Transcript Highlights:

• One hydrogen production project alone in Lancaster, it's called Element, is creating 1,200 union construction
• Janice Lynn from the Green Hydrogen Coalition and Jeremy Smith from the State Building Construction and
• Members of the committee, Jeremy Smith, here on behalf of the State Building and Construction Trades
• It's a project that is poised to create over 1,000 construction worker jobs, as a senator pointed out
• However, the society is open and willing to engage in constructive dialogue with hopes of reaching an

Summary: The committee heard several bills, with SB 1350 by Senator McNerney presented first. The measure would expand California’s use of renewable hydrogen in the power sector by allowing renewable portfolio standard credit for power plants using green hydrogen, with supporters emphasizing grid reliability, clean-energy goals, in-state investment, and construction jobs. Support came from labor, clean-energy, municipal utility, and local government representatives; NRDC Action Fund withdrew opposition after amendments, while a few groups remained opposed or neutral. The committee later took a roll call and SB 1350 passed out on a due pass recommendation. The committee also heard SB 1180 by Senator Allen, which would set operational rules for the Plastic Pollution Mitigation Fund created under SB 54, including clearer eligible uses, transparency, technical assistance, and access for tribes and smaller community groups. Environmental justice, ocean, conservation, and local government groups strongly supported the bill, saying it would ensure the fund addresses plastic pollution’s public health and environmental harms. Industry and manufacturing groups opposed unless amended, arguing the bill should stay tightly tied to plastic waste reduction and not broaden into source-reduction policy. After quorum was established, the committee approved SB 1180 on a due pass recommendation to Appropriations. SB 1326 by Senator Wahab was then heard to strengthen tribal consultation and tribal cultural resource protections under CEQA by recognizing tribal registers and requiring feasible avoidance or mitigation measures when tribes identify resources. Tribal representatives and supporters said the bill would better protect sacred sites and tribal knowledge, while cities, counties, utilities, builders, and rural county groups opposed unless amended, citing implementation concerns, possible litigation, and uncertainty for infrastructure and housing projects. The committee voted the bill out on a due pass recommendation to Appropriations. Finally, SB 954 by Senator Blakespear was presented as a cleanup of last year’s SB 131 advanced-manufacturing CEQA exemption, narrowing eligible projects and adding guardrails such as setbacks, air-quality limits, tribal consultation, labor standards, and habitat protections. Environmental and labor groups supported the bill as a needed correction to an overly broad exemption, while business, manufacturing, housing, and local-government groups opposed, warning it could make the exemption unusable and slow investment. Members debated the balance between environmental protection and manufacturing competitiveness, and the committee voted SB 954 out on a due pass recommendation to the Labor and Employment Committee; the transcript then moved on to SB 1031 on compostable plastics, which was introduced but not acted on in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• Some other states actually have that attached to the Construction Price Index.
• Most of the tax goes to roads, attaching it to the actual index and inflation as it pertains to construction
• sources as an opportunity to find other revenue streams that will assist with maintenance and construction
• The bonding package deals specifically with construction. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, all right.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The Cape Coral Construction Industry Association, a couple of months back, sent us a letter.
• You are recognized when you get to the podium from the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association.
• board member, and former chair of the Building Industry Oversight Committee for the Cape Coral Construction
• Oversight Committee for the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association.

Summary: The Legislative Auditing Committee heard several local-government audit requests and unanimously approved each one. The first item was Baker County, where county commissioners asked for an operational and financial audit because of repeated late audits, concerns about the finance office, and lack of confidence in county financial reporting. The county clerk supported an audit but argued it should be countywide and include all constitutional officers; she also described a dispute over access to the county finance system and pending litigation. After brief questions, the committee adopted a 9-0 motion directing the Auditor General to perform an operational audit of Baker County’s financial operations and records, with scope to be finalized during the audit. The committee then approved an audit request for the Concord Estates Community Development District in Osceola County. Senator Arrington said residents alleged excessive board compensation, large unexplained spending, missing financial reports, and refusal to provide records or hold open meetings. Residents and a board member testified about rising assessments, deteriorating amenities, and lack of transparency. The committee voted 10-0 to direct an operational audit of the CDD. It also approved, by 10-0 votes, operational audits of the town of Melbourne Beach, based on allegations of fiscal and operational improprieties and lawsuits that had cost the town more than $150,000, and the city of Apalachicola, where Senator Simon said longstanding water utility failures, grant issues, and consent-order problems warranted review. The final request was for a financial and operational audit of Cape Coral’s Building Department. Representative G. Lombardo said building-fee revenues appeared to be transferred for non-building purposes, permit processing was inconsistent, and the department relied heavily on a private firm while the building official had prior ties to that firm. Industry representatives testified that building funds were being diverted, service levels were suffering, and private-provider inspections were not always reflected in fee reductions. The committee adopted the motion 10-0. After completing all agenda items, the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'd also point out, I mean, part of the original construction is HVAC and roofs, and those aren't going
• Percent overage into a bond, knowing that there are reasons for that—inflation, construction costs, deviations
• later utilize in whatever discretionary fashion it chooses, so long as it comports with the broadly constructed
• So it's not just construction costs and things like that, but it's also sometimes the board changes the

Bills: SB414, SB621, SB2395

Keywords: bond election, ballot proposition, debt obligation, municipal bonds, local government finance, property tax, ad valorem tax, school district bonds, county bonds, special taxing district, voter information document, public debt, municipal finance, tax-supported debt, election ballot language, bond transparency, homestead tax impact, capital improvements, general obligation bonds, public bank

Transcript Highlights:

• We're a construction industry trade group in the state of Minnesota with 365 members that employ over
• 23,000 men and women in the construction industry.
• industry worker would a construction industry worker would want<00:53:25.800> to<00:53:25.840
• in the construction trade, so thinking<00:53:43.080> electricians,<00:53:43.720> etc.
• Our focus is to ensure that the system is implemented in a way that works in real-world construction

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Limit home construction.
• This includes encouraging the construction of accessory dwelling units and other missing middle housing
• That means that we still want people to meet construction standards when they're building these homes
• We're not demanding construction standards.
• That means that we still want people to meet construction standards when they're building these homes

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• saying that cotton gins are not required to submit air dispersion modeling to DNR to obtain a construction
• saying that cotton gins are not required to submit air dispersion modeling to DNR to obtain a construction
• So anytime we can encourage the construction of more gins in Missouri, that helps our producers out.

Summary: The committee first met in executive session and approved Senate Substitute for Senate Bill 913 on a roll call vote of 16 ayes and 3 noes. The committee then opened a public hearing on Senate Bill 1033, presented by Senator Jason Bean. He said the bill would exempt certain older covered farm vehicles used in local farming operations from emissions inspection requirements, and would also ease permitting requirements for cotton gins by removing the need for air dispersion modeling in obtaining construction permits. He also noted the bill incorporated language from Senate Bill 953 to create an alternative funding stream for the state air pollution control program. Witnesses in support included representatives of Missouri cotton producers, Missouri Farm Bureau, Infra, the Missouri Mining Association, the Missouri Concrete Association, the American Council of Engineering Companies, Missouri Forest Products, the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association, the Missouri Soybean Association, Associated Industries of Missouri, and the Missouri Corn Growers Association. Supporters generally argued that the farm vehicle exemption would reduce costly regulatory burdens on low-use farm vehicles, and that the cotton gin permitting changes would help Missouri cotton remain competitive with neighboring states and encourage in-state gin construction and expansion. Several witnesses also backed the air pollution control funding language, saying the program is important to permit holders and could become insolvent in fiscal year 2028. Committee members asked questions about cotton gin services, the number of affected cotton farmers, and the details and fiscal impact of the proposed funding stream for the air pollution control program. A Department of Natural Resources representative confirmed the program is projected to become insolvent in FY 2028 and said she would follow up on some details. No witnesses appeared in opposition, and the hearing on Senate Bill 1033 was concluded without further action.

Transcript Highlights:

• But also suspend any tariff or surcharge on a utility bill associated with the construction of a renewable
• But also suspend any tariff or surcharge on a utility bill associated with the construction of a renewable
• AYED WITH THE CONSTRUCTION OF A RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEM, OR EV CHARGING STATIONS FOR TWO YEARS.

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The Senate met on March 6, 2026, approved the prior day’s journal, and then proceeded through the day’s calendar of bills. A number of measures were passed, including bills amending the Corporation Law, Environmental Conservation Law, Public Officers Law, Executive Law, Cannabis Law, Vehicle and Traffic Law, Penal Law, Labor Law, Public Health Law, Real Property and Actions and Proceedings Law, General Business Law, and Agriculture and Markets Law. Most passed with broad support, though several had recorded negative votes from a small group of senators. One bill on the Legislative Law, Calendar 340, was initially set aside for the controversial calendar. During consideration of Calendar 340, Senator Lanza raised a non-germane amendment offered by Senator Rolison that would have created utility bill tax and surcharge holidays and a green energy tax holiday. The Chair ruled the amendment non-germane, and the Senate upheld that ruling by a show of hands, with 22 in favor of overruling the Chair. The bill in chief was then restored to the non-controversial calendar. Senators May and Krueger spoke in support of the underlying Legislative Law bill, describing it as a procedural reform to make it easier for the Senate and Assembly to reconcile differences between versions of bills, similar to congressional practice. The bill passed 42-1, with several senators recorded in the negative. The Senate then completed the calendar and adjourned until Tuesday, March 10 at 3:00 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• CRH is the largest construction materials company in North America.
• may operate aggregate production operations such as quarries and rock crushers in the course of constructing
• Jobe Materials is a construction materials company in El Paso.

Bills: SB2037, SB1757, SB1758, SB1759, HB29

Keywords: rock crushing, permits, air quality, environmental monitoring, aggregate production, seismicity, public meeting, land use, SB 1758, cement kiln, portland cement, aggregate production operation, aggregate quarry, semiconductor wafer manufacturing, chip fabrication, semiconductor plant, vibration, seismic disturbance, liability limitation, TCEQ

Transcript Highlights:

• organization agreements in construction organization agreements in construction related<00:49:20.560
• I mean, how they can be constructed.
• > orchestrated been constructed and orchestrated been constructed and orchestrated properly,<01
• The employer is not weighing in on it under the current construct.
• And if the uh current construct.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• constructing some That requires constructing some pipelines<00:58:56.000> that<00:58:56.160><
• if we're going to be uh constructing if we're going to be uh constructing infrastructure<01:02:33.839
• Uh, I was part of a consortium that built the last plant that was ever constructed.
• Uh, I was part of a consortium that built the last plant that was ever constructed.
• Uh, I was part of a consortium that built the last plant that was ever constructed.

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Attendance Roll Call 00:00:10 Approval of Minutes 00:01:19 Helping Power Kentucky's Growth (LG&E/KU) 00:01:39 Update from Kentucky's Electric Cooperatives 00:47:35, 958, all

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the minutes from the previous meeting, and then heard a presentation from LG&E and KU representatives Caroline Clark and John Bevington on economic development, energy demand, and the utility’s role in supporting Kentucky’s growth. Bevington described the company’s service territory, generation fleet, and recent economic development activity, including 76 projects supported in 2024, more than $2.8 billion in private investment, and over 3,000 new jobs. He emphasized that data centers are now the dominant driver in the pipeline, with 22 data center projects representing about 8.7 of the 9.7 gigawatts of potential demand, alongside other manufacturing and commercial projects. A major focus was how data centers choose sites and how utilities respond. Bevington explained that hyperscale data centers typically approach utilities first because they need transmission-level access, and that utilities then conduct internal analyses, estimate infrastructure needs, and require financial security before proceeding. He said the company is working through formal transmission studies and long-lead infrastructure planning, and noted that Kentucky’s sales tax exemption for data centers helped attract interest. He also outlined the economic benefits of data centers, citing an announced Louisville project of 525 megawatts and about $11 billion in investment, with an estimated $500 million in new tax revenue over 10 years, plus broader job and GDP impacts. Members asked about whether data centers could generate their own power, the reliability of the pipeline numbers given confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements, and cybersecurity concerns. Bevington said the company does not assume all pipeline projects will materialize in Kentucky and instead assigns probabilities to avoid overbuilding. He also said he was not the right person to address cybersecurity in detail but offered to return to a committee focused on IT or security. In response to questions about future supply, he said LG&E and KU are adding generation through a 120-megawatt solar facility in Mercer County, a 120-megawatt solar purchase in Marion County, and a 645-megawatt natural gas combined-cycle plant in Louisville, with PSC approval recently granted for additional generation and related system upgrades.

Transcript Highlights:

• On line 55 is an exemption for construction materials for the Browerville School District, expected to
• Bar, modifying the construction Bar, modifying the construction exemption<00:53:18.800> for
• sales tax exemption for construction sales tax exemption for construction materials<00:53:31.280
• <01:40:45.760> the<01:40:46.000> best necessary uh to construct the best necessary
• uh to construct the best product<01:40:46.480> we<01:40:46.800> possibly<01:40:47.199><

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'd be happy to answer any questions. ...trees, construction, maintenance, and sewage or waste treatment
• <01:36:29.639> folks exempt those Marine construction folks exempt those Marine construction
• You mentioned a perhaps an amendment to exempt marine construction.
• uh Bridge work even Marine construction uh Bridge work even doing<01:40:12.239> biological<01
• or stabilization practices construction or stabilization practices lose<03:19:25.319> control

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on HB 332, a bill to add protection and remediation of surface waters as a new authorized purpose for New Hampshire village districts. Prime sponsor Rep. Rosemary Rung said the bill is intended to give local voters in lake communities a voluntary tool to address cyanobacteria blooms and other water-quality problems through village districts, including the ability to raise revenue, adopt ordinances, and pursue treatments or watershed management measures. She emphasized that the proposal is meant to complement, not replace, state law and that any district action would still need to comply with existing permitting and environmental requirements. Supporters, including Andrea Laro of New Hampshire Lakes and Elizabeth Harper of the Lake Sunapee Protective Association, said the bill would help municipalities collaborate on lake protection when state resources are limited. They argued that local districts could bring subject-matter expertise, access grants and technical assistance, and respond more quickly to problems such as septic impacts, runoff, culvert repairs, and in-lake treatments. They also suggested clarifying the bill’s wording around “protection and remediation” to better define the scope of authorized activities. Opponents, including Steve Wolf and Chris Norwood of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors, argued that village districts can already be overly broad and sometimes expand beyond their original purposes. Wolf said existing town and state agencies already handle shoreline protection and warned that village districts can impose ongoing taxes and create governance problems. Norwood urged a study bill instead, citing concerns about the scope of village districts and examples where some districts have taken on planning and zoning powers beyond their original mission. No vote or final action on HB 332 was taken in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• We typically fund construction projects.
• We typically fund construction funds. We typically fund construction projects. projects. projects.
• to not only fund capital construction to not only fund capital construction projects,<00:47:36.760
• So, you know, that was a construction project, right? The homes there didn't have sewers.
• So, you know, that was a construction project, right? These homes there didn't have sewers.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee received a budget and program update from Kentucky Emergency Management on the state’s urban search and rescue buildout. Eric Gibson and Doug Hargrave said the legislature’s funding was used to create FEMA-type urban search and rescue capacity, including Kentucky Task Force 1 and 2, the incident support team, and the helicopter aquatic rescue/hoist team. They emphasized that the effort is not just equipment purchases but also training, credentialing, warehouse and training-facility development, canine program expansion, and coordination with local search and rescue agencies across the Commonwealth. Gibson reported that the agency executed 99.4% of the $16.175 million appropriation by the end of the fiscal year and said the team met its readiness target ahead of schedule, with equipment already being deployed in recent flood response operations. He also said $500,000 per year was set aside for local search and rescue grants, with about $482,000 awarded to 29 teams in one year and $490,000 to 36 teams in the next, averaging about $20,000 per grant. Several members urged the committee to consider increasing support for local responders in future budgets, noting rising equipment costs and the importance of local teams as first on scene. Members asked about staffing, coverage, and benefits. Gibson explained that the task force is a mixed workforce of full-time fire personnel loaned from local departments, professional service staff such as doctors and engineers, and temporary deployment staff, with workers’ compensation coverage provided through KYEM and/or home agencies depending on the arrangement. He also said local search and rescue members are not currently included in line-of-duty death benefits. In response to questions about coverage and deployment, he described the two task force locations as designed to keep resources within roughly 100 miles of every Kentuckian. The discussion also turned to recent flood response and disaster recovery. Gibson said the state had mobilized up to 24 teams over the weekend, documented roughly 60 to 80 water rescues or assisted evacuations, and was seeing significant damage in counties such as Cumberland, Clinton, and Metcalfe, including agricultural losses. He said several counties were meeting FEMA public assistance thresholds and that the state was preparing a broader relief request that could include FEMA, SBA, and USDA assistance. He also updated members on efforts to claw back and reallocate unused “strained fiscal liquidity” funds by the statutory deadline, saying notices were sent and funds were redirected where possible to unmet local needs.

Transcript Highlights:

• Well, I tell you what, I own a landfill, and mine's a construction debris landfill.
• So first, the permit to construct is evaluated, or the application for the permit to construct is evaluated
• Those are approvals or permission to construct the well.
• So again, they still approved, those are approvals or permission to construct the well.
• Those are approvals or permission to construct the well.

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They represent billions of dollars in investment, thousands of construction jobs, permanent industrial
• Well, I tell you what, I own a landfill, and mine's a construction debris landfill.
• Well, I tell you what, I own a landfill, and mine's a construction debris landfill.
• Those are approvals or permission to construct the well.
• So again, they still... ...approved, those are approvals or permission to construct the well.

Summary: The committee took up public comment on a package of similar local-option bills related to carbon capture and sequestration, including House Bills 5, 6, 497, 498, 501, and 504. The bills would let parishes, or in some cases specific parishes such as Rapides and Livingston, decide by local vote whether Class VI wells, CO2 sequestration, and related pipeline infrastructure could be permitted. The chair grouped the bills together for testimony, adopted a three-minute public comment rule, and noted that the bills were not yet under consideration for a vote during the public-comment portion. Supporters, including Speaker Pro Tem Mike Johnson, parish officials, local activists, and residents, argued that communities affected by carbon capture projects should have a direct voice through local option elections. They said the bills were about self-determination, local control, and allowing residents to decide whether the risks are worth the benefits. Several speakers said their parishes had passed resolutions opposing carbon capture or asking for local choice, while others emphasized concerns about eminent domain, aquifer protection, lack of public understanding, and the need for more information about project impacts and financial benefits. Some supporters also said a local vote would force industry to engage more directly with communities and could improve transparency. Opponents, including representatives of the Department of Conservation and Energy, the Louisiana Chemistry Association, the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, and the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, warned that the bills would create uncertainty, undermine Louisiana’s primacy over Class VI permitting, and invite litigation under federal preemption and the Supremacy Clause. They said the state already has a strict permitting process with public input and technical review, and that allowing parish-by-parish approval could delay or block billions of dollars in investment, jobs, and export-related projects. The department testified that if the state adopted a local-option referendum system, EPA could determine Louisiana was not implementing the program consistently and could move to remove primacy. No committee vote was taken in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• You'll see on the prison construction maintenance, new prison construction maintenance, we have delayed
• <01:27:43.040> maintenance,<01:27:43.679> new<01:27:43.920> prison construction
• maintenance, new prison construction maintenance, new prison construction<01:27:44.960> maintenance
• ,<01:27:45.920> we<01:27:46.159> have construction maintenance, we have construction
• None of that money has construction. None of that money has been<01:27:57.520> spent.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate File 70, Omnibus Water Bill Construction, sponsor Water.
• Senate File 70, Omnibus Water Bill Construction, sponsor Water.
• Senate File 70, Omnibus Water Bill Construction, sponsor Water.
• Senate File 70, omnibus water bill construction.
• rules legislative review. bill, water bill construction and Senate bill, water bill construction and

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It'll take us through a portion of that beginning construction. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
• I'm the associate vice president of planning, design, and construction at the University of Kentucky.
• at the University of construction at the University of Kentucky.<00:43:38.079> All<00:43:38.079
• They added that the general amount of construction they are doing is causing them to increase the amount
• that we're doing uh is is construction that we're doing uh is is causing<00:44:59.839> us<00:

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee met after several reschedulings due to flooding, welcomed a new assistant, and confirmed a quorum. It first approved the March 11 minutes, then reported that the day’s agenda included 310 items totaling about $139.4 million, with all vendors registered with the Secretary of State. The committee then approved deferred items involving the Transportation Cabinet/Department of Highways, including one routine PSC green-list item and one PSC amendment item, after hearing from the Transportation Cabinet’s Division of Professional Services and noting prior questions had been answered. The bulk of the meeting focused on Department of Education contracts tied to reading and literacy initiatives. Officials described a competitive grant program for high-quality instructional resources and related professional learning, explaining that resources are selected through evidence-based reviews and a quality curriculum task force, and that districts apply using an instructional resources alignment rubric. Members questioned the program’s reach, whether districts opt in, how many schools applied, and whether the effort is producing measurable reading gains. Department witnesses said about 155 schools applied and were awarded, the program is voluntary, and the University of Louisville’s Reading Research Center is collecting qualitative and quantitative data to evaluate effectiveness. Several members expressed concern that the state has repeatedly funded literacy efforts without improving reading scores, though the committee ultimately approved the education items, with Senator Meredith noting support but frustration about the lack of progress. The committee also approved an MOA amendment item supporting the Principal Partnership Project, which provides tools, resources, and professional learning for administrators and helps meet statutory evaluation-training requirements. Members asked about the use of nonrecurring federal funds and whether the arrangement affects retirement benefits; staff said the contract pays districts based on daily wage and additional workdays, which does increase retirement packages. Representative McCool voted yes but voiced caution about possible supplanting. Finally, the committee took up an Office of the Controller contract for a brokered insurance-related procurement. Representative Balman moved to disapprove the contract, arguing the winning broker was not the low bidder and that the committee lacked answers about how technical scoring outweighed a roughly $600,000 price difference. The motion to disapprove did not prevail, and the contract was approved after further discussion about procurement scoring and the committee’s limited information.

Transcript Highlights:

• I think it was very constructive. We had things we asked for that we didn't get.
• I want to offer one constructive note on the substitute that I think is very much in line with it.
• SB1825 complements the industry's strident safety planning in design and construction with planning and
• I also worked at an electrical construction company in Texas' summer heat, all to get ever so close.
• In terms of construction, I know there's been a lot of emphasis, and so much of it is made in China,

Bills: SB458, SB819, SB1238, SB1642, SB1643, SB1644, SB1791, SB1810, SB1824, SB1825, SB758, SB1455, SB1706

Keywords: insurance appraisal, property insurance, auto insurance, homeowners insurance, residential property, disputed loss, loss valuation, appraisal clause, appraiser, umpire, Texas Department of Insurance, TDI, insurance dispute resolution, claims adjustment, total loss, windstorm insurance, FAIR Plan, surplus lines insurance, policyholder, insurer