Transcript Highlights:

• Now, they've changed their name, but I still call them Minkoji.
• Even Senator Fateh called me and said, "Hey, can we please do this?"
• The process that we use.
• That is a goal that many of us share.
• Let me tell you where we should call this on.

Transcript Highlights:

• 2 3 The committee on Culture, recreation, tourism, call to order. Clerk, call the roll.
• It's in process, I believe, yeah.
• And really, the goal...
• It's called Texas on This Day, second edition.
• Chair calls up Justin.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It would still be in the same process.
• It's called the committee back to order. Let's call the committee back to order. Okay, committee.
• We still might want that as our goal.
• This is a committee process.”
• And Lisa Johnson, you can call it.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The Higher Education Funding Committee met to discuss possible changes to North Dakota’s higher education funding formula, with a particular focus on separating the UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences MD program from the general formula. Dr. Jenkins outlined several options for the MD program, including a fixed-funding model, a hybrid model, or keeping it in the formula, and emphasized the need to preserve strong support for medical education while making future funding clearer. He also discussed efforts to increase the share of North Dakota students in the MD program through ND85, expanded recruiting, early acceptance pathways, MCAT prep, a four-plus-one program, and the Primary Care Accelerated Track, along with future cost pressures such as AI licensing and residency growth. The committee then reviewed a simplified funding model from the University System Office that would base funding more heavily on student FTE, credentials awarded, and a few incentive factors such as small institution and research adjustments. Members questioned the use of placeholder numbers, the lack of a clear methodology for the small institution and research factors, and whether the model would adequately account for differences among institutions, high-cost programs, and graduate education. Several members raised concerns that arbitrary factors would be hard to defend politically and could distort funding or create competition between schools, while others said the exercise was useful as a starting point for discussion. Alex presented a second alternative that kept the current SIP-code structure but increased CTE weighting, added a progressive economic size factor, and separated out the MD program. His model also added an on-campus face-to-face headcount component and a credentials component, with the intent of rewarding in-person enrollment and completions. Members questioned the use of headcount instead of FTE, how hybrid, online, dual-credit, and off-campus students would be treated, and why face-to-face enrollment was weighted more heavily than completion. No formal votes or final actions were taken; the committee instead continued discussion and asked members to provide direction on which elements, if any, should be developed further.

Transcript Highlights:

• The roll call continues with members and representatives being called and responding present or here.
• The roll call continues with representatives being called and responding here or present.
• The roll call continues with additional representatives being called.
• You'll hear us call it the SPA, SPA. You'll hear us call it the SPA, SPA.
• So, term What did you call their child. So, term What did you call that?

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The chair calls up Ray Bonilla. The chair calls up Sherry Sylvester.
• Invited Chair calls that Carrie Butler And the chair calls out, Sid.
• You notice the selection process. process in the bill for the faculty senate. Yes sir.
• The chair now calls Desiree Walker, Tammy Marron I didn't call somebody.
• Subject called to chair.

Bills: SB37, SB1489, SB452, SB724, SB1067, SB1741, SB1273

Keywords: higher education, curriculum review, governing board, faculty council, ombudsman, faculty governance, decision-making, transparency, public meetings, department head, employment approval, public institutions, institutional oversight, education, funding, accountability, state budget, school performance, employment, Texas legislation

Transcript Highlights:

• Sergeant, please call the absent members. We do have a quorum.
• Madam Secretary, please call the roll. AB 1793, Ward.
• And I think it's called Form 710.
• , because the process is confusing.
• And we do have one bill on call. We will lift the call now on AB 1847.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Filler can cause what's called vascular occlusion.
• That process can often involve one or two levels of appeal, and it can be a time-consuming process.
• Consumers need that appeal process to show that.
• That a process can often involve one or two levels of appeal, and it can be a time-consuming process.
• Consumers need that appeal process to show that.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee opened a hearing of the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure focused on health care and human services, reviewed testimony logistics, and then heard a long series of witnesses on several bills. Much of the testimony centered on interstate licensure compacts for dentistry, social work, and occupational therapy, with supporters arguing these compacts would improve workforce mobility, continuity of care, and access while preserving state oversight and public protection. Dental witnesses were split on H.455/S.257, with supporters backing the AADB dental compact for its hands-on exam, background checks, and disciplinary safeguards, while opponents argued a competing compact would better promote portability and avoid conflicts tied to proprietary testing and outside commissions. Social work witnesses strongly supported H.380/S.252, emphasizing continuity of care for clients who move across state lines, reduced costs and delays for practitioners, and the compact’s public-protection features; occupational therapy witnesses similarly supported H.427/S.256, citing access, telehealth, military families, and maintained standards. The committee also heard testimony on S.242, which would expand licensure for lactation care providers. Supporters, including lactation counselors and health center staff, said adding certified lactation counselors and related credentials would expand access, improve breastfeeding support, and allow reimbursement for services now often provided without billing. They described the training required and said the bill would help families, especially in underserved communities. Representative James O’Day also testified in support of the social work compact, and a Council of State Governments witness provided background on compact mechanics and state participation. Another major topic was H.419/S.214 on medical debt. Physicians and researchers testified that cancer patients experience long-lasting medical debt and collections burdens, and they supported limits on the sale and collection of medical debt, bans on reporting it to credit bureaus, and related consumer protections. The hearing also included H.465 on a pathway to special licensure for certain long-term limited-registration dentists serving MassHealth patients, which Representative Senna supported as a way to allow immigrant dentists to practice independently. Finally, the committee heard sharply divided testimony on H.444/S.284, which would allow trained dental hygienists to administer Botox and dermal fillers: supporters framed it as a safe, preventive, and access-expanding tool for TMJ, bruxism, and pain management, while dermatologists opposed it as outside hygienists’ training and a patient-safety risk. No votes or formal actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• Under three minutes and before we got called up.
• So it's good that you called him.
• They started with, I call, Connecticut 2.0.
• I'm getting calls from the in on the Cape.
• We're going to call that a close. Thank you, everybody. We're called that and closed.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee hearing focused on a package of Massachusetts privacy and technology bills, especially measures to ban the sale of location data, establish a comprehensive consumer data privacy law, and regulate biometric recognition and surveillance pricing. Chairs and sponsors argued that self-regulation has failed, that data brokers and large tech companies routinely collect and monetize sensitive information, and that state action is needed because federal protections are weak or absent. Several speakers tied the bills to reproductive health, gender-affirming care, domestic violence, children’s data, and other sensitive uses of location and biometric information. Supporters included legislators and advocates who backed H. 86/S. 197 (Location Shield), H. 78/S. 45/H. 104/S. 29 (comprehensive privacy bills), H. 99/S. 47 (surveillance pricing in grocery stores), and H. 36/S. 36 (biometric recognition accountability). They emphasized data minimization, bans on selling sensitive data, consumer rights to access, delete, and opt out, and in some cases a private right of action. Several witnesses said Massachusetts should lead or align with other states, while others argued that stronger protections are needed because data can be weaponized by stalkers, anti-abortion actors, abusive partners, insurers, or law enforcement. Industry and coalition witnesses urged the committee to favor a more standardized, interoperable framework modeled on laws already adopted in other states, warning that novel definitions, data-minimization rules, and private rights of action could create compliance burdens, confusion, and costs for businesses, including small businesses. They argued that entity-level exemptions for sectors already covered by federal laws like HIPAA or GLBA promote consistency, and that Attorney General enforcement is preferable to private lawsuits. Committee members questioned witnesses on patchwork concerns, the scope of exemptions, and whether the proposed bills would harm or help consumers and small businesses. No votes or final actions were taken during the hearing; written testimony was noted as due later, and the committee continued taking testimony from multiple panels and virtual witnesses.

Transcript Highlights:

• process impacts.
• , and that process, for all its flaws, is trackable.
• , and that process, for all its flaws, is trackable.
• speak to each other, but are not the same process, right?
• speak to each other, but are not the same process, right?

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The inaugural hearing of the newly named House Committee on Federal Funding, Policy and Accountability focused on how federal policy changes could affect Massachusetts, especially in education, health care, research, infrastructure, climate, and business conditions. Chair LaNatra said the committee was created to monitor federal funding decisions and their impacts on state programs and services. Members introduced themselves, then heard testimony from Doug Howgate of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, Sarah Mills of Associated Industries of Massachusetts, and Quentin Palfrey, the governor’s Director of Federal Funds and Infrastructure. Howgate argued that the Trump administration and new Congress pose ideological, practical, and process-related risks to Massachusetts, citing proposed cuts to Medicaid, education, research, and other domestic programs. He said federal dollars make up about a quarter of the state operating budget and capital plan, warned against using one-time reserves to backfill ongoing federal cuts, and urged the state to prioritize core services while protecting areas where Massachusetts is especially strong, such as higher education and research. In response to committee questions, he said the House Medicaid proposal would still cost Massachusetts hundreds of millions and that international student and NIH-related changes could harm the state’s labor force and innovation economy. He also advised that the state communicate clearly without overreacting to daily federal developments. Mills testified that AIM members are most concerned about uncertainty, tariffs, Medicaid cuts, and NIH reductions. She said tariffs are raising costs, disrupting supply chains, and hurting small and medium-sized businesses, housing construction, and exporters, with AIM’s business confidence index falling to its lowest level since the pandemic. She said Medicaid cuts would raise employer health costs, reduce productivity, and strain the health care system, while NIH cuts would threaten Massachusetts’ life sciences and academic research ecosystem. In questions, she said AIM has increased federal outreach, is coordinating with the U.S. Chamber and the Massachusetts delegation, and is hearing concerns from employers about immigration compliance and workforce disruptions. Palfrey described the Healey-Driscoll administration’s efforts to maximize federal funding, including a biweekly interagency council, a municipal partnership effort, and a statewide roadshow. He said Massachusetts has secured nearly $9 billion from major federal laws for projects such as the Cape Cod bridges, Allston Multimodal, grid modernization, clean-energy school buses, and broadband. He also said the administration launched a public website to track federal impacts and is working with municipalities, nonprofits, and the Attorney General on grant changes, legal issues, and litigation. In response to questions, he warned that cuts to NOAA, NSF, Medicaid, SNAP, and other programs could affect services and the state budget, and said the administration is tracking changes to federal grant applications and conditions. No votes were taken; the hearing was informational only.

Transcript Highlights:

• We call it OPEG.
• We call it OPEG.
• So we have altered a lot of our processes to try to isolate and try to make the process smoother.
• process.
• very closely throughout this process.

Summary: The Health Care Budget Subcommittee met to organize the new term, take roll, and hear introductory presentations from the six agencies under its jurisdiction: the Agency for Health Care Administration, Agency for Persons with Disabilities, Department of Children and Families, Department of Elder Affairs, Department of Health, and Department of Veterans’ Affairs. The chair outlined the committee process, including assigning members to review agencies and make budget recommendations. Each agency head gave a high-level overview of their budget, staffing, major programs, and priorities, with recurring themes including Medicaid, long-term care, disability services, child welfare, mental health, aging services, public health, and veterans’ health care. Several agency leaders highlighted recent initiatives and funding priorities. AHCA emphasized Medicaid managed care, provider regulation, Hope Florida, hospital-at-home, and cancer-related efforts; APD discussed iBudget services, Hope Florida, a managed-care pilot, online applications, and forensic care costs; DCF focused on child protection, foster care, adult protective services, food/cash/medical assistance, mental health, and opioid treatment; Elder Affairs highlighted Alzheimer’s services, community-based senior care, guardianship, ombudsman services, and disaster outreach; DOH covered cancer innovation, maternal telehealth, cybersecurity, HIV/hepatitis/syphilis screening, and school nursing; and Veterans Affairs described benefits and health care access for veterans, long-term care, and federal reimbursement. Several speakers also raised concerns about rising costs, provider rates, disaster response, and access to services. The committee heard two public comments from disability advocates about Medicaid redeterminations affecting iBudget waiver recipients and provider payment delays. In response, AHCA and APD said they were coordinating on data sharing, early outreach, escalation processes, and efforts to reduce disenrollments and make recertification smoother. Members then asked questions about provider rates, opioid settlement spending, managed care quality measures, pediatric rare disease grants, group home transparency, senior outreach, ABA services moving into managed care, annual Medicaid recertification, veterans’ service utilization, waiting lists for elder services, and prevention spending. No formal votes were taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• I call the Senate out of recess.
• PE people can call themselves that.
• The clerk will call the roll. The clerk will call the roll. Senator Roart, yes. Senator Lang, yes.
• Roll call, Madam President. Thank you. Roll call, Madam President.
• call the role. Senator Roer, yes. call the role. Senator Roer, yes.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So I want to have at the end of this process a bill of excellence that really improves the process.
• I had a call yesterday.
• And so we're back in the process again, trying to do something.
• I started calling some of my friends, and we ended up with an appointment.
• And so I stay involved in this process. Please, reverie blends up.

Bills: HB4422, HB4117, HB4300, HB4298, HB2984, HB3344

Keywords: immigration, public assistance, legal status, food assistance, state benefits, family resource center, community support, employment services, kinship families, social connections, child care, criminal history, background checks, child safety, licensing, Oklahoma laws, advisory committees, daycare, licensed child care facility, child care subsidy

Transcript Highlights:

• At this time, Chair will call up those who have been called.
• The Chair calls up Fred Poston. Mindy Raymond was already called. Mindy was already called, OK.
• All right, it's your call. The Chair calls John Bolgiano and Louise DeRusso. Louise DeRusso.
• We fully support the ultimate goal, but we ask that you consider accomplishing the goal by simply granting
• Call up John Byrom, and let's go ahead and call Kenneth Flippen as well. All right.

Bills: HB4568, HB5458, HB4543, HB2703, HB3728, HCR113, HCR126

Keywords: film industry, incentives, grants, Texas, moving image, economic development, production companies, content standards, HB 5458, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, TPWD, chronic wasting disease, CWD, cervids, deer, elk, moose, wildlife management, game animals, disease management

Transcript Highlights:

• achieve specific goals. achieve specific goals.
• together to further clarify the process together to further clarify the process and<00:05:22.880
• elements of the consultation process elements of the consultation process which<00:05:57.039>
• The consultation process must identify the participants in the process.
• Okay, [clears throat] I'm going to call Okay, [clears throat] I'm going to call for<01:26:40.000

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We had 468 lines call into our 10 o'clock call that morning.
• When I say a line call in, it's a Zoom call like many of you do.
• But 468 individual lines called into our 10 a.m. weather call on Thursday the 3rd.
• For the 10 o'clock call that we had, there were over 460 lines calling into that call.
• That's the goal, correct? It is the goal.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Many minutes go by until the school nurse comes by. 9-1-1 is called. Police come.
• Last week, I was called into a school district that had recently lost a student to suicide.
• One of them we called the Nosey Student Survey Bill.
• I would have called 911, but would I have powerlessly stood there waiting for the ambulance?
• We do have a few other people signed up, but I'll call their names.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Education held a public hearing on a large slate of bills, with the chairs emphasizing time limits, written testimony, and grouping similar measures together. Early testimony focused on opioid use disorder education in schools (S.382), with Senator Keenan arguing that students should be taught about the risks of substance use disorder and naloxone use as part of health curricula. Representative DeCost also briefly introduced H.551, a narrow bill concerning parent rights for children in third grade and younger. Several bills were then closed without testimony, including measures on type 1 diabetes informational materials and other diabetes-related proposals. A major portion of the hearing centered on school health and emergency response bills. Supporters of H.652/S.342 on diabetes management in schools described inconsistent district practices and urged clearer standards so students can receive care in classrooms rather than being sent out of instruction. Bills on epinephrine access and seizure disorders drew extensive testimony: advocates for stock epinephrine in schools argued that unassigned epinephrine can save lives and should be funded in a cost-neutral way, while a pediatrician opposed one version as an unfunded mandate. For seizure-safe schools (S.422/H.635), students, parents, educators, and advocates described missed or delayed responses to seizures, stigma, and the need for staff training, seizure action plans, and emergency medication protocols. A separate bill, H.645, allowing anti-seizure medication on school buses, was supported by a parent and student who said current law forces costly and restrictive transportation arrangements. The committee also heard testimony on youth skin health bills (S.334/H.600/H.619), which would let students carry and apply sunscreen at school and camp without a physician’s note. Supporters from melanoma prevention, dermatology, and industry groups said the bills would remove unnecessary barriers and promote sun-safe habits, while one witness cautioned about drafting details and unintended consequences. The hearing then moved to CPR/AED education for graduation (S.456), where Senator Tarr, a student advocate, and the Red Cross all supported requiring hands-on CPR certification for high school students. Finally, the committee took testimony on healthy school lunches (H.539/S.401): supporters from the Healthy School Lunch Coalition and school food directors backed stronger nutrition standards and a standing advisory council, while Consumer Brands Association witnesses opposed the bill as too vague and potentially disruptive. A nutrition scientist also warned about unintended restrictions on medically necessary or innovative foods. The chairs closed the hearing on the healthy lunch bills and then opened testimony on universal school meals for virtual schools (H.700), with Superintendent Patrick Latuka supporting access for students in Commonwealth virtual schools who currently receive no meal support.

Transcript Highlights:

• Sarah, please call the roll. Chair Andrade, here. Vice Chair Gonzalez-Pittman, excused.
• Not only that, but more women need to be educated on the process.
• Do you have any goals?
• Do you have any goals, like, you know, every year?
• Do you have it anchored to the goal reduction?

Transcript Highlights:

• I call this meeting of the Committee on Public Safety, Finance, and Policy to order.
• , front lines, answering crisis calls, front lines, answering crisis calls, helping<00:55:57.000>
• <01:04:01.440> That through a competitive process. That through a competitive process.
• :04:03.680> already competitive process is actually already competitive process is actually already
• Excuse me, competitive process. Excuse me, competitive process.

Bills: HF4446, HF4066, HF1082

Keywords: public safety officer, survivor benefits, line of duty death, occupational cancer, firefighter, police officer, paramedic, EMT, correctional officer, first responder, workers' compensation, death benefits, occupational exposure, carcinogen, cancer presumption, mesothelioma, leukemia, lung cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD

Transcript Highlights:

• These transfers can be called payments in lieu of taxes, sometimes called PILOT, franchise fees, street
• That's dictating process.
• As they approached Central America, the original goal was to eradicate it down to the, The original goal
• process that includes one public notice and the opportunity and a public participation process that
• Chair calls up.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Chair calls CJ Grisham.
• Chair calls Jason Hester.
• Um, Chair calls, uh, Keith Oakley. Chair calls Alex Smith. Alex had to go. OK.
• It's called TEEI.
• Chair calls Eamon Blair. Sure, we got one. Um, chair calls Joel Romo.

Bills: SB 36

Keywords: transportation, regional authorities, mobility, infrastructure, sales tax