Transcript Highlights:

• Wanted to draw special attention to their engagement and learning a little bit about state government
• We wanted to draw special attention to their engagement and learning a little bit about state government
• provide young students with in-depth knowledge and resources to provoke and inspire them to want to learn
• Growing up with a disability, Alice had to quickly learn to advocate for herself.

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum, offered prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and then moved through a series of gubernatorial appointments and floor items. The chamber confirmed Dina Eltawasi as Director of Caltrans, Allison Salt Install to the Court Reporters Board, and Olivia May Assumption to the California Commission on Disability Access, and later confirmed William Adams to the California Exposition and State Fair Board. Each appointment was presented by Senator Grove and approved on roll call, with final confirmation votes recorded after calls were lifted. Several measures were taken up on third reading. SCR 143, by Senator Umberg, honored Hmong and Laotian special guerrilla unit veterans who served with U.S. forces during the secret war in Laos; Senator Archuleta also spoke in support, and the resolution passed unanimously. SR 96, by Senator Cortese, proclaimed April as National County Government Month and highlighted the role of counties and CSAC; it also passed unanimously. SB 1347 clarified that stock albuterol authorization applies to all public schools, including preschools; SB 977 required chain restaurants offering children’s meals to provide at least one healthier option meeting nutrition standards; SB 1234 required fentanyl testing when juvenile dependency drug testing is already ordered; SCR 161 designated May 2026 as Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month; SR 101 updated the Senate Rules Committee membership by replacing Senator Jones with Senator Ochoa Bogh; and SB 1111 addressed liability for unauthorized AI-generated digital replicas. All of these measures were approved, most by unanimous or near-unanimous votes. The Senate also adopted SCR 128, by Senator Perez, declaring April 13–24, 2026, as High School Voter Education Weeks to encourage civic education and youth participation in elections. The consent calendar was then approved after Senator Cervantes removed SB 1381; the remaining consent items passed 35-0. Throughout the session, members introduced visiting groups, including Hmong and Laotian veterans, CSAC representatives, and students in the gallery. The day concluded with Senator Wiener’s adjournment in memory of disability rights activist Alice Wong, after which the Senate announced its next floor session and recessed.

Transcript Highlights:

• Wanted to draw special attention to their engagement and learning a little bit about state government
• We wanted to draw special attention to their engagement and learning a little bit about state government
• provide young students with in-depth knowledge and resources to provoke and inspire them to want to learn
• Growing up with a disability, Alice had to quickly learn to advocate for herself.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• When your child is in Missouri, how do you transition back in a way that lets those skills that were learned
• <00:07:23.480> skills<00:07:23.960> that<00:07:24.120> were<00:07:24.240> learned
• <00:07:24.560> in<00:07:24.640> that those skills that were learned in that those skills
• that were learned in that facility<00:07:25.360> transfer<00:07:25.880> home?

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• infrastructure, and rural development working group could tell us a little more about what they've learned
• Is there anything you could tell us about what you've learned?
• infrastructure, and rural development working group could tell us a little more about what they've learned
• Is there anything you could tell us about what you've learned?

Summary: The Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding met for what leaders described as likely its final meeting, with a quorum present from both chambers. Chairs reviewed the ARPA/SLFRF process, noting the large volume of requests received, the need to meet Treasury’s December 31, 2026 paperwork deadline, and the committee’s role in reallocating excess or at-risk funds to projects that can be completed in time. Working groups reported on progress across education/economic development, transportation/rural development, government transformation, and health and human services, with most projects on track but some funds needing to be reclassified or redirected. The committee approved a series of motions, generally by unanimous or near-unanimous votes, to reclassify excess funds and appropriate interest earnings to existing obligated projects. Actions included reallocations from the Department of Commerce and the Office of Emergency Management, and interest-fund appropriations for wastewater and water infrastructure, Boys & Girls Clubs, the YWCA, the Office of Juvenile Affairs, and the Department of Human Services. Members also authorized the Oklahoma Water Resources Board and the Healthcare Workforce Training Commission to reallocate remaining funds to existing projects. In the health and human services portion, the committee approved funding for the Oklahoma Healthcare Workforce Training Commission, the OSU Medical Authority’s Human Performance Project and Pharmaceutical Expansion Program, the University Hospitals Trust Authority’s Child Behavioral Health Project, the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services for Griffin Memorial bed replacement, and the State Department of Health for the Rural Hospital Rebuild Program. Members asked questions about whether funds were going to new or existing projects and about broadband progress, and staff explained that the reallocations were intended to fill gaps in already obligated projects. The meeting ended with closing remarks thanking members and staff for their work and noting the measures would continue through the appropriations process before final action by the full chambers.

Transcript Highlights:

• She learned early on about their mission, so we're very proud.
• I think for all of us to learn more about their important work, and I'm so grateful that we have folks
• The process of watching a young lady learn this process has been fascinating as we've gone along with
• And through my training, my DEI training, I learned that there is Certain pigmentation on little newborn

Bills: SB2065, SB1641, SB1642, SB1589, SB1597, SB1216, SB2173, SB2028, SB2117, SB2127, SB2134, SB2014, SB1805, SB2044, SB1836, SB1380, SB2179, SB1436, SB1558, SB933, SB1651, SB1328, SB1572, SB1966, SB175, SB1475, SB1950, SB2049, SB2052

Keywords: pollinator, state symbols, agriculture, insects, environment, business entities, limited liability company, LLC, foreign LLC, domestic LLC, limited partnership, foreign limited partnership, registered agent, Secretary of State, annual certificate, good standing, certificate of authority, designated office, email address, electronic mail

Transcript Highlights:

• And along the way, I've learned if I want to do those things, there's an ugly beast in my way.
• I've learned if I want to do those things, there's an ugly beast in my way by the acronym of ORES that
• You just, because you're a pep farmer man and you wanted to learn about farming and all that.
• And that is how I started to learn about the actual regulatory structure of ORES was created in a way

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee, chaired by Senator Kevin Parker, considered several Public Service Law bills and advanced each one to the Rules Committee after brief discussion and recorded no votes or without-recommendation votes on some measures. The bills included proposals to prohibit utilities from using ratepayer funds for certain activities (1012A), establish minimum standards for payment plans for eligible customers (1327), adjust residential fixed charges (1329), require the Public Service Commission to consider economic impacts when setting rates (1847), require utilities to adopt PSC-authorized equity ratios and returns on equity (1896), create the Rate-Hike Notice Act (5553C), suspend certain utility rate changes while allowing retroactive revenue recovery (5593), allow consideration of non-economic losses in penalty determinations (7165A), change the composition of the Public Service Commission (7328A), and let utilities retain revenues above authorized returns on equity (7693). Members asked questions about who would be affected by the bills, including whether fixed-charge reductions would apply to vacant units or vacation homes and whether economic-impact considerations could affect customers differently depending on where they live; the chair and sponsors generally explained the measures as territory-wide or applicable to all residential customers, with no occupancy or income-based circuit breaker in the text. The committee then heard testimony from Alexandra Fasulo, introduced as an entrepreneur and farmer in Schuylerville, about her concerns regarding the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) and utility-scale solar development on farmland and grasslands. She argued that solar developers were pressuring landowners, including older and lower-income property owners, into long-term leases, that ORES approves most projects despite local opposition, and that the process lacks transparency, with redacted documents and limited public access to information. She also criticized the siting of solar projects on productive farmland and said decommissioning rules could leave equipment buried in the soil. Committee members responded that the Legislature has already taken steps to protect high-quality soils, that ORES was created by statute and operates within the Public Service Department, and that DEC and ORES are supposed to work together rather than ORES superseding DEC. Several senators said they were sympathetic to concerns about farmland and community engagement, but also emphasized the need to expand renewable energy and balance that with land preservation. Members suggested that specific complaints about ORES transparency or solar siting could be addressed through future legislation or by inviting ORES and PSC officials back for further discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we'll learn a lot from them. Also, though, some things about Texas are not so great.
• I've been vice chair since I joined the Senate in 2019, and I love this committee, and I've learned a
• megawatts to development after the commission finalizes the rule, taking all the lessons that we've learned
• That is one of the lessons learned from this first round.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I think we learned a lot today. I know it was a far...
• I learned a lot today, and so did the several people that were watching.
• I think we learned a lot today.
• I know it was a farmer, I learned a lot today, so and and the and the. several people that were watching

Summary: The committee held an interim study on retainage in public construction projects, with representatives from the Associated General Contractors of Oklahoma, the Subcontractors Association of Oklahoma, and construction firms discussing how retainage works and whether current law should be changed. AGC speakers said retainage is a statutory tool that helps ensure completion and closeout, and warned that eliminating it could create more problems by shifting leverage to owners or general contractors and leaving contractors with fewer remedies. Subcontractor representatives said retainage often functions as delayed profit, can tie up cash flow for one to two years, and can be especially burdensome for early-phase trades such as dirt work, concrete, and demolition. Several participants explained that retainage is typically withheld from monthly progress payments and paid at final closeout, with current law generally allowing retainage to drop from 5% to 2.5% after 50% completion on public projects. Subcontractors said that in practice they often still have to fight to get the reduced rate applied, and that some owners or construction managers do not follow the statute consistently. They also noted that bonding companies are a last resort but still an important enforcement tool, while AGC cautioned that bond claims and litigation are not ideal substitutes for a workable retainage process. The discussion focused on possible benchmarks or compromise approaches, including line-item or trade-specific release of retainage when work is complete, especially for demolition or other early-finish subcontractors. Committee members emphasized that owner, GC/CM, and subcontractor issues may need different solutions and that the study was intended to gather perspectives rather than produce immediate legislation. No vote was taken, and no formal action was announced.

Transcript Highlights:

• We had an imminent change in leadership on this committee, which we just learned about five minutes ago
• committee<00:19:14.080> which<00:19:14.320> we<00:19:14.559> just<00:19:14.720> learned
• <00:19:15.039> about committee which we just learned about committee which we just learned

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• the kids who feel they don't have a future, and if they're in school, they get the opportunity to learn
• Um, my mother gave me extra homework so I was able to learn. But I know kids who aren't.
• So they stayed in school for as long as possible, basically faking it, hoping they would learn something
• to what you said, these kids that can't read or write, or can't do things, they're never going to learn

Bills: HB2947, HB3276, HB3513

Keywords: truancy, school attendance, parent responsibility, education code, community service, criminal record nondisclosure, juvenile board, Moore County, appointments, juvenile justice, county legislation, 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Which can help us learn more about to grow it better and stronger crops.
• But when we learned more about that plant disease, we realized that if we had not. intervened as quickly
• And I was very concerned when I learned that the, uh, that Texas Health Animal Commission already has
• industry has been attacked nationally. about their global emissions there are people that are concerned learned

Bills: HB147, HB 1113, HB 1203, HB 1269, HB 1276, HB 1277, HB1437, HB147

Keywords: livestock, brands, marks, earmarks, tattoos, electronic registry, Texas Animal Health Commission, county clerk, Agriculture Code, cattle, hogs, sheep, goats, horses, animal identification, brand registry, livestock traceability, electronic filing, rerecording, law enforcement access

Transcript Highlights:

• student receives the behavioral, emotional, and academic support they need to successfully return to learning
• and when I say teacher shortage, I'm talking about the qualified educators who went to school, who learned
• and when I see teacher shortage, I'm talking about the qualified educators who went to school, who learn

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Her ability to learn and command new areas of law is extraordinary. Ms.
• So, she does not know everything, but she has proven she can learn anything. So, mahalo nui.
• So, she does not know everything, but she has proven she can learn anything. So, mahalo nui.
• He handled the civil calendar there, so I learned a lot about civil cases.
• Sometimes it is, here's your sentence and learn from it.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the confirmation of Kursha Kauahi Kani Mililani Durrant to the District Court of the First Circuit, but announced it would not vote until April 2. The chair also noted a backup plan if Zoom failed. Testimony was limited to two minutes per speaker. The hearing focused on Durrant’s qualifications, judicial temperament, and readiness for the bench, with no opposition presented. Support came from the Office of the Public Defender, Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation, Native Hawaiian Bar Association, Hawaii State Bar Association, Hawaii Women’s Lawyers, and numerous individuals. Witnesses described Durrant as highly experienced in both criminal and civil practice, including district, family, circuit, appellate, ICA, and Supreme Court work. Several speakers emphasized her legal reasoning, mentorship, civility, cultural grounding, and ability to listen and treat litigants with dignity. Personal supporters also highlighted her public service, hula background, and character. Committee members questioned Durrant about how she would approach district court cases involving repeat offenders, mental illness, substance abuse, houselessness, and diversion. Durrant said she would follow the law, consider the full range of sentencing factors, and use available probation, diversion, and treatment options where appropriate. She said she would be committed to using legislative tools such as Act 26 and other diversion powers, and to looking beyond advocacy toward practical justice and reducing recidivism. She also said her clerkship with Judge Marsha Waldorf, including exposure to drug court and mental health court, shaped her approach to problem-solving on the bench.

Transcript Highlights:

• that riding in a car and even learned that riding in a car and even wearing<00:15:35.839> sunglasses
• > the<00:22:40.440> time Outreach, we survey commuters at the time that we help them to learn
• <00:38:46.400> more<00:38:46.560> and just as we go to as we learn more and just as
• we go to as we learn more and more<00:38:46.880> and<00:38:47.040> try<00:38:47.240>
• for 15% every year like if you learn for 15% every year like if you learn something<01:06:33.839

Bills: HF2382, HF639, SF1075, HF1243, HF1087, SF1360, HF739, HF2337, HF1220, HF712, HF1219

Keywords: accident reporting, law enforcement, data privacy, contracted service providers, public safety, HF639, Minnesota driver license, Department of Public Safety, driver medical review, loss of consciousness, voluntary control, seizure, nonepileptic seizure, epilepsy, antiseizure medication, physician statement, medical certification, commercial driver, CDL, medical examiner's certificate

Transcript Highlights:

• Also, with LEARNS and ACCESS, we had less than half our students, seniors in high school, that had a
• Now, through LEARNS and ACCESS, access to acceleration of scholarships, they will stay in school and
• So the learning and employment records that will show up in Launch, employers can see exactly what it
• What am I going to learn there to help me do my job?
• The whole goal of that is to find errors, fix them, learn.

Summary: The meeting focused on Arkansas’s workforce development reorganization and a set of federal waiver requests intended to consolidate and streamline the state’s WIOA system. Commerce officials said the department has already centralized shared services, split the old workforce agency into reemployment and Arkansas Workforce Connections, and submitted a combined WIOA/Perkins state plan. They described nine waiver requests, including replacing local workforce boards with a single statewide board, creating one planning and accountability structure, allowing more flexible movement of funds across regions, easing the “last-dollar” requirement for training and supportive services, reducing required youth program elements, and allowing affiliate sites instead of mandatory comprehensive centers. Officials said the goal is to reduce administrative costs and redirect more money to training, supportive services, and employer-driven programs. Legislators raised concerns about rural representation, local employer relationships, and whether local offices would close. Commerce officials said local offices would remain open, some current staff could be rehired, and regional business councils would preserve local employer input. They said the current system is fragmented and expensive, with roughly $14 million in federal workforce funds flowing through local boards but only about $1.9 million spent on training and supportive services last year; they argued the reorganization could raise training spending to about $6 million to $7 million annually. Questions also addressed board composition, performance accountability, and how funds could be shifted between regions when needs change. The State Board of Workforce Development had approved the waiver package 11-3 before it was submitted to the U.S. Department of Labor. Members also discussed workforce access for people with disabilities, child care and transportation supports, and the role of Arkansas Launch, apprenticeships, and career and technical education. Officials said vocational rehabilitation now has better access to the state job board and that referrals and data-sharing with DHS and other partners still need improvement. Several legislators emphasized the need for training to align more closely with employer demand, especially in manufacturing, technology, health care, and rural areas. The committee also heard a brief overview of Workforce Pell, with staff explaining that the new federal short-term Pell option has narrow eligibility rules and may not fit many existing programs, including some CDL and CNA programs.

Transcript Highlights:

• And this legislature has made early learning a priority. You need to know that.
• Is this just for early learning, or is it for kids even up to high school?
• Where there are holes, they are filling those holes, especially in early learning.
• Where there are holes, they are filling those holes, especially in early learning.
• learning programs.

Summary: The House met in special session, opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, approved the journal, and adopted the special order report setting the day’s calendar. The chamber then took up CS/House Joint Resolution 1F, the Governor’s property tax proposal, which would raise the homestead exemption for non-school taxes, lower the annual assessment cap on non-homestead property from 10% to 5%, and restrict county and municipal ad valorem revenue to public safety and certain other uses. Sponsor Rep. Overdorf said the measure would return money to homeowners and give local governments flexibility, while opponents repeatedly argued the ballot language was misleading and that the proposal could create large local revenue shortfalls, shift costs to other taxpayers, and threaten local services and debt obligations. Members debated a series of amendments aimed at protecting specific programs from the bill’s effects. Rep. Bartleman’s amendment to exempt Children’s Services Councils and Children’s Trusts was defeated 25-74 after supporters said those entities fund child care, mental health, aftercare, and family support, while opponents said local governments could still choose to fund them. Rep. Cross’s amendment to include water management districts in allowable uses of ad valorem taxes was also defeated, despite testimony that the districts are essential for flood control, water supply, Everglades restoration, and drought response. Rep. Eskamani’s amendment to require the Legislature to backfill public safety funding failed 25-71 after debate over whether the proposal could reduce police and fire budgets and response times. The House then rejected Rep. Woodson’s amendment to require state backfill for senior services, with supporters citing Meals on Wheels, transportation, adult day care, and other aging services, and opponents saying the state already funds senior programs. Finally, Rep. Gant’s amendment to protect veteran services was introduced and debated, with members emphasizing housing, mental health, transition assistance, and homelessness concerns for veterans; the transcript cuts off before the vote on that amendment. Throughout the debate, sponsors and supporters of the main resolution maintained that local governments would retain spending discretion and could use other revenue sources, while critics argued the measure lacked clear backfill provisions and could force cuts or tax shifts at the local level.

Transcript Highlights:

• I, yeah, I think that we've sort of learned some good lessons.
• I think that we've sort of learned some good lessons from what occurred with the PG&E bankruptcy.
• So I think that there were a lot of learnings from that and things that can be applied. Thank you.
• So I think that there were a lot of learnings from that and things that can be applied. Thank you.
• This is what we learned and this is how we improved. My son was in my tummy.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This has come at a time when Virginia is still dealing with learning loss, and as the administration
• THIS HAS COME AT A TIME WHEN VIRGINIA IS STILL DEALING WITH LEARNING LOSS AND ASSED ADMINISTRATION HAS
• benefits and the school lunch program, how students will not be able to show up to school ready to learn
• , how it would impact their learning experience, their school environment.
• And after growing up as a member of Generation X, Schoolhouse Rock, learning about just a bill's journey

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Monday, September 8, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So I, I, this was learning fun and learning.
• So I, I, this was learning fun and learning.
• So I, I, this was learning fun and learning.
• So I, I, this was learning fun and learning.
• So I, I, this was learning fun and learning.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• this next weekend up in Arlington but appreciate their flexibility... perseverance that clearly they learned
• What I have learned is typically we have enough money.
• But they're not learning it at home, they'll be doing it at school, right?
• They they learned the 10 commandments very early in adultery was talked about in terms of faithfulness
• things you learned from Patsy Spa on day one? Mr.

Bills: SJR18, SCR5, SCR13, SCR25, SB3, SB6, SB10, SB11, SB12, SB13, SB15, SB17, SB18, SB35, SB388, SB412, SB441, SB495, SB666, SB687, SB706, SB740, SB815, SB842, SB917, SB925, SB995, SB1006, SB1281, SB1300, SB1379, SB1451, SB1902, SJR36, SJR18, SJR12, SCR13, SCR25, SCR5, SCR22, SB565, SB372, SB495, SB842, SB765, SB62, SB19, SB18, SB666, SB707, SB888, SB687, SB706, SB847, SB290, SB11, SB10, SB13, SB412, SB441, SB1248, SB740, SB14, SB1006, SB504, SB917, SB925, SB388, SB1902, SB1121, SB995, SB857, SB305, SB296, SB284, SB35, SB6, SB815, SB3, SB1281, SB1379, SB1300, SB1497, SB1499, SB1498, SB1451, SB1061, SB15, SB65, SB241, SB304, SB402, SB499, SB621, SB974, SB1023, SB1024, SB1025, SB1106, SB686, SB112, SB371, SB204, SB400, SB609, SB1447, SB670, SB502, SB427, SB850, SB854, SB413, SB1555, SB1362, SB1346, SB1033, SB1220, SB1073, SB810, SB987, SB1539, SB893, SB447, SB875, SB406, SB509, SB985, SB965, SB17, SB1119, SB1505, SB12, SB24, SB57, SB1194, SB1253, SB1215, SB1532, SB1268, SCR12, SCR24, SB1302, SB856, SB650, SB583, SB673, SB840

Keywords: capital gains, taxation, constitutional amendment, state revenue, individual investment, SCR 5, Senate Concurrent Resolution 5, Texas School for the Deaf, TSD, Robert Rives, gymnasium naming, building naming, honorary resolution, commemorative resolution, deaf education, hard of hearing, Gallaudet University, alumni hall of fame, football coach, school facility naming