Video & Transcript Research : 'Texas Chapter'
Page 180 of 441
LA
Louisiana 2026 Regular Session
Commerce May 20th, 2026
Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs
Transcript Highlights:
- So we did expand it to where it could include adjoining states like Texas has a Texas State Bullion Depository
- We can place it in the Texas depository for you. That gold stays there.
- We can place it in the Texas depository for you. That gold stays there.
- No, I'm talking about other states that have, you know, does Texas have the Texas gold program?
- , but if the companies can come in Louisiana to do this transaction so that people can store it in Texas
Summary:
The committee took up several House measures. HCR 66, as amended, asked Louisiana Economic Development and the Governor’s Office of Rural Development to study rural parish assets, infrastructure, workforce, and development opportunities, and it was moved forward without objection. HB 387, a clarification to allow the fire marshal’s office to review architectural and engineering plans equally, also passed favorably without objection. HB 1223, which would have LED promote Louisiana’s clinical trial capacity and adjust internal review board processes, was amended and moved favorably. HB 950, aimed at helping older adults recognize and avoid fraud through materials and resources from the Office of Elderly Affairs, was reported favorably. HB 975, a routine measure to recreate the Public Service Commission, was also reported favorably. HB 1186, which would create a more uniform statewide building code and licensing system for inspectors, was amended and moved favorably. HB 1222, described as a Grocery Initiative Act to let LED identify ways to address food deserts and food insecurity, was introduced near the end of the meeting.
The most extensive debate centered on HB 617, a consumer transparency bill requiring mandatory fees to be included in upfront pricing. The author said the bill was intended to curb hidden fees and help consumers compare prices, with examples such as hotel resort fees and automatic restaurant service charges. Supporters argued it would improve transparency, while opponents from grocery, restaurant, hotel, housing, retail, and business groups said the bill was too broad, vague about terms like “total price,” unclear on enforcement and penalties, and could create compliance burdens and litigation risk, especially for small businesses. Housing advocates opposed the bill’s housing carve-out, arguing it could weaken renters’ ability to bring unfair-practice claims. Senator Morris moved to defer HB 617, and the committee agreed without objection.
The committee also heard lengthy testimony on HB 797, which would create a Bayou Gold certification for certain transactional gold vendors that meet state-defined standards such as segregation, insurance, and nearby storage. The sponsor said the goal was to give consumers confidence and encourage vendors to keep gold closer to Louisiana, while critics argued the program would amount to a state endorsement of private companies, create misleading consumer impressions, and expose the state to confusion or liability. The bill drew opposition from the Sound Money Defense League and others, but the committee ultimately reported HB 797 favorably, with the understanding it still had to go to Finance. HB 1228, a hearing-aid cleanup bill updating definitions, contracts, testing periods, and licensing rules, was also moved favorably without objection.
US
US Federal 2025-2026 Regular Session
US House Floor Proceedings (Friday, March 27, 2026)
US Federal House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- Pfluger from Texas. The gentleman from Texas is recognized. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
- <00:25:02.400>
Fluger <00:25:02.960>from <00:25:03.120>Texas. - Fluger from Texas. the bill sponsor, Mr. Fluger from Texas.
- >> The gentleman from Texas is recognized.
- >> The gentleman from Texas is recognized.
NM
New Mexico 2026 Regular Session
Senate - Tax, Business and Transportation Jan 29th, 2026 at 02:36 pm
Senate Tax, Business & Transportation
Transcript Highlights:
- But why would the state of Texas do that? So, Madam Chair and Senator, I'm going to let Mr.
- So we know of one concrete case where the Johnson County Sheriff's Department in Texas...
- Where the Johnson County Sheriff's Department in Texas, Johnson County, Texas, accessed, did a nationwide
- It is the ability for an agency in Texas to...
- Activity is the ability for an agency in Texas to instantly search cameras in all 50 states.
Keywords:
tax credits, municipality, county property, industrial revenue bonds, economic development, qualified expenditures, solar energy, tax credit, renewable energy, photovoltaic, solar thermal, New Mexico, economic incentive, energy independence, SB40, Driver Privacy and Safety Act, automated license plate reader, ALPR, license plate reader, vehicle surveillance
NM
Transcript Highlights:
- She lives in Texas.
- So within focusing on the Rio Grande, we have our Texas v.
- But my other comment is, you know, I'm not so sold on the Texas-New Mexico settlement.
- And so has any study been done since we've done the Texas-New Mexico settlement?
- The next group is the Middle Rio Grande that gets hit for the Texas-New Mexico settlement.
OK
Oklahoma 2026 Regular Session
Appropriations and Budget General Government Subcommittee 2nd Revision: Agenda Revised: 10:30 a.m. Ethics Commission
A&B General Government Subcommittee
Transcript Highlights:
- Texas, Florida, and California all three come to mind.
- Texas has utilized them on the border and their border issues.
- But The role that they're used in Texas is to support the Texas National Guard on the border mission.
- And in Texas, we just googled this just to see what other states did.
- Texas requires 20 square feet per child.
NM
New Mexico 2025 Regular Session
House - Appropriations and Finance Jan 24th, 2025
House Appropriations & Finance
Transcript Highlights:
- How do we position ourselves to ensure that it's not going to Arizona, Colorado, Texas, or Michigan?
- Today, on the east side of New Mexico, we grow a lot of corn and ship that corn into Texas, where it's
- We ship our calves into Texas, and then we ship the corn to feed them there.
- From Texas, they go to Kansas for processing, and then we buy that beef back into New Mexico so we can
- There's a large cannabis industry because it's right on the New Mexico-Texas border.
MO
Missouri 2026 Regular Session
2026 Legislative Session - Day Sixty Nine - Wednesday, May 13
Missouri House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- Junior Henry, originally from Red Oak, Texas, is a first-year letterman.
- Gentleman from Texas. Introduction of special guests, Madam Speaker.
- And I also wanted to bring up what happened in Uvalde, Texas.
- The Chair now recognizes the gentleman from Texas. Mr.
- Does the gentleman from Texas yield to an inquiry? Yes. Proceed.
Summary:
The House opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, then approved the House Journal for the prior day by a 123-0 roll call vote. Members then used points of personal privilege to recognize National Police Week and honor fallen law enforcement officers with a moment of silence, and several members gave farewell remarks for departing colleagues and interns. The chamber also introduced a number of special guests, including student groups, interns, a former representative, and the University of Missouri wheelchair basketball team.
The House then took up Senate messages and committee reports before acting on House Committee Substitute for House Bills 1839, 2921, and 3015. The sponsor explained the Senate amendment was a technical correction to an online age-verification provision related to pornography; the House concurred 104-30 and then finally passed the package 112-25. The chamber also considered the conference committee report on House Bill 2596, which was described as a small-business health plan measure that modernizes pooled-plan language and adds a 12-month contraception coverage provision while removing a Senate-added blood pressure cuff requirement. After debate on the conference report and a severability clause, the House adopted the report 120-26 and then third-read and passed the bill 119-27.
Finally, the House debated Senate Bill 905, which would create the Missouri Ranger training program allowing schools to optionally place specially trained personnel with narrow law-enforcement authority on campus. Debate focused heavily on school safety, local control, training standards, liability, funding, and whether the proposal would improve protection or instead increase the presence of guns in schools. Supporters argued it would give districts another optional safety tool, especially where school resource officers are unavailable, while opponents said schools need more mental health and educational resources rather than armed personnel and raised concerns about training, child development, and unintended harm. The House adopted an amendment clarifying the program after a 96-46 vote, but the transcript cuts off before final passage of the bill.
KY
Kentucky 2025 Regular Session
Interim Joint Committee on State Government (11-13-25) - Reupload
Transcript Highlights:
- We've company based in Austin, Texas.
- ,<01:16:12.000>
um, in Austin, Texas, um, in Austin, Texas, um, nearby<01:16:14.640>our - in Austin, Texas. in Austin, Texas.
- They do that in Austin, Texas.
- But we perform every aspect on Texas.
Keywords:
Discussion of BR 25 (2026 RS) 04:15
Presentation on voting systems by ES&S 48:14
Presentation on voting systems by Hart InterCivic and Harp Enterprises 01:13:07, 958, all
Summary:
The committee met to approve the October 21 minutes and then took up BR 25 for the 2026 regular session, a proposal relating to prohibited uses of tax dollars and public resources. The sponsors said the bill is intended to strengthen existing law by adding civil and criminal penalties for taxpayer-funded advocacy on ballot questions, especially in light of controversies during the 2024 election over school officials and districts using public resources to oppose a constitutional amendment. They also described related concerns about school districts hiring third-party lobbyists and public relations firms, particularly in Fayette County, and said the proposal was meant to keep tax dollars focused on public services rather than political persuasion.
Committee members raised several concerns about scope and drafting. Some asked whether the bill should specifically mention schools, school boards, and school employees, and the sponsors said they would add that language. Others questioned whether the measure would also affect local government lobbying through groups like KLC and KCO, and the sponsors said they intended to focus narrowly on schools while exempting certain advocacy organizations and internal government lobbyists. Members also asked whether public employees could still speak as private individuals, and the sponsors said yes. Several members suggested splitting the lobbying and ballot-advocacy issues into separate bills, and the sponsors said they would consider that.
Members also pressed for clarification on how the bill would apply in practice, including whether it would cover legal challenges to petition drives or only advocacy after a question is on the ballot. Counsel for the sponsors said the bill would not cover some petition-related litigation as drafted, though they believed it should. The sponsors and supporters argued the proposal was needed to give the existing prohibition real enforcement, while some members warned that the language could unintentionally limit legitimate public representation or be too broad if not carefully drafted. No final vote was taken during the discussion.
CA
California 2025-2026 Regular Session
Assembly Floor Session Jun 2nd, 2025
California House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- The same exact architectural plans for a home in Texas cost one-third what it would cost here in the
- The same exact architectural plans for a home in Texas cost one-third what it would cost here in the
- Just a week before he passed, he said that he looked forward to the next chapter of his life with his
Summary:
The Assembly met on May 23, 2025, established a quorum after a roll call, and proceeded through a long House of Origin floor session with prayers, the Pledge of Allegiance, and routine parliamentary actions. Early in the day, a motion by Assembly Member Gallagher to suspend the rules and take up AB 12 immediately failed on a 18-39 vote. The chamber then moved through the daily file, with many measures passing by wide margins, often with bipartisan support and little or no opposition.
Among the notable bills discussed were measures on law enforcement oversight and records access (AB 847), CalFresh data-sharing exemptions (AB 593), campus-area housing for students and staff (AB 893), insurance and wildfire hardening updates (AB 1), missing middle housing code changes (AB 6), tribal peace officer status in a pilot program (AB 31), utility bill analysis before new mandates (AB 61), fairgrounds funding (AB 258), Diwali as a state holiday (AB 268), labor and worker organizing rights (AB 288), algorithmic price-fixing and antitrust enforcement (AB 325), elections and jail voter information (AB 331), protections for judges and court personnel (AB 343 and AB 352), school construction procurement (AB 361), school-zone speed limits (AB 382), transit worker protections (AB 394), blue carbon coastal mitigation (AB 399), K-9 standards for law enforcement (AB 400), livestock carcass composting (AB 411), translation of housing materials (AB 413), immigrant educational rights notices (AB 419), gun violence restraining order implementation (AB 451), special education and child care measures (AB 560 and AB 563), cannabis tax relief (AB 564), and disability access protections for businesses (AB 649). Several bills addressed housing, energy, public health, and public safety, and many authors emphasized affordability, transparency, and administrative efficiency.
The session also included several ceremonial or recognition items, including ACR 73 declaring Italian American Heritage Month, which was adopted by voice vote after 65 coauthors were added. Most measures were approved overwhelmingly, though a few drew some dissent, including AB 421? no—AB 399 passed 42-30, AB 450 passed 49-6, AB 461 passed 49-8, and AB 621 passed 58-0. The transcript ends partway through AB 772, which was introduced as an educational equity bill addressing cyberbullying after school hours, but the remainder of that item is not included in the provided text.
AZ
Transcript Highlights:
- So actually, the Arizona chapter—not to call out any particular organization, but I read this in an article
- recently—the Arizona chapter of the American Library Association highlighted, in fact, in an article
- In 2017, a transgender boy was denied the opportunity to compete in the Texas high school state wrestling
Summary:
The committee first heard Superintendent Tom Horn’s State of Education address, which focused on school safety, academic outcomes, teacher pay, school choice, and opposition to DEI/CRT in schools. Horn argued that students cannot learn unless schools are safe, cited increased funding for school police officers and a recent Tucson charter school incident as evidence for more officers, and said the department’s academic efforts have centered on Project Momentum, tutoring, cell phone restrictions, career and technical education partnerships, and support for Native American districts. He also urged direct teacher pay increases through Proposition 123 and said the state board should revise teaching standards and school grading practices. Members questioned him about DEI compliance, cell phone enforcement, ESA accountability, teacher preparation programs, school safety funding, and literacy outcomes; Horn said the department’s role is largely advisory in a local-control state, that it tracks school practices on a website, and that it lacks academic outcome data for ESA students because private schools are not tested by the state.
The committee then took up House Bill 2008, which would prohibit public school libraries from using public funds to pay dues or memberships to professional library associations that advocate for libraries and information services. Representative Cooper, the sponsor, said the bill was intended to keep school libraries politically neutral and prevent taxpayer money from supporting ideological advocacy, while arguing that membership could still be paid privately and that free professional development options exist. Opponents, including former librarian Judy Schweber, Marana board member Hunter Holt, and the ACLU of Arizona, argued the bill would undermine professional development, local control, and constitutional rights of association and petition, and that there was little evidence public funds were actually being used this way. Supporters, including Adrienne Johnson, said some library materials and associations promote political viewpoints and should not be funded with public dollars.
After public comment and debate, the committee voted 7-5 to give HB 2008 a do pass recommendation. Members who explained no votes said the bill targeted a non-issue, lacked data showing a problem, and would divert attention from funding and literacy needs. Members supporting the bill said it was a reasonable restriction on public spending and a way to keep school libraries ideologically neutral. The committee then announced it would move on to House Bill 2249, the Parents’ Bill of Rights and Remedies.
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Center for Nursing Equity and Excellence funding 3/18/26
Minnesota House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- dedicated funding for its Nursing Workforce Center. 48 states have these centers, and many, like Florida, Texas
- 40.120>
Florida, these centers, and many, like Florida, these centers, and many, like Florida, Texas - 42.040>
Carolina, <00:04:42.920>Oregon, <00:04:43.560>and <00:04:43.720>New Texas - , North Carolina, Oregon, and New Texas, North Carolina, Oregon, and New Jersey,<00:04:44.880>
make
FL
Florida 2026 Regular Session
Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Feb 4th, 2025
Children, Families, and Elder Affairs
Transcript Highlights:
- One thing that has changed is that we've actually been in talks with Texas.
- call that out because we still remain as one of the first large states when we compare ourselves with Texas
- and large it remains unchanged one thing that has changed is that we've actually been in talks with Texas
- call that out just that we still remain as one of the first large states when we compare ourselves at Texas
Summary:
The Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs received a Department of Children and Families update from CIO Cole Sousa on three major technology modernization efforts: ACCESS, CWIS, and FASMS. For ACCESS, he described the six-year, $205 million project to replace the aging eligibility system used for SNAP, TANF, and Medicaid applications, noting completed releases such as the MyACCESS portal, document management, partner portal, workload management, and client registration modules. He said the system now supports mobile applications, multi-factor authentication, and bot detection, and that the next budget request is $36.625 million to continue moving workers off the mainframe, modernize notices, and complete more worker-portal functions. Members asked about performance data, interoperability with other systems, and the relationship to the FX project and APD; Sousa said API-based real-time exchanges are the goal and that current average case processing time is about 30 days, though he would provide a more exact figure later.
The committee then heard about CWIS, a four-year, $75 million child welfare modernization project. Sousa said phase one is complete, including hotline intake, investigations, mandatory reporter, youth, parent, and mobile portals, along with mobile field tools, e-signatures, and customizable dashboards. Current work is focused on case management, assessment and safety planning, licensure, and placement modules, with collaboration from community-based care providers through advisory sessions. For the next fiscal year, DCF is requesting $28 million and expects to finish development by summer and launch in September, while continuing change management and training. Senators pressed on interoperability with ACCESS, FX, and FASMS, the use of a single unique identifier, and whether CBCs would be required to use the statewide system; Sousa said the department’s goal is one statewide system, with licensing costs absorbed by the state and no plan for dual systems after go-live.
Finally, Sousa gave a brief update on FASMS, the financial and services accountability system used by managing entities. He said it remains in maintenance mode while DCF prioritizes ACCESS and CWIS, and that modernization of FASMS is still being planned with partner agencies. He estimated current maintenance costs at about $1.3 million and suggested a future modernization could cost roughly $5 million to $7 million, though no firm timeline has been set. The committee expressed support for using data and interoperable systems to improve decision-making, and the meeting adjourned without any votes or formal actions beyond adjournment.
TX
Transcript Highlights:
- substitute for Senate Bill 1950 helps unemployed workers get paid. back to work faster and protect Texas
- We've incorporated changes recommended by the Texas Workforce Commission to ensure that their implementation
- Hires data and Texas new hires data.
MO
Missouri 2026 Regular Session
2026 Legislative Session - Day Sixty One - Thursday, April 30
Missouri House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- Gentleman from Texas, for what purpose do you rise? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
- The gentleman from Texas has moved that the title be agreed to. Discussion on the title?
- Does the gentleman from Texas yield to the gentleman from St. Louis County behind you? Yes.
- Does the gentleman from Texas yield?” “Yes.” “Proceed.” “Good afternoon. Good afternoon.
- Seeing no further discussion, gentleman from Texas. Mr. Speaker, I close.
Summary:
The House convened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, then approved the House Journal by roll call vote, 120-0. Members also suspended House Rule 98 to allow hats on the chamber floor, approving that motion 87-32. The chamber then recognized several special guests and personal introductions, including the Eugene High School basketball team, family members of members, and other visitors. One member delivered a lengthy personal privilege speech responding to a U.S. Supreme Court voting-rights decision and urging protection of democracy and voting access.
In committee reports, the House received favorable reports on substitute House Bill 2426 and Senate Bills 866 and 863. The chamber then agreed to a conference on the property-tax omnibus package, Senate Bills 1066 and 1088. On third reading, House Bill 3329 passed 142-0, repealing expired tax credits, and House Bill 3405 passed 138-0, cleaning up SALT deduction language and clarifying it as a deduction rather than a credit. House Committee Substitute for House Bill 2426, a parental-rights bill, was debated at length with opposition focused on its school reporting and financial-ledger provisions, but the motion to pass it failed 70-60.
The House then took up Senate Bill 1233, a licensure bill dealing with CPA licensing and other professional licensing provisions. One amendment removing compacts and related language was adopted, a nursing-home physicals amendment was withdrawn, and the bill passed 129-6. Senate Bill 1408, originally a highway-speed bill, was heavily amended to remove some Department of Revenue and other provisions, while adding or revising items including vehicle inspections, motorcycle lighting, hands-free enforcement, driver education, and specialty plates for women’s professional sports; it passed 82-53. The final bill of the day, Senate Substitute No. 2 for Senate Bill 863, creating a five-member interscholastic athletic oversight commission for appeals from statewide activities associations, was introduced and debated, with questions raised about its relationship to MSHSAA.
MA
Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session
Senate Committee on Climate Change and Global Warming Jun 21st, 2026 at 10:00 am
Senate Committee on Climate Change and Global Warming
Transcript Highlights:
- California, Maryland, Texas, and Florida have passed legislation universalizing access to smart permitting
- Florida and Texas, the country's second... ...and third-largest solar markets, have approved third-party
- Permit Power this year worked on successfully passing legislation in Florida and Texas, which is sort
- Texas and Florida typically aren't quality standards that Massachusetts cares to be guided by.
- Texas and Florida typically aren't quality standards that Massachusetts cares to be guided by.
Summary:
The hearing focused on ways Massachusetts can accelerate solar deployment, lower costs, and preserve reliability as electricity demand rises and federal support for solar and other renewables changes. Chair Creem opened by emphasizing solar’s role in meeting climate mandates and peak demand, citing June heat-wave data showing behind-the-meter solar reduced wholesale prices and saved ratepayers money. Commissioner Elizabeth Mahoney of DOER said Massachusetts has grown from 3 MW of solar in 2008 to 3.5 GW today, highlighted SMART 3.0 as a flexible, evergreen incentive program, and said DOER is working on updated rates, interconnection reforms, flexible interconnection, net crediting, and a petition to the DPU to speed implementation. She also said Massachusetts joined the lawsuit over canceled federal Solar for All funding.
Committee members and witnesses discussed several policy changes to speed projects before federal tax credits expire, including automated permitting, remote inspections, faster interconnection, and changes to caps on municipal and regional solar development. Senator Barrett pressed Mahoney on whether the 10 MW municipal cap and regional caps should be lifted, and on whether the state should increase its solar tax credit to offset the loss of the federal residential credit. Mahoney said the municipal cap should be revisited and that interconnection cost allocation and other market issues need to be worked out before lifting broader caps. She also said DOER is open to automated permitting and is already developing a permitting portal under the 2024 climate law.
Industry and advocacy witnesses largely supported streamlining measures. Sunrun’s Bronte Payne urged removal of a proposed requirement that all net-metered facilities enroll in SMART, and recommended automated permitting, remote inspections, flexible interconnection, better hosting-capacity information, consumer protections, and continued support for Connected Solutions and virtual power plants. Permit Power’s Hannah Bernbaum and Solar App’s Matthew McAllister argued that smart permitting and remote inspections can significantly reduce soft costs and delays, with McAllister saying Solar App now operates in over 320 jurisdictions and saves about three weeks on average. They said remote inspections are already common and can be done safely with photos, video, and qualified third parties. Community solar and clean energy advocates, including CCSA’s Kate Daniel and Vote Solar’s Lindsay Griffin, supported a 10 GW solar target by 2035, a higher refundable state tax credit for low-income households, interconnection reforms, flexible interconnection, and preserving the option to build outside SMART so projects can retain renewable energy certificates. No votes were taken; the hearing was informational, and members requested follow-up materials and draft language from witnesses.
OK
Oklahoma 2026 Regular Session
Appropriations and Budget Education Subcommittee REVISED: Agency presentation times revised Jan 20th, 2026 at 09:00 am
A&B Education Subcommittee
Transcript Highlights:
- We kind of compete with Texas but for the most part, we offer the best loan repayment program around
- And this is Texas, New Mexico, Wyoming, Arizona, you Know Seattle, and I mean Washington, and they get
- I mean, Texas is Texas. They, you know, have tons of land.
- distributes a lot because of just the two counties, Eddy and Lee, that just crossed the border there from Texas
- Asked to take a look at a guy down in the eastern Texas, has a helicopter, and a pellet gun.
NM
New Mexico 2025 Regular Session
IC - Transportation Infrastructure Revenue Subcommitee Oct 6th, 2025
Transcript Highlights:
- We border Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas. 22,000 square miles.
- We have a study coming up from Tucumcari to the Texas state line, US 54, the Grand Avenue, Business 215
- Connect Texas; they want to connect Texas to I-25. We're still at a real early preliminary stage.
- understanding that Congress has taken action to identify the corridor from the Mexican border on the Texas
- Going up like Texas and New Mexico, how does that play or not play into it? Any comment on that?
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Press Conference: Legislators Call for Humanitarian Parole for Detained Minnesotan - 04/23/26
Transcript Highlights:
- ICE first sent Andrea to Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, where three people have died since October
- A few weeks ago, a Texas judge denied her petition for habeas corpus, and the medical hearing she should
- And she was abducted, taken to Texas. Her crime was being brown.
- Her attorneys are located in Texas, but they're not in that part of the state.
- Her attorneys are located in Texas, but they're not in that part of the state.
Summary:
The meeting focused on the detention of Andrea Pedro Francisco, a 23-year-old Burnsville resident and Minnesota constituent who was detained by ICE and transferred from Camp East Montana in El Paso to the El Paso Processing and Detention Center while awaiting surgery for a large ovarian cyst. Senator Lindsey Port, Congresswoman Angie Craig, and Senator Alese Matson argued that she has been denied adequate medical care, receiving only Tylenol and constipation medication despite an emergency room confirming she needs surgery. They said the delay could lead to severe pain, bleeding, loss of fertility, infection, or death, and repeatedly called for her immediate release on humanitarian parole.
Pastor Ellery Deikman described visiting Andrea in detention with other clergy and her lawyer, saying she appeared thin, in pain, and deeply distressed, though she brightened when told people in Minnesota were praying for her. He and others framed her situation as a humanitarian and human rights issue, criticizing the detention system as punitive and for-profit. Senator Matson, who is also a physician, explained that the standard treatment for a cyst of this size would be surgery and that waiting is medically dangerous. Participants also said Andrea had been in detention for close to 80 days, had limited access to legal and medical records, and had been separated from family and faith community.
The speakers tied Andrea’s case to broader concerns about immigration enforcement under the current administration, saying detentions and arrests have increased sharply and that many detainees have no criminal record. Vicki Schmidt of Abriendo Fronteras said detention numbers and costs have risen, conditions are often inhumane, and many people are being held in for-profit facilities. She and others urged support for HR 7335, the Humanitarian Standards for Individuals in ICE and CBP Custody Act, and called on DHS to grant Andrea parole immediately. In the question-and-answer portion, the physician-senator reiterated that surgery is the only treatment, that the condition could worsen at any time, and that prior practice generally allowed asylum seekers to remain in the community while their cases proceeded if they were not a danger.
NM
New Mexico 2026 Regular Session
House - Taxation and Revenue Feb 4th, 2026 at 08:32 am
House Taxation & Revenue
Transcript Highlights:
- Because I know again some of our neighboring states, like Texas, they are able to hold off recession-like
- And Texas does have a very robust R&D credit.
- order for us to have a bigger GDP, bigger attraction of people you know we're competing next door with Texas
- And you know, you look at Texas, Texas's growth at 330, about 300, their GDP grows at 300 more than ours
- And you're looking at Texas, you're looking at Arizona, and then here we are in the middle.
TX
Transcript Highlights:
- some concerns that the original bill didn't provide the necessary clarity needed to ensure that the Texas
- The Texas State Library and Archives Commission maintains control of the Travis letter and the ability
- Second, it expands the scope of the required public display plan to include not only the Texas Constitution
Summary:
The Senate Economic Development Committee met with a quorum present and took up a large slate of pending business, primarily voting on House bills and one House concurrent resolution. Most measures were reported favorably to the full Senate, often with a recommendation that they do pass and be printed, and several were also recommended for the local and uncontested calendar. Among the bills acted on were HB 1240, HB 1397, HB 1950, HB 2027, HB 2768, HB 2788, HB 2791, HB 3146, HB 3698, HB 3699, HB 4187, HB 1893, HB 3700, HB 4850, HCR 90, and SB 2603 and SB 2607. The committee also adopted committee substitutes for HB 1397, HB 4187, and HB 4850 by unanimous consent before voting on the substituted versions.
The most substantive discussion centered on HB 1397, which concerns the Travis letter (the Victory or Death letter). Senator Sparks explained that the committee substitute was intended to clarify the Texas State Library and Archives Commission’s ongoing responsibility for preserving and safeguarding the letter while it is in storage, transit, or on display. The substitute also broadened the public display plan to include the Travis letter at the Alamo and other appropriate sites, allowed temporary display at museums, and kept the requirement that the letter remain displayed at the Capitol until a secure location at the Alamo is ready.
Voting was generally favorable, with most measures passing on near-unanimous or unanimous votes. HB 1240 and HB 1397 each received one nay, HB 2607 passed with one nay, HB 1893 passed with one nay, and HB 3698 passed with one nay; the rest of the recorded votes were unanimous or effectively unanimous. After completing the pending business, the committee thanked members for their patience and recessed subject to the call of the chair.