Transcript Highlights:

• So we recently launched a plan to transform. ...to accomplish those same goals.
• So we recently launched a plan to transform all of our patient rooms across all 31 of the AdventHealth
• So the possibilities are endless, and we're excited about the transformation this will bring and how
• When we think of the concept of transforming health care, I'm going to share with you some examples of
• This is done in a variety of fashions, but mostly through a digital analysis of information that is input

Summary: The committee held a panel discussion focused on how Florida health care organizations are working to improve access, quality, and affordability. Panelists from Florida Community Care/Independent Living Systems, Sunshine Health, AdventHealth, UF Health, and Nemours described their approaches, including Medicaid managed care, value-based contracting, community partnerships, mobile screening units, smart-room technology, telehealth, and specialized programs for maternal health, children, and complex chronic conditions. Several speakers emphasized that managed care and coordinated care can improve outcomes while reducing unnecessary utilization and costs. Members asked about the impact of Medicare’s V28 changes, mobile cancer screening, urgent care versus emergency room billing, pediatric specialty access, complaint resolution, Black maternal mortality, provider shortages, network adequacy, and the use of AI in prior authorization. Witnesses said V28 has affected providers and revenue, UF Health’s mobile screening program is expanding beyond a few cancer types, and its urgent care model bills patients at the appropriate level rather than both urgent care and ER rates. Nemours said it reduced specialty wait times through scheduling changes, telemedicine, and registry tools, while AdventHealth described postpartum coordination and maternal heart programs to reduce maternal complications and mortality. On complaints and access problems, panelists said their organizations use patient/member advocates, care managers, call centers, and escalation processes to resolve issues, and Sunshine Health specifically discussed a transportation complaint that was addressed with its vendor and the family. Sunshine Health also said it is not using AI for prior authorization, though it is exploring responsible uses elsewhere, and Florida Community Care said it is not using AI in utilization management. In closing, panelists identified workforce shortages, provider burnout, and high-cost drugs as the biggest ongoing challenges. The meeting ended with thanks to the panel and adjournment after Representative Brackett moved to rise, without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• the material that was presented as far as the efficiencies or also the challenges it mentions digitization
• I think we're by October, we were down to single digits of folks in the contract places.
• looking ahead to the remainder of 20 of fiscal year2026 and into fiscal year27 the rural health transformation
• I want to go back to the rural transformation piece again. Thank you for your proposal on that.
• I appreciate the updates and the meetings that we're going to have on rural transformation.

Transcript Highlights:

• It is a necessity for equity, transformation, and academic success.
• It is a necessity for equity, transformation, and academic success.
• On behalf of the Digital Equity Coalition and Digital Navigators, in support.
• On behalf of the Digital Equity Coalition and Digital Navigators, in support.
• Avila Farias, for bringing this important measure of closing the digital divide.

Summary: The Assembly Education Committee heard several education bills, with AB 887 by Assemblymember Berman proposing that every school district and charter school adopt a plan so all high schools offer at least one computer science course by 2029-30. Supporters, including a teacher and student, argued California is falling behind other states and that computer science is essential for student opportunity and workforce readiness. ACSA opposed the bill, citing the shortage of qualified computer science teachers and administrative burden. The bill passed the committee on a 6-0 vote and was sent to Appropriations. The committee also heard AB 1390 by Assemblymember Solache, which would allow local and county school boards to raise trustee compensation above long-standing statutory minimums that have not changed in decades. Supporters said the current stipends are too low to make board service accessible to working families and younger community members. There was no opposition testimony, and the bill passed with five votes, with the roll left open for additional members. AB 865 by Assemblymember Gonzalez would create a $5 million, three-year grant program for dual-language immersion instructional materials, split between high-demand languages and other languages. Supporters said districts often lack standards-aligned materials in languages beyond Spanish, forcing teachers to create their own. The bill passed 7-0 to Appropriations. AB 857 by Assemblymember Gibson, requiring annual cultural competency training for K-12 staff, also passed 5-1 after supporters linked it to the state reparations task force report and argued it would improve trust and student outcomes. The committee additionally approved AB 677 by Assemblymember Bryan, which would make it easier for unhoused students to access school-based vision and dental screenings by allowing directory information to be used for that purpose with an opt-out process; it passed 8-0. AB 903 by Assemblymember Avila Farias, directing the Department of Education to develop best practices on education technology and digital equity, passed after amendments and with some opponents indicating they would remove opposition once the amendments were in print. Finally, AB 917 by Assemblymember Avila Farias, extending permanent-status protections to certain educators in small districts and county programs, drew significant opposition from small districts and regional occupational programs over flexibility and funding concerns; the bill still passed 5-2 with the roll held open for additional votes.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's a simple bill: just like we go to college, you have a four-digit code where all of them will be
• This will be a six-digit code. Right now, we have a four-digit code.
• We leave two digits for the public school individual if they have different levels in there to do.
• The rural health care transformation program has allocated $223 million to Oklahoma. $7.5 million has
• how to spot online scams, identify fake news, protect personal information, and stay safe in the digital

Summary: The committee met for a very long session and considered a large number of bills, with the chair noting the meeting would run late and providing pizza and a recess. Early measures included HB 1752, authorizing the AG’s office and district attorneys’ counsel to buy vehicles with available funds, and HB 2961, a tuition waiver for Gold Star recipients; both advanced with strong support, though HB 2961 drew a question about its estimated annual cost of roughly $312,000 to $520,000. Members also approved HB 2967, exempting certain family vehicle transfers from motor vehicle excise tax, and HB 2973, requiring school districts to use a specific accounting code to show how state-appropriated dollars are spent. Several education and transparency bills also moved forward, including HB 3031 on common course numbering, HB 3057 centralizing statutorily required reports with LOFT, and HB 3052 codifying child welfare procedures related to fentanyl exposure cases. The committee then took up a series of public safety, health, and infrastructure measures. HB 3242, which would create a framework for student prayer during non-instructional time, generated extensive debate over whether it was a mandate, whether it could create fiscal and supervision burdens, and whether it raised local control and constitutional concerns; it passed 17-10. Other bills approved included HB 3066 creating a revolving fund tied to rural behavioral health workforce dollars, HB 3086 requiring the DOC director to brief the board annually on budget and inmate deaths, HB 3175 creating an Oklahoma Advanced Nuclear Energy Office, HB 3177 letting the Oklahoma Corporation Commission set salaries for its court reporters, HB 3178 establishing standard depreciation tables for farm equipment, HB 3429 creating an alternative funding mechanism for career tech capital projects, HB 3548 encouraging youth-run small businesses, HB 3638 directing Oklahoma to participate in the federal Summer EBT program, and HB 3704 expressing intent to opt into a federal tax credit for scholarship-granting organizations. Later, the committee approved HB 1590 creating an education infrastructure linked deposit program for charter and nonprofit schools, HB 3759 requiring temporary school allocations to be set before June 30, HB 3831 recognizing and funding Oklahoma Task Force One after federal support declines, HB 3904 unbundling Medicaid maternal health payments, and HB 4092 creating a protected 988 mental health trust fund and related oversight. After a brief recess, the committee continued with HB 1979 creating a task force to study a centralized early childhood office, HB 1983 requiring a middle school course on online scams and digital safety, HB 1242 expanding agricultural sales tax exemptions to deer and elk, HB 1250 creating a law enforcement public safety technology revolving fund, HB 2952 changing motor vehicle excise tax treatment for trade-ins, HB 3404 setting up a prescribed burn association fund, HB 3671 allowing experienced teachers to carry career teacher status to a new district with approval, HB 3920 extending a tax exemption to organ transplant nonprofits, HB 4118 creating a nonrefundable caregiver tax credit, HB 3944 cleaning up the State Finance Act, HB 3969 renaming a correctional facility after a former sheriff, HB 3973 creating a revolving fund tied to reopening Swojack, HB 3975 and HB 3976 creating mechanisms for oversight and potential funding of rural health initiatives, HB 3978 updating the Oklahoma World Jobs Act, HB 3983 serving as a placeholder for tobacco tax negotiations, and HB 3984 creating a mechanism to recruit productive new residents. Most bills passed on strong votes, while HB 1983 failed in committee 13-14 and was not reported out.

Transcript Highlights:

• districts that. actually use power school or contact databases to be able to support communication digitally
• this from AXA, already have a means to communicate with their parents and community members through digital
• frankly, not using the mode of information exchange that is predominant right now, which is through digital
• , necessitating urgent updates to keep pace with the digital age.
• The emergence of new technologies has transformed the media and press environments we interact with.

Committee: House Education

Transcript Highlights:

• Education for digital literacy: how do we teach our students to be responsible digital citizens, because
• Education for digital literacy: how do we teach our students to be responsible digital citizens, because
• <c> must</c><00:21:57.400><c> be</c> digital habits digital literacy must be digital habits digital literacy
• , and evaluate digital content.
• </c><01:02:12.319><c> digital</c> and the importance of digital digital and the importance of digital

Committee: Senate Education Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• This can involve tactics like surveillance and digital harassment.
• This can involve tactics like surveillance and digital harassment.
• This can involve tactics like surveillance and digital harassment, spyware, or crime threats, excuse
• China to co-opting other countries to detain and render exiles, to threats from a distance like digital
• So helping to armor the states to, you know, transform... of political warfare in our minds.

Committee: House Administration of Criminal Justice

Summary: The Committee for the Administration of Criminal Justice met on April 8, 2026, with a quorum present and heard several criminal justice bills. HB 322, which would prohibit fees for victims or family members requesting transcripts of executive-session testimony before the Board of Pardons and Parole, was described as a cleanup measure and was reported favorably without objection. HB 635, dealing with criminal activity by agents of foreign adversaries or foreign terrorist organizations, received extensive support testimony from advocacy groups focused on foreign influence and transnational repression; the committee adopted a technical amendment and reported the bill favorably as amended. HB 132, which expands battery of a police officer to cover intentional sound directed at an officer and related conduct, drew strong support from law enforcement groups and significant opposition from civil liberties and criminal defense organizations concerned about vagueness, First Amendment issues, and impacts on parades and protests; after adopting an amendment moving the sound-related language into the general battery definition, the committee reported the bill favorably as amended. The committee also considered HB 275, which increases minimum sentences when domestic abuse occurs in the presence of a child and extends the penalty to battery of a dating partner. Supporters argued the bill recognizes the lasting trauma to children exposed to domestic violence, while opponents warned that mandatory minimums reduce judicial discretion and that the child-presence language is broad; the committee adopted two amendment sets and reported the bill favorably as amended. HB 808, revising Louisiana’s HIV exposure law to require a substantial likelihood of transmission based on current medical science and to narrow criminal liability for negligible-risk conduct, drew broad support from physicians, advocates, and people living with HIV, with testimony emphasizing that the law should reflect modern science and avoid overcriminalization; after adopting an amendment set, the committee reported the bill favorably as amended. Finally, HB 1054, sponsored by Chair Villio, would allow certain law-enforcement drone footage to be self-authenticating with notice requirements; it received support from prosecutors and sheriffs’ groups and was reported favorably without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• She is a PBS Digital Innovator All-Star and a CSTA Equity Fellow who emphasizes real-world applications
• she</c><00:16:48.839><c> is</c><00:16:48.959><c> a</c><00:16:49.079><c> PBS</c><00:16:49.560><c> digital
• </c> competitions she is a PBS digital competitions she is a PBS digital innovator<00:16:50.360><c> All-Star
• The school promotes a sense of belonging while also providing a rigorous, well-rounded, and transformative
• Well-rounded and transformative educational experience for all students.

Transcript Highlights:

• Resolution 307 by Representative Henry, which creates the Expropriation and Acquisition for Strategic Transformation
• So this task force, the Expropriation and Acquisition for Strategic Transformation, involves multiple
• about the potential conflict with HB 603, this is the one that dealt with allowing for investment in digital

Bills: HR307 , SB228

Committee: House Civil Law and Procedure

Keywords: expropriation, redevelopment, New Orleans East, blighted properties, task force, urban development, environmental remediation, property rights, community engagement, economic development

Transcript Highlights:

• It has complicated those material shortages in places like turbines, circuit breakers, and transformers
• Some of these pieces, such as circuit breakers or transformers, are specific to particular utilities,
• due to staffing, budgeting, material shortages, you know, I talked about transmission or sorry, transformers
• About transmission, or sorry, transformers, circuit breakers, etc., self-build options, or other delays
• Internally, we have improved our processes, deploying new digital tools.

Committee: House Utilities and Energy

Bills: SB5223 , SB5993 , SB5831 , SB5928 , SB6183 , SB6071 , SB5995 , SB5966 , SB5841 , SB5840 , SB6061 , SB6058 , SB5931 , SB5944 , SB5520 , SB6011 , SB6087 , SB6076 , SB5916 , SB6016 , SB5936 , SB6137 , SB5185 , SB5956 , SB6025 , SB6009 , SB5833 , SB6161 , SB6188 , SB5890 , SB5917 , SB5820 , SB5973 , SJM8015 , SB5816 , SB6136 , SB6091 , SB6024 , SB5223 , SB6178 , SB5892 , SB5177 , SB6039 , SB5941 , SB5993 , SB5831 , SB5928 , SB5912 , SB6183 , SB6071 , SB5995 , SB5966 , SB5841 , SB5840 , SB6061 , SB6058 , SB5931 , SB5944 , SB5520 , SB6011 , SB6087 , SB6076 , SB5916 , SB6016 , SB5936 , SB6137 , SB5185 , SB5956 , SB6025 , SB6009 , SB5833 , SB6161 , SB6188 , SB5890 , SB5917 , SB5820 , SB5973 , SJM8015 , SB5816 , SB6136 , SB6091 , SB6024

Keywords: criminal offense, fingerprinting, law enforcement, state regulations, public safety, medical debt, interest charges, consumer protection, healthcare, financial burden, mortgage modification, uniform regulations, homeowners, financial stability, foreclosure prevention, wildfire risk, disclosure, safety, environmental policy, risk assessment

Transcript Highlights:

• The show explores how humans transform the planet.
• The show explores how humans transform the planet and what those transformations say about who we are
• Every month, 2 million people come to us to watch, listen, and read stories on our digital and broadcast
• Two million people come to us to watch, listen, and read stories on digital and broadcast platforms.
• KVPR Classical, a 24-7 classical music service on broadcast and digital platforms.

Committee: House Arts, Entertainment, Sports, and Tourism

Summary: Assembly Member Chris Ward and Senator Akela Weber Pearson convened an informational hearing at KPBS and San Diego State University on the impact of the federal rescission of Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding on California public media. Opening remarks emphasized public media’s role in education, local news, arts and culture, emergency alerts, and service to rural and underserved communities, with local officials from San Diego and La Mesa voicing support. Panelists from PBS SoCal, KCRW, and Rebuild Local News described major operational and content impacts from the funding loss, including layoffs, reduced staff and programming, threatened children’s and educational content, and pressure on smaller stations that rely heavily on CPB support. They also discussed public media’s role in disaster response, local arts coverage, and the shrinking local news ecosystem, while noting possible responses such as shared services, philanthropy, corporate partnerships, and state policy support. A second panel focused on labor and production perspectives. NPR veteran Jack Speer and filmmaker Nate Dappen said the cuts threaten journalism jobs, documentary production, and science programming, and warned that fewer resources mean less fact-checking, less on-the-ground reporting, and weaker public understanding of science and technology. They urged continued support for public media as a trusted, noncommercial source of information. The final panel featured KPBS, Radio Bilingüe, and KVPR. KPBS said federal funding made up 12% of its budget and that reserves have only delayed possible future reorganization; Radio Bilingüe reported losses to both CPB and FEMA-related infrastructure funding affecting Spanish- and indigenous-language service; and KVPR said it lost CPB and FEMA grants but offset the loss through an emergency fundraising drive. No formal votes were taken; the hearing was informational and ended with questions about state policy options and future support.

Transcript Highlights:

• Last year, Assembly Member Wix and I authored AB 1340, which was transformational legislation to empower
• The motion is do pass to the Senate Committee on Privacy, Digital Technologies, and Consumer Protection
• Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming... Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming.
• But this is really transforming our way of life.
• The motion is due pass as amended to the Senate Committee on Privacy, Digital Technologies, and Consumer

Committee: Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement

Transcript Highlights:

• Embedding ideology gatekeeping into the public health system compromises its integrity and transforms
• This commission would include members with backgrounds in broadband, digital equity, labor, industry,
• Members with backgrounds in broadband, digital equity, labor, and industry, and tribes.
• I think what's really important is when we look at what Broadband and Digital Equity.
• Tools like digital platforms allow for mobile access in critical times.

Summary: The Communications and Conveyance Committee heard several bills focused on telecommunications, emergency response, and digital access. AB 1540 by Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez would restore the 988 “press 3” option for LGBTQ+ youth crisis support, with strong support from suicide prevention advocates, mental health organizations, local governments, and family groups, and opposition from groups arguing it politicizes crisis services and raises safety concerns. Members emphasized the bill’s life-saving purpose and noted it would depend on federal approval. The committee voted AB 1540 out on a due pass recommendation to Appropriations. The committee also approved the consent calendar, including AB 2093 and AB 2193, both sent to Appropriations. AB 1832 by Assemblymember Ransom, as amended, would expand and stabilize statewide 211 services through a state fund, a community needs dashboard, and integration into emergency planning; supporters described 211’s role during disasters and service gaps in many counties, and the bill passed unanimously as amended to Appropriations. AB 2289, the chair’s bill, would create an Office of Broadband and Digital Equity, consolidate broadband programs, and narrow CPUC jurisdiction to voice communications; TURN and CWA District 9 opposed the regulatory changes but acknowledged shared goals, and the bill passed to Appropriations. AB 2424 by Assemblymember Carrillo would create a new low-income telecommunications advisory board to oversee California Lifeline and address fraud and oversight concerns. Supporters said the board would add needed telecommunications expertise and improve access for low-income and immigrant communities, while opponents argued an existing advisory structure already serves that role and warned of added costs and surcharges. After discussion, the committee voted AB 2424 out on a 7-2 vote to Appropriations. The meeting concluded after all listed bills were reported out.

Bills: HB1160 , HB1289 , HB1339 , HB1798 , HB1065 , HB1795 , HB2107 , HB2113 , HB2124 , HB2125 , HB2133 , HB2134 , HB2140 , HB2185 , HB2191 , HB2205 , HB2211 , HB2219 , HB2245 , HB2253 , HB2283 , HB2343 , HB2406 , HB2501 , HB2531 , HB2574 , HB1170 , HB1544 , HB1834 , HB2156 , HB2188 , HB2206 , HB2360 , HB2471 , HB2478 , HB2525 , HB2605 , HJM4012 , HB1104 , HB1152 , HB1254 , HB1443 , HB1710 , HB1750 , HB1903 , HB1941 , HB1974 , HB1982 , HB1983 , HB2006 , HB2034 , HB2105 , HB2179 , HB2203 , HB2215 , HB2223 , HB2239 , HB2247 , HB2297 , HB2303 , HB2322 , HB2329 , HB2334 , HB2338 , HB2345 , HB2348 , HB2350 , HB2353 , HB2355 , HB2363 , HB2367 , HB2379 , HB2388 , HB2399 , HB2418 , HB2420 , HB2428 , HB2441 , HB2462 , HB2464 , HB2467 , HB2495 , HB2505 , HB2534 , HB2539 , HB2544 , HB2551 , HB2554 , HB2557 , HB2575 , HB2577 , HB2588 , HB2594 , HB2604 , HB2636 , HB2714 , HB1160 , HB1289 , HB1339 , HB1798 , HB1065 , HB1795 , HB2113 , HB2124 , HB2125 , HB2134 , HB2140 , HB2185 , HB2191 , HB2205 , HB2211 , HB2219 , HB2245 , HB2253 , HB2283 , HB2343 , HB2406 , HB2501 , HB2574 , HB1170 , HB1544 , HB1834 , HB2156 , HB2188 , HB2206 , HB2471 , HB2478 , HB2605 , HJM4012 , HB1104 , HB1152 , HB1254 , HB1443 , HB1903 , HB1941 , HB1982 , HB2006 , HB2034 , HB2105 , HB2179 , HB2203 , HB2297 , HB2303 , HB2322 , HB2329 , HB2345 , HB2350 , HB2379 , HB2388 , HB2399 , HB2418 , HB2462 , HB2464 , HB2495 , HB2539 , HB2544 , HB2551 , HB2554 , HB2588 , HB2636 , HB1128 , HB1408 , HB1570 , HB1742 , HB1823 , HB2089 , HB2104 , HB2114 , HB2172 , HB2192 , HB2207 , HB2251 , HB2262 , HB2266 , HB2294 , HB2298 , HB2319 , HB2320 , HB2323 , HB2351 , HB2354 , HB2374 , HB2401 , HB2405 , HB2429 , HB2431 , HB2442 , HB2451 , HB2479 , HB2496 , HB2515 , HB2523 , HB2540 , HB2593 , HB2632 , HB2661 , HB1496 , HB1898 , HB2095 , HB2157 , HB2225 , HB2274 , HB2311 , HB2325 , HB2333 , HB2476 , HB2508 , HB2552

Keywords: design review, local government, land use, zoning, project permits, housing density, middle housing, affordable housing, parking minimums, single-family zoning, infill development, growth management, comprehensive plan, permit streamlining, objective development regulations, architectural review, administrative review, transit-oriented development, accessory dwelling units, ADU

Transcript Highlights:

• Our goal, as you have heard, is to become a digital court.
• Our goal, as you have heard, is to become a digital court.
• our courtroom practices into a digital system.
• And secondly, as we become more of a digital court, there's a lot of digital literacy that needs to happen
• Are we doing enough on digital literacy so people know?

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Ways and Means

Transcript Highlights:

• These funds will bring new changes, from outdoor science classrooms to digital marquees, and transform
• The 14th Amendment is one of the most transformative amendments in American history.
• The word transformative in fact falls short because of the 14th Amendment.
• Ban government control of American citizen spending by banning any central bank digital currency.
• And if you don't know what that is, if you don't know what a CBDC, a central bank digital currency, is

Bills: HR915 , HB7401 , HB2478 , HR1381

Keywords: Holodomor, Ukraine famine, 1932-1933 famine, genocide recognition, Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin, collectivization, grain confiscation, human rights, Ukraine, Ukrainian people, Russian aggression, Vladimir Putin, foreign affairs, sense of the House, commemorative resolution, historical remembrance, Soviet repression, Kremlin denial, Ukraine sovereignty

Transcript Highlights:

• Third, while the Rural Health Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, Third, while the Rural Health
• Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, it does not make up for the scale of projected reductions
• Simply having digital health records that power the health care system will save $300 billion across
• Simply having digital health records that power the health care system will save $300 billion across
• On the point of interoperability, I just want to flag that the rural health transformation program does

Transcript Highlights:

• Third, while the Rural Health Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, Third, while the Rural Health
• Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, it does not make up for the scale of projected reductions
• Simply having digital health records that power the health care system will save $300 billion across
• One thing our providers have done is they have a digital assistant now that's basically an ambient scribe
• On the point of interoperability, I just want to flag that the rural health transformation program does

Transcript Highlights:

• Third, while the Rural Health Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, Third, while the Rural Health
• Transformation Fund offers temporary relief, it does not make up for the scale of projected reductions
• Simply having digital health records that power the health care system will save $300 billion across
• Simply having digital health records that power the health care system will save $300 billion across
• On the point of interoperability, I just want to flag that the rural health transformation program does

Summary: The joint informational hearing of the Senate and Assembly Health Committees focused on the “cost of uncertainty” in health coverage, access, and affordability amid federal policy changes. Opening remarks from committee leaders and members emphasized that California’s gains under the Affordable Care Act and Health for All policies—high coverage rates, consumer protections, and lower uninsured rates—are now threatened by federal rollbacks, including the expiration of enhanced premium tax credits and H.R. 1. Members repeatedly cited rising premiums, skipped care, medical debt, and the risk of coverage losses, especially for low-income Californians, workers, seniors, and immigrant communities. The first panel featured federal policy and state implementation experts, including Don Joyce, Jessica Altman of Covered California, and Elizabeth Lansberg of HCAI’s Office of Health Care Affordability. Testimony described the ACA’s coverage expansions and the current federal threats: shorter open enrollment, more verification requirements, loss of enhanced subsidies, and changes affecting immigrants and preventive coverage. Covered California reported that average monthly premiums could nearly double without the subsidies, new enrollment is down sharply, and more consumers are shifting into bronze plans with higher deductibles. HCAI explained its affordability strategy through spending targets, consolidation review, and primary care investment, while members asked about the impact of federal cuts on provider taxes, uncompensated care, and whether California can sustain coverage without new revenue. The second panel, with UC Berkeley Labor Center’s Miranda Dietz and California Health Care Foundation’s Christoph Stremikis, broadened the discussion to statewide cost drivers and consumer impacts. They highlighted that more than half of Californians under 65 rely on job-based coverage, yet premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs have risen faster than wages. They also pointed to medical debt, administrative waste, market consolidation, and underinvestment in primary care as major drivers of unaffordability. Members asked about the 25% of health spending that does not improve patient care, the role of fraud versus administrative friction, the effect of cost growth targets on workers, and the need for preventive care and possible revenue solutions. The hearing then moved to a third panel on human impacts, beginning with testimony from a Central Valley promotora describing how families are choosing lower-tier coverage, struggling with diabetes care, and facing higher premiums after subsidy losses.