Transcript Highlights:

• I have never, even on an insurance paperwork, I've never been asked about what temperature our vapes
• Insurance companies are excellent at mitigating risk.
• <04:08:08.080> Insurance temperature our vapes run at.
• Insurance temperature our vapes run at.
• Thank you. >> Not that the commissioners probably knew that that was coming, but they'll get used to

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The other amendment had to do with naming Commissioner Ludgood.
• for these treatments is important because Medicare, which covers our teachers' State Employees' Insurance
• We’re going to have people losing their health insurance. So I ask us to just be... ...insurance.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, health insurance and PERS, and that is the explanation.
• obesity management, remote patient monitoring, cancer screenings for individuals without health insurance
• <00:32:27.279> and individuals without health insurance and individuals without health insurance
• Department of Insurance. Total action is 42,250, or 42,252,776. This is $12,50 over LBR.
• After discussions with the House and with the commissioner, they felt like that needed to get paid before

Keywords: Appropriations - Room 216, 12 March, 2026; 10:30 AM, 925, all

Summary: The committee began by noting the plan to suspend the rules later that afternoon so several measures could be taken up on the floor, including bills that may be on final passage or contain reverse repealers. Members were reminded to clearly identify which bills were final passage measures so the chamber would know it might be the last opportunity to vote on them. The committee then moved through a series of appropriations bills. In the education and judicial budgets, Senator DeBar explained House Bills 1928, 1933, 1935, 1936, and 1937, covering the legislative operations budget, DFA buildings reappropriations, K-12 education, MPB, and the library commission. He described increases for teacher pay, special education supplements, testing contracts, ELC coaches, financial literacy, ESA funding, and other adjustments, along with reductions in some areas and a decline in student enrollment affecting the funding formula. The bills were adopted by title sufficient, do pass, with strike-all motions where applicable. Senator Wiggins presented House Bills 1924, 1926, 1927, 1930, and 1931, covering the Attorney General, Capital Postconviction Council, district attorneys and staff, the Office of State Public Defender, and the Supreme Court/AOC budget. He highlighted salary increases for agency attorneys, human trafficking funding, new district attorney positions from judicial redistricting, public defender support for family defenders and the rural legal services pilot, and major court-system items such as judicial salary increases, youth court intake, CCID courts, and the MyCIDS replacement system. Questions focused on the meaning of personal services, vacancy funding, and possible use of opioid settlement funds for AOC; the committee was told those issues could be handled through the reverse repealer or other vehicles. The bills were advanced, with the committee noting which ones contained reverse repealers and which were final action. Subcommittee 5 and 6 then handled human services, health, licensing, and transportation-related measures. House Bills 1906, 1909, 1912, and 1921 covered Child Protective Services, Human Services, Medicaid, and Rehabilitation Services, with explanations for new attorney positions, salary and vacancy funding, SNAP administration, Medicaid agency funding, and restoring positions in rehab services. House Bill 1908 for the Department of Health added money for Jackson water litigation and public health priorities such as obesity management, remote monitoring, cancer screenings, and maternal-infant health. House Bills 1913, 1914, 1915, 1917, and 1918 were taken up together for licensing boards, with most changes described as cloud services, PIN restoration, or vacancy funding; only the Board of Medical Licensure bill had a reverse repealer. Finally, Senator Thompson handled special fund and transportation bills, including the Port Authority, waterway and river districts, Yellow Creek, and MDOT. He noted overtime concerns at the Port Authority, special-fund increases for contractual services and capital improvements at the water districts, and MDOT increases for salaries, commodities, equipment, and the three-year highway plan. Senator Wiggins raised a question about utility relocation costs in transportation projects, saying some municipalities were being told to pay those costs themselves; Senator Thompson said he would follow up with MDOT.

Transcript Highlights:

• , deputy commissioners, and so on who helped us along the way.
• , deputy commissioners, and so on who helped us along the way.
• , deputy commissioners, and so on who helped us along the way.
• , deputy commissioners, and so on who helped us along the way.
• <05:44:35.440> said region and the lottery commissioner said region and the lottery commissioner

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And so, if they have their own personal private health insurance, they would be able to receive that
• So I guess if they don't have that private insurance, they wouldn't be eligible for medical assistance
• then, uh, the funds for that hospital would not come from medical assistance or from the private insurance
• ,<00:38:00.480> they personal private health insurance, they personal private health insurance
• <02:15:48.960> the being given the right or insured the being given the right or insured the

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The House first adopted non-controversial motions, then approved an urgency motion to suspend the rules so Senate File 4476, the human services program integrity package, could move quickly to conference committee before the end of session. The House then adopted a DE amendment to insert House language into the bill, and proceeded to debate several amendments focused on program integrity, fraud prevention, and reporting requirements in human services programs. Representative Schultz offered Amendment A5 to remove a sunset on the periodic data matching report requirement, arguing the report helps ensure only eligible people receive medical assistance and welfare benefits and should continue to be delivered annually. Supporters said the report had been inconsistently delivered, cited past findings of ineligible recipients, and framed the amendment as a low-cost accountability measure. Opponents, including Representative Nor, said the report had been sent to the chairs, that the issue should be handled through broader HR1-related changes and negotiations with the Senate, and that the amendment was not the right vehicle. After roll call, A5 failed on a 63-67 vote. Schultz then offered Amendment A6, which would require reporting on homelessness programs, including how many people are served, total costs, outcomes, and possible recoupment of funds if reporting is inadequate. Schultz said the state spends tens of millions on homelessness programs without clear results and that better data would help the legislature make decisions and protect taxpayers. Several members supported the idea of more accountability, while others said the state already receives reports, that homelessness work is being done in partnership with stakeholders, and that the amendment was not the best approach. The discussion continued with further comments on homelessness data and program oversight, but no final vote on A6 is shown in the transcript excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, and human services systems is defined as any IT systems utilized by counties or the commissioners
• commissioner of of minute. commissioner of of minute.
• insurance deed liens. liens. liens.
• This amendment requires the Commissioner Management budget in their normal training they can conduct
• And then it holds them accountable so that if a commissioner of an agency or a constitutional officer

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And I'm also a commissioner with the Louisiana Department of Veteran Affairs.
• you would answer that they were on, my next question, I was just curious how you figured out the insurance
• Kim Hunter-Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education.
• Chair, members of committee, Kim Hunter-Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education, this bill is a complementary

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And I'm also a commissioner with the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs.
• My next question, I was just curious how you figured out the insurance liability side.
• Kim Hunter-Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education.
• Chair, members of the committee, Kim Hunter-Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education, this bill is a complementary

Summary: The Senate Education Committee met to hear several education-related measures. It reported favorably, without objection, on House Bill 1215, which would transfer certain removed historical statues and monuments to the Office of State Parks, prohibit re-erection in the parish where they were removed, and require interpretive signage. The committee also advanced House Bill 682, which creates a school guardian program for honorably discharged veterans employed or contracted by local school systems or charter schools; testimony emphasized that guardians would be unarmed, trained, and used for mentoring and school safety. House Bill 1079, giving enrollment preferences in charter schools to children in early childhood programs, military families, foster children, and children in custody disputes, was also reported favorably, as was House Concurrent Resolution 81, directing the Department of Education to study options for districts facing declining enrollment. The committee then took up House Bill 1084, which would allow public postsecondary institutions to raise tuition and mandatory fees by up to 15 percent annually, with higher increases requiring Board of Supervisors approval. The bill drew extended debate over affordability, TOPS, student retention, and whether universities should have more autonomy to set prices. Members raised concerns about fee burdens on families and whether the state should first study the issue; supporters argued the bill would increase transparency and let institutions respond to funding needs and market conditions. Senator Mazzell offered an amendment lowering the cap from 15 percent to 10 percent, and the committee adopted the amendment before reporting the bill favorably as amended. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 342, which would shift the burden of proof in special education due process hearings from parents to local education agencies. The author and parents testified that the current system places an unfair burden on families of children with disabilities, who often lack access to records and legal resources, and that schools already control the documentation and should have to show compliance with IEP obligations. Jefferson Parish school officials opposed the bill, arguing it would increase legal costs, require more staff and attorney time, and potentially lead to more hearings; they also questioned the fiscal note. The Legislative Fiscal Office said the fiscal impact was indeterminable, and the committee continued hearing testimony from parents and school representatives as the transcript ended.

Bills: SB2969, SB3263, SB2602, SB3229, SB3199, SB2550, SB2877, SB3325, SB2024, SB2614, SB2613, SB3063, SB2319, SB2800, SB2892, SB2321, SB2407, SB2805, SB2153, SB2595, SB2781, SB3233, SB2360, SB1432, SB2543, SB2599, SB3053, SB2001, SB2041, SB3247, SB3253, SB2401, SB2673, SB3067, SB411, SB2934, SB3219, SB2919, SB2239, SB2532, SB2601, SB1032, SB2446, SB2152, SB2721, SB3076, SB3140, SB2671, SB2338, SB2268, SB99, SB2930, SB3069, SB3096, SB3097, SB3090, SB2060, SB3028, SB2544, SB2069, SB2552, SB3218, SB3022, SB148, SB2259, SB2578, SB2928, SB2816, SB2580

Keywords: SB2969, Maui wildfire, Maui wildfires, wildfire exposure, Maui Health Registry, University of Hawaii, public health, biomonitoring, medical screening, mental health services, trauma recovery, disaster recovery, first responders, kupuna, children's health, medically vulnerable, environmental exposure, toxic exposure, respiratory illness, community health

Transcript Highlights:

• We have streamlined approval procedures and insurance proceed utilization in place.
• We have streamlined approval procedures and insurance proceed utilization in place.
• We don't know who our insurance agent was, much less find them.'
• And another one said, 'We actually knew who the insurance agent was.
• , and they cannot. important statement because, of course, some owners don't have the insurance.

Summary: The committee heard testimony on several bills, beginning with SB 41 by Senator Wiener, which would regulate pharmacy benefit managers by increasing transparency, banning patient steering and spread pricing, and requiring full pass-through of rebates. Supporters, including independent pharmacists and health advocates, said PBM practices are driving up drug costs and closing neighborhood pharmacies. Opponents from PBM and health plan groups argued the bill overlaps with recently enacted licensing and reporting requirements, would not lower consumer prices, and may be preempted by ERISA. Members discussed confidentiality issues, consumer savings, and the relationship between SB 41 and the new budget trailer bill; the author asked for an aye vote. The committee then took up SB 378, also by Senator Wiener, aimed at online marketplaces that advertise illegal intoxicating hemp and unlicensed cannabis products. Supporters from labor, public health, and the licensed cannabis industry said online sales are undermining regulated businesses and exposing children to unsafe products. Opponents from tech and hemp industry groups warned the bill is overbroad, could sweep in general-purpose platforms and lawful hemp wellness products, and raises Dormant Commerce Clause and First Amendment concerns. The author said he would narrow the bill, remove industrial hemp references, and address strict liability and standing issues; members largely focused on how to target illegal products without capturing lawful marketplaces. SB 243 by Senator Padilla addressed AI companion chatbots, with supporters including Common Sense Media and transparency advocates warning that these systems can be addictive, manipulative, and dangerous for minors and vulnerable users, citing studies and the death of a Florida teenager. The bill would require disclosures, anti-addiction design limits, self-harm protocols, audits, reporting, and a private right of action. Tech and business groups opposed the measure as overly broad and said its definitions could sweep in general-purpose AI tools; several members supported the goal but questioned the breadth of the definitions and the private right of action. Finally, SB 522 by Senator Wahab would extend just-cause eviction protections to rental units that were previously covered by the Tenant Protection Act but were destroyed in disasters and later rebuilt. Supporters, including Los Angeles city officials and tenant advocates, said the bill would help keep displaced renters housed after wildfires and other disasters. Apartment and realtor groups opposed it, arguing it would remove a key exemption needed to finance rebuilding and could discourage post-disaster reconstruction. Members expressed support for tenant protections in disaster areas, and the author asked for an aye vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• teams to provide data. in their biennial reports which are submitted to their respective county commissioners
• Collecting and sharing this data with the state's county commissioners and the legislature will highlight
• Commissioner Stout, you brought up a matter of finance here, so can you imagine a state... where simply
• Thank you for being here, Commissioner Stout.
• Probably gonna get that from Commissioner Buckingham. Thank you.

Bills: HB1583, HB1775, HB1832, HB1836, HB1837, HB1866, HB1983, HB2029, HB2217, HB2318, HB2363, HB2486

Keywords: mental health, emergency detention, peace officer, mental illness, prevention of harm, border security, private landowners, study and report, General Land Office, participation, controlled substances, opioid antagonists, law enforcement training, substance abuse prevention, Texas-Mexico border, criminal justice, public safety, law enforcement, National Park Service, arrest powers

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, we had the commissioner and also her amazing staff who helped us.
• <00:54:44.160> to and requires the commissioner to and requires the commissioner to establish
• commissioner to develop an commissioner to develop an individualized<00:58:07.200> budget
• a<01:03:05.359> study<01:03:06.000> and commissioner to conduct a study and commissioner
• You can just say that the commissioner must submit a waiver. We think that, as Mr.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: Members met to review a budget bill agreement using a nonpartisan spreadsheet and summary materials. Chairs and members thanked fiscal, research, revisers, and agency staff for the collaborative process, noting the bill had been difficult and that the final product reflected compromise. The chair also said only minor technical changes were expected before final enactment, and the spreadsheet walkthrough was then turned over to fiscal staff. Fiscal staff explained that the agreement met the overall budget target and walked through major human services provisions. Key items included nursing facility payment changes, including a phased PDPM change, APS inflation, modified single-bed incentives, and a CPI-U capped payment cap; a nursing facility surcharge; workforce standards board rule costs; continuation of certain nursing facility property tax rates; regulation of for-profit acquisitions of nursing homes and assisted living facilities; repurposing assisted living special project funds; funding the SEIU self-directed worker agreement; CFSS reimbursement in acute care hospital settings; and multiple disability waiver rate and authorization changes, including CPI-U inflation caps, waiver authorization reforms, and a waiver reimagined advisory task force. The agreement also included family residential service rate increases, a temporary extension of customized living disproportionate share payments, tribal eligibility for targeted case management, positive supports training changes, out-of-home respite modifications, swimming lessons as an allowable service for certain children with disabilities, a provisional EID provider license, and program integrity services funded by licensing fee increases. Additional provisions covered MinnChoices studies and assumed savings, behavioral health fund changes, substance use disorder treatment billing and rate changes, supportive recovery housing, housing support supplemental rates for specific providers, disability determinations, enteral nutrition payment timing, temporary funding for Boundary Waters Care Center, several one-time human services grants, senior nutrition funding, and grant reductions and extensions. No formal vote was described in the transcript; the discussion focused on explaining the agreement and its fiscal effects.

Transcript Highlights:

• My son accepted treatment, even with insurance.
• that could be required under the law, and they offer various other services, including risk pool insurance
• Those services that put bills and legislation for those county commissioners to consider are not impacted
• Those services will still be an extension of TAC to keep the county commissioners informed.
• You know, we've seen, for example, county judges and commissioners on rotation come up here; they kind

Bills: SB5, SB11, SB12, SB 5, SB 11, SB 12

Keywords: hemp regulation, consumable products, cannabinoids, occupational licenses, criminal offenses, SB 11, Texas attorney general, election crimes, election law enforcement, criminal prosecution, Election Code, Government Code Chapter 402, local prosecutors, county attorney, district attorney, grand jury, probable cause reports, state election offenses, voter fraud, election integrity

Transcript Highlights:

• Our rules related to smoking cessation tell us that we have to have insurance, how much insurance we
• Sometimes the insurance doesn't cover it. Sometimes they don't have insurance.
• The insurer is not billed.
• environment for health insurance. environment for health insurance.
• Department of Insurance wasn't sure? Department of Insurance wasn't sure?

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• provided the state agencies with their operating adjustments, removed the repeal of the unemployment insurance
• , removed the repeal of the adjustments, removed the repeal of the unemployment<00:04:27.040> insurance
• /c><00:04:27.440> for<00:04:27.680> our<00:04:28.000> integral unemployment insurance
• for our integral unemployment insurance for our integral school<00:04:28.880> hourly<00:04:29.360
• at one point, he was able to look, with his colleagues, right at the governor's staff and the commissioner

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• It's providing law enforcement, and we've talked about it with our county commissioners.
• The chair calls **Commissioner O'Neill** from the Department of Family and Protective Services...
• The chair calls **Commissioner O'Neill** from the Department of Family and Protective Services, **Commissioner
• **Commissioner O'Neill**: Yes, absolutely. Good afternoon, everyone. I'm **Audrey O'Neill**.
• **Commissioner O'Neill**: FYI Housing Voucher Program.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Costs for everything are going up: health insurance, car insurance, appliances, gasoline, you name it
• , insurance, car insurance, appliances, insurance, car insurance, appliances, gasoline, gasoline,
• Groceries, medicine, car insurance, health insurance, you name it, it's all gone up.
• Groceries, medicine, car insurance, health insurance, you name it, it's all gone up.
• , medicine, car insurance, Groceries, medicine, car insurance, health<06:27:45.200> insurance,

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They include reporting to the Office of the Child Advocate and that the commissioner of DCF should submit
• are union representatives, to come in here because I know that your directors and probably your commissioner
• union representatives, to come in here because I know that your directors and you probably your commissioner
• And it should have been on the Commissioner and everyone that was part of her team that should have taken
• These services are provided at no cost to families and are not billed through insurance, thanks to longstanding

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities held a hybrid hearing on a series of child welfare bills focused on DCF, foster care, mandated reporting, educational records, and family support. Chair Kennedy and Chair Livingstone opened with accessibility and testimony rules, then heard testimony on bills including S.127 on expanding mandated reporters, S.107/H.235 on a Foster Children’s Bill of Rights, S.106/H.228 on transferring foster care review from DCF to the Office of the Child Advocate, H.258/S.125 on an electronic backpack for foster children’s educational records, H.205 on kinship foster care background checks, H.246/H.266 on minimizing trauma in care and protection cases, and S.159 on support for families after sudden unexpected infant death. Supporters of the mandated reporter bill, led by Sen. Feeney and Foxborough advocates, described a local model that trains all adults who work with children and argued the state should scale that approach statewide to improve recognition and reporting of abuse. Testimony on the foster care bills emphasized the need for clearer rights, better notice to children and attorneys, stronger remedies, and independent oversight. Advocates, youth with lived experience, and legal organizations described placement instability, delayed notifications, abuse in care, poor educational continuity, and the need for rights around safety, family contact, culture, language, and access to records. Several witnesses urged that the Foster Children’s Bill of Rights include enforceable court remedies, not just reporting requirements. On the oversight bill, supporters argued DCF should not review its own foster care system and pointed to poor outcomes, high placement instability, and recent investigative reporting as evidence for moving review responsibilities to the Office of the Child Advocate. On the electronic backpack bill, testimony focused on the need for real-time data sharing and a centralized system so schools can receive foster students’ records quickly and support continuity. On the trauma-minimization bill, Rep. Miskin framed the proposal as a set of practical changes to reduce harm during removals and court involvement. On the SUID bill, Sen. Lovely said families should be given information about available grief and support resources after an infant death. No votes were taken during the hearing; the committee primarily received testimony and questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, the discharge permit is going to consideration, uh, by the TCQ commissioners next week, actually,
• Now, one of the things that, uh, that we're working on and one of the commissioners down there who's
• Our county commissioner, try and find, find ways not only to for flood mitigation, but also use it as
• The contractor side or the insurance side, the liability side of that, can you elaborate a little bit
• challenges for agriculture that we're going through right now and y'all heard one of them from Commissioner

Transcript Highlights:

• Discharge permit is going to consideration by the TCEQ commissioners next week, actually, March 31st.
• One of the things that we're working on, and one of the commissioners down there, who's very smart, happens
• With our county commissioner trying to find ways not only to for flood mitigation, but also use it as
• with it, and you didn't mention it, you might have briefly talked about. the contractor side or the insurance
• Chairman. that we're going through right now, and y'all heard one of them from Commissioner Ginecca earlier

Keywords: 1184, house, all