Transcript Highlights:

• </c> previous parental consent. previous parental consent.
• </c> a phone number provided by the parent. a phone number provided by the parent.
• My parents were heavily ladder.
• </c> there might be parental notification? there might be parental notification?
• &gt;&gt; To<00:22:30.240><c> the</c><00:22:30.400><c> parent?</c> &gt;&gt; To the parent?

Committee: Senate Education

Transcript Highlights:

• But when innocent parents... Absolutely.
• I know several parents and I work with several parents who to this day didn't know they had the right
• When you look at the foster care parent and the foster children, the foster care parent and the foster
• He was looking at national statistics, and it was like how many parents... many parents abuse children
• So yes, to quantify it... more parents.

Bills: SB140 , HB235 , HB276 , HB317 , HB340

Committee: House Children and Senior Advocacy

Keywords: Coach Safely Act, youth athletics, noncompliance penalties, Department of Public Health, youth athlete, social media, age verification, minors, under 16, children online safety, online privacy, platform regulation, deceptive trade practice, Attorney General, civil penalties, punitive damages, consumer protection, account creation, algorithmic feeds, internet safety

Transcript Highlights:

• Parents are not asking schools to I hear directly from parents in my district.
• Again, it needs to stick under parental rights there. If parents give consent.
• Never without the permission of the parents. Parents always have to opt in or out.
• I was their parent.
• I was their parent.

Committee: House House Education Committee of Reference

Summary: The committee heard testimony on House Bill 2076, which would create a program and fund within ADE, in consultation with AZPOST, to reimburse eligible schools and employees for approved training, certification, and school safety equipment, and would allow schools to adopt policies permitting certain employees to carry concealed firearms on campus if they meet training, notification, and confidentiality requirements. The sponsor, Rep. Bliss, framed the bill as an optional, fiscally responsible medical-response measure focused on bleeding control and emergency preparedness, not a mandate to arm schools. Supporters said the bill adds guardrails, expands access to training, and could help staff respond in emergencies. Opponents, including Giffords, Arizona for Gun Safety, and the Arizona Education Association, argued it would normalize firearms in classrooms, create confidentiality and law-enforcement concerns, expose students and staff to new risks, and divert attention from prevention, mental health, and other school safety investments. After debate, the committee voted 6-5-1 to give HB 2076 a do-pass recommendation. The committee then took up House Bill 2830, which directs the State Board of Education to adopt science standards requiring instruction on fetal and prenatal development and specifies that the content is not sex education. Supporters, including the sponsor, a school board president, and a biology teacher, said the bill is about age-appropriate, medically accurate science, parental rights, and clear statewide guidance. Opponents, including the AEA and Reproductive Freedom for All, said it fragments science instruction, politicizes the curriculum, and omits the broader reproductive and public health context students need. Members debated whether fetal development can be taught without discussing reproduction, and whether the bill is an education measure or an anti-abortion effort. The committee approved HB 2830 on an 8-4 vote. The transcript also included discussion of House Bill 2093, which would repeal required mental health instruction and social-emotional learning in schools; supporters argued it restores parental control and refocuses schools on academics, while opponents said school-based mental health education saves lives and helps students who may not have support at home.

Transcript Highlights:

• So parental permission guarantees that the parents would know about this.
• So it's parental rights and student safety.
• So parental permission guarantees that the parents would know about this.
• So it's parental rights and student safety.
• There's the question of can parents get access to information, are parents getting access to information

Committees: House Education , House House Education Committee of Reference

Transcript Highlights:

• So I don't understand how, honestly, this is a parental right, parental right issue currently.
• I'm a public school parent. I love I'm a public school product, I'm a public school parent.
• Parental rights are a right. Parental rights are already embedded in Nebraska's Rule 51, Title 92.
• But we care about parental rights.
• Parental leave is important for both parents, for a single parent certainly, for a newly single parent

Bills: LB815A , LB838A , LB912A , LB972A , LB1126A , LB962A , LB1114 , LB921 , LB937 , LB803 , LB803A , LB1032 , LB1032A , LB1075 , LB1075A , LB889 , LB878 , LB933 , LB304 , LB304A , LB1096 , LB1096A , LB1165 , LB1165A , LB958 , LB958A , LB762 , LB1187 , LB966 , LB929 , LB962 , LB753 , LB788 , LB913 , LB1055 , LB1195 , LB429 , LB721 , LB722 , LB727 , LB743 , LB745 , LB749 , LB778 , LB787

Transcript Highlights:

• For some parents and students, that's going to be a private school; for many parents and students, that's
• They're not going to the parent themselves. So why can't the parent do?
• So if a parent and the EFA are not in agreement, but the parent didn't know it ahead of time, there's
• The rule says the parents can't.
• And if ClassWallet, when we vote for that type of expenditure, I expect them to deliver. parent, parent

Committee: All ALC-ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

Summary: The Administrative Rules Subcommittee reviewed a long agenda of agency rules, with most items approved without objection after brief presentations and no public comment. Early items included Department of Energy and Environment rules on landfill post-closure trust fund spending thresholds and liquefied petroleum gas standards, DFA’s electronic odometer disclosure rule, and several Department of Health rules covering ionizing radiation, mobile home and RV parks, lead-based paint, counseling board revisions, hearing instrument dispensers, athletic training, dental examiners, nursing, pharmacy, medical board, speech-language pathology and audiology, radiologic technology, massage therapy, community health workers, doula certification, and cosmetology/body art. Most of these changes were described as updates to match recent acts, federal standards, compact participation, fee adjustments, or cleanup/clarification, and the committee repeatedly approved them without objection. A substantial portion of the meeting focused on the Arkansas State Board of Nursing’s broad set of rule changes implementing multiple 2025 acts. Those changes included creating a dialysis patient care technician registry, updating contact information requirements, expanding APRN authority to delegate certain tasks, clarifying death certificate and pronouncement authority, allowing substitution of therapeutically equivalent medications, permitting purchase of compounded products, and updating certified medication assistant rules and training standards. Members asked detailed questions about the meaning of therapeutically equivalent substitutions, delegation limits, compounded products, and how often medication lists would be updated; the board said it would review rules annually and use future rulemaking as needed. The committee also approved new nursing rules for declaratory orders and the new dialysis registry. The Department of Education’s rules drew the most discussion, especially the Arkansas Children’s Educational Freedom Account Program. The department said the revisions, based on Act 920 of 2025, were intended to add guardrails, clarify eligible expenses, and streamline approvals. Changes included defining core educational expenses, limiting sports-related spending, adding an intentional misuse standard, restricting certain technology purchases and requiring extra justification over $1,000, capping carryover funds at $8,500, and creating a reconsideration process for denied expenses. Members raised concerns about oversight, appeal timelines, sports equipment, provider credentialing, and whether the rules were too restrictive; department officials said the rules were meant to protect taxpayer funds while preserving flexibility, and they noted the program had received extensive public comment. The committee also approved Education rules for scholarships, residency classification, teacher programs, accelerated learning, and graduate medical education, as well as Labor and Licensing rules on wage and hour standards, boiler rules, motor vehicle commission requirements, professional wrestling regulation, appraiser qualifications, and military recruiting incentives.

Transcript Highlights:

• '</c> matter of minutes without their parents' matter of minutes without their parents' knowledge<00:
• On behalf of our parental rights.
• </c> protected activity unless a parent protected activity unless a parent consents<00:20:47.280><c>
• </c> data on a child obtain verified parental data on a child obtain verified parental consent.<00:37
• </c> utilized to obtain verified parental utilized to obtain verified parental consent.<00:37:26.320>

Committee: House Small Business & Information Technology

Transcript Highlights:

• This is an opportunity for the state legislature to reaffirm their commitment to parents and parental
• Both parents and districts need clarity on what records should be shared with parents.
• You're a good parent. Again, we're legislating against bad parents.
• But what about the parents?
• Donna Cecil, parent of an LGBTQ parent. in support. Sky Tooley, 5th grade teacher in Los Angeles.

Committee: House Education

Transcript Highlights:

• parent, the presumption is that the parent that is not in the primary custodial condition is paying
• the non-custodial parent for failure to be in arrears.
• Far too often, it's the one parent just not showing up.
• parent is in a different state, particularly...
• So it helps in parental kidnapping situations as well.

Bills: HB46 , HB272 , HB551 , HB1661 , HB2820 , HB3181 , HB4145 , HB4157 , HB46 , HB272

Committee: Senate State Affairs

Summary: The Senate Committee on State Affairs heard several House bills and took no final votes, leaving each bill pending after testimony. HB 272 would align venue and evidentiary rules for fraudulent use or possession of credit/debit card information with existing credit card abuse law; the sponsor said it would improve prosecutions, and the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center supported it. HB 1661 would increase penalties for certain election-related offenses, including failure to distribute election supplies and early release of election results; no substantive opposition was heard. HB 551 would protect the residential addresses of people who receive campaign expenditures on public Texas Ethics Commission reports, similar to donor privacy protections, and a witness from Texas Eagle Forum later indicated support for the privacy change. The committee also heard HB 2820, which would raise the amount charitable bingo organizations may keep in operating capital from $50,000 to $100,000. The sponsor and a Texans for Charitable Bingo representative said inflation and operating costs have made the current cap too low and that the bill would help charities maintain stable operations without expanding gaming. HB 3181 would impose stronger consequences for repeated denial of court-ordered child possession and access, including limiting probation and requiring attorney’s fees after multiple contempt findings; a family court judge and a parent testified in support, while another witness argued the bill should be paired with stronger criminal enforcement and that parents already face high costs. HB 4157 would update Texas law for commercial spaceflight by recognizing liability waivers and preserving workers’ compensation rights; no one testified against it. The committee also heard HB 4145, which would let health care providers satisfy a timely billing requirement by sending bills to a patient’s legal representative in a personal injury case, closing what supporters described as a loophole in letter-of-protection situations. Finally, HB 46, relating to the Texas Compassionate Use Program, drew the most extensive discussion: supporters said it should expand access for legitimate medical cannabis patients and add more delivery methods and conditions, while opponents warned against broader marijuana expansion and questioned adding chronic pain and other conditions. The sponsor said he still supports the program and wants a balanced, regulated expansion, but noted the bill is still being worked on. All bills were left pending at the close of the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• It talks about parental consent at different points.
• This shreds parents' rights.
• Parents like me are not asking for anything extraordinary.
• As a parent of a transgender team here in Leon County, Florida.
• They're afraid to come out to their parents.

Committee: Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs

Summary: The Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs considered four bills and reported each favorably. SB 590, by Senator Bradley, would toll the statute of limitations for failure by mandatory reporters to report suspected child abuse until the offense is known to law enforcement; an amendment made the change retroactive for offenses not already time-barred by the bill’s effective date. Senator Bradley said the bill is intended to ensure accountability in institutional abuse cases, and it passed unanimously. SB 778, by Senator Simon, updates the definition of forensic client so certain defendants with intellectual disabilities or autism whose charges were dismissed for incompetency can be housed in the same secure setting as other Chapter 916 residents, reducing duplicative staffing and costs; it also passed unanimously. The committee then took up SB 560, by Senator Garcia, which streamlines psychotropic medication procedures for children in DCF custody, reduces duplicative reports and background checks, and simplifies consent documentation. Amendments removed language allowing certain social workers and marriage and family therapists to serve as evaluators and narrowed changes to the Road to Independence Program’s post-secondary education services and support, while extending eligibility ages from 18-23 to 18-26 with a five-year maximum benefit period. Senator Garcia and supporters said the bill improves continuity of care and support for foster youth; Senator Harrell raised fiscal concerns about the education stipend expansion. The bill was reported favorably, and Chair Grall later recorded her vote in the affirmative. Finally, the committee heard SB 1010, by Senator Yarbrough, which strengthens enforcement of Florida’s existing prohibitions on sex reassignment prescriptions and procedures for minors and adds civil and criminal penalties, including Attorney General enforcement authority and damages for injured minors. An amendment clarified that the cause of action applies only to minors and that damages benefit the affected minor. The bill drew extensive public testimony, with supporters arguing it protects children and parental rights, and opponents warning it would chill medical care, school conversations, and access to support for transgender youth. Senators Harrell and Sharief expressed concerns about breadth, standing, and impacts on therapists, teachers, and confidential conversations; Sharief voted no while the rest of the committee voted yes, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Just let the parents know of the condition, both mental and physical, of the child so the parent knows
• This is not a compelling reason not to notify parents. Parents are their authority.
• This is not a repelling reason not to notify parents. Parents are their authority.
• So the parents are being notified.
• Parents know. Law enforcement knows.

Summary: The Senate considered Substitute Senate Bill 6184, which updates and clarifies statutes governing the Office of Homeless Youth Prevention and Protection Programs in the Department of Commerce. Supporters said the bill streamlines existing law, expands eligible housing and services for unhoused youth, supports reunification when appropriate, and removes county-based limitations so the program can continue statewide. Several amendments focused on parental notification and agency placement were offered, including proposals to move the program to DCYF and to require more direct notice to parents or law enforcement, but all were rejected after debate over safety, abuse concerns, and the role of DCYF. The bill then passed final passage by a vote of 30 yeas to 18 nays. The Senate next took up Substitute Senate Bill 5931 concerning the Workforce Education Investment Accountability and Oversight Board. An amendment was offered to restore a public-facing data dashboard for transparency and accountability, but the sponsor withdrew it after discussion. The bill was described as making administrative changes without fiscal impact, and it passed final passage overwhelmingly, 47 yeas to 2 nays. After the two bills were disposed of, the Senate announced a Rules Committee meeting following adjournment and then adjourned until 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 11th, the 31st Legislative Day.

Transcript Highlights:

• For some parents and students, that's going to be a private school; for many parents and students, that's
• But as a parent-directed school choice type program, we want to make sure that parents have the ability
• They're run by volunteer parents.
• So if a parent and the EFA are not in agreement, but the parent didn't know it ahead of time, there's
• , parent to upload.

Committee: All ALC-ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> would require schools to obtain parental would require schools to obtain parental consent<00:03:
• </c><00:09:09.480><c> parent</c> needing three separate parent parent needing three separate parent parent
• Why is parental consent important?
• </c> such as overbilling for services parents such as overbilling for services parents need<00:31:11.039
• </c><01:15:33.560><c> in</c> make it more difficult for parents in make it more difficult for parents

Committee: Senate Education

Transcript Highlights:

• HB 119 DOES NOT EMPOWER PARENTS, IT'S CENTRALIZED CENSORSHIP.
• I AM A PARENT AND I DO THINK THIS BILL IS IMPORTANT.
• WE HAVE PATTY SULLIVAN, PARENTAL RIGHTS FLORIDA WAIVING IN SUPPORT.
• I KNOW PARENTS EXPECT AGE APPROPRIATE STANDARDS IN SCHOOL SETTINGS.
• PARENTS RIGHTS ARE CENTRAL TO THIS BILL.

Transcript Highlights:

• is unemployed or underemployed, the parent is missing, we're trying to find the parent, we're negotiating
• with the parent.
• Parents can take care of it on their own.
• Yeah, this is a certain, so child support, child support is a payment from one parent to the other parent
• , even when their parents are very sick or have passed away. parents, even when their parents are very

Summary: The Assembly Judiciary Committee met without quorum for part of the hearing and proceeded on several bills, with testimony focused on probate access, domestic violence protections, child support services, and an immigration resolution. On AB 1660, the author and county public administrators said financial institutions often delay or refuse lawful requests for account information and assets, causing harm to estates and vulnerable people; banks and credit union representatives opposed the new penalties, arguing the underlying statute may be outdated and that fraud concerns require more verification. The author agreed to amend the bill to make penalties discretionary rather than mandatory, and the bill ultimately passed out of committee to the floor with a due-pass recommendation and later add-on approval. AB 1657, by Assembly Member Rogers, would bar courts from requiring domestic violence survivors seeking temporary restraining orders to notify the alleged abuser before filing; the Sonoma County district attorney and others supported it as a safety measure, and it passed unanimously to the floor with multiple members requesting coauthor status. The committee also heard AB 1643, which would automatically enroll custodial parents in child support services after a support order is entered unless they opt out. The author and child support officials argued the bill would increase access to free enforcement and collection services, reduce child poverty, and help families who do not complete the current application process; some members raised concerns about fees, opt-out clarity, and whether automatic enrollment could interfere with amicable co-parenting arrangements. After discussion about the program’s funding and the need for a clear opt-out process, the bill was moved to the Human Services Committee, with some members voting no or not voting and later add-on action placing it on call and then advancing it. The committee also considered SJR 8, urging Congress to modernize the federal immigration registry so long-term undocumented residents could qualify for lawful permanent residency on a rolling basis; supporters described it as a long-overdue pathway for immigrant families and workers, and the resolution was adopted to the floor after a vote and later add-on action. Throughout the hearing, members repeatedly emphasized the need to balance enforcement, fraud prevention, and access to services. Several members supported the domestic violence and probate bills as necessary fixes to existing systems, while others urged continued work with stakeholders on standardized forms, clearer procedures, and modernized safeguards. The committee also took up consent items and add-ons, including AB 1597, AB 1651, and AB 1652 on consent, and later finalized votes on the measures discussed above.

Transcript Highlights:

• But parents know their children best, not the government, and parents deserve the freedom to choose the
• Think about the parent who wants smaller classrooms.
• As a parent, I want my child to thrive and grow and flourish. I think any parent would want that.
• in making those parents' workday possible.
• And I'm going to emphasize something about CCAP: CCAP is for working parents or parents who are in school

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• parents to request services.
• When you've got parents who are going through a separation or divorce, parents who are going through
• and see their parents go through this.
• barriers, improve housing status and credit scores, and, more importantly, improve parent-child and co-parenting
• I'm a foster adoptive parent in Oakland and the Senior Directing Attorney for the Quality Parenting Initiative

Committee: House Human Services

Transcript Highlights:

• It is fair and only fair to a parent to be able to have that right.
• As part of my work, I represent parents in dependency cases.
• This child is thriving in her parents' care.
• Parents are accused of abuse and presumed guilty.
• But this bill gives parents a chance to correct that.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:04:08.400><c> from</c> are not going to prohibit parents from are not going to prohibit parents
• </c> interpreting this to mean that a parent interpreting this to mean that a parent can<00:05:30.880
• </c> the a problem where the parents the a problem where the parents regarding<00:06:22.800><c> could
• . parents. parents.
• Parents don't have access to the portal. parental access to a minor's child's parental access to a minor's

Committee: Senate Children and Family Law

Transcript Highlights:

• and parents' attorneys, for parents who are represented.
• for parents, we do need more.
• for parents, we do need more.
• They're soul-crushing as a parent.
• Those things are easier to give to a parent from a parent. It is hard.

Committee: Senate Human Services

Summary: The Senate Human Services Committee held a work session focused on child welfare dependency, reviewing implementation of 2021’s Keeping Families Together Act (1227) and 2023’s Child and Family Fentanyl Response law (6109), along with related data, lived-experience testimony, and emerging issues. DCYF first outlined the dependency process, explaining the intake, shelter care, fact-finding, disposition, review, and permanency stages, and clarified that children may be in-home or out-of-home at different points. The department emphasized that 1227 raised the removal threshold to imminent physical harm and strengthened kin placement, with nearly 60% of children now placed with kin or suitable relatives. DCYF also said 6109 directed courts to give great weight to fentanyl’s lethality and added regional legal liaisons, though some contracted supports were not implemented due to budget constraints. Data presented by DCYF showed entries into care fell after 1227 but rose again after 6109, returning close to pre-1227 levels; the department linked rising critical incidents to the fentanyl epidemic, parental stress, and system complexity, and described responses such as statewide Safe Child Council staffing and hotspot monitoring. Committee members asked for more detail on age breakdowns and geographic patterns of incidents. Advocates and lived-experience speakers from Legal Counsel for Youth and Children and a medical-legal partnership described 1227 as a necessary reform to reduce unnecessary removals and racial disproportionality, while saying they have not seen courts fail to remove children when safety concerns are clearly presented. They explained that 6109 was intended to help courts account for fentanyl’s lethality at shelter care hearings. A parent ally testified that family-centered, peer-supported services, treatment access, housing, transportation, CPR and safe-sleep education, and third-party safety plan participants can help families stay together and reduce harm. She said suitable-other placements under 1227 were a major improvement, but more inpatient beds, family treatment options, and community supports are still needed. Speakers also said application of DCYF policy varies by county, creating “justice by geography.” The committee then heard an update on Senate Bill 6068 from the Administrative Office of the Courts and K Implementation and Evaluation. The report identified 15 dimensions of relational permanency and child well-being, using input from more than 80 professional and lived experts, and recommended a phased data strategy: use existing data where possible, improve partially available measures, and develop new collection where needed. AOC said a prior data-sharing agreement with DCYF expired in June 2025, leaving a gap in statewide dependency reporting, and urged a new agreement, a standing cross-agency work group, and better integration with DCYF’s new child welfare information system. The committee also received a brief update on the Supreme Court Commission on Children in Foster Care, which is redesigning its mission and work groups to better center lived experience and cross-system collaboration. In emerging issues, Jim Theophilus described bridge housing for young adults exiting inpatient behavioral health treatment, noting that many youth leave treatment to homelessness or shelters and that two bridge housing programs have now opened, one on each side of the state. He said the model is based on voluntary, community-based support and a “return to community” plan shaped by youth input. The committee then moved to juvenile rehabilitation capacity issues, with DCYF’s new assistant secretary for Juvenile Rehabilitation scheduled to provide an update, following a recent visit by committee members to Green Hill School.