Transcript Highlights:

• If they are violating any energy regulatory provisions or their permits, they are certainly going to
• The board also has to consider well spacing, so if you're coming in for a permit, you have to be a certain
• So in relation to water right permitting, it does not.
• to drill a commercial well, you're obligated to try to find water elsewhere outside of those spacing
• And then those proposed well locations are actually added to the permit.

Bills: SB1191 , SB1314 , SB1319 , SB1333 , SB1346 , SB1439 , SB1509 , SB1510 , SB1613

Committee: Senate Energy

Summary: The Senate Energy Committee met and first laid over a couple of items before taking up a series of energy and water-related bills. Senate Bill 1333, presented by Sen. Hall, was framed as a symbolic reflection of the Oklahoma Water Resources Board’s budget request and the state’s estimated $24 billion water infrastructure need through 2030. Members asked about project prioritization, emergency needs, long-term funding, federal matching dollars, and whether some proposed spending would go to outreach or new programs rather than direct infrastructure. Supporters emphasized the statewide water crisis, rural and municipal needs, and the goal of building a comprehensive water package; the bill passed 11-0. Senate Bill 1191, presented by Sen. Daniels, would eliminate an unused board tied to the Low Carbon Energy Initiative; the deputy secretary testified the board was never actually founded and collected no research, and the bill passed 11-0. The committee then considered Senate Bill 1439, the Energy Security and Independence Act, also by Sen. Daniels, which would shield fossil fuel companies operating lawfully and within permits from certain climate-change and emissions-based lawsuits. Questions focused on why the bill applied only to fossil fuels, whether it could affect landowners’ rights or environmental standards, and whether it would create a lower regulatory bar in Oklahoma. The author said it was aimed at a specific category of litigation seen in other states and would not protect unlawful conduct; the bill passed 10-1. Senate Bill 1314, by Sen. Yek, would raise the cap on the well drillers and pump installers indemnity fund from $50,000 to $100,000 and increase the per-well cap from $10,000 to $25,000; members discussed how the fund works and its limited size, and it passed 10-0. Senate Bill 1509, also by Sen. Yek, would update groundwater well spacing rules so the Water Resources Board could apply spacing requirements across all groundwater basins, not just those with maximum annual yield studies. The board said the bill is meant to protect existing commercial wells from encroachment, with exceptions if water cannot be found elsewhere on the property; it passed 10-0. Senate Bill 1319, presented by Sen. Hall, would allow the Corporation Commission to use plugging funds in rare cases where homes are affected by historic oil and gas activity or orphan wells; members raised concerns about caps, proof of contamination, remediation versus plugging, and whether landowners could present expert evidence. The author said the language was still being refined with the Commission, and the bill passed 10-0. Senate Bill 1346, by Vice Chair Woods, would direct the Water Resources Board to establish a water and wastewater infrastructure program with competitive loans for eligible entities; it was described as part of a broader effort to consolidate water measures into a comprehensive package and passed 9-0. The committee also passed Senate Bill 1613, which would let the LP Gas Administration buy, lease, and own its own vehicles instead of using the OMES fleet and would rename a miscellaneous permit as a food truck permit; it passed without debate. The meeting ended with adjournment and notice that there would be no committee meeting the following week.

Transcript Highlights:

• Congratulations to all of you. It's a repeat for me to get to do this.
• I'm really honored to be able to work on this pilot program with my work in dyslexia and trying to ensure
• So it is bizarre to me that all of a sudden we like to bifurcate.
• would want to support or colleges they would want to support.
• This was given to me from the House, so I don't have a whole lot of information as to how they got to

Bills: HB3327 , HB3711 , HB4104 , HJR1077 , HB3329 , HB4322 , HB4202 , HB4203 , HB4457 , HB3983 , HB3660 , HB3802 , HB2933 , HB2955 , HB2956 , HB3781 , HB3521 , HB3794 , HB3796 , HB3800 , HB3183 , HB4316 , HB4484 , HB3469 , HB3464 , HB3173 , HB3989 , HB3016 , HB2979 , HB2988 , HB2288 , HB3062 , HB3315 , HB3372 , HB3530 , HB3622 , HB3755 , HB4266

Keywords: State Board of Education, Oklahoma education board, board appointments, school governance, education reform, governor appointments, legislative appointments, speaker of the house, president pro tempore, senate confirmation, board vacancies, removal for cause, public education, state superintendent, school board training, board member qualifications, emergency clause, Oklahoma statutes 70 O.S. 3-101, school funding, transparency

Transcript Highlights:

• permit the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum to be located within the reserve of the National
• permit the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum to be located within the reserve of the National
• permit the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum to be located within the reserve of the National
• permit the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum to be located within the reserve of the National
• permit the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum to be located within the reserve of the National

Bills: HR1300 , HB2616 , HB1993 , HCR86 , SB1003 , SB2393 , HB5317 , HB4544 , HB3234 , HR1299

Keywords: H.Res. 1300, HR1300, rules resolution, House Rules Committee, veterans affairs, VA, NICS, National Instant Criminal Background Check System, firearms background check, gun control, veteran privacy, Department of Justice, disability compensation, dependency and indemnity compensation, DIC, veterans benefits, Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, National Mall, House procedure, floor consideration

Transcript Highlights:

• Be good to say you. You got to be worried. You got to be worried. You got to be worried.
• If we're going to want to compete with Florida and we want to compete with Michigan, then we need to
• I want them to go to LSU. So we're going to go get it.
• I just want to say welcome to committee and to the Capitol.
• He said that two years ago the Legislature permitted charter schools with a corporate partnership to

Bills: HR175 , HCR81 , SB105 , SB290 , SB304 , SB374 , SB522

Committee: House Education

Keywords: TOPS, education funding, workforce development, postsecondary education, Louisiana Works, tech training, declining enrollment, public schools, school districts, Louisiana Department of Education, state superintendent, school closures, budget cuts, teacher layoffs, school consolidation, education policy, enrollment decline, birth rates, migration, private schools

Transcript Highlights:

• If I'm sitting next to 100 acres and I've got 100 acres and my neighbor drills a well, and then I want
• to drill a well in that same proximity, what's gonna be in the same, is that going to, is that going
• So With regard to whether a new well may be drilled on land next to an existing well, there are currently
• These well spacing rules only apply to permitted wells, which generally are for commercial purposes.
• This is something we want to put in there to try to move this along to see what we can do to protect

Bills: SB1346 , SB1509 , SB1928 , SB2028 , SB2071 , SB2110 , SB2117 , SB2127 , SB2134 , SB722 , SB3

Committee: House Agriculture

Keywords: water infrastructure, wastewater, investment program, loans, local government, SB1509, groundwater, water wells, well spacing, water rights, Oklahoma Water Resources Board, OWRB, basin, subbasin, maximum annual yield, aquifer management, water allocation, water permits, temporary permits, irrigation

Transcript Highlights:

• We believe that this change would require us to work with our vendor to customize our permit issuance
• solution for people to be able to use to get from their homes to work, from their homes to the hospital
• as to how to do this.
• to get from people to be able to use to get from their<01:03:25.039><c> homes</c><01:03:25.280><c> to
• to that's going to and that's going to that's going to allocate<01:41:35.520><c> to</c><01:41:35.760>

Bills: HF3694 , HF3844 , HF4006 , HF3785 , HF3849 , HF4102 , HF3441 , HF3507 , HF3562

Committee: House Transportation Finance and Policy

Keywords: transportation, tow trucks, variable message signs, road safety, emergency service, optometrist, window glazing, motor vehicle regulations, medical prescriptions, transportation safety, infrastructure, construction, appropriation, state project, motorized bicycles, motorcycles, electric vehicles, transportation regulations, safety standards, dealer license

Transcript Highlights:

• That means there's no market to go build this. 35,000 approved pending permits in St.
• Senator, this bill also grants, I think, school board the authority to permit an attorney to represent
• For instance, you're permitted as a school board member to go and talk in public despite the fact that
• eligible to obtain such a permit and repeals the statutory authorization for expectant mother parking
• Many of my barrier islands in Pinellas County did not have the resources to process these permits.

Bills: S0036 , S0620 , S0796 , S0934 , S1080 , S1096 , S1366 , S1536 , S1548 , S1580 , S1588 , S1620 , S1756 , S7034 , S7044

Committee: Senate Rules

Keywords: nursing title, advanced practice registered nurse, advertising, professional standards, disciplinary action, candidate qualifying, federal office, election integrity, regulatory compliance, political candidacy, veterinary medicine, telehealth, veterinary professional associate, animal health, public safety, access to veterinary services, payment bond exemption, Habitat for Humanity, Florida Forever Act, land acquisition

Transcript Highlights:

• If disconnected while presenting testimony, you may be allowed to continue if time permits.
• continue if time you may be allowed to continue if time permits.<00:03:29.120><c> Please</c><00:03:29.360
• ><00:16:14.480><c> in</c> morning just to be here um to testify in morning just to be here um to testify
• to try to tighten up.
• We we bills to try to tighten up.

Bills: HB1952 , HB1951 , HB1929 , HB2497 , HB2208 , HB2572 , HB1737 , HB1953 , HB2551 , HB2549

Committees: House Agriculture & Food Systems , House Agriculture and Environment

Keywords: HB1952, Hawaii agriculture, University of Hawaii, CTAHR, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, Kauai, agricultural research station, extension station, capital improvements, general obligation bonds, GO bonds, appropriation, ADA compliance, Americans with Disabilities Act, certified kitchen, greenhouse, laboratory, field research, cesspool decommissioning, invasive species

Transcript Highlights:

• to the bus driver to the CEO.
• I go to work to take children of all of y'alls to go to and from honor the family values that they instilled
• I go to work to take children of all of y'alls to go to and from I go to work to take children of all
• who have all come here to talk to us.
• Members, we're going to go to tab 9.

Bills: S0332 , S0464 , S0576 , S0830 , S0964 , S0984 , S1096 , S1296 , S1298 , S1612 , S1656

Committee: Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability

Keywords: public records, public meetings, property rights, transcripts, settlement negotiations, Veterans Day, K-12 schools, holiday observance, education, Florida statutes, cybersecurity, local government, grant program, data-sharing, Florida Digital Service, ransomware protection, county administrators, city managers, exemption, privacy

Transcript Highlights:

• Specifically for Kaiser Aluminum, our request is that language is added to the bill that permits the
• for a contractor to modify and enhance internal systems for factory-assembled structures permitting
• We think pre-approved plans represent an exciting opportunity to speed up the permitting process.
• Are these permit-ready buildings, or is the permit to put the facilities on a piece of land?
• Permit-ready buildings or does the permit to put the facilities on a piece of land?

Bills: SB6346 , SB6347 , SB6147 , SB6246 , SB5940 , SB5882 , SB6223 , SJR8206 , SB5762 , SB5828

Committee: Senate Ways & Means

Keywords: millionaires tax, wealth tax, income tax, state revenue, tax reform, Washington estate tax, estate tax, inheritance tax, death tax, probate, decedent, gross estate, taxable estate, exclusion amount, tax rate, estate planning, heirs, beneficiaries, RCW 83.100, Department of Revenue

Transcript Highlights:

• /c><00:09:06.560><c> office</c> that I got to my letter to my office that I got to my letter to my office
• <c> to</c><00:21:56.559><c> be</c> Somebody's going to have to be Somebody's going to have to be responsible
• I just had to drill one, and there was nothing in there but photographs.
• I just had to drill one u and boxes.
• I just had to drill one u and there<00:54:49.520><c> was</c><00:54:49.760><c> nothing</c><00:54:50.079

Bills: SB57 , SB155 , HB39 , HB77 , HB104 , SB57 , SB155 , HB39 , HB77 , HB104

Committee: Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund

Keywords: property, acknowledgment, conveyance, business entities, limited liability companies, state employees, payroll deduction, salary deduction, comptroller, membership association, membership dues, voluntary contributions, insurance premiums, financial instruments, deferred compensation, state payroll, employee benefits, association dues, withholding, Alabama Code 36-1-4.3

Transcript Highlights:

• the United States, home to the challenges I wanted to be a part of, home to where I was supposed to
• The first amendment, labeled D1, permits a private detention facility to deny entry to the Department
• sent to the Secretary of State to be available to the public.
• To be available to the public.
• I'd like to speak to C4.

Bills: SB6062 , SB6080 , SB6184 , SB6224 , SB6255 , SB6286 , SB6308 , SB6319 , SB5977 , SB5979 , SB6249 , SGA9299

Committee: Senate Human Services

Keywords: juvenile justice, criminal offense, minors, rehabilitation, legal provisions, contracts, jails, federal custody, municipal agreements, incarceration, law enforcement, homeless youth, youth services, mental health, support programs, state law, behavioral health, children, support services, poverty reduction

Transcript Highlights:

• to community custody.
• Yield to Representative Davis to move adoption. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
• You know, motion needs to be... We do need to roll them in, right?
• and to be available to talk through things.
• to... ...who had lost their loved ones because they had been able to get access to nitrous oxide and

Bills: HB1239 , HB2310 , HB2490 , HB2508 , HB2510 , HB2532 , HB2539

Committee: House Community Safety

Keywords: reentry, reentry readiness, recidivism, earned release time, good time credits, graduated reentry, community custody, partial confinement, home detention, work release, electronic monitoring, substance use disorder treatment, mental health treatment, corrections, Department of Corrections, DOC, prison reform, sentencing, release date recalculation, transition services

Bills: HSB314 , SF304 , HF708 , HSB500 , HSB501 , HSB502 , HSB503 , HSB504 , HSB505 , HSB506

Committee: Joint Health and Human Services

Keywords: medical release, incapacitated, terminal illness, serious medical condition, parole, risk assessment, victim impact statement, supervision, care facility, Iowa, minors, medical consent, healthcare services, sexually transmitted infections, privacy, youth healthcare, healthcare decisions, palliative care, hospice care, life-sustaining procedures

Transcript Highlights:

• to introduce it to So I'm really excited to introduce it to all<00:01:42.479><c> of</c><00:01:42.640
• </c><00:42:13.200><c> to</c><00:42:13.599><c> to</c> knowledge, no. specific to uh uh to to knowledge
• then we're going to force employers to force them to comply.
• to report us to from doctors threatening to report us to child<01:12:54.960><c> protection.
• We're here to listen, to inform, to take action, and to make recommendations to improve the lives of

Bills: HF2362 , HF2136 , HF1316 , HF2009 , HF1918 , HF1614

Committee: House Children and Families Finance and Policy

Keywords: youth intervention, funding, mental health, education, community programs, HF1316, child support, new hire reporting, centralized work reporting system, independent contractors, payors, employers, payor of funds, withholding orders, income withholding, child support enforcement, Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families, gig economy, rideshare drivers, delivery drivers

Transcript Highlights:

• discharge amount permitted to us of 245,000 acre-feet.
• permit to you become a vested right, even to someone. like Dow Chemical, and they're based on the priority
• The permit may have some reservations in it that allow other people to be superior to it, even if it's
• It's my own ability to permit and drill my own wells to just keep him from stealing the water out from
• I mean, they're the ones that are... limiting, restricting your rights to drill your well and to produce

Bills: HB24 , HB27 , HB24 , HB27

Committee: House Natural Resources

Transcript Highlights:

• the water that they are asking us to be permitted.
• that they are asking us to be permitted.
• Going back to that prior appropriation doctrine, we cannot issue a new permit in these areas because
• They needed to drill and blast with dynamite to break that up.
• We issued 23 permits over just this three- or four-year period to 14 different companies.

Committee: Joint Advanced Nuclear Energy Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• permits just to...”
• permits just to We have an application to revise some of their permits just to make the work easier
• So when operators come to the state to permit a Class... ...of these things is long.
• So I do want to talk to you about what we're doing currently with well drilling.
• And what I've told my team with regard to well drilling is we just need to have a collection of drill-ready

Summary: The committee first heard a presentation from the Environment Department on PFAS contamination in private wells in La Cienega, Santa Fe County. Staff said the plume likely came from historic use of firefighting foam associated with airport and National Guard fire-training activities, with possible additional contribution from septic systems and consumer products. They described the contamination as affecting about 200 private wells, the short-term response of providing residential filters through a $2 million legislative appropriation, and ongoing work to define the plume’s full extent, identify responsible parties, and consider longer-term regional water solutions. Members asked about filter costs, replacement schedules, disposal of used cartridges, follow-up testing, health studies, and whether cleanup or containment had begun; the department said cleanup would follow once the plume is fully mapped and that DOH is soliciting interest in a blood study. The committee also discussed the need to track disposal of PFAS filters and the possibility of broader statewide capacity for similar work. The committee then took up abandoned uranium mine cleanup. NMED and EMNRD staff reviewed the new uranium mine reclamation program created by HB 164, the state dashboard tracking sites, and the FY26 appropriation of $20 million for neglected contaminated sites, of which $12 million is being used for neglected uranium mines and the remainder for other contaminated sites. They said six contractors were hired, three priority sites in Grant County are moving forward quickly, and additional sites are being prepared for possible FY27 work. Members pressed for details on how funds are spent, why the revolving fund remains unfunded, how federal, state, tribal, and landowner requirements are coordinated, where contaminated material will be moved, and whether cleanup could also address homes built with contaminated materials. Staff said the work is governed by multiple regulatory layers, that the state is seeking an additional $25 million for FY27-FY28 plus a time extension, and that partnerships with tribes would require longer-term agreements. The committee also discussed federal cleanup efforts and the new Good Samaritan law, with members urging stronger advocacy for New Mexico sites, including tribal lands, and asking whether the Attorney General should pursue legal action against federal parties responsible for legacy contamination. Staff explained that some sites are already covered by settlement funds tied to responsible parties, while neglected sites are those with no responsible party and no other cleanup program. The committee then heard from EMNRD on Class VI carbon sequestration primacy. Staff said New Mexico currently has no operating Class VI wells, about 27 Class II acid-gas injection wells are operating, and only a small number might be candidates for conversion. They explained that the state’s primacy application would require more public outreach than federal rules alone, and that cost estimates for post-injection site care are based on long planning horizons, with some costs borne by operators and some by the state after closure. No votes were taken on the substantive items discussed; the committee approved the prior meeting minutes and took a brief recess between presentations.

Transcript Highlights:

• To get to closing and break ground.
• That's down to about 16. is two-mile laterals that are permitted in the state of North Dakota.
• is so they don't have to drill another vertical section.
• You can hedge production that's going to come out of a drilling rig that's drilling right now for next
• Okay, so we should probably, with any new drilling, Continues to trend upwards.

Summary: The committee met as the Regulatory Division budget section and first reviewed the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency’s budget and program update. Legislative Council outlined the agency’s base budget and historical funding, and Housing Finance staff reported on homeownership lending, housing incentive fund (HIF) awards, and homeless grant spending. Agency officials said the five new FTEs approved last session are mostly filled, with one homeless program manager still open. They described strong demand for HIF, noting that September 2025 multifamily requests exceeded $73 million while only $25 million was available, and that single-family and homeless programs are also heavily subscribed. Members discussed the agency’s local loan servicing workload, interest-rate benefits, down payment assistance, and the need to coordinate housing discussions with Commerce and site-preparation efforts. The agency asked that HIF, single-family, and homeless funding be maintained or increased, and committee members emphasized accountability and statewide access for homeless prevention and rapid rehousing funds. The Department of Mineral Resources then presented its budget and agency initiatives. Staff reported that the department is on track financially, that most of the five new reclamation-related FTEs are hired, and that litigation costs tied to oil and gas matters are expected to continue appearing late in the biennium. The director reviewed ongoing modernization and organizational efforts, including the North Star IT project, succession planning, training, and rulemaking for oil and gas and critical minerals. Members asked about longer laterals, spacing, and production trends; the department said operators are increasingly drilling three-, four-, and even an initial five-mile lateral, which is helping keep North Dakota oil production relatively flat even as rig counts ease. The director also discussed oil price volatility tied to Middle East conflict, hedging practices among producers, gas capture remaining around 95%, and the likelihood that current production levels will stay near flat unless prices or geopolitical conditions change significantly. An update on the enhanced oil recovery grant program followed. The Industrial Commission’s grant administrator said the full $25 million appropriation was allocated in the fall to six projects, and because the oil and gas research fund also had carryover and biennial tax revenue, total awards reached about $45.1 million. The projects are expected to run two to four years, with meaningful results not likely until mid-2026 or later. Members questioned whether the public would have access to the research findings and how accountability would be maintained; staff said the grants are reimbursement-based, require regular status reports, and will culminate in public final reports. The committee also heard from the North Dakota Pipeline Authority, which updated members on natural gas transmission projects, especially WBI Energy’s proposed Bakken East pipeline. The authority said the project has advanced through a nonbinding and then binding open season, with WBI now securing survey permissions and moving through regulatory and landowner processes, while other related gas transmission projects near Minot and Epping are also in development.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, who's going to be responsible for putting dosing on the package to tell people how much to take for
• a lot of physicians who want to be able to do this to a right to try on different things that they have
• Would you like to adopt the amendment to the second PCS and the amendment to it? All of the above.
• And we would like for the hygienists in the hotel system to be able to be there to take x-rays.
• We'd love to be able to do that for them.

Bills: HB3552 , HB2984 , HB4124 , HB3934 , HB3448 , HB3131 , HB4200 , HB4201 , HB3011 , HB1912 , HB3380 , HB3881 , HB3538 , HB3851 , HB3907 , HB4430 , HB4431 , HB4457

Committee: House Health and Human Services Oversight

Keywords: childcare, differential pricing, Department of Human Services, child care subsidy, licensed providers, emergency legislation, child care, subsidy program, annual report, program integrity, overpayments, ivermectin, over-the-counter medication, pharmacy immunity, healthcare access, FDA approval, prescription, public health, dentistry, licensing