Transcript Highlights:

• I'm an engineer operator with the Daly City Fire Department under the North County Fire Authority, and
• I'm an engineer operator with the Daily City Fire Department under the North County Fire Authority and
• never even get started, not because they can't start a chainsaw, drag a 200-pound dummy, or run a code
• And the truth of it is, our labor code is almost an honor system.
• Kevin Ferrer, Executive Director of the Sacramento City Building and Construction Trades Council, in

Committee: Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement

Summary: The committee heard several labor and workforce bills. SB 1059 would modernize the Employment Training Panel by allowing electronic record-keeping, digital attendance documentation, and updated training terminology; supporters said it would reduce paperwork and better match current training systems, while no opposition appeared. SB 966 would codify refinery process safety protections adopted in 2017 after the 2012 Chevron Richmond fire, including worker participation in safety proceedings, anonymous hazard reporting, access to safety information, and stop-work authority; labor supported it, while the Western States Petroleum Association opposed it as conflicting with a 2024 settlement and potentially preempted by federal labor law. SB 1024 would provide 26 weeks of paid postpartum and recovery leave for firefighters who give birth, with job restoration and no requirement to use sick or vacation time first; firefighters and labor groups strongly supported it, and the committee discussed staffing and operational coverage concerns, but no opposition testified. The committee also heard SB 1316, which would strengthen wage theft enforcement by allowing Labor Commissioner liens to be renewed, limiting employers’ late use of records, and requiring Cal/OSHA to report complaints and citations data annually. Supporters said the bill would help workers actually collect wages after long delays and prevent employers from hiding records; it passed the committee on a 5-0 vote. SB 1185 would apply skilled and trained workforce requirements to pharmaceutical facility construction and maintenance, with supporters arguing these facilities require high precision to protect public health and supply chains; construction industry opponents said the bill was an unnecessary expansion of state mandates into private projects. SB 1227 would create apprenticeship pathways into DIR enforcement jobs, including Cal/OSHA and Labor Commissioner roles, to address staffing shortages and improve labor law enforcement; supporters emphasized vacancies and backlogs, and the bill was framed as a way to build a merit-based pipeline into state service. After hearing testimony, the committee took final votes on all six bills once the full membership returned. SB 966, SB 1024, SB 1059, SB 1185, and SB 1227 were all reported out of committee, and SB 1316 was also passed and sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The recorded final votes were unanimous or near-unanimous in favor, with the bills advancing on 4-1 or 5-0 votes depending on the measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• zoning code.
• </c><01:13:02.040><c> Zoning</c><01:13:02.400><c> code</c><01:13:02.960><c> but</c><01:13:03.159><c>
• what</c> uses under a City Zoning code but what uses under a City Zoning code but what it<01:13:03.360
• , to regulate permitted uses, because the contract for a housing support isn't coming from the city.
• I'm thinking more of the cities.

Committee: Senate Human Services

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You wonder why people, and then they've started building apartments all over the city of Baton Rouge.
• The struggling that's going on in this city, in the state of Louisiana.
• I'm out there in this city. Like I said, I'm in 70805 for the 54 years when I came in there.
• I'm out there in this city, like I said, I'm in 70805 for the 54 years when I came in there.
• And thank you, Senator Barrow, for bringing the bill and to our colleagues at City.

Committee: Senate Local & Municipal Affairs

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• to give you a little bit of background, in 2007, the legislature created the Texas Local Government Code
• Multiple cities across the state already have this opportunity.
• Given the size of Harris County, they need similar tools in the toolbox that cities have.
• This bill mirrors local government code 147.
• Currently, these counties lack the authority that cities possess to address these disturbances.

Committee: House S/C on County & Regional Government

Transcript Highlights:

• And there's, uh, some fee, uh, I pulled up the city, uh, ordinances, uh, from various cities around the
• most of the cities have it around 5%.
• The city of Houston.
• Understand that there are cities who can be overbearing.
• Yeah, actually the 23% was another city. I didn't even had never even heard of the city of poultry.

Committee: House Environmental Regulation

Transcript Highlights:

• Bowden is a general neurologist with Mercy Clinic Neurology here in Oklahoma City.
• retired Army veteran and has been a registered nurse for over 40 years, serving the VAMC in Oklahoma City
• People have to have these up to code. We've got to protect people. And it's...
• And as far as the plumbing, I mean, code is code.
• The partnership between Tulsa, Tulsa County, the City of Bixby, the City of G.

Bills: SB1521 , SB372 , SB1232 , SB1307 , SB1338 , SB1390 , SB1451 , SB1463 , SB1558 , SB1567 , SB1595 , SB1621 , SB1734 , SB1749 , SB1827 , SB1833 , SB1991 , SB1992 , SB63 , SB2063 , SB2180 , SB1198 , SB80

Keywords: artificial intelligence, AI, generative AI, chatbot, conversational AI, companion AI, AI companion, virtual companion, chatbot regulation, minor safety, child online safety, parental controls, content moderation, self-harm, suicidal ideation, crisis intervention, mental health claims, romantic AI, emotional dependence, app store

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum, prayer, pledges, and a series of guest and gallery introductions, including medical professionals, interns, students, and advocates visiting for Disability Day. The chamber then moved quickly through a long floor agenda, with leaders repeatedly noting the need to stay at desks and proceed efficiently. Several bills were taken up with floor substitutes or minor amendments, most often restore-title amendments, before advancing to final passage. The Senate passed a number of measures addressing technology, public safety, education, health care, elections, and state agency operations. Among the most notable were SB 1521, which creates safeguards around AI social companions for minors after discussion of teen suicides linked to such products; SB 1734, which sets guardrails for AI use in schools and requires district policies by 2027; and SB 1307, which removes statutory language conflicting with religious-freedom case law and passed after debate over whether it could open the door to funding religious entities. Other bills approved included SB 372 on carrying firearms in certain state-owned lodges and cabins, SB 1232 on escalating penalties for major copper theft damage, SB 1338 making the literacy-coach program permanent and tying Strong Readers Act dollars to district access, SB 1451 on voter-registration cleanup and reporting, SB 1463 extending the polygraph examiners board sunset, SB 1558 clarifying that some OJA youth in Level E group homes may remain served until age 19, and SB 1567 clarifying APRN prescriptive-authority rules and supervision compensation. The chamber also approved SB 1595, an anti-steering/anti-discrimination bill aimed at CDL training grants and workforce boards, and SB 1621, treating public law libraries as public entities represented by district attorneys. SB 1749, which lets the LP Gas Board create permitting and inspection rules for mobile food vendors and delegate inspections to more local permit holders, drew concern from some senators about added costs and burdens on food-truck operators but still passed. The Senate also advanced SB 1833, codifying the SNAP waiver executive order and limiting certain non-nutritive foods, with questions focused on how the restrictions would be communicated and applied. Most measures were passed by substantial margins, and several were declared emergency measures after final votes.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:03:28.400><c> safety</c><00:03:28.760><c> and</c> federal code-required safety and federal code-required
• </c><00:20:42.360><c> And</c><00:20:42.480><c> so,</c> the city can get on its work.
• And so, the city can get on its work.
• Paul and Maplewood and cities like St.
• </c> required code. required code.

Committee: Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment, and Climate

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm a city councilor in the City of Boston for District 9, representing the neighborhood of Allston-Brighton
• Boston, as you know, is a city of high mobility.
• I'm here in support of H-834 S. of the city of Boston.
• I'm an at-large city councilor in the city of Chelsea.
• We see the City of Boston in some areas where there is promotion by the city and the state, but there

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Election Laws

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Election Laws held a hearing on a wide range of voting-access and election-administration bills. The largest portion of testimony focused on same-day voter registration (H. 834/S. 505), with support from Rep. Gentile, Boston and Chelsea officials, civic groups, and election administrators from Maine and Vermont. Supporters argued that same-day registration would help eligible voters who move frequently, miss deadlines, or face administrative errors, and would reduce rejected provisional ballots. Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and Vermont elections director Sean Sheehan testified that same-day registration has worked in their states without major administrative problems and has helped increase turnout. A Boston-based panel also described high rejection rates for provisional ballots and the burden of registration cutoffs on renters, students, immigrants, and low-income voters. A second major topic was restoration of voting rights for incarcerated people, including S. 524 and related House bills. The committee heard extensive virtual testimony from incarcerated individuals at MCI Norfolk and MCI Shirley, who said voting should be restored as part of rehabilitation, civic engagement, and reintegration. They described disenfranchisement as dehumanizing and argued that voting would help maintain family and community ties, reduce recidivism, and give incarcerated people a voice on laws affecting prisons and reentry. Rep. Erica Uyterhoeven also testified in support, saying the bill would restore municipal voting rights for incarcerated residents and align with broader efforts to expand political participation. The committee also heard testimony on bills affecting election administration and access, including a proposal to reduce or eliminate mandated early in-person voting in primaries and shorten the general-election early voting period, with supporters from the town clerks’ community arguing that low usage, staffing burdens, and costs justify the change. Opponents warned that reducing in-person early voting could hurt voters who do not use mail ballots and could disproportionately affect communities of color. Other bills discussed included decoupling the municipal census from voter registration, requiring periodic accessibility inspections of polling places, and a Somerville home-rule petition on non-citizen municipal voting and another on lowering the voting age in municipal elections. No votes or final committee actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• The zip code may change, but the results don't.
• , like district school, like the city of Lowell and so on.
• Thank you. ...district school like the city of Lowell and so on.
• We do it in our Gateway City housing monitor.
• Yeah, so City Connects began 25 years ago in Boston.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Business held its final hearing of the session on H. 5187 and S. 3022, the Enough Act, with Chair Andy Vargas and Senator Adam Gomez opening by thanking committee members and stakeholders for their work during the session. The bills were described as a grant-based, place-based anti-poverty initiative intended to support cradle-to-career services by funding local nonprofits, schools, community organizations, and backbone entities that can coordinate housing, education, health, workforce, and family supports in high-poverty neighborhoods. Testimony was overwhelmingly in support of the bills. Speakers including Strategies for Children, Chelsea Public Schools, Bunker Hill Community College, Senator Sal DiDomenico, Rep. Kate Lipper-Garabedian, Rep. Antonio Cabral, the Harlem Children’s Zone’s Kwame Owusu Kesse and Jeffrey Canada, former Education Secretary Paul Reville, AFT Massachusetts, United Way, the Boston Foundation, Give Black Alliance, Eastern Bank Foundation, and others argued that poverty is a systems issue that schools alone cannot solve. They emphasized the need for local control, community voice, coordinated services, and long-term public-private investment, often citing examples from Chelsea, New Bedford, Springfield, Lowell, Boston, and other communities, as well as the Harlem Children’s Zone and Maryland’s similar model. Committee members asked several questions about how the bill would function in practice, including what organizations would do on day one, how it would interact with existing efforts like community schools, McKinney-Vento, and the Student Opportunity Act, and how it would be sustained over time. Witnesses said the act would help create or strengthen backbone organizations, reduce duplication, align existing resources, and leverage philanthropy and future revenue sources for long-term sustainability. No vote was taken during the hearing, but multiple speakers urged the committee to report the bill favorably and quickly.

Transcript Highlights:

• Johns County, and parts of Marion County, from the city limits of St.
• Augustine to parts of the city of Ocala.
• I have some of the wealthiest zip codes in the nation. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you very much.
• I have some of the wealthiest zip codes in the nation. I have Aventura down to Miami Shores.
• I represent areas of Town 'N' Country, West Tampa, Plant City.

Summary: The Education Administration Subcommittee held an introductory meeting focused largely on member introductions and “homework” reports about education issues in each district. Members raised a wide range of concerns and priorities, including early childhood care and VPK access, school choice and school closures, teacher recruitment and retention, conflict resolution and school safety, early literacy and preparedness, technology and AI/STEM instruction, attendance and mental health, ESE services, dual enrollment and career/technical education, caregiving youth, and real-time student enrollment/funding tracking. Several members also emphasized local challenges such as housing-driven teacher turnover, disaster-related attendance problems, and funding inequities across counties. The committee then heard a detailed presentation on Florida’s early learning system from Chancellor Carrie Miller of the Department of Education’s Division of Early Learning. She outlined the structure and funding of School Readiness, VPK, and the Gold Seal Quality Care program, the role of early learning coalitions and DCF, and the state’s quality and accountability measures. She highlighted the importance of kindergarten readiness, teacher quality, and the new School Readiness Plus program, which helps families transition off subsidy more gradually. Additional panelists from the Children’s Forum, the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/Monroe, and a Tallahassee child care provider discussed workforce shortages, low wages, provider turnover, the TEACH scholarship program, Help Me Grow, local coalition operations, and the need for more providers and more consistent regulation. During questions, members asked about wait lists, special needs services, teacher retention, provider onboarding, and DCF regulation. The panel said Miami-Dade’s wait list was about 4,000 children and described priority categories for service; they also said children with disabilities are screened and referred for support, though not given a separate priority category. Panelists reported that TEACH has helped reduce turnover through education support and service commitments, but said wages and career pathways remain major issues. Members also pressed for clearer, more consistent licensing standards and more support for new providers entering the field. No formal votes or committee actions were taken in the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• A student's funding is largely tied to their zip code for a large variety of reasons.
• A student's funding is largely tied to their zip code for a large variety of reasons.
• A student's funding is largely tied to their zip code for a large variety of reasons.
• A student's funding is largely tied to their zip code for a large variety of reasons.
• argument that one of my zip code argument that one of my testifiers<00:20:27.120><c> made.

Committee: Senate Elections

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Number one, this is a local issue, a city issue.
• Every city should have the right to decide on their own Issue.
• Number one, this is a local issue, a city issue.
• Let's get certainty for the income tax code.
• Thank you. “...income tax code.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• his family, his teammates, his school, and his community, signed and sealed at the Capitol in the city
• his family, his teammates, his school, and his community, signed and sealed at the Capitol in the city
• He's captain of our city track team. And he's a Hebrew tutor.
• The school code, the public schools code, defines law enforcement in a different section. Mr.
• Also, the school safety plans address some of these situations, the local, the city.

Bills: HB111 , HB103 , HB60 , HB108 , HB120 , HB145 , HB154 , HB164 , HB291 , HJR6 , HR1 , HJM2 , HJM3 , HJM1 , HM7 , HM17 , HM4 , HM22 , HM23 , HM24 , HM26 , HM2 , HM16 , HM32 , HM13 , HM47 , HM11 , HM14 , HM21 , HM34 , HM50 , HB38 , HB47 , HB63 , HB64 , HB127 , HB165 , HB184 , HB200 , HM20 , HM51

Keywords: water law, state engineer, civil penalty, compliance order, water rights, overdiversion, illegal diversion, groundwater storage and recovery, well license, permit violation, water enforcement, New Mexico water code, irrigation district, conservancy district, water diversion, unauthorized water sales, measuring device, district court appeal, water resources, water compliance

Transcript Highlights:

• Come from the Issaquah City Council. And it's just an honor to be here.
• part of Franklin County, and Benton County, which includes Richland, Kennewick, West Richland, Benton City
• The bill prohibits electric utilities, cities, counties, or landlords from requiring customers to get
• There isn't a National Electrical Code standard, and that's what we inspect, too.
• There isn't a National Electrical Code standard, and that's what we inspect, too.

Summary: The committee began with member and staff introductions, then held a work session on emissions-intensive trade-exposed facilities (EITEs) under Washington’s Climate Commitment Act. Ecology staff reviewed how cap-and-invest works, explained EITE no-cost allowance allocations, and summarized a new report to the Legislature on policy options for 2035-2050. Ecology recommended continuing no-cost allocations but adjusting them to fit the cap, considering a consignment approach that would require EITEs to invest part of the value of free allowances in decarbonization, and studying additional benchmarking and leakage-mitigation refinements. Quebec officials described their cap-and-trade system, including a consignment model that withholds part of free allocations, holds the value in trust for facilities, and requires technical studies and investment in mitigation projects; they said it has encouraged industrial investment and no business closures. Members asked about facility closures, compliance costs, eligible uses of consigned funds, and adaptation spending. The work session then closed. The committee then heard House Bill 2296, which would expand distributed energy resources by allowing portable plug-in solar devices and meter-mounted devices. The prime sponsor said the bill is intended to lower barriers and startup costs for renters and homeowners who want to electrify or add solar. Supporters, including a nonprofit promoting plug-in solar and a physician group, said the devices could broaden access to clean energy and reduce greenhouse gas and health harms. Utilities, labor, and industry groups opposed the bill as written, citing safety concerns, lack of national electrical code standards, possible backfeeding and fire risks, utility-worker hazards, unclear interconnection rules, and concerns about multifamily housing and small-utility review burdens. Some witnesses said they were open to continued work on the proposal. Next, the committee heard House Bill 2285, which would allow natural gas generation paired with carbon capture, utilization, storage, or mineralization to count toward Clean Energy Transformation Act compliance. The sponsor and supporters argued the bill would provide a “bridge” for firm power, help address reliability and transmission constraints, and support jobs while reducing emissions compared with conventional gas. Opponents said the bill would weaken CETA’s 100% clean electricity target by allowing resources that still emit carbon to qualify, and they questioned whether 75% capture is sufficient. Other testimony raised cost concerns and warned that carbon capture could increase ratepayer costs. The hearing on HB 2285 was later suspended and reopened briefly for additional testimony from Ecology, which said the bill would permanently weaken CETA standards and likely reduce emissions reductions. The committee also briefly received a staff briefing on House Bill 2272, a ski-area terminology bill, and then suspended that hearing to take it up later.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's a late filed Amendment bar code 1, 4, 2, 4, 5, 0, by Senator Burton.
• This is bar Code 7, 6, 9, 1, 6, 8, by Senator Martin.
• So City Jenkins, you want to speak. >> And if you could keep your comments brief, we'd appreciate it,
• City Jenkins followed by Beth Young.
• Safety City Chairman 10 11. The Department of. >> Okay.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Steele University and others across the city to get those resources in place. That's all for me.
• You mentioned Circle the City, but just a more fulsome picture of your collaborations?
• We have, like you mentioned, the relationship with Circle the City.
• The Nuremberg Code was violated by institutions that mandated experimental injections that had never
• Nuremberg Code is something that everyone should have studied. I sit here as a health care process.

Committee: Senate Senate Health and Human Services COR

Summary: The committee first approved the March 11 minutes and heard a presentation from Nathan Smith, CEO of Central Arizona Shelter Services, on homelessness in Maricopa County. He described rising homelessness, especially among older adults, and said CASS uses low-barrier emergency shelter, family shelter, and an older-adult shelter with case management, behavioral health services, and partnerships with outside groups for food, banking, digital access, and other supports. Members asked about collaborations with mutual aid groups and about point-in-time data, and Smith said the county data could be drilled down through AZMAG. The committee then moved to legislation. HB 2248, the Arizona Medical Freedom Act, would bar businesses, schools, and government entities from denying services or employment based on medical interventions, with an amendment allowing schools to limit access during outbreaks or for certain infections. Supporters framed the bill as protecting bodily autonomy and informed consent, while opponents argued it would undermine employers’ ability to prevent disease spread. The committee adopted the amendment and gave the bill a due pass recommendation on a 4-3 vote. HB 2906, requiring one dental board member to be an active oral and maxillofacial surgeon, passed unanimously after testimony that the board needs surgical expertise for complex cases and anesthesia oversight. HB 2189, directing the Nursing Board to adopt rules for licensed health aides and routine ventilator care, also passed with an amendment and a 6-0 vote. HB 2403 appropriates $2.5 million in FY2027 for home and community-based services providers for elderly and physically disabled Arizonans. Supporters said the funding would help retain caregivers, whose wages have lagged for years, and argued home care is cheaper than hospitalization or institutional care; the bill passed 6-0. HB 2731 continued the Physician Assistant Board to 2030 and passed with a technical amendment, and HB 2730 continued the Occupational Therapy Board and passed as well. HB 2729 continued the Nursing Board to 2030; the board said it regulates about 150,000 licensees and handles thousands of complaints annually, and the bill passed 6-0. HB 2728 continued the Department of Economic Security and incorporated several previously vetoed policy provisions affecting SNAP, unemployment, and eligibility/redetermination rules. Speakers in opposition said it would make benefits harder to access and turn a continuation bill into a vehicle for controversial policy changes, while supporters argued it was part of the legislature’s oversight role. The bill passed 4-3. The committee also adopted a strike-everything amendment to HB 2048, which limits utilization controls on FDA-approved non-opioid pain medications relative to opioids; supporters said it would improve access to non-opioid pain treatment and reduce opioid harm, while opponents warned it would bypass clinical review and raise costs. HB 2048 passed 4-3. Finally, HCR 2058 would require a comprehensive claim-level audit of Arizona Medicaid claims and direct recovery efforts for misappropriated funds; supporters said it could recover significant overpayments, while opponents questioned its incentives and overlap with existing oversight. The resolution passed 4-3, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill also defines reclaimed water in the code, and I will move the adoption of...
• Delegate from Richmond City, Delegate Carr. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Delegate Carr. Thank you, Mr.
• Is locality a county or a city? Locality is a county or a city? Mr.
• Speaker, locality would mean cities, counties, towns. Speaking to the bill. Doug has the floor.
• The delegate from Richmond City, Delegate Smith. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Keywords: March 14, 2026 - Regular Session Part 2, 976, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• be considered public information as that term is defined in Section 552.002 of the Texas Government Code
• Reserve peace officers in current code are excluded from doing part-time security work for private and
• But the comeback was, we're going to do it here for cities and counties that are above 250,000.
• We've passed bills many, many times that were bracketed to just one county, one city, one area of the
• Along with the 1,800 firefighters in the city, House Bill 3420, when passed, would grant firefighters

Bills: HB 1065 , HB2929 , HB2956 , HB3009 , HB3420 , HB3626 , HB3649 , HB4956 , HB4993 , HB5293 , HB5308 , HB5528 , HCR118 , SB36 , HB4023 , SB 36

Committee: House Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans' Affairs

Keywords: employee classification, private security, misclassification, workforce regulations, Texas Workforce Commission, autism, peace officers, training program, law enforcement, intervention, communication, developmental disability, family violence, central database, criminal offense, registration, public safety, violent offenses, criminal database, Department of Public Safety

Transcript Highlights:

• The Education Code 38.004 mandates school-adopted policies addressing sexual abuse.
• Cibolo Universal City? Okay, yeah, now I am.
• We've also worked over the years on that teacher code of ethics.
• We've also worked over the years on that teacher code of ethics. So yes, we absolutely.
• Can you provide the teacher code of ethics to the committee for us?

Bills: HB4 , HB20

Committee: Senate Education K-16

Keywords: district composition, congressional election, Texas, legislature, voting districts, fraudulent solicitation, disaster relief, nonprofit organizations, criminal penalties, consumer protection, fraud prevention, charitable donations

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 2853, which would allow the UT System Board of Regents to adjust the University of Texas at El Paso student union fee above the current statutory cap, subject to student approval, to help fund a new student union building. Senator Blanco explained the bill and the committee substitute, there were no questions or witnesses, public testimony was closed, and the committee adopted the substitute and left the bill pending subject to the call of the chair. The committee then heard House Bill 610, which would limit severance payments for terminated independent school district superintendents to six months’ salary and benefits. Senator Paxton described large severance payouts and said the bill had passed the House overwhelmingly. There were no witnesses, public testimony was closed, and the bill was left pending. A lengthy hearing followed on House Bill 4623, which would waive school district immunity in certain cases involving negligent hiring, supervision, or employment of professional school employees who commit abuse or related misconduct against students. Senator Paxton and several witnesses, including survivors and parents, argued the bill was needed to address cover-ups, delayed reporting, and repeated failures to remove dangerous employees; some members raised concerns about liability caps, litigation, and how the bill would interact with the Tort Claims Act. The committee also heard from TEA staff and employee-group witnesses who discussed possible injunctions and stronger no-hire protections. Public testimony was then closed and the bill was left pending. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 4, an accountability and assessment bill that would restore A-F ratings, change the state testing system, and replace STAAR with shorter, more instructionally useful assessments. Senator Bettencourt explained the committee substitute, including annual ratings, limits on taxpayer-funded lawsuits, and a phased-in testing redesign with beginning, middle, and end-of-year assessments. Testimony was generally supportive from education and business groups, though some witnesses favored norm-referenced testing while others emphasized criterion-referenced, TEKS-aligned assessments; one witness noted social studies assessments were restored in the bill. The hearing concluded with additional invited testimony and no final vote reported in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• In addition, Senate Bill 1019 allows municipal hospitals in third-class cities to operate in areas where
• Carolyn Katyn, State Representative for District 33, which is the east and southeast portion of Kansas City
• Thank you. ...data, the Medicare data, the key CPT codes.
• Many of them work here in Jefferson City, but we have people all over the country.
• I know I saw a report yesterday that Anthropic has a new program, MECOS, that can break about any code

Committee: House Health and Mental Health

Keywords: 959, house, all