Transcript Highlights:

• Can you tell us about the Alabama voter integrity database?
• Even in Florida, let's use Florida. Florida got rid of their area. They use the same system.
• Do we have to use that?
• Now, we've got states contacting us who want to join.
• They are using this U... Repres... They are using this foreign national ID to vote.

Bills: HB479, HB480

Keywords: voting, elections, voter registration, voter rolls, list maintenance, address change, change of address, ERIC, Electronic Registration Information Center, AVID, Alabama Voter Integrity Database, Secretary of State, board of registrars, inactive voter, voter purge, duplicate registration, cross-state voter matching, National Change of Address, NCOA, driver license data

Transcript Highlights:

• Let us pray.
• Heavenly Father God, we are mindful today of your word to us in the book of Hebrews, where you told us
• And with that, we had someone here with us every day, guiding us and helping us to make great decisions
• state of Arkansas with us today.
• to use it for.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• South of I-94, approximately, the use of shotgun and pistol is generally used for deer.
• The priority water uses, we have six priority water uses, and the number one is domestic use.
• resource to be used on any non-essential uses.
• Most of those large water uses would fall under the priority 5 water use.
• Water to be used in mining. In priority uses 1 through 5, Mr. Chair, I can take that one.

Bills: HF647, HF2824, HF1249, HF623, HF820

Keywords: water appropriation, aquifer management, potable water, water conservation, environmental policy, fishing regulation, angling, sustainability, biodiversity, game fish, Carley State Park, Minnesota state parks, state lands, park boundary expansion, Wabasha County, Department of Natural Resources, DNR, public lands, land acquisition, park addition

Transcript Highlights:

• How else are we using AI right now?
• <00:02:16.080> artificial recognition technology uses artificial recognition technology uses
• <00:02:37.280> facial enforcement or government using facial enforcement or government using
• <00:04:28.759> in data mined is it uh uh being used in data mined is it uh uh being used in
• but here's another example of using but here's another example of using artificial<00:09:22.040>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Public service demands more of us. It demands more of us. It demands. It spreads.
• Public service demands more of us.
• We need leaders who will unite us, not divide us, leaders who recognize the inherent value and dignity
• It was used to justify slavery, it was used to justify lynching, it was used to deny Black Americans
• We're talking about all of us in this room, every single one of us.

Summary: The Assembly convened after a quorum call, completed the roll, and opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and several guest introductions recognizing visitors, students, and a long-serving committee secretary, Tabitha Volga-Sang, who was honored for 32 years of service. Members also took up a procedural motion by Assembly Member DeMaio to immediately consider ACA 14, the Taxpayer Protection Act, without reference to file; that motion failed on a 14-44 vote. The main policy debate centered on SB 106 by Senator Laird, a budget appropriation to provide $90 million in one-time funding for Planned Parenthood and related women’s health and family planning services after federal cuts. Assembly Member Tangipa offered amendments arguing the money should be directed more broadly to women’s health and hospitals, but the Assembly voted 41-13 to lay the amendments on the table. Supporters, including Gabriel, Sharp-Collins, Gibson, Krell, Bonta, and others, said the bill was needed to preserve access to cancer screenings, contraception, STI testing, and reproductive care, especially in rural and underserved communities, and to offset the effects of federal defunding. Opponents, including Johnson, DeMaio, Patterson, and Tangipa, criticized the bill as lacking transparency, favoring a politically connected organization, and diverting attention from hospital funding and other health needs. After extended floor debate, SB 106 passed the Assembly 55-10 and was transmitted immediately to the Senate. The chamber then took up H.R. 84, a resolution condemning racism after President Trump circulated racist imagery depicting former President Obama and Michelle Obama. Members from the Black, LGBTQ, Latino, AAPI, Jewish, Native American, and other caucuses spoke in support, saying the post normalized dehumanization and had real-world consequences; Assembly Member Tangipa also stated the post was wrong and apologized on the record. The transcript ends during continued debate on H.R. 84, before a final vote is shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• doesn't tell us about the sub-state level.
• we trust you to help us understand the problem that those closures are creating for us.
• we trust you to help us understand the problem that those closures are creating for us.
• And that's terminology that we use for the shorthand that has become BIPOC, but we use the term traditionally
• And that's terminology that we use for the shorthand that has become BIPOC, but we use the term traditionally

Summary: The House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee held a work session on food systems and food security, with no public testimony. The first panel focused on household food security and data. Marie Spiker of the University of Washington explained what food insecurity means, its health impacts, and the importance of reliable measurement, warning that the federal Census food security data is being terminated and that there is no true replacement. She described Washington’s WaFOOD surveys as a useful complement, not a substitute, and noted that they show food insecurity affects households at a range of income levels. Katie Raines of WSDA described the state’s food systems work, the need for shared data and dashboards, and the role of agriculture in both food production and the hunger safety net. Committee members asked about the $2.2 million state food assistance allocation, the scale of the SNAP gap, and how household size, housing costs, and other factors intersect with food insecurity. The committee then heard from Tracy Roof of the University of Richmond on the history of SNAP and its relationship to agriculture. She traced the program from Depression-era commodity distribution through the modern farm bill, emphasizing that food assistance has long functioned both as anti-hunger policy and as an agricultural and economic stabilizer. She highlighted how SNAP expands during recessions, supports retailers and farmers, and has become more important since the Great Recession because participation stayed high even as the economy recovered. Roof also noted that Washington has relatively high SNAP participation and low payment error rates, but that recent federal changes could reduce eligibility and shift more costs to states. Members asked how Washington compares to other states and why the program is structured as it is. A later panel featured the Washington State Food Policy Forum and a joint systems presentation from the Washington Farm Bureau, Washington Retail Association, and Washington Food Industry Association. The Food Policy Forum described its consensus-based recommendations on food insecurity, climate and water, regional food infrastructure, farmland protection, and farm viability, including more support for producer purchasing, water planning, and farmland conservation. The industry groups presented a systems map showing how agriculture, processing, retail, and transportation are interconnected, and argued that rising costs, regulations, labor and fuel expenses, retail theft, and thin margins make it harder to keep farms and stores viable. They said food security depends on store viability and local agricultural profitability, and promised to provide a more detailed list of policy recommendations. The final panel included state agency staff from DSHS, DOH, and WSDA. Bryce Montgomery said the Basic Food program serves about 920,000 Washingtonians monthly and warned that H.R. 1 could require Washington to pay up to 15% of SNAP benefits, broaden work requirements, and restrict immigrant eligibility. Karen Mullen described DOH nutrition programs, including WIC, farmers market nutrition benefits, fruit and vegetable incentives, and a fruit-and-vegetable prescription program, while noting funding instability and the end of SNAP-Ed. WSDA’s Katie Raines began describing ongoing food assistance and farmer support challenges, including farmer mental health and the need to address food insecurity across both producers and consumers.

Transcript Highlights:

• Help us eliminate any corruption and injustice and guide us into truth for our commonwealth.
• The orders are before us.
• to substance use disorder. Mr. to substance use disorder. Mr.
• Senator from Shelby. to get rid of substance use disorder. to get rid of substance use disorder.
• neighborhoods, and productive land use. neighborhoods, and productive land use.

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We have 26 bills before us today.
• Please come up and tell us who you are. Thank you. And tell us who you are.
• It also allows us to draw down federal dollars that can be used in this program.
• And I think that by limiting our foreign adversaries from using our laws against us to undermine us,
• None of us are experts. This is just not ...it. None of us are experts.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee considered a large agenda of bills and reported several measures favorably. Early action included SB 6, a settled claim bill involving the Department of Children and Families and a trust for Leila Estrada and Sapphire Williams, and CS/CS/SB 1266, which creates a cybersecurity experiential learning and clearance-readiness program through the Department of Commerce and Cyber Florida. The committee also approved SB 532 on clerks of court funding, allowing clerks to retain all excess Article V revenue rather than returning half to the state and clarifying foreclosure sale procedures. In addition, the committee passed CS/CS/SB 1602 and CS/CS/SB 1604 to create and fund a pilot housing program for veterans through the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, and CS/SB 1110 to expand Medicaid and private insurance coverage for medically necessary orthotics and prosthetics, including testimony from affected families and advocates. The committee also adopted an amendment and then favorably reported CS/CS/SB 1012 on inmate services, removing the bill’s medical-services compensation provisions while retaining changes to the inmate welfare trust fund and related facility uses. It also adopted a delete-all amendment and then favorably reported CS/CS/CS/SB 1614, which was narrowed to remove a provision allowing local governments to use excess fees to construct new buildings. The committee spent substantial time on CS/SB 17, a Medicaid oversight and transparency bill. The sponsor said the measure would create a joint legislative Medicaid oversight committee, authorize the Legislature to retain its own actuary, modernize Medicaid statutes, strengthen managed-care performance standards, and increase accountability for pharmacy benefit managers and related entities. After amendment, the committee adopted changes removing several PBM-related provisions while retaining the broader oversight framework. Testimony from supporters emphasized transparency, fraud prevention, and cost control, while a PBM trade association asked to continue working on affiliate-manufacturer, network, and payment issues. The bill was reported favorably. The most extensive discussion centered on CS/SB 1758, which proposes major changes to Medicaid and SNAP. The sponsor described five reforms: stronger fraud and overpayment recovery authority, a Medicaid work requirement for certain able-bodied adults, expanded behavioral-health services through Medicaid waivers, pharmacy-program changes to obtain rebates and reduce institutional costs, and SNAP/EBT reforms including photo IDs and work requirements. The committee adopted two amendments: one adding a transitional “glide path” for people who gain employment but risk losing Medicaid, and another exempting hospice patients with six months or less to live. Supporters argued the bill would reduce fraud, improve accountability, and encourage work, while opponents warned it would increase administrative burdens, push eligible people off coverage, and conflict with federal law or guidance. The bill remained under debate with extensive public testimony from advocates, providers, and affected families, and the transcript ends before final disposition on the measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you for having us here.
• for us to use that money.
• > statutory appropriations for us to use statutory appropriations for us to use that<01:17:05.679>
• this one database they can use. this one database they can use.
• required for that that you let us know. required for that that you let us know.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• used against our town.
• <01:56:39.679> against had before us it has been used against had before us it has been used
• It won't impact us at all.
• Bedrooms should not be used as a used.
• be used to this. be used to this.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Can you hear us okay? Can you hear us okay if you want to nod?
• I want to say that by giving us our rights, you will be giving us back our voice, giving us back our
• And help us.
• I always say that nothing about us without us is for us.
• use.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Election Laws held a hearing on a wide range of voting-access and election-administration bills. The largest portion of testimony focused on same-day voter registration (H. 834/S. 505), with support from Rep. Gentile, Boston and Chelsea officials, civic groups, and election administrators from Maine and Vermont. Supporters argued that same-day registration would help eligible voters who move frequently, miss deadlines, or face administrative errors, and would reduce rejected provisional ballots. Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and Vermont elections director Sean Sheehan testified that same-day registration has worked in their states without major administrative problems and has helped increase turnout. A Boston-based panel also described high rejection rates for provisional ballots and the burden of registration cutoffs on renters, students, immigrants, and low-income voters. A second major topic was restoration of voting rights for incarcerated people, including S. 524 and related House bills. The committee heard extensive virtual testimony from incarcerated individuals at MCI Norfolk and MCI Shirley, who said voting should be restored as part of rehabilitation, civic engagement, and reintegration. They described disenfranchisement as dehumanizing and argued that voting would help maintain family and community ties, reduce recidivism, and give incarcerated people a voice on laws affecting prisons and reentry. Rep. Erica Uyterhoeven also testified in support, saying the bill would restore municipal voting rights for incarcerated residents and align with broader efforts to expand political participation. The committee also heard testimony on bills affecting election administration and access, including a proposal to reduce or eliminate mandated early in-person voting in primaries and shorten the general-election early voting period, with supporters from the town clerks’ community arguing that low usage, staffing burdens, and costs justify the change. Opponents warned that reducing in-person early voting could hurt voters who do not use mail ballots and could disproportionately affect communities of color. Other bills discussed included decoupling the municipal census from voter registration, requiring periodic accessibility inspections of polling places, and a Somerville home-rule petition on non-citizen municipal voting and another on lowering the voting age in municipal elections. No votes or final committee actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• In October, they gave us a demonstration.
• If not, then used by employees only.
• The use of guest rooms with mold-like substances is prohibited, and the use of portable, electric, or
• So that gives us the required 90 days, but it gives us a little flexibility to determine when that 90
• to livestock use or fish, wildlife, and recreational use for a reservoir authorizing no withdrawal of

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee first approved the December 3 minutes, then heard a request from the Board of Clinical Laboratory Practice to amend its proposed rule on exempt test methods to add certain closed-system DNA/RNA tests, including rhinovirus. After testimony explaining that the board had considered late comments from BioMérieux and wanted the rule record to reflect that review, the committee agreed to a limited amendment and passed the motion unanimously. The Department of Agriculture then outlined broad rule updates affecting dairy, eggs, poultry, pesticides, animal health, environmental mitigation, and the Egg Product Utilization Commission. The commissioner said the changes mostly clarified existing requirements, updated references, and reduced some burdens, such as easing dairy hauler training/licensing timing and clarifying out-of-state grade A milk language. Members asked about dairy industry decline, the APUC scoring system, and the rationale for the milk-hauler and out-of-state milk provisions. The State Board of Dental Examiners presented extensive rule changes tied to recent legislation and workforce issues, including a new professional health program for dentists, expanded duties for assistants and hygienists, broader local anesthetic authority for hygienists, and fee increases to fund the program and cover administrative costs. Testimony from Dr. Edward May strongly supported the professional health program based on his own recovery experience. The committee also heard from Game and Fish on rules easing some guide/outfitter experience requirements, allowing electronic exams, and modifying boating safety equipment rules, with no public comment and no fiscal impact. Later, Health and Human Services received approval for an extension to update tattoo/body art rules and a separate motion to repeal an obsolete nurse aide training chapter. HHS also described nursing facility rule updates, lodging sanitation revisions, and related clarifications on licensing, safety, pest control, and fire requirements. The Department of Environmental Quality received an extension for septic-system installer rules, and also presented rules for above-ground storage tanks and water/wastewater operator certification, including new fees and third-party testing options. The Industrial Commission’s oil and gas division described multiple rule changes, some withdrawn after comments, including drilling unit flexibility, site stability, wildfire authority, and streamlined transport/reporting procedures. Finally, DPI began presenting several rule packages, including school construction loan limits, school bus standards, cooperative agreements, special education rules for public charter schools, and new math curriculum and intervention requirements.

Transcript Highlights:

• We try to match money and use it.
• And do they distribute the funds to the state and then they want us to hold them and not use them?
• We have not used it.
• It is used with funding Children's Hospital. We do use it. Okay. Thank you. Children's Hospital.
• This gives us the flexibility.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• To us 19.
• So this transportation system enables multiple use cases.
• This for all of us is going to be crucial and the next few steps that we take for us to be successful
• put forth the best use case.
• And and I think that we'll see hopefully apply to us.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• > attorney's a year go through our US attorney's a year go through our US attorney's office<00
• You know, we had a US broken down.
• day or two, they get a letter from us day or two, they get a letter from us saying,<00:18:43.679
• <00:21:24.799> But of us are concerned about that. But of us are concerned about that.
• Another example, before us today.

Bills: SF0101

Keywords: Second Amendment, firearm regulation, state legislation, public safety, civil penalties, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I use it in my family's small business and did marketing using those tools yesterday.
• And like any tool, it could be used for good, and it could be used for bad.
• should AI be used for war. should AI be used for war. >> Yes. >> Yes.
• to us about what they're interested in. to us about what they're interested in.
• quote you used was every five minutes. quote you used was every five minutes.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Maseroni to lead us in prayer.
• <00:15:48.800> that with us uh as we continue to use that with us uh as we continue to use
• Uh the rest of it kind of on us. state. Uh the rest of it kind of on us.
• with us today. with us today.
• have you with us, Chief? have you with us, Chief?

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the August minutes, and heard a brief announcement from Senator Richardson about the Missing in America Project interring unclaimed veterans’ remains at the Western Kentucky Veterans Cemetery in Hopkinsville. He read the names of several veterans being laid to rest with military honors, and the chair thanked the volunteers involved in the effort. The main presentation was an update on Kentucky’s urban search and rescue program from the Department of Military Affairs and Kentucky Emergency Management. Officials said the program is being built around two regional task force hubs, a helicopter aquatic rescue team, an incident support team, and a rescue aid fund for local search and rescue units. They reported that the $8.3 million appropriated for the program in the 2025 budget was fully executed, that $482,670 of the rescue aid fund went to 29 local teams, and that $493,592 has already been allocated in the current year to 36 teams. They also described warehouse and equipment purchases, staffing with full-time and part-time personnel, and a new training site on state property for collapsed-structure and multi-agency exercises. Officials said the program has already been used in recent disasters, including flood response and urban search and rescue operations in several parts of the state, and claimed the effort has impacted more than 1,500 citizens through rescues, evacuations, and related assistance. They said the helicopter aquatic rescue team is fully operational, the task force roster should be finalized by January, incident support should be online by April, and the full program should be deployable by June 30 or July 1, 2026. Members asked about statewide response times, K-9 search capabilities, and the long-term cost of the program, including concerns about reliance on federal matching funds. The presenters said K-9 assets will be part of the task force, that pre-positioning during forecasted storms can reduce response times significantly, and that they would provide more detailed budget information later.

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you for joining us today. This issue is important to all of us in the state.
• That also gives us the opportunity to innovate in ways that we did not use to do under the Clean Water
• I think, for us, and when I say us, I'm talking about all these different outdoor equity programs and
• So I'm going to take us on a little tour.
• Mirafel did for us up in the Bay Area.

Summary: The hearing of the Select Committee on Sea Level Rise and the California Economy focused on infrastructure, pollution, climate resilience, public health, access, and economic impacts of sea level rise in California, with an emphasis on San Diego and the Bay Area. Chair Tasha Boerner Horvath opened by describing the committee’s purpose, the state’s sea level rise action planning, and the need for better monitoring and early warning systems. She also referenced her prior bills AB 66 and AB 72, which supported Scripps research on coastal bluff collapse warning capabilities. Assembly Members David Alvarez and Jessica Caloza later joined and emphasized that sea level rise affects not only coastal communities but inland areas as well, and that the issue should inform future legislative and budget decisions. In the first panel, Dr. Mark Merrifield of Scripps Institution of Oceanography described observed sea level rise of roughly 0.8 to 0.9 feet since the early 1900s, with acceleration expected by mid-century and potentially much greater rise by 2100 depending on emissions. He highlighted flooding, groundwater rise, beach and cliff erosion, salinization, and risks to transportation, sewage, ports, and national security. Dave Gibson of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board discussed how sea level rise affects wastewater systems, stormwater, contaminated sites, wetlands, and coastal groundwater basins, and said the board is requiring climate adaptation planning, updating stormwater permits, and seeking more flexible state permitting and mitigation tools. Members and witnesses also discussed the need for better mapping, more monitoring, and more state funding, especially if federal support from NOAA and other agencies declines. The second panel addressed public health, equitable access, and local economies. Ramon Chiras of Un Mar de Colores described how sea level rise, pollution, and access barriers threaten the Tijuana River Valley and Imperial Beach, especially for underserved communities and youth programs that rely on safe, welcoming access to the ocean. He stressed the cultural and spiritual importance of coastal access and the need for water safety and environmental education. Jessica Fane of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission explained that the Bay Area faces major economic exposure from sea level rise, citing a regional estimate of $96 billion in adaptation costs versus $230 billion in potential losses from inaction, and said BCDC is working with local governments under SB 272 on shoreline adaptation planning, funding, and regulatory innovation. Members discussed the tension between environmental permitting and the need to move projects faster, including the possibility of planned retreat in some areas and the use of simultaneous permitting and longer-term state authority to streamline adaptation work. In the final panel, Philip Gibbons of the Port of San Diego described the port’s climate adaptation efforts and its vulnerability assessments under AB 691. He said the port manages state tidelands, supports maritime commerce and recreation, and is already seeing flooding at king tides and during El Niño events, including storm-drain backflow and damage to bikeways and parks. He explained that future sea level rise could inundate major port areas and disrupt operations, underscoring the need for continued planning, mitigation, and infrastructure investment. The hearing did not take formal votes, but it concluded with a clear call for more science, funding, coordination, and regulatory streamlining to prepare California’s coast and nearby communities for worsening sea level rise impacts.

Transcript Highlights:

• We ask you to help us do that well and that you give us your grace and that our eyes are always fixed
• Would you get us an opinion?
• What we could use.
• Some schools don't even use textbooks. They use, I don't know, tablets, whatever they are.
• So the rules help us clarify.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And this technology is known, like other states are using it. it, other countries are using it, specifically
• and let us work with you. your committee to help us get better.
• When we all have those issues climb up on us, all of us that own businesses.
• Thank you so much for having us and please send us questions or suggestions and then we will we will
• That brought us to zero.

Bills: HB150, HB869, HB876, HB 1043, HB1494, HB1522, HB150

Keywords: cybersecurity, state command, information resources, data protection, incident response, information technology, classification officer, job descriptions, state positions, competency-based, information sharing, government efficiency, public sector, private sector, distributed ledger, title registry, real estate, property liens, pilot program, healthcare