Transcript Highlights:

• generally begin with FEMA, but also can include the Environmental Protection Agency, Army Corps of Engineers
• Army Corps of Engineers for households that have opted in.
• EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, is still leading the debris removal activities.

Summary: The committee heard a broad public safety budget hearing focused on youth justice funding, probation incentive grants, and disaster response and recovery. On the youth justice item, the Office of Youth and Community Restoration described a proposed change to the JJRBG funding formula that would shift resources away from a DJJ-based measure and toward county youth population, serious offenses, and step-down placements in less restrictive programs. Members asked about data on Native American youth; OYCR said statewide data are limited, but its SYTF data show about 1% of youth in secure youth treatment facilities were Native in 2024. The Department of Finance had no objections, and the item was discussed as a way to support alternatives to long-term incarceration. The committee then reviewed the community corrections performance incentive program for county probation departments. The Department of Finance proposed stabilizing the program with a maintenance payment, updating the performance baseline, and adding a growth factor; the LAO agreed the formula needed changes but recommended using 2022-23 data instead of 2021-23, using marginal rather than average cost assumptions, rejecting the growth payment and minimum guarantee, and adding stronger oversight through the BSCC. Finance said it was open to some technical changes but opposed a new BSCC audit framework, noting Judicial Council already surveys probation departments and that evidence-based practice use has increased over time. Members and staff indicated the proposal still needed further work. A major portion of the hearing focused on the January 2025 Southern California wildfires and state disaster response. A resident of Altadena gave emotional testimony about evacuation failures, loss of home, and the need for accountability. LAO and Cal OES outlined the disaster response and recovery system, including mutual aid, alert and warning, debris removal, FEMA and state funding streams, and the long timeline for reimbursement. Cal OES said it had pre-positioned resources, temporarily took over the county’s wireless emergency alert function for about three weeks, coordinated debris removal and recovery operations, and had already allocated more than $286 million in state funds. Officials also discussed the 100% federal cost share for emergency work for 180 days and the uncertainty created by changing federal processes and the cancellation of the BRIC resilience program. The committee also heard two smaller Cal OES items: a request to reappropriate about $22 million for the law enforcement mutual aid reimbursement program, which the LAO said should be placed in statute with clearer goals and reporting, and an update on Victims of Crime Act funding, where Cal OES said federal VOCA allocations have fallen sharply and that roughly $224 million would be needed to maintain current service levels if federal funding does not improve. Public comment included a request for funding to expand datacasting and emergency alert receivers for wildfire and earthquake warning.

Transcript Highlights:

• And please, please, dear Lord, let the lawyer help the engineer to understand the legal part of this.
• When the engineer speaks with lawyers, I feel like I'm at a disadvantage. I'm just not that smart.
• We had to go to two hearings, consisting of a total of six examiners, one of them having an engineering

Bills: HB3619, HB3652, HB4572, HB4891, HB4941, HB5103, HB5105, HB5106, HB5224, HB5600

Keywords: surface estate, well plugging, Railroad Commission, landowner rights, liability, strategic reserve, gas supply, petroleum products, disaster response, Railroad Commission of Texas, energy security, emergency planning, oil and gas waste, environmental regulation, waste management, mining pits, groundwater monitoring, regulation, commercial disposal facilities, environmental standards

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm also an engineer, and we have some various concerns with this.
• I too am a licensed registered engineer and I get stuck in projects too frequently.
• And the natural flood mitigation they provide is cheaper than engineered stormwater projects.

Transcript Highlights:

• All the way back to the earliest Longhorn cattle drives, it's, it's been an economic, uh, engine for
• I'm not a water, you know, engineer, so there's going to be somebody that'd be smarter than me that's
• My expertise is to bring it to you all and then, you know, put together a plan through with engineers

Transcript Highlights:

• Moving on to page 11, you can see the Office of the State Engineer, or sorry, no. the Office of the State
• Engineer, my bad.
• Line 123 is another appropriation to the State Engineer for $5 million.

Transcript Highlights:

• c><01:22:23.160> via<01:22:23.600> a The language includes a right to appeal via a contested
• Additionally, having a full contested case appeal could jeopardize criminal investigation from both the

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• geoengineering is not, and this is a very important distinction, it is not ordinary jet aircraft engine
• It is not ordinary<00:05:19.120> jet<00:05:19.360> aircraft<00:05:20.160> engine
• <00:05:20.479> exhaust ordinary jet aircraft engine exhaust ordinary jet aircraft engine exhaust
• As of now, they believe that solar engineering has only been attempted at a very small scale despite
• As of now, they believe that solar engineering has only been attempted at a very small scale despite

Bills: HB60

Keywords: geoengineering, weather modification, environmental safety, atmospheric pollutants, criminal pollution, Meeting Start: 00:00:02 Roll Call: 00:00:08 26 RS HB 60 - AN ACT relating to geoengineering: 00:01:35 Department of Corrections Update: 00:32:59 Kentucky Parole Board Update: 01:19:21, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Our offices register and license the people who power the economic engine that runs our Commonwealth.
• It's the engineering that allows them to use equipment that is uniquely suited to do this incredibly
• My dad worked a little bit farther south in Windsor at Combustion Engineering and ABB before he went
• It's always hard for me to sit in these meetings, and that, like, Boston isn't the economic engine of
• UMass and MassBiologics and trying to get a facility that we thought was going to be an economic engine

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Ways and Means held a public FY27 budget hearing at Barnstable Town Hall, with opening remarks emphasizing the Cape and Islands’ seasonal infrastructure, housing, transportation, workforce, and digital needs. The hearing began with testimony from the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, which outlined the Healey-Driscoll administration’s budget priorities for job training, apprenticeship, youth employment, reentry programs, and unemployment insurance modernization. The secretary highlighted proposed funding for the Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund, Career Technical Initiative, YouthWorks, reentry workforce development, and services for young adults with disabilities, along with a proposal to streamline youth work permits. Members also discussed the unemployment trust fund, the COVID assessment on employers, rising unemployment, and the need to improve DUA customer service and claims processing. Committee members asked about job seeker barriers such as child care, housing, transportation, and out-migration of young workers, as well as how to keep Cape Cod graduates and seasonal workers in the region. The administration said its strategy is to pair training with broader affordability investments and to expose students to career pathways earlier, including through middle school, early childhood STEM, YouthWorks, pre-apprenticeships, and Building Pathways. Senators and representatives also raised concerns about regional funding disparities, especially for Hampshire Franklin MassHire, and the administration said it is reviewing MassHire funding and service equity through a policy committee and statewide workforce board. On unemployment assistance, officials reported major improvements in wait times and claims processing, but said they are still working through backlogs and staffing challenges while maintaining program integrity. The committee then heard testimony from the Executive Office of Economic Development. The secretary described House 2 as a fiscally restrained budget with no new taxes or fees, while preserving core programs and using the Mass Leads Act tools to support competitiveness. EOED’s proposal included funding for the Community One Stop for Growth, rural economic development, social enterprise operating grants, regional economic development organizations, the Workforce Investment Trust Fund, Community Workforce Partnerships, Pathmaker, advanced manufacturing training, life sciences, innovation vouchers, AI initiatives, small business assistance, and tourism and live theater support. The Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation also testified on its FY27 request, focusing on consumer protection, licensing, banking, insurance, and public safety regulation. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• This growth has grown to be a $2.1 billion economic engine with over 16,000 people in its workforce.
• with<00:30:32.040> over<00:30:32.280> 16,000<00:30:33.560> people economic engine
• with over 16,000 people economic engine with over 16,000 people [clears throat]<00:30:34.320> in<
• so many reports—but before you build a bridge, you got to design it, and then you got to get the engineers
• And then you got to get the engineers And then you got to get the engineers in. in. in.

Keywords: 927, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, it's a very high-level engineering firm out of Golden, Colorado.
• Ethel is a group of former KICO petroleum engineers and geologists that have some very solid funding
• Uh it's a very high level engineering Uh it's a very high level engineering firm<01:19:34.400>
• Ethel is a group of former KICO uh Ethel is a group of former KICO uh petroleum<01:20:02.560> engineers
• c><01:20:03.040> geologists<01:20:04.400> that<01:20:04.719> have petroleum engineers

Bills: HB0075, HB0128

Keywords: virtual currency, kiosk, financial institutions, regulation, Wyoming Money Transmitters Act, penalties, severance tax, oil production, tax exemption, energy sector, economic impact, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:47:45.839> officer,<00:47:46.240> Major and the chief engineering officer, Major
• and the chief engineering officer, Major Shaol<00:47:47.119> Lee.
• One's an engineer and one is a conservation manager for the Hawaii Army National Guard to make sure that
• One's an engineer and one is a Kauaii.
• One's an engineer and one is a conservation<00:49:39.520> manager<00:49:40.720> uh<00:49

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• ,<00:38:31.839> and<00:38:32.000> I've Cabinet Deputy State Engineer, and I've Cabinet
• Deputy State Engineer, and I've got<00:38:32.400> Jason<00:38:32.720> Swall<00:38:33.040
• Jason Sala, deputy state highway<01:10:27.360> engineer,<01:10:27.760> Kentucky highway
• engineer, Kentucky highway engineer, Kentucky Transportation<01:10:28.719> Cabinet,<01:10:29.120
• <01:10:30.960> He<01:10:31.199> wasn't Jason Swalla, deputy state highway engineer

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee met for its sixth and final interim meeting after a brief technical delay, approved the October 14 minutes, and heard a presentation on a proposed Kentucky hands-free driving bill. The main discussion centered on distracted driving and a draft measure modeled on South Carolina law that would prohibit holding or supporting a mobile electronic device while driving on public roads, while allowing limited exceptions for parked/stopped vehicles, navigation, emergency reporting, dispatch systems, first responders, and certain hands-free call functions. The bill would make a violation a $100 fine plus court costs, with the draft allocating fine revenue to the traumatic brain injury trust fund, Kentucky trauma care system, and veteran program trust fund. The sponsor also said the bill would address prior concerns about enforcement and clarify that officers need a clear, unobstructed visual observation before stopping a driver, and that they may not search or seize devices or make custodial arrests solely for the violation. Alyssa Burns gave emotional testimony in support of the bill, describing the death of her young daughter Kimberly in a crash she attributed to a distracted driver and urging lawmakers to pass the measure to improve roadway safety. The sponsor cited Kentucky traffic fatality statistics, including 814 deaths in 2023 and an estimated 20% involving distracted driving, and argued that the bill could reduce preventable deaths. Several members voiced support and sympathy, including remarks comparing the effort to past seat belt legislation and suggesting possible future additions such as community service. One member raised concerns about enforcement and whether officers could reliably observe phone use inside vehicles, while another asked about the bill’s interaction with existing texting-while-driving penalties and whether points would still apply. The sponsor said the draft was still being refined, acknowledged gray areas, and invited further changes as the bill moves forward.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senator Green, uh, have you had engineers look at this to see if the roof is going to be sound?
• Um, yes, we have had engineers take a look in our design.
• take a look in our design um Engineers take a look in our design um we<00:04:47.880> there<00
• We actually just had an engineer out recently to take a look at some of our beams that needed shoring
• We actually just had an engineer out recently to take a look at some of our beams that needed shoring

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The argument of losing jobs, or in this case taking jobs and replacing them with an AI-engineered program
• AI<00:33:43.440> uh and replacing them with an AI uh and replacing them with an AI uh engineered
• :33:45.840> can<00:33:46.039> be<00:33:46.320> can<00:33:46.480> be engineered
• program uh can be can be engineered program uh can be can be something<00:33:46.960> that<00:
• ><01:21:40.560> software as sales and marketing software as sales and marketing software engineering

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• /c><00:05:26.600> and Facilities on the Capitol Complex, and was performed by architects, engineers
• As I've said before, and I wish Senator Ann Johnson Stewart was here because her group of engineers came
• As I've said before, and I wish Senator Ann Johnson Stewart was here because her group of engineers came
• As I've said before, and I wish Senator Ann Johnson Stewart was here because her group of engineers came
• firm that specializes b32 an engineering firm that specializes in<01:31:27.880> ice<01:31:28.159

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee first heard from the Minnesota Department of Administration on the governor’s capital budget requests. Commissioner Tamara Grundal described the state’s deferred maintenance backlog, saying Minnesota owns more than 4,800 buildings across 19 agencies, with an estimated replacement value of $11.2 billion and about $2.2 billion in deferred maintenance. She urged continued bonding support for asset preservation, CAPRA emergency repair funding, Capitol Complex security upgrades recommended by the ACAS advisory committee, and a budget-neutral account to help leverage federal funds for renewable energy storage and electric vehicle projects at state facilities. Members asked follow-up questions about prior security spending and CAPRA use. The commissioner said some 2018 security funds were used for items such as bollards, projectile-resistant glass, key card readers, and security kiosks, but specific details would be provided offline. On CAPRA, staff said recent projects included public safety upgrades, correctional facility repairs, water main and sewer work, roof repairs, lift station repairs, and boiler and steam trap replacements. The commissioner said the account has recently been used heavily, with about $1.9 million remaining, and estimated a typical target range of roughly $3 million to $5 million based on past spending and expected emergencies. A staffer said they did not know whether bonds had been issued ahead of time to fund the reserve and would follow up. The committee then heard from the Department of Public Safety on BCA capital projects. Commissioner Bob Jacobson and Superintendent Drew Evans said the governor’s proposal includes a new Southern BCA regional office and laboratory in Mankato, expansion of BCA regional office and lab space, and a new Minnesota State Patrol headquarters using trunk highway cash. Evans said the Mankato project is needed because of growth in DNA analysis, digital evidence, controlled substances, cyber tips, and sexual assault kit testing, and because the current St. Paul facility is over capacity. He said the new regional facility would improve turnaround times, reduce travel for scientists and law enforcement, support training, and improve evidence intake and crime scene response in southern Minnesota. Senator Pappas questioned the increase in the Mankato project cost from about $48 million to $68.6 million. Evans said the increase was driven by rising construction costs and additional specialized laboratory and support-space needs identified during design work with the Department of Administration. No votes or formal actions were taken during the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• Many of the comments were from entities, for example, that represent civil engineers and architects who
• <00:25:30.600> and uh that represent civil engineers and uh that represent civil engineers
• We're talking about, again, civil engineers—individuals who are simply working on trying to provide a
• We're talking about, again, civil engineers—individuals who are simply working on trying to provide a
• , city engineers, planners, HR professionals, and many others, Economic Development Association staff

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee heard testimony from Jeff Sigerson, executive director of the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board, who outlined the board’s mission and core programs: campaign finance disclosure, economic interest statements, and lobbying registration/reporting. He described the board as an independent agency with six members, noted current vacancies and confirmation requirements, and said the board’s budget request was essentially flat, with a base budget of about $1.793 million and most costs tied to salaries, office space, and other fixed expenses. He also reviewed the board’s enforcement structure, emphasizing civil-only penalties, a complaint-driven process, and the availability of reports, enforcement actions, and advisory opinions on the board’s website. Sigerson highlighted several recent and upcoming changes. Local ballot question committees for city, school district, levy, and bond issues now must register with the board if they exceed $750 in activity, and the board is preparing outreach and online registration tools to help local committees comply. He also discussed the public subsidy and political contribution refund programs, saying the board paid out about $2.12 million to 230 House candidates in 2024, that 93% of candidates signed the subsidy agreement, and that 2023 PCR refunds totaled about $447,000 for candidates and $1.616 million for party donors. He noted that the PCR maximum refund was recently increased from $50 to $75 per donation, and that payments could drop significantly in 2026 if the one-time supplement is not renewed. A major focus of the presentation was the board’s lobbying report and related legislative recommendations. Sigerson said the board is moving from tracking marginal expenses to tracking the subjects and entities being lobbied, and that lobbying will be expanded from certain metro-area governmental units to all cities, counties, school districts, townships, and other political subdivisions, potentially adding thousands of lobbyists. He said the board held two public hearings and received 23 written comments on proposed changes. The board’s main recommendations were to broaden the expert-testimony exception so that certain paid experts at local hearings would not need to register as lobbyists, while still requiring disclosure of who testified, before whom, and on what subject, and to adjust the current lobbying definition for local government employees and officials who spend more than 50 hours a month on intergovernmental lobbying work.

Transcript Highlights:

• hospitals in rural communities are among the largest employers in an area, providing a very real economic engine
• 380,000 jobs that are tied to hospitals or the vendors that we utilize, so it’s a great economic engine
• a great vendors that we utilize so it's a great economic<01:30:16.760> uh<01:30:16.880> engine
• our<01:30:17.719> state<01:30:18.679> I<01:30:18.800> do economic uh engine
• for our state I do economic uh engine for our state I do want<01:30:19.040> to<01:30:19.199><

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The Health Finance and Policy Committee heard testimony from the Minnesota Hospital Association and several hospital leaders about the financial strain facing hospitals across Minnesota. The association’s CEO said hospitals are essential 24/7 safety-net providers, but rising labor, supply, technology, and drug costs are outpacing reimbursement from Medicaid, Medicare, and commercial payers. He warned that many not-for-profit hospitals are struggling, that workforce shortages remain significant, and that the committee should consider help on Medicaid rates, discharge/boarding problems, mental health services, workforce development, protecting the 340B drug discount program, and avoiding new mandates that add costs. Relle Schultz of Winona Health described a community hospital with a 49-bed facility and long-term care services that has faced years of losses, including a $17 million loss in 2023 and $12 million in losses the following year. She said government payers now make up about 65% of the hospital’s mix, and each 1% increase in that mix costs about $1 million. She highlighted the difficulty of sustaining services such as dialysis, which was nearly closed until a local donor provided $3 million to keep it open for three years, and she emphasized the importance of 340B savings and the need for higher Medicaid payments. Carrie Mulski of Riverview Health in Crookston said critical access hospitals are also under pressure despite their federal designation. She explained that federal support has eroded, that Medicaid and other public programs do not cover full costs, and that her hospital’s 340B savings help keep the doors open. She said Riverview opened a new hospital in 2020 but was hit by the pandemic and inflation, leading to annual losses of $5 million to $6 million and a negative operating margin of 9% to 10%. She also described bond covenant problems, low cash on hand, the prior closure of the nursing home, and the need for rapid state action to stabilize rural hospitals and preserve access to care.

Transcript Highlights:

• We are able to work with students in areas like precision machining and engineering that are vital to
• Without dedicated state funding, schools risk losing the coordinators, key engines in this process, and

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Revenue held a hybrid hearing on a large slate of bills related to advertising, economic development, tourism, digital advertising, delivery taxes, and alcohol taxation. The first panel supported H. 3249, which would create a high school trade partnership program linking public schools with private employers, especially in manufacturing, and would offer employers a tax credit for participation. Representative Soder, Uxbridge High School leaders, and others argued the bill would strengthen career pathways, build a skilled workforce, and keep students and jobs in Massachusetts. The committee then heard testimony on H. 3031 and S. 2003 to modernize the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund by dedicating an additional share of hotel occupancy tax revenue to tourism promotion. Tourism and hospitality representatives from Cape Cod, Southwick Zoo, and Indian Ranch said the proposal would not raise taxes but would reinvest existing visitor-generated revenue into marketing that supports jobs, local businesses, and municipal tax receipts. A tech-industry coalition opposed several digital advertising tax bills and a delivery tax bill, warning they would raise costs, create uncertainty, and burden consumers, small businesses, and delivery workers. The largest portion of the hearing focused on S. 2029, which would raise the alcohol excise tax by 10 cents per drink and dedicate the revenue to public health programs. Public health experts, advocates, a student prevention leader, and representatives from Jane Doe, Inc. argued the tax would reduce alcohol-related harms, address decades of inflation-driven erosion in the tax, and generate substantial new funding for prevention, treatment, domestic violence services, and community schools. Committee members asked questions about the current tax structure, inflation, and how the proposal compares with neighboring states. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the chair adjourned after public testimony concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• He's a retired US Air Force colonel and Air Force engineer, a combat-experienced bomber pilot, former
• president of the Oklahoma Aerospace Foundation, a member of the University of Oklahoma Board of Engineering

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We carved out search engines like Google...
• We carved out search engines like Google and other things of that nature. They’re carved out.

Keywords: MS House Floor - 1 April, 2026; 10:00 AM, 925, all