Transcript Highlights:

• Future planning included enhanced re-entry services which links individuals to post-release services.
• We don't have some of those wraparound counseling services.
• Education services. So they certainly could be eligible for all of those services.
• School nurses do IEP related services, which are federally mandated services, that kids are eligible
• Thank you all for your service to New Mexicans.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, because those service animals are not considered pets, but we would like to include service animals
• Um, because those service animals are not considered pets, but we would like to include service animals
• Um, because those service animals are not considered pets, but we would like to include service animals
• </c> causing injury and death to a service causing injury and death to a service animal.<00:01:43.119
• </c> like I would like to include service like I would like to include service animals<00:01:48.079><

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Judiciary Committee considered House Bill 698, which increases criminal penalties for certain animal cruelty offenses. The chair explained that the committee would adopt the proposed SD1 and further amend the bill to narrow its scope to pet animals, clarify that the five-year prohibition on owning a pet animal applies only when the conviction involves a pet animal, and separate the increased penalties into distinct subsections at the Attorney General’s recommendation. The committee also planned to reinstate provisions increasing penalties for second or subsequent offenses involving injury or death to service animals or law enforcement animals, and to place the definitions of pet animal and service animal in the preamble. It was noted that the pet-animal definition would not apply to chickens, roosters, or pigs raised for food, and that the service-animal definition covers only dogs. Senator Chang said he appreciated the effort to tighten the bill and clarify its scope, but he remained concerned about possible impacts on the agricultural sector and said he would vote with reservations. No other concerns were raised. The committee then voted to pass HB 698 HD1 with amendments. The vote was Chair Rose aye, Vice Chair Osai aye, Senator Chang reservations, Senator Sanur excused, and Senator A aye. The measure was adopted and the meeting concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• Why have those services not restarted?
• services, as far as I can tell.
• recommend CMS, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, deny current and future payment services
• During the IEP meeting, his service grid, which outlines services he's legally entitled to, was dismantled
• she should be given those services.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The special legislative commission on the future of Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children held a hybrid public hearing focused on the hospital’s future, admissions, staffing, infrastructure, and whether the facility should be preserved, expanded, or reimagined. Opening remarks from legislators, commissioners, parents, and union representatives emphasized that Pappas provides a unique combination of medical, rehabilitative, educational, and residential services for children with complex needs, and several speakers argued that the hospital is effectively being depopulated through reduced admissions and ongoing discharges despite public assurances that it remains open. Multiple speakers urged the commission to extend its authorization and continue its work before any closure or major change can occur. Testimony from labor leaders, including AFSCME, SEIU Local 509, and the Massachusetts Nurses Association, described a “silent closure” in practice, with staff reporting confusion about the hospital’s status, declining census numbers, blocked admissions, and uncertainty about the workforce’s future. They called for immediate action to stop admission denials and unnecessary discharges, and some proposed short-term solutions such as temporary modular structures to address infrastructure barriers and allow admissions to resume. Parents and former patients testified that Pappas provided life-changing independence, specialized therapy, and campus-based supports that they said could not be replicated elsewhere, and they criticized alternative placements as inadequate. Commissioner Robert Goldstein of the Department of Public Health said the administration supports keeping Pappas open and funded while the commission works, but he argued that admissions must comply with hospital-level-of-care rules and that the campus’s deteriorating infrastructure limits the kinds of children who can safely be served there. He said the department is continuing admissions for appropriate patients, working to expand outreach and services, and exploring long-term options, including broader statewide models of care. Commissioners pressed him on whether discharge status or lack of a clear discharge plan had been used as a barrier to admission, and requested de-identified data on patients recommended for admission but denied. No formal votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• Number 2 specific services are provided by the program.
• But we also have parents services and then those parents services.
• There's also provide consultations, technical assistance, pre service in-service training for families
• that those services are not being diminished in with the services that would be provide in in the panhandle
• These services will provide the services to families.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:13:45.920><c> in</c> supplemental protective services in supplemental protective services in
• Um with the the service providers.
• </c> statewide social service organization. statewide social service organization.
• . services. services.
• </c><01:48:41.840><c> Well,</c> additional services required. Well, additional services required.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs heard House Bill 2095, which would provide supplemental appropriations for the Judiciary for the 2025-2027 biennium. Judiciary Administrative Director Brandon Kimura testified in strong support and outlined a request for about $6.4 million in supplemental operating funds, plus four permanent full-time position conversions. He grouped the request into security, services to court users, and staffing needs, including $3.25 million for supplemental armed private security at judiciary facilities statewide, nearly $200,000 for cybersecurity staffing and support, restoration of funding for substance use treatment purchase-of-service contracts, restoration of funding for the Office of Public Guardian on Kauaʻi, salary commission funding, a Kona court operations position, and two Court-Appointed Special Advocates positions converted from temporary to permanent. He also described five capital improvement requests totaling $55.4 million, led by $30 million for construction of a new South Kohala courthouse, $1.2 million each for air conditioning upgrades in Hilo and Kauaʻi, $15 million for elevator upgrades at Kahumanu Hale, and $8 million in lump-sum bond funds for emerging projects. Several organizations testified in support, including Parents and Children Together and the True Cost Coalition. Supporters emphasized the importance of the purchase-of-service funding for domestic violence and substance use treatment services and said the restoration would return funding to pre-COVID levels and help providers maintain capacity. Kimura explained that the Judiciary often shifts funds among contracts during the year to avoid service interruptions, but that the reduced funding has caused delays and operational problems for providers and probationers. Members asked detailed questions about the capital projects and operating requests. Representative Shimizu asked for more information on the lump-sum bond funds and the elevator project, and Kimura explained that the Kahumanu Hale request covers four remaining elevator shafts after earlier funding addressed the first five elevators. Representative Cochran asked about the absence of Maui County projects, and Kimura said the Judiciary is still planning for its older Maui facilities with DAGS. Chair Tarnas questioned the need for armed private guards and discussed whether court security should be prioritized within the Department of Law Enforcement; Kimura said the Judiciary needs additional personnel now and has not asked DLE to deprioritize other missions, though the chair suggested further coordination between the agencies. No vote or final action on the bill was taken in the portion of the hearing provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> for them separate as a fee for service for them separate as a fee for service yes<01:00:42.559><
• <01:10:41.159><c> so</c><01:10:41.520><c> continue</c> service so continue service so continue on<01:
• </c><01:13:09.960><c> was</c> fee schedule amount for a service was fee schedule amount for a service
• </c><01:14:10.679><c> under</c> claim for coverable services under claim for coverable services under
• </c> it like over 90% are related to Services it like over 90% are related to Services related<01:16:

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The House Finance Division III held an informational hearing on Medicaid, Medicare, Choices for Independence, and related financing, while postponing nursing facility financing and the county cap discussion to a later date. DHHS officials Ann Landry, Jonathan Ballard, and Medicaid Director Henry Litman provided an overview of Medicaid’s role, noting it is a federal-state partnership with state-specific eligibility and benefits, and emphasizing that Medicaid is a major funding and programmatic support for other DHHS initiatives. They also distinguished Medicaid from Medicare and explained that Medicaid funding is not the same as grant funding, though some providers may also receive federal grants through other channels. The presentation focused on New Hampshire’s relatively small Medicaid program and why it differs from national averages. Officials said about 184,000 residents are covered, roughly one in seven Granite Staters compared with one in five nationally, and attributed the difference largely to the state’s higher per-capita income and older population. They highlighted that about 65% of Medicaid-enrolled adults in New Hampshire are working, that only 22% of births are covered by Medicaid versus 42% nationally, and that the state’s uninsured rate is lower than the national rate. Members asked about covered services, income limits, federal matching rates, and the names of optional eligibility groups; staff explained that New Hampshire offers the optional groups discussed, with matching rates varying by category, including 90% for Granite Advantage and certain other groups, and 65% for children above the required level. A substantial portion of the hearing covered eligibility rules and recent policy changes. Officials reviewed the history of Medicaid, including HCBS waivers, the CFI program, Katie Beckett, the Olmstead decision, the ACA, and the end of continuous enrollment after the public health emergency. They also discussed the 2023 legislative expansion of postpartum coverage from 60 days to 12 months and child eligibility changes. In response to questions, DHHS said it is tracking utilization and costs for the postpartum expansion and reported that many maternal deaths occur after the prior 60-day coverage period, often involving substance use disorder or suicide; they said the longer coverage is intended to improve access to treatment and prevention. The committee also walked through household-income examples, clarified that Medicaid eligibility is based on household income and categorical rules, and confirmed that Granite Advantage ends at 138% of the federal poverty level unless another categorical basis applies. No votes were taken, and the hearing remained informational.

Transcript Highlights:

• I also want to thank military service.
• I have five VA accreditations. through county veteran service officers through county veteran service
• Earlier veteran service organizations.
• </c> requiring fees and providing a service requiring fees and providing a service that<00:19:41.120>
• I'm a retired Marine Service Officers.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> disrupt you know, a church service. disrupt you know, a church service.
• . service. service.
• </c> intent to go into that church service intent to go into that church service and<00:23:36.640><c>
• </c> with the intent to disturb that service. with the intent to disturb that service.
• </c> are disruptive in a in a church service? are disruptive in a in a church service?

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> Department of Health and Human Services Department of Health and Human Services so<00:04:34.919>
• So we have Adult Protective Service workers, we have child protective service workers, and we have JPOs
• </c> prevention we do the client services prevention we do the client services delivery<00:09:23.560>
• workers we have child Protective Service workers we have child protective<00:09:30.680><c> service</
• c><00:09:31.000><c> workers</c> protective service workers protective service workers jpos<00:09:33.120

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Okay, so in the state employees' health service costs, it says here deficiency bill of... ...service
• So we did go out to bid for that service.
• We use this account to reinvest activities for services that wouldn't be covered under Medicaid, sub-services
• clients for food, cash, and medical services.
• We get our eligibility services workers trained.

Keywords: 962, all

Summary: The Finance Advisory Committee approved the minutes from its May 14, 2026 meeting and then considered four fiscal transfers. FAC 2026-9 for the Office of the State Controller transferred $4.345 million among fringe benefit accounts in the General Fund and Special Transportation Fund. Members questioned several employee benefit accounts, including active and retiree health care, Social Security, higher education alternative retirement, and OPEB; agency staff explained the transfers were based on updated year-end projections, with some accounts showing surpluses and others needing additional funds. The item was approved, with two no votes noted. FAC 2026-10 for the Military Department transferred $150,000 from the Honor Guards account to personal services and Governor’s Guard accounts to cover operational needs, and it was approved without opposition. FAC 2026-11 for the Department of Social Services transferred $3.3 million among accounts. Most of the discussion focused on a surplus in the substance use disorder waiver/reinvestment account, lower-than-expected TANF/TFA caseloads, federal family planning backfill requirements, and staffing challenges in eligibility operations. DSS said some funds remained unused because a residential care vendor did not enter into a contract, some reserves were intended for future multi-year investments, and eligibility staff require 12 to 18 months of training; the item was approved. FAC 2026-12 for the Department of Children and Families transferred $3.05 million among accounts for year-end operational needs. Members asked about closures of day treatment and community-based prevention programs, and DCF said children were transitioned to other providers without service interruption, with closures driven by provider decisions and financial viability. DCF also explained that some prior funding had been used as gap funding and that ongoing support had been built into the budget. The committee approved the transfer and then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Regarding service centers, this calendar year the RMV will be moving three service center locations to
• The RMV also services business customers at our service centers through a drop-off service.
• hours, weekend services, and route expansions continuing across RTA service areas.
• We've also launched permanent extended service on all service lines and eight frequent bus routes on
• Service on all service lines and eight frequent bus routes on Fridays and Saturdays, and extended service

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This time we're looking at the Division of Indirect Support Services.
• This includes functions such as the Division of Management Services, IT services, and legal services.
• This time we're looking at the division of indirect support services.
• This includes functions such as the division of management services, IT services, legal services.
• IT services, legal services.

Summary: The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee met with a quorum and took up several Department of Health and Welfare and related budget items. On the Commission on Aging, a motion to restore $129,900 in ongoing general funds for senior nutrition failed, but a revised motion to restore the same amount as one-time general funds passed. The committee then approved the Division of Welfare budget items tied to federal and state changes under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and House Bill 345, including SNAP administrative cost adjustments, Medicaid expansion work requirements, and Medicaid eligibility system changes. For Indirect Support Services, the committee approved a budget that included a fund-source change for the background check unit, replacement items, IT modernization and consolidation, and the fiscal impact of Senate Bill 1314. It also approved a separate motion to exempt several Health and Welfare divisions from transfer limitations, but only for Youth Safety and Permanency and Licensing and Certification after a substitute motion narrowed the original request. The committee then approved a $60,000 general fund restoration for the Domestic Violence Council within Independent Councils, with a senator disclosing a potential conflict of interest for the record. The committee next adopted revised language for the Idaho Child Care Program Capacity Grant in the Early Learning and Development budget after extensive discussion about clarifying eligibility, investigations, and provider definitions; the motion passed despite concerns from the department and some members that the language remained unclear and policy-heavy. Finally, the committee approved consolidation of the Office of Species, Minerals and Energy Coordination, combining the former species conservation and energy/mineral offices and funding personnel, fisheries projects, and one-time energy resiliency grants. The meeting ended with adjournment to the call of the chair, and no further meeting was scheduled for the next morning except one House Appropriations item at 9 a.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• , health care provider charges, eligibility for services, and questions for Department of Human Services
• charges, eligibility for services, and questions for Department of Human Services staff.
• The United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Services, you are recognized.
• DMS, Division of Medical Services, is covering the bulk of our fee-for-service population.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Helpful if we know what kind of services those facilities offer and such.
• stepping into homeless services.
• In our program, we will have on Site clinical staff providing health services.
• We currently have shelters, and those shelters can't provide respite services.
• Medicaid does offer a limited service for skilled nursing as well as home health services, but even with

Summary: The meeting focused on hospital “avoidable days” and the difficulty of discharging medically stable patients who still need post-acute placement or social services. Presenters from Saint Anthony Hospital Midtown, the Oklahoma Hospital Association, City Care, and OU Health described common barriers including lack of skilled nursing, rehab, long-term care, behavioral health, and hospice placements; insurance prior authorization delays; Medicaid and Social Security eligibility delays; guardianship and Adult Protective Services bottlenecks; limited home health and private duty nursing; and the challenge of placing unhoused, uninsured, or medically complex patients. Several speakers emphasized that these delays reduce bed availability, increase emergency department boarding, contribute to staff burnout, and expose patients to hospital-acquired conditions and other harms. The testimony included multiple examples of patients remaining in acute care for days, weeks, or even months after being medically ready for discharge, including patients awaiting guardianship, disability determinations, or placement in facilities willing to accept them. Speakers also highlighted special populations such as patients with behavioral health or substance use disorders, medically fragile children, patients with criminal histories, and unhoused individuals who need respite or hospice care. City Care described its planned 40-bed medical respite facility, set to open in 2027, as a way to provide clinical support and housing navigation for patients too sick to recover on the street or in shelters. Witnesses recommended policy and system changes such as standardizing preauthorization protocols, expanding rural swing-bed and home-based services, increasing public guardianship resources, improving data collection on homelessness, expanding private duty nursing hours, and creating more placement options for complex patients. They also suggested better coordination between hospitals, DHS, APS, the Health Department, and post-acute facilities, including a database of facility services to improve discharge planning and keep patients closer to home. No votes or formal committee actions were taken in the transcript, but the chair indicated the issue would require collaboration across multiple agencies and partners.

Transcript Highlights:

• by an emergency services district.
• Um, I, we are the state association, like I said, for Emergency Services Districts, ESDs, Emergency Services
• Service is in our middle name.
• Uh, uh, annex later on when they're going to provide service as long as they can provide the service
• That's all it's about is service levels, reducing those service gaps created by, uh, annexation.

Transcript Highlights:

• including county eligibility and other services affected by H.R. 1.
• You get legal protection services.
• of crime, and also for rehabilitative services.
• This way it maximizes the connection to Medi-Cal and health services. Emergency Medi-Cal services.
• the $5 million to Chispa for their legal services operations.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Medi-Cal services...
• Care. the provision of services.
• This includes Medi-Cal primary care, mental health services, psychiatry, and supportive services.
• This includes Medi-Cal primary care, mental health services, psychiatry, and supportive services.
• Can we continue to offer the services? Can we offer those services locally?

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This can be a transfer from personal services and employee benefits into contractual services, or contractual
• services vice versa.
• And so personal care services in Medicaid are long-term services and supports benefit intended to help
• And so personal care services and Medicaid are long-term services and supports benefit intended to help
• PCS services. Yeah, okay.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You asked what the debt service would be for these bonds? Correct.
• Okay, then part of the bill concerns the documentary service fee.
• What would you tell a consumer about the document service fee?
• I mean, do you have a service protocol for vehicles you sell? Sure.
• We are currently servicing vehicles in Washington State.

Summary: The committee heard briefings and public testimony on three transportation bills. Substitute Senate Bill 6170 would raise WSDOT monetary thresholds for doing repairs in-house and for contracting work intended to support small, veteran-, minority-, and women-owned businesses, increasing the regular repair limit from $60,000 to $100,000, the emergency repair limit from $100,000 to $160,000 with annual inflation adjustment, and the contracting threshold from $100,000 to $160,000. The sponsor and WSDOT supported the bill as an efficiency measure; the fiscal note indicated no fiscal impact. Washington Federation of State Employees also supported it, saying the higher limits would let highway maintenance crews do more work in-house while preserving the existing work split with contractors. Substitute Senate Bill 6225 would authorize new and expanded transportation general obligation bonds, including $1.1 billion for highway projects in the Move Ahead Washington account, $400 million for listed highway projects with cost increases, and a $500 million increase to the SR 520 bond authorization, while also ending issuance of certain older unissued bond authorizations after June 30, 2026. Committee members asked about debt service, bond capacity, and how the money would be allocated; staff said the projects would be handled through the budget process and that the bill was intended to provide flexibility. Labor and business groups supported the bill as a way to fund preservation and maintenance and provide predictability, while Transportation Choices Coalition said any bonding should be limited and paired with broader transportation funding reforms and protection for multimodal programs. Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6354 would allow certain qualifying U.S.-based battery electric vehicle manufacturers that have Washington service facilities and no prior franchise agreements to own and operate dealer licenses and sell directly, while also raising the dealer documentary service fee from $200 to $250 until the end of 2026 and directing part of the increase to an EV rebate program and the multimodal transportation account. Rivian and Lucid supported the bill as a compromise that would expand EV access and direct-sale options; Climate Solutions and the Port of Seattle also supported it, citing emissions reduction and affordability goals. Washington State Auto Dealers Association supported the compromise, saying it strengthens franchise protections while allowing limited direct sales. Honda, Toyota, Ford, GM, and the Alliance for Automotive Innovation opposed the bill, arguing it creates special treatment and weakens the franchise system, and some urged added consumer protections, service requirements, or bonding. The committee took no final action and closed the public hearings after testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm a budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office.
• And they said, thank you for your service.
• I'm a budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services Office.
• I'm a budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services Office.
• Average service Average service for our public safety people is 10 years, and most of our membership

Summary: The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee heard budget presentations for the Idaho Military Division, the Division of Veterans Services, and PERSI. For the Military Division, analysts reviewed the agency’s structure, recent transfers of emergency medical services into the division, and the fiscal year 2027 request, which included hazardous materials response funding, a pay-parity adjustment for 223 state employees, a small enhancement for grant administration overhead, and rescissions tied to vacant positions and reduced tuition assistance and state match funding. General Donnellan said the division had absorbed the 3% rescission, but further cuts to state education assistance for Guardsmen would be concerning. Members also asked about the EMS transition, CEC-related pay parity, and the general’s military service. The committee then reviewed the Division of Veterans Services budget. Analysts described the state veterans homes, cemeteries, and veterans assistance programs, along with ongoing staffing challenges and the use of a temporary nursing pool to reduce reliance on contract nurses. Administrator Mark Champal said the division is making progress on staffing, expects to save nearly half a million dollars through the new pool, and continues to manage near-capacity homes while the new Boise veterans home is under construction. He also highlighted outreach efforts for homeless and vulnerable veterans, the division’s high satisfaction rates, and recent gains in benefits claims, education certifications, and community support connections. Finally, PERSI’s budget and operations were discussed. Analysts outlined the retirement system’s dedicated funding, the ongoing pension software upgrade, and requested one-time funding for the final year of that project, a continuity-of-operations and records management plan, and IT replacements. Director Mike Hampton reported strong investment returns, a funded ratio around 90%, and more than $1.3 billion in annual benefits paid. Committee members asked about retiree cost-of-living adjustments, the PERSI Choice 401 plan, the possibility of moving toward defined contribution or hybrid plans, and the meaning of “other” participating employers. Hampton said the board had recommended a retroactive retirement allowance adjustment through 2022, explained that PERSI’s structure supports retention, and noted that board meetings are now livestreamed. The committee adjourned until the next morning.