Transcript Highlights:

• Job order contracting is one of several alternative methods for awarding construction-related contracts
• While most construction contracts are for major modernization of schools, job order contracts relate
• into a single master contract.
• Finally, these contracts are paid locally and do not have any state costs.
• WECA supports job order contracting.

Committee: Senate Education

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> pause right now until we locate Mr. pause right now until we locate Mr.
• </c> contracts are much higher than expected. contracts are much higher than expected.
• Because if it was a fixed-price contract, or 80% fixed-price contract or whatever, then the utility would
• Or do you think fixed price contracts.
• </c> these six-month fixed cost contracts these six-month fixed cost contracts with<04:43:32.000><c>

Committee: House Science, Technology and Energy

Transcript Highlights:

• with somebody who you have a contracting with somebody who you have a relationship<00:12:22.360><c>
• In CACFP and SFSP, food is served to eligible children and adults at locations called sites.
• </c> day care centers, among other locations. day care centers, among other locations.
• </c><00:43:18.240><c> Sites</c><00:43:18.680><c> are</c> locations called sites.
• Sites are locations called sites.

Committee: House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• This eliminates funding for the Department of Commerce Community Services Division to contract for costs
• The Health Care Authority contracts for these services with a program you may recall from last year is
• The Health Care Authority contracts for these services with a program you may recall from last year is
• Those contracts have no cost to the state. In adopting this amendment, Mr.
• And when DCYF ended the PIC Center's contract, they provided nothing as a reason.

Summary: The House Appropriations Committee met in executive session on a proposed substitute operating budget bill and worked through a long series of amendments before voting on the bill. Members discussed a wide range of budget items, including court funding for Thurston County civil filings, Attorney General funding for a domestic extremism task force, grants for Yakima aquatics access, North Mason mobile integrated health, mentoring programs, poverty reduction work, a proposed Department of Housing task force, federal grant inventory staffing, HEAL Act funding, assisted living rebasing, DCYF family resource centers and pediatric interim care, law enforcement training and equipment, shellfish and birthing center licensing fees, school bus depreciation, charter school accountability, transition to kindergarten priorities, and several Fish and Wildlife and OSPI grants. The committee also considered amendments related to the Columbia River Gorge Commission, shrub-steppe habitat mitigation, and a study on Lower Snake River reservoir drawdown impacts. Debate on many amendments centered on whether items were statewide priorities or local projects, and on the fiscal constraints of the budget. Supporters often argued that proposals would protect vulnerable populations, improve public safety, or leverage future savings and outside funding; opponents frequently cited budget pressure, the availability of existing funding, or the need to avoid singling out local projects. Some amendments were adopted, including Clark 343 on intent to fund up to 10,000 additional eCAP slots, Jones 419 on paint stewardship funding, and Stevens 070 limiting birthing center license fees. Many others failed, including amendments on Thurston County court funding, the domestic extremism task force, Yakima aquatics, North Mason mobile integrated health, mentoring, poverty reduction workgroup funding, the Department of Housing task force, federal grant staffing, HEAL Act funding, assisted living rebasing, the PIC Center contract, the Lacey regional training academy, and several Fish and Wildlife and OSPI-related proposals. The committee then moved to the underlying bill, Proposed Substitute House Bill 2289, and adopted a do pass motion after disposing of the amendments. The transcript indicates the committee ultimately reported the bill out of committee with a do pass recommendation.

Transcript Highlights:

• They can go to one of these locations. They can open to one of these locations.
• okay weapon at one of these locations okay weapon at one of these locations okay and so and so and so
• of each. business providing the location of each. business providing the location of each.
• So they contract it you're saying? No. So they contract it you're saying? No.
• So they contract it out. Oh, they going to contract that out out.

Bills: HJR 4 , HJR 6 , HB 195 , HB 13 , HB 143 , HB 135

Transcript Highlights:

• And did you have a contract with DEED? Yes.
• with deed yes and then uh based contract with deed yes and then uh based on<00:14:22.240><c> your</c
• Cloud, and other locations. In St.
• </c><01:34:11.600><c> most</c> in St Cloud and other locations most in St Cloud and other locations most
• We anticipate we'll definitely meet contract goals or exceed them.

Committee: Senate Jobs and Economic Development

Transcript Highlights:

• Now, the bill removes the 180-day resale restriction in state law if the developer is under contract
• So when you're looking at the contracts offered by the nonprofits, if they're using CalHome within their
• So when you're looking at the contracts offered by the non-profits, if they're using Cal Home within
• What they do is contract. They don't have attorneys; they contract with a private contractor.
• to get it done. ...and those contracts can be pricey, so I understand what you're trying to do.

Committee: Senate Housing

Transcript Highlights:

• WSDOT may then take these ratings into account when awarding a contract.
• It's an idea to, again, create a reexamination of how we are awarding contracts and making sure that
• Under the state's own contracts, those are excusable and compensable events.
• Under the state's own contracts, those are excusable and compensable events.
• We have a lot of concerns with the contracting rating system that's proposed here.

Bills: HB1367 , HB2172 , HB2718 , HB2139 , HB2192 , HB2307 , HB2379 , HB2467 , HB2495 , HB2604

Committee: House Transportation

Keywords: motorcycle safety, right shoulder, shoulder riding, limited access roadway, freeway, expressway, highway congestion, lane splitting, traffic safety, RCW, Washington traffic law, roadside assistance, emergency vehicles, tow truck, congested traffic, motorcyclist, route jurisdiction, abandonment, transportation, local governance

Transcript Highlights:

• Jacobson where Brooke High School is located, and he replied that it is in Boston.
• What I can name is that in our district in Salem, we Based on contracts, what I can name is that in our
• Whereas right now it's kind of taken up in the contracts, but there is a statewide provision within the
• negotiations at the right now, factoring in some of these other things into a contract when it comes
• So that's just something that I would put out to the committee and have that Things into a contract when

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Education

Summary: The Joint Committee on Education held its 13th hearing, chaired by Senator Jason Lewis and Representative Gordon, and heard testimony on a large slate of bills covering personnel and miscellaneous education issues. The first major topic was House Bill 711 and Senate Bill 327, the “So All Students Thrive” proposal, which would change reduction-in-force rules so districts could consider teacher effectiveness, student impact, staffing needs, and diversity-related factors alongside seniority. Supporters from Educators for Excellence, including teachers and a former school committee chair, argued that current seniority-based layoff rules can push out effective early-career educators and harm efforts to build a more diverse workforce. Committee members raised questions about tenure, union involvement, and how the bill would interact with the Educator Diversity Act and local contract negotiations; members generally said they shared the goal of diversifying the educator workforce and encouraged continued collaboration and feedback. The committee then heard testimony on House Bill 658, which would require educator training on gifted and advanced learners. Parents, teachers, researchers, and advocates said Massachusetts lacks required preservice or professional development on gifted education, leaving many advanced students unchallenged and underserved. Witnesses described students who are bored, under-identified, or even discouraged in school, and argued that training would help teachers recognize and support gifted students, including students of color, multilingual learners, low-income students, and students with disabilities. Testimony also supported related prior bills on advanced learners and emphasized that the state should act on a 2019 DESE report recommending such training. The committee also heard testimony on House Bill 736 and Senate Bill 435, which would establish de-escalation training for school transportation. The Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council said the measure would improve safety for students and bus operators, fill a gap in current school bus driver certification requirements, and better support students with disabilities. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 4720, concerning the Athol-Royalston Regional School District’s state bailout-related reserve requirements; the superintendent said the district has long maintained fiscal stability but is still forced to leave over half a million dollars unspent each year, limiting resources for a high-poverty student population. After testimony concluded, the chairs read the full list of bills on the agenda, thanked the committee and staff, and the hearing was adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• School districts need flexibility when it comes to those physical locations.
• Another area that we do like is relating to the three-year contracts.
• We do like the concept of a teacher contract.
• is going to be a great win for teachers who many of them now are just working on an annual contract,
• instead of a one-year contract.

Committee: Senate Education Pre-K - 12

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 296, as amended by strike-all, on middle and high school start times. Senator Bradley explained that the amendment would repeal the statewide mandate for later start times and return scheduling decisions to local school boards, while still requiring districts to inform the community about the health, safety, and academic effects of sleep deprivation and to consider later start times when setting transportation schedules. Testimony and debate were largely in support, with several school district and education group representatives waiving in support, and members citing transportation, staffing, family logistics, and cost concerns under the existing mandate. The strike-all was adopted, and SB 296 was reported favorably by roll call vote, with Senators Berman, Osgood, and Chair Calatayud voting yes and Senator Gaetz voting no; other members were absent or not recorded in the excerpt. The committee then heard Senate Bill 356, which would designate January 27 as Holocaust Remembrance Day in Florida. Senator Berman said the date matches the UN’s Holocaust Remembrance Day and would require the governor to annually proclaim it, while allowing public observance and instruction about the Holocaust’s harms and its impact on the Jewish community and humanity. There was no substantive opposition in the excerpt, and the bill was reported favorably by roll call vote with yes votes from Senators Berman, Gaetz, and Chair Calatayud. Finally, the committee considered Senate Bill 166 on administrative efficiency in public schools. Senator Simon described a broad deregulation package affecting student assessments, grade promotion, teacher evaluations, contracts and certification, school board operations, instructional materials timelines, internal audits, facilities planning, cost-per-student-station limits, emergency make-up days, federal fund timing, and VPK oversight. Testimony was mixed: school district and education organization representatives generally supported the flexibility, while some groups opposed or urged changes to the grade 4 promotion and graduation-related provisions, arguing they could weaken academic standards. After debate focused especially on third-grade promotion and testing requirements, the bill was reported favorably by roll call vote. At the end of the meeting, members recorded their votes on SB 296 and SB 356, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• building codes, state sanitary and fire codes, and general housing-related problems, including all contract
• building codes, state sanitary and fire codes, and general housing-related problems, including all contract
• We travel to 28 locations on a weekly basis.
• Before 2017, we only had courts in certain locations; we now cover the entire state.
• We do not have decommissioned schools, vacant malls, or hotels like other locations to redevelop, so

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Housing

Summary: The Joint Committee on Housing held its second introductory hearing to frame the session’s housing agenda. Chairs Cyr and Haggerty described the hearing as a chance to hear a wide range of perspectives on Massachusetts’ housing crisis, including underbuilding, zoning and permitting barriers, rising costs, and the need for both state and local action. The committee heard from court, municipal, advocacy, and regional housing leaders, with recurring themes of increasing supply, preserving existing housing, preventing displacement, and expanding resources for renters and homeowners. Chief Justice Diana Horan of the Housing Court said the court is handling more than 40,000 new filings annually with only 15 judges, and estimated the court would need about 21 judges to meet demand. She described complications from RAFT-related stays, mental health and guardianship issues, aging housing stock, and the new eviction sealing law, which she said was being implemented smoothly but may require additional resources if filings continue to rise. The Massachusetts Municipal Association and MAPC emphasized that municipalities need flexibility, funding, and better tools such as MassWorks, Housing Works, H-DIP, 40R reforms, inclusionary zoning changes, and a local option transfer fee; they also said local control concerns and long permitting timelines remain major barriers. MAPC and others stressed that supply growth alone will not solve the crisis and urged continued support for subsidized housing, access to counsel, and modular/off-site construction. Advocates and housing providers focused on displacement, preservation, and tenant protections. Homes for All Massachusetts and Mass Law Reform Institute called for rent stabilization, stronger tenant protections, foreclosure prevention, elimination of junk fees, continued funding for RAFT and HomeBASE, and expanded access to counsel. Mass Union of Public Housing Tenants said the state needs far more extremely low-income housing, more operating subsidy, and major investment to repair public housing, while also supporting tenant technical assistance during redevelopment. Franklin County’s housing authority warned that rural communities are being left out of many state programs and asked for a rural LIHTC set-aside, a permanent rural credit boost, and a review of housing choice programs. A Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation researcher presented findings that communities that add housing generally see stronger municipal finances, and that housing growth can improve property tax and state aid outcomes. Seasonal community representatives from Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket described extreme affordability pressures and the need for tailored tools. Nantucket’s housing trust chair said the island has made progress through local funding, inclusionary zoning, and deed-restricted units, but still needs a real estate transfer fee and faster ways to preserve year-round housing. Across the hearing, members and witnesses repeatedly returned to the need for a mix of production, preservation, tenant protections, and local flexibility, rather than relying on any single policy solution.

Transcript Highlights:

• UC Health locations serve patients from 99% of California zip codes.
• UC Riverside and Riverside Community College District, and it's just fantastic to have students co-located
• Our contract called for full funding.
• we are working with Teamsters Union at the moment we were not fully funded with the compact our contract
• We also encourage you to send a clear message to the CSU to establish a fair contract for the 20,000

Transcript Highlights:

• disposal methods, and volumes discharged to receiving water bodies, spill history, elevation, and location
• disposal methods, and volumes discharged to receiving water bodies, spill, history, elevation, and location
• that this statute really just is about businesses being mad that maybe they didn't get a government contract
• Make it even harder for cities and counties to have contracts with clean energy companies and renewable
• counties already have internal system inspections and inspection requirements outlined in their contracts

Bills: S0558 , S1294 , S1468 , S1474 , S1682 , S1628

Committee: Senate Environment and Natural Resources

Keywords: stormwater systems, environmental standards, municipal infrastructure, engineering certifications, local compliance, Florida Department of Transportation, biosolids, agronomic rate, land application, environmental protection, Florida statutes, nutrient management, recordkeeping, farming, compost products, wastewater treatment, environment, sewage disposal, pollution control, reporting requirements

Transcript Highlights:

• was created out of a 2024 budget proviso to study the underground economy in the construction and contracting
• it does not include an allocation to create the fund, but rather the creation of a new budgetary location
• ... ...the fund, but rather the creation of a new budgetary location for the deposit of penalties from
• Employers can become training agents at any time of year, signing a contract with the program sponsor
• We invite each of you who would like to visit the center close to your location.

Committee: House Labor & Workplace Standards

Summary: The committee heard a report from Labor and Industries on the Underground Economy Task Force in the construction industry. L&I said the task force, created by a 2024 budget proviso, studied underreporting, worker misclassification, unpaid taxes and premiums, and other underground-economy activity. L&I described consensus recommendations including defining and regulating construction labor providers, improving interagency information sharing, increasing penalties for repeat offenders, giving L&I more authority over successor accountability, reviewing agency penalties and policies, and exploring ways to track cash payments. Majority-but-not-consensus recommendations included posting subcontractor notices at job sites, setting a threshold for independent contractor use that would trigger review, holding direct contractors liable for unpaid wages owed by subcontractors, and reviewing reporting requirements. Testifiers from labor, business, and the Attorney General’s Office generally supported stronger enforcement and transparency, while business representatives cautioned against overregulation, preserving lawful cash payments, and protecting legitimate independent contractors and small businesses. L&I said the final report would be issued by December 31 and that the underground economy committee would be reconvened. The committee then heard the wage recovery work group report. L&I explained current wage-complaint law and the work group’s consensus recommendations to let the department prioritize wage complaints strategically, aggregate related complaints, raise the minimum penalty for willful violations from $1,000 to $1,500 and use a penalty matrix, improve employer awareness, and create a wage recovery fund. Under the proposal, penalties would be deposited into a new fund account, and after the fund is sufficiently built up, limited early payments could be made to eligible low-income workers facing immediate hardship, with a five-year review built in. Business and labor representatives both supported the general framework, though business raised concern about safeguards to recover funds if a claim later proved invalid or fraudulent. The committee also received an overview of Washington’s apprenticeship system and the Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council. L&I described Washington as a state apprenticeship agency with higher standards than the federal system, and said registered apprenticeship combines paid on-the-job training with classroom instruction. L&I reported more than 15,500 active apprentices, 4,800 new registrations, 2,500 completions, and 206 active sponsors. Members asked about the difference between state and federal apprenticeship pathways, the role of program sponsors and training agents, and the objection process for new programs. L&I said objections do not stop approval but can delay recognition, and noted ongoing internal work to improve the process. The presentation also highlighted strong post-apprenticeship earnings and return on investment. Finally, the committee heard updates on wildland firefighter respiratory protection, the impacts of federal cuts to NIOSH, and ESD’s unemployment insurance and workforce systems. L&I and SHARP said wildland firefighters face significant smoke exposure and cancer risk, but current respirator options are limited by remote conditions, communication needs, fit, and heat; no NIOSH-approved commercial respirator currently meets the relevant NFPA standard. L&I said Washington’s firefighter rules do not currently require respiratory protection for wildland firefighting. On NIOSH, the presenter warned that federal cuts and grant disruptions could reduce training, surveillance, firefighter cancer research, agricultural safety work, and exposure-assessment programs, including work relevant to Hanford and mining safety. ESD reported rising UI claims, a stable unemployment rate, federal funding uncertainty, and pressure on the trust fund, but also described technology and process changes that have reduced call-center bottlenecks and improved claim processing. ESD said a 90-day pilot that compresses phone hours has increased calls answered and work completed while improving timeliness of first payments.

Transcript Highlights:

• Let me begin by saying that our business model is that we place our kiosks in retail locations such as
• So it kind of depends on where you're talking in terms of location and the volume.
• That could be a contracted... We haven't required a specific independent.
• That could be a contracted qualified person, an entity that does that at the state or otherwise.
• We have an outside contract that we're having to a 10-year master plan for us.

Committee: Joint Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Interim Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• She was picked up by a man from a nightclub in Fort Myers and drove her to a secluded location where
• Senator Polsky: One way to imagine this is to say we are under contract with these folks.
• I think about business people, or the lawyers, think about a contract. Think about a promise.
• There are more convicted felons inside of state prison right now in 70 plus locations who are getting
• Continue to get $44 million in contracts. This is it guys.

Transcript Highlights:

• The cost of the capabilities is so much lower than they would have to go out and contract for that sometimes
• We do not uphold foreign contracts. We follow state law. We follow the Florida Constitution.
• The state-term contract for building code inspection services.
• At the same time, people are seeing things that raise real concerns: no-bid contracts, insiders being
• I have driven students at the correct polling location, you know, last minute to make sure they can cast

Summary: The House convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a quorum present, then moved into returning messages from the Senate. Early action focused on CS/CS/HB 1503 on computer science education and certification, which would add computer science and artificial intelligence content in high school and create a K-12 teacher certificate program; after adopting a House amendment restoring certificate language and adjusting implementation timing, the House concurred in the Senate amendment and passed the bill 105-0. The chamber then took up CS/CS/HB 1085 on local government cybersecurity, adopting a House amendment to allow local governments to buy into the cyber grant program and add a five-year sunset, then concurring in the Senate amendment shifting grant administration back to the Florida Digital Service; the bill passed 104-1. The House refused to concur in Senate amendments to CS/HB 351 on concurrent legislative jurisdiction over U.S. military installations and HB 6011 on reporting gifts or honoraria, sending both back to the Senate. It also refused to concur in the Senate amendment to CS/HB 851 on professional learning for instructional and school administrative personnel, saying the Senate version expanded the bill beyond its original autism-focused scope. After a recess, the House unveiled Speaker Daniel Perez’s portrait and heard extended remarks praising his leadership, institutional reforms, and the work of House staff and members. In the second returning-message list, the House debated CS/CS/HB 1471 on systems of law and terrorist organizations. The Senate amendment clarified the definition of “promote,” refined notice and timeline provisions for terrorist organization designations, and kept references to Sharia law as an example in the foreign religious law section. Supporters argued the bill was aimed at conduct beyond speech and was intended to protect the Constitution and public safety; opponents warned it would chill free speech, target Muslim Floridians, and give the governor and cabinet unprecedented power without adequate due process. After lengthy debate, the House concurred and passed the bill 80-25. The House then took up CS/CS/HB 1473, a public records bill tied to HB 1471, and moved to concur in a technical Senate amendment aligning the records exemption with the revised structure of HB 1471.

Transcript Highlights:

• child-placing agent. ...partners are defined by the measure as a private child-placing agency under contract
• puts some requirements that the, I'll call it, the client-facing people at an out-of-state entity be located
• although, as I mentioned last time, I believe there was some discussion that eventually they might locate
• This is a request that allows distilleries, suppliers of two locations controlled by the licensee, to
• The reason I ask that is there were certain contractors that had contracts with Mental Health.

Bills: SB1983 , SB444 , SB1503 , SB1561 , SB592 , SB1501 , SB1946 , SB1567 , SB1833 , SB2026 , SB904 , SB2178 , SB1651 , SB1558 , SB1565 , SB1553 , SB1257 , SB65 , SB1749 , SB1242 , SB1642 , SB640 , SB667 , SB1436 , SB1484 , SB1562 , SB1794 , SB1644 , SB1533 , SB933 , SB1555

Committee: House Health and Human Services Oversight

Summary: The committee opened with prayer and then heard a long series of Senate bills, many of them agency request or cleanup measures. Early bills included SB 1983, directing DHS to provide foster care data to resource family partners to better identify foster family needs; SB 444, allowing hospice personnel to control or destroy controlled substances after a patient’s death; and SB 1503, a PCS related to pregnancy resource center outreach and in-state referrals, which drew discussion about virtual versus face-to-face support and was reported out after members agreed to continue working on the language. Other measures advanced included SB 1561 on progressive discipline for certain M.T.M.S. personnel, SB 592 and SB 1946 on alcohol-related licensing/sales issues, SB 1501 and SB 1567 as cleanup or implementation bills, and SB 1833 codifying a SNAP waiver barring candy and soft drinks purchases. The committee also considered several health and human services bills. SB 2026 expanded access to military discharge papers to grandchildren; SB 904 addressed public funds and state facilities, with members raising concerns about legislative interference in medical decision-making and liability; SB 2178 modified alcohol licensing insurance requirements; SB 1651 updated Oklahoma Medical Board license language; SB 1558 clarified the definition of a child for level E group homes; SB 1565 promoted Food is Medicine efforts to improve maternal and infant outcomes; and SB 1553 required psychologist review of appealed adverse determinations involving mental health claims. SB 1257, with a policy recommendation, expanded THC/controlled substance language to align with federal guidelines, and SB 1749 made a cleanup change related to food trailers and LP gas inspections. Later in the meeting, the committee advanced SB 65 with a policy amendment adding fentanyl and xylazine test strips; SB 1242, which included OMMA education and abandoned grow cleanup provisions; SB 1642, allowing shorter acute prescriptions to help reduce addiction risk; SB 640, treating abandoned grow facilities as public nuisances so local governments can abate them; SB 667, clarifying accreditation language for chiropractic programs; SB 1436, requiring hospitals to provide information on obtaining records after stillbirth or miscarriage; SB 1484, codifying medical examiner practices in infant or child deaths; SB 1562, addressing hospice patient solicitation; SB 1794, creating a mental health bed-availability database; SB 1644, seeking data on alpha-gal syndrome to support federal research funding; SB 1533, ensuring burial assistance for Oklahoma veterans who die out of state; SB 933, creating a right-to-try pathway for individualized treatments; and SB 1555, aligning the definition of intellectual disability with federal law. Most bills were reported out do pass, with recorded votes ranging from unanimous to a few nays on some measures. SB 1304 was laid over, and the committee adjourned at the end of the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• We divided the state into 11 location sites and had a traveling roadshow with a conference in each location
• We divided the state into 11 location sites and had a traveling roadshow with a conference in each location
• We've contracted with a company to conduct residency verifications for all new applicants on the ESA
• In 2022, the University of Arizona disclosed contracts worth $1.5 million with a federally sanctioned

Committee: Senate Senate Education Committee of Reference

Summary: The Senate Education Committee heard a presentation from Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne on school safety, academic improvement, career and technical education, ESA oversight, and teacher pay. Horne argued that students cannot learn if schools are unsafe and urged more funding for school police officers, described efforts to expand Project Momentum and tutoring, supported keeping cell phones out of classrooms, promoted the Student Industry Partnership, and called for renewing Proposition 123 with more money directed to teacher raises. In response to a question, he said the department is using AI tools, residency checks, and investigators to monitor ESA fraud and abuse. The committee then considered SB 1074, which would require written certification from a principal or administrator before a student removed for discipline could return to class. Horne and the sponsor said the bill would support teachers and improve accountability, while the Arizona Education Association opposed it as unnecessary, punitive, and potentially inconsistent with existing practice and FERPA concerns. After debate, the committee voted 4-3 to give SB 1074 a do pass recommendation. Members also heard SB 1327, as amended, requiring public universities to adopt and post research security policies and report on foreign grants and security practices. ABOR and a national security advocate supported the measure as a way to strengthen protections against foreign adversary influence, and the committee adopted the strike-everything amendment and advanced the bill 5-2. The committee then approved SB 1475, which bars students convicted of certain serious offenses from participating in school-sponsored interscholastic activities, 4-3 after discussion about second chances, counseling, and whether the bill was too punitive. Finally, the committee advanced SB 1582 and SB 1583, both related to school safety interoperability funding and fund administration, with technical discussion about correcting bill language and returning unspent monies to the fund. It also approved SB 1598, which appropriates $500,000 for grants to school districts and charter schools to create community gardens; supporters described the gardens as hands-on learning spaces that teach science, nutrition, and teamwork and can also serve as calming spaces for students. The committee adjourned after the last vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• Witness: It is an outside contracted ALJ.
• We contract with the Attorney General's office for an ALJ.
• Witness: Contracted. We do pay for them. Yes. Senator Jett: Understood.
• They would still be an independent, contracted ALJ. contracted ALJ. Senator Jett for a question.
• Contracted. We do pay for them. Yes. Understood.

Bills: SJR50 , SJR51 , SJR52 , SJR53 , SJR54

Committee: Senate Administrative Rules

Summary: The Senate Committee on Administrative Rules met with a quorum and considered five Oklahoma Health Care Authority and OMMA rules resolutions. Senate Joint Resolution 50 was presented as a federal-law conformity change allowing licensed professional counselors, LBHPs, and licensed alcohol and drug counselors to work as eligible providers in federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics; despite questions about the fiscal estimate, it passed 9-0. SJR 51 was amended to correct rule citations related to human genome sequencing, then failed on a 4-5 vote after members noted an estimated $860,000 fiscal impact tied to legislation. SJR 52, removing physician visit limits in Medicaid, was described as an access-to-care and rural health measure that could reduce ER use; it passed 8-1. The committee then took up SJR 53 from the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, which would align rules with statutes requiring prepackaging of medical marijuana products and other provisions. Members questioned OMMA extensively about the economic impact, the discrepancy between the agency’s estimate and Loft’s much larger estimate, and whether the rules were already being implemented under emergency authority. OMMA said the rules mirrored existing statutes and that the cost would fall on the industry and ultimately consumers, not the agency. After debate about regulatory fairness and the effect on the industry, the resolution passed 5-4. Finally, SJR 54, a non-major OMMA rule change renaming the adjudicator from administrative law judge to hearing examiner to match the Administrative Procedures Act, drew concerns about independence and whether OMMA should be required to contract for outside adjudicators. The director said the change was only a terminology alignment and would not alter current practice, and Senator Bergstrom said he would pursue legislation next year to require outside contracting. An amendment changed the committee’s position from disapprove to approve, but the underlying resolution still failed 4-5. The committee then adjourned.