Transcript Highlights:

• Individuals who are rated as high risk are denied parole more than 99% of the time.
• Notably, California has the third lowest parole grant rate in the nation.
• Reportably, California has the third lowest parole grant rate in the nation.
• The bill's distrust of the parole process also ignores parolee's exceptionally low recidivism rate.
• Looking at just felonies against another person, the recidivism rate is a mere 0.5%.

Summary: The Assembly Public Safety Committee met to consider several bills, with six measures approved on consent, including bills on background checks, female offender prison facilities, a juvenile justice hunger survey, protective orders and firearms, a youth offender camp pilot, and peace officer behavioral health training. AB 710 and AB 848 were pulled by the authors. The committee also took up AB 458, AB 394, AB 1094, AB 1092, and AB 1036, with extensive testimony on each. AB 458, by Assembly Member Stephanie, would require state agencies purchasing firearms, ammunition, or accessories to vet vendors for compliance with firearms laws and procurement standards. Supporters, including Brady and the California Police Chiefs Association, said taxpayer funds should not go to dealers with serious violations; opponents argued the bill added burdens and vague standards. The committee approved the bill as amended and sent it to Appropriations. AB 394, by Assembly Member Wilson, would expand protections for transit workers and riders by broadening enhanced battery penalties, clarifying who may seek temporary restraining orders in the transit context, and making those orders system-wide. Transit agencies, labor groups, and law enforcement supported the bill, while public defender and civil liberties groups raised concerns about vagueness, duration, and impacts on access to transit. The committee passed AB 394 to Judiciary as amended. AB 1094, by Assembly Member Baines, would raise the minimum parole eligibility term for child torture convictions involving a child under 14 in the perpetrator’s care or custody from seven years to 20 years. Prosecutors, sheriffs, and police groups supported the bill, citing the severity of the abuse and the need to protect child victims; opponents argued the parole system already screens for risk and that harsher sentences do not improve public safety. The committee approved the bill as amended to Appropriations. AB 1092, by Assembly Member Castillo, would extend concealed carry weapon license renewals from two years to four years; supporters said it would reduce costs and administrative burdens, while the chair and others opposed it as unnecessary. The committee ultimately voted the bill down. AB 1036, by Assembly Member Schultz, would expand post-conviction discovery access for people convicted of felonies with sentences of one year or more, including Brady materials and jury selection notes. Innocence organizations and defense groups supported it, while district attorneys opposed the broader discovery obligations; the committee passed it to Appropriations as amended.

Transcript Highlights:

• It lowers the threshold of in-state spending that would qualify for the top-tier base reimbursement rate
• The uplifts can be combined but cannot exceed a... a total of 6% above the base reimbursement rate.
• The base incentive rate is between 5 to 20%.
• The base incentive rate is now between 5% to 25% for eligible local spend, depending on the budget of
• And are there ratings?

Bills: SB22, SB 22

Keywords: Texas, moving image industry, incentive program, film production, grant funding, job creation, economic development, youth camp, summer camp, camp safety, emergency operations plan, emergency preparedness, evacuation drill, camp staff training, volunteer training, camper safety, lost camper, natural disaster, fire safety, mass casualty

Transcript Highlights:

• response to a request about what we can do about the frustration people are having with the higher rates
• The first part about the surplus lines bill is going to raise rates. It's not going to help.
• Shifting one to another, and it takes a form that's not regulated, a rate that's not regulated, and they
• can charge a higher rate because it's not a regulated rate, and the form was worse.
• They will place with a higher rate where they get a higher premium with surplus lines carriers.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and heard several insurance- and trust-related bills. CS/HB 265, relating to post-judgment execution proceedings involving terrorism, was presented as a measure to help victims enforce long-standing judgments against terrorist assets; it received no opposition in testimony and was reported favorably. CS/HB 1173, concerning the Florida Trust Code, clarified that the Florida Attorney General is the only public official with standing to enforce charitable trusts administered in Florida; members discussed that it was intended to resolve ambiguity identified by a court decision, and it also passed favorably. The committee then took up PCS/HB 643 on residual market insurers. The bill would remove the “diligent effort” requirement for surplus lines placements, revise surplus lines eligibility, and let Citizens policyholders elect arbitration through DOAH or the courts at renewal or issuance. The sponsor argued the changes would reduce red tape and give consumers more options, while an opponent from the Florida Justice Association warned that removing diligent-search protections could push more policyholders into higher-cost, less-regulated surplus lines coverage and that arbitration could favor insurers. Committee members raised concerns about the lack of premium credits for arbitration, the effect on Citizens, and the loss of consumer protections, but the bill was reported favorably. Finally, PCS/HB 1047 on insurance regulation generated extensive debate. The bill would reduce pre-licensure hours for general lines agents from 200 to 60, clarify restrictions on public adjuster conduct, require claims-handling manuals only for active residential property insurers, and define “sufficient evidence” for bad-faith claims with examples and a 10-day objection/response process. Supporters said it would streamline claims handling and clarify timelines; opponents and several members argued it could burden policyholders, especially after disasters, and might make it easier for insurers to delay or deny claims. There was also concern about the reduced training hours for new agents and the lack of detail on what constitutes sufficient evidence or a specific objection. After a divided debate, the bill was reported favorably by a 12-6 vote. The meeting then adjourned.

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• Sixty-five percent of schools, as the good rep said, are A- and B-rated schools.
• There was also a graduation rate that was a part of the grading criteria.
• When you go to a school and walk in where there was under a 50% graduation rate and it becomes 90% to
• Someone came in and talked about the high turnover rate for teachers, and that's real.
• Someone came in and talked about, you know, the high turnover rate for teachers, and that's real.

Summary: The Education Administration Subcommittee heard and advanced a series of education bills focused on transparency, accountability, attendance, school start times, student well-being, and career planning. HB 1321, by Rep. Salsman, would remove public-records and public-meeting exemptions for university presidential searches, eliminate the Board of Governors from those searches, require Board of Governors members to file full financial disclosures and be Florida residents, and expand syllabus posting requirements; it passed 15-0. HB 1079, by Rep. Botana, as amended, broadened eligibility for dropout retrieval programs to include students who withdrew and did not reengage in education, and it also passed 15-0 after a strike-all amendment and supportive testimony from a program provider. The committee also approved PCS for HB 969, by Rep. Kassel, which shifts evaluation of school mental health services to the Department of Children and Families and requires more detailed outcome data, surveys, and reporting related to the Mental Health Assistance Allocation program; it passed 15-0. HB 1367, by Rep. Booth, creates a statewide attendance policy with uniform definitions and reporting requirements to address chronic absenteeism; it passed 15-1 after support from business and education groups and some concern about state control over district policy. PCS for HB 261, by Rep. Gerwig, revises the 2023 middle and high school start-time law by allowing districts to document compliance efforts and unintended consequences rather than fully meet the mandated later start times; it passed 16-0. The most debated bill was HB 1483, by Rep. Valdez, which would align Florida’s school grading scale with the familiar 90/80/70/60 letter-grade standard over a five-year transition and require school grades to appear on student report cards. Supporters argued the current scale is misleading and too lenient, while opponents warned it would sharply increase failing school labels, create costs and turnaround mandates, and confuse parents and students. Despite extensive testimony from school board members, teachers, students, and advocacy groups on both sides, the bill passed 12-4. The committee then quickly approved HB 1245, a one-year Hunger-Free Campus Pilot Program for three universities with the highest share of Pell-eligible students, and HB 571, which expands career planning, paid work experience, and credit-transfer review for students; both passed unanimously.

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• . was significantly higher than the national veteran's suicide rate and was significantly higher than
• the national general population suicide rate.
• the North Texas Warrior Golf Association has serviced and in an age where where the veteran suicide rate
• Grizzly, I think, has a better rate of solving crimes than the police.
• Tourism is a key to this region's prosperity as Waco has one of the highest hotel occupancy rates in

Keywords: 1184, house, all

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• It's worth noting that Native American veterans have served in the military at higher rates than any
• In fact, Native Americans serve at a rate of 19% per capita compared to the national average of 14% for
• 00:01:47.840> military<00:01:48.360> at<00:01:48.600> higher<00:01:48.880> rates
• group in fact Native Americans serve at group in fact Native Americans serve at a<00:01:55.680> rate
• of 19% per capita compared to the a rate of 19% per capita compared to the National<00:02:00.039>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

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• address root causes of some of the issues that we continue to have, specifically focusing on homicide rates
• , mental health, arrest rates, violence, and those types of things.
• The expulsion rate for young children in child care is three times higher than in the K-12 system, and
• The expulsion rate for young children in child care is three times higher than in the K-12 system, and
• for the families it's serving, particularly the children who, as I mentioned before, experience high rates

Summary: The Senate Committee on Education Pre-K through 12 considered a series of education-related bills, many of them after adopting amendments. SB 1122 on Florida Virtual School was amended to remove virtual preschool provisions and then passed favorably, with the sponsor describing it as a clarifying bill about FLVS operations, revenue sources, reporting, and student access. SB 1374, on school district reporting requirements for educator arrests and misconduct, was also approved; it requires faster district action and reporting when instructional personnel are arrested for certain offenses and clarifies that self-reports are not admissions of guilt. SB 1402, on student enrollment and dropout retrieval programs, was amended and passed to broaden eligibility for dropout retrieval services and allow certain virtual providers to receive a school improvement rating instead of a school grade. SB 364, moving the Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys from the Department of Education to Florida Memorial University, was amended and reported favorably. The committee also approved SB 772 on diabetes management in schools, which would allow districts to obtain and store glucagon for emergency use by trained school staff or nurses, with liability protections included. SB 1102 on school readiness programs for children with disabilities passed after testimony that it would expand identification of disabilities, require more training for providers, and direct special-needs funding toward better-supported classrooms. SB 1382, also on school readiness, was approved and would change the definition of economically disadvantaged families, adjust priority tiers, and update the waitlist and forecasting process for child care assistance. The most debated measure was SB 140, which was substantially rewritten by delete-all amendment to create “job engine charter schools,” allow municipalities to seek charter schools aimed at attracting industry, authorize parent votes for conversion of existing public schools, and set requirements for district five-year property plans and surplus property use, including affordable housing and charter school purposes. Supporters argued it could aid economic development and repurpose underused property, while opponents raised concerns about privatization, reduced stakeholder input, unclear voting procedures, and loss of district control over property. Despite extensive debate and multiple public speakers against it, the bill passed favorably. The committee also approved SB 430, a merged AED and cardiac emergency response bill requiring public schools to have a cardiac emergency plan, trained staff, and an operational AED in a publicized location, with reimbursement provisions and liability protections; it passed after supporters emphasized life-saving benefits and manageable training costs. The committee adjourned after recording additional members’ votes on selected bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• fall on the loads versus just as the utilities, or they would be just wrapped up in the utilities' rate
• The first is on the issue of the minimum transmission rate.
• Stakeholders and increasing the utilization rate of all infrastructure to ensure that we're not rate-based
• done without, I think, significant rate cases or having to redo all that.
• That's the fairest way to do any kind of rate making in a regulated enterprise.

Bills: SB 6, SB6, SB504, SB765, SB815, SB929

Keywords: hemp, consumable hemp, hemp-derived cannabinoids, CBD, cannabidiol, CBG, cannabigerol, delta-8, delta-9, intoxicating hemp, hemp gummies, hemp vape, edibles, cannabinoid regulation, hemp licensing, retailer registration, product registration, QR code labeling, child-resistant packaging, minor access

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• So I think it's mostly a scale problem, just our rate of growth.
• Just our rate of growth. We're not keeping up with the issues. Thank you. And we are aging.
• So I would love to hear some amazing success rates from clinical trials that we’ve done here in Florida
• So there's something called indirect cost rates that the executive order is suggesting... ...to reduce
• And what is the rate is around 140 to 150,000 patients are diagnosed, have cancer in the state right

Summary: The Health Care Budget Subcommittee held a panel discussion on Florida’s cancer research and funding programs, including the Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program, the Florida Cancer Innovation Fund, the James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program, the Bankhead-Coley Research Program, and Live Like Bella. Dr. Ladapo and leaders from Moffitt, Sylvester/University of Miami, UF Health, and Mayo Clinic described how state funding has helped Florida’s four NCI-designated cancer centers expand research, recruit faculty, increase clinical trials, and build collaborations. They emphasized that the programs are intended to improve cancer care statewide, support innovation, and encourage more institutions to pursue NCI designation. The Governor’s budget recommendation was noted as including additional funding, and members asked about the cost and requirements of becoming NCI-designated and eventually comprehensive. Panelists said NCI designation requires major infrastructure, compliance, research, and training investments, with de novo development estimated at about $1 billion. They described Florida’s collaborative model as unusual nationally, with annual symposia, shared pilot funding, and joint projects across the four centers. Members also asked about rural access, home-based care, and recruitment/retention. Mayo described its “Cancer Care Beyond Walls” home-treatment model and said it could expand to rural counties within months; Moffitt and UF discussed mobile screening, satellite sites, and affiliations with local hospitals and practices. Several members raised concerns about workforce shortages, licensure delays, and the need to reach underserved areas. The discussion also covered outcomes, data reporting, and the broader economic impact of the cancer centers. Panelists cited growth in jobs, federal research funding, and clinical trial enrollment, and highlighted advances in immunotherapy, CAR-T, TIL therapy, carbon ion therapy, AI-driven screening, and the firefighter cancer initiative. They said the Florida Cancer Data System is being expanded to track recurrence and quality-of-life measures. Members also asked about philanthropy, medical tourism, and federal funding risks, including possible indirect cost reductions that could affect research budgets. The meeting ended with general support for continued investment, while some members noted an ongoing policy debate over whether future cancer research dollars should be concentrated in the four NCI centers or spread more broadly across the state.

Transcript Highlights:

• There was a state agency that had set rates that were higher, sometimes as high as twice as much as the
• And so they were setting their prices to that higher hauling rate.
• And so we were faced with that decision, to raise the rates up or face that scarce resource, which is
• So we decided to raise our rates in order to ensure that we would have the resources that we needed.
• Eric Olson: But we are also experiencing the fourth-highest rate in the nation for sea level rise, in

Transcript Highlights:

• with facilities to evaluate care standards, particularly by supporting remediation plans for lower-rated
• homes and ensuring families receive clear information about the quality ratings when making placement
• Louisiana Department of Health and Louisiana commercial health insurance payors to increase reimbursement rates
• Louisiana Department of Health and Louisiana Commercial Health Insurance Payors to increase reimbursement rates
• questions, but as I presented last week, it simply urges LDH to revisit the Medicaid reimbursement rates

Bills: HR290, HR298, SB405, SCR61, HR318

Keywords: gender-affirming care, gender affirming therapy, gender-affirming hormone therapy, transgender health, trans youth, LGBTQ, mental health, psychosis, psychiatric conditions, puberty blockers, androgen blockers, cross-sex hormones, estrogen, testosterone, informed consent, screening, monitoring protocols, Louisiana Department of Health, LDH, House Health and Welfare

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• Perhaps the mentee teacher/student—did they increase their rating or performance?
•   109 PERHAPS THE MENTEE TEACHER STUDENT DID  THEY INCREASE THEIR RATING OR PERFORMANCE?
• I could go on, but higher retention rates is our main focus right now.
• I could go on, but higher retention rates is our main focus right now.
• LIMITED PRIVACY RATE OF STAFF CANNOT   302 OVERRIDE SAFETY CONCERNS FOR THE STUDENTS 

Summary: The Pre-K-12 Budget Subcommittee met with a quorum and considered three bills. HB 157, School Teacher Training and Mentoring Program, would create a Department of Education program allowing school districts and charter schools to place current or retired high-performing teachers in D- or F-rated schools as mentors, with a proposed $3,000 stipend per mentor per mentee. Members questioned the funding source and contract-time implications; the sponsor said the program would use previously decategorized education funds and that mentoring could be done within existing planning, before-school, after-school, or weekend time. An amendment clarifying that the bill would use a contract template rather than a DOE contract was adopted, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee then heard CS/HB 859, Exceptional Students and Video Cameras in Public Schools, which would require school boards to adopt policies for video cameras in self-contained ESE classrooms upon a parent request, with redaction of other students from footage. Public testimony strongly supported the bill, including emotional accounts from a parent of a nonverbal adult with autism who described past abuse in a classroom and from the Autism Society of Florida, which argued cameras are a necessary safety measure for vulnerable students and noted other states already allow or require them. Members emphasized student safety and the need to fund the policy, and the bill was reported favorably. Finally, the committee considered HB 561, Educator Certification, which aims to reduce barriers for experienced educators returning to the classroom by expanding temporary certificate eligibility to those with expired Florida certificates, allowing prior subject-area exam results to count for reinstatement, and updating references related to educator professional learning support. The sponsor said the bill preserves standards while making reinstatement more efficient and less costly. There was broad support from members, who noted the value of retaining experienced teachers, and HB 561 was also reported favorably. The committee then adjourned.

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• institution's community investments, and finally, it prohibits covered financial institutions with certain ratings
• The department can also issue a penalty if a financial institution receives a low rating. rating in two
• financial cooperatives, profits go back to the members of the credit unions in terms of better interest rates
• already had the data and they could produce the data that shows that they are investing at a higher rate

Keywords: 988, house, all

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• taxing units in the year following the year in which a disaster occurs to adopt an ad valarum tax rate
• which exceeds the voter approval rate tax rate without holding an election to approve the adopted tax
• rate, making conforming changes refer to the Committee on Ways and Means, HB 1132 by Oliverson relating
• HAR 79 by Raymond, reposing a constitutional amendment limiting the rate and application of state sales

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• taxing units in the year following the year in which a disaster occurs to adopt an ad valerum tax rate
• which exceeds the voter approval rate tax rate.
• Without holding an election to approve the adopted tax rate, making conforming changes, refer to the
• Committee on Ways and Means, H.A.R. 79, by Raymond, proposing a constitutional amendment limiting the rate

Keywords: 1184, house, all

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• And again, I'm no scientist, but they would say that there were high mortality rates when fishing...
• Then, when they released them back into the water, they had a high mortality rate.
• wasn't me personally, but we didn't study recreational fishermen and what if that caused high mortality rates
• that fishing tournaments on Neely Henry, in some ways, were the main reason for the high mortality rates
• , but they... ... for the high mortality rates, but they were the only fish that were studied.

Bills: HB1, HB143, HB1, HB92

Keywords: DUI, driving under the influence, ignition interlock, interlock device, driver license suspension, restricted license, motor vehicle, alcohol offense, first offense, repeat offender, blood alcohol concentration, BAC, license revocation, Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency, ALEA, public safety, traffic safety, chemical dependency, substance abuse, court referral program

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• to discuss a lot of the impacts about labor, congestion, and some of those items, safety and crash rates
• to discuss a lot of the impacts about labor, congestion, and some of those items, safety and crash rates
• to discuss a lot of the impacts about labor, congestion, and some of those items, safety and crash rates
• unreasonable to at least compensate them for the duties and responsibilities of the position at a rate
• unreasonable to at least compensate them for the duties and responsibilities of the position at a rate

Bills: HF3169, HF3749, HF2605, HF3541, HF4102, HF3513, HF268

Keywords: suicide prevention, transportation, mental health, bridge safety, data collection, state law, bridge inspection, active transportation, truck parking, public safety, vehicle registration, fee structure, full-service providers, Capitol security, emergency management, state buildings, law enforcement, Minnesota State Patrol, State Patrol compensation, trooper salary

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• of poverty and the people that uh rate of poverty and the people that uh the<00:31:55.919> parents
• <02:03:28.880> of increased yearly at the at the rate of increased yearly at the at the rate
• They're audited by an experienced nonprofit with a four-star rating from Charity Navigator.
• They're audited by an experienced nonprofit with a four-star rating from Charity Navigator.
• competitive alternative raising the rate competitive alternative raising the rate closer<02:07:36.560

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Education Funding Committee met in executive session on a bill concerning school meal access and reimbursement. The bill would address local school districts’ responsibility to provide meals during school hours, reimburse schools for meals served at no cost, and make an appropriation. The committee first moved to retain the bill, with supporters saying it was complex, had uncertain fiscal impacts, and should be considered alongside other related meals bills. Opponents argued the committee already had enough information, that the bill served a small number of students at relatively low cost, and that delaying action would harm children who need food to learn. The committee also heard from Tim Roar, a Keene school business administrator and co-designer of the bill, who explained that the proposal was intended to be an opt-in program for districts, with rulemaking to set participation requirements. He said the bill was meant to target aid to students between 175% and 200% of poverty, reduce bad meal debt, and avoid spending taxpayer money on families who could afford to pay. He estimated the state cost at about $250,000 in year one, with local taxpayer costs around $8,500 for Keene, and said some districts already have systems for online applications while others do not. Committee members questioned him about meal debt, online application software costs, and how districts handle students who reach debt limits. Roar said districts still feed students who are hungry, but use other resources and family outreach when meal debt is capped, and he argued that parents should be responsible for providing lunch when they can afford it. Other members pushed back, saying they had seen students go hungry and that teachers sometimes pay for lunches themselves. One member noted the bill would increase eligibility, make it easier to apply, strengthen personal responsibility, and was not a mandate. The discussion ended without a recorded final vote in the excerpt, though the retain motion remained the central action under debate.

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• <00:47:43.119> again director to set those rates again director to set those rates again pursuant
• <00:57:01.359> This fees at current rates for 6 months.
• This fees at current rates for 6 months.
• <01:11:01.600> And about a $500,000 per day burn rate.
• And about a $500,000 per day burn rate.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

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• efficient um way of setting wage rates efficient um way of setting wage rates and<00:59:47.480><
• At that rate, if you work 60 hours a week, you would only make $22,000 a year.
• in New Hampshire is 2.6, the unemployment rate in Massachusetts is 4.1, unemployment rate in Maine is
• The unemployment rate in New Hampshire is 2.6, the unemployment rate in Massachusetts is 4.1, unemployment
• rate in Maine is 3.2, and now Vermont unemployment is 2.4.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all