Transcript Highlights:

• </c> act relating to educators. act relating to educators.
• on educational innovation.
• Speaker, I move adoption. commissioner of education, Dr. Stephen commissioner of education, Dr.
• And in our educational innovation.
• </c> relating to postsecondary education. relating to postsecondary education.

Keywords: Convene 00:00 Senate Message 05:49 Calendar/2nd Readings 06:27 Report of Committees 08:12 Orders of the Day/HB 485 09:40 HB 43 23:13 HB 139 25:09 HB 414 31:49 HB 297 36:16 Motions, Petitions, and Communications 41:08 Introduction of New Bills and Resolutions 51:25 Recess for ConC/Rules Meeting 53:41 ConC/Rules Report 56:40 Floor Amendments 57:54 Adjournment 58:17, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:37:22.760><c> chair</c><00:37:23.079><c> Roy</c> Education chair Roy Education chair Roy takumi<00
• </c><00:37:46.280><c> is</c><00:37:46.680><c> education</c> the department of education is education
• the department of education is education we<00:37:47.880><c> develop</c><00:37:48.319><c> the</c><00:
• It's factors outside of education.
• It's factors outside of education.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The Committee on Education held an informational/budget briefing with presentations from the State Library System, the School Facilities Authority, and the Department of Education. The chair opened the meeting by outlining the order of presentations and noting that members would hold questions until after all three agencies had testified. The discussion focused on each agency’s priorities for the upcoming biennium and their budget requests. State Librarian Stacy Aldridge described library usage and services, emphasizing strong demand for physical and digital materials, internet and Wi-Fi access, programs, Kanopy streaming, and PressReader. She highlighted digital literacy classes, RFID self-check and smart shelving improvements, and the role of libraries as community hubs. The library’s budget request included an additional $1.2 million for security guards, $48.484 million for FY 26-27 to support popup libraries during temporary closures and other needs, $500,000 for repair and maintenance, $2 million for Kap planning and design, and $25 million each year for lump-sum capital funding. Mallerie Fujitani said the lump-sum funding is needed to keep roughly 50 projects moving and to avoid delays in construction. School Facilities Authority Executive Director Ricky Fujitani explained the agency’s startup history and its programs for preschools, Central Maui schools, and workforce housing. He said the authority is using standardized, prefabricated, programmatic approaches to speed delivery and improve maintainability, citing prior preschool renovations as a successful model. He reported that of $389 million appropriated, $106 million was released, with $81 million for preschools, $20 million for Central Maui schools, and $5 million for workforce housing; he also noted the workforce housing program was reduced after Maui fire-related reallocations. He said the pilot workforce housing site at Mililani High School has been awarded and pointed to University of Hawaiʻi student housing projects as a model. Superintendent Hayashi then began the Department of Education presentation, introducing DOE leadership and outlining the department’s mission to support academic achievement, character development, and student well-being. He noted the department serves more than 152,000 students in 258 public schools and employs over 42,000 people, with nearly 54% of students facing significant challenges. He framed the budget request around the department’s strategic plan to prepare graduates for college, careers, or military service. The transcript ends during the DOE presentation, before any committee votes or formal actions are taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• I have the honor of also recognizing adult education, or some people might call it continuing education
• And whereas the Higher Education Department, in partnership with 26 adult education programs and 18 adult
• And whereas during the 2024-2025 program year, Higher Education Department-funded adult education and
• And whereas during the 2024-2025 program year, Higher Education Department-funded adult education and
• She's a retired educator of 27 years.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• House Resolution No. 22, by the Education Committee, is a resolution stating findings of the House of
• the Division of Career Technical Education have been reviewed and approved by the House Education Committee
• It also, with regard to the education service providers, requires that anyone, as an education service
• Rather, those funds are administered through the local education agency.
• expenses that have been approved by the local education agency and verified by the State Board of Education

Summary: The House convened with 67 members present, approved the journal, and received committee reports referring a large slate of bills and resolutions to various committees or to second reading. Several new bills were introduced, including measures on cemetery maintenance districts, ICE agreements and immigration status reporting, milk testing, specialty license plates, driver licensing and vehicle registration deadlines for new residents, child custody interference, cloud seeding, urban renewal, and a sales tax rebate. House Concurrent Resolutions 21 and 22, concerning Transportation and Education rules, were sent for printing. On the floor, the House suspended the rules to take up House Bill 613 immediately. The bill, which addresses liability protections for private polling places, election workers, volunteers, and certain nonprofit locations used for Election Day, passed 68-0 and was transmitted to the Senate. The House also passed House Bill 587, providing continuous spending authority for the rangeland improvement account, after extended debate over legislative oversight versus the need to spend grant and account funds on time; it passed 44-25. House Bill 573, expanding flexibility for enhanced concealed carry instructor qualifications, passed 68-0, and House Bill 624, revising oversight and accountability requirements for the Idaho Home Learning Academy, also passed 68-0. The House returned House Bill 547 and House Bill 525 to committee at the request of sponsors, moved House Bill 530 to general orders, and held the remaining third-reading bills until Monday, February 16, 2026. Announcements noted upcoming committee meetings, a 4-H breakfast, a memorial committee event, and other caucus or lunch notices. The House then adjourned until 10 a.m. Monday, February 16, 2026.

Transcript Highlights:

• education have an opportunity to achieve permanent employment status.
• I am proud to present the Fair Pay for Educators Act.
• Bipartisan, unanimous support in the Assembly Education Committee.
• Many of you are familiar with the Master Plan for Higher Education.
• to explore a career technical education.

Summary: The Assembly met after a quorum call and first dealt with a procedural dispute over four amendments to AB 1240. The Speaker ruled the amendments out of order as not germane, and the Assembly sustained that ruling on a 49-16 vote. Members then added co-authors to several consent-calendar resolutions, including measures on the National Conference of State Legislators, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, ALS Awareness Month, and Men’s Mental Health Month, before adopting the consent calendar. The chamber also heard guest introductions, including a welcome for Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, and took up a motion to bring AB 41 up out of file, which failed 19-48. The bulk of the meeting was floor action on a long series of bills and resolutions, many of which passed with broad bipartisan support. Measures approved included ACR 40 supporting immigrant students and FAFSA privacy; AB 917 on permanent status for certain school employees; AB 985 on anesthesia access; AB 7 and AB 42 on higher education and student services; AB 245 providing property tax relief for wildfire victims; AB 255 allowing funding for drug-free recovery housing; AB 279 updating K-12 library standards; AB 289 creating a pilot for automated speed enforcement in highway construction zones; AB 291 on an educator apprentice program; AB 327 addressing swatting; AB 340 on confidential union communications; AB 341 creating an oral health technical assistance center for people with disabilities; AB 356 on San Diego health care infrastructure; AB 410 on bot disclosure; AB 476 on copper theft enforcement; AB 477 on educator pay targets; AB 485 on stolen wages and business licensing; AB 487, the insurance committee’s technical omnibus bill; AB 573 on tobacco retail license fees; AB 598 on school mapping technology; AB 635 on mobile home law enforcement referrals; AB 651 on remote participation for incarcerated parents in dependency hearings; AB 654 on homelessness hotline assistance in Los Angeles County; AB 662 creating a South County higher education task force; AB 667 on language access in professional licensing; AB 669 limiting early denial of addiction treatment; AB 670 on naturally occurring affordable housing; AB 695 on online continuation of community college for deported students; AB 723 on disclosure for digitally altered real estate images; AB 727 placing Trevor Project information on student IDs; and AB 736, a $10 billion affordable housing bond for the June 2026 ballot, which passed on a 61-11 urgency vote after extensive debate. Debate on AB 736 was the most extensive of the day, with supporters arguing the bond would help address California’s housing crisis and give voters a chance to weigh in, while opponents criticized the state’s bond debt and past spending results. The Assembly then recessed for caucus meetings and later returned to continue the daily file, where additional measures were taken up, including AB 798 adding diapers and wipes to the emergency food bank reserve program, which passed 56-0, and AB 821 on career technical education, which was presented as bipartisan-supported as the transcript continued.

Transcript Highlights:

• As a fifth impact on my education.
• Thank you committee for education.
• </c> all the difference in my educational all the difference in my educational experience. experience
• </c> Education certification. Education certification.
• ,</c><00:37:16.240><c> and</c> Minnesota students, educators, and Minnesota students, educators, and

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:03:31.760><c> also</c> The Office of Higher Education also The Office of Higher Education also
• I do think it's fair higher education.
• It'll be the way to get them into higher education.
• It'll be the way to get them into higher education.
• </c><01:03:25.520><c> and</c> with the office of higher education and with the office of higher education

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The Higher Education Conference Committee reviewed differences among the Governor’s, House, and Senate proposals for state grant parameter changes and their effects on state grant spending, North Star Promise spending, and average student awards. Nonpartisan staff explained that the proposals use different combinations of parameter changes, with the Governor’s and Senate plans modeled to avoid or minimize rationing, while the House plan would require rationing to balance the program. Staff reported projected biennium balances of a positive $29.836 million for the Governor’s proposal, a negative $60.758 million for the House proposal without rationing, a positive $994,000 for the House proposal with rationing, and a positive $3.623 million for the Senate proposal; North Star Promise balances also varied, with the Senate showing a positive balance and the Governor and House with rationing showing negative balances. Staff also said the Senate proposal would extend availability of the state grant appropriation and suspend surplus procedures through fiscal year 2029, allowing the balance to carry forward. The committee then focused on the House-only tuition and fee cap provision, which would limit the tuition recognized for state grant purposes for four-year programs to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities level, with 1% annual increases in fiscal years 2026 and 2027. House members said the cap was intended to address rising tuition, especially at the University of Minnesota, and to produce savings in the state grant program. The governor’s office confirmed the provision was not included in the Governor’s bill. Representatives from the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Private College Council opposed the cap, arguing it would reduce awards for low-income students and shift costs to students rather than address underlying tuition pressures; they also said it could discourage enrollment at higher-cost institutions. Supporters from Minnesota State argued the cap would improve fairness because students at lower-tuition institutions are effectively capped lower, while students at more expensive institutions receive larger awards, and they said the legislature should intervene in a variable that has grown substantially over time. Committee members questioned how the cap would work and whether it was tied to the Twin Cities campus rate. Testifiers clarified that the state grant formula is tied to the University of Minnesota level, but because Minnesota State institutions are below that level, the cap effectively limits their students to their own lower tuition while allowing higher awards at the University of Minnesota and private colleges. No formal vote or final action was taken in the portion of the meeting provided; the chair indicated the committee would continue with item-by-item review of the remaining parameter changes and hear additional testimony from agencies and institutions.

Transcript Highlights:

• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 608 by the Education Committee, an act relating to education
• House Bill 608 by the Education Committee, an act relating to education, to revise provisions regarding
• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 636 by the Education Committee, an act relating to education
• In the Senate, Senate Bill 1291 by the Education Committee.
• , higher education, and so forth.

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Go ahead, Vice Chair Coulter, co-chair Rck, my fellow members of the Higher Education Committee.
• One of those tools that we have in the Higher Education Committee are scholarships.
• </c><00:02:10.319><c> and</c> officers that we have and educate and officers that we have and educate
• </c><00:07:57.879><c> transfer</c> office of higher education transfer office of higher education transfer
• </c><00:09:46.079><c> the</c> have and by empowering and educating the have and by empowering and educating

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• On nursing education programs by Senator Harrell and Senator Harrell.
• It lead administrative educational leader, a faculty enrollment manager.
• I feel like with private schools, private nursing education schools.
• The truck driver, the police officer, the principal, so private education sector.
• What, Ed, what sort of education will be done to the public so that they could know.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• for community colleges, the Office of the State Board of Education, the State Board of Education, and
• Technical Education, Idaho for special programs, the Department of Education, the Division of Vocational
• House Bill 883, by the Education Committee, is an act relating to education, amending Chapter 10, Title
• Colleges, the Office of the State Board of Education, the State Board of Education, and the Board of
• Houseville 883 by Education Committee and Act. providing an effective date House bill 883 by Education

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This is a request for the Department of Education Television Division, or AETN.
• This is for elementary, secondary education, and the Office of Early Childhood.
• This is for elementary, secondary education, and the Office of Early Childhood.
• The Department of Education will not retain any funding.”
• I’m going to switch and I’m going to go to EFA, Educational Freedom Account Acts.

Summary: The committee first considered the Lieutenant Governor’s Office budget and personnel request to move that office onto the state pay plan and increase salaries for its positions. Office representatives said the request was intended to make pay competitive with other constitutional offices and state agencies, that OPM had approved the grades, and that the office did not plan to max out any positions. Members questioned the size of the increase and the office’s workload. A motion to adopt the proposal failed on a tie vote, and the committee then voted to expunge the vote before moving on. The committee then approved a series of Governor’s letters and related personnel transfers, including cuts for Arkansas Educational Television Network, transfers within the Department of Health and several DHS divisions, and a DFA shared services reorganization. The committee also approved moving child nutrition and related nutrition programs from the Department of Education to the Department of Agriculture, with department officials explaining that the programs fit better under Agriculture because the grants come from USDA and the transfer would include the positions and funding tied to the programs. Members raised questions about how the appropriations and positions were split between state and federal funding, and about the broader implications of the transfer, but the committee ultimately approved both the Education and Agriculture sides of the move. The meeting also included extended discussion of the Educational Freedom Account program. Members questioned the $309 million appropriation, whether it matched current participation, and whether future demand could require additional funding. Department officials said the amount covered current participation and that the governor had set aside an additional $70 million in case applications increased, but that any amount beyond the appropriation would require returning to the committee. Some members argued the program’s growth could threaten funding for public schools and adequacy, while others noted that the program is governed by rules under the LEARNS Act. The committee also approved a technical title change at East Arkansas Community College from assistant to the president to assistant to the chancellor.

Transcript Highlights:

• At all revises provisions relating to education.
• Senate Bill 81, introduced by the Committee on Education, revises various provisions governing education
• I have Amendment Number 956 proposed by the Assembly Committee on Education.
• Assembly Committee on Education will be meeting at 9 a.m.
• Assembly Committee on Education will be meeting at 9 a.m.

Keywords: 909, all

Transcript Highlights:

• President, are very passionate, as many members of this chamber are about early education.
• Well, this might be one of the godmothers of early education in New Mexico.
• Our very own Public Education Secretary, **Mariana Padilla**.
• Implementing the Indigenous Education Initiative thought grant.
• institution, requiring hazing prevention education, providing penalties.

Transcript Highlights:

• Most serve students through some type of program, whether it's special education, vocational education
• uh uh it's special education uh uh uh vocational<00:09:50.560><c> education</c><00:09:51.200><c> or<
• listen to educators when we're in<00:21:43.840><c> the</c><00:21:44.000><c> education</c><00:21:44.559
• </c><00:21:46.159><c> Listening</c> in the education sphere. Okay.
• Listening in the education sphere. Okay.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Her supervised agricultural education experience program consists of equine education, and she owns her
• Her supervised agricultural education experience program consists of equine education, and she owns her
• We want to To share the importance of agriculture education and FFA.
• Yeah, this bill came through your committee on education and elementary and secondary education.
• So I appreciate your educating me, and sincerely, educating me on what that process could be like should

Summary: The House convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior day’s journal, and a long series of special guest introductions recognizing interns, community leaders, FFA officers, library advocates, park and recreation professionals, and others. Members also used points of personal privilege to honor Black History Month and the legacy of William Clay Sr. The chamber then moved into first reading of several bills, including measures on University of Missouri curators, personal property assessment lists, and state department spending. The main floor action centered on House Bill 1757, which would require universal screening of third-graders for gifted education using flexible screening methods and would help ensure students who qualify are identified regardless of zip code or family resources. Supporters argued the bill would close gaps in gifted identification and expand access, while questions focused on funding, screening methods, and whether the bill would create an unfunded mandate. The House adopted the committee substitute and ordered the bill perfected and printed. Members then debated the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, presented as House Committee Substitute for House Bills 1667 and 2294. Supporters said the bill would require medical care for infants who survive an abortion attempt and impose civil and criminal penalties for knowingly harming such a child. Opponents argued the bill was duplicative of existing law, could criminalize medical providers, and would worsen Missouri’s maternal care shortages. The debate included extended questioning about the bill’s standards, scope, and enforcement, but no final vote on the born-alive measure was taken in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• The statewide tenant education and hotline service will receive a $500,000 appropriation in fiscal 26
• The statewide tenant education and 27.
• </c> the homestretch home buyer education the homestretch home buyer education curriculum,<00:21:29.200
• </c><00:26:36.000><c> Uh,</c><00:26:36.240><c> at</c> education and hotline service.
• Uh, at education and hotline service.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• The Higher Education Budget Subcommittee will come to order. Connor, please call the roll.
• referred to as PICO in higher education.
• referred to as PICO in higher education.
• it's not So, and this is an example across all of higher education.
• The last few years, or last probably 10 years, it's been educational.

Summary: The Higher Education Budget Subcommittee met to hear an overview of State University System finances from the Board of Governors and detailed budget presentations from Florida State University, the University of Central Florida, and the University of North Florida. The witnesses explained how university budgets are organized into fund categories such as education and general, contracts and grants, auxiliaries, local/designated funds, capital projects, and component units such as direct support organizations. They also described carry forward funds, the statutory reserve and spending-plan requirements, the PICO/HECO capital outlay process, and how universities use investment accounts, audits, and board oversight to manage restricted and unspent funds. The universities emphasized that most operating dollars are restricted to specific uses and that state support helps keep tuition low. Members asked about differences in funding levels among institutions, especially why FSU receives more funding than UCF despite lower enrollment. Officials said preeminence funding, performance funding, and special legislative appropriations explain much of the difference, and the Board of Governors noted that Florida now has four preeminent universities, with UCF nearing that status. Questions also focused on what happens to unspent carry forward money, how it is invested, and whether the Board of Governors or Legislature can require funds to be returned; officials said the money is invested conservatively, subject to board and audit oversight, and can roll forward under a detailed spending plan, though the Legislature can change funding levels. The committee also discussed capital projects, with members asking about delays, inflation, and whether more projects should be phased or funded faster; witnesses said PICO funds remain with the state until needed and are reimbursed as construction proceeds. A substantial portion of the discussion covered athletics, research, student fees, and endowments. The universities said athletics is generally expected to be self-supporting, though limited use of auxiliary or carry forward funds may be allowed for projects benefiting the broader student body. They also described the financial pressures from name, image, and likeness changes and new NCAA-related costs, and said institutions are planning for those changes now. On research, the universities explained sponsored research funding, indirect cost recovery, compliance obligations, and tech transfer, but did not provide specific commercialization revenue figures and said they would follow up. Members also asked about student fee increases, student input, counseling and wellness funding, and how housing costs affect affordability; the universities said student committees and boards review fees, and aid packaging is intended to keep student debt low. Endowments were described as being held in separate foundations/DSOs with independent investment committees and used mainly for scholarships, faculty support, and research.

Transcript Highlights:

• The Committee on Higher Education and Workforce Development will come to order.
• This is the Higher Education Funding Reform Bill, a bill we've been working on for several years, now
• It's, in his view, the worst possible way to provide higher education funding the way we've been doing
• The original bill said the full tuition for the institution of higher education.
• And it says not limited to increasing the percentage of population with quality education, increasing

Summary: The Committee on Higher Education and Workforce Development met in executive session and first took up House Bill 123, a higher education funding reform bill. Representative Black, the bill sponsor, explained a committee substitute that lowered the proposed scholarship benefit from full tuition to $5,000 per semester or the lesser of tuition, tied the scholarships to qualified higher education funding, and clarified that institutions must continue existing scholarship programs for top ACT/SAT students. He also said the substitute revised the performance-funding model to better reflect workforce needs, institutional outcomes, and higher education community feedback, while lowering the fiscal note. Committee members asked about how the model would treat two-year versus four-year institutions, whether funding would be assigned individually or through a block approach, and whether the bill would prevent future funding reductions. The sponsor said the model uses different factors for two-year and four-year schools, would generally operate more like the current two-year funding approach, and would initially guarantee institutions at least the prior year’s funding unless all institutions are reduced proportionally. Some members expressed concern that this could limit legislative appropriations flexibility, while others said the proportional-reduction language preserved that power. The substitute was adopted, and House Committee Substitute for House Bill 123 was voted do pass by a roll call of 9 ayes, 0 noes, and 3 present. The committee then voted House Bill 1627 do pass without discussion, passing it by a roll call of 12 ayes and 0 noes. The meeting then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• The Pre-K-12 Education Appropriations Subcommittee will now come to order.
• "My boy's wonderful, as you can see, and it's because of great education.
• As you all know, teachers are the backbone of our education system.
• and to value those in education.
• And we know Senator Gates also has a big... ...those in education.

Summary: The Pre-K-12 Education Appropriations Subcommittee met with a quorum present and took up two bills. First, it heard SB 1318 on the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program, which makes a technical clarification that when a scholarship account is closed, any remaining funds revert but do not revert to the state. There was no substantive opposition or debate, and the bill was reported favorably by roll call vote. The committee then considered CS for SB 182, which creates a school teacher training and mentor program within the Department of Education. The bill authorizes school districts and charter schools to place current or retired high-performing teachers in D- or F-rated schools to mentor classroom teachers, with mentors required to have at least three years of experience, a highly effective evaluation, and eligibility for a stipend of up to $3,000. A late-filed amendment was adopted to align the bill with the House version by setting the mentoring term to one grading period, capping the number of mentees per mentor, and clarifying use of enrichment funds when available. Senators asked about implementation, including timing, logistics, and whether mentors would remain within the same school; the sponsor said principals would manage assignments and that the program would operate within the same school. Testimony came from a seven-year-old student, Kyler Nixon, who urged support for the bill, and his mother, Kiara Nixon, who also spoke in favor. Additional support was voiced by committee members, and CS for SB 182 was reported favorably. At the end of the meeting, the chair thanked members and staff for their work during the session, noted it may be the committee’s last policy meeting, and the committee adjourned without further business.