Transcript Highlights:

• That changed post-1848 with the United States establishing sovereignty over what's now the United States
• and the state itself.
• It clarifies eligibility for programming not just for state and other state agencies, but also for local
• Studies program.
• I believe that would fit under A5, which is state and federal land stewardship and firewood programs.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's the largest of the four programs within the Office of the State Engineer.
• take for the State of New Mexico to stand up a recovery program.
• We already have the Disaster Assistance Program run at the state level, so those instances and disasters
• That doesn't include the other state agencies coming in to help assist.
• We have some technical assistance programs internally at the MED.

Transcript Highlights:

• Through our technical assistance program, we can only do so much.
• I run the small local public bodies assistance program.
• My assistance program provides direct financial assistance to pay for tier certifications and AUPs conducted
• That's how we differ from how our assistance program worked before.
• We do a lot with the small local public bodies assistance program.

Transcript Highlights:

• CMS allows fully insured large groups to implement these programs, but current state law prohibits us
• Many PBMs, including our own in-state PBM, have these types of programs.
• Current Louisiana law allows only self-funded businesses to use co-pay assistance benefit programs to
• These copay assistance programs actually tend to steer patients to the PBM's own specialty pharmacies
• And it is unfair that that co-pay assistance program, which would be designed to benefit my children,

Summary: The Senate Committee on Insurance met on May 6, 2026, and first reported HB 1241 favorably. That bill, by Chairman Furman, requires insurers to check with DCFS before paying certain insurance settlements to determine whether the recipient owes delinquent child support, and to withhold and remit arrears if found. DCFS explained that Louisiana already has intercepts and other collection tools, but no current mechanism for insurance settlements. Senators raised concerns about notice to obligors and about liability if insurers fail to withhold, but the bill was advanced without objection. The committee then heard HB 870, which would require health insurers and PBMs to cover lower-cost generic or biosimilar drugs when available and to use utilization management no more restrictively on those drugs. Supporters said the bill would improve access and lower patient costs by using wholesale acquisition cost as the comparison point. Opponents, including Louisiana Blue and the AFL-CIO, argued that WAC ignores rebates and net cost, could force plans to cover higher-cost biosimilars first, and could increase premiums and disrupt ERISA and fully insured plan design. The committee adopted a technical amendment set and then a second amendment set that added notice and reporting requirements tied to net cost calculations, and HB 870 was reported favorably as amended. Several other bills were moved with little or no opposition. HB 1176, concerning Medicare Advantage coverage for integrative cancer treatments such as cold cap therapy, cryotherapy, and acupuncture, was amended to change the effective date and then reported favorably. HB 1196, dealing with colorectal cancer screening follow-up colonoscopies, was also amended and reported favorably. HB 1162, a consumer protection bill requiring DOI to verify that a contractor named on a first-party property damage check is licensed in Louisiana, was amended and reported favorably. HB 826, which modernizes insurance referral rules to allow referrals by email or website address, was reported favorably. The committee also heard HB 1151 on insurer investment limits and solvency protections, and HB 1236 on pharmacy reimbursement and copay maximizer programs; both drew substantial testimony and concern, especially over retroactivity, PBM cost allocation, and whether copay maximizers shift costs to patients, but the transcript cuts off before final action on HB 1236.

Transcript Highlights:

• Financial assistance program for nuclear energy related projects.
• Financial assistance program for nuclear energy related projects.
• This identifies the state funding for the SEEK program.
• Page 69, Medicaid state directed payments program.
• <00:51:19.520> program And then child care assistance program And then child care assistance

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The Free Conference Committee on the 2026 General Assembly budget met to reconcile differences between the House and Senate versions of House Bill 500. Leaders opened by thanking the other chamber’s work, asking members to turn microphones on and off to avoid feedback, and stressing the need to clearly note decision points so both chambers record the same actions. Staff then walked through the bill page by page, explaining that the committee was comparing only House and Senate differences, not the governor’s proposed budget. The discussion covered a wide range of appropriations and language items, including next generation non-911 services, school safety reporting tools, restored funding for brain injury, epilepsy, veteran service, homeless veterans, and rocket docket programs, debt service changes, rural infrastructure, disaster aid caps, Attorney General and Medicaid fraud funding, agriculture and county fair grants, auditor and pension-related appropriations, school facilities and SEEK funding, and numerous education programs. Members also discussed charter-related funding such as Star Academy, Dolly Parton Imagination Library, school resource officers, school-based mental health providers, AP/IB exams, Governor’s Scholars and Entrepreneurs, and several pilot or initiative programs in economic development, energy, and labor. Several items were described as technical corrections or restorations of language and funding, while others reflected differences in amounts or how funds would be distributed. There were several questions and comments from members about wording such as “implement and carry out,” the absence of the governor’s budget from the comparison document, and whether SEEK funding should be tied to teacher raises. The chair and other members emphasized that the committee’s role was to reconcile the two chambers’ budgets, not to adopt the governor’s proposal. Members also raised concerns about opioid settlement funds and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library match rate, with one senator urging restoration of the House language. No final vote or formal action was taken in the portion provided; the meeting primarily consisted of explanation, questions, and discussion of proposed budget differences.

Transcript Highlights:

• That’s related to eligibility for medical assistance, related to the child care assistance program.
• Auditor Randall continued: “The child care assistance program is also something that we could look at
• medical assistance fraud prevention? medical assistance fraud prevention?
• When is the last time that the child care assistance program was subject to a financial audit?”
• 24.480> program<00:27:24.960> was child care assistance program was child care assistance

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The Legislative Audit Commission Evaluation Subcommittee met on October 6, 2025, to choose additional program evaluation topics for the Office of the Legislative Auditor. Deputy Legislative Auditor Jody Mson Rodriguez explained that the commission had previously selected seven topics from an initial list of 11, with background papers already prepared on five of those items, and that the subcommittee was now being asked to select five more topics for background papers before narrowing the full set to four recommendations later in the fall or early spring. Members discussed several possible topics, especially emergency medical services, non-emergency medical transportation, MinnesotaCare eligibility, child care assistance, medical assistance fraud prevention, and U.S. Bank Stadium. David Kersner of OLA said emergency medical services and non-emergency medical transportation are distinct programs, and noted the EMS topic was evaluated in 2022 while non-emergency medical transportation had not been reviewed since 2011. Auditor Judy Randall said MinnesotaCare eligibility, child care assistance, and medical assistance fraud prevention are better suited to OLA’s financial audit division or special review unit rather than program evaluation, and that financial audits and special reviews do not require Legislative Audit Commission nomination. On process, Mson Rodriguez said the subcommittee had already met its minimum required selections under the commission’s policy and was free to choose additional topics. The discussion also covered whether to broaden the stadium topic beyond U.S. Bank Stadium; staff said the U.S. Bank financing structure alone would be a major undertaking, but they could help craft a future topic focused on maintenance across multiple facilities. No final vote or motion was taken in the portion of the meeting provided, and the chair indicated the committee would continue nominations and discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• In state preschool and child care, the legislative plan shifts state preschool programs operated by community-based
• , the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, that we have that has been longstanding out there right now, helps
• It's threatening health care access, safety net programs, and... ...to states and local governments.
• We are very appreciative of the allocations to the state LIHTC program and the MHP program.
• The loss of this program comes at a time when food prices remain high and federal food assistance programs

Summary: The Assembly Budget Committee met to consider the 2026 Budget Act, which leaders said was the negotiated compromise with the Senate and was expected to move to the floor that evening. Opening remarks emphasized that the plan balances the budget over two years, reduces the structural deficit, and builds reserves, while also protecting core services in the face of federal cuts. Jason Sisney outlined the legislative budget framework and the likely floor bills, including AB 109, SB 110, SB 122, and SB 125. Department of Finance representative Eric Khali said the administration appreciated the two-year balanced approach and supported the modification in SB 122, while noting the package uses additional revenues and new spending to soften or reject some proposed cuts. Most of the discussion focused on major spending areas. Members and subcommittee chairs highlighted protections and additions for health care and human services, including rejecting the proposed Medi-Cal asset limit change, delaying premium increases, restoring clinic and dental funding, supporting distressed hospitals and county indigent care, and expanding county eligibility staffing to handle H.R. 1-related workload. Education members described record or expanded support for TK-12 schools, child care, special education, community colleges, teacher recruitment, and higher education, including a change to extend Cal Grant eligibility to age 30 for some community college students. Housing and homelessness funding was increased for HAP, multifamily housing, and the low-income housing tax credit, while public safety members pointed to investments in victims’ services, restorative justice, and prison closure savings. Several members also raised concerns or priorities tied to the budget deal. Some praised the package as a moral document that protects vulnerable Californians, immigrant communities, LGBTQ residents, seniors, and people with disabilities. Others noted unresolved issues, including the MCO tax’s impact on districts, the need for more support for local journalism, arts, biotech R&D incentives, transit and GGRF-related concerns, and the need for continued work on Prop. 98 and long-term fiscal resilience. The vice chair cautioned that despite the current progress, the state remains vulnerable to revenue volatility and warned that the budget should build more resilience against a possible downturn. No formal vote was taken in the portion provided, but the committee was preparing the budget package for floor action and final negotiations.

Transcript Highlights:

• program to make childare assistance program to make grants<00:15:00.160> to<00:15:00.320>
• It includes all federal assistance expended by state agencies that are determined to be part of the State
• through state UI programs.
• state<01:12:19.840> UI<01:12:20.320> programs.
• Now there is now as I state UI programs.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So our ask this year is that we would continue the state would continue to fund this program.
• down payment assistance and expanding existing programs.
• are assistance programs instead buyers are assistance programs instead buyers are left<00:46:
• program do um our big state preservation program is<01:39:38.480> uh<01:39:38.639> what
• /c> uh rental assistance in the state as uh rental assistance in the state as well<01:39:59.320> as

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So like the FEMA public assistance program and doing damage inventories, they'll accompany FEMA and the
• Of the public assistance that we receive on a federal disaster at the state level to implement mitigation
• Really what we're trying to do, the post-fire program proposal is intended to establish at the state
• Because typically for State Forestry, you have to have 10 acres or higher to qualify for their program
• It's interesting how I have to talk about forest thinning with State Forestry versus my program, which

Transcript Highlights:

• Our agency is set up to work across the state, and both of these you'll see are statewide programs that
• Our agency is set up to work across the state, and both of these you'll see are statewide programs that
• This is a statutorily mandated program that is administered by BWSR across the state of Minnesota in
• state or other authorities<00:42:58.920> this<00:42:59.160> program<00:42:59.559> is
• <01:08:19.239> that assistance program are they doing that assistance program are they doing

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And so the Keep Arts Fund supports the administration of art grant programs in schools across the state
• state for arts programming.
• We need our local assistance funding through our state arts agency increased.
• As we prepare to launch the first round of the program next month, we are hopeful that state and private
• And I have seen too many state programs, whether it's our ADU grants for $40,000, somebody else gets

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• emergency hospital program, state and federal.
• One of the hospitals actually stated in their plan that they would assist the patient with actually making
• One of the hospitals actually stated in their plan that they would assist the patient with actually making
• the TEACH program, and that pertained to the last two quarters of the state fiscal year.”
• And again, this is just to show the breadth and the reach of the program throughout the state.

Summary: The committee met to receive implementation updates on recently enacted health care laws from AHCA and the Department of Health. AHCA reported on rural emergency hospitals, explaining the new Class 4 hospital designation, rule changes completed June 1, 2025, and that no Florida hospitals have yet converted, though one North Walton/DeFuniak Springs-area hospital has expressed interest. AHCA also reviewed the non-emergent care access plan requirement for hospitals with emergency departments, saying 83 plans had been received since July 1 and 63 approved, with plans emphasizing patient education, referrals to primary care or urgent care, and coordination for Medicaid managed care enrollees through the Florida HIE/ENS system. Members asked about HIE capacity, data collection, and whether the plans would identify shortages or trigger accountability measures; AHCA said it had moved to a new HIE vendor and would continue gathering data. AHCA also updated the committee on the TEACH workforce program, reporting $6.8 million in FY 2024-25 spending across 59 parent organizations and 229 facilities, with more than 1,800 students and nearly 380,000 clinical hours reimbursed, and said a federal 1115 workforce waiver was unlikely to move forward under CMS. On KidCare, AHCA said House Bill 121’s expansion to 300% of the federal poverty level remains blocked by federal litigation and CMS action tied to premium nonpayment rules, and members and public witnesses urged prompt implementation and asked for enrollment/disenrollment data and the rural health transformation funding outlook. Public testimony largely supported the NCAP and TEACH programs and pressed for action on KidCare. Representatives from health centers said NCAP has strengthened hospital-health center relationships and improved care coordination, including reduced recidivism in some hospitals. A Bond Community Health Center physician said TEACH is helping offset the burden of training students and could help address workforce shortages, especially in rural and underserved areas. Advocacy groups urged the committee to push for implementation of the KidCare expansion, citing children in the coverage gap and rising uninsured rates. The Department of Health then presented on several programs from the 2024-25 session. It reported on the Florida Reimbursement Assistance for Medical Education (FRAME) program, including 78 dentists and 15 dental hygienists funded under the dental track and nearly 1,300 medical professionals funded overall, with 123 dental applications and 71 funded dentists in the most recent cycle. DOH also updated the Screening and Services Grant Program, the Health Care Innovation Revolving Loan Program, the statewide telehealth maternity care program, and the swimming lesson voucher program, noting strong participation and outcomes such as reduced ER visits and improved postpartum follow-up in the maternity program. Finally, DOH said implementation of the HIV prevention drug/pharmacist dispensing law is underway, with three certification courses approved and five certifications issued. Members asked about barriers to wider use of HIV prevention drugs, more detailed maternal outcome data, and the dental workforce program report; DOH said more detailed reports would follow.

Transcript Highlights:

• assistance.
• assistance.
• assistance.
• Senator Mann: This bill needs to go to state government because part of the bill is to move the program
• Senator Mann: This bill needs to go to state government because part of the bill is to move the program

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Sean Haskin, Director of State Scholarships and Grant Programs.
• That program is number one in the world, not just in the state—Ringling's motion arts program in Sarasota
• They are definitely eligible for other state scholarship and grant programs.
• So does the state have a comparable program, an equivalent program such as EASE for the state university
• Is like the Florida tuition assistance program, or do we have another program like EASE that you can,

Summary: The Higher Education Budget Subcommittee heard and advanced House Bill 1145, which clarifies that public charter schools may participate in the CAP Grant Fund. The bill’s amendment expanded a separate “money-back guarantee” concept for state colleges, requiring participating institutions to offer six eligible programs and refund tuition if graduates do not find qualifying employment within six months under standardized job-search requirements. Members asked about refund rates, student notification, fiscal impact, and whether the proposal accounted for disability or out-of-state job searches. Public testimony on the amendment and bill was in support from Nathan Hoffman of the Foundation for Florida’s Future, and the committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably as a committee substitute by a 16-1 vote, with Representative Aristide voting no over the charter school issue. The committee then received presentations on the William L. Boyd IV Effective Access to Student Education (EASE) Grant and the private nonprofit college sector. Department of Education staff explained that EASE, created in 1979, provides tuition assistance to eligible full-time undergraduates at participating private institutions, with a 2024-25 maximum award of $3,500 and an additional EASE Plus incentive of up to $850 for students in high-demand fields. The department reviewed the program’s funding history, disbursement process, and accountability metrics, including access, affordability, graduation, retention, and postgraduate employment/continuing education. Members asked about award proration, eligibility for other aid, religious-program restrictions, and why some institutions had low or unavailable graduation-rate data. ICUF President Robert Boyd argued that EASE is a strong return on investment and described ICUF institutions as not-for-profit, four-year schools serving many Pell-eligible, adult, military, and minority students. He said the sector produces a significant share of Florida’s bachelor’s, graduate, nursing, and education degrees, and highlighted ICUF’s dashboard with additional transparency metrics, program earnings data, and net price calculators. Boyd and members discussed graduation and completion rates, NCLEX passage rates, affordability, institutional flexibility, and whether schools with lower graduation rates should be compared differently because of their student populations. The presentations ended with no further business, and the meeting adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• to these programs.
• to these programs.
• But we know that some programs will indeed be forced to close their doors altogether, as Kenosha stated
• But we know that some programs will indeed be forced to close their doors altogether, as Kenosha stated
• United States and our state territories United States and our state territories and<00:18:39.240

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• programs available to them.
• programs available to them.
• Senate Bill 1714 provides that a county's or municipality's local housing assistance plan under the State
• Housing Initiatives Partnership Program must include a strategy for providing program funds to mobile
• highway beautification program.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development met to consider a full agenda of bills, beginning with CS/CS/SB 1662, the Department of Transportation agency bill. Senator Collins presented a strike-all amendment that retained creation of the Florida Transportation Academy, clarified the Florida Transportation Research Institute, restored legislative budget commission review for certain work program amendments, adjusted small-business and supply-chain grant provisions, added airport and seaport accountability measures, and allowed special blanket permits for oversized cranes to travel at night under FDOT safety protocols. The committee adopted the amendment and then reported the bill favorably. The committee also favorably reported SB 574, allowing Florida Purple Heart license plate holders to pass tolls free, and CS/SB 824, creating a specialty plate supporting Florida Highway Patrol troopers and scholarships. The committee then took up CS/SB 324, which creates a revolving low-interest loan program at the Department of Commerce for small businesses harmed by significant public works construction. Senator Smith described a local example involving prolonged sewer work in Orlando that hurt businesses in the Lake Ivanhoe district. Members raised concerns about fiscal impact, eligibility standards, proof of loss, business age, and whether financial records should be protected from public disclosure. The bill was amended to remove a hotline, add a webpage, and refine liability language, and the committee reported it favorably. The committee also favorably reported CS/SB 1714, requiring local housing assistance plans to include support for mobile home owners, including lot-rent assistance; CS/SB 766, revising registration requirements for agents and organizations tied to foreign countries of concern; and CS/SB 1024, creating specialty plates for the U.S. Military Academy and U.S. Naval Academy. Additional measures approved included CS/SB 1246, authorizing a Save Coastal Wildlife specialty plate with proceeds going to the Zoo Miami Foundation; CS/SB 1644, expanding warning light use for volunteer firefighters, medical staff, and organ transport vehicles, with discussion focused on Hatzalah emergency services; SB 1152, increasing the Florida Wildflower specialty plate fee to support conservation, research, and native seed industry development; and CS/SB 532, exempting 100% disabled veterans from tolls. An amendment to SB 532 also added Purple Heart recipients to the toll exemption. Several members requested to be recorded voting in the affirmative on selected tabs, and the committee adjourned after all bills were reported favorably.

Transcript Highlights:

• There are programs in the state of Massachusetts.
• In Amherst, our music programs are very Just because the state won't fund our schools.
• Our food assistance program has two parts.
• Parents like me across the state are not told DMH's residential programs even exist.
• IRTP program for adolescents and the only existing residential program in the state with the capacity

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Ways and Means Committee held its final public hearing on the FY26 state budget, with chairs and members emphasizing that public testimony would help shape the budget and asking speakers to keep remarks brief. Committee leaders introduced members, explained the hearing process, and repeatedly thanked residents, students, and advocates for participating. No votes were taken during the hearing. Testimony focused heavily on education funding and the Chapter 70 formula. Students from Amherst, Northampton, Gateway Regional, Chester Elementary, and other districts described budget-driven cuts to electives, special education supports, paraprofessionals, counselors, transportation, and building maintenance. They urged higher Chapter 70 aid, increased minimum aid, rural school aid, and a reopening or restructuring of the funding formula, arguing that current formulas leave many districts unable to meet student needs and force local layoffs and overrides. Other speakers urged funding or protection for a range of programs and facilities, including the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute for homicide survivor services, the Museum of African American History, the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and CART/interpreter services, the Access to Counsel housing legal aid program, the Department of Mental Health and Pocasset Mental Health Center, and Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children. One speaker opposed offshore wind-related spending and urged a reset of the state’s energy approach, while another advocated ending the aircraft sales tax exemption. Committee members responded sympathetically to many speakers, asked a few follow-up questions, and several expressed support for maintaining or expanding the programs discussed.

Transcript Highlights:

• Our Attorney Consumer Assistance Program was started to provide direct assistance to consumers.
• We get a complaint, our intake slash Attorney Consumer Assistance Program reviews the complaint.
• We get a complaint, our intake slash attorney consumer assistance program, reviews the complaint.
• We've had representatives of other states come to us for information about our programs and our rules
• And they also assist with the admission of lawyers who are members of other states who get admitted to

Summary: The Judiciary Committee met with a quorum present and Senator Thompson excused. The committee first considered Senate Bill 48 by Senator Garcia on judicial sales and procedures. Garcia explained a delete-all amendment that would create clearer statewide procedures for alternative judicial sales, increase transparency, remove bidding credits, extend sale timelines, and add oversight for auctioneers and escrow agents to prevent fraud and collusion. After no questions or opposition, the amendment was adopted, Senator Pasadoma said the rewrite addressed many of his concerns, and the committee then voted CS for SB 48 favorably with unanimous yes votes from members present. The committee then received a presentation from the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office on the effectiveness of Florida’s recent anti-squatting law, House Bill 621/SB 888. Presenters described several cases in which deputies used the new process to remove unlawful occupants, including a false landlord report, a long-term fake lease situation, and a more recent unlawful occupancy case. They said the law has helped protect property owners and potential victims, but suggested technical changes: clearer authorization for deputies to enter and use force if needed, and a fix to the affidavit penalty provision because false statements are currently being charged as false reports rather than perjury under the existing wording. The Florida Bar also presented on its role in regulating lawyers, lawyer advertising, and the unlicensed practice of law. Bar leaders explained that the Bar operates under the Florida Supreme Court’s authority, is funded by member fees, and handles complaints through a multi-step process involving intake, branch offices, grievance committees, referees, and final Supreme Court review. They described advertising review procedures, discipline statistics, consumer assistance, the Clients’ Security Fund, and enforcement against unlicensed practice. Senators asked about the Legislature’s authority over lawyer advertising, the prevalence of legal ads, the role of public members on grievance committees, and how those members are selected and used.

Transcript Highlights:

• MMB provides training and technical assistance for political subdivisions and state agencies to submit
• The program provides financial assistance in the form of grants to either help eliminate the use of R22
• The program<01:15:04.159> provides<01:15:04.719> financial<01:15:05.280> assistance<
• /c><01:15:05.679> in program provides financial assistance in program provides financial assistance
• . program. program.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all