Transcript Highlights:

• The chair announces the signing of the following in the presence of the house. SER 5. HCR 5 SCR 14.
• Speaker, I have a message from the Senate at the door of the house. Mr. Messenger. Thank you, Mr.

Transcript Highlights:

• 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 All right, the chair announces the signing
• Speaker, I have a message from the Senate at the door of the House.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Signed and sealed at the Capitol in the City of Santa Fe, Mimi Stewart, President Pro Tem, Senator Leo
• President, we have honored guests from the House of Representatives with a message for the Senate.

Transcript Highlights:

• I knew that, but I think this would send a message to at least think long and hard about, uh, taking
• And I agree that I can't determine what future legislators do, but I think this bill just sends a message
• I knew that, but I think this would send a message to at least think long and hard about, uh, taking
• that uh the intent of this body message that uh the intent of this body would<00:23:54.640> be
• >> Same sign. There being seven ayes and seven nays, the motion does not prevail.

Bills: HF3579, HF3549, HF3548, HF4388, HF3566

Keywords: eggs, donation, quality assurance, food assistance, charitable programs, agriculture, grain indemnity, financial security, crop insurance, Minnesota agriculture, farm assistance, down payment, state funding, loan modification, rotational grazing, grazing management, livestock, pasture management, soil health, erosion control

Transcript Highlights:

• bills will be deferred, reports of committees will be deemed read and amendments deemed adopted, messages
• from the Governor there are none, messages from the Senate there are none.
• By voting yesterday, we sent a clear message that California stands united.
• And so this goes into that same type of messaging.
• We were successful in moving that bill and getting the governor to sign it.

Summary: The Assembly met after a quorum call and first dealt with a procedural dispute over four amendments to AB 1240. The Speaker ruled the amendments out of order as not germane, and the Assembly sustained that ruling on a 49-16 vote. Members then added co-authors to several consent-calendar resolutions, including measures on the National Conference of State Legislators, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, ALS Awareness Month, and Men’s Mental Health Month, before adopting the consent calendar. The chamber also heard guest introductions, including a welcome for Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, and took up a motion to bring AB 41 up out of file, which failed 19-48. The bulk of the meeting was floor action on a long series of bills and resolutions, many of which passed with broad bipartisan support. Measures approved included ACR 40 supporting immigrant students and FAFSA privacy; AB 917 on permanent status for certain school employees; AB 985 on anesthesia access; AB 7 and AB 42 on higher education and student services; AB 245 providing property tax relief for wildfire victims; AB 255 allowing funding for drug-free recovery housing; AB 279 updating K-12 library standards; AB 289 creating a pilot for automated speed enforcement in highway construction zones; AB 291 on an educator apprentice program; AB 327 addressing swatting; AB 340 on confidential union communications; AB 341 creating an oral health technical assistance center for people with disabilities; AB 356 on San Diego health care infrastructure; AB 410 on bot disclosure; AB 476 on copper theft enforcement; AB 477 on educator pay targets; AB 485 on stolen wages and business licensing; AB 487, the insurance committee’s technical omnibus bill; AB 573 on tobacco retail license fees; AB 598 on school mapping technology; AB 635 on mobile home law enforcement referrals; AB 651 on remote participation for incarcerated parents in dependency hearings; AB 654 on homelessness hotline assistance in Los Angeles County; AB 662 creating a South County higher education task force; AB 667 on language access in professional licensing; AB 669 limiting early denial of addiction treatment; AB 670 on naturally occurring affordable housing; AB 695 on online continuation of community college for deported students; AB 723 on disclosure for digitally altered real estate images; AB 727 placing Trevor Project information on student IDs; and AB 736, a $10 billion affordable housing bond for the June 2026 ballot, which passed on a 61-11 urgency vote after extensive debate. Debate on AB 736 was the most extensive of the day, with supporters arguing the bond would help address California’s housing crisis and give voters a chance to weigh in, while opponents criticized the state’s bond debt and past spending results. The Assembly then recessed for caucus meetings and later returned to continue the daily file, where additional measures were taken up, including AB 798 adding diapers and wipes to the emergency food bank reserve program, which passed 56-0, and AB 821 on career technical education, which was presented as bipartisan-supported as the transcript continued.

Transcript Highlights:

• We just want to underline the comments regarding having the message correlate to a public health problem
• They can, many platforms also enable parents to control who can message a teen or minor user.
• to direct them to the settings in which they can dial in their privacy settings or change who can message
• And I have this message because I took a trip to Norway, and I talked to their government.
• And I have this message because I took a trip to Norway, and I talked to their government.

Summary: The committee first heard AB 56, which would require social media platforms to display a warning label about potential mental health harms from prolonged use, with amendments shortening the initial warning and allowing immediate access to the platform. The author and supporters, including a parent who lost a daughter to suicide and a therapist, argued that social media contributes to teen anxiety, self-harm, and other harms and that families need clearer public health information. Opponents from tech and civil liberties groups argued the bill would be ineffective, burdensome, and likely unconstitutional, saying it would create warning fatigue and should be replaced by more targeted tools and digital literacy measures. Several members discussed emergency access concerns, language access, and whether the warning should be more actionable; the bill was moved on a 9-0 vote to the Judiciary Committee. The committee then took up AB 358, which would amend CalECPA to allow law enforcement, with the victim’s consent, to inspect certain abandoned tracking or surveillance devices found in a victim’s home, vehicle, or personal property without first obtaining a warrant. The author and a San Diego prosecutor said the bill is narrowly tailored to devices used solely for spying and is intended to help stalking and domestic violence survivors act quickly before evidence is lost. Opponents from EFF and the ACLU warned the bill would weaken warrant protections, create a loophole around CalECPA, and reduce transparency and accountability. Members debated Fourth Amendment issues, abandonment, and the practical need for rapid access; the bill passed the committee on a 9-0 vote to Appropriations. The committee also heard AB 1137, which builds on last year’s CSAM reporting law by allowing any user to report child sexual abuse material, requiring clearer reporting mechanisms, adding human review in some cases, and mandating third-party audits and public reporting. Supporters, including survivor advocates and a parent of a child victim, said the bill would reduce the burden on survivors and improve removal of abusive content. Tech industry opponents said they support the goal but objected to the human-review mandate, public audit disclosures, and enforcement provisions, arguing they could create security risks and compliance burdens. Members generally supported the bill’s intent but raised questions about audit frequency and human review; the bill was moved on call with seven votes at the time of the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• wanted to testify on this<00:05:14.639> that<00:05:14.880> hadn't<00:05:15.199> signed
• <00:05:15.440> up<00:05:15.600> or<00:05:16.880> gone this that hadn't signed
• up or gone this that hadn't signed up or gone through<00:05:17.280> any<00:05:17.600> process
• The chair then asked if anyone else in the audience wanted to testify who had not signed up. revised,
• I'm not sure if there's a misunderstanding of what exactly an error message is, but it's really, uh,

Bills: HF4253, HF4257, HF3236, HF4264, HF4149, HF4019

Keywords: boat storage structures, public waters, natural resources, rule amendments, watercraft canopy, PFAS, environmental regulation, manufacturers, public health, product safety, groundwater, water appropriation, water-use permit, water permit, aquifer test, aquifer, well construction, groundwater permit, Department of Natural Resources, DNR

Transcript Highlights:

• And he's also agreed to sign on as a co-author of this bill.
• Instead of transparency, I got mixed messages.
• Instead of transparency, I got mixed messages.
• Instead of transparency, I got mixed messages.
• Instead of transparency, I got mixed messages.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• bit of mixed messages because the legislature<00:32:03.039> has<00:32:03.200> said<00:
• it they dated it okay yep they signed it they dated it okay good<00:57:00.520> but<00:57:01.440
• And so it's not about punitive measures, right, of an employee, of like, oh wait, you didn't sign the
• Attorney's Office has not signed off on that, then I guess I would urge, Madam Chair, and I just want
• Attorney's Office has not signed off on that, then I guess I would urge, Madam Chair, and I just want

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee heard a presentation from State Auditor Judy Randall and Deputy Legislative Auditor Jody Mason Rodriguez on the Office of the Legislative Auditor’s 2023 report, “Oversight of State-Funded Grants to Nonprofit Organizations.” Randall explained that the report takes a broad look at how Minnesota manages grants, building on earlier work that helped lead to the Office of Grants Management (OGM) in 2007. She emphasized that the new recommendation-tracking booklet in members’ packets is meant to help the legislature see which audit recommendations have been implemented, partially implemented, or not implemented, and to support oversight rather than assign blame. Rodriguez summarized the report’s findings: Minnesota’s grants management policies contain many important practices, but they often lack enough detail for agencies to implement them consistently. The office found pervasive noncompliance in recent years and identified weak statutory enforcement as a major reason. She reviewed how grants flow from the legislature to agencies and then to nonprofit grantees and subgrantees, and noted that state agencies spent an average of about $514 million annually on nonprofit grants from fiscal years 2018 through 2022, awarding grants to about 2,400 nonprofits. The report found OGM policies partially reflected 17 of 24 recommended grant-management practices, but examples of missing detail included no required risk-based monitoring, no minimum standards for progress reports, telephone-only monitoring visits allowed, and no deadline for closeout reviews. The auditors said some recommendations have been acted on since the report, including 2023 statutory changes that led OGM to revise its pre-award financial review policy and set a timeline for closeout reviews, though other recommendations remain only partially implemented. They also discussed repeat compliance problems across agencies, including conflict-of-interest documentation, and said agencies are beginning to improve by automating checklists and disclosure processes. In response to member questions, the auditors said training is important and should likely be required for grants staff, though not necessarily with highly specific statutory language; they also said grant managers vary widely across agencies, making baseline training especially useful. No votes or formal committee actions were taken during the presentation, and the chair noted that OGM would be invited for a future presentation.

Transcript Highlights:

• We'll be taking up those sign-in sheets momentarily, in a few minutes, so make sure you get signed up
• No one has signed up for public comment on this rule.
• There are 13 signed up to speak. We'll let everyone who wants to speak speak.
• It sends a message to every exceptional child in Arkansas.
• And they do have a lot of activities and stuff that the kids can be signed up for.

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:

• We'll be taking up those sign-in sheets momentarily in a few minutes, so make sure you get signed up
• No one has signed up for public comment on this rule.
• No public comment signed up. Without objection, this is reviewed and approved.
• There are 13 signed up to speak. We'll let everyone who wants to speak speak.
• Sends a message to every exceptional child in Arkansas.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So signed up uh to testify in person.
• have Oh, that's everyone who had signed have Oh, that's everyone who had signed up<00:04:08.239>
• Uh otherwise, also signed up online in.
• And that's everyone who had signed up to testify.
• We have additional signed up to testify.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committees met on a 3:00 p.m. agenda that included House Concurrent Resolution 94 and several gubernatorial nominations. HCR 94, which asks the governor to proclaim Hawaii a Purple Heart State on August 7, 2025, drew support from the Hawaii Veterans of Foreign Wars and no opposing testimony. The chair recommended passage as is, and the committees adopted the recommendation without objection. The bulk of the meeting focused on nominations to the King Kamehameha Celebration Commission and the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, along with one nomination to the Medical Advisory Board. Nominees and supporters emphasized experience, continuity, and service: Dana Alla Lopez, Beverly Lee, and others described prior commission work; Janet Sato and Marcia Deutsch highlighted long involvement in arts education, grants review, and public art; and Randall Francisco stressed arts advocacy and accessibility. Testimony in support also came from commission staff, the Association for Hawaiian Civic Clubs, the County of Kauai Office of Economic Development, the mayor of Kauai, and others. One nominee, Judy Kvel Kovville, had support from the Department of Transportation. Several committee members raised broader questions about sustaining arts funding amid possible federal cuts and changes in state project financing that could reduce revenue under the 1% for art law. The nominees for the arts-related posts said they were open to exploring new funding sources, including private philanthropy, community support, and learning from other states. After discussion, the committee voted to advise and consent on all listed nominations—GM506, GM507, GM508, GM556, GM654, GM740, GM742, and GM743—with no votes or reservations, and the meeting adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• He didn't sign up, but he is here if you would allow. >> I will. >> Thank you, Mr.
• <01:13:13.280> by<01:13:13.360> the executive order that was signed by the executive
• I did trade messages with Co-Chair Raruer in the higher ed committee, and she indicated that it did not
• > co-chair<01:18:03.120> Raric<01:18:03.760> in trade messages with uh co-chair
• Raric in trade messages with uh co-chair Raric in the<01:18:04.159> higher<01:18:04.400> ed

Bills: HF3919, HF3467, HF3741

Keywords: veterans benefits, Secret War, Laos veterans, eligibility process, burial fees, veteran designation, veterans affairs, food insecurity, homelessness, suicide prevention, state resources, reporting requirements, agency initiatives, veterans, educational assistance, tuition waiver, spouses, children, military service, benefits

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes, then heard an update from Metro Meals on Wheels on a veterans home-delivered meals grant funded by the committee in 2023. Testifiers said the program has served more than 82,000 meals to over 500 veterans, but funding is running short; enrollment was stopped in July 2025 and meal service was reduced to five per week to stretch dollars. They said the program is serving 168 veterans as of January 31 and will likely run out of funds in July unless additional money is provided. Members asked about eligibility and how the program ensures the grant is used only for veterans who do not qualify for other services; the organization said referrals come through county veteran service officers, MACV, hospitals, and other partners, and that it can provide confidential tracking information. No vote was taken on funding, but members expressed support and interest in more documentation. The committee then took up House File 3919, which implements recommendations from a task force on benefits for SGU veterans and irregular forces who served in the secret war in Laos from 1961 to 1975. The Department of Veterans Affairs said the bill largely reflects the task force report and technical recommendations, including adding SGU veterans to the burial fee statute so burial costs in state cemeteries can be covered, while noting there is still an unresolved issue about headstone costs for spouses and dependents. A testifier from the task force supported the bill but objected to creating a separate SGU veteran designation on driver’s licenses, arguing it could create two classes of veterans and add administrative costs; he urged using a single veteran designation instead. Other public testimony emphasized the service of Hmong, Lao, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and other allies in Laos and urged the legislature to adopt the recommendations broadly. The committee discussed the burial fee language and the purpose of the designation, but no final action or vote on HF 3919 was taken in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• If there's anyone in the audience that wants to speak for or against the bill, there's a sign-up sheet
• I suggest you sign up.
• We don't allow signs in yards. We don't allow political signs in yards.
• sign agreements, and that transparency will help people avoid mistakes.
• We have three individuals signed up to speak against the bill, the resolution.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So that just makes that single sign-on.
• That's been my message to the team.
• That's been my message to the team.
• Have you, uh, gotten message from DLNR?
• what, the previous DOA director signed what, the previous DOA director signed on<03:32:49.400>

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• ific anly impacted our pandemic sign ific anly impacted our students<00:29:30.200> because<00
• , you'd be proud,' signed every single M State student.
• Expanding income eligibility, addressing hidden costs, and improving messaging will help fulfill the
• Expanding income eligibility, addressing hidden costs, and improving messaging will help fulfill the
• Expanding income eligibility, addressing hidden costs, and improving messaging will help fulfill the

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There is no one else signed up to speak: one person signed in in support, one person signed in in opposition
• When they sign up for that program, the first thing they must do is sign away their right to a free and
• We had nine people sign in: five in opposition and four in support.
• We had nine people sign in: five in opposition and four in support.
• We had nine people sign in: five in opposition and four in support.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Signed in open session.
• Signed in open session.
• Signed in open session.
• Signed in open session.
• Signed in open session.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The school board signs off monthly when bills are being paid through payroll and similar processes.
• and I'll take any questions is message and I'll take any questions is you<01:18:57.840> have<
• Um, I indicated that yes, we had a number of people in the portal who signed in, but when we came to
• people in the portal who signed people in the portal who signed in<03:48:32.359> but<03:48
• I respect that message.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first heard HB 295, which would make school building aid funds non-lapsing/non-APS. Representative Cahill said the bill was intended to keep any unused building aid money available for future projects, potentially helping move projects up the priority list or provide a little more funding for school construction. Members asked about how much money has lapsed in past years, whether the education trust fund and building aid are separate, and whether any lapsing dollars could be used to pay down debt. Department of Education official Jim Carney said about $29.1 million would be available if building aid is funded to the $50 million maximum in FY26, confirmed that the fund currently lapses, and said the department would gather historical lapse data. Committee members also discussed whether a dedicated fund structure could achieve the same goal, and the chair noted that the education trust fund statute includes school building aid as one of its uses. No vote was taken; the hearing was closed and the committee said it would later hold a work session after receiving more information. The committee then took up HB 237, introduced by Representative Dan McGuire, which would prohibit the use of special education state funds and differentiated aid for students not receiving special education services. The New Hampshire School Boards Association, through Becky Wilson, opposed the bill as written, saying it was unclear, potentially unnecessary, and difficult to implement because adequacy and differentiated aid are distributed as part of a districtwide lump sum rather than as student-specific dollars. She explained that special education costs are embedded across district budgets, including staffing, training, transportation, and instruction, and that some staff and services benefit both special education and general education students. Wilson also said differentiated aid is not tied to a specific pupil and is used at the district’s discretion, though it is intended to support students with greater needs. Committee members pressed on whether the bill would require districts to track money by individual student, whether it could conflict with federal special education law, and whether it would affect least restrictive environment requirements. Wilson said making the funds student-specific could create privacy and accounting problems and could make it difficult to staff inclusive classrooms, though she did not give a definitive legal opinion on federal compliance. She agreed that students who are not eligible for special education would not be included in the separate catastrophic/special education aid reimbursement program. The discussion continued into the second section of the bill, with members exploring how adequacy aid and differentiated aid are used in practice, but no action was taken during the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• you're going to have to keep your benefits, meaning we would make you come back every six months to sign
• It had been, you know, at least our message had been that it was not going to be supported, so we did
• Members signed the 100% Talent Compact, pledging to the Mayor of Boston to report to the BWWC every two
• Last July, President Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill, or OB3, the largest budget law
• These efforts from the board would send a strong signal in contrast to the messages we're receiving from

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Racial Equity, Civil Rights, and Inclusion held a hearing on the impact of federal policy on the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts, the fourth in a series on federal impacts on racial equity. Chair Bud Williams and Chair Miranda opened by emphasizing that no bills were being heard and that the committee would instead take testimony from invited witnesses; public written testimony was also accepted. The chairs and witnesses repeatedly cited long-standing wealth disparities affecting Black and brown communities, including homeownership, wages, business ownership, and access to capital, and linked those disparities to federal policy changes, housing, education, health care, and workforce development. Administration officials testified first. Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Lauren Jones described persistent labor market disparities, including higher unemployment for Black and Latino residents, lower median hourly wages, and underemployment among degree holders, and highlighted state efforts such as ESOL-for-work funding, workforce training grants, MassHire career centers, skills-based hiring, and the state equity dashboards. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kiami Mahania argued that poverty drives poor health, not the reverse, and said wealth gaps contribute to chronic disease, maternal health inequities, medical debt, and shorter life expectancy; she pointed to the Advancing Health Equity Massachusetts initiative, a health care affordability working group, and the governor’s push to bar medical debt from credit reporting. Assistant Secretary Juan Vega of EOED focused on entrepreneurship and procurement, citing technical assistance grants, founder support programs, place-based investment, the Business Front Door, and the need to broaden access to contracts, capital, and business growth opportunities. Committee members pressed the panel on the effects of the federal “big beautiful bill” on households, especially single-parent and Black women-led households, and on whether the state could develop more timely data systems instead of relying on federal numbers. Officials said the impacts were still being monitored, but warned that Medicaid and SNAP changes would likely hit lower-income households and community institutions hard. Members also asked about unions and apprenticeships, microbusiness definitions, supplier diversity, pay equity, and degree inflation; the administration said registered apprenticeships and skills-based hiring are key tools, and noted that wage equity reporting is still in its early stages. Later testimony from BECMA’s Nicole O’Bean stressed that tariffs, DEI rollbacks, immigration enforcement, capital gaps, and federal funding cuts are constraining Black-owned businesses and inclusive procurement, while Gastón Institute researchers described severe Latino homeownership and rent burdens, educational inequities, and the need for housing, labor, and education policy changes to close the wealth gap.