Transcript Highlights:

• What's happening outside right now, bait boxes are under piles of... ...snow.
• What's happening outside right now, bait boxes are under piles of melting snow.
• Then along comes your rats and they go inside the bait box, all right? And they eat the poison.
• As they exit the bait box, they are poison on four legs now.
• When a rodent eats the bait, it lives for up to 10 days, getting weaker.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Summary: The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources held a late-file hearing focused mainly on coastal access and wildlife protection bills, rodenticide restrictions, and a conservation land use bill. Chair Barbara House opened with technical notes and hearing rules, then Rep. Scarsdale testified for H. 5113, which would name an accessible trail in Groton the Marion Stoddard Riverwalk in honor of the environmental advocate who helped restore the Nashua River. Groton Trails Committee chair Paul Fung also supported the bill, describing the trail, educational signage, and DCR’s involvement. Rep. Sweezey then presented a package of Duxbury beach bills—H. 5141, H. 5140, and H. 5139—aimed at revising shorebird protections, creating parity among beaches, and requiring regular review of outdated recreational-use guidelines. He said the bills were developed with local and agency input to balance conservation and beach access, though he acknowledged some initial concerns from wildlife officials about the language in H. 5141. The committee also heard extensive testimony on local home-rule petitions to restrict second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides and other pesticides. Supporters included Grafton resident Shannon Phelan, Mass Audubon’s Heather Packard, Sen. Ford, Billerica resident William Jubin, Manchester-by-the-Sea resident Anne Harris, and Animal Defenders International’s Drew McCormick. They argued the poisons cause secondary poisoning in owls, hawks, eagles, and other wildlife, can harm pets and livestock, and are increasingly ineffective; several speakers urged local authority because statewide action has been slow. Opponents included Molly Moran of the New England Pest Management Association, who argued regulation should remain at the state level through MDAR to avoid a patchwork of local rules and noted the agency is already reviewing the issue. Additional testimony from Stephanie Ellis, Laura Kelly, Chris Powicki, Cecily Miller, and others supported Eastham and Truro pesticide-reduction petitions, citing wildlife losses, groundwater concerns, and the need for local control. Finally, the committee heard S. 2961 from Dighton town counsel Matthew Costa, which would authorize use of a small portion of conservation land for public way purposes tied to replacement of the Pleasant Street Bridge. Costa said the easements are needed for safety improvements, including a wider bridge deck, sidewalk, guardrail replacement, and erosion controls, and that the affected conservation area is limited and of little natural-resource value. The hearing ended after testimony on these bills, with no votes taken during the session and the committee adjourning at the close of testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• Bait boxes are under piles of... Thank you. In snow.
• What's happening outside right now, bait boxes are under piles of melting snow.
• Then along comes your rats and they go inside the bait box, all right? And they eat the poison.
• As they exit the bait box, they are poison on four legs now.
• When a rodent eats the bait, it lives for up to 10 days, getting weaker.

Bills: H5113 , H5076 , H4972 , H4917 , H4700 , S2896 , S2961 , S2933 , H5141 , H5140 , H5139 , S2877 , H3920

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Keywords: Marion Stoddart, riverwalk, J. Harry Rich State Forest, Groton, Nashua River, Nashua River Watershed Association, Massachusetts Clean Waters Act, Department of Conservation and Recreation, DCR, trail designation, state forest, conservation, environmental recognition, commemorative naming, signage, public lands, toxic pesticides, Eastham, environmental regulation, local control

Transcript Highlights:

• Banning deer baiting hurts rural businesses, farmers, and especially hunters.
• .of the baiting ban.
• between a baited camera and a camera just placed in the woods.
• What bait does is you're breaking down that social structure.
• And that's the one thing that baiting ensures.

Committee: House Natural Resources & Environment

Transcript Highlights:

• Under definitions, the 010 section 01, you'll find the word natural added to bait in reference to liquid
• This was requested by the trappers to differentiate between visible bait and what I would call invisible
• bait, which is natural liquid scent.
• So making the allowance of natural liquid scent provides the ability to place that scent or liquid bait
• crossing is to protect the ungulates getting across the highway, so prohibiting trapping sets and baiting

Committee: House Resources and Conservation

Transcript Highlights:

• So this is docket 13-01-08-24-01, and this is rules governing use of bait for hunting big game animals
• This is docket 13-01-08-24-01, and this is rules governing use of bait for hunting big game animals.
• Bait, as a definition, was moved from 13-01-17, and language from this chapter, section 410.04(b), was
• This is the content I mentioned that was brought over from Chapter 13-01-17, use of bait for hunting
• report it, stop using the site, and remove the bait as soon as possible.

Committee: Senate Resources and Environment

Transcript Highlights:

• I also want to say that the casino industry has proven themselves to be adept at the old bait-and-switch
• I also want to say that the casino industry has proven themselves to be adept at the old bait-and-switch
• I also want to say that the casino industry has proven themselves to be adept at the old bait-and-switch
• I also want to say that the casino industry has proven themselves to be adept at the old bait-and-switch
• I also want to say that the casino industry has proven themselves to be adept at the old bait-and-switch

Committee: Senate Ways and Means

Transcript Highlights:

• House Bill 2997 is a consumer protection bill which strengthens the penalties for bait-and-switch tactics
• So generally what’s been happening on a bait-and-switch, the auto industry, and this was the example
• given to me, is on a retail scale, is making about $8,000 when they bait and switch a car.
• So generally what’s been happening on a bait-and-switch, the auto industry, and this was the example
• given to me, is on a retail scale, is making about $8,000 when they bait and switch a car.

Bills: HB2053 , HB2123 , HB2603 , HB2979 , HB2997 , HB3148 , HB3982 , HB4058 , HB4108 , HB4143 , HB4266

Committee: Senate Aeronautics and Transportation

Summary: The Senate Aeronautics and Transportation Committee heard two executive nominations first and advanced both unanimously. Tim Gatz was nominated to serve as Cabinet Secretary for Transportation, with supportive remarks from Senator Paxton and Senator Guthrie about his responsiveness and long service; the committee voted 12-0 to advance him. Justin Blake Wilson was nominated to the Oklahoma Motor Vehicle Commission, introduced by Senator Howard as a banker and entrepreneur interested in public service; he also advanced 12-0. The committee then considered several transportation and motor vehicle bills. House Bill 3982 would give certain commercial fleets a 90-day temporary tag and allow nonresidents 60 days to title and license vehicles in another state; it advanced 12-0. House Bill 2123, a backup measure related to a Tulsa/Jenks/Bixby Arkansas River bridge project aimed at easing congestion and improving safety, also advanced 12-0. House Bill 2979 would allow ODOT to establish school zones on portions of state highways at local request, with ODOT identifying 14 qualifying locations and an estimated cost of $266,000; it passed 12-0. House Bill 2997, a consumer protection bill targeting bait-and-switch practices in retail motor vehicle sales and increasing enforcement staffing, advanced on a 10-2 vote after discussion of raising the maximum fine from $1,000 to $10,000. Other measures approved included House Bill 3148, allowing licensed new and used motor vehicle dealers to perform their own VIN inspections, which passed 12-0; House Bill 4108, adding airport operational areas to the list of critical infrastructure and prohibiting trespass there, which passed 12-0; House Bill 4143, raising the damage threshold for a required written collision report from $300 to $3,000 and allowing no report when parties exchange information, which passed 11-1 amid concerns about fault and insurance verification; House Bill 4266, the omnibus license plate bill, which passed 12-0 with a zero fiscal impact noted; House Bill 2053, clarifying outdoor advertising rules for playgrounds and planned unit developments, which passed 12-0; and House Bill 4058, allowing optional blood type information on driver licenses and ID cards to aid first responders and blood supply efforts, which passed 11-0. The chair closed by thanking members and staff, noting it was likely the committee’s final meeting and his last as chair.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, yeah, we use similar baits that some homeowners would do.
• We can get bigger quantities of that and have bigger bait stations for rats.
• Baits that some homeowners would do, we can get bigger quantities of that and have bigger bait stations
• They're shy of bait.
• If you bait them wrong, they will move on and not come back to that bait or trap again.

Committee: House Agricultural Affairs

Bills: HR39 , HR40 , HR41 , HCR19 , HCR20 , HCR21 , HB2 , HB3 , HB15 , HB441 , HB976 , HB977 , HB978 , HB979 , HB980 , HB981 , HB982 , HR19 , HR20 , HR21 , HR22 , HR23 , HR24 , HR25 , HR26 , HR27 , HR28 , HR29 , HR30 , HR31 , HR32 , HR33 , HR34 , HR35 , HR36 , HR37 , HR38 , HCR15 , HCR16 , HCR17 , HCR18 , SCR10 , HB115 , HB208 , HB465 , HB964 , HB965 , HB966 , HB967 , HB968 , HB969 , HB970 , HB971 , HB972 , HB973 , HB974 , HB975 , HB474 , HB487 , HB503 , HB606 , HB633 , HB707 , HB720 , HB728 , HB733 , HB846 , HB852 , HB856 , HB868 , HB875 , HB78 , HB112 , HB148 , HB149 , HB190 , HB221 , HB346 , HB354 , HB355 , HB356 , HB358 , HB384 , HB427 , HB657 , HB675 , HB716 , HB207 , HB300 , HB331 , HB428 , HB464 , HB587 , HB618 , HB629 , HB801 , HB853 , HB891 , HB901

Keywords: St. Joseph's Day, Saint Joseph's Day, St. Joseph's Altar, Italian American, Italian heritage, Italian immigrants, Louisiana culture, New Orleans, Sicilian heritage, Catholic, Feast of Saint Joseph, cultural resolution, heritage caucus, legislative caucus, ethnic heritage, jazz history, Italian Louisiana, immigrant contributions, cultural recognition, House Resolution 40

Transcript Highlights:

• Rats and mice have learned, um, to avoid bait boxes. It's called bait shyness.
• </c><01:15:54.640><c> Uh</c> bait boxes. It's called bait shyness. Uh bait boxes.
• It's called bait shyness.
• We'll put bait, we'll put snap traps.
• </c> the chicken coupe to wherever the bait the chicken coupe to wherever the bait box<03:27:46.080><

Committee: House Environment and Agriculture

Transcript Highlights:

• That customer had been working with another pest company that placed escars-filled bait boxes around
• This is called a bait box. It's an empty plastic box with holes through there.
• The bait box is an empty plastic box with holes through there, and the rodenticides go on little posts
• Bait boxes are located outside many businesses, restaurants, and homes.
• It only takes one bait box to kill an entire family of foxes.

Bills: H5432 , H5433 , S3093 , H5363 , H5137 , H5247

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Keywords: Newbury, rodenticides, second generation anticoagulant rodenticides, SGARs, pesticides, pest control, wildlife protection, environmental regulation, local bylaw, municipal authority, private property, rodent control, anticoagulant poison, public health, Massachusetts local option, Wellfleet, fertilizer, nitrogen, phosphorus, nutrient pollution

Transcript Highlights:

• Nicole Kirchoff with Live Advantage Bait. Welcome. Good afternoon.
• We are a warm-water marine bait and food fish hatchery based in Fort Pierce, Florida, in your district
• To show the scope of this opportunity, take one of my primary species: marine bait fish.
• Recreational anglers in the state of Florida spend $275 million a year on live bait to go fishing, to
• Eighty to ninety percent of all those bait fish come from the wild.

Committee: Senate Agriculture

Summary: The Committee on Agriculture convened, took roll, and heard Senate Bill 58 by Senator Harrow, which would create regulation for companion animal cremation. Harrow described a case involving mishandled pet remains and said the bill would require written service descriptions, prohibit false or misleading statements, require certification with returned remains, authorize Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services rulemaking, and impose civil penalties for violations. With no questions or public opposition, the committee voted the bill favorably. The committee then heard presentations on robotics in agriculture and aquaculture. Dr. Nathan Boyd of UF/IFAS discussed the rapid growth of agricultural robotics, including AI-driven weed detection, targeted spraying, autonomous tractors, and harvesting technology, emphasizing reduced pesticide use, lower input costs, and labor-saving automation. Dr. Nicole Kirchoff of Live Advantage Bait and Adrian Johnson of the Florida Shellfish Aquaculture Association highlighted aquaculture’s economic and environmental value, Florida’s strong position in the industry, and challenges including hurricane losses, lack of insurance, land-use instability, capital access, and water quality. They urged support for working waterfronts, risk mitigation, and policies to help the sector commercialize and expand. The committee also heard from dairy producers Kevin Lusher and Jacob Larson. Lusher described his family’s dairy and artisan cheese business, noting reliance on USDA grants, rising costs, labor shortages, and regulatory burdens, and asked for more grant support, marketing for Fresh From Florida products, and permanent funding for Farmers Feeding Florida. Larson discussed the broader dairy market, declining herd sizes due to efficiency gains, high production costs in Florida, and competition from out-of-state processing, suggesting incentives for local processing and supply management. Finally, FDOT Chief Planner Wayway Schen presented on arterial and local road funding programs, including ART, ARTW, SCOP, SCRAP, CIGP, and TRIP, and said rural road needs remain significant, with more than $16 billion in unfunded or partially funded project needs. The committee adjourned after brief discussion and thanks to the presenters.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is called a bait box. It's an empty plastic box with holes through there.
• Bait boxes are located outside many businesses, restaurants, and homes.
• In Andover, we have documented rodenticide poisonings involving hawks, foxes, and pets, as well as bait
• And it only takes one bait box to kill an entire family of foxes.
• We conducted a bait box count in town, and we discovered 683 boxes, with nearly half of them in the town

Bills: H5432 , H5433 , S3093 , H5363 , H5137 , H5247

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Summary: The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources held a hybrid hearing on late-file bills, with testimony focused first on multiple home rule petitions seeking local authority to restrict anticoagulant rodenticides in towns including Andover, Topsfield, North Andover, Williamstown, Georgetown, Lexington, and others. Municipal officials, residents, wildlife advocates, and conservation groups described documented harm to hawks, owls, foxes, turtles, pets, and other wildlife, and argued that towns should be able to regulate these poisons locally. Several speakers said their towns had already voted to support restrictions and were using integrated pest management and other alternatives. Committee members noted that statewide rodenticide legislation had already advanced out of committee in both chambers and that the environmental bond bill was in conference committee, but no votes were taken during the hearing itself. The committee then heard testimony on H. 5137, a bill to prohibit the retail sale of parrots. Supporters, including animal welfare groups, veterinarians, rescue operators, and advocates, said parrots are often sourced from large breeding facilities with poor conditions, that many birds are surrendered because they are difficult long-term pets, and that rescues are overwhelmed. They argued the bill would encourage adoption, reduce demand for commercial breeding and trafficking, and improve bird welfare and public health. Opponents, including breeders, pet retailers, aviculture representatives, and rescue operators, said the bill would harm small businesses, reduce consumer access and transparency, and push sales to unregulated markets without improving welfare. Several speakers said the bill should instead focus on stronger standards and enforcement rather than banning sales. A separate bill, S. 310, designating the Marion Stoddard River Walk, was also briefly discussed in testimony supporting Marion Stoddard’s environmental work. The hearing ended after the committee finished taking testimony and adjourned; no roll-call votes or formal actions were taken in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• I quote in part: 'Thank you, resident X, for educating us on bait boxes and what is inside.'
• Our pest control company supplies our bait boxes, and we recently switched to R.A.D.X., a food mix that
• Lincoln Schools' Facilities Director has reported that, along with using snap traps and bait boxes, the

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Transcript Highlights:

• My bait is rotting. And I look over there where he's fishing, and the water's just boiling.
• And I walked over there and I said, son, what kind of bait are you using?
• And he looked at me and he rolled his eyes and said, Dad, I don't need bait.

Committee: House Special Committee on Tourism

Summary: The Special Committee on Tourism met in executive session and approved two bills. House Bill 1756, described as related to “June’s week,” passed unanimously 9-0 after brief discussion. House Bill 1828, which provides funds for memorials and museums dedicated to veterans, also passed unanimously, 12-0. The committee then opened a public hearing on House Bill 2845, sponsored by Representative Lisa Durnell, to designate a memorial bridge for Jared Bennett near Willow Springs. Durnell explained that Bennett died in a 2002 automobile accident, that his family maintained a memorial and stretch of roadway through MoDOT’s Adopt-A-Highway program for years, and that the bridge naming would honor his memory with signage paid for by private funds and no fiscal note. Jared Bennett’s father, Craig Bennett, testified in support and shared personal stories about his son, including his love of fishing. Committee members offered condolences and supportive comments, and one member requested copies of written stories about Jared for the record. No one testified in opposition, and the hearing on House Bill 2845 was closed with no further business.

Transcript Highlights:

• My bait is rotting. And I look over there where he's fishing, and the water's just boiling.
• And I walked over there and I said, son, what kind of bait are you using?
• And he looked at me and he rolled his eyes and said, Dad, I don't need bait.

Committee: House Special Committee on Tourism

Transcript Highlights:

• I quote in part: 'Thank you, resident X, for educating us on bait boxes and what is inside.'
• Our pest control company supplies our bait boxes, and we recently switched to RADX, a food mix that gradually
• Lincoln Schools Facilities Director has reported that, along with using snap traps and bait boxes, the

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

Summary: The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources held a brief hybrid hearing on late-file bills, with Chair Becca Rausch outlining procedures and limiting testimony to three minutes. The hearing focused on six home rule petitions from Ayer, Boxborough, Groton, Lincoln, Nahant, and Sharon that would restrict or prohibit the use of anticoagulant rodenticides, referred to by speakers as harmful “escars.” Testimony was uniformly in support of the petitions. Speakers including Christine Goulet, Heather Packard of Mass Audubon, Carrie Stamos of Save Lincoln Wildlife, and Lisa Nayan de Muel described the dangers of these poisons to bald eagles, other wildlife, pets, and ecosystems, and argued that towns had already shown local support for restrictions. Several witnesses said non-rodenticide pest management methods and integrated pest management can work effectively, and urged the committee to report the bills favorably. Mass Audubon also framed the local petitions as a step toward a broader statewide ban, citing recent action in Rhode Island, California, and other states. No opposition testimony was presented, and no votes were taken during the hearing. After the final witness, the chair asked whether anyone else wished to be heard and then adjourned the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• What they got was a bait and switch.
• What they got was a bait and switch.
• What they got was a bait and switch.
• What they got was a bait and switch.
• What they got was a bait and switch.

Summary: Representative Hicks presented House File 4194, which would change how Rochester’s approved local option sales tax funds could be used for a regional athletics facility. Hicks argued the city’s 2023 ballot materials promised substantial community and stakeholder engagement and an indoor/outdoor community recreation complex, but that the project shifted to an outdoor-only plan without meaningful public input. She said the bill was needed to center Rochester residents’ voices and prevent a precedent of approved projects being changed after the vote. Rochester City Council President Randy Schubring opposed the bill, saying the city is following the 2023 authorization and building as much as possible within the approved funding. He said the ballot question passed with 53% support and urged the committee not to overturn local election results, while asking lawmakers to work with the city and Rochester delegation on the remaining funding shortfall. Testifier Kamau Wilkins also opposed the city’s current direction, saying voters were promised indoor recreation facilities but are now getting mostly outdoor baseball diamonds, which he described as a bait-and-switch. Several members supported Hicks’ concerns, saying legislators have a duty to ensure local sales tax projects match what voters were told. Representative Lee raised a broader issue about legislative oversight of local option sales taxes and referenced a possible St. Paul-related fix. Hicks closed by saying she supported the tax originally but no longer believes the project matches what voters approved. The committee then laid House File 4194 over for possible inclusion in the omnibus tax bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• 30 days prior to hunting in that bait 30 days prior to hunting in that area<00:12:26.240><c> move</c
• Hunting over bait is more successful, so the goal is to continue monitoring harvest and how successful
• </c><00:14:12.120><c> change</c><00:14:13.120><c> um</c> you're seeing this baiting change um you're
• seeing this baiting change um it's<00:14:14.160><c> when</c><00:14:14.320><c> you</c><00:14:14.440><c
• ><c> more</c> it's when you hun over bait you're more it's when you hun over bait you're more successful

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the minutes, and then reviewed a long agenda of administrative regulations, most of which were advanced with staff-suggested amendments and no objection. Early items included the Kentucky Public Pension Authority’s 105 KAR 1:451, which updates reporting language and adds the contractor wizard for certain employers, and a large package of Board of Veterinary Examiners regulations that revise fees, facility and AHP registration requirements, continuing education, liability, and practice rules. The Board of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology’s compact-related regulation and the Board of Licensed Professional Counselors’ complaint and compact rules were also reviewed and approved with amendments, along with fish and wildlife rules affecting elk hunting, youth deer season length, bear-dog approvals, and foxhound enclosure permits. The committee also approved transportation, education, workplace standards, horse racing, and several health and human services regulations, including Medicaid waiver reimbursement updates and a child care regulation that sends certain large claims to the Office of Inspector General for review. Several agencies briefly explained their regulations when members asked questions. Fish and Wildlife said the elk population is strong and the baiting change is intended to support harvest monitoring and fair chase, while the longer youth deer season was meant to give young hunters more opportunity. The Department of Community-Based Services said the $10,000 and $5,000 claim thresholds were meant to clarify rare cases involving possible fraud or unresolved recoupment issues. The Department of Financial Institutions’ 808 KAR 5:305 drew the most discussion: it would allow certain state-chartered credit unions with a low-income designation to participate in federal programs, including limited non-member deposits and supplemental capital, but the regulation was deferred again amid continued discussions. The Kentucky Bankers Association testified against the credit union regulation, arguing that allowing non-member deposits conflicts with existing statute limiting credit union deposits to members and other credit unions, and that an administrative regulation cannot override that statutory restriction. Committee members heard the agency’s explanation that the proposal is intended to help underserved communities and that the non-member deposit authority would be limited, but no final action was taken because the item was deferred. The meeting otherwise concluded with the remaining regulations being called, discussed briefly, and approved or advanced without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• They put them in live bait<00:21:30.960><c> trucks</c><00:21:31.280><c> or</c><00:21:31.520><c> live<
• :31.760><c> fish</c><00:21:32.080><c> trucks</c><00:21:32.640><c> to</c><00:21:32.880><c> make</c> bait
• trucks or live fish trucks to make bait trucks or live fish trucks to make it<00:21:33.200><c> look<
• through Tennessee because Tennessee was watching for it, watching for any kind of live truck, live bait
• through Tennessee because Tennessee was watching for it, watching for any kind of live truck, live bait

Committee: Joint Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks