Transcript Highlights:

• Municipalities collect a tax for lodging at stays at hotels, motels, and similar facilities.
• Activities may include events and festivals, marketing promotion, and facilities-related expenses.
• Second, OPDP is required to conduct annual trainings, so the office provides a variety of training opportunities
• at the state and used that as a basis for developing their own training as well.
• So do you provide training specific to meeting those federal requirements?

Summary: The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee met on September 17, 2025, in hybrid format. After roll call, the committee initially lacked a quorum and deferred approval of the July 15 minutes until Representative Berg arrived; the minutes were then adopted. Members also discussed the proposed 2026 JLARC meeting schedule, including possible changes to address crowded July meetings and the annual tax exemption review workload. Staff presented the annual lodging tax expenditures report, noting that 213 municipalities received distributions in 2024, with 91% reporting compliance, $114 million awarded for more than 1,700 activities, and no independent verification of the self-reported data. Several members questioned the value and usefulness of the report, and the executive committee indicated it may recommend removing the statutory reporting requirement. The committee then heard the preliminary performance audit of the Office of Privacy and Data Protection, which found the office meets its statutory responsibilities and has high user satisfaction, but recommended updating the statute to better match the office’s current capacity and focus and improving performance measures to reflect long-term privacy outcomes rather than outputs. Members asked about FERPA and other federal privacy laws, and OPDP staff said they provide general privacy training and consultation but not law-specific training unless requested. The committee adopted the final report on Washington State recreational boating programs without recommendation, after staff reported that boating revenues support both general government and boating activities and that no participating agencies submitted formal comments. Members asked about boater safety education and possible overlap among the six agencies involved; Parks staff said education has reached more than 500,000 boaters and that fatalities and incidents have declined. The committee also reviewed planned study questions for a JLARC review of Labor and Industries’ enforcement of farm worker laws, with members raising scope questions about the term “farm worker” versus “agricultural worker,” and for DNR’s Eastern Washington sustainable harvest calculation, which JLARC will review as DNR completes its recalculation. Finally, staff outlined the 2026 tax preference performance reviews covering seven preferences, and members asked about racial equity, environmental impacts, disclosure of beneficiary savings, and how the reviews will measure effectiveness; the meeting adjourned before noon.

Transcript Highlights:

• adjustments and paying facilities to close beds and facilities.
• <01:04:56.400> to board require nursing facilities to board require nursing facilities to
• that that 9% cut to that one facility that that 9% cut to that one facility would<01:06:47.599><
• care and interest in nursing facilities care and interest in nursing facilities uh<01:07:10.319>
• facilities. They're going to apply. facilities. They're going to apply.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The training from Committee Substitute SB1535 will support this need.
• A trained, qualified workforce is important here for two reasons.
• The public would want to know that qualified professionals are the ones building these facilities and
• are in the control rooms of these facilities.
• We want a well-trained workforce.

Bills: SB34, SB75, SB330, SB1535, SB18, SB 18, SB 34

Keywords: wildfire, wildfire mitigation, wildfire prevention, volunteer fire department, Texas A&M Forest Service, West Texas A&M University, prescribed burning, fuel loading, fuel reduction, firefighting equipment database, emergency communications, disaster preparedness, rural fire protection, asset hardening, natural resource management, emergency management, large wildfire risk, fire grant funding, fire suppression, Texas Legislature

Transcript Highlights:

• Besides the State Hospital, you mentioned earlier, what other facilities are available from the state
• And these mental health facilities are all over the state. It's a huge problem.
• , and whether we can pay for something in a locked facility.
• You know, just basically it's more of a holding facility.
• So they're really trying to get them to the place of doing all kinds of job training with them.

Summary: The House Health Services Subcommittee met to approve the October 7, 2024 minutes and then shifted to a broad discussion of behavioral health policy, taking up work previously handled by a behavioral health working group. Representatives Wooldridge and Vaught described major gaps in Arkansas behavioral health care, emphasizing access problems, workforce shortages, rural service barriers, low reimbursement, and the need to move from a reactive crisis system to more proactive community-based care. Members discussed possible 2027-session priorities such as reducing red tape, improving provider licensing and supervision pathways, expanding billing codes and reimbursement structures, and considering interstate compacts and other workforce fixes. A major focus was the state’s crisis and forensic system, including long waits for competency evaluations, the backlog at the Arkansas State Hospital, and the use of county jails for people awaiting treatment. DHS Director Paula Stone explained that Medicaid pays for most behavioral health services, but cannot pay for services in jails or state hospitals because those individuals are treated as inmates of public institutions, leaving state general revenue to cover much of that cost. She outlined DHS efforts including secured restoration beds, therapeutic communities, community mental health center contracts for jail-based services, and plans for an institution-for-mental-disease waiver that could allow Medicaid payment for certain hospital-based services. Members also discussed crisis stabilization units, with DHS noting that Fort Smith and Jonesboro have been more successful than Fayetteville and Little Rock, largely because of location, partnerships, and law enforcement coordination. Questions covered reimbursement for county jails, step-down facilities, civil commitment options, non-emergency behavioral health transportation, and whether DHS should create a bed-availability dashboard similar to hospital systems. DHS said it does not currently have such a dashboard but is exploring the idea. The meeting ended with a commitment to continue the work, with more detailed discussion planned for August, and the subcommittee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• School board members to go through at least one training on the basics of school fiscal management.
• This bill will ensure that there's a baseline of knowledge and training for all school board members
• bond for our education facilities.
• We can't have the access if you don't have the facilities.
• And that means we've got to have the facilities in order to do so.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• cost increases, that's 3.5 million um for increased lease facility renewal costs.
• So the county built this facility? I am not fully advised. I believe so.
• This is specific to a facility that was built about in 2011 or so, I say at a county level.
• residential youth treatment facility.
• Page 125, pediatric childcare facility development um.

Transcript Highlights:

• As far as our facilities, we have eight publicly operated facilities and one contract at a facility where
• And in that situation, we take up about a third of the facility.
• , facility per diems, and so forth.
• In our prison facilities, we do not.
• Shiprock is the largest community of the Navajo Nation, and we don't have a facility a detention facility

Transcript Highlights:

• All these wastewater treatment facilities, whether it's 500,000 gallons a day or 5 million gallons a
• Proposed facilities that those smaller plants are able to meet our effluent quality.
• have a water and wastewater facility immediately available. I appreciate that question.
• So, D-level is the lowest level of operator training.
• But on the side of Sudhir, all these plants are sitting adjacent to a regional facility.

Bills: HB29, HB685, HB1633, HB1689, HB1690, HB1918, HB2010, HB2500, HB2608, HB2626, HB29

Keywords: water audit, water loss, water loss mitigation plan, municipally owned utility, municipal utility, water conservation, Texas Water Development Board, TCEQ, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, water leakage, leak detection, billing data accuracy, utility validation, water audit validation, water scarcity, water management, infrastructure, public utility, conservation plan, administrative penalty

Transcript Highlights:

• She’s done work in training. We’re very honored to have nominated her. Thank you very much.
• She’s done work in training. We’re very honored to have nominated her. Thank you very much.
• She’s done work in training. We’re very honored to have nominated her. Thank you very much.
• She’s done work in training. We’re very honored to have nominated her. Thank you very much.
• She’s done work in training. We’re very honored to have nominated her. Thank you very much.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint hearing began with SB 59 on prescription drugs, which drew extensive testimony from insurers, pharmacies, patient advocates, and health organizations. Supporters argued the bill would address PBM practices such as spread pricing, unclear reimbursement, and patient steering, and would help independent pharmacies and lower patient costs by passing rebates through to consumers. Opponents from health plans and PBM-related groups raised concerns, while Walgreens supported the measure and suggested amendments to establish a reimbursement floor. After questions, the committee accepted the Hawaii Pharmacist Association’s proposed amendments, added technical changes and a defective date of December 31, 2050, and voted to pass SB 59 with amendments. The remainder of the hearing focused on a series of nominations and reappointments to health, aging, disability, mental health, juvenile justice, and advisory boards. Nominees and agency representatives generally described their backgrounds and interest in serving, with support testimony emphasizing experience, continuity, and the value of volunteer service. Several nominees highlighted issues such as mental health access, substance abuse treatment, elder services, language access, disability access, and rehabilitation services. The Department of Health, SHPDA, DHS, and other organizations largely testified in support of the nominees. No votes were taken on the nominations during the transcript excerpt, and the chair repeatedly thanked the nominees for their service and testimony. The hearing also included brief procedural remarks about time limits, Zoom testimony, and a possible reconvening date in case of technical difficulties.

Transcript Highlights:

• Training provides opportunities to expedite the learning process and development of employees, as well
• So we will have to go out and inspect those facilities to ensure that they have the proper equipment
• The second issue concerns the agency's financial needs to finish their Harlingen testing facility and
• So, if we can move into this state facility, that $360,000 will go away for our agency.
• And it's in a facility that we want to move to.

Bills: SB1, SB 1

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

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, the training that the wild horses get at this facility is phenomenal and it's really the incredible
• that the wild horses get at the training that the wild horses get at this<01:10:57.760> facility<
• Who trains the guys to train the horses?
• Who who trains um the the guys to<01:55:03.840> train<01:55:04.159> the<01:55:04.400>
• in the maintenance facilities.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• With the information outlined in this bill, schools without sufficient clinical training sites could
• So, we plan to develop that over at RIS and we're also looking at developing EMP test facilities for
• There's around us, there's not a, there's not a facility like that, that we can use.
• , and it'll be even more so once we get you guys in the point where we can leverage these facilities
• And when we train these, these students, a lot of them have to be US citizens.

Transcript Highlights:

• I will tell you that we train on this with educators. This is something you should be doing.
• I am also an adjunct instructor for ALERT, having hosted 40 classes and trained over 1,000...
• I can tell you as a first responder, responding... ...present at the facility.
• Through my experience in training and my interactions with other chiefs across the state, there is a
• Through my experience in training and my interactions with other chiefs across the state, there is a

Summary: The Senate Committee on Education K-16 met with a quorum and announced a full agenda, including combined public testimony for two bills related to student personal communication devices. The committee first took up Senate Bill 1262 by Senator Nichols, a school safety cleanup bill following House Bill 3. The bill would allow TEA to commission peace officers for school safety purposes, require annual renewal of good-cause exceptions to armed guard requirements, create a new report based on intruder detection audits and vulnerability assessments, and require behavioral threat assessment teams to include someone with specific knowledge of a special education student’s disability. Committee members asked about the difference between TCOLE licensing and TEA commissioning, the scope of the officers’ authority, and how the good-cause exception would work. The committee substitute was adopted, and public testimony included support from school safety and drone-response advocates, Disability Rights Texas in favor of the special education provisions, and a student witness raising concerns about the mental health impact of repeated lockdowns and the need for immediate, reliable school safety responses. The bill was left pending after testimony, then the committee briefly recessed and later reopened testimony to hear the student witness. The committee then laid out Senate Bill 2252 by Senator Creighton, a major early literacy and numeracy bill for kindergarten through third grade. Creighton said the bill builds on prior literacy efforts by funding teacher stipends for literacy and math academies, providing free and clearly administered screeners and assessments, expanding screening options, clarifying how results are used, supporting high-quality pre-K, and increasing the early education allotment. He emphasized low reading performance and the need for early intervention. Members discussed how the bill differs from earlier academy models and whether the assessments are diagnostic or high-stakes; Creighton and witnesses said the tools are intended to identify students needing support, not to serve as punitive testing. The committee adopted the substitute. Witnesses for SB 2252 largely supported the bill. A Uplift Education representative described strong gains from small-group literacy tutoring and said students receiving targeted support can make more than a year of growth in a year. An education specialist explained that the bill aligns general education screening with existing dyslexia and special education practices and helps districts identify students who need intervention before a disability evaluation is required. A Commit Partnership witness cited statewide reading data, the importance of high-quality pre-K, and the need for transparent, consistent progress monitoring and parent engagement. Members asked about the meaning of the growth data, how dyslexia screening works, and how the bill would help identify struggling students earlier. Before finishing all questions, the committee recessed subject to the call of the chair after the floor session.

Transcript Highlights:

• Pharmacy personnel are trained.
• Naturopathic doctors, or NDs, are highly trained in IV therapy.
• We're actually required to have additional training to... ...highly trained in IV therapy.
• We're actually required to have additional training to obtain specific IV therapy licensure, which is
• Education and training necessary to make safe and effective decisions.

Summary: The joint Assembly and Senate business committees held a sunset review hearing on the California State Board of Pharmacy, with board leadership describing the board’s consumer-protection role and its priorities around access, enforcement, and updating pharmacy law. The board emphasized a proposed shift toward a standard-of-care model for pharmacists, arguing it would reduce rigid protocol requirements and improve access to services such as HIV PrEP/PEP, contraception, and naloxone. Board representatives also discussed pharmacy deserts, possible fee waivers for pharmacies in underserved areas, concerns about payer practices contributing to closures, continuing education audits, and a request to restore more flexibility in licensure decisions and probationary monitoring for applicants with certain criminal histories. A major focus of the hearing was the board’s ongoing compounding regulations, especially the treatment of sterile versus nonsterile compounding and substances such as glutathione and methylcobalamin. The board said the proposal was not a ban on those substances and described the rulemaking as grounded in federal law, USP standards, and public comment, noting the process had gone through multiple modified texts and hearings. Testimony from stakeholders was sharply divided: pharmacists, veterinarians, firefighters, naturopathic doctors, and patient advocates warned the rules were restricting access to compounded medications and harming patients and first responders, while the California Medical Association, psychiatric physicians, and PhRMA raised concerns that the board’s proposals could expand pharmacist authority beyond training, affect physician practice, or create safety risks. Other public comments addressed pharmacy technician ratios, remote processing, flavoring medications, hospital-specific regulation, budget and enforcement transparency, and whether the board should add members with community compounding or pharmacy technician expertise. Committee members also asked about the board’s oversight priorities and the rationale for its standard-of-care proposal. Board staff explained that consumer protection includes education, licensing, policy, and enforcement, with the highest-priority enforcement cases being those posing imminent public harm. After public testimony concluded, the chairs thanked participants and adjourned the sunset review hearing, announcing an immediate transition to the joint informational hearing on the Department of Cannabis Control.

Transcript Highlights:

• relating to the creation of an anonymous reporting program for employees of certain generation facilities
• Education and training programs on de-escalation and crisis intervention techniques for peace officers
• Reynolds relating to required reporting of online posting of certain information by solid waste facilities
• HB 4249 by Reynolds relating to the establishment of a grant program to provide training in public school
• education HB 4250 by Reynolds relating to emergency generators or other power sources for nursing facilities

Transcript Highlights:

• Paso relating to measures for ensuring safety and security in public schools, including certain training
• HB 4220 by Turner relating to the creation of a committee to review education and training programs on
• HB 4249 by Reynolds, relating to the establishment of a grant program to provide training for public
• HB 4250 by Reynolds, relating to emergency generators or other power sources for nursing facilities,
• assisted living facilities, and certain multi-unit complexes, providing a civil penalty, referred to

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Chamber tomorrow morning at 9:15 to Room 321 to meet the residents. of La Vida Llena Senior Living Facility
• This is the first time in the history of the facility that they have brought residents to the Roundhouse
• is an act relating to accessibility and enacting the Traveling with Dignity Act, requiring all facilities
• Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund, Local Government Planning Fund, and Cultural Affairs Facilities
• House Bill 48 provides funds for certified law enforcement training at state-supported community colleges

Transcript Highlights:

• Their clinical training. Correct. They Their clinical training. Correct.
• facilities. That's just for the county. facilities. That's just for the county.
• :25.280> populated smaller facility and less populated smaller facility and less populated area
• facilities facilities And<00:54:23.760> so<00:54:23.920> that<00:54:24.160> that's<
• aren't in a facility or on a waiver.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee to study long-term managed care met to approve the prior meeting minutes, with a clarification that “OB3” referred to the “one big beautiful bill.” The minutes were then approved. Chair Jim Kofalt outlined the day’s agenda, which included testimony from the Granite State Home Health and Hospice Association, the New Hampshire Association of Counties, and later DHHS. He also noted that future meetings were expected soon and that the meetings were being livestreamed on YouTube. Granite State Home Health and Hospice Association, represented by Kellyanne Totten and Amy Moore, urged inclusive planning and a cautious, phased approach if managed care is considered. They emphasized that home care providers are not uniform, with different licensing and service models, and said any pilot should include varied provider types, rural and southern regions, and agencies of different sizes. They warned that workforce shortages, inflation, and a possible 9% CMS cut to Medicare home health payments could force agencies to reduce service areas or service types. They also said the 2023 Medicaid CFI rate increase has begun to lose its effect. In response to questions, they said the rural health transformation fund may help with planning and telehealth but likely cannot be used directly for rates or recruitment/retention. They also described the New England Home Care Nurse Residency Program, a Department of Labor grant, as a way to bring new registered nurses into home care with added training and school partnerships. The New Hampshire Association of Counties, through county nursing home administrators Craig Labore and David Ross, revisited the earlier Step Two managed care discussions from 2016-2018. They said prior consultants found the long-term services and supports system was underfunded and needed investment to stabilize providers and expand community-based care. They argued the same concerns remain today and said a managed model would jeopardize the Medicaid quality incentive payment program and, for county nursing homes, the proportionate share payment program. Their testimony was generally opposed to moving forward with managed long-term services and supports without significant additional funding and safeguards.

Transcript Highlights:

• innovative model with UC Riverside and Riverside City College, whereby they built a new housing facility
• , whether To succeed, whether it's straight with workforce training, whether it's certificate programs
• Career passports is one way to do that, and some of these workforce training programs are another.
• “And then another priority would be our aging facilities infrastructure.
• As you’re aware, we’ve got very old facilities.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Yes, I think they could in the same way that if your child is in toilet training.
• Trained at the right age, they can turn them away. Well, Mr.
• Or federally controlled health care facilities.
• Their vaccines from those health care facilities.
• And which health care facility falls under.