Transcript Highlights:

• At school, that they're supported, that they're healthy, and that they are thriving.
• We want to make sure it's also as healthy in those populations. that are helping make that water healthy
• I think our sense is that these apply most squarely to the age.
• The New Mexico Food and Ag Policy Council also stands in support of this. Thank you.
• She's been a big champion when it comes to fresh and healthy meals.

Transcript Highlights:

• I think also what we want to cover on Thursday is the system of care for healthy aging and how, as an
• aging state, we are working collaboratively with our partners, with the State Commission on Aging, to
• </c> vulnerable adults as well as our aging vulnerable adults as well as our aging and<00:54:04.119><
• </c> could probably have same for um aging could probably have same for um aging and<01:08:41.199><c>
• Thursday as well, when we talk about some of the work in our system of care for healthy aging, actually

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee convened an informational Division 3 Finance hearing focused on DHHS programmatic issues rather than budget line items. The chair emphasized that members should avoid questions requiring dollar figures and noted that the coming budget cycle would likely be difficult because revenues are expected to be tighter. Commissioner Lori Weaver said the department wanted to use the session to explain its functions at a high level, with more detailed presentations to follow, and to collect questions for later responses. Weaver outlined DHHS’s mission of supporting optimal health for state residents and described the department’s three main responsibilities: protection and prevention, client service delivery, and regulatory oversight. She said DHHS has eight divisions, a $3.6 billion total budget, about $1.217 billion in general funds, roughly a quarter of state positions, and personnel costs that are less than 11% of the budget. She also noted a recent hiring freeze, explained that the department did not request new positions except where required by law, and said vacancy rates had improved from 22% to 14% over the last two years but could rise again because of attrition and the hiring freeze. Weaver and CFO Nathan White then discussed why the DHHS budget is complex, explaining that it is built from multiple funding sources and is shaped by assumptions made months before the fiscal year begins, actual service demand, and cost allocation rules used to draw down federal funds. White highlighted maintenance-of-effort requirements, including TANF, where state spending is needed to secure federal matching funds and shortfalls can trigger penalties. At the committee’s request, DHHS agreed to provide a simplified historical accounting of TANF contributions to show how the match is assembled across positions, contracts, and other factors. The department also reviewed its roadmap, which Weaver described as a framework developed with staff and stakeholders around three themes: culture, community, and customer service. She highlighted priorities such as Mission Zero to end emergency department boarding, expanding access to community-based and residential behavioral health services, reducing reliance on institutional care, improving contract management with nonprofit and provider partners, using data dashboards to guide decisions, and investing in workforce stability and culture. No votes were taken; the main action was DHHS’s commitment to provide additional follow-up materials, including the TANF contribution breakdown.

Transcript Highlights:

• So this bill is about mental health, agriculture, our ag producers, our ag workers, the mental health
• Healthy ecosystems depend on balance.
• Healthy ecosystems depend on balance.
• We want healthy wildlife, and we want balance.
• Everyone in our state wants healthy salmon populations.

Bills: HB2131, HB2221, HJM4009, HB2619

Keywords: sea lion, predation control, salmon preservation, fishing industry, voluntary donations, ungulate, wildlife conservation, ecosystem management, population sustainability, environmental impact, wildfire, federal response, community protection, natural resources, firefighter safety, agriculture, regulations, farming, compliance, economic impact

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2008, our state created a farm-to-school law that created a position at the Department of Ag.
• It didn't give school districts any more money or any…” “Position at the Department of Ag.
• And I see that a lot of kids go home and they Don't have real healthy food at home.
• And believe it or not, healthy food is more expensive.
• As a growing student, it is important for me that I eat a healthy diet.

Bills: HB2142, HB2369, HB2432

Keywords: remote learning, hybrid learning, education reform, alternative education, student engagement, local food, public schools, nutrition, sustainability, agriculture, technology access, educational resources, surplus hardware, student support, 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I was 11 years old in 1990, the same age as my youngest students now.
• from an early age I knew that<00:43:46.160><c> I</c><00:43:46.240><c> wanted</c><00:43:46.480><c> to
• </c><01:32:53.239><c> meals</c> Statewide access to healthy meals Statewide access to healthy meals consistent
• </c><01:38:05.639><c> and</c> fostering an informed healthy and fostering an informed healthy and Equitable
• </c><01:48:38.400><c> any</c> their minds and bodies at that age any their minds and bodies at that age

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I am the policy director with the Latino Coalition for Healthy California.
• We all benefit when our neighbors are healthy, when the people standing next to us are healthy.
• And for kids between the ages of 2 and 18, it is no more than 25.5.
• But what's often missing is simple, honest And even healthy at times.
• But they also flag healthy options for folks.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So this bill is about mental health, agriculture, our ag producers, our ag workers, and the mental health
• Healthy ecosystems require balance, accountability, and timely action.
• We want healthy wildlife and we want balance.
• Everyone in our state wants healthy salmon populations.
• Everyone in our state wants healthy salmon populations.

Summary: The committee heard public testimony on House Bill 2619, which would create a joint legislative task force to review and recommend ways to reduce regulatory burdens in agriculture, and on House Joint Memorial 4009, which asks Congress to ensure federal wildfire response agencies remain capable of protecting communities, natural resources, and firefighter safety. On HB 2619, the prime sponsor and supporters from the Washington State Department of Agriculture, cattle, wheat, potato, onion, and dairy interests said the bill responds to farm stress and suicide concerns by examining regulatory overload; WSDA supported the concept but noted a fiscal note, and members discussed whether the task force scope and cost could be reduced before policy cutoff. On HJM 4009, staff and the sponsor described the memorial as a request for stronger federal wildfire capacity and coordination, with testimony from tribes, counties, forest landowners, conservation groups, and public employees emphasizing wildfire risk, smoke impacts, and the importance of federal-state cooperation; the committee also repeatedly tied the memorial to support for state wildfire funding under 1168 and heard broad support for restoring that funding. The committee then took up House Bill 2221, which would require the Department of Fish and Wildlife to designate at-risk ungulate populations and begin predator mitigation when certain population declines occur, while also requiring annual reporting and white-tailed deer surveys. The sponsor argued the bill addresses rapidly declining deer and elk herds, predator pressure, food security, and rural economies in northeast Washington. Supporters included some local residents, ranchers, sheriffs, county officials, and the Colville Tribes, who said predators, livestock conflicts, and reduced hunting opportunity are harming communities and that the state should act more aggressively. Opponents included WDFW staff, Washington Wildlife First, the Sierra Club, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, and other conservation voices, who said the bill is not scientifically supported, would be costly, and wrongly blames predators rather than habitat, forage, weather, disease, and vehicle collisions; several said predator control would have limited value and could undermine wolf recovery. Some agricultural and sportsmen groups supported the bill in principle but asked for amendments, especially to remove or revise the in-state wolf translocation provision. No final votes or executive action were taken in the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's helping us stay healthy.
• It's helping us stay healthy.
• It's helping us stay healthy.
• middle class—older middle age, you know, starting at about age 50.
• aging.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Finance Division III work session focused on the Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Public Health Services budget. Department staff said Public Health has a relatively small budget compared with other DHHS divisions, is supported mostly by federal and other non-General funds, and contains nearly 100 accounting units and more than 50 federal grants. They emphasized that the governor’s budget did not include significant cuts, but that federal funding uncertainty and the winding down of pandemic-era resources were major factors affecting the division. The division also explained that some apparent budget growth reflects reorganizations, including moving the Bureau of Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery and some programs from other DHHS divisions into Public Health. The presentation described Public Health’s mission as serving the entire state through food and water safety, disease surveillance, emergency response, maternal and child health, chronic disease prevention, WIC, community health center support, and public health data collection. Members asked about bird flu, and staff explained that human-health response would involve Public Health’s lab, infectious disease, and emergency preparedness units, while animal-health issues are handled with the Department of Agriculture; they also noted ongoing milk testing requested by FDA and USDA. The division said its organizational structure includes bureaus for Family Health and Nutrition, Infectious Disease Control, Public Health Protection, Emergency Preparedness, Prevention and Wellness, Statistics and Informatics, and Public Health Laboratories, with about a 15% vacancy rate. Committee members questioned whether the division’s budget and staffing had really grown since pre-COVID, and staff responded that full-time authorized staffing is about the same as in 2018, with the increase largely due to federal pandemic funding that has since receded and to program transfers between divisions. They said Public Health’s General Fund share is about $24 million out of roughly $1.1 billion in DHHS General Fund spending, or about 2.2% of the department total. Members also asked about the 3,000-position cap and unfunded positions; staff explained that the cap remains in chapter law through June 30, 2025, that 394 positions were unfunded in the governor’s budget, and that the division expects flexibility to move money from personnel lines and fill unfunded positions to manage changing needs. No votes or formal actions were taken in this portion of the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• Right now, you don't get any additional funds for children who are under the age of six and under, and
• </c><00:01:52.000><c> of</c><00:01:52.119><c> six</c> children under the under the age of six children
• under the under the age of six and<00:01:52.799><c> add</c><00:01:53.000><c> 19</c><00:01:53.439><c>
• We need low adult-child ratios to drive child safety and healthy development and learning.
• development and learning but and healthy development and learning but we<00:04:53.680><c> ask</c><00

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The committee heard House File 1384, which would create the “Great Start Child Care Tax Credit” by expanding the existing dependent care credit for families with children under age six. The bill would raise the qualifying expense limits for young children, allow more children to qualify, and phase the credit down starting at $125,000 of earned household income until it reaches zero above roughly $400,000. The author said the proposal is intended to better address the high cost of child care, especially for middle-income families who may not qualify for other assistance programs. Claire Sanford of the Minnesota Child Care Association testified in support. She said child care providers across Minnesota have unused capacity because many families cannot afford services, and argued that making care cheaper for families is important for workforce participation and child development. She also supported the bill’s focus on children under five and its expansion of help up the income scale, saying middle-class families have received little assistance with child care costs. Members asked about how the bill differs from current law, the cap for a family with one child age five, and the fiscal impact. The author explained that a family with one child under age six would have a $10,000 cap under the proposal and said a prior fiscal note estimated the bill at about $200 million per year. The author also noted the proposal had been introduced previously and said the Department of Revenue’s new ability to make advance payments could be relevant as the bill moves forward. The author renewed the motion to re-refer HF 1384 to the Committee on Taxes. The committee approved the motion by voice vote, and the bill was sent to Taxes.

Transcript Highlights:

• want California and Californians to be strong and knowledgeable and equipped with the skills in the age
• That includes anything from life safety issues to building age.
• Ninety-two percent are over the age of 25.
• Regarding Healthy School Food Pathways, this is the first time it's coming up in this hearing.
• The first has to do with the costs in the Healthy School Food Pathways Program.

Summary: The subcommittee first noted that item one on the Imagination Library update was being pulled pending review of newly received receipts, invoices, and backup documentation from the State Library and the Department of Finance. The chair said the committee would continue reviewing the materials and later determine whether additional oversight and accountability measures are needed regarding taxpayer funds and implementation of the program. The main discussion focused on the California Community Colleges budget request. Chancellor Christian described strong post-pandemic enrollment recovery and asked the Legislature to fund 3% enrollment growth, change the funding formula to use the highest of the three years rather than a three-year average, and remove the 10% growth cap to avoid unfunded FTES. She also urged support for the Governor’s proposals on COLA, deferral repayment, the Common Cloud Data Platform, credit for prior learning, and Calbright College, while adding requests for AI literacy funding, a Rebuild L.A. workforce effort, veterans services, and support for the Chancellor’s Office. Senators raised concerns about high district reserves, part-time faculty conditions, veterans’ credit pathways, and enrollment fraud; Christian said reserves are complex but should be addressed district by district, and that identity verification and AI tools are being used to prevent fraudulent enrollments. Finance and LAO staff then reviewed the student-centered funding formula and enrollment growth proposals. DOF said the Governor’s budget fully repays $408.4 million in deferrals, provides a 2.41% COLA, and includes funding to cover current-year apportionment costs; LAO recommended prioritizing those proposals but suggested beginning enrollment growth funding in 2026-27 rather than revising the current-year target. Chris Ferguson said most districts are growing, that 54 of 72 districts would benefit from a formula change favoring current-year enrollment, and that unfunded growth remains a concern. On facilities, staff explained that deferred maintenance needs are about $2.2 billion, with projects prioritized by life safety, modernization, and capacity needs. The final item was Calbright College. President Menon said Calbright serves more than 6,200 adult learners statewide, with strong completion and wage gains, and asked for the Governor’s proposed $38 million ongoing increase. She and staff emphasized Calbright’s flexible, competency-based model, its partnerships with employers and other colleges, and its role in serving working adults and caregivers. LAO questioned the proposed funding level and recommended moving Calbright onto the student-centered funding formula in the future to better tie funding to enrollment and outcomes, while Calbright argued its structure is different from traditional colleges and needs separate treatment. No votes were taken during the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we are financially healthy right now.
• So we are financially healthy right now.
• It's a good thing that people are trying to get healthy. But from our producers...
• Water is the lifeblood of ag in Idaho, and we appreciate your work on that.
• Age is just a number. There's more. This is not my real hair. I knew that.

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The Senate Agricultural Committee met with a quorum but took no bills up for hearing or action, focusing instead on presentations and introductions. The committee approved the February 5, 2026 minutes and recognized Leadership Idaho Agriculture Class 46, with members introducing themselves and describing their agricultural and related professional backgrounds. The committee also thanked Charlie Butler, the first-half session page, for his service and wished him well as he returned to school and planned future education and a mission. The Idaho Potato Commission then presented on its mission to promote and protect the Grown in Idaho seal, reviewed its financial audit and noted it was financially healthy, and discussed industry conditions. Topics included export markets, rising competition from India and China in processed potato products, high input costs, surplus production from strong growing conditions, dietary guideline changes, an agreement with the American Diabetes Association recognizing potatoes as a healthy carbohydrate source, and the effects of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs on food consumption. Members asked about potato classification, farm succession, labor, processing versus fresh sales, and marketing strategies, and the commission said potatoes are currently viewed favorably in federal dietary guidance and that about 60% of Idaho potatoes are processed and 40% sold fresh. The discussion also touched on broader agricultural concerns such as water, weather, disease, tariffs, technology, and the need to keep younger generations engaged in farming. At the end of the meeting, the Idaho Grain Producers Association briefly introduced its executive director and board, noting they were in Boise for legislative meetings and would return later for a fuller conversation. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's ages 28 to 43, but the median age is about 34.
• It's ages 28 to 43, but the median age in about 24.
• Total population, age structure of our population, age dependency ratios, etc.
• as we're all aging, but the median age is well into the 50s.
• as we're all aging, but the median age is well into the 50s.

Summary: The Senate Committee on the Census, chaired by Senator Will Brownsberger with Senator Liz Miranda and other members participating, held a hearing on mid-decade population estimates and projections for Massachusetts. Susan Strait of the UMass Donahue Institute presented the latest Census Bureau estimates and explained the main components of population change: births, deaths, domestic migration, and international migration. She said Massachusetts has continued to grow, but much more slowly than in the immediate post-2020 period, largely because net international migration has fallen sharply after a pandemic-era surge. She also reviewed fertility and aging trends, noting that births are concentrated among women in their 30s, that the state’s population is aging, and that the share of residents 65 and older is projected to rise substantially, increasing the dependency ratio. Strait and committee members discussed the role of immigration in Massachusetts’ population growth, the concentration of immigrants in Greater Boston and other regions, and the effect of immigration on births and the labor force. They also discussed domestic out-migration, especially among young adults, and the possibility that housing affordability is a major driver. Senators raised questions about how the Census counts people in group quarters such as prisons and dormitories, and Strait explained that the Census counts incarcerated people where they are housed and generally does not treat dormitory residents as migrants in the same way as household residents. She said the Census Bureau is still working on methodological issues such as extending a “college fix” to more areas. Jesse Partridge Guerrero of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council described how MAPC uses Donahue Institute population projections, household headship rates, and UrbanSim to allocate projected households down to regional, municipal, and sub-municipal levels. He said the projections used for MassDOT’s long-range transportation plan anticipated slower statewide growth and regional decline in the Cape and parts of western and central Massachusetts. Tim Reardon of the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities then explained how those projections feed into the statewide housing plan, including three population scenarios and associated housing needs. He said the plan estimates a need for about 115,000 homes to address existing shortages and another 73,000 households even under a low-growth scenario, with total housing needs rising to roughly 222,000 units under the middle scenario and 262,000 under the high scenario. Members pressed him on whether the scenarios may understate future need given the recent drop in immigration and ongoing affordability problems, and he said the state is also pursuing housing production, rental assistance, shelter response, seasonal conversion prevention, and infrastructure support for communities. No votes were taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• 2 The committee on ag and livestock will come to order.
• It's an honor to serve as a chair of the Ag and Livestock Committee.
• Ag culture and our Farm Fresh program, we've kind of set the bar here.
• And instead of having healthy kids, we had healthy trash cans, because they wouldn't eat it.
• Does that solve the ag water problem?

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• stay healthy, or housing needs so they can stay healthy, how do we make sure those gaps in between these
• stay healthy, or housing needs so they can stay healthy, how do we make sure those gaps in between these
• F5: An unaccompanied homeless youth is defined to include a person up to age 26.
• So just start using age in that instead of other factors. I'd ask for adoption of Amendment A1.
• So just start using age in that instead of other factors. I'd ask for adoption of Amendment A1.

Bills: SB6062, SB6080, SB6184, SB6224, SB6255, SB6286, SB6308, SB6319, SB5977, SB5979, SB6249, SGA9299

Keywords: juvenile justice, criminal offense, minors, rehabilitation, legal provisions, contracts, jails, federal custody, municipal agreements, incarceration, law enforcement, homeless youth, youth services, mental health, support programs, state law, behavioral health, children, support services, poverty reduction

Transcript Highlights:

• This is language from the Department of Ag.
• Is it possible to recognize the Department of Ag?
• Again, this was a recommendation from the Department of Ag.
• their purview. ...was a request from the Department of Ag.
• Has the Department of Ag told you what that number would be?

Bills: HB3056, HB3391, HB3657, HB3617, HB4055, HB3720, HB3902

Keywords: raw milk, unpasteurized, farm sales, Oklahoma Milk and Milk Products Act, local producers, advertising, animal welfare, commercial pet breeders, licensing, animal cruelty, labor, employment definitions, agricultural services, Oklahoma Workforce Commission, confidentiality, data access, right to repair, agriculture, OEM, repair providers

Transcript Highlights:

• I do trust in your attention, and I appreciate your efforts to make California healthy again.
• But it is a worthwhile conversation to talk about how we incentivize more healthy foods.
• meals and healthy eating habits.
• Care shifts due to work, housing, life changes, and their children's ages.
• plainly about what it means to age out of foster care right now.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Aging.
• <00:28:46.480><c> and</c><00:28:46.799><c> self-sufficient,</c> healthy and self-sufficient, healthy
• It's a very healthy fund.
• It's a very healthy fund.
• Aging.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It has been stated that the ag sector has already met It has been stated that the ag sector has already
• Clean skies bring great jobs and a healthy and resilient New Mexico.
• What we heard: affordability and healthy communities.
• What we heard, affordability, and healthy communities.
• I've heard about the coming ice age. Oh, my gosh.

Bills: SB12, SB36, SB92, SB120, SB133, SB151, SB18, SB96

Keywords: tax credit, physician, healthcare, income tax, rural health, quantum technology, infrastructure, economic development, New Mexico, corporate tax, research and development, innovation, affordable housing, gross receipts tax, tax deduction, construction materials, multifamily housing, low income, journalism, local news

Transcript Highlights:

• on our students by asking them questions that may or may not be appropriate for them at different ages
• I started birth control at age 16 to regulate my reproductive and mental health.
• I started birth control at age 16 to regulate my reproductive and mental health.
• and make it to adulthood and be healthy adults.
• Access to birth control and STI testing is crucial to keep our communities healthy and safe.

Summary: The committee on Pre-K through 12 Education took up SB 1288, a parental rights bill by Sen. Grall, which would expand the Parents Bill of Rights to require written parental consent for minors’ medical care and prescriptions, give parents access to medical records, require parental review/consent for surveys and questionnaires, and restrict use of biofeedback devices without parental permission. The sponsor said the bill is intended to restore parents’ role in major medical decisions and to address concerns about schools or providers collecting sensitive information from children without parents’ knowledge. She said she was open to clarifying language, especially around exceptions and definitions, but maintained that parents should generally be the decision-makers. Committee members pressed the sponsor on how the bill would affect minors who are abused, homeless, estranged from parents, or otherwise without a safe guardian, as well as access to STI treatment, mental health care, contraception, and care after sexual assault. The sponsor repeatedly said children in unsafe situations should come into the child welfare or law enforcement system and that she was open to changes for truly unsafe or unavailable parents, but she rejected the idea that the bill was merely about notification rather than consent. She also defended the survey provisions as a way to stop routine questioning of children about suicide and other sensitive topics without parental awareness, and said the biofeedback language was aimed at school settings where data about children’s anxiety or stress is allegedly being shared with classmates. Public testimony was heavily divided, with many speakers opposing the bill and describing personal experiences with abuse, rape, mental health crises, lack of supportive parents, and the need for confidential access to birth control, STI testing, and counseling. Opponents argued the bill would delay care, endanger vulnerable minors, and reduce access to medically necessary services and surveys that can identify risk. Supporters said the bill would restore parental authority, improve transparency, and protect children from inappropriate surveys and biometric monitoring. During debate, Sen. Berman and Sen. Davis opposed the bill, saying it conflicts with existing law and could harm vulnerable youth, while Sen. Yarborough supported it, arguing that not all parents are bad actors and that the state should not treat all families as if they were. The transcript ends with debate underway and no final vote or action recorded.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's called Healthy Rivers and Landscapes.
• It's called Healthy Rivers and Landscapes.
• There is nothing voluntary about the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes program.
• The Healthy Rivers and Landscapes program is a program of implementation.
• I'm with the Center for Healthy Communities.

Keywords: 988, house, all