Transcript Highlights:

• It provides the Department of Water Resources with operational flexibility to achieve 100% clean energy
• Safe and reliable operation of our grid depends on it.
• I'm Sylvia Aguilar, the Programs and Operations Manager for the Casita Coalition.
• This is good for our economy, good for the environment, and good for public health.
• This is good for our economy, good for the environment, and good for public health.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Madam Chair and members, by way of background, the state of Arizona actually operated in a mandatory
• Members, there is a committee to include tribal organizations to the list of travel operators.
• Members, there is a committee to include tribal organizations to a list of travel operators.
• care are not separately eligible for a subsidy for a different health insurance plan.
• I just appreciate and honor what they had to sit there and endure and hear, and all the untruths that

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The committee worked through a very long minority caucus calendar covering a wide range of bills, with many items being described and then either left on consent, pulled from consent, or noted for votes. Topics included bullion and state depository proposals, a produce incentive appropriation, a biennial budget change, veterans services funding, driver licensing and traffic enforcement measures, procurement and public records changes, school board and school facilities rules, SNAP work requirements and verification, child welfare and juvenile justice provisions, housing and homelessness measures, energy and fuel policy, election administration, and several tax, commerce, and licensing bills. Members repeatedly raised concerns about constitutionality, federal preemption, duplication of existing law, and whether some measures were policy priorities that had been vetoed in prior sessions and were returning unchanged. Several bills drew extended debate. Members objected to English-proficiency requirements for commercial drivers and motor carriers, arguing federal law and the supremacy clause would bar them. Earned wage access regulation prompted strong opposition over consumer harm, overdraft cycles, and high effective APRs. School-related bills were criticized for overregulating public schools while not imposing similar requirements on ESA/private-school programs, especially on fingerprint clearance and reporting. SNAP-related bills were also opposed as setting unrealistic mandates and repeating vetoed proposals. Other contested measures included a drag-show criminalization bill, a bill restricting photo enforcement, a bill limiting local regulation of unmanned aircraft, and a bill conforming Arizona tax law to federal changes, which members said would benefit wealthy taxpayers and corporations without a clear funding source. The committee also heard a number of supportive or less controversial measures, including bills on veterans awareness, dementia care telemonitoring, Braille transcription funding, CPA licensure pathways, cash acceptance by retailers, and some child safety and court administration changes. Several bills were pulled from consent for further discussion, while others were noted as having unanimous or near-unanimous votes. The meeting ended with caucus announcements, including an affordability award presentation, an upcoming Latino Caucus discussion on community land trusts, and an invitation to African American Legislative Day activities, followed by adjournment.

Transcript Highlights:

• That is a legacy that will endure far beyond his time here with us on Earth.
• miss seeing her behind the anchor desk, her impact on journalism and the Lynchburg community will endure
• Will endure for years to come. Mr.

Summary: The House convened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, approved the prior journal, and then took up a series of memorial and commending resolutions out of order and in block. Members offered tributes to Colonel James T. O’Kelly for his Marine Corps service and later public service; to Taran Mehta and DeWan Anthony Stiegel, Jr.; to Noreen Torin for her long career in Central Virginia journalism; to Bernard L. Henderson, Jr. for extensive public and civic service; and to Child’s Family Orchards for growing a record-setting peach. Several additional memorial and commending resolutions were adopted in block, including newly added resolutions for Stephanie Daniel Myers and Lynn Kathleen McKay, among others. The chamber then considered the conference report on House Bill 30, the biennial state budget. Speakers praised staff and conferees for their work and noted provisions such as pay raises for teachers and state employees, infrastructure funding, a higher standard deduction, and a utility-related rebate issue. Some members criticized the budget as a large spending increase and argued it did not provide enough tax relief, while others supported it and emphasized keeping commitments to data center tax policy and adding co-ops to rebate efforts. After debate, the House adopted the conference report by a vote of 71 yeas to 22 nays. At the close of business, the House was informed that the calendar was complete, reminded about a constituent relationship management software survey, and then recessed pursuant to House Resolution 2069.

Transcript Highlights:

• health care services that support mental health risks. caregivers receive mental health care services
• We have seen what the brain is doing.
• It means that when we look at areas that we know can affect our health, whether it's mental health or
• physical health, we... ...can affect our health.
• And whether it's mental health or physical health, we have the obligation as legislators to do something

Summary: The Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation heard two bills. AB 796 by Assembly Member Lowenthal proposed a California Social Media Accountability Act that would impose a recovery fee on social media platforms’ advertising revenue and direct the proceeds to a Social Media Safety Trust Fund for education, mental health care, research, and social services related to youth harms from social media. The author and supporters, including a Long Beach Unified School District administrator and a pediatric emergency physician, argued that social media is contributing to youth mental health crises, cyberbullying, self-harm, and related school and health system costs, and that platforms should help pay for mitigation. Opponents, including taxpayer, business, and industry groups, argued the fee would raise costs for businesses and consumers, especially small businesses that rely on targeted digital ads, and warned of likely legal challenges under federal law, including the Internet Tax Freedom Act. Committee members discussed the bill’s legal distinctions from Maryland’s digital advertising tax, the potential pass-through of costs to advertisers, and whether the proposal would meaningfully address youth harms. Several members expressed support for the bill’s goal and concern about social media’s effects on children, while others raised questions about how the revenue would be allocated and whether the tax burden would fall on small businesses. After testimony and debate, AB 796 was held in committee and referred to the suspense file. The committee also took up AB 1265 by Assembly Member Haney, which was already on the suspense file. The chair recommended an aye vote on the bill as amended, with a clarification to reporting requirements, and the committee approved it 5-0, sending it to Appropriations.

Transcript Highlights:

• I guess, having been around nursing operators, operation and owners.
• . operations, for instance, just maintenance operations of the facility itself.
• to operate.
• Yeah, and one of the things I used to operate, I used to operate convenience stores.
• I operated them.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• profile can operate on its own.
• With BWXT, to start operating in 2028.
• What technology needs to be in place to operate them?
• It became operational.
• If I wanted to research and look for actual harm to human health from plants operated in the United States

Summary: The meeting was an extended briefing from Idaho National Laboratory officials on the lab’s mission, its role in nuclear energy research, and the federal push to accelerate advanced reactor deployment. Speakers described INL’s size and capabilities, including test reactors, fuel and materials facilities, cybersecurity and critical infrastructure work, and partnerships with DOE, the NRC, the Department of Defense, and private companies. They emphasized that the lab is supporting both commercial nuclear development and national security work, while also training a large intern workforce. A major theme was the current federal effort to streamline nuclear regulation and speed up licensing and demonstration. The speakers said recent executive orders and DOE/NRC coordination are reducing redundant requirements, shortening environmental review timelines, and aiming for three new nuclear systems to reach criticality by July 4, 2026. They argued that regulatory uncertainty has been a major driver of nuclear cost and that the administration’s actions, along with DOE’s pilot and demonstration programs, are intended to rebuild the domestic supply chain and industrial base. The discussion also focused on advanced reactor types, including small modular reactors, microreactors, molten salt concepts, and liquid-metal designs. Officials said these technologies are being developed for data centers, military bases, remote communities, industrial heat, hydrogen production, and other nontraditional uses. They highlighted several projects and companies, including Oklo, Aalo, Radiant, X-energy, TerraPower, Kairos, and DOE’s MARVEL and Project Pele efforts, and said some reactors are expected to reach criticality or operation in the next few years. Questions from attendees covered safety, public health impacts, materials and heat management, waste or used fuel handling, costs, and whether nuclear could remain competitive against other energy sources; the speakers responded that advanced reactors are designed with passive safety features, that used fuel should be viewed as a resource, and that cost remains highly design- and supply-chain-dependent.

Transcript Highlights:

• You know, we know and the numbers that I I often say are that 80% of brain development happens by age
• say are that the numbers that I I often say are that 80%<00:03:58.720><c> of</c><00:03:58.879><c> brain
• development happens by age 80% of brain development happens by age three,<00:04:00.720><c> 90%</c><00
• of these sort of center-of-life things, these basic things, food, rent, mortgage, child care, uh, health
• </c><00:08:52.720><c> insurance,</c> child care, uh, health insurance, child care, uh, health insurance

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And if ridicule comes their way, let them endure. And when pressure mounts, let them press forward.
• Senate Bills 1253, 1254, 1255, and 1256 will all be referred to the Health and Welfare Committee, and
• the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Secretary of the United States Department of Health

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The Senate convened, completed roll call, prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and approved the journal. Members then moved quickly through the day’s orders, with Senator Den Hartog noting there would be no substantive floor action in the 10th or 13th orders and requesting unanimous consent to advance through several sections of the calendar. In committee and message reports, Senate Joint Resolution 103 was introduced, proposing a constitutional amendment related to state trust lands and sent to Judiciary and Rules for printing. Several bills were reported out of committee: Senate Bill 1239 and Senate Bill 1234 were recommended do pass and sent to second reading, Senate Concurrent Resolution 115 received a do-pass recommendation and was held one legislative day, and the Judiciary and Rules Committee recommended confirmation of Michael Kennedy to the Idaho Judicial Council, also held one legislative day. The Senate also received House-passed measures, including bills on bullying information and professional development, private forest land surcharges, human trafficking authority for the Attorney General, lottery bulk ticket purchases and audits, and two House joint memorials, which were referred to the appropriate committees. During first reading, the Senate introduced Senate Bills 1258, 1259, and 1260. Those measures would authorize distillery licensing and exemptions for distillery personnel, expand juvenile probation officer authority to arrest for certain probation violations, and revise immigration-related provisions under the Immigration Cooperation and Enforcement Act. The chamber also referred the House bills and memorials to committees for further consideration. In miscellaneous business, Senator Harris announced a majority caucus after adjournment, Senator Wintrow welcomed American Heart Association students who had been educating senators about cardiac arrest and defibrillator access, and she also thanked members who attended a lengthy public forum on Medicaid benefits. The Senate then adjourned until 11 a.m. the next day.

Transcript Highlights:

• Those people who have Alzheimer's and those who have other experiences of traumatic brain injury.
• Stigma prevents many first responders from seeking mental health support they need.
• Stigma prevents many first responders from seeking mental health support they need.
• </c> us why funding is needed HHO operates us why funding is needed HHO operates with<00:59:19.359><c
• </c> who do have the mental health who do have the mental health professional<00:59:53.839><c> uh</c>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• She said music is one of the few activities that activates both sides of the brain, which gives it a
• Their brain is triggered in a different way.
• </c> called it supports states to operate called it supports states to operate comprehensive<00:35:27.400
• Next I want to talk about health and development screening.
• Committee and the Health and Human Services Committee.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• An AI companion may not discourage a minor from seeking mental health services or offer mental health
• I believe that data centers that are built and operate in North Dakota...
• It's a complex... ...to build and operate a data center in North Dakota.
• It’s replacing real mental health care.
• I need to figure out how to get lots of us operating in tandem to do this.

Summary: The committee met at Minot State and approved the prior minutes. The main focus of the meeting was a legislative study on artificial intelligence, especially protections for children from AI-generated sexual exploitation and chatbot harms, along with possible statutory responses. Legislative Council staff reviewed North Dakota and federal law on CSAM, deepfakes, obscenity, age verification, and recent federal and state actions. Members discussed whether North Dakota’s 2025 laws on minors and harmful sexual material should be compared with newer court-approved approaches, and staff agreed to circulate additional comparison material before the next meeting. State Superintendent Levi Bachmeier then outlined how AI is affecting K-12 education. He emphasized safety, family partnership, and keeping teachers central, while warning against both doing nothing and overregulating so heavily that students lose access to useful tools. He said digital literacy should be embedded across subjects rather than taught as a standalone AI class, and suggested guardrails such as requiring basic instruction before one-to-one device use, limiting passive use at the elementary level, and giving parents more transparency about device activity. Members asked about balancing local control with state guidance, and Bachmeier said the state should set reasonable guardrails, use performance data to tailor oversight, and draw on higher education, K-12 experts, and private-sector support. Special Agent Hellseth of North Dakota BCI described AI-driven child exploitation cases and said the problem is already happening in the state. He reported 2,698 cyber tips in 2025 and explained that AI is being used to create explicit images from ordinary photos, impersonate children and adults, facilitate extortion and bullying, and accelerate grooming. He said investigators must treat reports as real until proven otherwise, but AI also helps law enforcement analyze large volumes of data and identify synthetic images. He urged stronger company accountability, better reporting and safeguards, more victim services, training, forensic tools, and public education. Members asked about false accusations, compliance, and federal reporting rules, and he said existing federal law requires reporting but does not make companies proactive enough. The committee did not take final legislative action, but members indicated the testimony would inform a comprehensive bill draft for a future meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• body rise above division to find solutions that lift all, and as the day unfolds, may mindfulness endure
• He says they have been learning the roles of the newly re-christened Elections and Government Operations
• and be re-referred to the operations and be re-referred to the committee<00:12:35.079><c> on</c><00:
• </c><00:12:59.199><c> committee</c><00:12:59.600><c> versus</c> government operations committee versus
• government operations committee versus the<00:13:00.040><c> state</c><00:13:00.279><c> government</c

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> not breathing and oxygen to your brain not breathing and oxygen to your brain is<00:21:18.480><c
• </c> advancing compassion and public health. advancing compassion and public health.
• She asked whether, in terms of public health, that would cover local health officials, and whether an
• Though people in a mental health...
• </c> from our federally qualified health from our federally qualified health centers<02:09:51.920><c>

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So if that's a brain injury that occurred, as I read... ...that's a brain injury. Correct.
• I'm the government affairs manager for Beacon Reproductive Health Network.
• Beacon Reproductive Health Network, formerly known as the Missouri Family Health Council, is a steadfast
• champion for accessible health care.
• Missouri Family Health Council is a steadfast champion for accessible health care.

Summary: The committee first met in executive session and took up House Bill 3174 by Representative Justice. Members adopted two committee amendments: one removed the bill’s mapping provisions so that the vendor-list portion could move forward separately, and another required schools to have at least one master key box for emergency responders. The amendments were rolled into a committee substitute, which the committee then voted do pass on a 10-0 roll call. A second executive-session bill was postponed until the following week because of a family emergency involving Representative Williams. The committee then heard Senate Bill 982, a cleanup and reorganization bill dealing with Missouri’s sex offender registry and related registration rules. Senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman said the bill was intended to align the registry statutes with prior changes, clarify tiering and registration requirements, address offenders with ties to Missouri but living elsewhere, and improve information-sharing rules for law enforcement and victims, including notice when a registrant dies or moves. Testimony in support came from the Missouri Alliance for Family Restoration, which said the bill codifies case law and reduces administrative confusion for the Highway Patrol and registrants. No opposition was offered. The committee also heard House Bill 3414, which would create a state offense modeled on a federal online-fraud law to help law enforcement pursue internet-based fraud, including schemes involving credit cards, account numbers, telecommunication identifiers, and similar access devices. The sponsor and a law-enforcement witness said the bill would give investigators another tool against increasingly common fraud, including elder fraud and VoIP-based schemes; a Maverick convenience stores representative also supported it as a response to changing technology. No opposition was presented. Finally, the committee heard House Bills 2628 and 3460, the CARE Act, which would require hospitals and health facilities treating sexual-assault survivors to inform patients about emergency contraception, provide it if requested, test and treat for sexually transmitted infections, and seek reimbursement through the Department of Public Safety. Sponsor Jacqueline Zimmerman said the bill is meant to reduce trauma and prevent pregnancies resulting from rape, and witnesses from sexual-assault nursing, reproductive-health, anti-poverty, medical, and nursing organizations supported it as a way to standardize care, especially in rural areas. Several members raised questions about whether the bill would require abortion-inducing drugs, whether hospitals could opt out on conscientious grounds, and how reimbursement would work; the sponsor said she intended to add language excluding abortion-inducing medications and that the current DPS forensic-exam payment structure would not change. No votes were taken on the later bills in the portion of the transcript provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's a little over 1,800 licensed providers, and they are going to be looking primarily at health
• We're looking primarily at health and safety when our new licensing standards come out.
• So market rate survey Market rate survey looks at an overall picture of the health and expense of child
• we truly care about improving the learning that you know zero to three years old that's when your brain
• The other amount there is operational and some grants for professional development and support.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Our founders demonstrated the world's first quantum computing operation back in 1995.
• So IonQ, do you have operations on the ground here already?
• I mean, you obviously have a lot of brains.
• My brain is getting overloaded at this point. So, yeah. Okay. Appreciate it.
• My brain is getting overloaded at this point. So, yeah. Okay. Build up.

Bills: SB145, SB143

Keywords: auditing, financial reporting, state auditor, public agencies, capital outlay, compliance, federal audits, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture, fee update, regulatory fees, egg inspection, egg grading, egg dealer, pesticide control, pesticide registration, pesticide applicator, pest management consultant, plant protection, nursery license

Transcript Highlights:

• of health care.
• of health care.
• </c> strong health care and public health strong health care and public health policies.<02:24:49.439
• public health decisions in major health public health decisions in their<02:35:30.399><c> hands</c><
• health agency. And I appreciate that um health agency.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And where my brain is going, you know, are obviously, are all...
• You know, I think we've talked a lot about health care as well.
• I think it was Health and Human Services. And this is a big deal.
• And then there’s going to be a community that’s going to continue to operate the way they’re operating
• But my finance brain, that's where it goes.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the March 4, 2026 minutes, and received a lengthy Department of Public Instruction presentation from Stanley Schauer Jr. on North Dakota student performance data in math and ELA, with comparisons between students with disabilities and students without disabilities. Schauer explained the assessment systems used, the 1% alternate assessment cap for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, the absence of 2019-20 data due to the pandemic, and how state standards are set by North Dakota educators. Members asked about cohort trends, the role of alternate assessments, grade-level patterns, and whether the state should focus more on reducing the novice category than on moving students from approaching to proficient. Schauer also discussed the new NDA Plus assessment, the state’s planned growth model, and the possibility of future breakdowns by disability category or by schools using science-of-math approaches. Special education educators testified that students with disabilities continued to receive services during COVID because of FAPE obligations, which likely helped limit learning loss, and emphasized that IEP teams focus on individual growth rather than only proficiency buckets. Committee members then shifted to special education funding and possible funding models. Brandon Bombach of Grand Forks Public Schools presented on the state aid formula, focusing on the special education weighting factor and arguing that the current formula does not adequately respond to growing student needs because it counts enrollment but does not adjust when the number of students with IEPs rises. He used examples to show that a district can have the same enrollment and receive the same weighting even if the number of students needing services increases. Members discussed whether the formula should be tied more closely to actual need and accountability, and the chair indicated that the committee would continue gathering data and ideas for a later meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• Schools, health care, housing, child care, that's important.
• I'm a health physicist at the Department of Public Health, and I support this bill.
• I work at the Department of Health Care Services.
• Her brain essentially rebooted.
• I work at the Department of Health Care Services.

Summary: The committee heard several bills related to public employment. AB 1601, by Assemblymember Rogers, would give Sonoma County flexibility to work with its retirement board and actuaries on a possible retiree cost-of-living adjustment; supporters said Sonoma is the only 1937 Act county system without an automatic COLA and that retirees have gone since 2008 without an increase, while no opposition testified. The bill passed on a do-pass vote and was placed on the floor. AB 1729, by Assemblymember Lee, would update state telework policy by requiring written telework plans, adding more structure before return-to-office decisions, and restoring public reporting on telework savings. Supporters, including SEIU Local 1000, the Association of California State Supervisors, and many state workers, argued telework improves productivity, reduces emissions and commute costs, and could save the state about $225 million annually; there was no opposition. The committee approved the bill 6-0 and re-referred it to Appropriations. AB 1630, by Assemblymember Colosa, would allow union representatives to invite bargaining-unit members to observe meet-and-confer sessions, including remotely, to increase transparency and engagement. UC and CSU opposed the measure, saying observer rules should be negotiated at the table and warning the bill lacked clear limits on the number of observers and could create logistical and security problems. The bill passed 5-0 with one member not voting and was sent to Appropriations. AB 1750, also by Assemblymember Colosa, would require school employees who exhaust sick leave and are absent due to illness or injury to receive full salary for an additional five months. CTA supported the bill as a needed safety net for teachers and classified staff, while school districts and administrators opposed it over cost, staffing, and student stability concerns, saying it could encourage longer absences and strain already tight budgets. The committee passed the bill 5-0 and sent it to Higher Education. AB 1896, by Assemblymember Gonzalez, would bar people who participated in immigration enforcement from holding California public employment, with supporters framing it as a response to ICE and Border Patrol actions and opponents warning it was overbroad and could exclude otherwise qualified applicants from law enforcement jobs; the bill passed 5-1 and was referred to Public Safety.

Transcript Highlights:

• care, food security, stable housing, as you all know, and even mental health services.
• </c><00:35:52.079><c> within</c><00:35:52.480><c> our</c> America's um operation within our America's
• um operation within our region.<00:35:53.520><c> Um</c><00:35:54.960><c> we</c><00:35:55.119><c> we<
• </c><00:49:09.680><c> In</c><00:49:09.920><c> fact,</c> bucks for brains investments.
• In fact, bucks for brains investments.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The subcommittee met without a quorum and did not approve minutes, but heard testimony on budget line items for Data Seam and Teach for America. Andrew McNeel of Kentucky Free and representatives from the Commonwealth Policy Center argued that both programs rely heavily on recurring taxpayer support and should be re-evaluated. McNeel cited a 2020 Office of Policy and Audit examination of Data Seam, saying the program had received more than $30 million in state support since 2006, including $3.5 million in the current budget, and that the audit raised concerns about administrative overhead, alleged threats to districts, and the use of line-item language to justify sole-source contracting. He recommended suspending Data Seam funding this biennium, directing a new special audit, and requiring reimbursement of audit costs. The witnesses also urged the committee to withhold funding for Teach for America, saying the organization’s materials and history showed a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion that they opposed. They pointed to past statements, leadership titles, and program language as evidence that DEI concepts remained embedded in the organization, and suggested any funding should be redirected directly to school districts instead. Mike Harmon and Richard Nelson echoed those concerns, while also saying long-running programs should be periodically reviewed for efficiency. Teach for America Appalachia representatives then testified in support of the program. Executive director C.D. Morton described the organization as a teacher-preparation and leadership-development program serving rural eastern Kentucky, saying it had recruited and supported more than 325 teachers since 2011, with about 30 current core members in several counties and roughly 2,800 students impacted daily. He said the program helps fill hard-to-staff vacancies, that about 80% of teachers stay for a third year, and that many alumni remain in education. In response to questions from Representative Bojanowski about retention and cost, Morton said more than 60% of alumni are still in education, but he could not give a precise classroom-teacher retention number beyond the program’s broader alumni data.