Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:13:38.079><c> went</c><00:13:38.240><c> through</c> third party evaluation went through third
• Let's evaluate. Do you have other options?
• </c><00:15:43.199><c> And</c> evaluate. Do you have other options? And evaluate.
• </c><00:30:20.480><c> the</c> exception to the cabinet to evaluate the exception to the cabinet to evaluate
• </c> enablers because we try to evaluate enablers because we try to evaluate everything<00:53:06.400>

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee received an update from Secretary Jeff Noel of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, joined by Matt Wingate and Terry Bradshaw of the Kentucky Association of Economic Developers, on the Kentucky Product Development Initiative (KPDI) and the closing fund. The presentation focused on how KPDI helps communities develop shovel-ready industrial sites by funding infrastructure, engineering, geotechnical work, and other site-preparation costs. Noel emphasized that the program is designed to reduce uncertainty for companies, improve speed to market, and support statewide job creation and investment, especially in rural and eastern Kentucky where development costs are often higher. Testimony highlighted the complexity and expense of preparing sites, with examples of road, water, power, and rock-removal costs, and the importance of third-party evaluation in scoring applications. Noel said the program has 116 total projects statewide, with 20 active projects stemming from pilot efforts and 35 projects already resulting in about 6,381 jobs and $4.4 billion in investment. He cited examples including Crown Holdings, Flash Metals, Phoenix Paper, Pratt Paper, AESC, Sound Elements, Kitchen Foods, Latte, Krueger, Biomass, and Anna Munsman. Bradshaw added that even communities that have not yet landed a project have benefited by building spec buildings or improving access to industrial property. The speakers said the last KPDI round drew $81 million in requests but only $35 million in available funding, and they urged lawmakers to consider whether additional funding or program adjustments are needed. Suggested changes included modestly increasing eligibility or funding flexibility for rural and eastern Kentucky, while maintaining third-party performance metrics, and continuing to prioritize finishing existing parks and creating strong regional sites. No votes or formal committee actions were taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:18:03.240><c> so</c> this case it it is bad performance so this case it it is bad performance
• ><c> we</c> had a very poor performance and so we had a very poor performance and so we are<00:18:16.720
• So this amendment says that they don't need to do another evaluation to satisfy the every 10-year evaluation
• So this amendment says that they don't need to do another evaluation to satisfy the every 10-year evaluation
• To do another evaluation to satisfy the every 10-year evaluation, which will be coming up, I believe,

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Finance Committee met to review Division One of a very large budget package, with the chair explaining that the budget was being analyzed in three divisions over multiple days. Members first discussed procedure, including when amendments and line-item votes would be taken, and agreed to proceed with the division’s presentation before questions. Representative Maguire then outlined the division’s approach as a series of tradeoffs to close a large budget gap, emphasizing cuts, some revenue changes, and a focus on overall spending levels as well as individual reductions. The presentation covered a wide range of agencies and policy areas. Major proposed changes included cuts or eliminations to several boards and commissions viewed as costly or duplicative, such as the Housing Appeals Board, Board of Tax and Land Appeals, Human Rights Commission, Commission on Aging, Office of the Child Advocate, and the Personnel Appeals Board, with some functions consolidated into other boards. The division also proposed back-of-the-budget cuts to the Information Technology Department, Judicial Branch, Justice Department, Retirement System, Corrections, and Environmental Services, along with fee increases in several areas. Other notable items included ending marketing for Paid Family Leave, reducing job advertising and tourism promotion, defunding the Arts Council, moving liquor enforcement functions out of the Liquor Commission, and shifting some funds such as the College Savings Commission money to Division Two. Several members questioned specific cuts, especially the elimination of the Council on Aging, the reduction in regional planning commission grants, and the large cut to tourism advertising. Maguire defended the choices as necessary budget tradeoffs, arguing that some programs duplicated work done elsewhere, that regional planning grants were not among the most essential items, and that tourism promotion was a form of spending he viewed skeptically. He also explained that the public defender’s budget was partially restored after a credible claim of a governor’s budget error, and that the committee would continue refining corrections-related cuts because the House was only halfway through the budget process and further changes could still occur in the Senate and conference committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:37:33.440><c> grants</c> for pay for pay for performance grants for pay for pay for performance
• I think overall they are the model when we talk about pay for performance.
• I think overall they are the model when we talk about pay for performance.
• </c> performance program speaks for itself. performance program speaks for itself.
• </c><01:24:56.400><c> and</c> research to continually evaluate and research to continually evaluate and

Committee: Senate Jobs and Economic Development

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So, so, uh, clarify for me, uh, are we doing annual increases, performance increases, or?
• Um, and we investigate our clients' cases so that Texas courts may fairly evaluate whether there are
• So we're accomplishing less of our core functions, uh, because our staff is busy performing work that
• could be performed more efficiently and cheaply by someone else.
• The, uh, not doing essential tasks that could be performed by someone else and more efficiently, uh,

Committee: House Appropriations - S/C on Articles I, IV, & V

Transcript Highlights:

• They also perform some auditing functions with the counties.
• And then we also perform an audit of funds dispersed through the treasurer's office.
• So, From an audience standpoint, our fiscal division performs that.
• Interestingly, I received information from NDACO yesterday from the study that they had performed in
• March. ...from the study that they had performed in March, and 35 counties reported not using all of

Committee: Joint Tax Reform and Relief Advisory Committee

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They also perform some auditing functions with the counties.
• And then we also perform an audit of funds dispersed through the treasurer's office.
• So, From an audience standpoint, our fiscal division performs that.
• Interestingly, I received information from NDACO yesterday from the study that they had performed in
• From the study that they had performed in March, 35 counties reported not using all of their cap.

Committee: Joint Tax Reform and Relief Advisory Committee

Summary: The committee met to receive updates from the Tax Commissioner’s office on property tax relief programs and related compliance work. Commissioner Brian Croshys reviewed the Homestead Property Tax Credit, Disabled Veteran Credit, and Primary Residence Credit, noting that the Homestead program expanded significantly after HB 1158, that some households are “adjusting out” of eligibility as incomes rise, and that the committee may want to consider indexing income thresholds. Members asked for additional data on bracket breakdowns, possible costs of eliminating income limits for seniors, and how many households are zeroed out by the combined programs. Croshys also discussed the simpler administration of the disabled veteran credit, the growth in participation, and the heavy workload and auditing safeguards built into the new primary residence credit system. He said the department found no material compliance findings and that the program is designed to be digital-first, with county auditors and the Tax Commissioner’s office both involved in review and notification. The committee recessed for lunch and later reconvened, with the chair noting that more detailed PRC information would likely be available at a September meeting. Shelly Myers then presented the statewide property tax increase, or “zero growth,” report and the 2025 statistical report. She explained how county auditors report levy and valuation data, how increases and decreases are counted, and which jurisdictions showed the largest percentage changes in countywide, citywide, school district, and park district levies. In the statistical report, she summarized recent trends in assessed values: agricultural values remained relatively flat, while residential, commercial, and centrally assessed property values increased over the past five years. She also reviewed statewide tax levies by property class and clarified that centrally assessed growth figures were annual averages. Members discussed how shifts in land use and annexation can make it appear that tax burdens are moving from ag to residential/commercial property. Myers then summarized the interim study on the 3% levy limitation under HB 1176, saying most counties complied without budget changes, while some used hiring freezes, deferred purchases, or reserve funds; 23% of counties had to reduce levies, and the affected funds were mainly general, road and bridge, and weed control. She said 12 counties reported zero new growth in the data and that 35 counties reported not using all of their cap. The committee also received an oil tax presentation from Croshys on the stripper well extraction tax exemption. He outlined the number of active stripper wells, the production and revenue implications of the exemption, and projections for future biennia under different tax scenarios. He said the exemption represents substantial savings to operators but also corresponds to production tax revenue that would otherwise be collected, and he emphasized that future outcomes depend on oil prices, well counts, and technology such as CO2 enhanced oil recovery. Nathan Anderson of the Department of Mineral Resources briefly answered a question about why Red River wells have a different production threshold than Bakken wells, explaining it was tied to completion costs and lateral length. The committee then heard from Charlie Gorecki of the EERC, who presented an analysis of typical Bakken well decline curves and argued that most oil is produced before a well reaches stripper status, but that keeping wells open and investing in refracturing or other interventions can recover additional production. No votes were taken during this portion of the meeting; the main actions were receiving reports, asking for follow-up data, and scheduling further discussion for a later meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• Additionally, the bill allows a radiologist assistant to perform certain tasks under supervision rather
• have master's degrees and go through extensive training on how to be a radiologist assistant and perform
• It would be: you have this, you have the training to perform these procedures, you have the agreements
• these people, now they say somebody needs to evaluate these people.
• UCSF doctors had performed surgery to implant a puberty-blocking device in my son without my knowledge

Bills: HB2049 , HB2050 , HB2051 , HB2072 , HB2082 , HB2085 , HB2177 , HB2178 , HB2179 , HB2183 , HB2195

Committee: House Health & Human Services

Keywords: radiation therapy, particle accelerator, critical access hospitals, patient care, rural healthcare, radiologic technologist, radiologist assistant, radiology, imaging, x-ray, diagnostic x-ray, fluoroscopy, mammography, computed tomography, CT technologist, nuclear medicine technologist, bone densitometry, radiation safety, radiation licensing, scope of practice

Transcript Highlights:

• We perform this mission through four statutory areas: cybersecurity, infrastructure, governance, and
• Once implemented, the regulation itself would be independently tested and evaluated to determine whether
• And then third, the EO also tasks the Commerce Department with publishing an evaluation of state AI laws
• To my knowledge, again, that evaluation has not yet been published at the time of this presentation.
• Allman already referred to this, there is the Commerce Department evaluation that was due, that had a

Keywords: Technology and Science, Joint Commission on, 976, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Under this, would physical therapists be able to perform those functions? Representative Furman.
• I am a licensed child psychologist with a certificate in neuropsychological evaluation.
• Multiple psychological evaluations reportedly concluded that she was unable to safely parent children
• abuse while in foster care, should that child have a clear right to timely medical or forensic evaluation
• I believe that's why there's the $1.6 million in here, to start that process and get the evaluations,

Summary: The committee first heard House Bill 754, which would add physical therapists to Idaho’s direct primary care statute so they can enter direct payment agreements with patients without those arrangements being treated as insurance contracts. The sponsor and supporters said the bill would improve access, especially for patients who need frequent therapy or live in underserved areas, and emphasized that it would not expand physical therapists’ scope of practice. One member objected that the bill’s wording could blur the definition of primary care and create scope confusion. After testimony from a physical therapy association representative and a small business health care provider, the committee voted to send the bill to the floor with a do-pass recommendation, with several members recording no votes. The committee then took up House Bill 724, which would add and clarify safety-related rights for children in foster care, including safe placement, access to medical and forensic exams after abuse disclosures, basic necessities, and consideration of safety in visitation and placement decisions. The sponsor said the bill is a narrow child-safety measure that does not alter parental rights or removal standards, while foster parents, a psychologist, former foster youth, and others testified in support with accounts of abuse, unsafe placements, and inadequate oversight. Some members raised concerns about enumerating rights in statute and about broad language that could have unintended future consequences; a substitute motion to send the bill to amending order failed on a roll call vote, and the original motion to send the bill to the floor with a do-pass recommendation passed. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 759, a budget-related measure to reduce Medicaid residential habilitation funding and require a new audit/rate study of home and community-based services. The sponsor said the reduction reflects a governor’s budget recommendation and that the audit would help determine appropriate rates and spending. Providers and family members of people with disabilities testified that the bill was too vague, that prior rate studies were not fully followed, and that any reductions could harm staffing and services; they asked for clearer standards, collaboration, and assurance that rate-study results would actually be used. A motion to hold the bill until a later date was offered, but the sponsor opposed delaying the budget item and the committee continued discussion toward a floor recommendation.

Transcript Highlights:

• Under this, would physical therapists be able to perform those functions?
• I am a licensed child psychologist with a certificate in neuropsychological evaluation.
• Multiple psychological evaluations reportedly concluded that she was unable to safely parent children
• I believe that's why there's the $1.6 million in here—to start that process and get the evaluations,
• get the... $1.6 million in here to start that process and get the evaluations, get the audit, get the

Committee: House Health and Welfare

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Okay, so staff, House Bill 2775, the history may be inappropriate or not done correctly, but we evaluate
• misprint on that okay so staff 2775 the history may be inappropriate or not done correctly but we evaluate
• themselves or others or suffering from a persistent, acute, or grave disability, a petition for evaluation
• must be filed, leading to transport to an appropriate evaluation agency.
• must be filed, leading to transport to an appropriate evaluation agency.

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The meeting was a caucus-style run-through of many bills and resolutions across Appropriations, Commerce, Education, Federalism/Military Affairs/Elections, Government, Health and Human Services, Judiciary, ENRU, Public Safety, and Rural Economic Development. Measures discussed included housing and HOA rules, school policy and funding, health care licensing and records timelines, public safety and corrections funding, election and campaign rules, water and environmental policy, and several criminal justice and juvenile justice changes. Many items were described as being on third-read consent or consent calendars, with staff often noting that no questions were raised and no sponsor was present. Several bills drew sponsor explanation or member discussion. In education, members reviewed bills on teacher strikes, school safety, math placement, student outcomes, free school meals, parent permission for clubs, and school bond ballot disclosures. In health, bills covered prior authorization data reporting, nursing board rules and complaint procedures, pharmacist testing/treatment authority, opioid antagonist expiration dates, board continuations, and a constitutional amendment on refusing medical mandates. In government and public safety, members discussed DCS legal representation, inmate medical records, public safety parity funding, sheriff authority, border support funding, and a resolution supporting county sheriffs. In commerce and housing, bills addressed condominium and HOA authority, shade structures, pet restrictions, insurance certificates, apprenticeship definitions, automatic renewal contracts, and a state housing affordability district. There was notable discussion on House Bill 4044, which would create a Public Safety Parity Fund for DPS and DOC salaries using interest from the state rainy day fund and other revenue sources. The sponsor argued it would provide a reliable way to fund public safety pay, while others objected that it would consume interest needed to preserve the fund’s value and that a general fund appropriation would be more appropriate. The bill prompted extended back-and-forth, with some members supporting the concept and others saying it was fiscally irresponsible. Another point of discussion came on House Bill 2775, where staff noted a possible misprint in the bill history, and on House Bill 467, where staff clarified that the inactive voter list changes related to e-poll book status categories. No formal votes were recorded in the transcript, and the meeting appears to have been a review of measures before floor action.

Transcript Highlights:

• Their IDEA assessment, that individual developmental evaluation assessment, ranking is appropriate.
• They’ve toured some and evaluated some sites as directed by the proviso.
• Yeah, I would have to check back with our research team to see where they’re at with the evaluation.
• Yeah, I would have to check back with our research team to see where they're at with the evaluation.
• House Bill 1544 strengthens a core child welfare tool: the risk assessment that guides case evaluation

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 1544, which would require DCYF to study and improve the risk assessment tool used in child abuse and neglect investigations, including better identifying family strengths and needs, substance use-related risk, and service needs, and to certify the tool every three years. Staff explained the bill and noted it had passed the committee unanimously in substitute form last year. The prime sponsor, Representative Rule, said the tool would help reduce bias and support better decisions about child safety. Members raised questions about whether the bill would require new data systems or create a fiscal impact, and DCYF testified that the recertification process would focus on evidence-based literature and fidelity to the tool, though the agency acknowledged limitations in its data system. Support testimony from Partners for Our Children and DCYF emphasized that the current tool is not evidence-based and that the department is piloting the North Carolina Family Assessment Scale. The hearing on HB 1544 was then closed. The committee then received a lengthy work session from DCYF on juvenile rehabilitation. Juvenile Rehabilitation Assistant Secretary Jennifer Redman and security classification administrator Jeff Endermark described a growing JR population that is older, serving more adult-sentence youth, and projected to rise to about 481 by 2031. They said Green Hill School remains crowded, Harbor Heights is being brought online as a short-term option, and Echo Glen is near safe operational capacity. They explained JR’s classification system, behavior management process, and the role of multidisciplinary teams in placement decisions, as well as the expansion of community transition services (CTS), which uses electronic home monitoring for eligible youth. Staff described CTS eligibility, supervision expectations, and examples of successful placements, but also said the program needs more after-hours staffing and community supports. Members questioned the validity and equity of the risk tools, the availability of community resources, the impact of behavior policies and escapes, the use of single bunking, and broader concerns about lawsuits and sexual abuse in the system. JR reported an escape rate increase from 1.78 per 100 youth in 2001 to 3.92 in 2025 and said additional capacity and staffing are still needed. The committee then heard House Bill 2219, which would allow child care centers more flexibility in mixed-age grouping during parts of the day and waive repeated DCYF pre-service orientation for people who have already completed it. The prime sponsor, Representative Ortiz-Self, said the bill is meant to ease burdens on small providers. Testifiers from SEIU 925, a family child care provider, the Washington Child Care Centers Association, a child care center director, and the Children’s Campaign Fund supported the bill as a practical way to improve staffing flexibility and reduce duplicative licensing requirements, though one association asked that the bill’s daily time caps on mixed-age grouping be revised or removed. The committee then heard House Bill 2253, an agency-request technical corrections bill for DCYF licensing. Staff said it would allow child-specific licenses for certain relatives under interstate placements, exempt kinship caregivers from blood-borne pathogen training, remove licensing exemptions for physicians and lawyers, allow termination of inactive licenses, revise crisis residential center staffing ratios, and eliminate state monitoring requirements for the Washington School for the Deaf residential program. Members asked about how inactivity would be defined and whether the School for the Deaf inspections had historically produced savings. DCYF said the bill would help right-size licensing workloads after budget cuts and would let the agency work with stakeholders to define inactivity in rule. Testimony from DCYF, Community Youth Services, and Partners for Our Children supported the bill, especially the staffing ratio fix for crisis residential centers and the child-specific licensing changes for relatives.

Transcript Highlights:

• long-term potential implications of removing the relocation restriction, in that it has not been fully evaluated
• would prohibit investigations from other states into some of the most extreme medical procedures performed
• ...investigations from other states into some of the most extreme medical procedures performed on children
• Public resources have been diverted into evaluating whether someone's words caused offense or emotional
• Amendment, I think, would protect someone from having that opinion as to some surgeries that are performed

Keywords: 1146, all

Transcript Highlights:

• credit and hopefully a funding mechanism to help farmers pay for the overtime work that the employees perform
• maintenance by individuals who possess the training, experience, and technical expertise required to perform
• And so the notion that top-performing managers will walk away from that capital rather than provide pretty
• It requires standardized, comparable transparency on how worker retirement savings are performing and
• Private equity managers can't be the only ones who evaluate potential risks, given their interests in

Committee: Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• been done and then just getting at this idea of, you know, what do local governments do to just evaluate
• Imagine, you know, a doctor at one of our state universities is performing surgery on a patient and is
• We evaluate whether a claim falls within a waiver of immunity.
• In 2019, SB 1575 sought to clarify that a municipality performs a governmental function when entering
• So basically what happened was the contractor performed the services, they submitted the invoices to

Committee: House Governmental Oversight, Select

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• If they're incapable of performing that work, it is documented by a case plan for that individual.
• That Majority Leader Lawson and I are interested in post-21 services and try to evaluate that.

Bills: SB1558 , SB1983 , SB1796 , SB1806 , SB1426 , SB633

Committee: House Children, Youth and Family Services

Keywords: child care, licensing, definitions, foster care, child welfare, SB1983, resource family partner, resource family partners, Department of Human Services, DHS, foster homes, foster children, placement data, data sharing, de-identified data, aggregated data, sibling groups, placement disruptions, foster parent recruitment, foster parent retention

Transcript Highlights:

• It suggested that the task force would evaluate any pilot programs for energy storage that was written
• I was suggesting that the task force should evaluate the use of indexing storage credits.
• I was suggesting that the task force should evaluate the use of indexing storage credits.
• But again, we've not evaluated that.
• But again, we've not evaluated that.

Committee: Senate Energy and Natural Resources

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• at the time of their referral to MIDP, had participated in a mental health risk assessment and evaluation
• family in order to build a relationship and kept communication with that original mental health evaluator
• supportive collaterals that tell us we're seeing improved school attendance, improved academic performance
• collaterals that tell us we're seeing improved school attendance, we're seeing improved academic performance
• so, as a system, we really need to join together to make sure we are allowing space for proper evaluation

Committee: Senate Senate Committee on Juvenile and Emerging Adult Justice

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Senate Committee on Juvenile and Emerging Adult Justice held an informational hearing focused on diversion programs and services for high-risk youth, with no bills before the committee and no votes taken. The chair and members emphasized that the session was intended to hear from invited testimony and discuss how to strengthen diversion, reduce court involvement, and improve outcomes for youth. The committee heard first from the Office of the Child Advocate and diversion providers, who described the Massachusetts Youth Diversion Program, its statewide expansion to 10 of 11 court counties, and its reported success rate of about 80% completion without reoffending. Testimony highlighted that diversion keeps youth out of court, connects them more quickly to community-based services, and can address needs such as mental health, education, and substance use. Witnesses also pointed to racial and ethnic disparities in arrests versus summonses, regional variation in diversion access, and the need for clearer statutory authority, more funding, and broader use of pre-arrest diversion. Committee members asked about the difference between arrest and summons, who can initiate diversion, why arrest rates have increased relative to summonses, and how diversion might prevent harmful downstream consequences such as detention or immigration enforcement involvement. Witnesses said police, clerk magistrates, district attorneys, and judges can refer youth to diversion, and argued that local policy, training, and legislative changes could expand use. They also discussed the impact of detention on youth, including stigma, lost school time, and the lack of credit for time served in the juvenile system. Testimony from Citizens for Juvenile Justice focused on prevention, school discipline, and the school-to-prison pipeline, arguing for more restorative practices, better data, and legislation to limit suspensions and expulsions, especially for younger students and nonviolent conduct. They also raised concerns about DCF-involved and foster youth, who are disproportionately represented in the juvenile system. The final panel, the Children's League of Massachusetts and transition-age youth providers, shifted to child welfare and young adult supports. They supported reducing court involvement in child requiring assistance cases, expanding family resource centers, and strengthening services for transition-age youth leaving DCF or DYS custody. Providers described housing instability, homelessness, and the need for education, employment, behavioral health, and supportive housing services for young adults ages 18 to 23. Across the hearing, witnesses consistently argued that early intervention, community-based supports, and diversion are more effective than court processing or detention for most youth, and that the legislature can help through funding, statutory clarity, expanded eligibility, and stronger data collection.

Transcript Highlights:

• and Agriculture was to rely on our scientific advisory panel to define eligibility criteria and performance
• followed soon after by the Healthy Soils Program. advisory panel to define eligibility criteria and performance
• the Legislature continues to fund these programs, it direct the departments to conduct additional evaluation
• said that earlier, the LAO folks mentioned that four years ago they called for some additional evaluation
• He said that evaluation has since happened.

Summary: The joint informational hearing examined how California agricultural programs have used cap-and-invest funding and what role agriculture should play in future climate investments. Committee chairs framed the issue as balancing climate goals, food production, rural economic vitality, and the fact that agriculture was not specifically funded in the recent cap-and-invest reauthorization. The first panel from CDFA and the Legislative Analyst’s Office described the state’s climate-smart agriculture portfolio, including Healthy Soils, SWEEP, the Dairy Methane Reduction Program, and Alternative Manure Management, and explained that GGRF revenues are now more constrained and may not fully support all tiered programs. LAO emphasized that agriculture is about 8% of California’s emissions, that most ag emissions are outside the cap, and that the Legislature should consider program effectiveness, the role of incentives, and GGRF priorities. CDFA testified that roughly $727 million has been invested in its flagship climate-smart ag programs, producing estimated reductions of 31 million metric tons of CO2e, 1.6 million acre-feet of water savings, and about 4,000 projects. The department said technical assistance is essential because farmers face risk when adopting new practices, and noted new Proposition 4 funding for Healthy Soils, SWEEP, and a regional farm equipment sharing program. University researchers then presented economic and methane-reduction analyses: UC Berkeley’s Dr. Hill described working landscapes as a major economic driver, while UC Davis’ Dr. Kibreab outlined dairy methane reduction pathways, including herd efficiency, digesters, alternative manure management, and emerging feed additives such as 3-NOP and seaweed, arguing that incentive-based programs have helped California move toward its methane goals. A later panel featured sharply different views on dairy digesters. Phoebe Seton argued that digesters worsen air and water quality, encourage manure liquefaction, and are an inefficient use of public funds, while CalCAN’s Brian Schobey and agricultural representatives said programs like AMP, SWEEP, Healthy Soils, FPIP, and the Farmer Program deliver measurable emissions reductions plus co-benefits such as water savings, lower energy costs, and improved air quality. Farm and industry witnesses stressed that stable, incentive-based funding helps family farms remain viable, supports co-investment, and should be treated as a partnership rather than a regulatory stick. No votes or formal actions were taken; the hearing ended with public comment and a continued call for future funding and policy discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• and Agriculture was to rely on our scientific advisory panel to define eligibility criteria and performance
• metrics, and that was... ...advisory panel to define eligibility criteria and performance metrics, and
• the Legislature continues to fund these programs, it direct the departments to conduct additional evaluation
• Shob: Earlier you heard the LAO folks mention that four years ago they called for some additional evaluation
• I want you to be aware that that evaluation has since happened.

Keywords: 987, senate, all