Transcript Highlights:

• :19:03.200><c> so</c><00:19:03.520><c> many</c> authority expired and with so many authority expired
• </c> Trump administration broad new authority Trump administration broad new authority to<00:22:41.280
• </c> and this authority and this authority was<00:34:56.399><c> there</c><00:34:57.680><c> under</c><
• Congress has authorized this kind of SSDI demonstration authority in the past, but only after working
• Congress has authority to do that.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Thursday, July 23, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Senator Kern, will there be questions of the author? Will there be questions of the author?
• Any more questions of the author? More questions of the author.
• Any questions of the author? Any questions of the author?
• Any more questions of the author? More questions of the author?
• Is that what the author said? $10 million.

Bills: SB1936, SB1612, SB1543, SB1260, SB1988, SB1859, SB2041, SB1257

Keywords: forfeiture, criminal offenses, law enforcement, Class D1 offenses, property seizure, SB1612, mandatory reporting, violent injury reporting, gunshot wound, stab wound, poisoning, burn injury, explosive injury, medical reporting, healthcare providers, law enforcement notification, evidence preservation, patient video records, confidentiality waiver, misdemeanor penalty

Summary: The Public Safety Committee took up several criminal justice and public safety measures. Senate Bill 1936, as amended, increased penalties for impersonating law enforcement from a misdemeanor to a felony and expanded seizure provisions; amendments added federal law enforcement agents and state troopers to the covered officers, and the bill passed unanimously. Senate Bill 1612, requested by Tulsa police, would require limited reporting and sharing of certain injury-related information and hospital video/photo evidence with law enforcement to aid violent-crime investigations; members raised HIPAA, scope, and criminalization concerns, but the bill passed 5-2. Senate Bill 1543 would aggregate multiple DUI offenses within one year into a single felony case; after questions about sentencing, municipal charges, and deterrence, it passed 6-2. Senate Bill 1260 would require child sex traffickers and human traffickers to serve 100% of their sentences without parole or earned credits, and it passed 6-2. The committee also considered Senate Bill 1988, which would increase wire-transfer fees on funds sent outside the United States and restore an income-tax credit for Oklahoma filers; members questioned whether it functioned as a tax, its impact on lower-income senders and service members, and its connection to drug trafficking. The bill failed on a 4-4 vote. Senate Bill 1859, creating an OSBI cybercrime and fraud unit with an estimated $3 million fiscal impact, passed unanimously after testimony that cyber and cryptocurrency fraud are growing and often harm elderly victims. Senate Bill 2041 would make a third possession offense for methamphetamine, fentanyl, or cocaine a felony, with supporters saying it would push offenders toward drug court and opponents warning it would increase incarceration; it passed 6-2. Finally, Senate Bill 1257 would classify THC as a Schedule I drug to align with federal law and close trafficking loopholes, and it passed unanimously. Senate Bill 1584 was laid over at the author’s request.

Transcript Highlights:

• We have at least one PAP for every county, and in some counties we have more than one. Mr.
• Chairman, Fremont County has one for the city of Riverton and one for the county itself.
• we have more county and in some counties we have more than<00:02:21.040><c> one.
• Um and and one for the county itself.
• Um this would force some counties.

Bills: SF0032, SF0010, SF0001, HB0001

Keywords: 911 services, emergency response, grant funding, next generation technology, government accountability, public safety, mental health, detention, competency evaluation, treatment, contractual agreements, Wyoming, budget, funding, education, wildfire prevention, healthcare, community colleges, grants, economic development

Transcript Highlights:

• AUTHORIZING THE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT TRUST FUND FOR RESEARCH MONITORING OF FELINE DISEASES AS WELL
• RULE MAKING THE AUTHORITY FOR IMPLEMENTATION. GRANTING TO ENSURE BAN ENFORCEMENT.
• SOLAR WEATHER MODIFICATION HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED UNDER FEDERAL LAW FOR MANY DECADES.
• IN WHICH IT WOULD BE MUNICIPAL OR COUNTY OR COOLER TEMPERATURES ON THE BEACH?
• IN WHICH IT WOULD BE MUNICIPAL OR COUNTY OR STATE TOURISM. WHO IS PAYING?

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• A county and a city within that county may not concurrently impose the tax.
• House Bill 2194 allows a county and a city within that county to impose the sales and use tax at the
• If a city and county both impose the tax, the county must allow a credit against its tax for the full
• It simply clarifies and expands local authority, allowing counties or cities, if they choose, to adopt
• The legislative authority of a county may also impose a special local renewable energy tax if a local

Summary: House Finance met on Friday, January 23rd, and heard three bills. On House Bill 2194, staff explained that the bill would allow a county and a city within that county to both impose the cultural access sales and use tax at the same time, with the county providing a credit for the city tax. Representative Parsley said the change would let more jurisdictions support cultural, arts, science, and school-related programs. Olympia and Thurston County officials testified in support, describing grant funding for cultural organizations, free programming, and school access benefits; a committee member raised a question about how the change could affect county bond obligations. The committee then heard House Bill 2089, which would narrow a B&O tax preference for first mortgage interest by removing the requirement that a financial institution be located in 10 or more states, and direct the resulting revenue to the wildfire response, forest restoration, and community resilience account. Staff said the bill would raise significant revenue and have implementation costs for the Department of Revenue. Representative Scott said the bill was intended to restore wildfire funding and limit the preference to community banks, while opponents from the Washington Bankers Association and Community Bankers of Washington warned the bill could harm community banks and mortgage lending if not drafted carefully. The Department of Natural Resources and a public employee representative supported restoring wildfire preparedness funding. Finally, the committee heard a proposed third substitute for House Bill 1960, which would replace property taxation for new or repowered large renewable energy facilities and battery storage systems with a state and local excise tax structure, while also creating a local investment distribution account and a tribal capacity grant program. Staff and the sponsor described the bill as a way to reduce property tax shifts onto nearby taxpayers and provide more stable, predictable revenue for local governments and tribes. County officials, assessors, treasurers, and some clean energy and conservation groups supported the concept but asked for clearer definitions, payment timing, and rate adjustments; utilities and renewable developers said they supported the goal but opposed the bill as drafted because of concerns about the rates and the treatment of centrally assessed utilities. No votes were taken, and the committee adjourned after closing the hearings on all three bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• We authorize a set of permitted uses for this fund that again, counties can voluntarily, if they choose
• And so all counties have this, and so this is just another tool for counties if they choose to do so.
• their county healthcare assistance funds is meeting a need identified by patients and counties while
• counties?
• My name is Marla Schultz, registered lobbyist for Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority

Transcript Highlights:

• District 3, PA Bosman; Belknap County District 2, Matthew Coker; Hillsborough County District 45, Jack
• County District 23, uh Howard; Hillsborough County District 32, Jim Kofalt; Hillsborough County District
• 1, Sandra Panek; Hillsborough County District 8, Kevin Scully; and Carroll County District 8, Brian
• </c> Scully Carrol County District 8 Brian Scully Carrol County District 8 Brian Taylor<00:12:46.839>
• </c> Hillsboro County Hillsboro County 125,1<00:22:50.080><c> 183</c><00:22:50.640><c> votes</c><00:22

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Advisory boards without decision-making authority may meet fully remotely.
• For places like my county, we need this kind of stuff.
• It restores local control back to counties.
• Amendments in the Senate were technical and added co-authors.
• Senate amendments added Alameda County to the pilot program.

Summary: The Assembly convened, established a quorum, offered prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and then moved through a long floor file with many Senate bills. Early procedural actions included unanimous-consent motions, a successful roll-call to rescind prior action on SB 351, and a 54-vote suspension of Joint Rule 61(a)(3) to allow floor amendments on SBs 80, 351, and 415. The chamber also made several referrals, moved one item to the inactive file, and welcomed new Assembly Member Natasha Johnson and other guests. The bulk of the meeting consisted of concurrence and third-reading votes on a wide range of measures, many of them passing with little or no opposition. Topics included tribal gaming grants (AB 221), State Bar fee and bar exam changes (SB 253), AI guardrails in community colleges (SB 241), consumer arbitration clauses (SB 82), due process for law enforcement in Racial Justice Act cases (SB 734), dental payment fee disclosures (SB 386), HOA balcony inspection reports (SB 410), farmland protection and EIFD rules (SB 5 and SB 516), emergency shelter zoning (SB 340), HIV confidentiality (SB 504), election signature-cure reforms (SB 3), contractor workers’ compensation compliance (SB 291), fire training funding (SB 345), wage theft enforcement (SB 355 and SB 261), food allergen disclosures (SB 68), ride-share insurance coverage (SB 371), housing and disaster recovery measures (SB 233, SB 625, SB 21), midwifery education (SB 520), mobile home insurance access (SB 525), epinephrine in schools (SB 568), health facility emergency licensing (SB 582), hair relaxer enforcement (SB 236), wastewater surveillance (SB 317), and several tax, transportation, and public health bills. A number of bills drew brief policy debate or opposition. SB 388, creating a California Latino Commission, prompted criticism from some members who argued the money should go directly to community needs rather than a new commission; it still passed. SB 50 on digital safety for victims of abuse, SB 20 on silicosis prevention, SB 306 on prior authorization reform, SB 373 on oversight of out-of-state special education placements, and SB 437 on reparations descendant-status verification were among the more substantive and discussed measures. Most bills passed by wide margins, often unanimously, and several urgency or tax-levy measures required 54 votes and were approved. The session ended with continued passage of remaining file items and multiple items retained or passed temporarily for later action.

Transcript Highlights:

• Kennedy Jr., and the FDA for authorizing the emergency measures.
• We're, you know, visiting with county judges, emergency management folks in the counties.
• The FDA would have to grant that authority. You know what? You have.
• As I mentioned earlier, we do have the authority to provide authorization for take, kind of on a premise-specific
• Of course, we have these new drugs that were authorized today.

Keywords: 997, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Louis County. Lady from St. Louis County. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Lady from St. Louis County.
• In our county, we closed everything down. The surrounding counties didn't.
• In our county, we closed our schools, and we kept them closed much longer than surrounding counties,
• Louis County for his fine work on this bill.
• Clair County will record his vote. Has everyone voted?

Summary: The House opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior day’s journal by a 124-1 vote, and numerous introductions of student groups, health professionals, and other guests. Committee reports were then read, including several bills recommended “do pass.” The chamber also heard a personal privilege speech from a St. Louis County member responding to a North St. Louis County school track meet shooting, calling for stronger action on gun access and firearm safety. The main floor work focused heavily on appropriations and capital projects. House Bills 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 were debated and passed, covering reappropriations, maintenance and repair projects, new capital improvements, and remaining ARPA pandemic funds. HB 2017 passed 137-9, HB 2018 passed 127-21, HB 2019 passed 98-48, and HB 2020 passed 127-24. Members emphasized that the bills largely used previously appropriated or federal funds, while some Democrats raised concerns about general revenue spending and one-time infrastructure projects. The House also adopted and finally passed Senate-amended HB 2641 on hemp/cannabis-related regulation, with changes on privacy, worker organization, effective date, and age restrictions; it passed 125-21 on adoption and 126-23 on final passage. HB 2423, dealing with Department of Finance staffing and capacity, passed unanimously after Senate adoption. Other measures passed included HB 1919 on electronic filing parity with IRS rules, HB 1768/2060 on short-term rental property tax classification, HB 1855 adding Alpha-Gal Syndrome to reportable conditions, HB 2355 creating a Food is Medicine pilot option, HB 1717/1643 on psilocybin therapy for veterans and first responders, HB 2372, a broad health care package, HB 2408 on the deaf-blind fund, HB 3000 on auditor/siganture-related procedures, HB 2898 restoring land bank tools, and HB 1740, “Melanie’s Law,” strengthening DWI penalties and ignition interlock requirements. Not all bills advanced: HB 3239, which would have expanded and funded the workforce diploma program through MoCAP, failed 55-95 after criticism that it shifted K-12 formula money and stripped vendor standards. HB 2760, the “Praise Act” on treatment of houses of worship during emergencies, drew extended debate on religious liberty, public health, and consistency in emergency orders; the transcript cuts off before the final vote is shown. Throughout the day, members frequently cited bipartisan support for health, public safety, and administrative bills, while several measures drew sharper partisan or policy disagreements over funding, regulation, and local control.

Transcript Highlights:

• Louis County.
• Louis County.
• Essentially, it was a request of the county that such a thing be authorized.
• Louis County asked for this to be done. The legislature did the authorizing... St.
• The legislature did the authorizing, and then the county approved and created the special school district

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The other is Mary Robertson from Lee County, and also from my home county, J.D.
• Snotty from Winston County.
• 03:40.319><c> County.
• counties.
• </c> counties. Thank you. counties. Thank you.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Like, let's say that the current county inspection is really high quality.
• agreement with the local authority for conducting health inspections.
• That was another complaint, for lack of a better word, from the counties.
• right there in the county.
• to have the county come in and do those inspections and things.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Like, let's say that the current county inspection is really high quality.
• agreement with the local authority for conducting health inspections.
• right there in the county.
• So both entities can work together, like the county and the... Okay. Yes, sir. Thank you.
• to have the county come in and do those inspections and things.

Summary: The Committee on Economic Development met in executive session with a quorum present and took up three bills. House Bill 3262 was moved do pass and approved by a roll call vote of 15 ayes and 0 noes. House Bill 3157 was then considered with a House Committee substitute; the sponsor explained changes intended to clarify mobile food vendor licensing and inspections, including tying the definition of food to existing law, standardizing terminology, requiring one license per vehicle, extending the licensing timeline to 30 days, and preserving local/county inspection roles through collaborative agreements and state reimbursement. Members asked about inspection standards, local control, and concerns raised by counties and Kansas City, and the substitute was adopted before the bill was approved 15 ayes, 0 noes, with 2 present. The committee next took up House Bill 2886 with a House Committee substitute. The sponsor said the substitute aligned broadband speed standards with current technology, adjusted eligibility language for middle-mile and related federal programs, clarified treatment of second-place finishers in auctions, and removed a restriction on other forms of service. After brief questions and comments about stakeholder input, the substitute was adopted and the bill was voted do pass by 17 ayes and 0 noes. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• We expect standard language related to authorization to start work, authorization to pay insurance...
• We expect standard language related to authorization to start work, authorization to pay insurance, Standard
• language related to authorization to start work, authorization to pay insurance companies directly for
• That list included cities and counties, housing authorities, counselors, physical therapists, dentists
• That list included cities and counties and housing authorities and counselors, physical therapists, to

Bills: HB2428, HB2399, HB2087

Keywords: life insurance, policy lapse, policy cancellation, nonpayment of premium, premium grace period, lapse notice, termination notice, third-party notice, third-party designee, beneficiary protection, consumer protection, insurance regulation, insurer notice requirements, policyholder, beneficiary, Washington RCW, insurance code, unintentional lapse, coverage continuation, premium delinquency

Transcript Highlights:

• And the department looks at the county office of education LCAPs and LCAPs for single-district counties
• With 11 rural counties, we have people in every county that are greatly in need.
• county superintendents.
• There are exceptions to that for county offices at CDE for the seven single-district counties, of which
• That oversight task then is delegated for the most part to our county superintendents, to our 58 county

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I believe you're both deputies with the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
• The Harris County Sheriff's Office would appreciate your favorable consideration of this bill.
• It's big business right now in Harris County.
• It's not a drug under emergency use authorization.
• We didn't know that until A drug under emergency use authorization.

Bills: HB18, HB37, HB 116, HB388, HB879, HB913, HB 1151, HB2216, HB2358, HB2809, SB577, SB1590, SB1782, SB1887, SB2744

Keywords: rural health, hospital funding, healthcare access, mental health services, financial stability, perinatal bereavement, healthcare, hospital training, bereavement support, maternal care, fetal demise, stillbirth, neonatal death, parent-child relationship, involuntary termination, family law, child welfare, child protection, HB 388, HB388

Summary: The committee first reopened testimony on House Bill 2216, which would strengthen child welfare requirements by expanding “active efforts” to help families avoid removal and support reunification, while also raising standards related to removals and terminations. Supporters from child welfare and family defense groups said the bill would better protect families and align Texas more closely with ICWA-style principles, but several warned it would require significant new funding, staffing, and community services such as mental health care, housing, child care, and substance use treatment. The committee then left HB 2216 pending. The committee next heard Senate Bill 1782, aimed at boarding and group homes. Senator Miles said the bill closes enforcement gaps left by prior law by requiring retention of background-check records and creating misdemeanor penalties for failing to conduct or keep them, or for knowingly hiring people with serious convictions. Harris County sheriff’s investigators testified in support, describing illegal boarding homes, operators who evade permits and background checks, and exploitation of vulnerable residents; the bill was left pending. The committee also took up Senate Bill 481 on emergency preparedness for nursing facilities and assisted living facilities, adopted a new committee substitute that softened some requirements and removed the fiscal note, and left the bill pending. The committee then heard House Bill 388, which would require the Texas Department of Insurance to create a single standardized coordination-of-benefits form for dual health plans to reduce errors and surprise bills; it was left pending. Senate Bill 1590 would move paternity registry searches for adoptions to an electronic process with a 10-day target, and House Bill 2809 would track child suicide attempts in managing conservatorship and require related reporting and parental notice; both were left pending. The committee also heard Senate Bill 1887, which would prohibit administering mRNA-containing products for immunization for 10 years, with exceptions for cancer and genetic disorders. Supporters argued the bill was needed for safety, informed consent, and medical freedom, while opponents from the medical, research, and public health communities said mRNA vaccines are well-studied, save lives, and that the bill would harm access, research, and Texas’s biotech economy. The bill remained under discussion as testimony concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• So you're welcome to criminal defense lawyers in Harris County.
• So you're welcome to criminal defense lawyers in Harris County.
• are authorized to independently utilize this technology.
• Therefore, extending this authority to sheriff's departments and other major and fast-growing counties
• little girl in Tarrant County.

Summary: The Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence met with a quorum and heard a series of Senate bills, generally receiving sponsor explanations and, in most cases, no public testimony. SB 2595 would create a Class B misdemeanor for harassing, threatening, or intimidating someone while intentionally concealing identity with a mask, with broad affirmative defenses for legitimate mask use; SB 1980 would increase penalties for assaulting peace officers, parole officers, and community supervision officers and add related presumptions and interference protections; and SB 1896 would require magistrates to issue emergency protective orders in certain family violence, sexual assault, stalking, and aggravated cases, with law enforcement required to provide needed information. All three were left pending. The committee also heard SB 955, which increases trafficking of persons from a second-degree to a first-degree felony when the victim was recruited from a correctional facility, and SB 614, which would let the Texas Forensic Science Commission refer dismissed complaints to the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs when they reference a prior FSC report; both were left pending. Members then heard several forensic and criminal procedure bills. SB 1372 would resolve a discovery/access conflict involving the DPS crime lab portal by limiting portal access to defense attorneys rather than defendants directly, prompting questions from members about access for pro se defendants; DPS’s chief crime lab witness testified neutrally. SB 1936 would change the LSD “abuse unit” definition for unmarked/unperforated paper from a square-measurement method to a 10-milligram weight standard, and SB 1937 would require a subject matter expert from the testing lab to participate in pretrial meetings in capital cases involving biological evidence to help identify viable testing and conserve resources. SB 2580 would lower the population threshold for sheriff’s departments to independently use tracking equipment and access certain communications from 3.3 million to 500,000, expanding the authority beyond Harris County; it was described as a public safety and emergency response measure and left pending. The committee also considered SB 2798, which would extend the statute of limitations for certain financial crimes from three years to seven years, with testimony from a Montgomery County assistant district attorney supporting the change because fraud is often discovered late. SB 1099 would increase penalties for felony offenses committed by undocumented or unauthorized aliens, but drew strong opposition from the Texas Civil Rights Project, which argued immigration is a federal matter and that the bill would create difficult and potentially unfair status determinations for local courts; members raised concerns about the lack of an expert-testimony requirement. SB 1278 would create an affirmative defense to prostitution prosecution for trafficking victims compelled by their traffickers to commit the conduct, and testimony from advocates and a member’s personal account emphasized the coercive, traumatic nature of trafficking; members discussed whether the defense should be narrower or framed as mitigation, and the bill was left pending. Finally, SB 127 would extend the statute of limitations for failure to report or conceal child abuse, with members discussing mandatory reporting duties and the need to allow more time for delayed discovery of cover-ups; it too was left pending before the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• The Missouri Constitution gives our officers arrest authority.
• This is a lawsuit in County Circuit Court of St.
• And when was the security force first authorized? Are you...
• And when was the security force first authorized?
• This bill authorizes the conveyance of state-owned land in Cole County to the city of Jefferson, and

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• County delegation.
• What are you authorizing?
• They have the full authority.
• Miss Evangelene Gun, Eddie Gun, and Lee Gun from Houston County and from Henry County, along with Miss
• , it is a county holiday.

Keywords: 1136, house, all