Transcript Highlights:

• around her neck, she cried because she would need a C-section, but she also cried because she had wasted
• section but I also cried because<00:08:56.000><c> I</c><00:08:56.080><c> had</c><00:08:56.279><c> wasted
• c> two</c><00:08:57.279><c> days</c><00:08:57.600><c> on</c><00:08:57.720><c> a</c> because I had wasted
• two days on a because I had wasted two days on a failed<00:08:58.320><c> procedure</c> failed procedure

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• more time and not having wasting more time and not having anything<02:10:26.040><c> happen</c><02:10
• I just don't want to waste a lot of your time if that's okay with you.
• </c> specifically I just don't want to waste specifically I just don't want to waste a<02:16:52.880><
• HB 416 addresses one of these actions by prohibiting the intentional disposal of yard waste into New
• into New Hampshire Waters yard waste into New Hampshire Waters this<03:35:39.479><c> practice</c><03

Committee: House Criminal Justice and Public Safety

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You know, we're less safe and we're wasting money.
• Safe and we're wasting money. And the time right now that should not be happening.
• It’s been very humbling to sit in the gallery and listen to mistakes, failures, and waste of money.
• It's been very humbling to sit in the gallery and listen to mistakes, failures, waste of money.
• It's “Mistakes, failures, waste of money” — it’s just not true.

Summary: Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 6 heard the Governor’s May Revision proposals for the judicial branch, the Board of State and Community Corrections, the Department of Justice, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The Legislative Analyst’s Office opened with a warning that the state budget remains structurally imbalanced and urged the Legislature to avoid new ongoing spending unless offset by reductions elsewhere. In the judicial branch discussion, the Judicial Council highlighted language access funding, appellate court security, a backfill for the state court facilities construction fund, and an extension of the lactation room mandate; Finance supported most items but suggested reporting language on interpreter costs and reducing the General Fund backfill. Members raised concerns about judicial vacancies, long-term salary freezes, remote hearings, and the lack of progress on court staffing in some counties. For the Board of State and Community Corrections, the administration proposed $10 million one-time each for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People grant program and a human trafficking vertical prosecution grant program. The LAO said both should be weighed against other priorities and suggested the Legislature consider whether the Tribal Nations Grant Fund could support MMIP work, while Finance said it preferred General Fund support and wanted more review before any fund swap. Members strongly supported MMIP funding and asked whether ongoing support would be considered. On the human trafficking grant, Finance said BSC was a good fit because of its grant administration experience and prior vertical prosecution work, while legislators asked why the program was not placed with the Office of Emergency Services as originally contemplated in prior legislation. The Department of Justice presented antitrust litigation funding, Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse staffing, completion of organized retail criminal enterprise cases, and trailer bill language for a continuous appropriation from the Victims of Consumer Fraud Restitution Fund. The LAO supported the antitrust account use but questioned the Unfair Competition Law Fund’s ability to cover the full request without General Fund repayment, and recommended against a continuous appropriation for the restitution fund in favor of a more limited mechanism with legislative oversight. Finance said the fund would remain solvent and defended the continuous appropriation as necessary to pay victims promptly. In the CDCR portion, the largest discussion centered on the Boston Consulting Group efficiency review and sharply reduced savings estimates; LAO said the department had not fully explained the proposed position eliminations or future $100 million savings target, while Finance said the work reflected deeper analysis and ongoing efforts to find savings. Members repeatedly pressed CDCR and Finance on the gap between earlier promised savings and the revised figures. CDCR also outlined population projections showing continued declines in prison and parole populations, while LAO again urged the state to close an additional prison to save ongoing costs. The department then walked through several May Revision items, including workers’ compensation funding, a Corcoran honor housing dorm, incarcerated firefighter pay implementation, an incarcerated menopause program, mental health receiver staffing, mental health resource teams and crisis intervention teams, medical classification staffing changes, and AI note-taking for the electronic health record. LAO generally recommended limiting-term funding and more reporting for many of these proposals, while Finance defended them as necessary ongoing investments or court-ordered obligations. Members questioned the cost of workers’ compensation, the need for more prison closures, the lack of funding for women’s facility violence prevention, and the timing and transparency of the BCG savings process. No votes were taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• And if we're looking at this bill as a way to look at waste, fraud, and abuse, I would say that we need
• session right up until June 30th, so there will be more money in the kitty to spend so that we can waste
• So there will be more money in the kitty to spend so that we can waste more of the people. ...money in
• the kitty to spend so that we can waste more of the people's hard-earned dollars on nonsense.
• As we have seen up here time and again, we are very, very, very good at wasting our own time.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Just another way to make sure that we're seeing less waste in the food space, but then also repurposing
• Just another way to make sure that we're seeing less waste in the food space, but then also repurposing
• Just another way to make sure that we're seeing less waste in the food space, but then also repurposing
• Just another way to make sure that we're seeing less waste in the food space, but then also repurposing
• </c> make sure that we're seeing less waste make sure that we're seeing less waste in<00:41:34.400><c

Bills: SF1959 , HF2444 , SF2298 , HF2445 , SF2216 , HF2443 , HF2130 , HF1943 , HF2436 , HF2442

Committee: House Ways and Means

Keywords: veterans, military affairs, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Military Affairs, omnibus veterans bill, appropriations, National Guard, state active service, armory, State Armory Building Commission, veterans homes, veterans cemeteries, county veterans service office, Minnesota GI Bill, Gold Star families, Blue Star families, Secret War in Laos, Hmong veterans, Laos veterans, special guerrilla units

Transcript Highlights:

• Goffstown has that in some of their zoning districts to protect public drinking water, to make sure that waste
• municipalities that have some of these very limited regulations that protect groundwater and prevent waste
• with that groundwater and the local aquifers. ...to protect public drinking water, to make sure that waste
• municipalities that have some of these very limited regulations that protect groundwater and prevent waste
• </c><00:24:21.279><c> disposal</c> groundwater and prevent waste disposal groundwater and prevent waste

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The subcommittee opened discussion on SP 170 and worked through the bill section by section, focusing first on housing discrimination language and then on land-use and development provisions. On the housing section, members discussed adding “school enrollment status” or a similar term as a protected class to prevent municipalities from steering students into specific zones, especially in Durham. Some members questioned whether “status” was too vague and suggested “enrollment status” or “school enrollment status” for clarity. Public testimony raised concerns that adding a new protected class could have broader implications beyond this bill and could affect municipal zoning authority, while supporters argued the language was needed to prevent discrimination against students in housing access. The committee then heard testimony on provisions limiting municipal authority over septic test pits and well-siting requirements. DEES officials and a builder testified that state standards are already protective of groundwater and surface water and that some local requirements are more stringent than the state’s, adding cost and delay to housing projects. Supporters said uniform state standards would make housing development faster and more predictable. Opponents warned that local rules can protect aquifers, wellhead areas, and drinking water in specific communities, and that removing municipal flexibility could weaken those protections. The subcommittee appeared comfortable keeping these sections, though members discussed whether to clarify the language and whether some local review authority should remain. The meeting also covered road-length limits, caps on the number of lots on dead-end roads, and subdivision design rules. Members generally supported prohibiting municipalities from using maximum road length or lot caps to block development, with one amendment suggested to allow such limits where adequate water and sewer capacity is lacking. The committee also discussed allowing utilities and infrastructure such as septic systems, wells, electric systems, drainage structures, and shared leach fields to be placed in subdivision open space or perimeter buffers when those areas are not protected wetlands or shoreland. Finally, the committee reviewed a provision requiring municipalities to stamp and accept plan changes within three days after initial review, with members explaining that the goal is to prevent repeated, incremental changes from dragging out the approval process. No final votes were taken in the portion of the meeting provided, but members indicated general comfort with several sections as amended or clarified.

Transcript Highlights:

• of work that can be done to put oversight in the proper areas, remove it where it's not needed and wasted
• I really think, and according to RNs, it's viewed as a wasteful service in home host homes.
• Jason Berry: To really think, and according to RNs, a wasteful service in home host homes.
• There's a lot of nursing oversight that goes towards that, which really is kind of a wasted thing.
• I really think, according to our... it's a wasteful service.

Bills: SB1 , SB 1

Committee: Senate Finance

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

Transcript Highlights:

• Things that I see out in the field, things we need to start looking at is the waste of our water.
• Our definition of waste is very antiquated and narrow.
• So if I think wasting water is beneficial, it's beneficial.
• And over pumping and wasting sometimes 40% of the water that they pull out of the ground.
• We have a lot of stuff to study, and we're not going to waste any time getting to it.

Committee: House Natural Resources

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• ALL OF THIS RAISES THE QUESTION OF WHY ARE WE WASTING TAXPAYER DOLLARS PRINTING THIS GIANT HARDCOVER
• They shouldn't waste the House's time on this legislation.
• Worse than a waste of time, the bill being brought to the floor this week would disenfranchise eligible
• They shouldn't waste the House's time on this legislation.
• They shouldn't waste the House's time on this legislation.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Monday, March 31, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The House bill changes the formula that would trigger termination for economic waste in a way that many
• Committee Substitute for House Bill 1609, a bill to be entitled an act relating to waste incineration
• It was waste incinerators. It was single-use plastics. And, you know, this is not a good bill.
• And by the way, I haven't even said anything about the waste incinerators.
• But yesterday, there was a part of the bill added about waste management, The incinerator.

Summary: The Senate began with opening prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and several recognitions, including interns, Denim Day awareness, and a resolution honoring Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange on the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. The chamber also observed a moment of silence for former Senator Karen Johnson Gendron. After routine business, the Senate took up several special-order bills. The first major bill, transportation offenses involving death, increased penalties for repeat DUI/BUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide offenses. An amendment added penalties for refusal to submit to breath or urine testing and required law enforcement to notify suspects of those penalties. The bill passed 37-0. The Senate then passed SB 306 on Medicaid providers, requiring broader after-hours and holiday access to care and setting network standards for Medicaid managed care plans, also by a 37-0 vote. The chamber next considered a major condominium and cooperative associations bill responding to post-Surfside safety and financial concerns. Senators described the measure as balancing building safety with financial relief, extending reserve-study deadlines, allowing temporary reserve relief after inspections, tightening oversight of managers and inspectors, and adjusting voting, resale, and reserve rules. After extensive debate and praise from members for the bill’s sponsors and staff, the bill passed 37-0. The longest discussion centered on a constitutional amendments/petition process bill aimed at curbing fraud in citizen initiative petitions. Sponsors argued that the 2024 petition process was plagued by fraud and identity theft and proposed tighter rules for circulators, faster submission deadlines, voter notification, penalties, and limits on petition handling. Senators offered and adopted multiple amendments, including changes to petition-circulator definitions, invalid-signature thresholds, and voter notification procedures. After a substitute amendment was withdrawn, the Senate continued debating the underlying amended bill, with members split between concerns about election integrity and worries that the bill would burden volunteers and make it harder for citizen initiatives to qualify.

Transcript Highlights:

• The House bill changes the formula that would trigger termination for economic waste in a way that many
• The House bill changes the formula that would trigger termination for economic waste in a way that many
• It was waste incinerators. It was single-use plastics. And, you know, this is not a good bill.
• And by the way, I haven't even said anything about the waste incinerators.
• But yesterday, there was a part of the bill added about waste management, ...the incinerator.

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and several recognitions, including interns, Denim Day awareness, a resolution honoring Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange, and a remembrance of former Senator Karen Johnson Gendron. The chamber then moved to special order bills. CS/HB 687 on transportation offenses involving death was substituted for SB 138, amended to add warnings and penalties for refusal of breath or urine tests, and passed 37-0. CS/SB 306 on Medicaid providers, requiring broader after-hours access and network availability for Medicaid enrollees, also passed 37-0. The Senate then took up CS/CS/HB 913 on condominium associations, a major post-Surfside reform bill. Senator Bradley explained that the measure was intended to provide financial relief and flexibility while preserving safety and accountability. The bill was substituted for SB 1742, amended several times to limit milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies to buildings three habitable stories or more, and then passed 37-0 after extensive debate. Senators from both parties praised Bradley, Pizzo, Garcia, and staff for years of work on condo safety and affordability, with several members describing the bill as a balance between protecting residents and avoiding financial hardship. The final major item was CS/HB 1205, the bill on amendments to the state constitution and citizen petition drives. Sponsors Gates and Grohl argued the bill was needed to combat fraud, identity theft, and misuse in the petition process, citing a lengthy Office of Election Crimes and Security report. The House bill was substituted for SB 7016, and the chamber considered a long series of amendments and substitute amendments addressing petition circulator registration, volunteer participation, submission deadlines, invalid-signature thresholds, voter notification, and fiscal impact statements. Several amendments were adopted, while others were debated over whether they would protect access to the citizen initiative process or strengthen election integrity. The transcript ends during debate on the main substitute amendment, before final disposition on the bill is shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:59:36.119><c> the</c><00:59:36.359><c> the</c> they we don't want to be wasting the the they
• Uh, it's part of my point in this: it's the chaos of just the waste of time that you have to have in
• this, and the waste of time in how we then—how our kids go to Minneapolis public as well and the waste
• of time that you have to just the waste of time that you have to have<01:59:10.239><c> in</c><01:59:
• in have in this and the waste of time in how<01:59:12.440><c> we</c><01:59:12.800><c> then</c><01:59

Committee: Senate Education Finance

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• facility</c> waste and hazardous waste facility waste and hazardous waste facility owners. owners. owners
• waste facility owners.
• SB 644 requires background checks for solid waste and hazardous waste facility owners.
• :56.360><c> management</c> director for the waste management director for the waste management division
• </c> solid waste management bureau. solid waste management bureau.

Committee: House Environment and Agriculture

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We've estimated that 130 million pounds of electronic waste have been generated from expired software
• are countless examples of this kind of behavior, which we've cataloged in our report, the Electronic Waste
• Transparency and minimum support timelines could avert waste and encourage longer support.
• So we need to prevent these devices from becoming a tidal wave of e-waste, a security problem, or both
• public school teacher, multi-ethnic Jew, this doesn't mean anything for my Jewish identity and is a waste

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've estimated that 130 million pounds of electronic waste have been generated from expired software
• are countless examples of this kind of behavior, which we've cataloged in our report, The Electronic Waste
• Transparency and minimum support timelines could avert waste and encourage longer support.
• So we need to prevent these devices from becoming a tidal wave of e-waste, a security problem, or both
• school teacher, multi-ethnic Jew, said this doesn't mean anything for her Jewish identity and is a waste

Committee: House Privacy and Consumer Protection

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• and oversight; the program integrity functions designed to prevent, detect, and investigate fraud, waste
• Thank you for your ongoing bipartisan investigation into Medicaid fraud, waste, and abuse throughout
• There was a provider who had an employee leave, who filed an anonymous fraud, waste, and abuse complaint
• give you an example so there was a provider who had an employee leave who filed an anonymous fraud waste
• and concurrent reviews, the administrative work for AHCCCS, including initiatives to address fraud, waste

Committee: Senate Senate Health and Human Services COR

Summary: The committee first approved the February 4 minutes, then heard Senate Bill 1086, which would require AHCCCS contractors to reimburse non-contracting providers for certain lab services when a member was referred by a contracting provider and would bar prior authorization for diagnostic services. The sponsor said the bill was intended to address unpaid claims and improve access, while Access testified neutral but warned the prior-authorization ban could increase utilization and create a fiscal impact. The committee adopted the Warner amendment limiting non-contracting reimbursement rates to no more than contracting rates, then passed SB 1086 as amended on a 4-2 vote. The committee then took up Senate Bill 1611, an emergency measure to require Access to contract with an administrative services organization for the American Indian Health Plan, while keeping Access ultimately responsible for administration. The chair’s amendment expanded ASO duties to include provider support, quality improvement, and data analytics, removed Access claims-payment authority, added tribal observers to the selection committee, and exempted IHS and tribal-facility services. The sponsor and tribal witnesses described the bill as a response to fraud, provider nonpayment, and harm to Native communities, while Access raised concerns about the fast timeline, tribal consultation requirements, possible duplication of program-integrity functions, and fiscal uncertainty. After debate over the emergency clause and tribal consultation, the committee adopted the amendment and passed SB 1611 as amended on a 5-2 vote. The committee also heard Senate Bill 1630, which would direct Access to seek federal approval for a Medicaid home- and community-based services program for adults with serious mental illness. Supporters said the bill would create a long-term community-care option for the sickest SMI members, reduce cycling through hospitals, jails, and homelessness, and potentially save state general fund dollars; family members and advocates testified in support. Access was neutral and said it was finalizing a fiscal estimate. The Angus amendment narrowed eligibility to long-term SMI, reduced the enrollment cap from 500 to 250, changed reporting to semiannual, and removed priority-order language; the committee adopted the amendment and passed SB 1630 as amended unanimously. Later, the committee passed Senate Bill 1193, which protects emergency medical care technicians’ personal identifying information from sale or disclosure by the Department of Health Services, after adopting a clarifying amendment expanding the protected information and addressing commercial requests. It then heard Senate Bill 1318, which repeals the state’s separate dense-breast notification requirement so Arizona law aligns with the FDA’s newer mammography notice standard; the sponsor and DHS said the change would reduce confusion from duplicate, slightly different notices, and the bill was moving forward with discussion of possible future amendment language.

Transcript Highlights:

• This has to deal with residual waste landfills.
• Currently, if an industry is operating a residual waste landfill for their purpose, they are not subject
• If your industry is located in a separate county from where the waste is generated, you would be subject
• 29.799><c> the</c> in a separate County from where the the in a separate County from where the the waste
• is generated separately from the waste is generated separately from the Landfield<00:50:32.599><c> and

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:15 Roll Call 00:25 HB 403 Discussion 02:11 HB 403 Vote 03:08 HB 555 Discussion 04:55 HB 555 Vote 08:42 HB 321 Discussion 10:55 HB 321 Vote 13:22 HB 18 Discussion 15:21 HB 18 Vote 35:10 HB 85 Discussion 39:08 HB 85 Vote 46:40 HB 371 Discussion 49:22 HB 371 Vote 52:03 Adjournment 53:48, 958, all

Summary: The House Standing Committee on Local Government met with a quorum and took up several bills, mostly focused on local planning, zoning, and municipal administration. House Bill 403, a simple measure giving coroners a six-month grace period to complete continuing education, was presented by Rep. Deanna Gordon with testimony from Madison County Coroner Jimmy Cornelson and received unanimous support. House Bill 555, a technical bill affecting audit deadlines and flexibility for small cities and certain expo center audit arrangements, was explained by JD Cheney of the Kentucky League of Cities; he said it would help about 97 cities comply with audit requirements and allow more flexibility when municipalities are making good-faith efforts. The committee approved HB 555 on a roll call vote, with one no vote from Rep. Griffee and others in favor, and reported it favorably to the House floor. House Bill 321, also presented with JD Cheney and Rep. DJ Johnson, would expand the time for planning commission and board of adjustment members to complete orientation and continuing education, with a focus on housing supply and accessibility. Supporters said it would help recruit more members and concentrate training on land-use impacts on housing; Rep. Roarx and others discussed Louisville Metro’s planning process, while Rep. Brown and Rep. Fleming raised concerns about infrastructure and long-range planning. The committee passed HB 321 favorably after roll call, with one no vote from Rep. Griffee. House Bill 18 drew the most extended debate. Sponsor Rep. John Hodgson said the committee substitute would create incentives for infill development in urban areas and extend a moratorium on zoning district classification changes for two more years, arguing that local elected officials should have more control over major density changes and that unelected boards were approving projects without adequate infrastructure review. Opponents, including Liam Gallagher of Americans for Prosperity Kentucky and several members, argued the bill would restrict housing development, interfere with property rights, and limit Louisville Metro’s ability to update its Land Development Code; supporters countered that the bill would not stop development but would require elected officials to weigh in and address traffic and infrastructure concerns. After discussion, the committee approved HB 18 as amended by the substitute and reported it favorably to the House floor, with several members explaining their votes and some opposing the moratorium on local zoning changes.

Transcript Highlights:

• price<00:26:02.720><c> uh</c><00:26:02.840><c> before</c><00:26:03.080><c> we</c><00:26:03.240><c> waste
• ><00:26:03.640><c> more</c><00:26:03.840><c> money</c><00:26:04.480><c> but</c> price uh before we waste
• more money but price uh before we waste more money but you<00:26:04.760><c> have</c><00:26:04.960><c
• from various stakeholders and community members, and it would be a shame for all of that to go to waste
• from various stakeholders and community members, and it would be a shame for all of that to go to waste

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• $350 million wasted.
• Almost $150 million. $350 million wasted, almost $1 million spent by veneer for what?

Committee: All JBC-PERSONNEL

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So, the original bill was one we put in dealing with background checks on solid waste management facility
• And there was some solid waste site evaluation committee language added as well that was in House Bill

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Summary: The Committee of Conference opened on Senate Bill 302, originally focused on background checks for solid waste management facility owners. Members discussed House-added amendments, including language from House Bill 616 on animal cruelty and additional solid waste site evaluation committee provisions from House Bill 2. The Senate chair said the Senate would not accept the HB 616 animal cruelty language in SB 302, though he indicated the issue could return next year in a standalone or amended bill. Representative Comtois explained a revised version of the animal-related language, including a provision that an owner’s name and address would not be publicized until a case is adjudicated and that donations raised using the stories or likeness of animals in protective custody would be limited to covering the animals’ care costs. Despite that explanation, the Senate maintained its opposition. House members said their side would not concur unless the language remained in the bill, and the chair responded that the Senate would let the bill go rather than accept the amendment. The hearing was then closed without agreement or final action on the bill.