Transcript Highlights:

• Workforce, and so in the establishment of the Department of Workforce, in the legislation you had two
• groups: an executive committee and a Workforce Board.
• The Workforce Board, of course, is requiring Senate confirmation, and that Workforce Board consists of
• Legislation that developed and created the Department of Workforce established this Workforce Board,
• We are working hard at the Department of Workforce.

Keywords: 923, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And look, we don't want our best and brightest in the Texas workforce to have to make a decision between
• staying home with young children or standing up for the children of Texas and our future workforce.
• They provide targeted training to help teachers meet the performance metrics, engage in clear feedback
• Science teachers work tirelessly to prepare our students for the workforce.
• Programs like teacher residencies provide on-the-job training that better prepares educators, making

Bills: SB26, SB 26

Keywords: teacher compensation, education funding, public school educators, teacher retention, teacher designation, SB 26, Texas Property Code, colonia, colonias, Spanish translation, bilingual contract, real estate contract, executory contract, residential property, border county, international border, economically distressed area, consumer protection, language access, translator certified in Spanish

Transcript Highlights:

• This is not a workforce problem. Our employees are capable.
• This is not a workforce impossible.
• <00:19:06.880> who frankly the staff and the workforce who frankly the staff and the workforce
• <00:19:29.760> This trying to recruit their workforce.
• This trying to recruit their workforce.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So we started to use a system called ASSIST, which is Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training.
• again we just don't run trips we train again we just don't run trips we train our<00:58:47.160><
• I am a psychologist by training, and I've also worked previously as an investigator.
• I'm also a sociologist by training, and I'm a professor of criminology and criminal justice.
• <01:53:49.320> civil training civil training civil liabilities<01:53:51.560> and<01:53:

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• SUCH PERSONNEL MUST ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT OF TRAINING.
• ALL SCHOOL PERSONNEL WILL BE REQUIRED TO RECEIVE THIS TRAINING.
• SO SENATOR DAVIS, AGAIN THEY ALREADY ARE GIVING TRAINING ON CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT.
• TRAINING INITIATIVES AND THAT IS THE BILL.
• K-12 ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, COLLEGE UNIVERSITY? THERE'S TONS. YOU ARE RECOGNIZED.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They training and resident records.
• communications, um training communications, um training opportunities.<00:17:18.160> We<00
• They are clinically trained.
• Uh they are looking clinically trained.
• Um, just training activities included.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I believe they have they might training.
• captured in our next uh workforce captured in our next uh workforce profile<01:24:29.199> that
• . workforce. workforce.
• ,<01:26:32.239> but really factored in to our workforce, but really factored in to our workforce
• They're well as the workforce profile.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Labor held an informational briefing on August 22, 2025, to receive an update from DEH on statewide recruitment efforts aimed at reducing vacancies across state departments. Director Hashimoto, joined by DEH staff, presented on two hiring initiatives: Wikiwiki Hire and Operation Hire Hawaii. The committee focused on how each program works, how quickly applications are screened and referred, and how the programs differ from standard recruitment procedures. For Wikiwiki Hire, DEH described it as an accelerated recruitment pathway used mainly for classes with multiple vacancies. DEH screens applications every two weeks, then sends qualified applicants a list of participating departments and recruiter contact information so applicants and departments can connect directly. Committee members asked about effectiveness data, timelines, and whether the process aligns with the merit principle. DEH said the program is intended to speed hiring, that departments are not required to interview every person on a list, and that applicants can be hired as vacancies are filled on a first-come, first-served basis so long as all qualified applicants have the same opportunity. DEH also said it could provide data later and that it is working through a backlog of screenings. The committee then discussed Operation Hire Hawaii, an executive-order-based hiring effort launched in February to expedite hiring, including for displaced federal workers but open to all applicants. DEH reported more than 6,000 applications, 127 recruitments, 81 closed recruitments, and 142 hires, with a goal of conditional offers within two weeks. DEH said it turns applications around daily, while departments do the initial screening, interviews, and hiring decisions, with DEH completing final qualification screening and suitability checks at the end. Members asked about the program’s duration, its low conversion rate, and what happens to applicants who are not hired; DEH said it can refer qualified applicants to other vacancies and that the pilot was originally intended to run about a year, with possible extension if departments want it to continue.

Transcript Highlights:

• He buried.<00:41:02.480> But<00:41:03.200> training, buried. But training, buried.
• workforce areas. workforce areas.
• So they're all different. >> They all look at different parts of the workforce. >> Okay.
• Is that your training programs that you were talking about?
• ><01:19:44.960> were<01:19:45.120> talking training programs that you were talking training

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Attendance Roll Call 00:00:07 Chair Comments 00:00:36 Approval of Minutes 00:04:01 Volunteers of America 00:04:21 Soil and Water Conservation/Energy and Environment Cabinet 00:14:52 Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy/Justice & Public Safety Cabinet 00:21:05 Kentucky Department of Agriculture 00:26:01 Early Childhood Advisory Council 00:45:18, 958, all

Summary: The Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight Committee met to review how tobacco settlement dollars are being used and to press recipients for detailed information on total funding, administrative versus program spending, and measurable outcomes. The chair emphasized that the committee was not there for general program overviews, but to assess return on investment and whether each program should continue to receive tobacco settlement support. The committee approved the minutes from its December 22, 2025 meeting and then heard presentations from several agencies and organizations. Volunteers of America Mid-States described its southeastern Kentucky restorative justice program, which uses an evidence-based New Zealand model for juvenile cases in nine counties. The group reported tobacco settlement funding of $516,000 in FY24 and $233,500 in FY25, representing about 17% and then about 5% of the program budget, respectively. It said the funding helped expand the program from 13 cases in 2021 to 180 youth served, and cited an independent evaluation showing recidivism of 24.5% compared with 40.4% in AOC data, along with a cost of a little under $20 per day versus detention and other placements. Some members questioned whether the program fit the tobacco settlement funding categories and suggested it might be better supported through other justice-related funding sources. The Energy and Environment Cabinet’s Division of Conservation explained that tobacco funds support $1 million in direct aid to conservation districts and $2 million in cost-share projects for farmers, with 5% of the cost-share appropriation allowed for administration, or about $100,000 in FY26. Officials said the direct-aid line was moved into tobacco funding in 2019, reducing money available for farmer cost-share, and described a multi-year project approval and reallocation process. Senator Webb asked for a more specific breakdown of the $850,000 direct-aid amount, and the cabinet said it would provide that information. The Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy reported that in FY24 it expended just under $30 million across tobacco funds, general funds, restricted funds, and a one-time federal grant, with less than 2% used for administration. Officials said most tobacco settlement money goes to Kentucky ASAP local boards in all 120 counties, supporting prevention, treatment, and some law enforcement work. The Department of Agriculture then began its presentation, describing strategic investments, loan programs, county funding, administrative costs, and a reported return of about $2.30 for every dollar spent, but the transcript cuts off before that presentation was completed.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is a good VA education and job training program when it works, and we have continued to improve
• in a highly technical environment and being Trained to follow the rules and being able to absorb all
• Chairman, currently there are impediments for VR&E benefits being used in vocational flight training.
• We empower veterans, build a stronger workforce, and drive a stronger economy.
• We empower veterans, build a stronger workforce, and drive a stronger economy.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Monday, February 2, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• These guidelines need to be reinforced with training and processes.
• These guidelines need to be reinforced with training and processes.
• These guidelines need to be reinforced with training and processes.
• These guidelines need to be reinforced with training and processes.
• <01:22:14.159> and whether our current Workforce and whether our current Workforce and Staffing

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We used to just do everything under the sun in terms of training, but we want to narrow that and do a
• And those things we do... ...sun in terms of training.
• We've got so many different avenues to train these individuals. You mentioned pride.
• We've got so many different avenues to train these individuals.
• I know a few of our prisons are utilizing that extra space on the compounds for workforce housing.

Summary: The Senate Criminal Justice Committee met with Vice Chair Smith presiding in Chair Martin’s excused absence. After opening remarks from several senators, the committee heard a presentation from Department of Corrections Secretary Ricky Dixon on the state’s incentivized prisons program and related population-management efforts. Dixon said the department now operates eight incentivized prisons, which use enhanced privileges and programming for well-behaved inmates, and reported major reductions in disciplinary reports, staff assaults, inmate-on-inmate assaults, and uses of force compared with average institutions. He also described administrative management units for more disruptive inmates, short-sentence correctional institutions for those with less than a year to serve, and a reentry strategy that places inmates closer to home within 18 months of release. Dixon said Florida’s recidivism rate has fallen to about 21 percent, among the lowest in the nation, and emphasized that staffing, programming, and facility repairs remain ongoing needs. Committee members asked about access to education and workforce training, staffing levels, contraband, technology upgrades, heating and air-conditioning maintenance, and whether incentivized prisons could be expanded. Dixon said educational access is improving but remains limited by eligibility and staffing, that the incentivized facilities are at capacity, and that expansion depends on adding more administrative management unit beds. He also said the department is increasing use of technology, improving maintenance oversight, and continuing efforts to reduce contraband and improve staff recruitment and retention. Several senators praised the department’s work and urged more funding for prison infrastructure and officer pay. Public testimony largely supported the incentivized prisons model while calling for more seats, better staffing, and broader reforms. Family members of incarcerated people said the facilities were safer, more stable, and better for rehabilitation, though they asked for more programming, better treatment by staff, and clearer access to education and release-related opportunities. A Florida PBA representative emphasized that programs can only succeed with safe staffing levels and better pay and retention for correctional officers. No formal committee vote or bill action was taken, and the meeting ended after public testimony and closing remarks.

Transcript Highlights:

• UNM's expanding federally funded training positions, retaining physicians in the state, and deploying
• Decisions about who performs the eye surgery must reflect the highest training and safety standards.
• It's about patient safety, legal clarity, and responsible workforce policy.
• Personally, rich training for foster families.
• They are receiving training now, Madam Chair, Representative.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• this<00:14:15.760> bill With proper training, as this bill With proper training, as this
• > how<00:14:35.199> to Training ensures they know how to Training ensures they know how
• It's time we trust trained young option.
• To Economic Development and Workforce Investment, House Bills 392, 402, and 403.
• , development and workforce investment, development and workforce investment, House<00:34:04.640>

Keywords: HB 312 continued 00:00 Motions, Petitions, and Communications 25:16 Introduction of New Bills and Resolutions 27:27 Recess for ConC and Rules Meeting 28:33 ConC/Rules Report 33:45 Adjournment 35:21, 958, all

Summary: The House took up House Bill 312, which would expand concealed carry rights to 18- to 20-year-olds. Debate focused heavily on gun violence, public safety, constitutional rights, and whether the bill would make schools, parks, and other public places less safe. Opponents argued that young people are not ready for the responsibility, cited recent shootings and gun deaths in their districts, and said families had not asked for this bill. Supporters said 18- to 20-year-olds already may possess firearms, that concealed carry is safer than open carry for law-abiding adults, and that the bill includes training and background-check provisions. Several members also discussed differences between rural and urban gun culture and whether crime trends were related to constitutional carry laws. During floor discussion, members exchanged questions about crime rates since constitutional carry was enacted, with a sponsor responding that crime had decreased in the Commonwealth. Other members raised concerns about suicide, mental health, and the impact on students and women, while supporters emphasized self-defense and constitutional rights. After debate, the House voted on HB 312 and passed it 73-17. The bill was then clinched. After HB 312, the House handled routine business. Members moved House Resolutions 30, 33, and 7 from committee to the floor, and several committee schedule announcements were made, including possible changes due to weather. The Committee on Committees reported referrals for a number of bills to standing committees, and the Rules Committee posted House Bills 134 and 306 for the regular orders on Monday, January 26, 2026. The House then adjourned until 4:00 p.m. Monday, January 26, 2026.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so the goal is to fortify the networks, and that requires a lot of training.
• We had the workforce education and training bucket under MHSA for several years that we were able to
• fund and provide high levels of training.
• training... ...living with them, help train the family members, the LEAP training, and go side by side
• We try to provide training and technical assistance.

Summary: The hearing focused first on behavioral health, especially serious mental illness and anosognosia, a condition described by witnesses as a neurological symptom that prevents people from recognizing they are ill. The chair framed the issue around families cycling through emergency rooms, jails, conservatorships, and short-term stabilization without lasting treatment, and warned that federal changes under H.R. 1 could reduce Medi-Cal funding and worsen access. Dawn Marie Anderson gave a personal account of her son’s long history of psychosis, homelessness, arrests, repeated jail and state hospital stays, and eventual stability when he received sustained medication and coordinated support. She argued that the system often treats the problem as criminal rather than medical and that voluntary programs and short-term services are not enough for people who lack insight into their illness. Other panelists, including representatives from the California Behavioral Health Association, Santa Barbara County Behavioral Health, and the County Behavioral Health Directors Association, agreed that anosognosia is not denial or noncompliance and said the system needs long-term, coordinated care, including assertive community treatment, mobile crisis, supportive housing, medication support, and stronger handoffs between county and managed care systems. They said CalAIM and other reforms have improved some coordination, but significant gaps remain, especially for people with serious mental illness, for those in jail or locked settings, and for people with private insurance, which witnesses said often offers little meaningful coverage for early psychosis or intensive behavioral health services. Several witnesses urged the Legislature to protect Medi-Cal, shore up county safety-net services, and invest in training and family engagement. The committee then turned to the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, with a focus on the virtual services platforms BrightLife Kids and Soluna and the CYBHI fee schedule. DHCS reported strong growth in app registrations, coaching sessions, referrals, and positive user outcomes, saying the platforms provide free, culturally responsive, early-intervention support statewide and help connect users to higher levels of care when needed. On the fee schedule, DHCS said more than 500 LEAs, colleges, universities, and school-linked providers are participating, 181 LEAs have submitted claims, and $9.6 million has been reimbursed to date, with 41,556 students represented in claims. The chair and several members criticized the pace of implementation and the amount of money spent relative to reimbursement levels, saying the Legislature had requested data earlier and that the return on investment still appeared low. DHCS responded that many claims are still being submitted, that 70% of denials are correctable, that $400 million in capacity grants has been distributed locally, and that reimbursement is increasing rapidly as more districts come online. Public comment included a rural county behavioral health director who said private insurance denials leave counties with significant uncompensated work, especially for unlicensed staff providing case management and mobile crisis services.

Transcript Highlights:

• environments for Hawaii's Workforce environments for Hawaii's Workforce that's<00:49:21.000>
• And then the third is workforce housing. The third is workforce housing.
• We’re putting possibility for future workforce housing.
• be utilized in the development of the workforce housing?
• I saw that—I think it was a workforce housing number. Yeah, that was to build workforce housing.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The Committee on Finance held informational briefings first with the Department of Defense on its FY 2026 budget request, then with the Hawaii School Facilities Authority. Major General Steve Logan outlined the Department of Defense request for $40.5 million in state funds, which he said would leverage about $74 million in federal matching funds and support 411 open projects that could attract up to $2.3 billion in additional federal grant money. He said the budget focuses on sustainment, safety, and reorganization in light of lessons from the Maui wildfires. Key requests included $1.3 million to sustain IT systems, $2.7 million for 32 HEMA emergency management positions, three new Hawaii Army National Guard positions plus four upgrades, and $1.9 million for the Youth Challenge Program to cover state-mandated fringe costs and staffing needs. He also reviewed capital improvement projects, including Youth Challenge facility upgrades, siren modernization, ADA improvements, building retrofits for disaster resilience, Army facility upgrades, a third state veterans home on Maui, HEMA EOC improvements, and a maintenance/fuel building at Diamond Head. Members asked about the siren modernization timeline, and HEMA said roughly 26 to 31 sirens would be modernized this year, with 15 on Maui, eight on Oahu, and eight on the Big Island. Questions also focused on Youth Challenge and Job Challenge enrollment and vacancies, with the department saying the Hilo Job Challenge Academy is growing and that combining Youth Challenge recruiting statewide into one Kilauea program has helped enrollment. Logan also answered questions about the New Year’s Eve medical transport mission, explaining the Hawaii Air National Guard’s relationship with active-duty Air Force assets and saying the flight cost is about $20,000 per flight hour, though the final bill had not yet been determined. On the Maui veterans home, staff said the University of Hawaii site was no longer viable after faculty senate opposition, so the department is now focused on a 10-acre Puna District site; the project remains tied to a certified $35 million state match and August 2025 and August 2026 federal suspense dates. Logan said the veterans home remains one of the department’s highest priorities, but it could not be moved higher in the submitted CIP ranking. The department also discussed a Governor’s add-on for a fire marshal/Office of Recovery and Resiliency proposal. Logan said the fire marshal position was reestablished last session but has not yet been filled, and that if the function is transferred to the Department of Defense, the department wants funding ready to move quickly. Staff later said the request would include about $1.1 million for seven positions and about $2.2 million for operating costs, though details were still preliminary. The committee then reconvened for the School Facilities Authority briefing, where Executive Director Ricky Fujitani described the agency as a startup created in 2020 to improve school and workforce housing development through standardized designs, prefabrication, best-value procurement, and public-private partnerships. He said Hawaii’s single school district still functions like 15 different districts because of its 264 schools across 15 complex areas, and that the authority’s goal is to create more efficient, maintainable, and cost-effective facilities.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is there a system or program that we are investing in that can help demonstrate job training, that could
• training programs or that sort of thing beyond what is proposed in the May Revision.
• working sectors that are going to be hit the hardest by these eligibility requirements and what training
• Every day child care providers support children, families, and the California workforce.
• to thank you for the educator workforce programs that you've provided robust funding for.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• training programs.
• This bill will create a strong state approval process for short-term workforce training programs seeking
• The goal here is to actually bring this workforce out from under the shadows.
• The needs of the students today, but also of the workforce for the state of California.
• I'm proud to present AB 2060, a bill to strengthen California's teacher workforce by supporting mentor

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• a job training trust we can currently set up a linkage fee but without a training trust that funding
• With proper training, when I went to Texas for school, with proper training and education of me and the
• I have been trained to practice balanced training methods, and I have used them to rehabilitate and train
• So a quick question: pushback on training, what would you anticipate a training program to be like for
• conferences, webinars, in-person trainings, on-demand trainings, where communities come to us and ask

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee held a lengthy hybrid hearing of the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government, with testimony spanning local board training, animal welfare and enforcement, municipal charters, water district dissolution, and other home rule matters. Chairs Rausch and Lewis set strict time limits because of the large number of speakers and explained that written testimony would also be accepted. Members heard from local officials, advocates, municipal employees, and residents, with many bills receiving broad support from municipal and advocacy witnesses. Several speakers supported bills requiring or expanding training for local boards and commissions, including pre-service training for planning, zoning, and other land use boards. Supporters said training would help volunteers understand complex laws, improve consistency, reduce legal challenges, and speed up housing and development decisions. Related testimony also backed a bill to modernize historic district commissions and another to allow associate planning board members to serve more broadly when needed to maintain quorums. A major portion of the hearing focused on animal legislation. Witnesses supported bills to expand citations for cruel conditions beyond dogs, update dangerous dog procedures, improve animal health inspections and breeder oversight, strengthen tethering rules, and protect pet consumers. Animal control officers, humane organizations, and some victims of dog attacks described enforcement gaps and the need for clearer standards, while several dog trainers and the American Kennel Club opposed parts of the dangerous dog bill and tethering restrictions, arguing they would limit humane training tools and professional discretion. The committee also heard strong support for a bill to create a statewide pet shop and consumer protection framework. The committee also heard testimony on several local home rule petitions. Medford officials and residents strongly supported a new city charter that would replace the current at-large council with ward-based representation and periodic charter review. Wayland representatives supported a bill to preserve the library’s Millennium Fund as intended, Cambridge officials backed creation of an employment and job training trust, and Carver officials supported dissolving the North Carver Water District due to compliance and financial problems. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the chair repeatedly invited written testimony and follow-up materials.

Transcript Highlights:

• Home care workforce shortage is to expose more younger and newer nurses to the home care career option
• <00:29:43.919> shortage trying to overcome a Workforce shortage trying to overcome a Workforce
• They complete the same required 245D license training that other staff complete.
• They complete the same required 245D license training that other staff complete.
• They complete the same required 245D license training that other staff complete.

Bills: HF729, HF728

Keywords: human services, provider enrollment, medical assistance, healthcare, housing stabilization, substance use disorder, vulnerable adults, fraud prevention, respite care, children, licensed settings, home and community-based services, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Many of these programs are critically needed for the state workforce.
• We looked at the occupations that had the most critical workforce need, and then we're also— Looked at
• the occupations that had the most critical workforce need, and then we're also generating the highest
• I do know that we did provide them training on the website when we launched it back in 2022.
• I do know that we did provide them training on the website when we launched it back in 2022.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Higher Education heard a presentation on the State University System’s new strategic plan, SUS 30, and its legislative budget request. University officials described the plan’s five priorities: One SUS collaboration, elevating student success, operational excellence, world-class talent, and innovative research and economic development. They highlighted Florida’s continued status as the top higher education system in the nation, low tuition, strong graduation outcomes, rising median wages for graduates, and expanded use of the My Florida Future website to help students and families compare degree outcomes and earnings. Members asked for follow-up information on programs of strategic emphasis, mental health and social work workforce needs, wage data over time, and how the system supports innovation moving toward commercialization. The committee also discussed campus safety, prompted in part by recent events at FSU. System officials said universities and the Florida College System recently held a safety summit to share best practices on building security, threat assessment, and coordination with law enforcement, and they agreed to provide a report back to the committee after the Board of Governors reviews recommendations in November. Senators also raised questions about Pell student support, first-generation student success, and whether liberal arts graduates’ earnings catch up over time. Officials said Pell students are tracked through performance-based funding metrics and that the system’s accountability plans will continue to emphasize access and completion. A separate update covered line funding for nursing and health care partnerships. Officials said the $6 million appropriation was fully subscribed through 24 proposals from all 10 nursing programs, supporting scholarships, faculty recruitment, internships, simulation, and licensure preparation. They reported over 1,900 new nursing graduates, more than 200 new student slots, over 300 scholarships, and a 92% NCLEX pass rate. Senators asked about expanding eligibility for the program, and staff said that issue would be revisited this year. The Board of Governors’ legislative budget request totaled $634.5 million and included $295 million for performance-based funding institutional investment, a request to restore and increase the state investment portion to $400 million, $125 million for preeminence funding, $100 million for faculty recruitment and retention, $6.4 million for UF/IFAS extension workload, and $3.1 million for State Fire Marshal inspections. The chair noted that resources are limited and that difficult budget decisions lie ahead. No votes were taken, and the meeting adjourned after the presentations and questions.