Transcript Highlights:

• an email or any notification<00:21:42.279><c> really</c><00:21:43.000><c> from</c><00:21:43.159><c>
• <00:28:57.240><c> goes</c><00:28:57.480><c> out</c><00:28:57.640><c> to</c> email goes out to email goes
• </c><00:30:37.320><c> a</c> payments but I'm here to just address a payments but I'm here to just address
• </c><00:31:17.919><c> and</c> I think as we've already addressed and I think as we've already addressed
• Where I came from, a small city, we could have the whole list of contractors on an email, send it out

Bills: HF1234 , HF1956 , HF1025 , HF1172 , HF791

Committee: House State Government Finance and Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:02:38.560><c> So</c><00:02:38.800><c> really</c> addressing several of those.
• So really addressing several of those.
• that requirement to emails.
• So, we thought it database of emails.
• Um currently requirement to uh emails.

Committee: Joint Business and Financial Institutions

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm sure you've all had a whole bunch of emails about this bill. Pretty interesting, hasn't it?
• As you can tell from your emails, there's a lot of people that aren't happy about that.
• committee, to hold this subject to call the chair, when this meeting ends and you look at all those emails
• committee, to hold this subject to call the chair, when this meeting ends and you look at all those emails
• There are a number of other concerns that have gotten in emails, but those two could really make a, give

Committee: House Judiciary, Rules and Administration

Transcript Highlights:

• The language also addresses property fraud without unintended consequences that would delay home closings
• addresses and that, if somebody's monkeying with their property, that they'll get a hold of them right
• addresses and that, if somebody's munking with their property, that they'll get a hold of them right
• So we don't just take an email. And there's the misconceptions about our electronic recording.
• So we don't just take an email from somebody and record it.

Committee: House Financial Institutions

Transcript Highlights:

• Second, we are concerned that the costs associated with the bill are not sufficiently addressed.
• I do want to address that when we look at the people who are in a position here, the supervisors are
• system only if their home state did not accept documents by email.
• I don't know. ...email security, it is purely about the individual ballot that we’re protecting.
• Yeah, I think the problem you identified is a real one, and I appreciate you wanting to address it.

Summary: The committee met on June 17, 2026, beginning without a quorum and initially proceeding as a subcommittee. Members heard several Senate bills, with testimony focused mainly on redistricting, Bay Area transit funding, and military/overseas voting access. The chair also announced committee membership changes and that SB 1369 had been pulled by the author. Written testimony was accepted through the committee portal, and public testimony was limited by the chair’s rules. SB 1414 by Senator Reyes would create an independent redistricting commission for San Bernardino County. Supporters, including Inland Empire United, Common Cause, and the League of Women Voters, argued the bill would improve transparency and reduce political influence in map drawing. Opponents, including San Bernardino County and several local government/election groups, said the county’s existing advisory commission already provided substantial public input and raised concerns about cost. The bill was moved do pass as amended and re-referred to Local Government, with one no vote from Assembly Member Lackey; it was later taken off call and passed 6-1. SB 830 by Senator Wiener made technical changes to the administration of the Bay Area regional transit sales tax measure authorized by SB 63, including uniform ballot naming and county-specific ballot arguments. Support came from labor, transit, business, and advocacy groups, who said the bill would help voters understand the measure and protect transit funding. Members emphasized the Bay Area’s transit funding crisis and the need for local action. The bill passed do pass as amended, 5-1, and was later recorded as out 6-0 on call. The committee also approved a consent calendar containing six bills. SB 970 by Senator Cervantes addressed military and overseas voting after the federal discontinuation of the Department of Defense fax service used for ballot return. Supporters, including county election officials and local government organizations, said California needed a secure replacement to avoid disenfranchising service members and overseas voters. The Secretary of State’s office and Verified Voting raised security concerns and suggested a task force or more detailed standards, but the author and supporters argued the bill was urgent and should direct the Secretary of State to develop secure regulations. The bill passed do pass and was re-referred to Military and Veteran Affairs, and the meeting adjourned after all agenda items were completed.

Transcript Highlights:

• Could you, before you leave today, get a hard copy or email us?
• I sent emails, and I got responses stating, "We'll get back to you on" every phone call I made.
• If you call me or email me, I will try my best to get back to you.
• So the bill is trying to address that as well, because it has been written now.
• Let me just address a couple of things that I may have heard moving through here.

Bills: HB154 , HB153 , HB180 , SB70

Committee: House Military and Veterans Affairs

Keywords: veterans affairs, Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs, State Board of Veterans Affairs, commissioner, governor appointment, board advisory, veteran service organizations, veterans homes, veterans cemeteries, veteran service officers, district managers, state veterans home trust fund, veterans benefits, military veterans, disabled veterans, elderly veterans, active-duty service members, state agency reorganization, executive authority, governance reform

Transcript Highlights:

• I think a lot of these things will be addressed, including, like, you know, the simple technology: pick
• I think a lot of these things will be addressed, including, like, you know, the simple technology: pick
• I think a lot of these things will be addressed, including, like, you know, the simple technology: pick
• So instead of emailing to us, you upload, and it's relatively simple but with a lot of benefits.
• So<00:17:57.919><c> instead</c><00:17:58.160><c> of</c><00:17:58.320><c> emailing</c><00:17:58.720><c

Summary: The JLCAR June meeting opened with the pledge, approval of the prior minutes, and adoption of the consent calendar after one Fish and Game item was pulled for separate consideration. The committee then reordered the regular calendar and postponed an HHS item at the agency’s request because work was still ongoing. The committee next considered OPLC item 2547, concerning amendments to licensure and discipline forms for regulated professions. Members raised concerns that the application was still too geared toward health professions and that renewal forms should be shorter, but the agency said it was moving toward a dynamic online form that would collapse irrelevant questions. The committee concluded the issue was more about agency operations than policy and adopted the rule. For DNCR item 2551, on rules for the Adopt-a-Park volunteer program, staff explained the agency had been operating the program under statute but had realized rules were required and had been using DOJ review in the meantime. Committee members noted the agency had not followed the rulemaking requirement but was now correcting it, and the rule was approved. Fish and Game item 2570, on electronic OHRV and snowmobile registration applications, drew discussion over whether the online process should be processed in five days to match mail-in applications or remain at ten days; the agency cited workload and file-transfer delays, and the committee adopted a conditional approval with an oral amendment leaving the ten-day timeframe in place for now. In other business, staff described a planned upgrade to the committee’s agency portal and database workflow, moving from email submissions to an online portal with better form validation and document upload features. Members supported the modernization and approved the manual change, with implementation expected after agency sign-up and training later in the summer.

Transcript Highlights:

• This email had a signature, or, you know what I'm saying, the person's name was written, their address
• This email had a signature, or, you know what I'm saying, the person's name was written, their address
• This email had a signature, or, you know what I'm saying, the person's name was written, their address
• This email had a signature, or, you know what I'm saying, the person's name was written, their address
• This email had a signature, or, you know what I'm saying, the person's name was written, their address

Committee: House Education Policy and Administration

Summary: The committee heard testimony on House Bill 749, which would require high schools to provide at least one hour of instruction on the nature and history of communism. The prime sponsor said the bill was prompted by concerns that students lack basic historical knowledge about communism and its effects, and argued that a short, flexible requirement could be embedded in an existing course without creating a new full class. He described communism as a totalitarian ideology and cited historical examples including the Soviet Union, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Cold War, and current events involving Russia, Ukraine, and Taiwan as reasons students should understand the topic. Members asked whether the subject is already covered in current social studies standards, whether one hour is enough, and whether the bill would apply to public, private, parochial, and charter schools. The sponsor said he did not believe communism is specifically required in current standards, that he would prefer a full course but was proposing a minimal requirement, and that he intended the bill to apply broadly to schools under the Department of Education’s umbrella, though he acknowledged the wording may need clarification for charter schools. He also said the proposal was both reactive and proactive, based on anecdotal concerns and his teaching experience. A second supporter testified that he was born in the Soviet Union and favored the bill, but suggested the instruction should emphasize critical thinking and explain both why communism can appeal to some people and why it can have harmful consequences. No vote or final committee action was taken during the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• We had reached out to the MCO by email through our provider rep.
• We have sent multiple emails.
• </c> information we have sent multiple emails information we have sent multiple emails we<00:26:38.880
• This is something that has needed to be addressed for a long, long time.
• </c> Mr chairman I I did want to address Mr chairman I I did want to address three<00:32:41.399><c> three

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 27, as amended by committee substitute, which would create a Kentucky Parkinson’s disease research registry. The sponsor said the substitute was developed with UK, U of L, the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and Parkinson’s in Motion to better define a movement disorder center, add Parkinson’s experts from both universities to the advisory committee, require automated reporting, and delay implementation until 2027. Testimony emphasized the need to track diagnoses and testing while protecting confidentiality and allowing people to opt out. The committee adopted the substitute and then voted unanimously to pass SB 27 with a favorable expression. The committee then heard Senate Bill 93, dealing with hearing aid coverage for children. A parent described the high cost of hearing aids for her son and the financial burden created by insurance limits, while a pediatric audiologist explained that early identification and treatment improve language outcomes and that families can spend about $30,000 on hearing aids from birth to age 18. The committee substitute removed adults from the bill and added an in-network requirement for pediatric audiologists, along with a replacement interval consistent with Medicaid guidelines and repair/loss coverage provisions. After questions about costs, replacement timing, and insurer practices, the committee voted unanimously to pass SB 93 with a favorable expression. Finally, the committee considered Senate Bill 153, a transparency and due-process bill concerning Medicaid prepayment review. The sponsor and witnesses from Addiction Recovery Care and Frontier Behavioral Health said prepayment reviews can be imposed with little notice or explanation, disrupt cash flow, and burden rural and smaller providers; they argued the bill would require clearer notice, reasons, and timelines without stopping legitimate reviews. Members asked about managed care organizations, contract issues, and whether the bill would conflict with existing agreements, and the sponsor said it would not. After discussion and an explanation of vote from Senator Douglas, the committee voted to pass SB 153 with a favorable expression.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's our email addresses on there as well.
• That's our email addresses on there as well.
• All they have to do is email us.
• And how do we address and balance?
• Speaking of having a clue, I did submit numerous amounts of emails to the email that was provided.

Summary: The committee held its inaugural meeting and heard opening remarks from the chair and vice chair about the committee’s purpose: studying issues affecting women and children in Louisiana, including health, education, economic opportunity, safety, and criminal justice. After roll call, the committee proceeded with informational presentations rather than taking any formal votes. Members emphasized the committee’s role in gathering testimony and identifying policy solutions. The first major presentation came from the Governor’s Office of Human Trafficking Prevention. The director reviewed 2025 data showing 2,963 identified victims, 15,437 service instances, and trafficking reports in 62 of 64 parishes. She explained Louisiana’s coordinated response system, including screening tools, child advocacy center referrals, and the DCFS hotline option for trafficking reports. She also described familial trafficking, new victim outreach and identification tools, and two priority bills: HB 321, which would create immunity from prostitution offenses for child victims under Safe Harbor principles, and SB 83, which would require school board trafficking policies and expand victim advocacy services to labor trafficking victims and survivors up to age 21. Committee members asked about reporting procedures, school use of the tools, service gaps, and whether the data showed increases due to better identification. The committee then heard from the Attorney General’s office on online child exploitation and child sexual abuse material. The presenter said the Louisiana ICAC Task Force received 31,203 tips in 2025, made 545 arrests, identified or rescued more than 80 child victims, and executed over 1,500 search warrants. He described rapid tip-to-arrest responses in recent cases, the expansion of partner agencies statewide, and the creation of an Orleans Metro ICAC task force. Members asked about community presentations, the role of social media in exploitation, the use of geolocation, the prosecution of out-of-state offenders, and the need for more analysts and outreach staff. The discussion also covered sadistic online enticement, sextortion, live-streamed abuse, and the need for parents and schools to monitor children’s online activity. At the end of the meeting, the committee began receiving a legislative auditor’s presentation on the treatment and care of incarcerated women, focusing on jail policies, health care, restraint use, and reentry, but the transcript cuts off before that presentation is completed. No committee votes or formal actions were recorded in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• have received many an email. have received many an email.
• And so I want to spend just a brief moment talking about how we have addressed those cost drivers in
• those cost drivers in the addressed those cost drivers in the legislation<00:17:51.880><c> we</c><00
• I already emailed Charlie.
• I already emailed property at all.

Transcript Highlights:

• Some people are tired of getting the emails, the text, the information.
• Come in, change your address, any sort of touch with the supervisor's office.
• If I have to give them the list of addresses and the names...
• I mean, there's really no reason you need their home address.
• ... ...your address on your driver's license or not.

Committee: Senate Ethics and Elections

Summary: The committee heard a presentation from several county supervisors of elections and the Florida Supervisors of Elections Association on the 2024 election cycle and priorities for the 2025 session. They described very high turnout in the presidential election, major operational planning needs, and the heavy reliance on seasonal workers, list maintenance, ballot-on-demand systems, and secure chain-of-custody procedures. They also discussed the impact of recent legislative changes on voter-roll maintenance, including inactive voter removal, and said Florida’s election administration has improved to what they called a “platinum standard.” The supervisors outlined several legislative requests: allowing more than one non-government “wild card” early voting site to improve access and emergency flexibility; requiring newly naturalized citizens to update driver’s license information so voter records match DHSMV data; exempting home addresses of certain election workers and ballot transporters from public records to improve safety and recruitment; restoring a checkbox on vote-by-mail return envelopes so voters can stay on the vote-by-mail list for the next cycle; aligning base salaries for supervisors, property appraisers, and clerks with other constitutional officers; and reducing ballot length by removing precinct committee races from the ballot. They also said they expect a committee bill to carry some of these proposals. Members questioned the panel about ballot transport security, signature verification, vote-by-mail expiration, public records transparency, and the petition process for constitutional amendments. The supervisors said ballots are transported under detailed county plans with tamper-evident seals, chain-of-custody logs, trained workers, and in some cases two-person transport teams. On petitions, they said the process is labor-intensive and expensive, that fraud has occurred in some cases, and that they favor reforms such as requiring more personal identifying information and having initiative sponsors mail petitions to voters rather than making supervisors handle the mailing. They also said signature mismatches can be cured within 72 hours after Election Day and that voters are notified when possible. After the supervisors’ presentation, the committee also heard brief public testimony from Kathleen Griffiths, who urged adoption of commercial-style risk management standards in election systems and referenced several election-related bills her group supports.

Transcript Highlights:

• He also sent emails from government email addresses under the masthead of Governor Ron DeSantis' Faith
• He also sent emails from government email addresses under the masthead of Governor Ron DeSantis' Faith
• We have an opportunity to address this now.
• The email does have links to resources.
• If 104.31 applied, why was he able to send these emails?

Summary: The Senate convened with an opening prayer by Rabbi Moshe Umatz, the Pledge of Allegiance led by pages, and several introductions and recognitions, including guests from Miami Northwestern Senior High School, Clay County, and a moment of silence for Pope Francis. The chamber then moved to the special order calendar after a motion to reconsider SB 1080, which was temporarily postponed. Several bills were also set aside during the day, including measures on social media use by minors, veterans’ nursing homes, Parkinson’s disease, mental health and substance use disorders, education, educator preparation, and school social workers. The Senate passed a series of bills, often substituting House companions for Senate bills. These included funding for expedited DNA testing grants for local law enforcement (SB 1072/HB 847), additional aggravating factors in capital cases involving religious, school, or government gatherings (SB 984/HB 693), fertility preservation coverage for cancer patients (SB 924/HB 677), commuter rail indemnification for Miami-Dade and Broward counties (SB 916/HB 867), restrictions on disposing of migrant vessels in Florida waters (SB 830), specialty license plates including Miami Northwestern and several colleges and institutions (SB 824), an Alzheimer’s and dementia awareness campaign (SB 398), relocation of the Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys to Florida Memorial University (SB 364), charter school changes allowing parent conversion and municipal job-engine charter schools (SB 140), sex offender registration reporting changes (SB 1654/HB 1351), penalties for assaulting utility workers (SB 1386), juvenile justice revisions and truancy process updates (SB 1344), reporting of student mental health outcomes (SB 1310/HB 969), foster home license transfer simplification (SB 1174/HB 989), water access facility funding and boating industry incentives (SB 1162/HB 735), Florida Virtual School operational changes (SB 1122), school readiness program support for children with disabilities (SB 1102), sexual image offenses involving minors (SB 1180/HB 757), age-related defenses in child sex offense cases (SB 1136/HB 777), tampering with electronic monitoring devices (SB 1054/HB 437), certified recovery residences and local zoning accommodations (SB 954), and the FSU Election Law Center (SB 892). Most of these bills passed with strong bipartisan support, though SB 984 and SB 140 drew some opposition. One of the most extensive debates centered on SB 820, codifying the Office of Faith and Community. Senator Polsky offered an amendment to bar political activity by office staff, citing emails and campaign-related communications tied to Amendment 4; the amendment failed on a 13-23 vote. Senators then debated the bill’s relationship to state election law, free speech, and the role of faith-based outreach. Supporters emphasized the office’s service network and reported benefits to children and families, while some senators raised concerns about interfaith representation and political use of government resources. The bill was then read a third time and the Senate proceeded toward a final vote as the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> and I think this completely addresses and I think this completely addresses that<00:05:08.560><c
• Yes, a really well-organized email campaign is, I think, what has happened here.
• it's kept in local conservation commissions, and I think that's who we heard from in all of those emails
• </c><00:09:01.720><c> that</c> heard from in all of those emails that heard from in all of those emails
• I have seen, email-wise, the same kind of panic from small towns that they think every single lot in

Committee: Senate Commerce

Transcript Highlights:

• But you all should have received the email. Did everybody get the email from me? Okay.
• And then Representative Dobervich also has a study version that she can address in a moment.
• I will point out that if you look at some of the other states in the email that I sent everybody along
• another point that was made, and I did not get any specific concerns, and maybe somebody here can address
• The reason I ask is because you sent it to us by email, so is it online? Can they go into it?

Committee: House Human Services

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and took up the final bill on its agenda, Senate Bill 2370, which had been converted into a 340B drug transparency measure tied to insulin and broader prescription drug pricing issues. Representative Hendrix outlined the latest bill draft, explaining that it would require reporting by covered entities, contract pharmacies, federally qualified health centers, drug manufacturers, pharmacy benefit managers, and health insurers, with confidentiality protections, civil penalties, and staggered effective dates. He also noted unresolved questions about the scope of required reporting, possible overlap with federal reporting, and whether the Insurance Department would need a consultant to analyze the data. Representative Dobervich then proposed an alternative amendment that would replace the bill language with a Legislative Management study on 340B transparency reporting during the 2025-26 interim. Her proposal would remove the detailed reporting mandates and instead direct a study of what information should be collected, how it should be used, who should receive it, staffing or contracted support needs, and stakeholder input from hospitals, pharmacies, FQHCs, rural health, state agencies, insurers, and manufacturers. Members discussed germaneness, the late-stage nature of the changes, and whether the issue had been adequately heard, while the Insurance Department testified that it had not previously studied 340B-specific data but supported transparency and could see value in either a study or reporting approach. The committee first adopted the Hendrix amendment by a vote of 8-5, then voted on a do not pass motion on the amended bill, which passed 7-6. Representative Frelich was selected to carry the bill. The chair then adjourned the committee for the last time and reminded members about the committee dinner.

Transcript Highlights:

• And you guys get a lot of hate emails and stuff from people that just don't understand how this business
• Right, and communicating with calling, emailing, contact forms, and we're still not able to get that
• Now, I brought copies of that email and also my bond for you to have for your records.
• While we're disappointed that you have to say that, we greatly appreciate you addressing it and solving
• I've talked about this for a couple of years now, and maybe this is something we need to address with

Transcript Highlights:

• Testimony can be emailed to committee staff.
• Testimony can be emailed to committee staff, which is listed in the hearing description, or to Chair
• Note that if you have written testimony, you can also submit it via email in addition to your verbal
• I've been looking at this, and it doesn't seem to address refunds.
• Working within the organization to change these abuses and to address them does not work.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery

Summary: The committee held a public hearing on a broad set of mental health, substance use, recovery, and patients’ rights bills. Early testimony focused on H. 2227, which would replace stigmatizing substance use terminology in the General Laws, and H. 3950, which would support parents in recovery involved with DCF by requiring more individualized recovery plans, clearer benchmarks for parenting time, access to recovery coaches or counselors, family counseling after sustained recovery, and staff training on addiction and lived experience. Speakers described the bills as ways to reduce stigma, increase accountability, and improve reunification outcomes for families. A major portion of the hearing centered on S. 1386, which would transfer Bridgewater State Hospital from the Department of Correction to the Department of Mental Health. Advocates, family members, and disability groups testified that Bridgewater functions like a prison rather than a hospital, with excessive restraint, seclusion, involuntary medication, poor conditions, and racial disparities, and argued DMH should oversee a treatment setting. One DMH occupational therapist and MNA member opposed the transfer, saying the real issue is mixing forensic and continuing-care patients and that DMH should instead create designated forensic units under bills H. 228/S. 1408. Committee members asked about Bridgewater’s population, the history of DOC control, capacity, staffing, and how a transfer might be implemented. The committee also heard testimony on modernizing the six fundamental rights for psychiatric inpatients, including expanding communication options, clarifying visitation and advocacy definitions, and improving access to gender-appropriate and culturally relevant items. Another bill, H. 2216, would require stronger oversight before antipsychotic medication is prescribed in nursing homes, prompted by concerns about inappropriate use. Finally, testimony supported H. 2240 and H. 2239 on sober homes, with supporters saying discharge and relocation policies are needed when a resident returns to active use or becomes unsafe, while preserving the recovery environment and resident rights. No votes or formal actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill addresses the challenge in two fiscally, hopefully fiscally prudent ways.
• This bill addresses the challenge in two fiscally, hopefully fiscally prudent ways.
• Addressing the affordable housing crisis is a top priority for counties.
• issues like the bill before you seeks to address.
• And this is the way to file and just sent that by email, sent that by phone.

Bills: HB1717 , HB1859

Committee: House Finance

Keywords: affordable housing, sales tax, housing programs, tax incentives, economic development, religious organizations, development, housing opportunities, land use

Transcript Highlights:

• In particular, this bill seeks to address these concerns by adding the following to the list of land
• Nate, if you're ready, Thank you for granting me the opportunity to address House Bill 2512.
• House Bill 2508 addresses a gap related to homestead exemptions for a surviving spouse.
• Thanks for the opportunity to address the committee.
• So House Bill 1991 addresses this issue by requiring municipalities to publish how these charges are

Bills: HB103

Committee: Senate Local Government

Summary: The Senate Committee on Local Government heard a series of local and special-purpose bills, mostly with brief sponsor explanations and little or no public opposition. Topics included fireworks sales near the Texas-Mexico border for Cinco de Mayo (HB 1629), allowing larger counties to use their own inspectors for county buildings (HB 3234), updating governance and financial rules for the Wood County Central Hospital District (HB 5664), clarifying firefighter collective bargaining and impasse procedures (HB 3171), and exempting certain Fort Worth ETJ properties from release rules to protect infrastructure investments (HB 2512). The committee also heard bills on border subdivision rules in Cameron County (HB 3680), extending a property tax exemption to surviving spouses of certain veterans affected by the PACT Act (HB 2508/HJR 133), drainage district election timing and procedures (HB 5693, HB 2694), utility transparency for municipally owned systems (HB 1991), and management district and hospital district election or appointment changes (HB 5698, HB 2293). Another major bill, HB 1449, would expand a food truck permitting pilot program to counties over one million population; witnesses supported the concept but asked the committee to coordinate it with related fee and standards bills, and the bill was left pending for further work. The committee also heard HB 3732, which would let fire departments obtain extensions to comply with new NFPA protective equipment standards, and HB 5431, which would clarify that mayors and at-large council members do not need new elections after reapportionment; both were left pending after questions about their scope. Several transparency and tax-related bills were also discussed, including HB 103, creating a statewide database of local bond and tax election information, and HB 851, requiring reporting on homestead tax ceiling properties; both drew support and were later voted out. After testimony, the committee reported multiple bills favorably, often unanimously, and recommended many for the local and uncontested calendar. The committee also used procedural swaps to substitute House companions for Senate bills on several measures, then recessed with plans to return later to process additional bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• They were all emailed to you electronically, and I believe you have them in your packet.
• But we have to address those before we can address the behavior.
• I think it needs to be addressed.
• , and it needs to be addressed.
• It was too large to send by email, so we'll have that for you in a little bit.

Summary: The meeting was the third public session of the Special Commission on Correctional Consolidation and Collaboration. Members introduced themselves, and the commission approved the prior meeting minutes. The main presentation came from the Massachusetts Sheriffs’ Association, led by several sheriffs, who described the role of sheriffs’ offices as independently elected county institutions that operate jails and houses of correction, regional lockups, civil process, 911 communications in some counties, school resource officers, and investigative units. They emphasized that most of their population is pretrial, that admissions and releases are far higher than the Department of Correction’s, and that their facilities now house more people overall than DOC despite having a smaller budget. The sheriffs argued that their work has shifted toward rehabilitation, reentry, and public health, highlighting extensive programming in mental health, substance use treatment, medication-assisted treatment, education, vocational training, and gender-specific, trauma-informed services. They said standardized risk/needs assessments and better funding would help make services more consistent across counties. They also described specialized units and models such as regional evaluation and stabilization units, older-adult housing, emerging adult and gang-intervention programs, and reentry centers that connect people to housing, employment, family support, and community services. Several examples were cited, including Suffolk’s Project Evolve, Middlesex’s older-adult unit, Hampden’s MAGIC program, Worcester’s STOP program, and county reentry centers across the state. A major theme was that these programs are expensive but, in the sheriffs’ view, reduce recidivism and improve safety by stabilizing people before release and supporting them afterward. They pointed to COVID-19 as a period when sheriffs adapted facilities for quarantine and medical care, and said they continue to work with public health partners. They also stressed that their facilities are heavily audited by state and federal agencies and that maintaining humane, safe conditions requires significant staffing and operating costs. Commission members responded favorably at points, noting the importance of the turnover in sheriff populations and the need to understand the different correctional mission compared with DOC. The meeting ended with discussion of future commission dates and a note that the presentation materials would be shared electronically.