Transcript Highlights:

• This would increase the daily transaction limits.
• It would replace the $2,000 daily transaction limit with a transaction limit of $2,500 for new customers
• The second amendment by Chair Wallen, Claude 450, this would increase the daily transaction limits.
• It would replace the 2,000 daily transaction limit with a transaction limit of $2,500 for new customers
• Even if you want to limit it, that's really not fair, and so I ask you to vote for this bill.

Bills: SB6178 , SB5831

Committee: House Consumer Protection & Business

Keywords: SB6178, property insurance, insurance claims, assignment of benefits, AOB, post-loss assignment, post-loss benefits, homeowners insurance, policyholder, insured, restoration contractor, mitigation contractor, public adjuster, insurance commissioner, claims handling, consumer protection, void and unenforceable, Washington insurance code, chapter 48 RCW, civil penalty

Transcript Highlights:

• moving our state forward is happening in communities across the state as neighbors build and rebuild bonds
• This session, I'm asking you to pass a bonding bill, an additional $907 million.
• <c> a</c><00:26:39.880><c> new</c><00:26:40.040><c> child,</c><00:26:40.800><c> to</c> time off to bond
• with a new child, to time off to bond with a new child, to take<00:26:41.200><c> care</c><00:26:41.360
• That's the work triple-A bond rating. That's the work you've<00:35:56.920><c> done.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• done in Europe and Japan, allows us to finance future expansion through tools like revenue-backed bonding
• We are funding a portion of that through the Prop 1A bonds that were going towards the bookend project
• , instrument that we can advance the cash through bonds and loans, and there are many other ways to do
• It was originally going to be like the bonds were going to be, you know, a third, the feds were going
• Please limit your comments to one minute. Thank you. And let's begin. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We'll have bonding authority up to a half a billion dollars.
• I've got an economist and A bond attorney who wants to do it.
• And, of course, you know, we can also start bonding authority.
• It has several tax bonding amendments, rulemaking, and then there's a sunset.
• I was beyond my limit and hit the wall a bit.

Committee: House House Appropriations & Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• So I won't dig deeper into that, as I know we're limited on time.
• So working with NDIT's project management team, we do have a limitation on the resources that, we do
• Again, we have time limitations here, but this is an important conversation.
• The bonds were paid in full in 2013.
• So we actually took a bond out? We bonded this last time we did it? Yeah. Interesting. Okay.

Summary: The committee approved the March 26 minutes and then received a quarterly update on major IT projects from NDIT. Staff reported the portfolio included 116 major projects totaling about $546 million, with the overall portfolio under budget but slightly behind schedule. They reviewed projects over the 20% variance threshold, including an Industrial Commission grants management system and DOT’s roadway pre-construction replacement, and then heard startup and closeout reports from HHS, OMB, DPI, and DOT. Several previously troubled projects were closed, including HHS bed management, vital records modernization, and DOT roadway capital planning; some projects finished under budget and ahead of schedule, while others were significantly behind schedule or over budget but were now closed or being remediated. The committee also reviewed NDIT’s annual report, including service-fund financials, peer-state rate comparisons, records management, and customer satisfaction efforts. Members asked about how service-fund revenue and grant administrative charges are accounted for, how chargebacks work, and whether NDIT tracks customer satisfaction scores. NDIT said it does track CSAT-type measures in some service areas and has survey data, but it is not planning another customer survey this summer. Members encouraged more regular reporting of customer satisfaction, service-level metrics, and performance data to help guide future improvements. A major portion of the meeting focused on the state’s mainframe modernization effort. NDIT said the overall effort is still targeting about 2030, with multiple HHS and DOT projects underway and a $15 million tech-debt appropriation already removing some components. Staff described the main obstacles as data cleanup, complex integrations, limited staff capacity, retirements, and vendor constraints, and said they are seeking a vendor with modernization support in the next contract cycle. Members pressed for clearer accountability and faster progress, and NDIT and HHS emphasized that they are working jointly but need continued support and better tools. The committee then heard a cybersecurity update on NDIT’s statewide services and maturity assessments. NDIT explained that it provides vulnerability scanning, endpoint protection, security awareness training, threat briefings, and penetration testing, and that these services are tied to a cybersecurity maturity assessment based on CIS controls. Members questioned the sharp drop in participation since 2020 and whether the self-assessment should be mandatory or tied more strongly to StageNet access or insurance incentives. NDIT said participation is voluntary, but Enderf is now requiring annual assessments to keep a 4% insurance discount, and members discussed whether stronger requirements or audit authority may be needed. The meeting ended as the committee began a follow-up discussion on BEAD broadband connection costs and why some locations are much more expensive to connect than others.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> also we are assuming that we will bond also we are assuming that we will bond approximately<04:19
• We're not ready to issue bonds in a couple of weeks; those are fiscal year 25 bonds, so you won't see
• Oh, I don't believe that has passed. issue bonds um those are fiscal year 25 issue bonds um those are
• Bonded, but the amount you'd have to pay every year for the bond, correct?
• We will only bond when they spend the money, not before. I see.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first heard the Banking Department’s fiscal year 2026-2027 budget presentation from Commissioner Amelia Galeri. She described the department as a self-funded consumer protection regulator overseeing two main areas: the Banking Trust Division, which supervises state-chartered banks, credit unions, and trust companies, and the Consumer Credit Division, which oversees more than 7,000 licensees including mortgage and money transmitter businesses. She said the department’s budget is about 86% salaries and benefits, with 53 positions all filled, and explained that the agency funds itself through fees, fines, and end-of-year assessments on regulated entities. Galeri said the department is facing workload growth from several directions: continued growth in the trust industry, increased fintech supervision, and a new requirement to regularly examine auto dealers that take finance applications, which adds about 300 exams over two fiscal years. She said the department was directed to flat-fund its budget based on 2025 levels but was allowed to increase travel and training. To stay within that limit, she said the department reduced office space, went paperless, converted administrative and licensing positions into examiner positions, and expects to defund an embedded DOJ database administrator position once a new SharePoint system is fully implemented. Members asked about how the department’s revenue and assessments work, including whether fees were increasing and how much existing banks would pay. Galeri said fees are not being raised, most banks pay little or no fines, and assessments are based largely on asset size, with trust companies paying the bulk. She also explained that fines are set by statute, generally capped at $2,500 per violation for consumer credit entities, and said she would not recommend increasing that cap. The committee then voted to accept the Banking Department’s budget proposal as presented in HQ1, with a motion and second and no discussion. The transcript then moved to the Department of Energy budget. Commissioner Jared Chakin and Chief of Operations Lenny Radio discussed federal program funding, including LIHEAP fuel assistance and weatherization. They said the apparent drop in fuel assistance funding from FY 2024 actuals to the budgeted amount is due to the loss of ARPA and CARES Act supplemental funds, while weatherization remains a federally constrained program with a waiting list and limited flexibility. Members also asked about a proposed transfer from the renewable energy fund; staff said the transfer would still allow the department to carry out its statutory duties for the year, though the committee deferred deeper discussion until House Bill 2.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so we're limited typically in those as in timing, but also in capacity.
• Severance tax bonds of course are another statewide issue.
• And then finally, revenue bonds are kind of a key area for us. We're limited.
• And then finally we have a limited number of institutional trusts, such as the Daniels Fund.
• And then a limited assessment to single facility or areas.

Transcript Highlights:

• Under the chair's proposal, bonds are assumed to cover those costs in capital, freeing up the building
• Reductions will limit access for students furthest from opportunity. Valley TTK...
• Reductions will limit access for students furthest from opportunity.
• Like our sister institutions, we have made cuts and found deficiencies, but we're at our limit.
• Our model of care has proven to increase bonding and attachment, keeping families together.

Summary: The committee held a public hearing on the Senate operating budget proposal, beginning with a staff briefing from James Kettle. He described the budget as built on relatively flat revenue after multiple forecast updates, with substantial mandatory cost growth, especially in Health Care Authority, DSHS, and DCYF. He highlighted major policy-level additions and savings, including large tort liability costs, continued support for long-term services, reductions tied to child care and K-12 items, several assumed revenue bills, and major transfers from reserves and other accounts. Kettle also noted the four-year outlook remained positive overall, with about $1 billion ending fund balance in the final year and roughly $3 billion in total reserves. A committee member asked about a diagram showing the loss of federal funds, and staff said they would follow up. Public testimony then focused first on K-12 education, where school leaders, teachers, OSPI, PTA, and rural district representatives largely opposed the proposed cuts to local effort assistance, transition to kindergarten, bus depreciation, and related school funding items. Many argued the reductions would disproportionately harm rural and property-poor districts and weaken early learning access, while several students and educators spoke in favor of career and technical education and IT Academy funding. The committee also heard support for wildfire prevention funding from the Commissioner of Public Lands, who thanked the Senate for restoring those dollars but raised concerns about recreation program reductions. Higher education testimony was mixed but generally supportive of the Senate proposal compared with the governor’s budget. Community and technical college leaders warned that the budget still shifts compensation costs to tuition and reduces Running Start funding, while university representatives from Western, Eastern, Central, WSU, and UW thanked the committee for avoiding deeper cuts. Private vocational college students and administrators urged extension of Washington College Grant eligibility for students already enrolled, and others asked to preserve IT Academy and related certification funding. In early learning, child care and advocacy groups praised the decision not to cap Working Connections Child Care but warned that child care and transition to kindergarten still bear a disproportionate share of cuts; they also requested continued support for Dolly Parton Imagination Library and Pierce County early childhood programs, including Family Connects. The hearing continued with testimony on employee compensation, mental health, and human services. State employee and retiree groups supported the budget’s COLA and wildfire funding but objected to cuts in retiree health benefits. Behavioral health and public safety advocates supported mentoring, Trueblood-related funding, crisis stabilization, and the Recovery Navigator Program, while others opposed reductions to those programs and to community-based recovery services. In human services, witnesses thanked the committee for funding victim services, child welfare supports, health homes, adult day care, community health centers, energy assistance, and disability services, while urging the committee to avoid further reductions to skilled nursing, case management, and recovery navigation. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• data to to kind of pull that aggregated data to to kind of pull that<02:48:06.240><c> out.
• access to affordable or limited access to health coverage through private insurers.
• had limited access to affordable<03:18:57.280><c> or</c><03:18:58.200><c> limited</c><03:18:58.560><c
• Those 65-year and older individuals, well, they had limited access and very expensive coverage.
• access and very well, they had limited access and very expensive<03:19:40.760><c> coverage.

Committee: Joint Health Insurance Affordability Task Force

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So what amendment two does, it creates a limited exception for this resale situation.
• And so we ask you to consider this limited exception with the language that we've proposed.
• </c><00:53:45.319><c> exception</c> does, it creates a limited exception does, it creates a limited exception
• And it's limited<00:53:52.559><c> because</c> limited because limited because uh<00:53:54.160><c> there
• The options are pretty limited in terms of how the commission defines aquifers.

Committee: House Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The committee heard several housing, landlord-tenant, and condominium-related measures. Senate Bill 62, relating to the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, would allow HPHA-owned parcels and related areas such as parking lots to be closed to the public with posted signage; HPHA strongly supported the bill, saying it would help reduce loitering, drinking, and other problems, and no further testimony was offered. Senate Bill 822, relating to the landlord tenant code, would create a three-year working group in the Department of the Attorney General to study and improve the residential landlord-tenant code. The Judiciary supported the measure but said the scope should be narrowed; the Attorney General opposed leading the group and suggested another agency should do so; Hawaii Realtors and the Hawaii Worker Center supported the concept and suggested moving the chairmanship to the Judiciary and including Legal Aid participation. The Judiciary said it could chair the group if the bill were narrowed to matters within the court’s purview. Senate Bill 38, relating to housing, would limit counties from imposing stricter conditions, AMI requirements, or fee-waiver reductions on certain affordable housing proposals if those changes would increase project costs. HHFDC supported the bill, saying county changes after state approval create uncertainty for developers, while the Hawaii State Association of Counties opposed it as an intrusion on local authority and a restriction on county safety and infrastructure conditions. Members asked about whether existing county review periods were sufficient, and the county association said the main concern was the bill’s language limiting counties from making cost-increasing conditions. Senate Bill 146, relating to condominiums, would revise alternative dispute resolution procedures for condo disputes, including evaluative mediation and binding arbitration. The Hawaii Real Estate Commission said it took no position overall but supported a $150 mediation fee and asked for a similar arbitration fee; Community Associations Institute supported the bill with suggested amendments; however, most testimony was strongly opposed by condominium owners and advocates, who said the bill had been changed to the detriment of owners and would increase costs and reduce protections. The committee noted 44 testimonies on the bill, with 2 in support, 37 in opposition, and 2 with comments. Senate Bill 253, relating to condominium reserves, would require a detailed budget summary to stand on its own, remove a good-faith defense for certain noncompliant budgets, and clarify standing and the association’s burden regarding substantial compliance. Hawaii Realtors and Community Associations Institute supported the measure as improving transparency and giving owners and buyers a clearer picture of association finances. Greg Msakian also supported it, arguing it would help owners and describing problems he experienced with budget committee exclusion and budget noncompliance in his own association. The discussion ended while testimony on the bill was still underway, with additional witnesses expected.

Transcript Highlights:

• Local voters have approved $25 million in bonds, and during this year's legislative session, we secured
• Not only that, but in 2018, We did pass a bond issuance in 2023, along with other bond issuances.
• Local voters, over 70 percent, voted in favor of this bond issuance, so we are putting forward projects
• So it obviously prompted us to issue, through that first bond issuance that Mr.
• And part of the 2018 bond, a lot of the projects that we designed were to try to get conveyance of water

Committee: House Natural Resources

Keywords: 997, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You have to go out for a bond, and your local taxpayers are going to have to bear this loss.
• I think will help taxpayers not have to cover those additional losses through a general obligation bond
• Members, this bill relates to the Texas Education Agency database of school district bonds, taxes, and
• bond-related projects.
• If a school board isn't getting the job done, the community's options are very limited.

Bills: SB2920 , SB2929 , SB2398 , SB865 , SB401 , SB2619 , SB2927 , SB1395 , SB1972 , SB2540 , SB1635 , SB1581 , SB2008

Committee: Senate Education

Keywords: steroids, student athletes, athletic competition, University Interscholastic League, medical purpose, gender transition, school athletics, spectator conduct, referees, ejection policy, extracurricular activities, concussion, brain injury, school policy, academic accommodations, student welfare, cardiac arrest, emergency response, CPR training, automated external defibrillators

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> budget to pay off uh Garvey bonds. budget to pay off uh Garvey bonds.
• </c><01:14:51.840><c> of</c> corridors uh along with the limits of corridors uh along with the limits
• This would have removed the limitation, and without that limitation it had a cost of $19 million.
• This would have removed the limitation, and without that limitation it had a cost of $19 million.
• This would have removed the limitation. Without that limitation, it had a cost of $19 million.

Committee: Senate Finance

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• have a bill today that started back in 2019 with Chair Fooley and myself having talked about how bonding
• bills move forward and what happens with them, and making sure that all the bonding projects that are
• maintenance plan and it requires that at future times when people come back to the state for more bonding
• On occasion, but not a lot, the city of Shakopee comes before the legislature and asks for bonding funds
• concept of and we already, by getting these state funds off, establish that we are at the levying limit

Committee: House Elections Finance and Government Operations

Transcript Highlights:

• Small population-to-area ratio, which limits revenues. This impacts Nevada.
• Yeah, well, okay, so they're bondholders, and they're holding the bonds, and they're expecting payments
• The total on the slide, on the bonds?
• He said enforcement is limited, and that the dollars available for Fish and Wildlife amount to about
• So it is limited; it is not full public health authority.

Summary: The committee first received a presentation from NCSL staff on national transportation funding trends and alternative user-fee options as gas tax revenue declines. The presentation covered declining fuel-tax purchasing power, the effects of more fuel-efficient and electric vehicles, and a range of state responses including indexed gas taxes, EV and hybrid registration fees, voluntary and mandatory road usage charges, transportation network company fees, retail delivery fees, and per-kilowatt-hour EV charging fees. Members asked about Virginia’s mileage-fee program, enrollment rates, and whether states had reduced gas taxes alongside new fees; the presenters said they would follow up with additional information. Committee staff then presented a comparison of Washington’s transportation budget with Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah, focusing on population, lane miles, road condition, fuel taxes, preservation spending, mega-projects, and governance structures. The discussion highlighted Washington’s unique transportation pressures, including ferries, fish-passage obligations, high debt service, and major capital projects. Members asked follow-up questions about debt service, interest costs, CCA impacts on fuel prices, and whether project costs differed by state. The committee held public hearings on three bills. House Bill 2109 would allow vehicles being towed on trailers to use coverings to contain mud, rocks, or debris instead of requiring prior cleaning; the bill’s sponsor and construction witnesses supported it as a practical solution, and the fiscal note showed modest costs to WSP and WSDOT. House Bill 2139 would raise snowmobile registration fees to support snow park and trail grooming; State Parks, DNR, and several snowmobile advocates supported it, while some snowmobile users opposed it, arguing that enforcement of unregistered sleds should be addressed first. House Bill 2192 would expand the Washington Traffic Safety Commission’s fatal crash review authority and allow it to collect certain health data; the sponsor and agency supported the bill as a public-health tool, while one attorney raised concerns about limiting civil discovery and evidentiary access in fatal crash litigation.

Transcript Highlights:

• Such all-virtual public meetings are also limited by law to two meetings per calendar year, 50% of the
• total amount of school meal debt in the local school division, and then requires the department to aggregate

Keywords: Virginia Commission to End Hunger, 976, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Minerals and aggregate production are essential, as you know, to Arizona's economy and quality of life
• use of qualified third-party contractors to assist with application reviews when agency capacity is limited

Bills: SB1137 , SB1176 , SB1287 , SB1335 , SB1336 , SB1445 , SB1677

Committee: House Natural Resources, Energy & Water

Keywords: underground utilities, utility locating, dig safe, call before you dig, 811, excavation safety, damage prevention, one-call center, locate request, white lining, large project coordination, buried infrastructure, subsurface utilities, utility marking, locator wire, locator strip, interactive positive response system, landlord duties, apartment community, mobile home park

Transcript Highlights:

• So it is, in general, yes, it's aggregated, but you can tease out pretty quickly where the effects are
• And so we end up in a place where our reimbursable process only, it does really limit how those programs

Summary: The Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee met for a work session focused on Washington agriculture’s condition, food security, behavioral health, and animal disease surveillance. WSDA Director Derek Sandison and economist Maddie Roy presented an update on agricultural viability, describing Washington agriculture as highly diverse and valuable but increasingly strained by rising production and labor costs, aging producers, consolidation, trade barriers, land pressures, stagnant research funding, infrastructure concerns, and climate impacts. They cited declining farm numbers, falling net farm income, and negative take-home pay for farmers, while also noting strengths such as climate, soils, ports, irrigation, universities, and other infrastructure. Committee members asked about commodity-specific impacts, comparisons with other states, and the role of regulation in worsening costs. Kelly McLean followed with a discussion of opportunities to support agriculture, including trade, domestic food systems development, climate mitigation, clean energy, ag tech, workforce and education, and mental health. She highlighted investments in port and transportation infrastructure, local food processing and distribution, land access and incubator opportunities, climate resilience projects, and programs supporting farmworker and farmer mental health. Katie Raines then updated the committee on food systems and food security, explaining WSDA’s reorganization into a Farm and Food Systems Development Division and describing trends in household food insecurity, the state’s hunger safety net, and the importance of food system infrastructure. She noted that food insecurity is rising again and that even higher-income households are reporting need, while legislators asked about eligibility thresholds and the impact on lower-income residents. The committee also heard from WSU Skagit County Extension’s Don McMoran and Maddie Van der Koi on agricultural stress and suicide prevention. They described the Western Region Agricultural Stress Assistance Partnership, crisis and referral resources, peer-to-peer outreach, trainings, and free counseling vouchers for farmers and farmworkers. They emphasized that farmers face chronic stress from financial volatility, weather, labor shortages, isolation, and stigma, and cited elevated suicide rates in agricultural populations. Members asked about reluctance to seek help and whether flooding had increased demand for services. Finally, Dr. Kevin Snekovic of the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory described WADDL’s role in disease testing, food safety, wildlife surveillance, and rapid response to outbreaks such as avian influenza and chronic wasting disease. He said the lab supports trade and quarantine decisions, and members asked about elk hoof rot research, workforce needs, and how to connect constituents to the lab. No votes were taken; the session ended with a preview of upcoming Thursday work sessions on marine resources, Columbia River Basin supply, Ecology’s report back, and agricultural natural resources issues.

Transcript Highlights:

• Or do we want to maybe take a look at the aggregate of the data to give parents more information to make
• secretary about this, and I think their intention is to give more definition, but to make sure that this limited

Transcript Highlights:

• While we are significant contributors to the state economy, today we are speaking as the largest aggregate
• Limiting the salaries that are listed to those salaries paid for by the government contracts is important

Bills: SB 6 , SB6 , SB504 , SB765 , SB815 , SB929

Committee: Senate Business & Commerce

Keywords: hemp, consumable hemp, hemp-derived cannabinoids, CBD, cannabidiol, CBG, cannabigerol, delta-8, delta-9, intoxicating hemp, hemp gummies, hemp vape, edibles, cannabinoid regulation, hemp licensing, retailer registration, product registration, QR code labeling, child-resistant packaging, minor access