Transcript Highlights:

• On line 379 is the Indian Affairs Council.
• On line 379 is the Indian Affairs Council.
• On line 379 is the Indian Affairs Council.
• On line 379 is the Indian Affairs Council.
• On line 379 is the Indian Affairs Council.

Summary: House File 2563, the Omnibus Legacy Bill, was presented as a roughly $779 million package funding projects across Minnesota through the four Legacy funds: Outdoor Heritage, Clean Water, Parks and Trails, and Arts and Cultural Heritage. Chairs Vang and McDonald described the bill as a responsible one-time spending measure with no ongoing base funding, emphasizing habitat restoration, water protection, parks and trails, and arts and cultural heritage. Nonpartisan staff then walked through the spreadsheet, explaining that the bill largely follows the recommendations of the relevant councils and governor, with some additions such as a Wilderness Inquiry partnership, an Ash River sewer extension, competitive grant funding, and several arts and history projects. Staff highlighted the major allocations and structure of the bill: Outdoor Heritage funding for land and habitat projects, Clean Water funding for water-quality work, Parks and Trails funding following the traditional 40-40-20 split, and Arts and Cultural Heritage funding for the State Arts Board, Minnesota Historical Society, Humanities Center, Indian Affairs Council, Department of Education, and other recipients. They also noted policy provisions requiring Clean Water Council recommendations to be broken out by fiscal year, requiring recent 990 forms for arts grantees, limiting arts funds from being used for capital construction except in specified cases, and extending a prior appropriation for the Sunni Lee memorial project. Members asked about land acquisition, the new 990 requirement, and reduced funding for children’s museums; chairs and staff responded that Outdoor Heritage includes land acquisition, the 990 is simply a documentation requirement, and children’s museum funding is lower because more money is now placed in a competitive grant pool. The chairs said the bill reflects compromise and an effort to keep the bill relatively clean of earmarks, while also noting that a Department of Revenue transfer of more than $31 million from legacy funds affected available funding and forced difficult choices. After discussion, the committee laid the bill over, with the chair noting it was also being done in honor of Representative Mary Murphy.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><03:43:32.760><c> arts</c> committee to check with the Indian arts committee to check with the Indian
• Indians is troubling.
• </c> to do some harm to New Hampshire Indians to do some harm to New Hampshire Indians is<03:46:18.960
• And like I said, that doesn't mean that they're Vermont Indians who crossed the river and came to New
• </c><03:47:40.880><c> and</c><03:47:41.080><c> came</c> Indians who crossed the river and came Indians

Summary: The hearing focused on House Bill 610, which would fold the Office of the Consumer Advocate into the Department of Energy rather than fully eliminate consumer advocacy functions. The prime sponsor argued the current office is small, funded by a special assessment on ratepayers, and duplicative of DOE work. He said moving the function to DOE would streamline energy policy review, reduce bureaucracy, and better focus the larger agency on lowering residential energy costs. He also disputed claims that the Consumer Advocate is independent, saying the office is appointed through a political process similar to DOE leadership. Committee members and the sponsor discussed whether the bill would actually relocate existing positions or replace them, and whether the Department of Energy would absorb the cost of the transferred staff. The sponsor said the fiscal note shows roughly a million-dollar reduction in both revenue assessment and spending, and that the bill would effectively reduce the office from five positions to three. He also defended his cost estimates for energy-code-related housing impacts and said the Consumer Advocate has sometimes supported policies he считает increase costs, such as energy-efficiency measures and building code changes. He argued the office should focus more on energy supply and generation, including natural gas and nuclear, rather than efficiency alone. Representative Wendy Thomas testified in opposition, saying the Consumer Advocate is an important, fair, and impartial voice for ratepayers and warning that the bill was fiscally irresponsible because the incumbent could still be owed salary and benefits if the office were repealed. She also said the bill’s drafting was confusing and that the Consumer Advocate’s role is to push back on utilities on behalf of consumers. Other members raised questions about whether the DOE would simply inherit the same political appointment structure and whether the bill would meaningfully lower bills. No vote was taken in the excerpt; the chair indicated additional testimony would follow, and the Department of Energy was present to answer questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• And with me on the floor, to my right, I am honored again to have the governor of the Gila River Indian
• My right, I am honored again to have the governor of the Gila River Indian Community, Governor Stephen
• currently comprised of over 180 sworn reserve police officers.
• Sheriff Lamb began his career in law enforcement by joining the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community
• Sheriff Lamb began his career in law enforcement by joining the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Transcript Highlights:

• There's been compliance and the frustration from the California Indian people, Indian people in general
• California Indian people, California Indian tribes, way before the state became a state, some of those
• So he had to leave his stuff on that side of the river once he gets there.'
• Now we'll move to Chairman Shainieto from Tully River.
• I am a tribal member enrolled with the Ajumawi Band of the Pit River Tribe.

Summary: The joint hearing of the Select Committee on Native American Affairs and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee focused on the University of California’s compliance with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA and the return of Native American human remains and cultural items. Senators and Assembly Members opened by emphasizing the sacredness of repatriation, the ongoing trauma caused by delayed returns, and the need for stronger systemwide accountability. The State Auditor presented the third audit of UC’s repatriation efforts, concluding that UC still lacks the urgency, oversight, and clear timelines needed to promptly return remains and belongings. The audit found thousands of remains and hundreds of thousands of cultural items still in UC custody, new undisclosed collections at several campuses, weak budgeting and underspending, and repatriation plans that often lacked concrete deadlines. The auditor recommended stronger UCOP oversight, performance metrics, proactive searches for undiscovered items, and possible legislative action to tie funding to measurable progress. UC officials responded that the system is committed to full compliance and has accelerated its work since adopting a new policy in 2022. UC Provost Catherine Newman said the system repatriated more than 2,800 ancestors and nearly 80,000 funerary belongings in the past year, and that UC now says 80.3% of Native American remains are either repatriated or available for repatriation. UC announced a new systemwide plan to complete repatriation of human remains by the end of 2028, to finish high-risk campus reviews by June 2026, to recall all loans by January 2026, and to require quarterly reporting to UCOP. UC also said it will spend an additional $8.8 million over three years, expand staffing, improve databases, support tribal consultation costs, and identify potential reburial sites on UC land. Berkeley and San Diego described increased staffing, consultations, and repatriation activity, while Santa Barbara said it had corrected earlier omissions, notified tribes about previously unreported ancestors, and was working toward completing repatriations and updated inventories. Committee members pressed UC on why progress has been so slow, why the audit’s timelines differed from UC’s public reporting, and whether the 2028 goal applies only to human remains rather than all cultural items. UC said the 2028 target is for human remains, while cultural items will take longer, and acknowledged that more work remains. Members also asked about the technical expertise needed for repatriation, the role of tribal experts, and whether repatriation should be embedded more permanently in UC governance or statute. Tribal leaders and representatives then testified that remains and belongings were taken without consent and must be returned with tribal consent and leadership. They criticized the repeated delays, stressed that tribes are the experts on their ancestors and cultural heritage, and urged UC to treat repatriation as a top priority and to return all associated items, not just human remains, so ancestors can truly rest.

Transcript Highlights:

• present an outstanding achievement recognition to a fifth grader named Samantha Anderson of Whispering Winds
• present an outstanding achievement recognition to a fifth grader named Samantha Anderson of Whispering Winds
• Senator Analise Ortiz do commend and congratulate you, Samantha, because Samantha attends Whispering Winds
• It's burning up a lot of the Salt River trees that are in the Gila River basin.
• This budget does nothing for the 22 Indian tribes in the state of Arizona, and that is not good.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> Ute Mountain Ute Reservation. Ute Mountain Ute Reservation.
• . reservations. reservations.
• bands from the Southern Ute Indian Reservation near Ignacio, Colorado, are here.
• </c> population on the reservation. population on the reservation.
• </c><02:42:02.319><c> and</c> River, our wildlife, our reservation and River, our wildlife, our reservation

Transcript Highlights:

• Los Angeles, the gentleman of the Aquambi Indian Tribe.
• We are told that we'll be there in the river or if they ever will.
• Uses and has a reservation set aside for future permit-exempt wells.
• It's not just an Indian issue. It's a Washington state issue.
• This is a graphic of the Dungeness River.

Committee: Senate Ways & Means

Summary: The Ways and Means Committee met for a work session and first heard an economic and revenue forecast update from the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council. The forecast described moderate U.S. growth, elevated near-term inflation, weak Washington employment growth in 2026, continued personal income growth, and slower housing permit activity. Revenues were revised up about $105 million for the current biennium and down about $185 million for the next biennium, with uncertainty tied largely to tariffs, federal policy, and the recent federal shutdown. Members asked about the outlook for February, income inequality, and housing affordability; the presenter said the forecast does not measure income distribution and that housing permit data does not directly address affordability. The committee then received a caseload forecast update. Most forecasts were unchanged or nearly unchanged, but several programs moved: Washington College Grant caseloads rose, TANF and Working Connections changed due to immigration-related assumptions and updated policy timing, and long-term care caseloads increased. The largest change was in Medicaid low-income adults, where federal H.R. 1 was projected to reduce caseloads significantly through narrower non-citizen eligibility, community engagement requirements, and shorter eligibility periods. Members raised concerns about downstream effects such as uncompensated care and higher premiums, and the presenter noted some effects could be delayed depending on federal implementation guidance. A wildfire funding and 2025 fire season update followed. Staff explained the state’s base wildfire suppression funding and estimated a supplemental need of about $139 million in state funds. DNR reported a busy fire year with lower snowpack, drought, more than 1,100 DNR jurisdictional fires, about 76,000 acres burned, 31 aircraft used, 690 DNR firefighters, and 350 out-of-state resources brought in; the agency said its suppression effectiveness improved to 94.1% of fires kept under 10 acres. Questions focused on National Guard use, aircraft counts, and the higher number of residences lost in complex fires. The committee then heard a budget preview showing the near general fund outlook worsening to about a $4.3 billion ending balance by fiscal year 2029 after maintenance-level costs, while noting that policy items such as wildfire costs and liability account decisions were not yet built in. The final major topic was the state’s tort liability and self-insurance account, where the Risk Manager reported a sharp rise in indemnity costs, from $223 million in fiscal year 2023 to nearly $500 million in fiscal year 2025, driven largely by DCYF claims, especially sex abuse cases. Defense costs also rose as the Attorney General’s Office relied more on special assistant attorneys general to handle volume. Members asked about older claims, comparisons with other states, insurance coverage, and whether costs might decline if the AG’s office hires more attorneys. The committee then shifted to water policy, hearing from tribal leaders, Ecology, and the Washington Water Trust about statewide water shortages, declining snowpack, drought, overappropriated basins, and the need for more storage, recharge, conservation, and enforcement. Tribal witnesses emphasized water sovereignty, salmon habitat, and the need for tribes to be involved early in legislation, while Ecology described major projects in the Odessa and Yakima basins and the challenges of climate change and legal constraints. No votes were taken during the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• Even the Indians from Santo Domingo were there. They're always there. Yeah.
• By the river, by the Rio Grande. Out of the blue, this Genizaro story was born.
• Indians... who are de-tribalized, economically uprooted, captive, Spanish-speaking.
• Catholicized, full-blooded Indians.
• We work a lot with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Committee: House House Rural Development, Land Grants And Cultural Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• Reservation located in north central Washington State.
• Reservation located in north central Washington State.
• tribal legislation, including the Indian Health Care Improvement Act and the Indian Child Welfare Act
• The State Route 165 Fairfax Bridge across the Carbon River.
• I'm thinking specifically of the I-5 Bridge over the Skagit River example.

Summary: The Transportation Committee held public hearings on House Bill 2550 and House Bill 2645, then moved to executive session on three other bills. HB 2550 would require certain community and technical college students enrolled in degree- or certificate-seeking programs to be allowed to ride transit for free as a condition of transit support grant eligibility. Staff said the current program already requires zero-fare access for riders 18 and under, and the bill would expand that requirement to CTC students. Testimony from the sponsor, students, and transit advocates supported the goal of reducing barriers to education, while the Washington State Transit Association raised implementation concerns, including how eligibility would be verified and the potential loss of fare revenue and added administrative costs. The fiscal note discussion estimated local impacts of roughly $10 million to $12 million per year for affected transit agencies. HB 2645 concerned the emergency replacement of the closed Fairfax Bridge on State Route 165. The bill and proposed substitute would declare an emergency and give WSDOT expanded authority to expedite bridge replacement by waiving or suspending certain state requirements. The sponsor and many local residents, business owners, recreation advocates, and emergency responders testified that the bridge closure has cut off communities, limited access to Mount Rainier and public lands, and significantly increased emergency response times. WSDOT testified that it is already moving forward with planning and design for a replacement bridge, but said much of the timeline is driven by federal requirements such as NEPA, historic preservation, and endangered species review. No vote was taken on HB 2550 or HB 2645 in the transcript. In executive session, the committee adopted a proposed substitute for HB 2109, which allows certain towed vehicles with debris on them to be covered instead of cleaned before transport, and passed it out of committee 27-0. The committee also adopted an amendment to HB 2134, which updates regional transportation planning requirements related to greenhouse gas and vehicle miles traveled reductions, and passed the bill out 16-12. Finally, the committee adopted two amendments to HB 2323 creating the Blue Envelope Program for traffic stops involving neurodiverse individuals, then passed the bill out of committee 28-0.

Transcript Highlights:

• I reserve the balance of my time. The Speaker pro tempore: The gentleman reserves.
• I reserve the balance of my time. The Speaker pro tempore: The gentlewoman reserves.
• I reserve the balance of my time. The Speaker pro tempore: The gentlewoman reserves.
• I reserve the balance of my time. The gentlewoman reserves.
• I reserve my time. I reserve my time. The Speaker pro tempore: The gentlewoman reserves.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's been compliance and the frustration from the California Indian people, Indian people in general
• California Indian people, California Indian tribes, way before the state became a state, some of those
• So he had to leave his stuff on that side of the river once he gets there.
• Now we'll move to Chairman Shainieto from Tully River.
• I am a tribal member enrolled with the Ajumawi Band of the Pit River Tribe.

Summary: The joint hearing of the Select Committee on Native American Affairs and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee focused on the University of California’s compliance with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA and the return of Native American human remains and cultural items. Senators and Assembly Members opened by emphasizing the sacredness of repatriation, the ongoing trauma caused by delayed returns, and the need for stronger systemwide accountability. The State Auditor presented the third audit of UC’s repatriation efforts, concluding that UC still lacked urgency, clear goals, and performance metrics, and that campuses continued to hold thousands of remains and hundreds of thousands of cultural items. The auditor said some campuses had discovered previously undocumented collections, that budgets were not always fully used for repatriation work, and that at current rates some campuses could take decades to finish, with Berkeley projected to need far longer than other campuses. The auditor recommended stronger UCOP oversight, clearer timelines, proactive searches, and possible legislative action to tie funding to measurable progress. UC officials responded that the system had made substantial recent progress and was now moving faster under a new systemwide approach. UC Provost Catherine Newman apologized for the university’s past actions, said UC had repatriated more than 2,800 ancestors and nearly 80,000 funerary belongings in the past year, and announced a goal of completing repatriation of remaining human remains by the end of 2028. She said UC would complete high-risk campus reviews by June 2026, update campus plans with clearer timelines by December, provide quarterly reports, add more than $8.8 million in new resources, support tribal consultation costs, and explore 20 potential reburial sites on UC land. UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons said Berkeley had accelerated consultations and repatriations, had a dedicated NAGPRA team, and was also targeting 2028 for human remains. UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara coordinators described new staff, database improvements, campus surveys, and additional consultations, while Santa Barbara said outstanding loan collections were scheduled to be returned in the fall. Committee members pressed UC on why progress had been so slow, whether the 2028 goal applied to all remains and items or only human remains, why public reporting did not always match the audit’s broader counts of potential cultural items, and what expertise was still lacking. UC said the legal and technical work requires archival, osteological, geographic, and other specialized skills, but tribal leaders stressed that tribes themselves are the true experts and that consultation must be led with them, not around them. Tribal witnesses from Tachi Yokut, Chumash, Redding Rancheria, Amah Mutsun, and Tule River described the issue as a matter of dignity, healing, and transparency, criticized the pace of repatriation, and urged that all associated cultural items be returned with the remains so ancestors can rest. No formal votes were taken in the transcript, but the hearing concluded with commitments to continued oversight, updated reporting, and further discussion of statutory or policy changes to make repatriation a lasting UC priority.

Transcript Highlights:

• During that process, we were able to go from 15 minutes of reserve water to now we have 12 hours of reserve
• The pink line, if you pay attention, is the Nez Perce Reservation line.
• It sits on condemned Indian lands on the Nez Perce Reservation.
• By getting the river pump station built out of now the Clearwater River to pump water up into Mann Lake
• The aquifer and the river are not connected where we're at.

Committee: Senate Resources and Environment

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh I'm prepared to close and I reserve. reserve. reserve.
• Speaker, I reserve. reserve. reserve.
• . reserve. reserve.
• I reserve. >> Gentleman reserves. Gentleman from Minnesota is recognized. Reserve. Reserve.
• Thank you and I reserve. reserve. reserve. &gt;&gt; Gentlemen<05:20:51.360><c> reserves.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:45:36.240><c> system</c> freshwater muscles um in a river system freshwater muscles um in a river
• </c> that affect the bottom of the river. that affect the bottom of the river. that<00:45:53.359><c>
• Just like rivers and things like that.
• My dad said, Okay, River massacre.
• Lawrence River. the French and Indian War wars. This is the French and Indian War wars.

Committee: House Resources, Recreation and Development

Transcript Highlights:

• Our groundwater pumping has undermined the river.
• and I've been boating that river for 40 years literally.
• You don't send us the water down the river.
• It's one river system.
• You mean Indian water rights settlements specifically?

Committee: House Water & Natural Resources Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• And with me on the floor, to my right, I am honored again to have the governor of the Gila River Indian
• My right, I am honored again to have the governor of the Gila River Indian Community, Governor Stephen
• currently comprised of over 180 sworn reserve police officers.
• And last but not least, Steve is a Phoenix Reserve Police Officer.
• Sheriff Lamb began his career in law enforcement by joining the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Summary: The Arizona Senate convened for opening day of the second regular session of the 57th Legislature with ceremonial prayers, the presentation of colors, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the national anthem. Senate President Warren Petersen gave a farewell-style address highlighting his efforts to shift power toward members and committee chairs, preserve conservative policies, and deliver annual tax cuts, including a projected $1 billion cut this year. The chamber then recessed for an opening-day speech by Grand Canyon University President Brian Mueller, who spoke about Arizona’s labor-force needs, workforce training, and GCU’s role in expanding access to education and middle-class jobs, including apprenticeships and technical programs tied to local employers. After returning to order, the Senate adopted its organizational rules for the session, including suspending rules so bills and resolutions could be read by number and short title only on first and second reading and by number and title only on third and final reading. Members also approved a motion to notify the House and Governor that the Senate was organized and ready for business, and the House later reported that it was likewise organized. The chamber then adopted a proposed amendment to Senate Rule 7A and the rules of the 57th Legislature, and the President announced committee assignments for standing and statutory committees, including Appropriations, Education, Finance, Government, Military Affairs and Border Security, Natural Resources, Rules, Legislative Council, Legislative Audit, and the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. The remainder of the session focused on points of personal privilege, with senators introducing family members, constituents, local officials, school leaders, law enforcement officers, tribal leaders, and advocacy guests. Several members used the occasion to emphasize issues they expect to work on this session, including education, public safety, housing, water, early childhood services, veterans, border security, and workforce development. The Senate also received a motion to request House consent for an adjournment schedule, and the body adjourned until Wednesday, January 14, 2026, at 1:15 p.m. after announcing upcoming committee meetings and the first batch of bill introductions and references.

Transcript Highlights:

• people, the entities, the acequias, soil and water conservation districts, land grant communities, Indian
• In Otero County and the Mescalero Reservation that we're handling in our county.
• As our state continues to expand wind and solar, we must also ensure stable around-the-clock power.
• As our state continues to expand wind and solar, we must also ensure stable around-the-clock power.
• Because if you look at solar, wind, batteries, all the transmission, all the mining land impacts, we

Bills: SB47 , SB195 , SB196 , SB197 , SB198 , SB78

Committee: Senate Senate Conservation

Keywords: food recovery, composting, waste management, solid waste surcharge, organic waste reduction, environment, grants, advisory group, soil conservation, water resources, training services, outreach programs, environmental protection, animal care, veterinary services, spay and neuter, Las Vegas, community funding, animal welfare, animal shelter

Transcript Highlights:

• 12:39.680><c> Chapman,</c><00:12:40.560><c> and</c><00:12:40.800><c> Prospell</c><00:12:41.279><c> reserve
• </c> Gary Chapman, and Prospell reserve Gary Chapman, and Prospell reserve officer<00:12:42.160><c> Sammy

Bills: HB348 , HB106 , HB347 , HB54 , SB118 , SB167 , SB195 , HB260 , HB263 , HB328 , HB348 , HB106 , HB347 , HB54 , SB118 , SB167 , SB195 , HB260 , HB263 , HB328

Committee: Senate Judiciary

Keywords: bail reform, illegal aliens, violent offenses, pretrial detention, flight risk, court hearings, doxing, personal identifying information, harassment, online safety, law enforcement, public servants, penalties, consumer protection, illicit material, private rights, digital privacy, nonconsensual distribution, incarceration, pregnancy

Transcript Highlights:

• They don't have a clubhouse, so they're stuck paying to reserve a school, pay for security, and reserve
• I reserve the right to do so. We close. Thank you, Chairwoman Button.
• Senate Bill 264 will allow the Guarantee Fund to wind down operations.
• Thank you, and I reserve the right to close. Members, any questions?
• I respectfully reserve the right to close.

Bills: HB 1087 , HB2504 , HB4113 , HB5144 , HB5146 , HB5377 , HB5543 , SB140 , SB264 , SB1244 , SB1343 , SB2121 , HR868

Committee: House Trade, Workforce & Economic Development

Keywords: property owners, board vacancy, special election, association governance, community management, property owners' association, resale certificate, fees, real estate regulation, homeowners, HB 4113, Texas Rising Star Program, child care, child-care providers, Texas Workforce Commission, TWC, safety barriers, crash-rated bollards, bollards, playground safety

Bills: HB 105 , HB982 , HB1483 , HB1508 , HB2575 , HB3646 , HB3993 , HB4083 , HB4580 , HB4725 , HB5169 , HB5511 , HJR73 , HJR102 , HJR174 , HB3746 , HB4240

Committee: House Ways & Means

Keywords: economic development, job creation, energy, tax incentives, technology investment, ad valorem taxes, elderly, disabled, low-income, tax limitation, homesteads, Texas Tax Code, property tax, ad valorem tax, tax exemption, residential real property, home improvement, energy efficiency, energy-efficient upgrades, HVAC