committee adopted the report for distribution. The meeting then moved into the 2025 tax preference performance reviews, where JLARC staff summarized nine reviews and noted that the Citizens Commission on Tax Preference and Performance Measurement endorsed all 17 legislative auditor recommendations, with comments on seven. Early reviews discussed included natural gas transportation fuel preferences, travel agent and tour operator B&O rates, nonprofit low-income housing development, multipurpose senior centers, disabled veteran adaptive housing, and trade convention attendance, with staff and commissioners generally recommending continuation of some preferences, modification of others, and improved objectives or performance measures where needed.

Transcript Highlights:

• They contemplate or commit suicide in ever-increasing rates.
• The average endorsement rate has been 67.5%.
• The average endorsement rate has been 67.5%. Republican.
• The average endorsement rate has been 67.5%.
• Greenfield had a rate increase of 20%.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Health Care Financing

Summary: The Joint Committee on Health Care Financing held a public hearing on 16 bills, with the chairs noting a busy legislative day and asking speakers to keep testimony brief. The committee first heard testimony on Senate 860/House 1405, the Medicare for All bill, with Sen. Jamie Eldridge and many advocates, clinicians, municipal officials, and patients arguing that a single-payer system would make care a right, reduce administrative waste, lower costs, and protect residents from rising premiums, medical debt, and hospital closures. Several speakers cited the Steward hospital crisis, affordability problems, and polling or ballot questions showing public support for single-payer coverage. No vote was taken during the hearing. The committee then took testimony on S. 863, a bill on non-opioid options for chronic pain. Pain specialists, patients, and advocates said the bill would improve care coordination for MassHealth members, expand access to non-opioid medications, require provider education, and collect data on chronic pain. Testifiers described long delays in diagnosis and treatment, stigma toward pain patients, and the need for multidisciplinary care and transportation support. Again, the committee heard testimony only and took no action. A large portion of the hearing focused on H. 1360/S. 869, which would prevent discrimination against people with disabilities in health care. Disability advocates, clinicians, and patients described being denied or delayed care, pressured into DNR orders, or treated based on assumptions about quality of life rather than medical facts. Speakers referenced COVID-era crisis standards of care, discriminatory metrics, and personal stories involving canceled procedures, inadequate accommodations, and poor treatment in hospitals. Committee members thanked speakers for their testimony and said they would review the bill and its implications, but no vote was announced. The committee also heard testimony on H. 1399, an individual Medicare marketplace option for municipal retirees, where supporters said it would give cities and towns a lower-cost alternative for retiree health benefits through HRAs and individual Medicare plans. The hearing then returned to Medicare for All testimony, with additional supporters repeating arguments about cost, access, municipal budget pressure, and the need for global budgeting and universal coverage. The transcript ends with continued testimony and no recorded committee vote or final action on any bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• Federally debit cards were given a lower rate.
• The interchange rate is the one I'm referring to.
• So in general, yes, those rates have stayed about the same.
• Visa and MasterCard set the rates, and they're just following what they do.
• Visa and MasterCard set the rates and they're just following what they do.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Financial Services

Summary: The Joint Committee on Financial Services heard testimony on several bills focused on financial security, banking regulation, and payment-card fees. Treasurer Deborah Goldberg supported the Massachusetts baby bonds proposal (H. 48) and also endorsed bills on matched savings (H. 1158/S. 737) and retirement planning/Secure Choice (H. 1143/S. 722), arguing these measures would help address wealth inequality, build assets, and improve retirement readiness. Supporters of baby bonds included policy experts and health advocates from Children’s Health Watch and Boston Medical Center, who said early-life asset building could improve long-term economic and health outcomes for children in low-income families. AARP also urged passage of the retirement planning bill, citing the large share of private-sector workers without access to an employer retirement plan. Representative Donato testified for H. 1143, describing it as a voluntary retirement-savings opportunity for workers at small employers. The committee also heard testimony on H. 3933, concerning the Massachusetts Credit Union Share Insurance Corporation, from former Bank Commissioner Mike Hanson, who defended the state’s full deposit insurance system for credit unions and savings institutions as a longstanding consumer-protection model. The Massachusetts Bankers Association raised concerns about the bill’s technical provisions and broader credit union/bank competitive issues, while the Cooperative Credit Union Association supported related legislation allowing modest compensation for credit union directors (S. 821/H. 1338) and flexibility for state financial institutions to grow through partnerships (S. 723). Bankers opposed those credit union bills, arguing they would upset a level playing field and blur long-standing distinctions between banks and credit unions. A major portion of the hearing focused on H. 1259/S. 688, which would prohibit card interchange fees on the tax and gratuity portions of restaurant transactions. Restaurant owners and the Massachusetts Restaurant Association testified in favor, saying the fees are a significant and growing expense, especially as most customers now pay by card; they argued the bills would save restaurants money without affecting state revenue. Credit union, banking, and payments-industry representatives opposed the bills, saying interchange helps fund fraud protection and payment infrastructure, that the proposal would create compliance burdens and likely litigation, and that it would mainly affect Massachusetts-chartered institutions while national banks could be preempted. Committee members noted that a commission on payment-card fees is being established and said the issue would be studied further. The hearing also included support for a separate bill on virtual credit cards for dental providers, with dentists saying automatic virtual-card payments impose hidden processing fees and fraud risks.

Transcript Highlights:

• One of the major drivers inside the HCA was related to managed care rate adjustments.
• I'm here today to thank you for the investment in this budget of a 10% rate increase.
• I'm here today to thank you for the investment in this budget of a 10% rating.
• My own January PSC average kilowatt hour rate was up about 35 percent year on year.
• Particularly, no changes to eligibility or to rates for early intervention.

Summary: The committee held a public hearing on the Senate operating budget proposal, beginning with a staff briefing from James Kettle. He described the budget as built on relatively flat revenue after multiple forecast updates, with substantial mandatory cost growth, especially in Health Care Authority, DSHS, and DCYF. He highlighted major policy-level additions and savings, including large tort liability costs, continued support for long-term services, reductions tied to child care and K-12 items, several assumed revenue bills, and major transfers from reserves and other accounts. Kettle also noted the four-year outlook remained positive overall, with about $1 billion ending fund balance in the final year and roughly $3 billion in total reserves. A committee member asked about a diagram showing the loss of federal funds, and staff said they would follow up. Public testimony then focused first on K-12 education, where school leaders, teachers, OSPI, PTA, and rural district representatives largely opposed the proposed cuts to local effort assistance, transition to kindergarten, bus depreciation, and related school funding items. Many argued the reductions would disproportionately harm rural and property-poor districts and weaken early learning access, while several students and educators spoke in favor of career and technical education and IT Academy funding. The committee also heard support for wildfire prevention funding from the Commissioner of Public Lands, who thanked the Senate for restoring those dollars but raised concerns about recreation program reductions. Higher education testimony was mixed but generally supportive of the Senate proposal compared with the governor’s budget. Community and technical college leaders warned that the budget still shifts compensation costs to tuition and reduces Running Start funding, while university representatives from Western, Eastern, Central, WSU, and UW thanked the committee for avoiding deeper cuts. Private vocational college students and administrators urged extension of Washington College Grant eligibility for students already enrolled, and others asked to preserve IT Academy and related certification funding. In early learning, child care and advocacy groups praised the decision not to cap Working Connections Child Care but warned that child care and transition to kindergarten still bear a disproportionate share of cuts; they also requested continued support for Dolly Parton Imagination Library and Pierce County early childhood programs, including Family Connects. The hearing continued with testimony on employee compensation, mental health, and human services. State employee and retiree groups supported the budget’s COLA and wildfire funding but objected to cuts in retiree health benefits. Behavioral health and public safety advocates supported mentoring, Trueblood-related funding, crisis stabilization, and the Recovery Navigator Program, while others opposed reductions to those programs and to community-based recovery services. In human services, witnesses thanked the committee for funding victim services, child welfare supports, health homes, adult day care, community health centers, energy assistance, and disability services, while urging the committee to avoid further reductions to skilled nursing, case management, and recovery navigation. No votes were taken during the hearing.