Transcript Highlights:

• So, there are professional days.
• But we know the statute does allow some of those to be used for the professional days, just like they
• Is that in part of the instructional days or was that part of the professional day.
• That's the part of the professional days that's built in.
• Professional days are teacher parent conferences, and some of the staff development days they have.

Bills: HB2210, HB2398, HB2959, HB3006, HB3026, HB3151, HB3315, HB3372, HB3467, HB3590, HB4268, HB4359, HB4427

Keywords: youth apprenticeship, career education, workforce development, high school programs, mentorship, vocational training, state oversight, credential of value, education, labor market, government reporting, school abuse reporting, child abuse, neglect, mandatory reporting, student safety, school employee misconduct, administrator reporting, superintendent, law enforcement notification

Transcript Highlights:

• And then the bill inserts the words that follow into law: a professional engineer or an economist.
• professional engineer or an economist. professional engineer or an economist.
• allow the appointment of a professional allow the appointment of a professional engineer<00:22:18.960
• We would expect to see an increase in professional licensing and, therefore, any licensing fees that
• as well as the office of professional as well as the office of professional lensure<00:50:54.800

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• nurses and Health Care Professionals nurses and Health Care Professionals meline meline meline py
• You seemed to focus more on professional development.
• to focus more on professional to focus more on professional development<01:15:14.239> can
• <02:43:20.279> in to me not just as a as a professional in to me not just as a as a professional
• repayment for healthc Care Professionals repayment for healthc Care Professionals i'<02:46:46.640

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committees on Health and Labor heard testimony on HB 1244, a measure relating to labor standards at health care facilities and nursing staff ratios. Committee members opened by explaining hearing procedures, including a suggested two-minute testimony limit and Zoom rules. The bill drew extensive testimony from hospitals, nursing organizations, unions, and individual nurses, with the central debate focusing on whether staffing ratios should be set by statute or left to collective bargaining and unit-level staffing decisions. Opponents included the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, Straub Benioff Medical Center, Hawaii Pacific Health, Kapiolani Medical Center, and Queen’s Health Systems. They argued that fixed ratios are too rigid for the changing conditions of hospital care, could worsen workforce shortages, and should be handled through labor negotiations, staffing committees, and existing agreements. Several also pointed to investments in nursing education, loan repayment, and workforce development as better solutions. Queen’s said it had recently reached an agreement with nurses after more than 40 meetings that included a staffing framework, and Kapiolani and others emphasized the need for flexibility in emergencies and specialty care. Supporters, including the Hawaii State Center for Nursing, Pride at Work Hawaii, the Hawaii Nurses Association/American Nurses Association chapter, Hawaii Nurses Association Local 50, UNAC/UHCP, and individual nurses, said unsafe staffing levels contribute to burnout, turnover, errors, and patient harm. Testifiers described chronic short staffing, emotionally and physically exhausting workloads, and situations in which nurses were responsible for too many patients at once. Supporters argued that safe ratios are necessary to protect both patients and nurses, and that collective bargaining has not been enough to ensure safe conditions statewide, especially in facilities without unions. No vote or final committee action was announced in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• The medical emergency shall mean documentation from a state-licensed medical professional.
• Is that any medical professional in the state of New York?
• "Any state-licensed medical professional.
• The medical emergency shall mean documentation from a state licensed medical professional.
• Is that any medical professional in the state of New York?

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee met under Chair Kevin Parker and considered a series of energy, utility, and clean transportation bills. The committee first advanced a bill by Senator Connery on make-ready electric infrastructure for public-serving EV charging, after members raised concerns that the costs of preparing school bus charging infrastructure could be shifted to ratepayers. The committee then advanced Senator Parker’s pilot program for resilient EV charging microgrids, with discussion focused on using existing NYSERDA resources, the role of batteries, and the bill’s purpose in supporting emergency charging during outages. Another bill on heavy distribution centers and EV charging was also advanced after debate over its application to large warehouse and e-commerce facilities. The committee also considered a bill on carport-mounted solar systems that would limit local zoning restrictions. A motion to substitute in a different bill was ruled improper for lack of notice, and the chair’s ruling was upheld on appeal. Members then advanced a PSC guidebook bill on gas and electric rate-making, and a utility shutoff protection bill for medical emergencies, life support equipment, and elderly, blind, or disabled customers, with questions about age definitions and the scope of medical documentation. The committee also advanced the Home Utility Weatherization Jobs Act, which would create a pilot program for electrification and weatherization in disadvantaged communities, with members discussing whether the program would be available at no cost to building owners and how utilities would access capital. Throughout the meeting, members repeatedly raised concerns about who would pay for the programs, whether ratepayers or taxpayers would bear the costs, and how much local control would remain under the solar siting bill. At the end of the meeting, members briefly discussed a recent NYISO report warning about possible summer reliability issues and urged the committee and the PSC to review it closely. The chair noted the report should be considered alongside other state planning documents, and the meeting then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• comprehensive test and professional comprehensive test and professional licensure<00:32:12.320><
• is recruit 25 plus legal professionals is recruit 25 plus legal professionals either<01:20:00.760
• Minnesota Association of professional Minnesota Association of professional employees<01:29:13.360
• Young people are referred by social workers, therapists, teachers, and other professionals.
• <01:48:25.360> work career year our paid professionals work career year our paid professionals

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• ,<00:20:14.799> mental<00:20:15.120> health professionals, mental health professionals,
• c><00:21:37.600> to mental health professionals licensed to mental health professionals licensed
• We also professionals are critical.
• and technology policy, not professional and technology policy, not professional licensing<00:29:
• And that's what health professional.

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The committee first approved the March 11, 2026 minutes, then heard House File 4048, which would exempt chiropractors from Minnesota’s provider tax if they are no longer eligible to provide chiropractic benefits under Medicaid/MinnesotaCare. Representative Robbins said the bill corrects an unfair situation because chiropractors still pay the tax even though the benefit was eliminated. Testifiers from the Minnesota Chiropractic Association and a longtime chiropractor supported the bill, arguing that most chiropractors are small-business owners and should not pay a tax for services they can no longer provide. Several members said they supported restoring chiropractic coverage instead of changing the tax, and there was discussion about whether the tax applies to all providers and whether it is effectively passed on to patients. The committee adopted a motion to recommend HF 4048 to the Committee on Taxes. The committee then took up House File 3893, as amended, a bill to restrict artificial intelligence from engaging in psychotherapy or counseling with humans. The author and supporters said the bill is intended to prevent AI chatbots from posing as therapists or counseling vulnerable people, citing reports of suicides and other harms linked to chatbot interactions. The A2 amendment was adopted; the author said it reflected stakeholder concerns and added informed-consent language. Testifiers in support, including a psychologist and a suicide-prevention nonprofit leader, urged strong safeguards and said AI should not replace licensed professionals in crisis settings. Other testimony raised concerns about overbreadth and unintended effects. TechNet and a rural mental health provider said the bill should be narrowed so it applies to clinical therapy rather than wellness or educational tools, and should allow supervised AI uses such as transcription and administrative support. Members discussed rural access, existing licensing-board authority, privacy laws, and whether the bill should target AI companies directly rather than licensed clinicians. The transcript ends during continued discussion of HF 3893, with no final committee action shown in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• We're proud to call health care professionals in all areas of the state our alumni.
• We're proud to call health care professionals in all areas of the state our alumni.
• We're proud to call health care professionals in all areas of the state our alumni.
• We're proud to call health care professionals in all areas of the state our alumni.
• We're proud to call health care professionals in all areas of the state our alumni.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I never not a professional game.
• That's professional gambling by definition currently.
• That's professional gambling by 20%.
• that are actually professionally that are actually professionally gambling.<00:23:19.360> Uh<
• Our approach in this one was to prevent professional dealers, because the way poker works in a professional

Bills: SF0044, SF0046

Keywords: gambling, lotteries, raffles, social relationships, charitable gaming, gaming, liquor establishments, skill based amusement games, regulations, age restrictions, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The efforts of municipal conservation professionals are stymied because rodenticides remain legal and
• I'm a professional beekeeper. I've been a professional beekeeper for 10 years.
• Well, I’m with the National Association of Landscape Professionals.
• In fact, when used properly by professional pesticide applicators, they're known to poison non-target
• But the evidence I've gathered tells a different story. by homeowners, not by the professionals.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources held a hybrid hearing on a large slate of bills focused on pesticides, pollinators, rodenticides, mosquito control, invasive species, and local authority over pesticide regulation. Chair Becca Rausch set strict two-minute testimony limits due to the very large number of speakers. Early testimony from Senator Moore and Representative Hawkins strongly supported a bill to restrict second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, citing harms to wildlife, pets, and public health, and noting that California has already adopted a similar model. Testimony also supported a Lowell home rule petition to allow the city to prohibit or restrict these rodenticides, with local officials describing documented raptor poisonings and municipal efforts to phase out use on city property. A major portion of the hearing focused on pollinator protection and neonicotinoid-treated seeds. Witnesses from environmental groups, conservation organizations, academics, and beekeepers argued that neonics harm bees and other beneficial insects, contaminate soil and water, and provide little or no economic benefit in most corn and soybean fields. Several speakers pointed to New York, Vermont, and Quebec as models for restricting treated seeds, and one panel cited research showing only a small percentage of fields benefit economically from the treatments. Support was also voiced for a bill establishing an ecologically based mosquito management program, with advocates criticizing aerial and truck spraying and urging non-chemical, locally tailored approaches. Other testimony supported bills to reform the pesticide board and pesticide regulation process, to give vulnerable municipalities more local control over pesticide use, to protect schoolchildren from pesticides on school grounds, and to respond to invasive species through a centralized state office, coordinator, strategic plan, and trust fund. Many speakers, including representatives from Mass Audubon, MSPCA, the Xerces Society, the Sierra Club, watershed groups, and local wildlife rehabilitators, described impacts on hawks, owls, pets, fish, and broader ecosystems. No votes were taken during the hearing, and committee members generally asked few questions, with the hearing remaining in testimony mode throughout.

Transcript Highlights:

• education professional standards board. education professional standards board.
• So, none of the staffing data was included on their professional staffing data or classified staffing
• <00:58:12.720> Standards the Educational Professional Standards the Educational Professional
• council for the Education Professional council for the Education Professional Standards<00:58:38.000
• Education Professional Standards Board. Education Professional Standards Board.

Keywords: Meeting start 00:00:09 Roll call 00:00:24 Election of Co-Chairs 00:01:11 Office of Education Accountability Annual Report 00:04:41 Office of Education Accountability District Data Profiles, School Year 2024 00:23:50 Update from the Education Professional Standards Board 00:58:19 Adjournment 01:08:00, 958, all

Summary: The subcommittee opened its first meeting with roll call and procedural business, including elections of co-chairs. The House elected Representative Truett as House co-chair, and the Senate elected Senator Denine as Senate co-chair. After the organizational votes, the committee heard the Office of Educational Accountability’s annual report, beginning with Brian Jones and Deborah Nelson describing OEA’s investigations and research divisions and recent staffing turnover. On the investigations side, OEA said it handled complaints only when submitted in writing and generally opened cases only when it had enough facts to evaluate. Jones reported complaint volume declined from 805 in 2023 to 738 in 2024, with 325 in the first half of the current year. He outlined the kinds of matters OEA investigates, including school-based council issues, open meetings, board eligibility, nepotism, conflicts of interest, certification, activity funds, and surplus property, while noting that routine personnel matters, bullying, child interviews, and cases tied to litigation are generally handled locally or referred elsewhere. He also said OEA refers special education, assessment/testing, discrimination, and serious misconduct matters to the appropriate agencies, and that he did not see a need for statutory changes to improve OEA’s work, though he said cases should move more quickly. The research division presentation focused on OEA’s district data profiles and annual research agenda. Nelson explained that OEA reviews KDE-reported data and underlying datasets to verify accuracy, analyze trends, and produce reports for the General Assembly. She highlighted 2024 publications on district governance models and student achievement, and said this year’s agenda includes district data profiles, student discipline analysis, and a review of early childhood regional training centers. She also noted OEA received an NCSL notable document award for its 2023 staffing shortages report, its 10th such award. Sabrina Smith then walked through the district data profiles, which compile demographic, staffing, finance, and performance data for all 171 districts, plus statewide and comparative data. She noted changes in the report format, the continued availability of an online interactive version, and several trends: adjusted average daily attendance declined statewide from 2015 to 2024; the counselor-to-student ratio has improved but has not yet reached the statutory goal of one counselor per 250 students; the share of teachers moving from rank three to rank two has declined; special education identification has risen from 13% to 16%; and starting teacher salaries vary widely by district, with Kentucky’s average starting salary around $40,000 ranking near the bottom compared with surrounding states and the nation. Members asked about the history of the research division and whether the paper copies of the district profiles would continue, and staff said the printed versions would continue unless legislators asked otherwise.

Transcript Highlights:

• A trusted, caring health professional, a person always there to do what was expected of her with grace
• Achieving the rank of Chief Master Sergeant reflects not only as professional excellence, but also the
• These emergency response professionals provide fire protection and emergency medical services to more
• It deals with non-compete agreements for health care professionals. Mr.
• and... ...Number one, it makes communication between the health care professional easier.

Keywords: April 22, 2026 - Reconvened Session, 976, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• include folks such as professional groups<00:24:40.320> will<00:24:40.640> also<00:24:
• who prescribes, dispenses, professional who prescribes, dispenses, or<00:24:55.440> administers
• <00:25:04.000> action<00:25:04.720> constitutes<00:25:05.440> gross professionals
• <00:25:23.919> under for to health care professionals under for to health care professionals
• <00:34:07.760> who to a health care professional who to a health care professional who prescribes

Keywords: 927, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There's also additional roles and responsibilities for the Commission on Professional Standards.
• I know in Section 15.5 there was some conversation there about professional development.
• Superintendent, do you see a significant amount of teacher input into those professional developments
• But there's a statewide professional learning for the transition to the science of reading across the
• Teacher input into those professional developments? Steve Canavero, I certainly hope so.

Keywords: 909, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Professional development, that's a huge thing.
• Ed Fellows is the best professional development program that we have, by far.
• We've also got our, our Decker, our design professional here.
• Your professional development, did you, did you say $1200?
• So if we can provide teachers in the classroom with the professional development, the professional development

Transcript Highlights:

• Literacy and professional development, etc., but it's not reflected in the budget.
• So, we talk a lot about professional development, and it's always Focused on teachers, but very rarely
• Is there a number in Mind where good, what good, what does good professional development for principals
• cost for the state department to own that and really build a bench and grow those professionals into
• That's how we can help reduce class sizes by creating more professional staff that are in Front of kids

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The next two, professional, I'm sorry, school leader and teacher professional development.
• them through the education system and see if they can be teachers and other kinds of educated professionals
• to support the implementation of the new principal and superintendent training, licensure, and professional
• Um, We, we call out House Bill 130 here, or the specific call out of professional work.
• In 2025, you did fund that, you did fund secondary, I'm sorry, math achievement, funding and professional

Transcript Highlights:

• We also continue to face ongoing challenges with employers where nurses and health care professionals
• The nurses who stay in this profession and the health care professionals who stay in their profession
• Michigan nurses and health care professionals are asking for something simple: the freedom to exercise
• We also continue to face ongoing challenges with employers where nurses and health care professionals
• The nurses who stay in this profession and the health care professionals who stay in their profession

Summary: The Senate Committee on Labor met with a quorum, adopted the June 4 minutes, and then took up Senate Bill 948, the Workplace Employees Boundaries Act (WEB Act), after adopting an S-1 substitute by a 4-1 vote. Senator Geis presented the bill as a Michigan “right to disconnect” measure that would generally bar employers from requiring employees to access or respond to work communications outside usual work hours, allow employees to set availability hours, prohibit retaliation, direct LEO to write rules, and provide complaint and enforcement procedures with exceptions for emergencies and existing collective bargaining agreements. In questioning, Senator Albert raised concerns about how the bill would apply in small businesses and practical situations like staffing calls, school notifications, and emergency-like circumstances; Geis said the bill was meant to protect non-work time while preserving emergency carve-outs and informational messages. NFIB’s Amanda Fisher opposed the bill, arguing it was too broad, difficult to define across industries and schedules, potentially duplicative of existing wage-and-hour law, and likely to create confusion and reduce flexibility, especially for small employers. The committee then shifted to testimony on health care workforce and labor disputes. Nurses from Teamsters Local 332 described a 291-day strike at Henry Ford/Genesis over safe staffing, return-to-work terms, and alleged union-busting, saying the hospital’s staffing levels and use of replacement workers threatened patient safety and could displace experienced specialty nurses. Michigan Nurses Association president Aaron McCormick and Marquette RN union president Christina Hanson said Michigan’s problem is not a shortage of licensed nurses but of nurses willing to stay in overworked, hostile workplaces; they cited retaliation, slow grievance/arbitration processes, hospital consolidation, rural OB closures, and unsafe staffing ratios as drivers of burnout and departures. They urged stronger protections and faster dispute resolution, especially given the limited effectiveness of the NLRB and delays in labor processes. Additional testimony came from UAW Local 4911’s Kim Wheeler, who said UMH Sparrow was outsourcing two low-paid support groups—patient transport/housekeeping and food and nutrition—despite their importance to hospital operations and despite a recently ratified contract, and asked for transparency and limits on corporate outsourcing. Don Hill of SEIU Health Care Michigan described chronic understaffing in nursing homes, mandatory overtime, burnout, retaliation fears, and the need for enforceable patient-to-staff ratios and stronger wage support; he also noted that home care workers are negotiating first contracts after restored bargaining rights. The committee took no vote on SB 948 beyond adopting the substitute, heard extensive testimony, and adjourned without further business.

Transcript Highlights:

• Certified nurse midwives, obstetrician-gynecologists, and certified professional midwives are partnering
• gynecologists and certified professional gynecologists and certified professional midwives<00:04
• State support for this initiative is bipartisan in both chambers and also has strong professional and
• Rebecca Poston, certified professional midwife and licensed midwife.
• Rebecca Poston, certified professional midwife and licensed midwife.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And finally, in order to solve this broken system, this is a professional model.
• So this is a professional model, right?
• In all those professional models, they have a players association who...
• at least with professional agencies.
• It regulates the conduct of agents in the professional space.

Summary: The committee held an informational hearing on name, image, and likeness (NIL) and financial literacy for student athletes, with members framing California as a national leader on NIL but emphasizing the need for stronger protections and more consistent education. The chair and witnesses discussed how NIL opportunities now include both third-party endorsement deals and school revenue-sharing arrangements, and how the current landscape varies widely by institution, leaving athletes with a patchwork of rules and support. Several witnesses argued that student athletes, especially younger ones and those from low-income or first-generation backgrounds, are vulnerable to predatory contracts, tax problems, and pressure from family, agents, or lenders. The first panel featured Tyree Dillingham and Brandon Copeland, who called for standardized financial literacy, better guardrails against predatory NIL advances, and a player-led association or similar collective voice for athletes. They described examples of athletes not understanding paychecks, taxes, or contract terms, and warned that some schools and collectives blur the line between education and marketing. Copeland also argued that college athletics now functions like a professional business and that athletes need representation and a standard contract structure to protect them. The second panel focused on lived experience, including testimony from attorney Anthony Coronae and student athlete Mikey Williams. Coronae described reviewing a contract that he said functioned like a predatory loan disguised as marketing support, with the company taking exclusive rights to Williams’ NIL and requiring repayment far beyond the advance. Williams testified that he signed without a lawyer, later lost endorsements, scholarship, and housing stability, and only later learned the contract’s consequences. He said a required financial literacy course at Sacramento State helped him begin to understand budgeting, taxes, and contracts, and he urged the legislature to require legal review or stronger safeguards for athletes. The third panel, from San Diego State University, highlighted a more structured institutional model. Athletic director Brendan Hill described a mandatory four-year life-skills program that includes financial literacy, resume workshops, internships, and branding education, while student athlete Sloan Benchoff said the program helped her manage money and prepare for post-college life. Witnesses agreed that support is uneven across schools, that some agents and lenders are exploiting athletes, and that California should consider standardized financial education and agent regulation while also being careful not to create rules that unintentionally restrict athlete rights. No formal vote or bill action was taken at the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is one of the areas for folks to build up a professional practice there?
• And we could continue our recruitment and expand it to include non-lawyer professionals.
• And those experts have a mental health license or be mental health professionals.
• And those experts have a mental health license or be mental health professionals.
• As a professional, they may know and define what their role is and stay to that role.

Summary: The work session began with a discussion of expanding opportunities in the legal profession, especially in response to shortages of lawyers in rural Washington and in public service roles. Washington State Bar Executive Director Tara Nevitt described a slowly growing but aging attorney population, noted that younger attorneys have declined, and outlined efforts such as supervised practice pathways to bar admission, reduced admission-by-motion experience requirements, expanded law clerk capacity, rural job fairs and grants, and a pilot program allowing innovative legal service delivery models. Members asked about bar passage score changes, loan repayment assistance, and the former Limited License Legal Technician program; Nevitt said the bar is monitoring other states and remains in dialogue with the court about paraprofessional licensing. Law school representatives from UW, Seattle University, and Gonzaga emphasized public service pipelines, financial barriers, and rural legal deserts, citing LRAPs, scholarships, stipends, clinics, and hybrid or regional programs designed to recruit and retain students in Washington. Seattle U highlighted its FlexJD and hybrid hub partnerships in underserved areas, while Gonzaga and UW reported substantial shares of graduates entering public service, though most still cluster in urban regions. The committee also heard from the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and the Office of Public Defense, both of which described severe recruitment and retention problems in rural counties, with vacancies, low applicant pools, and the need for higher salaries, housing help, internships, and loan support. The Office of Public Defense said its internship and fellowship program, created by SB 5780, has already placed interns in rural counties and produced some commitments to return after graduation. The Washington State Bar’s law clerk program was also presented as a pathway that helps people train locally and remain in their communities, including by supporting succession for aging solo practitioners. The committee then shifted to family law and guardianship issues. On Title 26 guardian ad litem practice, presenters from Northwest Justice Project and private family law practice said GALs can play an important role but that training, oversight, and consistency remain major concerns, especially in domestic violence cases. They described problems such as inadequate training, bias, inconsistent recommendations, high fees, and lack of accountability, and suggested stronger, standardized training, more use of mental health professionals for custody evaluations, and better oversight mechanisms. Members asked about county practices, including rotation systems for GAL appointments and whether King County’s family court assessors provide a useful model. The discussion then moved to minor guardianships under the Uniform Guardianship Act. A Superior Court judge said the 2021 changes increased the need for court visitors and appointed counsel, but courts are struggling to find qualified attorneys and visitors, especially in rural areas. A former commissioner said most of the bill under discussion was technical cleanup to align prior amendments, though it would add some fiscal burdens. Administrative Office of the Courts staff reported that the statewide reimbursement program for UGA implementation has repeatedly run out of money earlier each year, with minor guardianship costs making up most of the expense. The Office of Public Guardianship then described rapid growth in demand for adult guardianship and less restrictive alternatives, noting that referrals and caseloads have risen sharply, but that the office is constrained by a shortage of certified professional guardians and low compensation levels. Finally, the committee began an update on Blake implementation from the Office of Civil Legal Aid, which funds civil legal services related to the decision, before the transcript cut off.