Transcript Highlights:

• What safety measures?
• What safety measures?
• What safety measures?
• What safety measures?
• What safety measures?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• net, but not incentivizing a social safety hammock.
• Downturn or economic impact on health and safety programs.
• We need to address the federal threat to our social safety nets.
• Even without the cuts, there are impacts to safety net programs.
• The safety net is essential to bridging this gap.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• related and they will be, more safety related and they will be, uh,<00:07:13.280><c> less</c><00:07:
• will be and they there but the safety will be and they there will<00:07:17.919><c> be</c><00:07:18.040
• ,</c><00:11:50.880><c> environmental</c> approached between safety, environmental approached between
• </c> roadway safety. roadway safety.
• </c><00:14:12.880><c> risks,</c> inspections on genuine safety risks, inspections on genuine safety risks

Keywords: 926, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Amy Newbury, director of administration at the Department of Safety. Good morning.
• And then we not only trained public safety officials, we did train the trainers to make sure that the
• So, we trained them within their own public safety agencies. This is a very similar model.
• officials to adopt a public safety officials to adopt a standard<00:10:23.000><c> platform</c><00:10
• </c> them within their own public safety them within their own public safety agencies.<00:10:35.160><

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The Joint Fiscal Committee met on May 15 at 10:00 a.m. and first approved the April 17 minutes. It then took up a consent calendar covering tabs three through seven, with items 089 and 097 removed for separate discussion. The committee approved the remainder of the consent calendar and then adopted item 089, which involved Department of Safety/Homeland Security grant funding for active shooter incident management and school reunification training. Officials said the project is a mandatory Homeland Security grant set-aside, with training for public safety officials and school districts and internal social media used only to promote training schedules; members asked about marketing, outcomes, and how success would be measured. The committee next considered item 097 for the Division of Historical Resources. Agency officials said the request was driven by a decade-long increase in Section 106 and state historic preservation reviews, many tied to disaster-related infrastructure work such as culvert and road repairs, and that the grant would add capacity to handle roughly 1,000 to 1,500 reviews per year. The committee approved the item after brief discussion. Under the regular calendar, the Department of Transportation presented a fuel-related transfer. Members questioned the decline in the highway fund balance, which staff said was being affected by rising expenses, flat-to-moderate revenue, and a rough winter that increased maintenance costs. DOT officials said they were considering toll rate increases and noted the agency pays market wholesale fuel rates; they also discussed prior fuel hedging decisions and said they have authority to hedge again if it makes sense. The committee approved the DOT item, then approved a miscellaneous action item to fill a position at the LBA. Members also asked the chair to remind the Attorney General to appear at a future meeting regarding the YDC claims report. The committee set its next meeting for Friday, June 19 at 11:00 a.m., and adjourned after a brief note of appreciation for recent corrections and changes reported by the liquor commission.

Transcript Highlights:

• Throughout my extensive career, I've seen that public safety... ...public safety is strongest when accountability
• I will continue leading DAPO with a deep commitment to staff safety, community safety, and public service
• So public safety for me is near and dear to my heart.
• So, for example, that project uses All of these new opportunities for safety.
• And we've provided mutual aid in disaster times as well to other public safety entities.

Summary: The Senate Rules Committee met with quorum and first considered several governor’s appointments not required to appear. The committee voted to advance Olivia May Assuncion to the Commission on Disability Access, William Adams to the California Exposition and State Fair Board of Directors, and two California Law Revision Commission appointments: Anacubas and David Hubner, with the latter two receiving split votes but still moving forward. The committee also approved the reference of bills to committees and later, by unanimous add-on votes, approved floor acknowledgments and the remaining appointments on the agenda. The main hearing was on Brian Bishop’s appointment as Director of the Division of Adult Parole Operations at CDCR. Bishop described his law enforcement and Marine Corps background and said his focus would be balancing public safety, accountability, rehabilitation, and staff well-being. Senators asked about risk assessment for higher-risk parolees, GPS monitoring, coordination with local law enforcement, victim protections, out-of-county placement, supervision of unhoused parolees, and oversight of private reentry/housing contractors. Bishop said DAPO uses data-driven supervision, risk tools, compliance sweeps with local agencies, exclusion zones for victims, and contract monitoring through invoices, site visits, and utilization reviews. Public testimony supported Bishop’s confirmation, including from reentry providers and advocacy groups. The committee then voted 5-0 to advance his appointment to the full Senate for confirmation. The committee also heard from Sarah Larson, appointed Director of the Division of Facilities Management and Construction at CDCR. Larson discussed aligning the prison footprint with a declining population, addressing aging infrastructure and heat issues through cooling pilots, and using projects like the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center as a model for safer, more healing facilities. Senators asked about prison closures, cold shutdown status, disaster planning, water and utility issues, and how to manage closed or deactivated facilities. Larson said closed facilities are maintained minimally, reactivation would be costly, and the department is exploring more holistic infrastructure planning. Public witnesses from criminal justice and reentry organizations strongly supported her, and the committee voted 5-0 to advance her appointment to the full Senate.

Transcript Highlights:

• I will continue leading DAPO with a deep commitment to staff safety, community safety, and public service
• Part of my focus as the DAPO director is I come from a very strong public safety background.
• Public safety for me is near and dear to my heart.
• So, for example, that project uses... ...all of these new opportunities for safety.
• And we've provided mutual aid in disaster times as well to other public safety entities.

Summary: The Senate Rules Committee met to consider several governor’s appointments and routine agenda items. It first approved, on call, appointments not required to appear for Olivia May Assuncion to the Commission on Disability Access, William Adams to the California Exposition and State Fair Board of Directors, and two California Law Revision Commission nominees, with one of the law revision appointments drawing a split vote. The committee also approved reference of bills to committees and floor acknowledgments before moving to appointments required to appear. Brian Bishop, nominated to lead the Division of Adult Parole Operations at CDCR, testified that he would emphasize public safety, accountability, rehabilitation, and staff well-being. In questioning, senators focused on risk assessment for higher-risk parolees, GPS monitoring, coordination with local law enforcement, victim protections, supervision of unhoused parolees, and oversight of private reentry/housing contractors. Bishop said DAPO uses data-driven supervision, risk tools, compliance sweeps with law enforcement, exclusion zones and administrative transfers to protect victims, and contract monitoring through invoices, site visits, and utilization reports. Public commenters from reentry and justice organizations supported his confirmation, and the committee voted 5-0 to send the nomination to the full Senate. Sarah Larson, nominated to direct CDCR’s Facilities Management and Construction, described her CDCR background and said she wanted to help modernize the department’s aging infrastructure to support staff and incarcerated people. Senators asked about aligning facilities with a declining prison population, cooling and heat mitigation, safety during construction, prison closures such as Norco, disaster planning, and how closed facilities are maintained or could be reopened. Larson said CDCR has reduced its footprint, is piloting cooling upgrades at several sites, maintains closed facilities in cold shutdown with minimal upkeep, and uses emergency planning and mutual aid for disasters. She also said the department is exploring infrastructure master planning and more substantial, targeted improvements, and the committee again heard supportive public testimony before voting 5-0 to advance her nomination to the full Senate.

Transcript Highlights:

• I will continue leading DAPO with a deep commitment to staff safety, community safety, and public safety
• Part of my focus as the DAPO director is I come from a very strong public safety background.
• So public safety for me is near and dear to my heart.
• All of these new opportunities for safety.
• And we've provided mutual aid in disaster times as well to other public safety entities.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Boyd for public safety. Mr.
• There are some some traffic safety.
• </c> uh then the work zone safety uh then the work zone safety requirements<00:56:15.200><c> are</c><
• The commissioner is Public Safety.
• traffic safety or are no other testimony traffic safety or are no other testimony there?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And what safety funds each governing. And what safety funds each governing.
• That's funding for school safety. That's funding for school safety.
• The last two years, we put safety be. The last two years, we put safety be.
• dedicated source of school safety dedicated source of school safety funding.
• dedicated source of school safety dedicated source of school safety funding.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Their goal is to work with us to reduce gun violence and pass gun safety legislation.
• SB 1400, public safety employees counseling wellness. Public Safety.
• Public Safety. SB 1418, corporation commission small modular reactors. Natural Resources.
• SB 1424, firearm safety instruction, public schools. Education.
• Public Safety. Place under second reading of bills.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:21:50.400><c> for</c> maintain trust and care and safety for maintain trust and care and safety
• </c> safety, dignity, and a pathway home. safety, dignity, and a pathway home.
• :43:28.319><c> on</c><00:43:28.560><c> the</c> increase their safety while on the increase their safety
• </c> hospitals, and public safety at risk. hospitals, and public safety at risk.
• Thank you for your time. families by providing critical safety families by providing critical safety

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: This joint informational briefing on Act 310 grants and aid focused on organizations describing how federal funding cuts, Medicaid/SNAP changes, and related policy shifts are affecting their services and budgets. Committee members explained there would be no Q&A, testimony would be limited to one minute, and in-person participants would be heard before Zoom callers. Members repeatedly asked testifiers to identify the amount of federal funding lost or at risk. Testimony came from a wide range of nonprofits and community providers, including Aloha Care, Hawaii Bicycling League, Hawaii Literacy, Hawaii Youth Symphony, Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition of Hawaii, the Tsunami Museum, The Kohala Center, West Hawaii Community Health Center, West Hawaii Region Hospital Foundation, Sounding Joy Music Therapy, Big Brothers Big Sisters Hawaii, Dynamic Community Solutions, Feeding Hawaii Together, Girl Scouts of Hawaii, Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Hawaii Youth Services Network, Hawaiian Lending and Investments, Homana, Honolulu Theatre for the Youth, Kids Hurt Too Hawaii, and Kokua Kalihi Valley. Most described reduced or threatened federal support and requested state funding to maintain services such as health care access, food security, disaster preparedness, literacy and digital inclusion, youth mentoring, arts education, housing, and climate or agricultural resilience. Several speakers emphasized direct impacts on vulnerable populations, including kūpuna, low-income families, immigrants, homeless youth, and people with disabilities. Requests ranged from relatively small planning or program grants to multi-million-dollar stabilization asks, with some organizations citing specific losses such as reduced Medicaid or USDA funding, canceled EPA or FEMA support, or expiring federal grants. No votes or formal committee actions were taken during the briefing.

Transcript Highlights:

• for safety.
• The time- and temperature-controlled for safety is really the...
• foods, and so there's food safety limitations already in the bill that I'm not changing.
• From a food-safety perspective, and they can financially absorb the cost more easily.
• If you're going to do it, just follow the EPA guidelines to ensure public health and safety.

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• controlled for safety.
• The time and temperature controlled for safety is really the...
• If you leave them on your counter, the time and temperature controlled for safety is really the non-
• From a food safety perspective, and they can financially absorb the cost more easily.
• If you're going to do it, just follow the EPA guidelines to ensure public health and safety.

Summary: The committee opened with prayer and then took up a series of House bills, most of them on natural resources, agriculture, energy, and economic development topics. House Bill 2988, dealing with efforts to address woody invasive species through a state income tax credit subject to appropriation, was explained as a response to underfunding concerns and was reported do pass unanimously. House Bill 4344 would exempt sales tax on frackwater sales; the author said it was a constituent request tied to oil and gas activity in western Oklahoma, staff indicated a minimal fiscal impact, and the bill passed 9-2. The committee then approved House Bill 3280, which raises the Homemade Food Freedom Act revenue cap from $75,000 to $300,000 to let home-based food businesses grow before facing more burdensome licensing and inspection requirements. Members asked about the fiscal impact and food-safety distinctions between perishable and nonperishable foods; the author said there would be no state fiscal impact and that existing safety limits would remain unchanged. House Bill 3917, imposing a surcharge on large-load data centers during peak demand periods and directing the revenue to a grid modernization fund, was presented as a way to protect ratepayers and passed unanimously. House Bill 4413, as amended by PCS, would require any Oklahoma facility incinerating regulated medical waste to follow EPA guidelines; the author said the measure was prompted by a Tulsa facility seeking a permit variance and argued the bill was needed to protect public health and safety. After extensive questioning about DEQ authority, EPA standards, and health risks from incineration emissions, the PCS passed 8-1. House Bill 3402 created a revolving fund for DEQ biosolids land-application research and passed 7-2, and House Bill 4476 created a community music infrastructure and events development revolving fund to support rural music festivals and local matching participation, passing 5-4. Finally, House Bill 4155, as amended by PCS, established a new economic development structure for events in Oklahoma and passed 6-3. The committee repeatedly reminded authors to provide detailed forms and Senate authors before full A&B consideration, and then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• There are other safety issues in higher need of their attention.
• There are other safety issues in higher need of their attention.
• </c> which we know there's not a safety which we know there's not a safety hazard<00:22:08.640><c> right
• </c><00:24:01.720><c> and</c> a way that should improve safety and a way that should improve safety and
• </c><01:42:38.400><c> in</c> national leader in roadway safety in national leader in roadway safety in

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> safety improvements along Highway 10. safety improvements along Highway 10.
• </c> Highway Traffic Safety Administration Highway Traffic Safety Administration study,<01:30:50.639>
• And policies and enhance public safety.
• Or public safety<01:40:07.840><c> or</c><01:40:08.000><c> public</c><01:40:08.239><c> safety</c><01:40
• public safety and it can be safety or public safety and it can be addressed<01:40:09.840><c> there</

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> construction related health and safety construction related health and safety codes<00:22:17.559
• </c><00:31:05.080><c> and</c> services are provided by safety and services are provided by safety and
• </c> by the workplace safety by the workplace safety consultant<00:31:35.720><c> um</c><00:31:36.039>
• </c><00:31:49.919><c> regulations</c> go above and beyond safety regulations go above and beyond safety
• </c> olds with classroom instruction safety olds with classroom instruction safety training<00:38:33.319

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And then safety. They're free from harm, their adjacency to rivals.
• Readiness of sites, appropriateness of the amenities, public safety, and community input.
• We don't even know the efficacy of our current safety plans.
• And I do want to make a distinction between our risk assessment process and the safety plans.
• This bill matters because it improves operational efficiency without compromising child safety.

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 1544, which would require DCYF to study and improve the risk assessment tool used in child abuse and neglect investigations, including better identifying family strengths and needs, substance use-related risk, and service needs, and to certify the tool every three years. Staff explained the bill and noted it had passed the committee unanimously in substitute form last year. The prime sponsor, Representative Rule, said the tool would help reduce bias and support better decisions about child safety. Members raised questions about whether the bill would require new data systems or create a fiscal impact, and DCYF testified that the recertification process would focus on evidence-based literature and fidelity to the tool, though the agency acknowledged limitations in its data system. Support testimony from Partners for Our Children and DCYF emphasized that the current tool is not evidence-based and that the department is piloting the North Carolina Family Assessment Scale. The hearing on HB 1544 was then closed. The committee then received a lengthy work session from DCYF on juvenile rehabilitation. Juvenile Rehabilitation Assistant Secretary Jennifer Redman and security classification administrator Jeff Endermark described a growing JR population that is older, serving more adult-sentence youth, and projected to rise to about 481 by 2031. They said Green Hill School remains crowded, Harbor Heights is being brought online as a short-term option, and Echo Glen is near safe operational capacity. They explained JR’s classification system, behavior management process, and the role of multidisciplinary teams in placement decisions, as well as the expansion of community transition services (CTS), which uses electronic home monitoring for eligible youth. Staff described CTS eligibility, supervision expectations, and examples of successful placements, but also said the program needs more after-hours staffing and community supports. Members questioned the validity and equity of the risk tools, the availability of community resources, the impact of behavior policies and escapes, the use of single bunking, and broader concerns about lawsuits and sexual abuse in the system. JR reported an escape rate increase from 1.78 per 100 youth in 2001 to 3.92 in 2025 and said additional capacity and staffing are still needed. The committee then heard House Bill 2219, which would allow child care centers more flexibility in mixed-age grouping during parts of the day and waive repeated DCYF pre-service orientation for people who have already completed it. The prime sponsor, Representative Ortiz-Self, said the bill is meant to ease burdens on small providers. Testifiers from SEIU 925, a family child care provider, the Washington Child Care Centers Association, a child care center director, and the Children’s Campaign Fund supported the bill as a practical way to improve staffing flexibility and reduce duplicative licensing requirements, though one association asked that the bill’s daily time caps on mixed-age grouping be revised or removed. The committee then heard House Bill 2253, an agency-request technical corrections bill for DCYF licensing. Staff said it would allow child-specific licenses for certain relatives under interstate placements, exempt kinship caregivers from blood-borne pathogen training, remove licensing exemptions for physicians and lawyers, allow termination of inactive licenses, revise crisis residential center staffing ratios, and eliminate state monitoring requirements for the Washington School for the Deaf residential program. Members asked about how inactivity would be defined and whether the School for the Deaf inspections had historically produced savings. DCYF said the bill would help right-size licensing workloads after budget cuts and would let the agency work with stakeholders to define inactivity in rule. Testimony from DCYF, Community Youth Services, and Partners for Our Children supported the bill, especially the staffing ratio fix for crisis residential centers and the child-specific licensing changes for relatives.

Transcript Highlights:

• With new statewide workplace safety standards, those can be reconsidered.
• Okay, so I have that here for the junior safety engineer.
• Like associate safety engineer and senior safety engineer with commensurate requirements of experience
• With their limited tax dollars, where are some of the occupational safety hazards?
• They're not workforce safety experts.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> is also going to spill over into safety is also going to spill over into safety um<00:12:31.880>
• The mission of the Department of Safety is to consistently enhance safety, security, and the quality
• Public Safety mission of our seven Public Safety mission of our seven divisions<02:34:16.640><c> we</
• </c> focuses on the division of fire safety focuses on the division of fire safety which<02:59:08.800
• </c> maintaining effective Public Safety maintaining effective Public Safety Services<03:08:10.399><c

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Division 2 Finance Committee heard an overview and budget presentation from New Hampshire Fish and Game, led by new Executive Director Stephanie Simi and Business Division Chief Kathy Leonti. The agency described its mission to conserve and manage fish, wildlife, and marine resources, and emphasized growing pressures from disease, climate impacts, habitat change, and increased public demand. Simi said the department is largely funded by hunting and fishing license revenue and federal grants, is reviewing staffing and internal processes, and faces critical needs including permanent funding for environmental review staff, infrastructure and IT modernization, and possible service reductions if additional support is not found. Members asked about specific program and policy issues, including chronic wasting disease in deer, hemorrhagic disease in rabbits and hares, moose population decline, and a proposed bait-disease bill. The department said it is actively monitoring diseases and did not see a need for the bait bill at this time. Legislators also discussed the Hike Safe program, which the department said has grown from an expected $100,000 annually to more than $300,000, and a possible boating version of that program, which the department said remains under consideration but would involve complex logistics and multiple agencies. Questions were also raised about rescue costs, out-of-state hikers, and whether boat registrations could be used as a revenue source; Fish and Game said boat registration is handled by the Department of Safety, though the department receives $5 per registered boat for the public boat access program. The budget discussion focused on revenue projections, use of unrestricted Fish and Game funds, and dependence on federal reimbursements. Leonti said the department met the governor’s general fund target but not the Fish and Game fund target without using surplus unrestricted funds, leaving only about $100,000 in the fund by the end of the biennium. She said the budget uses more than $18 million in Fish and Game funds annually against about $14 million in unrestricted revenue, and that five of 193 full-time positions remain unfunded. The department warned that if federal grants were halted, it could cost about $5 million over five months and force the Fish and Game fund to cover the gap. Committee members also requested that future presentations be sent electronically in advance, and the department agreed to do so.

Transcript Highlights:

• fines, such as not having fines issued if the violation does not pose a risk of harm to the health, safety
• Residents will be required to leave their homes and possibly return to a community living where safety
• These have proven sufficient to protect resident safety.
• We appreciate the Department of Public Health's long-standing commitment to resident safety, quality
• Thank you for allowing me to present this testimony. platform which addresses all safety concerns.

Summary: The Joint Committee on Aging and Independence heard testimony on Senate 3057/House 5376, a bill to create an Assisted Living Residence Trust Fund and implement recommendations from the Assisted Living Residence Commission. Supporters, including AARP and the state long-term care ombudsman, backed the trust fund for certification staffing, compliance reviews, investigations, ombudsman services, public reporting, and appeals. The assisted living industry, represented by MassALA, supported the affordability task force and certified medication aides, but asked for amendments to expand career paths and to remove or limit fines as a funding source, arguing fines should be capped and tied to health or safety risks. The ombudsman emphasized the need for more staffing and resources, noting the current caseload and travel burden across the state. The committee also took testimony on Senate 3056/House 5243 concerning medication administration in rest homes. Rest home operators, MARCH, and LeadingAge Massachusetts opposed proposed Department of Public Health changes that would replace the long-standing responsible person model with a MAP-based framework or require more licensed nursing staff. They argued the current model has been used for decades, is safe and affordable, and is better suited to rest homes than MAP, which they said was designed for different settings. They urged the committee to preserve responsible person medication administration while improving training and oversight, and several witnesses asked for a task force or substitute language to study best practices rather than impose immediate regulatory changes. Committee members asked questions about the history of the responsible person model, how medication administration works in practice, and whether other states use similar systems. Chair Stanley said the committee was still reviewing building code-related recommendations for assisted living and noted that those issues may require more time. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the committee adjourned after testimony concluded.