Transcript Highlights:

• HB 4474 by Schaffner Erling, the appearance of personal identification certificate or driver's license
• HB 4489, but Ross of Harris ruling to the issuance of educators certificate and certain applications
• HB 4581 by Ian relating to a temporary emergency energy facilities for the Committee on state affairs
• HG 4895 by the ruling the certificates of number and certificates of the issues titled issued on records
• HB 4967 by Canales relating to the renewal fee for a dealer's temporary license plate referred to the

Transcript Highlights:

• For certain certification examination county process, for out-of-state property tax, to change the duties
• The bill would create annual temporary hang-tag permits and set related permit rules.
• The fee for a temporary resident motor vehicle permit would not be more than $10.
• The fee for a temporary nonresident motor vehicle permit would be two times the fee for a resident motor
• It also includes $126,100 and $6,000, and states that no expenditure for permanent or temporary salaries

Bills: LB737, LB753, LB788, LB913, LB1055, LB1195, LB1216, LB1256, LB429, LB721, LB722, LB727, LB743, LB745, LB749, LB778, LB787, LB365A, LB823, LB900, LB903, LB940, LB954, LB1127, LB1127A, LB1205, LB1240, LR293, LR296, LR422, LR505, LR507

Keywords: LB737, Olmstead, developmental disabilities, disability services, community-based services, integrated settings, DHHS, Department of Health and Human Services, stakeholder advisory committee, independent consultant, public hearing, legislative oversight, disability rights, community integration, housing, employment, education, transportation, community supports, self-advocacy

Transcript Highlights:

• Lastly, the bill strengthens the educator pipeline by updating eligibility for teachers' certification
• programs and certifications in computer science.
• The amendment removes the bill provisions on temporary door locks and DOE-developed instructional materials
• The amendment removes the bill provisions on temporary door locks and DOE-developed instructional materials

Summary: The Senate Committee on Pre-K-12 Appropriations met with a quorum present, but the chair announced that the committee would not be presenting its budget that day due to a Senate memorandum. The only bill heard was SB 7036 by Senator Corey Simon, which was described as a broad education package strengthening school turnaround tools, early literacy supports, early learning policies, academic interventions, and educator pipeline provisions. Simon explained that the bill would expand educational emergency authority, clarify use of Title I funds for STEM, align charter renewal and dismissal rules, update epinephrine policy, protect gold seal provider status in certain cases, expand VPK summer bridge eligibility, support math and reading interventions, expand agriculture and Algebra I career-based instruction, re-engage students through GATE, and update teacher certification pathways, including computer science. The committee adopted an amendment offered by Simon that removed provisions on temporary door locks and DOE-developed instructional materials and added a GATE startup grant update to expand rule eligibility and allowable implementation costs. The bill drew many appearance forms, with several individuals and the Florida Education Association waving against, while one speaker, Ella Latimore, appeared in support/for the bill. Simon said concerns from the prior stop had been addressed by removing the contested language and noted discussions with the CFO’s office and law enforcement regarding the door lock provisions. After closing debate, the committee approved the bill on a roll call vote and reported CS for SB 7036 favorably. The remainder of the meeting included brief remarks recognizing visiting students from Childs High School and the Rack Pack, comments about community member Misty Cash, and a discussion by Senator Osgood about declining immigrant student enrollment and its budget impact on school districts. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• for suspensions for specific specific kinds of misconduct following the State Board for Educator Certificates
• . or excuse me, certification methods, strengthens oversight of the Do Not Hire Registry and aligns due
• I mean, they could lose their certification as an educator, and then because of these other expansions
• The committee sub does address this in for temporary suspensions and temporary placements in certain
• School districts are not qualified to investigate crime. teachers can surrender their certification to

Bills: SB604, SB843, SB1636, SB2395, SB571, SB1224, SB1832, SB2392, SB747, SB2623, SB2624, SB2185

Keywords: bonds, education funding, Texas Permanent School Fund, financial transparency, speculative rating, school funding, deferred maintenance, tax revenue, education budget, school districts, education, finance, Texas Education Code, misconduct, child abuse, educators, investigation, criminal offense, education law, suspension

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill will allow the department to issue provisional certifications in emergency situations for shelters
• that are working to meet the number of months of historic operation qualify for full service certification
• birth certificate so that it didn't look like the child was the product of rape and incest.
• A 24 hour shelter hearing is held and the temporary protective supervision process begins lasting up
• No. >> That all could be removed and put in a temporary protective status.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• that second on House Bill one um so with that second on House Bill one um so with that certification
• puts<00:03:05.599> this<00:03:05.799> issue<00:03:06.239> back With that certification
• 10.080> large including ours were experiencing large including ours were experiencing large temporary
• > Revenue<00:05:11.520> surpluses<00:05:12.199> due<00:05:12.440> to temporary
• Revenue surpluses due to temporary Revenue surpluses due to pandemic<00:05:13.479> induced<00

Keywords: Meeting start 00:00 Roll Call 00:20 HB 1 Discussion 02:00 HB 1 Vote 13:10, 958, all

Summary: The House Standing Committee on Appropriations and Revenue met on January 8, 2025, with a full roll call and a welcome to new members. The committee took up its only agenda item, House Bill 1, sponsored by Chair Jason Petrie, which would implement a further 0.5% reduction in the individual income tax rate, effective January 1, 2026, with conforming date changes tied to the state’s existing tax-cut framework under House Bill 8 and the budget director’s certification of reserve and revenue conditions. Jason Bailey of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy testified against the bill, arguing that Kentucky’s recent permanent income tax cuts were enacted during an unusual period of temporary pandemic-era revenue surpluses and federal aid, and warning that another cut could worsen future budget pressures. He said the proposed reduction would cost about $718 million annually when fully phased in and would increase risk to state services, especially in poorer rural areas that rely heavily on state funding. In response to questions, the sponsor and other members described the bill as limited to the income tax rate and said any future reversal would require statutory change. Representative Gentry asked about the broader policy goal of moving toward a more consumption-based tax structure and whether the income tax cuts were intended to support growth and population retention. He said he had seen anecdotal signs of housing and population activity in Jefferson County and surrounding areas, though he acknowledged the difficulty of proving causation. He ultimately passed on the bill, saying he wanted more data and was concerned about benefits flowing more to higher-income taxpayers. The committee then voted 17-0 with 3 pass votes to report House Bill 1 favorably to the House floor.

Transcript Highlights:

• In its infinite wisdom, the Senate just added a requirement that the birth certificate that's required
• Speaker and members, we cleaned up Senate Bill 1198 to clarify the word "temporary" and designating hazardous

Bills: HB149, HB2017, HB705, HB223, HB 1056, HB2854, HB4623, HB3000, HB46, HB 117, HB3619, HB4464, HB5646, HCR84, HB500, HB2963, HB5509, HB1973, HB3909, HB718, HB252, HB5666, HB 119, HB346, HB5624, HB5658, HB5677, HB1545, HB3073, HB4081, HB 121, HB4236, HB3848, HB4144, HB40, HB5682, HB3697, HB3333, HB3642, HB20, HB549, HB2731, HB4233, HB4690, HB 127, HB2525, SB1637, SB1, SB1198, SB509, SB13, SB15, SB30, SB268, SB331, SB441, SB447, SB457, SB568, SB650, SB763, SB1540, SB1610, SB1660, SB2018, SB2024, SB2217, SB2337, SB2753, SB2900, SB2972, SB3059, HB14

Keywords: artificial intelligence, regulation, biometric data, ethical AI, consumer protection, AI governance, intoxication manslaughter, criminal penalties, community supervision, mandatory supervision, parole eligibility, Grayson's Law, cosmetology, licensure, interstate compact, state regulations, public safety, workforce mobility, municipality, procurement

Bills: HB149, HB2017, HB705, HB223, HB 1056, HB2854, HB4623, HB3000, HB46, HB 117, HB3619, HB4464, HB5646, HCR84, HB500, HB2963, HB5509, HB1973, HB3909, HB718, HB252, HB5666, HB 119, HB346, HB5624, HB5658, HB5677, HB1545, HB3073, HB4081, HB 121, HB4236, HB3848, HB4144, HB40, HB5682, HB3697, HB3333, HB3642, HB20, HB549, HB2731, HB4233, HB4690, HB 127, HB2525, SB1637, SB1, SB1198, SB509, SB13, SB15, SB30, SB268, SB331, SB441, SB447, SB457, SB568, SB650, SB763, SB1540, SB1610, SB1660, SB2018, SB2024, SB2217, SB2337, SB2753, SB2900, SB2972, SB3059, HB14

Keywords: artificial intelligence, regulation, biometric data, ethical AI, consumer protection, AI governance, intoxication manslaughter, criminal penalties, community supervision, mandatory supervision, parole eligibility, Grayson's Law, cosmetology, licensure, interstate compact, state regulations, public safety, workforce mobility, municipality, procurement

Transcript Highlights:

• refer to as ACN, allowing advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants to be issued temporary
• certificates to practice in underserved areas.
• To implement temporary certificates for area of critical need for physician assistants and advanced practice
• To implement this bill, a certification application form was created and approved by the Board of Pharmacy
• The Board of Pharmacy received the first of three certification course applications in September.

Summary: The Health Professions and Program Subcommittee met for an introductory and oversight briefing from the Florida Department of Health on implementation of several 2024 laws. The committee heard first from Jennifer Winhold on practitioner-regulation measures, including SB 1716 and SB 1600, which expanded workforce pathways through foreign-trained physician licensure, area-of-critical-need temporary certificates for APRNs and physician assistants, graduate assistant physician licenses, interstate compacts, and a new universal licensure-by-endorsement process. She also reviewed HB 197 on massage therapy enforcement, HB 975 on broader background screening, HB 1561 on office-surgery and liposuction safeguards, HB 159 on pharmacist HIV post-exposure prophylaxis certification, and HB 1063 on chiropractic dry needling and foreign degree licensure. Members asked about compact scope, foreign graduate requirements, massage enforcement overlap with DBPR, and registration thresholds for liposuction procedures. Dr. Emma Spencer then outlined implementation of SB 76 and related programs, including changes to the FRAME and dental loan repayment programs, the volunteer health care provider program, the Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program, the Health Care Innovation Council and revolving loan program, and the Andrew John Anderson Pediatric Rare Disease Grant Program. She said the department had updated portals, posted forms, launched or was developing public search tools, and submitted required reports and contracts. Members questioned whether loan repayment funds were reaching rural and underserved areas, how nonprofit applicants were being informed about the Alphonse screening grant program, the short application window for that grant, and how the department would evaluate whether the programs were improving recruitment and retention. A third presentation, delivered by Mike Mason standing in for Shea Holloway, covered maternal and child health and other public health initiatives. He reported on the telehealth maternity care program’s expansion from a pilot in Duval and Orange counties to 23 counties, the pregnancy-and-parenting resources website required by HB 415, CMV newborn screening requirements under SB 168, sickle cell registry and research grants under HB 7085, and the swim lessons voucher program under SB 544, which received nearly 10,000 requests for 3,500 vouchers and enrolled 86 facilities. Members asked about utilization, marketing, website launch timing, and how the department was promoting these services. No bills were voted on; the meeting concluded with the chair noting that more committee presentations and bills would follow and that briefing materials would be distributed to members.

Transcript Highlights:

• that connecting TANF recipients and other low-income individuals to short-term, in-demand work certificates
• For generational poverty, we need to have education or training or service certificates.
• at the investments we've made in CTE and some of these certificate programs to see if we are producing
• The reason I was asking is because when we, not to supplant, but when we say, "Oh gosh, this temporary
• assistance is temporary, let's go ahead and implement a state program that's not temporary," I would

Transcript Highlights:

• It would be whether you have a medical license of some sort or certification.
• <01:29:48.000> by one year and require certification by one year and require certification
• <01:36:56.239> provisional lensure a temporary lensure provisional lensure a temporary lensure
• We all have election certificates here. Our community sends us to come do this job.
• We all have election certificates here. Our community sends us to come do this job.

Bills: HF3935, HF2216, HF4354, HF4210, HF4212

Keywords: assisted living, healthcare, training, unlicensed personnel, resident rights, safety regulations, nursing home, long-term care, guardian, conservator, arbitration, mandatory arbitration, consumer protection, fee increase, rate increase, price hike, private pay, public funds, Medicaid, waiver services

Transcript Highlights:

• We also, in our wage article, have hazardous duty pay, temporary special duty pay, hiring bonuses of
• $1,000, temporary special duty pay, hiring bonuses of $1,000, and a hiring bonus of $5,000 for the 15
• plan would require our members to invest their time and money to obtain identified training and certifications
• plan would require our members to invest their time and money to obtain identified training and certifications
• Troopers, and a lot of the ones that just left and went to PBSO, they all have a lot of certificates

Summary: The Joint Select Committee on Collective Bargaining met to hear impasse presentations from the Department of Management Services and several bargaining units. The department reported that most articles had been resolved in each of the full-book contracts, with remaining disputes centered largely on wages and a handful of non-economic issues. For the FDLE special agents, security services, law enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, and Florida State Fire Service units, the state described its wage offers as generally a 2% competitive increase plus a 3% special pay increase, along with various bonuses, retention funds, or career-development funding in some units. The department also said it wanted to keep existing language on work schedules, seniority, grooming, equipment, grievance procedures, and other items, often characterizing its changes as housekeeping or alignment with current practice. The department noted that insurance had been agreed to with no increased employee cost, and it confirmed that correctional officers do receive overtime pay. Representatives for the Florida State Fire Service Association strongly disputed the state’s position, arguing that firefighters should not be required to perform major construction work, that their work schedules and on-call/callback arrangements unfairly suppress overtime, and that wildfire and fire-rescue employees are underpaid and underprotected. They also pressed for better compensation for EMT/paramedic-certified firefighters, additional protective clothing, on-site decontamination and shower/laundry facilities, and stronger cancer-prevention language. The association said the state had not bargained in good faith and urged the committee to support the union’s proposals. The Police Benevolent Association’s Florida Highway Patrol unit focused on wages and a career development plan, saying troopers remain underpaid compared with other states and are leaving for better-paying agencies. It also sought a veteran stipend, broader grooming/tattoo language, safety improvements for high-mileage vehicles, and changes to seniority and inflation-related pay. The PBA law enforcement unit raised similar safety concerns about aging vehicles, sought limits on performance evaluations tied to case presentations, and requested a $7,000 across-the-board wage increase. The security services unit, representing correctional officers, probation officers, and ISS officers, said its main issue was wages and asked for an $8-per-hour starting pay increase, retention bonuses, special pay for death row and close-management staff, added pay for SOTEC officers, and overtime pay for lieutenants and captains who currently receive comp time instead. No votes were taken, no public testimony followed, and the committee adjourned after taking the presentations under advisement.

Transcript Highlights:

• But the education they would have or this clinical education, as I mentioned, and certification that's
• When a patient presents with pain, we offer a series of temporary fixes.
• They offer temporary relief but introduce a new problem.
• It's time to offer a cure for disability instead of just a temporary mask for the pain.
• of just a temporary mask for the pain. of just a temporary mask for the pain.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The Medicaid Oversight Advisory Board met with a quorum, approved the November 12 minutes by voice vote, and then heard a presentation from former Governor Ernie Fletcher and Dave Johnson on Medicaid reimbursement for substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. Fletcher argued that addiction should be treated as a chronic disease requiring a longer continuum of care, not just short residential stays, and said recovery should combine clinical treatment with social supports such as housing, transportation, employment, peer coaching, and recovery housing. He cited data on overdose trends, low treatment rates, and high costs for people with SUD, and said current reimbursement models create poor incentives and do not adequately support long-term recovery or measure outcomes well. Fletcher proposed a “carve through” model administered at the MCO level with standardized metrics, data sharing, and an independent recovery coordinator that would assess patients, coordinate care, and connect them to clinical and social recovery services. He suggested using bundled payments, shared savings, and partial risk arrangements, with recovery housing reimbursed on a PMPM or weekly basis and funded in part through existing Medicaid spending and other sources such as opioid abatement funds. He also emphasized peer support, telemedicine, criminal justice coordination, workforce and education supports, and the use of technology, including text messaging and possibly AI, to maintain long-term follow-up and identify relapse risk. Members questioned how the model would work in practice, especially the education and staffing requirements for recovery coordinators, reimbursement levels, and how many patients each coordinator or peer would serve. Fletcher said peers could be certified and would need additional training in assessments such as ASAM and recovery residence standards, but he did not give a precise salary figure, saying the market and bundled rates would determine that. He also said follow-up should continue for years, noting relapse risk over the first 18 to 24 months and that meaningful employment and ongoing peer contact help sustain recovery. No formal vote or action was taken on the substance use presentation.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:28:43.559> policies<00:28:43.919> and<00:28:44.159> procedures certifications
• practice and also requires certification practice and also requires certification which<00:29:07.960
• Chair Robbins, Shireen Gandhi, temporary commissioner for the Department of Human Services.
• action to stop withholds are a temporary action to stop payments<01:09:32.839> to<01:09:33.080
• overrode by a personal uh certification overrode by a personal uh certification from<01:46:00.440

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• It would be a temporary patch, but wouldn't address ongoing.
• It would be a temporary patch, but wouldn't address ongoing.
• It's not temporary. It's part of the MOU. You can't rescind on that.
• Can you expand a little bit more how they felt temporary?
• CHCQ also requests $450,000 in 2026–27 from the Licensing and Certification Fund.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• After she gave birth, the family conspired with local authorities to lie on the birth certificate, to
• create a completely fictitious birth certificate so that it didn't look like the child was the product
• A 24-hour shelter hearing is held, and the temporary protective supervision process begins, lasting up
• The child could be removed and put in a temporary protective status.
• And once this child goes into this temporary protective status, what is happening is that the mandatory

Summary: The Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs met with a quorum and considered five bills. SB 1174, by Senator Jones, would simplify the process for transferring a family foster home license when a foster parent moves within Florida. A friendly amendment clarified that the transfer applies to the same licensed person, not a different individual, and directs DCF to prioritize amended licenses. The committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. SB 558, by Chair Grall, created a framework for voluntary post-adoption contact agreements between adoptive and biological parents, including contact with siblings, with court filing and enforcement procedures. A strike-all amendment changed the child’s party status age from 14 to 12, required court filing in the adoption case, set a preponderance standard, and moved the effective date to January 1, 2026. The committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. SB 1626, also by Chair Grall, was substantially revised by a strike-all addressing unaccompanied alien children reporting and custody procedures, military family child protective investigations, domestic violence shelter certification, children’s services councils, criminal-background exemptions, group home rates, subcontractor indemnification, child care licensing extensions, small residential group home fire suppression rules, and missing-child jurisdiction issues. After testimony both supporting and opposing parts of the bill, the committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. SB 738, by Senator Burton, updated child care and early learning licensing rules, including expedited licensing for compliant providers, faster background screening and provisional licensure, online training/testing, exemptions for certain military and employer-provided child care, and removal of a residential insurance provision from the bill. The committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. SB 304, by Senator Sharief, known as Patterson’s Law, addressed child abuse investigations involving rare genetic or metabolic conditions that can mimic abuse. The strike-all required more detailed medical analysis in reports, allowed second opinions, and set procedures for experienced physician review and judicial resolution. After extensive testimony from affected families, advocates, and DCF, the committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill favorably. At the end, Senators Harrell and Rouson asked to be recorded as voting favorably on additional bills, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• A couple sessions ago, certifying certification for peer specialist passed through this chamber and the
• certificate for teacher apprentice and clarifies that a temporary certificate authorizes the bill to
• learning requirements for a ten-year professional certificate created in this bill.
• This concept of introducing a ten-year renewable teacher certification - we have phenomenal teachers
• that have proven themselves and this allows them to have their certification for ten years.

Keywords: 998, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Tribal lands to request a temporary Tribal lands to request a temporary polling<00:03:59.439>
• If we don't have a compliance plan, we might lose certification, with consequences.
• If we don't have a compliance plan, we might lose certification, with consequences.
• If we don't have a compliance plan, we might lose certification, with consequences.
• If we don't have a compliance plan, we might lose certification, with consequences.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• all matters currently before the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, established under the order for temporary
• In 2021, when we advanced progress on birth certificates as well, related to gender markers, and then
• all matters currently before the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs established under the order for temporary
• session I hereby transfer to the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs established under the order for temporary
• In 2021, when we advanced progress on birth, In 2021, when we advanced progress on birth certificates

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Senate first adopted three congratulatory resolutions recognizing the retirements of Dolores Hayes, Lisa Audet, and Kate Fitzpatrick. It then handled several procedural matters, including suspending Joint Rule 12 to refer a sick leave bank bill for a Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office employee to the Committee on Public Service and referring House petitions to their respective committees. The chamber also adopted a conference report on the joint rules for the 2025-2026 session after remarks from Senators Creem, Tarr, Lovely, and Fattman emphasizing transparency, public access, recorded votes, longer notice for hearings and conference reports, remote participation, and periodic review of the rules. The report was accepted by a 40-0 roll call. The Senate then took up the bill strengthening health care protections in the Commonwealth, Senate No. 2538, commonly described as Shield Act 2.0. Senator Friedman and others argued the bill was needed to protect reproductive and gender-affirming care from out-of-state and federal interference, to limit disclosure of sensitive information, to create a state-level EMTALA-style protection for emergency care and active labor, and to strengthen privacy and licensing protections for providers and institutions. Senators Cyr, Lovely, and Fattman also spoke in support, framing the bill as a response to recent federal and state threats and as an extension of Massachusetts’ prior shield-law work. The chamber considered numerous amendments. Several were rejected, including amendments by Senators Finegold and Keenan and multiple Tarr amendments on topics such as medical records, consistency with existing law, and public health data collection. Some amendments were adopted, including a Montigny amendment on health-connected data disclosure, a Brownsberger amendment further protecting privacy for reproductive and gender-affirming care, a Rauch amendment clarifying protections for patients in active labor, a Tarr amendment removing an exemption for data from personal tracking devices, and a Rodrigues corrective amendment. After the amendments, the Ways and Means substitute was adopted, the bill was ordered to a third reading, and it then passed to be engrossed by a 37-3 roll call. At the end of the session, the Senate adopted a memorial adjournment in honor of former Senate Majority Leader Louis P. Bertinazi. The Governor also filed a message submitting a bill to build resilience for Massachusetts communities, authorizing future capital spending for energy and environmental affairs, which was referred to the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources. The Senate then adopted an order to meet again the following Monday at 1 p.m. and adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• It clarifies that the bill is only exempting temporary hurricane and flood protection walls and barriers
• It deletes the definition of system of registration within the private... is only exempting temporary
• Provides the certificate of compliance must be signed by the private provider and any duly authorized
• This bill places a clear duty on board members to verify licensure and certification before hiring, a
• You sample it, you get it lab tested, you get a certification if somebody can testify to it, but then

Bills: S0468, S0822, S1234, S1260, S1580, S1706

Keywords: animal cruelty, reporting, veterinary, protection, liability, regulation, community association, management certification, Florida Statutes, certified manager, association governance, building permits, inspections, offsite construction, local government, housing, property regulation, construction standards, state of emergency, emergency response

Summary: The committee heard and approved several bills. SB 468 would require veterinarians and veterinary technicians to report suspected animal cruelty to law enforcement or animal control and allow release of patient records in good faith; it was reported favorably with support from animal welfare groups. SB 1706 narrows eligibility for the My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program to buildings with at least 80% owner-occupied units and residents at or below 80% of area median income, and it also passed favorably. SB 1234 on building permits and inspections was amended extensively to clarify permit exemptions, private-provider rules, and timelines, then reported favorably as a committee substitute. SB 1260, dealing with building inspections after emergencies, was amended to require state-term contracts for inspection vendors and then passed. SB 822 would require professionally managed community associations above a budget threshold; an amendment raised the threshold to $750,000, added a parcel-count trigger, and allowed direct-hire credentialed managers, after which the bill was reported favorably. SB 1580 would increase penalties for illegal gaming operations, add enforcement tools, and clarify procedures for veterans organizations; after removing a fantasy sports provision, it also passed favorably. The committee also heard from several appointees and reappointees to the Public Service Commission and Florida Gaming Control Commission. Public Service Commission nominees Anna Ortega and Robert Payne were questioned closely about utility hardening projects, ratepayer costs, and the role of the Office of Public Counsel. Gaming Commission reappointee Julie Brown and appointees William Spacola, John DeQuilla, Peter Cutterman, and Tina Rep discussed illegal gaming enforcement, audits, agency operations, and their backgrounds in law, regulation, law enforcement, and public service. Several members raised concerns about contract timing and evidence handling at the Gaming Commission, while others praised the nominees’ experience and service. At the end of the meeting, the committee voted to recommend confirmation of all appointees on tabs 1 through 7. Members then requested favorable placement on the record for specific bills, including SB 468, SB 1234, SB 1260, SB 1580, and SB 1706, and the committee adjourned.