Transcript Highlights:

• It’s basically raising some fees at the OSBI for record checks. Stand for questions.

Bills: SB137, SB504, SB1213, SB1216, SB1221, SB1224, SB1232, SB1238, SB1255, SB1256, SB1258, SB1264, SB1266, SB1325, SB1441, SB1448, SB1450, SB1460, SB1496, SB1543, SB1589, SB1597, SB1621, SB1655, SB1679, SB1687, SB1716, SB1730, SB1733, SB1769, SB1921, SB1932, SB1936, SB1980, SB2011, SB2030, SB2084, SB2112, SB2170, SB2182

Keywords: electronic monitoring, Department of Corrections, criminal justice, rehabilitation, public safety, SB1213, earned credits, inmate credits, good time, sentence reduction, DOC, prison reform, corrections policy, inmate classification, class levels, rehabilitation credits, achievement credits, vocational training, educational credits, prison programs

Transcript Highlights:

• state the bill doesn't address any fee state the bill doesn't address any fee and<01:41:10.280><
• Real simple bill, I'm hoping. We've had this bill in the past.
• that we have today um you know a simple that we have today um you know a simple one<01:50:49.639
• And so that would be that kind of simple process.
• <04:51:53.360> question her why you just a very simple question her why you just a very simple

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first discussed HB 443, which would change terms and vacancy language for members of a higher education commission. Members raised concerns that the bill was too narrow to address broader issues with commission membership, including expired appointments, attendance expectations, and whether the Department of Education could replace the commission’s role. Several members suggested the bill was not ready for action and favored holding it for further work, possibly through a subcommittee or work session. One member suggested that if attendance standards were added, no more than two unexcused absences should trigger removal, given the commission’s meeting schedule. The chair said he would defer action and form a small subcommittee to report back before the committee deadline. The committee then moved to HB 484, dealing with repurposing Career and Technical Education classroom space after 20 years of exclusive use. The chair explained that the bill was aimed at the Milford CTE project, where shared use of space could allow a school to repurpose part of a CTE facility while still using it for CTE-related instruction. Members discussed other possible situations around the state, including Claremont, North Conway, and Jaffrey/Rindge, and whether the bill should be limited to Milford or broadened to allow local districts more flexibility. Some members favored passing the bill now to help CTE projects move forward, while others argued for an amendment removing the requirement that the space be vacated specifically to expand the CTE program occupying it. Testimony and discussion emphasized that the Milford project had state approval but reduced funding, requiring a smaller scope and repurposing of existing space. Supporters said the bill could help preserve CTE programs while also benefiting general education space needs, and that local districts should have flexibility after 20 years. Opponents or cautious members noted that the language might not fit every district situation and asked for feedback from Director Beard and Steve Rothenberg before final action. The committee did not take a final vote in the portion provided, and instead discussed waiting for an amendment and additional input before acting.

Transcript Highlights:

• There were some other things, California caps and attorney's fees.
• Finally, another thing that we have proposed is a simple thing Which is, if you are going to get the
• We have taken away the tool that exists to change behavior when we've capped those fees.
• This is not A fee issue. It would have an impact on how plaintiff's Attorneys are paid.
• This isn't if this was about fees, I'd be making a very different motion. Okay, then, fair enough.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Turning to page 6, the city utilized solid waste funds to pay monthly dumpster rental fees on behalf
• Revenue from the sale of carnival ride tickets, armbands, and parking fees were not deposited daily,
• Revenue from the sale of carnival ride tickets, armbands, and parking fees were not deposited daily,
• However, records for proceeds from booth rentals, ad sales, food vendors, livestock entry fees, camping
• fees, etc., were not provided.

Summary: The committee began with approval of the prior meeting minutes and then received updates on delinquent private water and sewer reports. Staff reported that 19 of 43 original entities for the 2022 reporting year had had turnback reinstated, while 24 remained in escrow; for the 2023 reporting year, 59 of 64 entities had filed, leaving five still outstanding. The committee also heard that Adona had come into substantial compliance with municipal accounting law, and it voted to file that report and discontinue withholding turnback. It then voted to start the 60-day clock and file the report for Gum Springs after hearing repeated findings involving budgeting, disbursements, payroll, and Act 833 funds, with city officials saying they had begun correcting records and were seeking help from the Municipal League and a city attorney. Fargo was deferred because the mayor was absent due to illness. The committee next considered Denning, where staff described repeated and serious accounting problems over 2022-2024, including unauthorized payments, missing documentation, weak payroll controls, and improper handling of funds. The mayor and recorder-treasurer said prior records were disorganized and that they were now working with an attorney, CPA help, and new software; the committee voted to start the 60-day clock and file the report. Green Forest’s report, involving a fixed-asset listing issue after the mayor’s death, was filed. Several private water and sewer reports were either filed or deferred depending on whether responses had been received, and the committee announced its March meeting would be held in Room 149 because of renovations. The committee then reviewed a series of referred reports involving alleged financial irregularities. In Elaine, the fire chief’s questionable purchases were referred and filed. In Strong, staff described undeposited garbage-bag receipts, improper payments for private dumpster service and other expenditures, payroll tax penalties, and deficit fund balances; the mayor said controls had been improved, but the committee deferred the report to March. The Faulkner County Fair Association report found undocumented cash withdrawals, questionable disbursements, and inadequately documented cash payments to a carnival vendor; the committee filed it. Brooklyn’s report involved a fraudulent direct-deposit change, and Mineral Springs’ report involved transfers from the cemetery fund, employee loans, overpayments, and travel reimbursement issues; both were filed. Additional reports included Rondo, where the recorder-treasurer explained missing computers and fuel purchases tied to personal vehicles, and the committee filed the report; Waldo, where the mayor had been overpaid due to extra biweekly payments, which was filed; Columbia County, where a floodplain management contract lacked an authorizing ordinance, which was filed; and several private water-system reports, some filed and others deferred for lack of responses. Carlisle’s report showed large but improving misstatements in financial records, and the committee filed it after hearing that new software and training had reduced prior problems. Caddo Valley’s report prompted a lengthy discussion about CDs and interest recognition; staff explained that principal balances should be reflected as city assets and interest should be recorded when earned or reported by the bank, and the report was filed. Prairie County’s budget overrun and road-fund issues were discussed at length, with the judge explaining equipment and weather-related costs and staff clarifying the distinction between road funds and locally approved sales-tax uses; the report was filed. Finally, the committee deferred a Cross County Rural Water Association matter after learning it had not filed with Legislative Audit since 2002-2003 despite receiving significant state funding, and members expressed concern about the long gap in filings.

Transcript Highlights:

• Contractual services for us is largely manager fees that we pay for public equities.
• As for those third-party funds, we do not charge them any administrative fee at all.
• Very simple. It's just a software program. It's been released in. a while.
• Fees are very low, and the network is completely secure. I'll walk you through that.
• And there's a lot of fees. That's the current system we live in.

Transcript Highlights:

• individuals, which is 25% of the federal funds target rate, or 0.25%, whichever is higher, net of fees
• It is a simple rule telling lawyers what they should look for in accounts where client funds are on deposit
• The increased clients we serve infuse additional dollars to the courts, paying filing fees.
• market rates on checking accounts and also not being able to, you know, offset or, you know, charge fees
• I mean, they're saying we can't charge fees and you've got to pay money market rates on checking accounts

Summary: The Judiciary Committee met with a quorum present and considered several bills. SB 106 on exploitation of vulnerable adults would allow service of process on scammers through the same nontraditional communication methods they use; it passed 8-0. CS/SB 280 on candidate qualification would create an enforceable party-affiliation requirement and a private right of action to disqualify noncompliant candidates; it passed unanimously. CS/SB 948 on flood disclosures was amended to extend disclosure requirements to residential leases, condo developer leases, and mobile homes, with tenant remedies if disclosures are not provided and flooding causes major losses; it passed 8-0. The committee also advanced CS/SB 498 on IOTA interest rates after a lengthy debate over legal aid funding and bank regulation. Supporters argued the bill would restore sustainability and fairness to the program by setting alternative interest-rate benchmarks, while opponents said it would cut funding for civil legal aid and that banks participate voluntarily. After testimony from legal aid leaders and bankers, the bill passed 7-2. SB 774, requiring clerks to electronically transmit certain mental health, substance abuse, and risk protection orders to sheriffs within six hours, was presented in response to a fatal Volusia County incident and passed 11-0. CS/SB 752 on defamation and online publication was amended to require removal from a website rather than the internet, then passed 8-2 after testimony from the media, a private attorney, and supporters who said it would help people harmed by false online reports. The committee also heard SB 832 on former phosphate mining lands, which would create a narrow defense against strict liability claims if notice and gamma radiation survey requirements are met. The bill was amended to clarify notice provisions and received support from industry and technical witnesses describing radiation surveys and reclamation practices. The transcript cuts off before the final vote on SB 832, so no committee action on that bill is shown in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is not a simple issue to resolve and should not be regulated within one discipline.
• issue to resolve and should not simple issue to resolve and should not be<00:20:10.960> regulated
• um Del dely you know a relatively simple um Del dely you<01:24:54.760> know<01:24:54.920>
• My question is quite simple. So these nursing safe staffing ratios are a baseline, correct?
• <02:24:56.560> because authorize us to uh collect a fee because authorize us to uh collect

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committees on Health and Labor heard testimony on HB 1244, a measure relating to labor standards at health care facilities and nursing staff ratios. Committee members opened by explaining hearing procedures, including a suggested two-minute testimony limit and Zoom rules. The bill drew extensive testimony from hospitals, nursing organizations, unions, and individual nurses, with the central debate focusing on whether staffing ratios should be set by statute or left to collective bargaining and unit-level staffing decisions. Opponents included the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, Straub Benioff Medical Center, Hawaii Pacific Health, Kapiolani Medical Center, and Queen’s Health Systems. They argued that fixed ratios are too rigid for the changing conditions of hospital care, could worsen workforce shortages, and should be handled through labor negotiations, staffing committees, and existing agreements. Several also pointed to investments in nursing education, loan repayment, and workforce development as better solutions. Queen’s said it had recently reached an agreement with nurses after more than 40 meetings that included a staffing framework, and Kapiolani and others emphasized the need for flexibility in emergencies and specialty care. Supporters, including the Hawaii State Center for Nursing, Pride at Work Hawaii, the Hawaii Nurses Association/American Nurses Association chapter, Hawaii Nurses Association Local 50, UNAC/UHCP, and individual nurses, said unsafe staffing levels contribute to burnout, turnover, errors, and patient harm. Testifiers described chronic short staffing, emotionally and physically exhausting workloads, and situations in which nurses were responsible for too many patients at once. Supporters argued that safe ratios are necessary to protect both patients and nurses, and that collective bargaining has not been enough to ensure safe conditions statewide, especially in facilities without unions. No vote or final committee action was announced in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• total cost of this bill is approximately $280,000 out of general funds, and that is for consultant fees
• don't approve this and our error rate starts to go back up, this turns into a snowball of penalty fees
• 48.720> penalty this turns into a snowball of penalty this turns into a snowball of penalty fees
• that over the course of the next fees that over the course of the next few<00:47:51.839> years,
• This very very simple amendment. >> Okay. This very very simple amendment.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• SB 877 is simple.
• After losing so much, simple transparency is the least we deserve.
• SB 354 confronts a simple but... ...continue to be fruitful and ongoing.
• SB 354 confronts a simple but unacceptable reality.
• There is some fee income and that type of thing.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's very simple. As it's written right now, without a substitute, it just removes...
• It makes a simple but important update to the election code to improve election administration in our
• So it's a really simple bill. We only had 259 cancellations in all of 2022.
• So again, it's— It's really simple.
• Today, I have another relatively simple, short 40-word bill.

Bills: HB1968, HB2279, HB2739, HB2803, HB3909, HB3918, HB4253, HB4475, HB5115, HB5430

Keywords: election services, contracting, political subdivisions, county elections, election code, voter registration, citizenship status, election law, cancellation, disqualification, Texas Election Code, voter identification, registration, election integrity, identification documents, election, watcher, polling place, removal, Texas Elections Code

Transcript Highlights:

• Next, aging asset risk... for the perpetual capital repayment stream collected via user fees, and the
• So that made that a little easier decision, but once they were built... have a utility fee too.
• Our good intention fee was $200 to continue on with the project.
• So Representative Swantec, our good intention fee was $200 to continue on with the project.
• A simple chart we have in...

Summary: The Water Topics Overview Committee met with a quorum and received updates from the Department of Water Resources and the State Water Commission, followed by presentations from Deloitte on two legislative studies required by House Bill 1020. Director Reese Haas reviewed major project and budget updates, including the Northwest Area Water Supply and Southwest Pipeline projects, Resources Trust Fund balances, carryover spending, project prioritization, bid conditions, regional water system coverage, and department process improvements. Members also discussed how the commission prioritizes projects, maintenance expectations, and the impact of limited municipal water supply funding. No formal committee action was taken during the DWR update; the commission’s municipal funding decisions were described as pending its April 8 meeting. Deloitte then presented the cost-share policy study, which found that under current policy and forecasted revenues, North Dakota faces an estimated $1.3 billion shortfall over 14 years, with a near-term gap of about $1.8 billion through 2031. The firm outlined seven recommended options, including tighter definitions and a 25% cost share for eligible replacement projects, caps and financing strategies for the Mouse River and Red River Valley projects, aligning cost share with commission priority guidance, delaying lower-priority projects, using available lines of credit, and adjusting reimbursement timing for revolving loan funds. Committee members questioned inflation assumptions, affordability, user fees, and the use of legacy fund earnings for bonding, but no decisions were made. In the governance and finance study, Deloitte said final recommendations are still being refined, with a final report due May 29. The study examined the Southwest Pipeline, NAWS, and Red River Valley systems using governance and finance criteria such as decision authority, transparency, affordability, risk, and access to funding. For Southwest, Deloitte outlined options ranging from improved state-authority coordination to transferring ownership to the Southwest Water Authority; for NAWS, options focused on strengthening the authority’s role and potentially transitioning operations and maintenance; and for Red River, options ranged from enhanced facilitation to formal state oversight or state ownership. Members asked follow-up questions about ownership transfer, capital repayment streams, and why NAWS was not considered for transfer, and Deloitte said NAWS’s limited organizational maturity made that option less viable in the near term.

Transcript Highlights:

• have rights. for which we can impose new fees for which we can impose new fees and<01:00:19.359>
• Our universities and our simple.
• This is maybe this is just another fee This is maybe this is just another fee fees<03:31:10.399>
• for<03:31:10.640> fields<03:31:11.120> program fees for fields program fees for
• So, other fees and the like.

Keywords: 981, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Inflation over that period of time was over 50 percent, but our park fees did not change.
• those fees.
• But we also increased camping fees.
• And you're losing that revenue on the fee.
• Help you out and create that funding for you and our areas, plain and simple.

Transcript Highlights:

• don't know where student activity fees don't know where student activity fees uh<00:37:50.960>
• And then you mentioned that you weren't quite sure on the student athletic fees and whether it's been
• quite sure on the student athletic fees quite sure on the student athletic fees and<00:39:54.000
• So it's kind of hard to raise fees when you have a surplus, right?
• <01:19:40.239> brochure everywhere just to get a simple brochure everywhere just to get a

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Our mission is<01:27:30.159> simple.
• Legal fees, including attorney fees for experienced counsel, can range from $500 to $1,000 per hour,
• So, um, this is a very, very simple bill.
• Um, I was very very, very simple bill.
• Um, the work of the commission is simple.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There would be no points assessed uh because it's, I think, it was a $40 flat fee.
• was<00:47:09.839> a<00:47:10.079> $40<00:47:10.960> flat<00:47:11.280> fee
• I<00:47:13.599> look<00:47:13.680> at<00:47:13.839> this it was a $40 flat fee
• Um I look at this it was a $40 flat fee.
• We ran a bill last year that was opt in for credit card fees.

Keywords: 981, all

Transcript Highlights:

• My policy initiative is simple and feasible: Be Well.
• CCBHC is that the array of services is based on a community needs assessment, not just the generalized fee
• It's also one that's very difficult to bring up on a fee-for-service model, and so the CCBHC really enabled
• There’s a whole fee schedule that the state pays for non-Medicaid services.
• These rates and this fee schedule have not changed. They have not changed for at least four years.

Transcript Highlights:

• Most School Readiness programs are dependent on parent fees and tuition and other sources of revenue
• 00:32:19.639> and<00:32:19.919> tuition<00:32:20.760> and dependent on parent fees
• Hofer, and for your really simple breakdown of how this is all allocated. I appreciate that.
• and high level if to keep it very simple and high level if you<01:08:41.480> have<01:08:41.640
• Was that just a simple doubling, or was there a reasoning behind that?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• care status, establishing that colleges and universities are responsible for verifying tuition and fee
• It prohibits publicly owned airports from charging new landing fees for aircraft operations associated
• Senate Bill 952 is a simple bill that repeals Florida Statute 870.044, which automatically prohibits
• The bill addresses several critical areas of agricultural enclaves, school mitigation fees, impact fee
• The bill protects homeowners and developers from unverified school mitigation fees.

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and several introductions recognizing guests, students, advocates, and a resolution honoring the late USF men’s basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim. Senators also observed moments of silence for victims of recent campus violence and for former FSU President John Thrasher. The chamber then moved to special order bills, with several members explaining measures and, in some cases, substituting House companions before final passage. Among the bills passed were measures updating child care and early learning provider regulation; strengthening penalties and cost recovery for false reporting and swatting; extending protections against extraordinary medical debt collection; expanding hazardous walking condition criteria for schoolchildren; creating young adult housing support for foster and homeless students; and requiring private schools participating in the Family Empowerment Scholarship Program to disclose which accommodations they will provide. The Senate also passed a bill adjusting interest rules for trust accounts funding legal aid, after extended debate over the impact on legal aid funding and banking practices, and a transportation package that was heavily amended to address issues such as school bus camera hearings, beach vehicle use for equipment removal, flooded-street wake restrictions, expectant mother parking permits, micromobility regulation, and traffic signal modernization. The chamber also approved public-records exemptions for Agency for Health Care Administration investigators, Judicial Qualifications Commission employees, and appellate court clerks; a municipal water and sewer rate bill affecting Miami-Dade residents near a plant; motor vehicle offenses involving impersonating law enforcement and obscured license plates; trespass penalties at law-enforcement-controlled locations and large ticketed venues; refund requirements for patient overpayments; stem cell therapy authorization with source and consent limits; and insulin administration authority for direct support professionals and relatives in group homes. Several bills were temporarily postponed, including cardiac emergencies, chemicals and consumer products, and motor vehicle manufacturer/franchise dealer legislation. Most measures passed with strong bipartisan support, though the trust fund interest bill drew notable opposition and passed 28-10, and the Family Empowerment Scholarship bill passed 37-1.

Transcript Highlights:

• “The company would appraise various properties for a fee of $10,000 and no competitive process.
• I never bring really something simple. Okay. And you were welcome to sit at the table. Oh, my gosh.

Summary: The meeting opened with attendance and technical setup, including bringing a remote member into the session. The chair also made brief remarks about public service in light of recent violence against public officials, and a member shared condolences related to a colleague’s death. The committee then approved the minutes and noted no employment disclosure forms were filed. The main business was an update on digitizing committee files. Staff reported that the archival scanning estimate had been reduced and that a DocuSign contract would be sent for the chair’s signature. Members also discussed whether the work could be completed before the end of the biennium and whether existing funds could be used or prepaid. The committee then reviewed a long list of remaining advisory opinions and, on motion, approved staff recommendations to retain some opinions and retire or partially retire others based on changes in law or usefulness of the opinions. Topics included special privileges, frequent flyer miles, state contracts involving legislators, tours sponsored by lobbying entities, conflicts of interest, confidentiality of drafting requests, election-year brochures, and recusal/firewall issues. After a separate discussion about an older election-related outreach opinion, members agreed they likely still intended to apply the same factors outside the election-year context and asked staff to revisit whether that opinion should be unretired or revised. The public portion of the meeting was then adjourned, with the committee preparing to move into executive session.