Transcript Highlights:

• Aloha, good morning, Chair, Vice Chair... also negatively impacted by the policies also negatively impacted
• Let's move on to HB 1179, Rural Emergency Hospitals. Department of Health.
• </c> let's move on to um HB 1179 rural let's move on to um HB 1179 rural emergency<00:58:30.119><c> hospitals
• It's had a significant impact on an entire generation of our kids and young adults.
• </c><02:10:32.079><c> emergency</c> Next bill, HB 1179, rural emergency hospitals.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The joint hearing covered HB 553 on biomarker testing coverage, HB 556 on colorectal cancer screening access, and later HB 712 on 340B drug pricing. For HB 553, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, patient advocates Natalie Heyman and Susan Hirano, a surgical oncologist, and the American Lung Association strongly supported the bill, arguing that biomarker testing should be covered when ordered by a doctor and guided by current evidence. DHS and several insurers offered comments and requested amendments, with DHS saying it appreciated the intent but wanted changes. The committees then voted to pass HB 553 with amendments, including a House draft and a defective date of July 1, 3000; both the House Health and Human Services and Homelessness committees adopted the recommendation unanimously. For HB 556, testimony focused on closing gaps in colorectal cancer screening, especially for uninsured and underinsured patients who can get stool-based screening but then cannot access follow-up colonoscopies. Community Clinic of Maui, ACS CAN, and the American Cancer Society supported the bill, with ACS CAN urging a program similar to the breast and cervical cancer control program and offering amendments. DHS requested that the program and appropriation not conflict with executive budget priorities, and the committees noted technical amendments, a defective date, a blank appropriation amount, and corrections changing Medicare references to Medicaid. HB 556 was also passed with amendments by both committees. The hearing then moved to HB 712 on 340B drug pricing and contract pharmacies. The Department of Health and the Attorney General’s office expressed concern that the bill would require the state to regulate private commercial activity and said the department lacked the expertise and resources to implement it as written, suggesting it might belong in a different statutory section. In contrast, PhRMA opposed the bill, while Hawaii Pacific Health and Hawaii Island Community Health Center supported it, saying 340B savings are important for hospital services and patient access to low-cost medications, especially where manufacturers have restricted shipments to contract pharmacies. No vote on HB 712 was taken in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• for residents and students at federally qualified health centers, community mental health centers, rural
• So this was also Rural emergency hospitals.
• So rural emergency hospitals will provide rural emergency services and other care that do not require
• The agency will designate these rural emergency hospitals if it demonstrates the following The agency
• And with those dollars, in essence, I'm asking how did DOH recruit the new dentist for the rural and

Committee: Senate Health Policy

Summary: The Senate Health Policy Committee received updates from the Agency for Health Care Administration and the Department of Health on implementation of 2024 health care laws. AHCA reviewed progress on workforce and reimbursement measures in Senate Bill 7016 and related bills, including FRAME and TEACH funding, graduate medical education reporting, behavioral health teaching hospitals, acute hospital care at home, advanced birth centers, non-emergent care access plans, and rural emergency hospitals. Agency officials said several programs are already operational or have begun payments, while others are still in rulemaking, federal approval, or report-preparation stages. Senators asked about timing, funding reversion concerns, and whether appropriated dollars would be spent on schedule, especially for behavioral health teaching hospitals and the new birth center category. The Department of Health then reported on practitioner licensure and public health programs. MQA described implementation of the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, the Mobile Act licensure pathway, massage therapy enforcement changes, background screening expansion, liposuction safety requirements, pharmacist HIV post-exposure prophylaxis authority, and chiropractic dry needling. Public health staff updated the committee on FRAME and dental loan repayment, the Sinati screening grant program, the cancer research and innovation changes, the health care innovation council and loan program, the pediatric rare disease grant program, telehealth maternity care expansion, newborn screening for congenital CMV, the sickle cell registry and grants, and the swimming lesson voucher program. Members focused questions on how practitioners were being recruited to underserved areas, the pace of licensure approvals, and whether new programs were on track to use appropriated funds. The committee also heard a lengthy update from the Office of Medical Marijuana Use. The director reported more than 900,000 qualified patients, real-time seed-to-sale tracking now integrated across most dispensaries and labs, and ongoing compliance work on product testing, advertising, diversion, and patient safety. Senators questioned the decline in qualified physicians, how THC potency is labeled and verified, and what the agency can do about diversion to non-patients. The director said the office relies on complaints, inspections, lab audits, and coordination with law enforcement, and that patients can be suspended if violations are confirmed.

Transcript Highlights:

• So I’ll just start by summarizing the economic impacts of the 2024–25 TAP year.
• We're also seeing the impact on the ground in real time.
• We're also seeing the impact on the ground in real time.
• It's not real impact.
• They are there, as often in many rural areas, but even urban areas, as emergency broadcasters.

Summary: The subcommittee heard an informational update from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development on the state’s Jobs First economic development strategy and related budget requests. Go-Biz described its regional planning process, priority sectors such as ag-tech, space defense, life sciences, and semiconductors, and requests including an extension of the CalCompetes tax credit, support for export promotion, additional film commission staff, innovation and emerging technology capacity, and a California brand campaign. Members questioned the campaign’s purpose, with some supporting efforts to counter misinformation about California and others warning it should not obscure regulatory and business-climate concerns. Go-Biz said the campaign would be nationally focused, could include business attraction efforts, and was intended to complement—not replace—policy work on permitting and workforce development. The item was informational only. The committee then heard from the California Office of the Small Business Advocate on the California RISE program, the Performing Arts Equitable Payroll Fund, and the Technical Assistance Program/Capital Infusion Program. CalOSBA reported that California RISE’s first round awarded $16.9 million to 61 employment social enterprises, which collectively increased revenue, secured contracts, and employed thousands of people facing barriers to work; a second round is being launched with a new administrator and expanded services. For the performing arts payroll fund, the office said all 100 awardees had been paid, but demand far exceeded available funding, and the program was oversubscribed within days. California for the Arts testified that the sector remains fragile after COVID and urged statutory changes to simplify eligibility and stretch dollars further. SBDC representatives described TAP/SIP as a statewide network supporting small businesses, capital access, and disaster recovery, emphasizing their role in underserved communities and the leverage of federal matching funds. Committee members focused on whether these programs produce durable outcomes and reach smaller or disadvantaged businesses. Questions centered on long-term job retention in California RISE, outreach to ethnic and community media in the civic media program, and whether TAP/SIP are accessible to entrepreneurs with limited capital or capacity. CalOSBA and its partners said they rely heavily on local community organizations for outreach, provide one-on-one counseling and training, and are working to collect more longitudinal data. The committee also discussed the film and television tax credit program, for which Go-Biz requested funding for three permanent positions and ongoing program support. Film Commission staff said the expanded program is tracking demographic and career-pathway data, with most productions opting into new diversity provisions, and that a formal report to the Legislature is expected in 2027. The item concluded without a vote, as the hearing was for oversight and budget discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• House of Representatives to join me in proclaiming March 10th as Cade's Day, recognizing the lasting impact
• She says this bill should have been on the Rural Health Transformation Fund, as well as the HR1 reforms
• She says that although the state says it provides access to care for low-income, rural, and suburban
• But again, we say we provide access to care for low-income, rural, even suburban constituents, but what
• The biggest impact of this treaty was to end the Long Walk of the Navajo, which claimed the lives of

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I am currently one of the two Rural Frontier Equity Ombudsmen for an MDFA in the Infrastructure Planning
• I don't believe there is a simpler, yet more impactful program we could launch that could more clearly
• Of $5,000 for different professions that weren't brought into the rural health care practitioner tax
• Of health care practitioners in rural communities.
• I just met Jason Quintana and the Rural Frontier Quality Ombudsman, so I will be... Contacting him.

Committee: House House Rural Development, Land Grants And Cultural Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, just quickly I'm going to go over the fiscal impact.
• </c> rural Kentucky, having a parent in jail. rural Kentucky, having a parent in jail.
• </c> funding and how it's impacting funding and how it's impacting Kentuckians.
• provides disproportion impacts upon provides disproportion impacts upon education<01:45:03.720><c> gaps
• gaps, particularly rural and education gaps, particularly rural and black<01:45:05.200><c> students<

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The House Postsecondary Education Committee held its first-ever meeting and first meeting of the session, with Chairman Tipton outlining committee procedures, attendance rules, and the process for submitting committee substitutes. After a roll call confirmed full attendance, the committee heard a presentation from Senator David Givens on the history and purpose of Kentucky’s performance-based funding model for postsecondary education. Givens said the model was created to replace an older “shares” approach that distributed funds based largely on prior-year allocations, and argued the new system better aligns funding with student success and the state’s long-term educational attainment goals. Council for Postsecondary Education President Aaron Thompson and CPE staff then explained the model in more detail. They said the system was designed to address long-standing funding disparities among institutions, reward outcomes such as degrees, credit-hour progression, and completion in high-demand fields, and support the state’s “60 by 30” goal of having 60% of Kentuckians hold a postsecondary credential by 2030. Thompson said Kentucky is now at 56.2% attainment, above the national average, and highlighted gains in graduation and retention rates, lower student borrowing, and improved completion outcomes. He also emphasized that the model is part of a broader strategy that includes affordability, adult learners, low-income students, and wrap-around support services. CPE staff described the work group process that developed and periodically revises the model, noting that the General Assembly created the framework in House Bill 303 and later enacted Senate Bill 153 and Senate Bill 191 to codify changes. They explained that in 2016 the legislature carved out about 5% of institutional budgets, roughly $43 million, to be redistributed through the new model, and that the model has been reviewed every three years with changes made each time. Recent revisions included increasing the student-success weight, adding a premium for low-income students, creating a premium for adult learners, and redefining underrepresented students as first-generation college students. No votes were taken at this meeting, and the committee adjourned after the informational presentation and discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• And whereas he was a strong advocate for rural communities and children and their families, he worked
• It's the long-term negative impact.
• Senate Bill 61, introduced by Senator Compos, an act making an appropriation for rural libraries.
• Senate Bill 61, an act making an appropriation for rural libraries.
• ...renewable energy sources that satisfy the renewable portfolio standard for public utilities and rural

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• All of the above are impacted by that removal. There's an impact to all of us, though.
• And it's going to impact every one of us.
• So now it's impacting Beyond just the immediate person and family that it's impacting.
• It's going to impact all of us.
• As a whole, it really impacts...

Committee: House Federal Funding Stabilization Subcommittee

Transcript Highlights:

• And how did that impact, you know, our ability to work with the public?
• Our internal general counsel and our deputy director discussed how this really impacts us.
• Our belief is that it doesn't impact us.
• I asked her, does this impact us? And she believes... We don't believe it applies to us.
• I asked her, does this impact us, and she believes it does not.

Summary: The Committee on Director Nominations met with four members present and approved the prior minutes without objection. Chair Jay Kaufman outlined the committee’s role in reviewing executive nominations and explained the hearing process for three nominees: Mary Foote for the Office of Economic Opportunity, Debbie Johnston for the Department of Health Services, and Chuck Bassett. Foote did not appear for her hearing, and members discussed her absence and alleged omissions in her disclosure materials, including prior service with Planned Parenthood-related organizations. The committee then moved to reject her nomination, and the motion passed 3-2, recommending that the full Senate reject Mary Foote. Debbie Johnston, nominee to lead the Department of Health Services, appeared and gave an opening statement describing her Arizona background, prior Senate staff work, and more than 20 years with the Arizona Hospital and Health Care Association. She said her priorities at ADHS include rebuilding trust in public health licensing, improving stakeholder engagement, standardizing rulemaking communication, addressing alleged religious discrimination and retaliation concerns in licensing, and using technology and AI to improve efficiency. In questioning, senators pressed her on her management style, conflict-of-interest safeguards given her prior industry role, enforcement priorities, budget pressures, behavioral health and assisted living oversight, and the department’s response to COVID-19. Johnston said she would follow statutes, recuse herself from enforcement matters involving former contacts, and resign if directed to carry out an unlawful policy. She also said the department does not regulate therapy itself, only facilities, and that it would rely on legal counsel regarding the governor’s conversion-therapy executive order and related federal civil-rights allegations. Several senators focused on public health trust and the department’s pandemic response, with Johnston acknowledging concerns about closures, data collection, and communication during COVID-19 while saying she would review past after-action materials and be better prepared in the future. Public testimony from stakeholders in aging services and health care strongly supported her confirmation, praising her accessibility, responsiveness, and collaborative approach. After testimony, the vice chair moved to recommend Johnston’s confirmation to the full Senate. The roll call was underway when the transcript ended, with several members voting aye and one member expressing reservations about her not reviewing the pandemic after-action report before another crisis occurs.

Transcript Highlights:

• Anya Laller, on behalf of the California Coalition for Rural Housing, the California Rural Legal Assistance
• What's especially impactful about SB 1003 is the joint application mechanism.
• We see the symptoms all over: complaints about impact fees and other things, but those impact fees, an
• an impact on the ability to preserve the housing stock.
• There's an economic impact analysis.

Committee: Senate Housing

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And yet they've impacted us in each and individual ways.
• About $30 million to the state was part of the fiscal impact report last session.
• How many docs or people are going to be impacted by this?
• Senator, when we extend the sunset, there is a new fiscal impact.
• There's $30 million and then $20 to the state is the one-year impact.

Summary: The committee’s final day focused first on a historical overview of New Mexico tax packages by Pam Stokes of Legislative Council Services. She described how tax packages have alternated over the decades between tax relief, revenue raising, and tax reform, with examples ranging from the creation of the gross receipts tax in 1966 to major packages in 1981, 1986, 1991, 1994, 2005, 2019, 2022, 2024, and the vetoed 2025 package. Members discussed how tax policy often tracks revenue conditions, how packages can combine increases and decreases, and how local government gross receipts taxes and hold-harmless distributions have affected communities differently. Several members reflected on past packages, especially the 2004 food tax repeal and the 2013 film tax and manufacturing changes, and noted that tax policy can have major economic and political effects even when it is not “sexy” legislation. The committee then heard a proposal to expand the health care practitioner gross receipts tax deduction to include co-insurance, and to extend the sunset date. Sponsor Senator Figueroa said the bill was intended to help recruit and retain medical providers and build on prior deductions for co-pays and deductibles. Testimony explained that co-insurance is the patient’s share after the deductible, that providers currently absorb the gross receipts tax on those payments, and that the proposal would cost about $30 million to the state plus about $20 million to municipalities and counties, with the exact fiscal impact likely to be updated. Members raised concerns about the effect on local governments, whether insurers could be required to reimburse providers, whether the bill would actually attract doctors, and whether better evaluation measures and sunsets should be added. The sponsor said the bill was part of a broader set of efforts to address provider shortages and that the discussion would continue. Representative McQueen then presented a bill to update the Land Conservation Incentives Act. He and conservation partners said the program has protected more than 500,000 acres but has not kept pace with rising land values, especially for irrigated agricultural land in the Middle Rio Grande. The proposal would increase the percentage of conservation value eligible for the credit, raise the per-transaction cap from $250,000 to $2 million, and make the credit refundable rather than only transferable. Testimony emphasized that the program is voluntary, keeps land in private ownership and production, and helps land-rich, cash-poor landowners preserve farmland and water rights. Members asked about average credit amounts, how easements work, whether landowners could effectively buy land and then use the credit, and whether there should be inflation indexing or a statewide cap. The discussion also touched on water rights, fencing, and the role of conservation easements in protecting agricultural land and compact water deliveries. Finally, Senator Sharer previewed his 2% tax proposal with a historical presentation on New Mexico tax law, using props to illustrate the evolution from early territorial tax codes to the modern tax system. He argued that the state’s current tax structure is overly complex and that recent federal changes have disrupted the personal income tax base. The committee did not take any votes on the day’s presentations; the meeting was primarily informational, with members offering feedback and raising policy concerns for future sessions.

Transcript Highlights:

• So the state passed a flat tax because of shared revenue with the cities that would impact the cities
• Like many rural communities, we relied on a USDA rural development grant-loan combination to fund this
• This is a standard requirement for rural communities that depend on federal infrastructure financing.
• And we frankly, rural Arizona does not have that kind of funds sitting in our cash... ...flow.
• Even the state is feeling the impact of population growth and increased service demand in needs.

Bills: HB2780 , HB4029 , HB4030 , HCR2052

Committee: House Ways & Means

Keywords: judicial foreclosure, tax lien, redemption rights, excess proceeds, property auction, income tax, federal tax conformity, revenue analysis, legislative session, tax reporting, municipal fees, county fees, utility rates, moratorium, tax classification, local government, inflation, economic stability, tax increases, cost-of-living protection

Transcript Highlights:

• It's already a problem in rural Kentucky.
• [snorts] It's already a problem in rural<00:35:39.680><c> Kentucky.
• We made it a focus in rural Kentucky.
• There is no fiscal impact expected. And, Mr.
• There is no fiscal impact removed.

Keywords: Convene 00:00:00 Senate Message 00:05:34 Calendar/2nd Readings 00:06:28 Orders of the Day 00:08:10 HB 542 00:08:34 HB 565 00:23:06 HB 611 00:25:32 HB 657 00:28:39 HB 762 00:31:07 HB 108 00:34:54 HB 67 00:39:02 Motions, Petitions, and Communications 00:46:48 Introduction of New Bills and Resolutions 00:58:42 Recess for ConC/Rules Meeting 00:59:12 ConC/Rules Report 01:02:18 Floor Amendments 01:03:42 Adjournment 01:04:02, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We are a regional model, and in our rural programs across the state, it's really hard to get 15 board
• So, I see this as having a real impact on peace of mind in times when people need that.
• Can you give me any insight that those kind of scenarios would be kind of not impacted or not an impact
• or or not an kind of uh not not impacted or or not an impact?
• impact? impact?

Committee: Senate Judiciary

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> costs the counties will directly impact costs the counties will directly impact property<00:13:19.160
• </c> that support both urban and rural that support both urban and rural communi<00:14:29.360><c> and
• School social workers say students in crisis impact everyone in the classroom more and more often.
• But will that impact be positive or negative?
• During the meeting, senators were told the state's workforce is particularly vulnerable to the impacts

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• These impacts are amplified in rural areas where geographic isolation, provider shortages, and limited
• This reduction would not only impact families like mine, but most importantly, it would Impact families
• Families ask themselves, well, this impacts services for my child.
• And our impact has been proven by data.
• And our impact has been proven by data.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It refers to federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics when they change their scope
• not having this complicates matters for the FQHCs and gets in the way of health care service in our rural
• wondering if you could maybe walk us through a little bit why that date, and is this at all tied to the rural
• Senator Shippy, let me answer your second question first, which is no, this has nothing to do with rural
• requesting rate adjustments, how often are they approved, and then the third one: how often are non-rural

Committee: Senate Health and Welfare

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• resources or funding for wellness centers in our rural communities, Mr. Chairman. Mr.
• And because it is still under implementation, will that have an impact?
• Will this decrease have an impact on that? Mr. Chair, thank you. Mr.
• We estimate our administrative impacts.
• measuring the impact of stacking of social benefits.

Bills: HB1

Committee: House House Appropriations & Finance

Keywords: feed bill, legislative appropriations, legislative branch, New Mexico Legislature, general fund, legislative council service, legislative finance committee, legislative education study committee, house chief clerk, senate chief clerk, per diem, mileage, session expenses, interim committees, district staff, capitol complex, capital outlay data system, legislative processing system, redistricting, census redistricting

Transcript Highlights:

• But we also know that that impacts the workforce.
• In the most rural communities, rural or small towns, through the work of Rural Affairs Director Ann Gobe
• The impact of this modernization is measurable.
• These are real jobs with real economic impact.
• These are real jobs with real economic impact.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Ways and Means

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And so, yes, you're going to have a very large user who is in a rural area.
• USDA loans and grants were programs set up a long time ago that at the time made a lot of sense in rural
• USDA loans and grants were programs set up a long time ago that at the time made a lot of sense in rural
• I think you can do some things around it to really impact some of these small communities that just don't
• USDA loans and grants were programs set up a long time ago that at the time made a lot of sense in rural

Committee: House Utilities

Keywords: 959, house, all