Transcript Highlights:

• SB 383, school districts; leases; housing development.
• SB 383, school districts; leases; housing development.
• SB 384, school districts; lease agreements requirements.
• And this bill could make health care more costly, and since I want an Arizona where we can all afford
• afford gas in the car now.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So we do have facilities that we lease statewide.
• Turning to page four, some of our leases, just a little bit about our leases, we have a total of lease
• That's what we pay in leases every year.
• Whether it's a state building or a lease building.
• We have moved CYFD from lease space to state space, saving the state $1.7 million in lease savings by

Transcript Highlights:

• But if they break the lease, then you've got basically something that would otherwise not be built on
• So a lot of times we see these long-term leases with 501(c)(3)s and different religious organizations
• So that would all be addressed within the lease of the organization and the whoever the landholder is
• But if they break the lease, then you've got basically something that would otherwise not be built on
• So a lot of times we see these long-term leases with 501(c)(3)s and different religious organizations

Committee: House Ways and Means

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• that those are my rights, or those are my obligations, or those are the things that I had that were afforded
• I imagine on the lease it would say that if you do have a friend that comes over, you're responsible
• As this Housing Committee, we look to tackle issues to keep housing affordable and diverse.
• I think we agree that we need to find ways to make housing more affordable, and so I know that's the
• Affordable housing aid. Matching that language in both sections. Almost done.

Committee: House Housing Finance and Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• All this amendment does is say, hey, let's make the lease rates match the underlying lease and cover
• And they can't afford to leave home. They can't afford to move to Spokane.
• And they can't afford to leave home.
• And they can't afford to leave home.
• They can't afford to move to Spokane. and they can't afford to leave home, they can't afford to move

Bills: SB6061 , SB6234 , SB6170 , SB6176 , SB6182 , SB6335 , SB5647 , SB6047 , HB2367 , HB2606 , SB5998 , SB6005 , SB6003 , SB6129 , SB6225 , SB6228 , SB6231

Keywords: tourism, self-supported assessment, funding, statewide promotion, economic development, sewage, grinder pumps, residential buildings, regulation, construction, contracting rules, state highway construction, procurement limits, state regulations, infrastructure funding, vehicle registration, enforcement, renewal, transportation, state law

Summary: The Senate met on February 23, 2026, opened with the usual roll call, pledge, prayer, and approval of the previous journal. Members then adopted Senate Resolution 8698 recognizing piano teachers, with several senators sharing personal remarks about their own teachers and the role of music education in families and communities. Guests from the Washington State Music Teachers Association and the National Guild of Piano Teachers were recognized in the gallery. The chamber then moved into budget debate, considering a series of amendments to the operating budget. Several proposals focused on housing costs, local planning, utility rates, and state spending restraint. Amendment 0772, which would have created a housing-related task force and increased funding, was rejected after debate over housing affordability and regulatory costs. Amendment 0785, restoring growth management planning funding for local governments, was also rejected. Amendment 0791, directing the Department of Commerce to study the effects of climate and clean energy laws on utility costs, and Amendment 0769, related to grid capacity and clean energy investments, were both adopted. Other amendments drew sharper partisan debate. Amendment 0798, which would have reduced the Supreme Court from nine justices to five and redirected savings to public defense, failed. Amendments 0794 and 0795, seeking funding for ballot measure costs tied to initiatives, also failed. Amendment 0799, intended to redirect Pacific Tower lease savings to developmental disability services, was rejected after discussion of the building’s current public uses. Amendment 0773, capping state spending growth and tying it to median wage growth, failed on a roll call vote, while Amendment 0777, addressing concurrent use of paid family and medical leave and sick leave by state employees, also failed after extended debate. Later, Amendment 0776 on tort liability reporting was adopted, as were Amendment 0758 creating a DSHS work group on community-based services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and Amendment 0786 was introduced to reduce cash and food assistance work-related funding, with debate beginning before the transcript ends.

Transcript Highlights:

• lease offers for beginning farmers.
• 50% below fair market value to maintain affordability for farmers, ensuring that the lease appraisal
• </c><00:01:23.840><c> offers</c> agrivoltaics to prioritize lease offers agrivoltaics to prioritize lease
• ><c> ag</c><00:01:27.920><c> sub</c> Requires a landowner leasing ag sub Requires a landowner leasing
• </c> prevailing regional agricultural lease prevailing regional agricultural lease rate<00:02:39.360>

Bills: SB2706 , SB2320

Committee: Senate Agriculture and Environment

Keywords: workforce development, agriculture, biosecurity, pilot program, Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, University of Hawaii, Leeward Community College, DHRD, training, apprenticeship, career pathways, credentialing, job training, internship, hands-on experience, state employment, workforce pipeline, agricultural jobs, biosecurity jobs, general fund appropriation

Summary: The committees first heard SB 2371, which would prioritize lease offers on agrivoltaics parcels for beginning farmers, require annual compliance reports to DAB, authorize penalties for noncompliance, and allow solar facilities on certain agricultural lands. DAB, the State Energy Office, PUC, and Hawaii Farm Bureau generally supported the intent, while OPPSD recommended amendments to preserve agricultural lease affordability and strengthen food-production language. Members questioned whether the bill would meaningfully encourage solar on ag lands, whether beginning farmers would have enough information to use such parcels, and how the bill would interact with Land Use Commission review. The Farm Bureau said agrivoltaics remains challenging and largely in pilot form, and noted the Mililani project as a promising example of dual use. The committees voted to pass SB 2371 with amendments, with one member expressing a preference that it be opened to all farmers rather than only beginning farmers. The next measure, SB 2800, appropriates funds to DAB, DLNR, and ADC for acquisition, repair, and maintenance of irrigation systems. All testifying agencies and the Farm Bureau supported the bill, and members pressed them for estimates of needed funding and the condition of existing systems. DAB cited major repair needs, including Waimea, Molokai, Kahuku, and Kawailoa, and said its backlog could total roughly $65 million; ADC estimated about $35 million for several systems; and DLNR said its current needs for three systems were about $35 million, with the largest cost tied to piping in Kekaha. The committees amended the bill to defer its effective date to July 1, 2050 and to blank out the appropriation amounts in the bill text, with the agencies’ requested amounts to be included in the committee report for consideration. SB 2800 then passed in AEN, Water and Land, and EIG. The final measure discussed was SB 2718, a food hub pilot program beginning in 2028 that would require state departments and UH to source 30% of certain food purchases from local agricultural products, create a nutrition- and ʻāina-based school program, and have DAT partner with a regional aggregator for Native Hawaiian staple crops. DAT, DOH, the Farm Bureau, Food Plus Policy Group, HAPA, and others supported the bill’s intent, while the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation opposed it, saying it is already struggling to meet the current local procurement percentage and faces procurement and quantity barriers, especially for staple items used daily. The testimony focused on whether agencies could realistically meet the higher local purchasing target and whether smaller farms could supply the needed volumes.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, Oh, so you can lease. it as well. So, Oh, so you can lease. Yeah.<03:19:42.800><c> Yeah.
• Leasing is... Yeah, that's all.
• Leasing is... Yeah, that's all.
• that's</c> the leasing.
• Leasing is Yeah, that's the leasing.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The subcommittee took up HB 164, dealing with homeowners and certain service agreements tied to residential real estate. Much of the discussion focused on whether the bill should be framed as prohibiting “service agreements” or more specifically as banning “future right to listing” agreements, and whether the bill should mirror Maine’s newer law. Mike Padmore of AARP New Hampshire presented suggested edits, including clarifying that the agreements are unenforceable, striking a provision at Roman 6C, and adding language making clear that registry of deeds staff are not liable when they record documents they are statutorily required to file. Bob Quinn of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors said the bill and Maine’s law reach the same result, but he preferred simpler wording and argued the bill should not include a two-year time limit because legitimate listing agreements should not create liens at all. Members and witnesses debated whether the bill should simply make the practice illegal outright, whether the Consumer Protection Act is the right enforcement vehicle, and whether the lien-removal process should be modeled on the recent undischarged mortgage bill. A consumer protection official said the bureau supports the statute and explained that under RSA 358-A, consumers could seek damages and equitable relief to strike a lien, while also noting that the bureau often uses the Consumer Protection Act as an enforcement tool. The committee also discussed narrowing the bill to residential real estate, with the sponsor and witnesses saying the problem has been seen in residential transactions and that commercial property was not the focus. The testimony described the underlying problem as companies, often national rather than New Hampshire-based, using long-term or future listing agreements to impose liens or penalties on homeowners, sometimes in connection with estate transfers or home sales. Witnesses said legitimate real estate listings do not normally place liens on houses, but these arrangements can include hidden or unclear penalties, including a reported 3% charge on home value. No vote was taken in the excerpt, but the committee appeared to be working through possible amendments and whether to adopt Maine-style language or a simpler New Hampshire-specific approach.

Transcript Highlights:

• because they can't afford insurance?
• And I do believe that auto dealers are capable of leasing vehicles.
• So why are there 500 vehicles that we're leasing that are from an out-of-state vendor?
• Chair, Representative Dow, so our lease is—we do have a third-party lease.
• Maybe vehicle claim could be a leased vehicle. It could be.

Transcript Highlights:

• CERTAINLY AT A MORE AFFORDABLE RATE. CERTAINLY, THEY ARE SEEING SAVINGS ON THE AD VALOREM SIDE.
• YOU CAN HAVE SO MANY PHANTOM LEASES.
• THE TRUTH AND VERACITY OF THESE LEASE TEMPLATES EXTEND.
• THE INTENT CERTAINLY IS TO PROVIDE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
• THIS IS PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION ON ASSESSMENT LIMITATION LONG TERM LEASE BY SENATOR AVILA.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Construction is expected to commence this July, with a plan for leasing to begin in fall of 2027.
• This is a traditional triple-net lease structure, where the foundation will construct the project on
• land owned by the university and lease it to the foundation, and the foundation will lease the improvements
• The security for lease payments by the university to the foundation comes from general revenues of the
• The bonds will be paid from lease payments from the Crescent City Schools, and those lease payments'

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Summary: The State Bond Commission met on May 21 with a quorum present and approved the April 16 minutes. The commission then reviewed and approved a large slate of local government and public authority financing requests, including election propositions for the November ballot, water and sewer infrastructure projects, fire protection and recreation district bonds, school board financing, and several refunding transactions. Most items were found to meet technical requirements and were approved on motions by Speaker DeVillier and seconded by Senator Talbot. Among the more notable items were the East Baton Rouge City-Parish refunding bonds for the Greater Baton Rouge Airport District, the City of Kenner’s retroactive approval request tied to a convention center agreement with GMB Basketball LLC, a Louisiana Housing Corporation financing increase for the Federal City Building 10 affordable housing project, and preliminary approval for the Northwest Louisiana Finance Authority’s Petro Tower redevelopment in Shreveport. The commission also approved financing for Southern University’s Scott’s Bluff student housing project and the Crescent City Schools/Harriet Tubman Charter School project. The Crescent City Schools item prompted questions about how MFP funds are used; staff explained that lease payments would support the bonds and that MFP funds are generally split between educational expenses and facilities-related costs. The commission received six monthly cost-of-issuance reports, which required no action, and a status update on the state debt schedule. It also approved Resolution No. 2 authorizing up to $425 million in general obligation refunding bonds to refund the Series 2016 bonds and tender other outstanding bonds for savings, with pricing tentatively set for June 16 and closing for June 30. During other business, New Orleans City Council President J.P. Morel thanked the commission for its role in helping address the city’s fiscal crisis and for approving a charter amendment election item aimed at strengthening budget oversight. The meeting adjourned after no further business.

Transcript Highlights:

• Construction is expected to commence this July, with a plan for leasing to begin in fall 2027.
• This is a traditional triple-net lease structure where the foundation will construct the project on land
• owned by the university and lease to the foundation, and the foundation will lease the improvements
• Bonds will be repaid from lease payments from the Crescent City Schools, and MFP is projected to range
• The bonds will be paid from lease payments from the Crescent City Schools, and those lease payments,

Summary: The State Bond Commission met on May 21, established a quorum, approved the April 16 minutes, and then considered a long agenda of bond, refunding, and election-related requests. Items 3 through 10 were election propositions for the November 3 ballot involving ad valorem taxes, parcel fees, and charter amendments for purposes such as fire protection, agricultural centers, neighborhood security, recreation, aging services, drainage, and roads and bridges; staff said they met technical and legal requirements, and the commission approved them. The commission also approved several local financings, including water and sewer projects, fire district equipment and facility improvements, school board and parish bonds, and refunding transactions for the East Baton Rouge City-Parish and St. James Parish School Board. A retroactive approval request from the City of Kenner related to a CEA with GMB Basketball LLC was discussed; staff made no recommendation because it was retroactive, but noted it appeared to be an oversight, and item 22, the related airport district agreement, was approved. The commission approved additional financing for the Louisiana Housing Corporation’s Federal City Building 10 affordable housing project, a preliminary approval for the Northwest Louisiana Finance Authority’s Petro Tower redevelopment in Shreveport, and two Louisiana Public Facilities Authority projects: Southern University’s Scott’s Bluff student housing project and the Crescent City Schools project for Harriet Tubman Charter School. During discussion of the Crescent City Schools financing, a commissioner asked about the use of MFP funds; staff explained that lease payments would be the repayment source and that MFP dollars are generally split between educational expenses and facilities costs, with the school’s typical split around 72% instructional and 28% administrative/facilities-related. Both items were approved. The commission then received six cost-of-issuance reports for previously approved bond issues, with various fee adjustments but no motions required. It also reviewed a debt schedule update and adopted Resolution No. 2 authorizing up to $425 million in general obligation refunding bonds to refund Series 2016 bonds and tender other outstanding bonds for savings, with pricing tentatively set for June 16 and closing for June 30. In other business, the commission heard a brief public comment from New Orleans City Council President J.P. Morrell thanking the commission for helping place a charter amendment on the ballot to improve New Orleans budgeting transparency and oversight. The meeting ended after monthly reports were noted and no further business was raised.

Transcript Highlights:

• on permits, but most of them are leases.
• </c><01:01:46.440><c> what</c> lease the existing lease terms what lease the existing lease terms what
• But for lease consolidation, it's about over $120,000 of lease that we pay right now because we have
• or renewing leases for the existing—I'm not talking about any future expansion, just existing leases
• </c> with dags uh to locate space for leasing with dags uh to locate space for leasing um<04:22:00.880

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So who will determine what affordability means?
• The free market has responded decisively to consumer demand for affordable, accessible repairs.
• Affordable housing. That is the bill, Madam Chair. Thank you.
• You’re not signing a lease. You’re staying for the night or you’re staying for three nights.
• You're not signing a lease. You're staying for the night or you're staying for three nights.

Committee: Senate Rules

Summary: The Rules Committee took up a large agenda of bills, with many measures reported favorably after brief explanations, amendments, and testimony. Early bills included CS/SB 658 on lien waivers and releases, which was amended to preserve enforceability despite form differences and then passed; CS/CS/SB 736 on brownfields redevelopment, which drew support from business and redevelopment interests and passed; and CS/SB 1002 on utility service restrictions, which was amended to bar certain building or fire code provisions affecting fuel-source choices and then passed despite opposition from environmental advocates. The committee also advanced CS/CS/SB 1132 on right-to-repair for certain equipment, where manufacturers, dealer representatives, and industry groups warned the bill could undermine dealer networks and existing repair programs, while supporters argued it would improve consumer access and help farmers and equipment owners. The bill still passed. Other measures reported favorably included CS/SB 1378 on restitution for leaving the scene of property-damage crashes, CS/CS/SB 768 on foreign-country controlling interests in health care licensing, CS/SB 772 on school access to glucagon for diabetes emergencies, CS/SB 1400 on removal of nonconsensual altered sexual depictions, and CS/SB 1696 on transportation network company impersonation and transit funding. A major portion of the meeting focused on affordable housing. CS/SB 1730, a follow-up to the Live Local Act, made several changes to zoning, height, density, parking, moratorium, and enforcement provisions, with members raising concerns about parking reductions, attorney’s fees, local control, and impacts in the Keys and other sensitive areas. Supporters said the bill closes loopholes and improves workforce housing implementation, while some witnesses urged additional exemptions for areas of critical state concern. The bill was reported favorably after amendment. Later, the committee considered several bills from Senator Leak, including CS/SB 576 on service of process, CS/SB 606 on public lodging and food service establishments, and CS/SB 1164 on electronic delivery of landlord-tenant notices. CS/SB 606 drew substantial debate over whether hotels and extended-stay properties should be able to remove nonpaying guests without treating them like residential tenants; the sponsor said the bill clarifies transient occupancy and removes mandatory arrest provisions, and it passed. CS/SB 1164, which allows email notice delivery by agreement, passed despite concerns from tenant advocates that the bill should include clearer consent and safeguards. The committee also approved CS/SB 1374 on school district reporting of educator arrests and misconduct, CS/SB 940 on third-party restaurant reservation sales, and began hearing CS/SB 1690 on surrendered infants, which would authorize infant safety devices or “baby boxes” as a legal surrender option, with supportive testimony from proponents describing crisis situations and the need for anonymous surrender options.

Transcript Highlights:

• resolution opposes the federal government's proposed 11th National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing
• The plan proposed would issue lease sales across 1.27 billion acres of federal waters, including six
• So if this leasing plan challenges our own direction and our own desire to mitigate climate change...
• The leasing plan challenges our own direction and our own desire to mitigate climate change.
• skyrocketing material costs, and underinsurance, the reality is that many residents simply couldn't afford

Committee: House Natural Resources

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're the third state and the first to allow it for sales as well as leases.
• </c><00:04:21.440><c> Everyone</c> for sales as well as leases.
• Everyone for sales as well as leases.
• or to increase the amount of purchase versus leasing.
• or to increase the amount of purchase versus leasing.

Committee: Senate Taxes

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They keep lot rents affordable.
• </c> levels who choose to live in land lease levels who choose to live in land lease communities<00:37
• And that charge a land lease fee?
• ><c> crisis,</c><00:48:23.560><c> which</c> facing affordable housing crisis, which facing affordable
• </c> affordable housing, these are in place. affordable housing, these are in place.

Committee: Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The Affordable Housing Act, which helps local communities provide affordable housing and they can donate
• affordable housing plans.
• My feeling about affordable housing because I have developed affordable housing, so I know that field
• is that if we, as a public entity, subsidize about affordable housing because I have developed affordable
• I believe in fiscal year 24. for affordable housing.

Committee: Joint Economic & Rural Development & Policy Committee

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I mean, not a lot of people can just, if you're on a fixed income, you're not going to afford that.
• Commercial leases are legal contracts with lawyers involved, so they are sophisticated in that sense.
• issues, heard a lot of politicians in leadership talking about affordability and cost of living.
• You know, we can’t afford to jack up the expense of our everyday citizens to bring something in, you
• All right, in favor: Peters Kelly, Alliance for Affordable Energy, Louisiana Citizen Advocacy Group,

Bills: HB267 , HB478 , HB617 , HB659 , HB800 , HB922 , HB924 , HB947 , HB1166 , HB1223

Committee: House Commerce

Keywords: home inspectors, board membership, licensing, term limits, Louisiana State Board, utility, reimbursement, overcharges, consumer protection, economic relief, hidden fees, junk fees, drip pricing, price transparency, mandatory fees, surcharges, unfair trade practices, advertising disclosures, total price, service fees

Transcript Highlights:

• I can barely afford to live here. Thank you. Hi everybody, my name is Madeline Whelan.
• We know that the affordability in California...
• I just hope that we'll be able to continue to be able to afford to live here in the state we serve.
• to office mandate, it can afford to invest in its own workforce.
• I am a state worker who can already barely afford to live in this state.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Here we're talking, there is no income limit here, so it could be somebody who can absolutely afford
• And the reality is, affordability is an issue for middle-income folks as well.
• Now, talking about leasing car leases and providing incentives for those who are interested in leasing
• So that's the rationale behind offering it for both the purchase as well as a lease of a vehicle.
• If, as CARB said, affordability... Thank you very much. Thank you. Chair, thank you.

Keywords: 987, senate, all