Transcript Highlights:

• The RO corporate documents and the tariff must respect California's procurement, resource adequacy, environmental

Summary: The Assembly Committee on Utilities and Energy convened with a quorum and first heard SB 254, a major utility affordability and wildfire package authored by Senator Becker and coauthored by Assemblymember Petrie-Norris. The bill was described as combining wildfire mitigation reforms, $6 billion in securitized financing for future fire-mitigation capital spending, a public ownership/transmission financing program, tighter scrutiny of utility profits, clean energy permitting streamlining, stronger customer connection timelines, and a successor wildfire fund/continuation account to replace the current fund. Supporters, including the Governor’s office, TURN, labor, clean energy groups, utilities, and public advocates, said the measure would lower bills, stabilize utilities, protect fire victims, and reduce wildfire-related bankruptcy risk. Opponents and some local government groups raised concerns about affordability impacts, the volumetric wildfire fee, strict liability, and provisions they said could affect local control. After discussion, the committee approved SB 254 on a 16-0 vote and sent it to the floor. The committee then held an informational hearing on AB 825, which would enable California to participate in a West-wide electricity market. The authors said the proposal could save ratepayers up to $1 billion annually, improve reliability by allowing California to draw on a larger regional supply, reduce curtailment of renewable power, and lower greenhouse gas emissions. Support came from environmental organizations, labor, utilities, community choice aggregators, large energy users, and the Public Advocates Office, all emphasizing cost savings, reliability, and cleaner energy integration. TURN opposed the measure, warning that last-minute amendments removed safeguards against subsidizing out-of-state fossil generation and could expose California ratepayers to unwanted costs. Members questioned governance, exit rights, CPUC oversight, and local control, and the authors responded that the bill includes multiple safeguards, legislative reporting, the ability to exit without penalty, and continued local consultation. No vote was taken because the hearing was informational only.

Transcript Highlights:

• Both accessing capital, navigating procurement processes, and building generational wealth in their communities

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And a couple of things that we figured out: one is the procurement process.

Summary: The Select Committee on Property Taxes met for a listening session focused on a presentation by Amy Baker of the Joint Legislative Office of Economic and Demographic Research on local government revenues and expenditures. Baker reviewed statewide financial data for counties, municipalities, and independent special districts, using 2018-19 as a baseline year because it was stable and pre-COVID. She explained that counties rely heavily on taxes, with ad valorem taxes making up about 73% of county tax revenue and about 24% of total county revenues statewide, while municipalities rely more on charges for services and have a lower statewide ad valorem share of about 14.7%. She also noted wide variation across local governments, with some counties and cities highly dependent on property taxes and others using them minimally or not at all. Special districts were shown to be very different from counties and cities, with hospital-related revenues and expenditures dominating many of them, while water management districts were more reliant on ad valorem taxes and focused expenditures on the physical environment. Baker also summarized expenditure patterns: counties spent the largest share on public safety, while municipalities spent the largest share on general government services, followed by physical environment and public safety. She emphasized that local government structures vary widely and that the committee should study what characteristics are associated with greater property tax reliance. She said the next research steps would be to extend the analysis through later years, including the COVID and inflation period, and to examine institutional and legal factors that shape local fiscal structures. Members asked about unfunded mandates, fuel taxes, reserves, school taxes, millage rates, and how property taxes relate to specific services such as police and fire. Baker said the current analysis did not yet account for mandates or school taxes and that further work could examine links between revenues and expenditures, commercial versus residential tax burdens, and other factors. After the presentation, members reported back on local meetings with counties and municipalities. Several described large differences in millage rates, revenue mixes, and the impact of any property tax changes on fiscally constrained counties versus larger, wealthier ones. Concerns were raised about how local governments would replace lost revenue, especially for public safety and emergency response, and members discussed the need to consider both revenue replacement and ways to rein in spending. The co-chairs said the committee would continue gathering information, send members follow-up homework and requests for panel suggestions, and invite additional input from constituents, stakeholders, and local governments. The meeting ended with no votes or formal actions beyond adjournment.

Transcript Highlights:

• Since then, the city has worked hard to procure three acres of land, and formalize its intentions through

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Unfortunately, those cuts combined with the increasing cost of procurement may force schools to scale

Bills: SB222

Keywords: whole milk, school lunch, school meals, National School Lunch Program, Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, Child Nutrition Act, USDA, nutrition standards, dairy, nonfat milk, low-fat milk, reduced-fat milk, lactose-free milk, nondairy beverages, plant-based milk, milk substitution, parental consent, legal guardian, food allergies, allergic reaction

Summary: This meeting of the committee focused primarily on the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, S222, which aims to permit schools to offer a fuller range of milk options, including whole, reduced, and low-fat varieties, that have garnered bipartisan support. Chairman Bozeman opened the session by highlighting concerns over children's nutrition and the obesity epidemic, emphasizing the significance of nutritious school meals in addressing these issues. Experts from various organizations were invited to discuss the implications of this bill as well as the current challenges facing school meal programs, including budget constraints and food supply issues. The meeting included passionate testimonies about the direct impacts of current dietary guidelines and federal funding reductions affecting schools' abilities to provide healthy meal options.

Transcript Highlights:

• We've been out procuring very aggressive. with third-party administrators.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Beyond that, their power is procured from the market, basically the grid.
• ,<02:57:20.000> their<02:57:20.319> power<02:57:20.479> is<02:57:20.720> procured
• <02:57:21.200> from<02:57:21.439> the that, their power is procured from the that,
• their power is procured from the market,<02:57:22.240> basically<02:57:22.640> the<02:57
• violation So, one of the conditions that the federal government looks at when they look at and audit

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And I believe the last time there was a legislative audit report on prevailing wage was back in 2007.
• way that it is collected right now is so diffuse and so atomized that it becomes very difficult to audit
• auditor, I'm sorry, legislative audit auditor, I'm sorry, legislative audit report<00:42:54.840>
• ><00:43:11.680> difficult<00:43:12.480> to uh very difficult to uh very difficult to audit
• audit audit whether<00:43:15.000> or<00:43:15.080> not<00:43:15.280> there's<00

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , that the Office of the Auditor is requested to conduct a comprehensive performance and financial audit
• <01:18:22.680> And a financial and performance audit.
• And a financial and performance audit.
• comprehensive performance<01:19:29.960> and<01:19:30.120> financial<01:19:30.680> audit
• and financial audit of the Auhuhu<01:19:32.040> Advisory<01:19:32.520> Committee.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The committee heard a series of resolutions and a few bills, with testimony largely in support across the agenda. Early measures included HCR 15/HR 17 supporting Kamehameha Schools’ admissions policy, and HCR 22/HR 22 urging Congress to pass federal kidney disease legislation; both drew support and no opposition. The committee also heard HCR 146 HD1/HR 138 HD1 on “excited delirium,” with testimony from advocates urging the resolutions be broadened to include related terms such as hyperactive delirium and agitated delirium, and from family members and disability-rights advocates describing the issue as harmful pseudoscience tied to police-custody deaths and calling for a ban on the term and better mental-health responses. The committee then took up HCR 123/HR 115 on creating a coordinated support and stabilization task force for Native Hawaiians experiencing homelessness or extreme low income. Department of Hawaiian Home Lands testified in support, describing its transitional housing work and saying collaboration and data-sharing with the state homelessness office would help beneficiaries and others; members questioned whether existing entities already do similar work and whether the proposal would extend beyond beneficiaries. HCR 32/HR 32, which asks the governor’s senior advisor on mental health and the justice system to develop a plan to increase access to Hawaii State Hospital for certain criminal defendants, drew support from the Department of Health, the governor’s office, and disability-rights advocates, who emphasized coordinated planning, diversion from arrest when appropriate, and matching people to the right level of care. Additional resolutions addressed a range of policy issues: renaming Leeward Community College to Puloulou Community College (with no testimony), creating an ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi pathway under the Niʻihau dialect at UH (UH noted existing courses already cover the dialect but not a degree pathway), moving to a demerit-point driver licensing system (support only), and coordinating transportation infrastructure planning for Hawaiian home lands (DHHL supported the measure and said an expired DOT memorandum of understanding had covered related collaboration). The committee also heard support for expanding DHHL financial literacy and homeownership-preparedness programs, a resolution asking the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission to examine algorithmic discrimination, and a resolution urging the Oahu Metropolitan Planning Advisory Committee to follow its rules, comply with the Sunshine Law, review its executive director, and strengthen accountability; the last measure drew 11 written supports and no opposition. No final votes or decisions were taken in the portion provided, as the hearing focused on testimony and questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• And lastly, I'll say, and I promise lastly, is that the LBA is going to be doing an audit of our special
• But we do have this rather large and comprehensive audit.
• of the spe of our special audit of the spe of our special education<00:28:38.360> systems<00:
• <00:28:53.279> So<00:28:53.520> I<00:28:53.760> would comprehensive audit.
• So I would comprehensive audit.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And I remember several years ago when the Feeding Our Future audit came in and I asked the people from
• the administration that were there for that audit, "How many entities were suspected or committed fraud
• , that were there for that audit, that were there for that audit, "How<01:10:50.400> many<
• And then, a year or two later, when an elderly feeding the elderly people, um, audit came through much
• Because program after program, year after year, repeat offenders have shown up in the audits.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Second, the vote is now accurate, with the ability to audit the vote in real time prior to the warrant
• is accomplished by enabling every voter to confirm the accurate receipt of their vote in a public audit
• While the audit table is public, each vote remains confidential.
• If voters report discrepancies between the vote they submitted and the vote shown in the public audit
• We have fully described this real-time confidential auditing technique to many legislators, moderators

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on several bills related to open meeting law, municipal meetings, town meetings, and remote participation. Senator Rausch supported S. 2205 and S. 2206, and House companion H. 3382, saying they would make remote participation in public bodies permanent and streamline open meeting law and public records complaint processes to reduce burdens on local officials. Committee members and the senator discussed concerns about complaints being weaponized, the role of the Attorney General, and whether public testimony should be presumed allowed unless a chair limits it with justification. The senator said the bills do not change public records fees and are meant to improve process and transparency. A large portion of the hearing focused on H. 3342 and S. 2197, which would modernize municipal meetings, town meetings, and local elections by allowing permanent remote or hybrid participation. Supporters included Wayland officials, the Massachusetts Municipal Association, Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, MAPC, MACC, and others, who argued that hybrid and remote options increase participation, help parents, caregivers, people with disabilities, and residents with travel or work constraints, and have worked well during the pandemic-era extensions. Municipal officials emphasized that a mandate would be costly and difficult for smaller communities because of staffing, technology, room design, cybersecurity, and uneven internet access, especially in western Massachusetts. Committee members asked about equal access, funding, and whether local discretion should remain; the chair said the committee wants a permanent solution beyond emergency rules but must balance access with local capacity. The committee also heard testimony on H. 3328, which would allow remote participation to count toward quorum for statewide appointed bodies such as commissions on women and LGBTQ issues. Supporters argued this would improve regional equity and make it easier for people outside Greater Boston to serve, while committee members noted it is a separate issue from municipal meetings and may be easier to address than broader local-government changes. Another bill, H. 4351, was supported by Rep. Brandy Fluker Reed, who described it as creating an Office of Freedmen Affairs to address longstanding racial wealth disparities affecting descendants of enslaved Americans. The hearing also included testimony on H. 3299 from Common Cause and MASSPIRG in favor of guaranteed hybrid access for public meetings with public participation components, with advocates saying it would improve transparency, accessibility, and civic engagement.

Transcript Highlights:

• oversight and enforcement framework, including through a public incident reporting mechanism, third-party audits
• , the development of auditing standards by the Attorney General, and the inclusion of a private right
• oversight and enforcement framework, including through a public incident reporting mechanism, third-party audits
• The development of auditing standards by the Attorney Thank you. mechanism, third-party audits, the development
• of auditing standards by the Attorney General and the inclusion of a private right of action.

Summary: The committee heard several bills. SB 911, by Senator Becker, would require notification and verification of defensible-space compliance when homes in high wildfire severity zones are transferred, using the preliminary change of ownership report; supporters said it would improve wildfire resilience and insurance availability, while county assessors opposed the use of the PCOR and urged a different recorded document. Members generally supported the bill but raised concerns about the 12-month compliance window and the need to keep working with assessors; the bill was held pending a quorum and later placed on call. SB 1016, by Senator Blakespear, would create a pathway for a higher-level mental health evaluation when a Care Court petition is dismissed because the person is too ill to participate or otherwise needs more intensive care. Supporters, including psychiatrists, family members, and local officials, said Care Court is leaving many severely ill people untreated and that the bill would connect them to existing LPS processes. Opponents, including Disability Rights California, county behavioral health directors, counties, and other advocacy groups, argued it would expand involuntary detention, bypass existing pre-petition screening safeguards, and undermine Care Court’s voluntary nature. The bill passed the committee on a roll call vote and was placed on call. SB 1112, by Senator Archuleta, would create a faster court process for victims of illegal or excessive “bandit towing” to recover their vehicles by posting a bond and obtaining a release certificate. Support came from Enterprise Mobility and the author, who said the bill targets bad actors and helps equalize leverage for vehicle owners; the California Auto Body Association sought an amendment to exclude auto repair shops. The committee passed the bill as amended to Appropriations and placed it on call. SB 1119, by Senator Padilla, would impose child-safety requirements on AI chatbots, including risk assessments, crisis-response protocols, parental controls, limits on time and data use, reporting, audits, and a private right of action. The bill was driven by testimony from the mother of a teenager who died by suicide after prolonged chatbot interactions; industry and business groups opposed or sought amendments, citing overlap with recent law, vague standards, and prescriptive design mandates. Members expressed strong support for the bill’s goals while urging tighter definitions, and the bill was moved on a roll call vote and placed on call.

Transcript Highlights:

• finally, I want to bring up something in adjacency that people can be aware of, and that is sales tax audits
• Right now, your grocery stores, your independent grocery stores, generally have sales tax audits that
• finally, I want to bring up something in adjacency that people can be aware of, and that is sales tax audits
• Right now, your grocery stores, your independent grocery stores, generally have sales tax audits that
• Right now, your grocery stores, your independent grocery stores, generally have sales tax audits that

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The committee took up House File 3603, and Representative Olson first offered and had adopted an A1 author’s amendment. Olson then explained that the bill would direct the Commissioner of Children, Youth and Families to seek a USDA waiver allowing Minnesota to bar SNAP purchases of items subject to state sales tax, such as prepared foods, chips, soft drinks, and candy. He argued the goal was to promote healthier nutrition, noted that other states have similar waivers, and said the change could help Minnesota qualify for significant federal rural health care funding. Public testimony was divided. Patrick Garofalo of the Minnesota Grocers Association opposed the bill, saying SNAP is a supplemental program and that the proposal would be difficult to administer at retail stores, create confusion, and expose retailers to serious penalties for mistakes. He argued the state tax code is not a nutrition standard and pointed out inconsistencies, such as some candy-like products still being taxable or some healthy items being treated as prepared food. Will Hagen of Minnesota Retailers also opposed the bill, warning it would require costly point-of-sale changes, retraining, and would turn store employees into enforcers while creating cross-border shopping problems. Matt Schmidt of the American First Policy Institute supported the concept, saying SNAP should emphasize nutrition and that restricting unhealthy purchases would reduce taxpayer subsidies for junk food and soda. Members then debated the bill’s logic and practicality, including questions about which snacks would or would not be allowed under the tax-based standard. Representative Sencer-Mura offered an H2 amendment, framed as applying the same restrictions to legislators’ own per diem spending; Representative Hansen responded that the comparison was not equivalent and raised concerns about household circumstances and accessibility. The H2 amendment was put to a vote and did not prevail. The committee then continued member discussion on the bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um I provided our audited<00:36:40.280> financials<00:36:41.040> and<00:36:41.400> audit
• <00:36:41.680> with<00:36:41.840> the audited financials and audit with the audited
• financials and audit with the last<00:36:42.920> uh<00:36:43.560> hearing.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, I think this is going to save a lot of manufacturer co-ops some money with audit requirements.
• I think by um I believe I think I asked during the public hearing, it's like $10,000 per audit.
• We clarified the audit-compliant process, referring engineers and architects potentially to our licensing
• ,<01:39:00.320> we<01:39:00.560> clarified<01:39:01.040> the<01:39:01.280> audit
• <01:39:01.600> compliant Um, we clarified the audit compliant Um, we clarified the audit compliant

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It will provide us with automation efficiencies and also position us well for more comprehensive audits
• So we are also getting ready for our own audits.
• Our own audits will be more comprehensive as opposed to just a component of a...
• Our own audits will be more comprehensive as opposed to just a component of a DMR audit.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee received a compliance and status update on Industrial Commission programs and the Bank of North Dakota. Staff reviewed appropriations and spending for several Industrial Commission funds and grant programs, including lignite research, oil and gas research, clean sustainable energy, grid resiliency, salt cavern analysis, and the new NDSU research and technology park grant. Members discussed the timing of reimbursements, uncommitted balances, and the structure of the pipeline capacity and enhanced oil recovery funding. The Industrial Commission also reported on its administrative budget, grant management system project, and recent leadership transitions across several agencies. Karen Tyler of the Industrial Commission described active grant rounds and the status of major projects. She said the Clean Sustainable Energy Authority approved three projects in its sixth round, with remaining uncommitted cash and loan capacity still available, though no new funding was appropriated this session. She also said the Oil and Gas Research Council approved six enhanced oil recovery projects and expects additional funding after a federal Department of Energy award replaces one project’s state funding. For grid resiliency grants, she said some projects have been funded, some commitments were returned or reallocated, and some DOE funds remain pending. She also updated the committee on the salt cavern business case study, which replaced an earlier larger development proposal, and on the NDSU research park grant, where the nonmatching portion was paid and the matching portion has moved slowly because the match must be in cash. Ron Ness then gave an extended presentation on enhanced oil recovery and North Dakota oil and gas trends. He said production remains steady, but future growth depends on infrastructure, especially gas takeaway and projects like the Bakken East pipeline. He argued that enhanced oil recovery using CO2, natural gas, surfactants, and other methods could extend Bakken production for decades, but that the state needs more CO2 supply, better storage, and updated tax and regulatory incentives. Members asked about lateral lengths, CO2 availability, pipeline impacts, and the role of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and Ness emphasized that the projects are intended to share technical learning across operators and attract follow-on investment. The Bank of North Dakota then presented its compliance report and strategic update. President Don Morgan said the bank’s mission remains to support North Dakota agriculture, commerce, and industry while cooperating with the state’s financial sector. He reviewed the bank’s main business lines: participation lending with community institutions, student loans, disaster lending, mission-based programs, and a new fintech-focused effort. Morgan said deposits are flattening, so the bank is managing balance sheet growth carefully, while still reporting improved net income and strong efficiency. He also introduced Rough Rider Coin as a bank-to-bank payment rail, not a public cryptocurrency, intended to speed and modernize payments within North Dakota’s banking and credit union system. Committee members asked about student loan eligibility, disaster program use, and how credit lines and liquidity would be affected if deposits shrink.

Transcript Highlights:

• And is there an audit process? Yes.
• And is there an audit process?
• might want to take advantage of the system when we're trying to do something good, that there is an audit
• yes, there is not a process... systems development is called Hasdy at the student and is there an audit
• want to take advantage of the system when we're trying to do something good that there is there an audit

Summary: The Assembly Higher Education Committee heard several Senate measures focused on student access, workforce needs, and institutional stability. Senator Laird presented SJR 4, which urges the federal government to restore NIH funding cuts and protect California’s research universities; UC testified in support and there was no opposition. Senator Ashby presented SB 761, the CalFresh for Students Act, to connect Cal Grant applicants with potential CalFresh eligibility and expand qualifying programs; the bill drew broad support from higher education, student, anti-hunger, and county groups, with members sharing personal experiences with food insecurity and no opposition. Senator Cabaldon presented SB 520 to create a California Nurse Midwifery Education Fund for a new master’s-level nurse midwifery program, citing maternal health disparities and provider shortages, especially in rural and Central Valley communities. Supporters from the California Nurse Midwives Association and the Black Wellness and Prosperity Center emphasized workforce shortages and maternal mortality; one member raised concerns about the bill’s use of inclusive language, but the bill was otherwise well received. Cabaldon also presented SB 640, which would create a statewide direct admissions process to CSU for eligible high school seniors using existing data systems; supporters said it would reduce barriers, improve equity, and help declining-enrollment campuses, while members raised questions about special education students, rural access, dual enrollment, and measuring effectiveness. The committee voted SB 640 out on a 6-0 roll call. Cabaldon’s SB 744 would preserve California students’ access to enrollment and financial aid if a federally recognized accrediting agency loses approval, by treating affected institutions as accredited for state purposes; the bill drew no public testimony and advanced on a 4-2 roll call. Senator Cortese’s SB 494 would require classified school employees’ disciplinary appeals to be heard by an administrative law judge, matching protections already available to teachers and community college faculty; labor groups supported the bill, while school districts and administrators opposed it over cost, local control, and implementation concerns. The committee also heard SB 550, a revised pilot to allow San Jose State and a nonprofit, state-accredited law school to jointly develop a public law school pathway; supporters argued it would expand affordable legal education and public-interest careers, while UC and independent colleges opposed it as inconsistent with the Master Plan. Members debated access, jurisdiction, funding, and bar pass rates, and the bill advanced on a 4-2 roll call to the Judiciary Committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• We met with the executive director of the Retirement Board, and he explained that it's part of an audit
• We met with the executive director of the Retirement Board, and he explained that it's part of an audit
• During our 2004 financial audit, our auditor warned that this matter, if not resolved soon, would have
• Our 2025 financial audit report has been delayed in hopes that our auditors would see some progress in

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Public Service heard testimony on a wide range of retirement, municipal workforce, and public employee labor bills. Early testimony focused on H. 2749, a Plymouth home rule petition to classify Plymouth harbormaster employees as Group 4 for retirement purposes. Supporters, including local officials and retirement board representatives, argued the employees perform law-enforcement and rescue duties comparable to police and fire personnel, that the change would be fair, and that it would have little or no fiscal impact on the town. A separate harbormaster-related bill, H. 2743, was also introduced later in the hearing. The committee also heard testimony on provisions of the Municipal Empowerment Act (H. 56), including a temporary critical-shortage exemption allowing retired state or municipal employees to return to work in hard-to-fill positions, and a renewed OPEB commission to study retiree health care costs. Administration and municipal officials said the measures were needed to address staffing shortages and rising benefit liabilities, while emphasizing the shortage exemption would be time-limited and require proof of recruitment efforts. Related retirement bills drew support and caution: advocates for higher COLA bases and enhanced COLA benefits urged relief for retirees, but some asked the committee to wait for recommendations from the special COLA commission before acting. A major portion of the hearing concerned labor rights at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and the Committee for Public Counsel Services. Union representatives and employees backed bills to extend just-cause protections, promotional rights, and collective bargaining rights to MWRA and CPCS workers, arguing they currently lack protections available to most other public employees. Testimony described unfair discipline, delayed promotions, and high turnover, and committee members indicated prior favorable action on similar MWRA bills and expressed support for addressing CPCS labor rights. The committee also heard from representatives of the Massachusetts Municipal Association and public higher education employees in support of H. 2820, which would require timely funding of ratified state employee contracts, with witnesses describing long delays in receiving negotiated raises and back pay. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the chair repeatedly invited written testimony and closed each panel after questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• We have to pay attention to the reports from the Legislative Audit Commission.
• :10:50.200> from<00:10:50.360> the<00:10:50.440> Legislative<00:10:51.000> Audit
• reports from the Legislative Audit reports from the Legislative Audit Commission.<00:10:51.960><

Keywords: 918, senate, all

Summary: Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy said the 2026 session ended with major accomplishments despite frustration over what did not pass. She highlighted a $1.2 billion bonding bill, housing and rental investments, property tax reductions, support for HCMC and distressed hospitals, public safety and crime victim funding, IT modernization, and fraud-prevention measures. She also said the Senate pushed a tab fee holiday, though she criticized Republicans for delaying its start until January, and described the session as focused on a “fair deal” for Minnesotans facing higher costs. Murphy said some of the most difficult work involved human services and fraud oversight. She said lawmakers created an independent inspector general office, funded the Attorney General’s Medicaid fraud unit, added training and electronic visit measures, and included payment-withholding language with due-process protections and continuity-of-care safeguards. She said the Senate tried to balance fraud enforcement with preserving access to Medicaid-funded services, and emphasized that legislators must continue oversight and follow audit recommendations. She also expressed deep disappointment that a comprehensive gun violence prevention package did not pass the House, saying it included prevention, intervention, harm reduction, school safety, and mental health provisions. She said the package was rejected by House Republicans and that she would keep fighting for it. On immigration enforcement, she said the Senate proposed protections against ICE actions but could not get them enacted. She also discussed campaign strategy, saying Democrats would defend frontline seats and emphasize health care, housing, jobs, and affordability, while continuing to support roads, bridges, and transit.