Transcript Highlights:

• Does that mean we get better service?
• Are we going to share services?
• Are we going to share services?
• I'm the Workforce Service Director here at Job Service North Dakota.
• So Job Service North Dakota and Workforce Services, since I have the microphone, I thought I'd just give

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The Leadership Division of the Budget Section approved the prior meeting minutes and then received an update from Senator Jonathan Sickler on the Cash Management Board’s interim work under House Bill 1278. He said the board has reviewed state cash, investments, and liquidity across agencies and concluded the state’s overall mix of long-term and short-term assets is appropriate, with about $35 billion in total liquid assets and investments and roughly 89% in longer-term investments. He highlighted process improvements already underway, including replacing more than 500 six-month CDs with a special-rate savings account to reduce administrative work, and said the board sees opportunities to improve forecasting, automation, and statewide coordination. Members asked about whether the CD change would increase returns, how the Legacy Fund transfer for the homestead tax relief bill affected earnings, and whether more state cash could be consolidated or better managed through BND; Sickler and BND staff said those issues are being studied and may lead to legislation for the 2027 session. Representative Nathan Toman then updated the committee on the Task Force on Government Efficiency. He said the group has focused less on cutting dollars and more on defining metrics and asking how the legislature knows whether programs are working. The task force is pushing a standard set of questions for new or expanding programs—who is affected, expected outcomes, alternatives, how success will be measured, and full funding—and OMB has agreed to require those answers in future budget requests. Members discussed possible use of dashboards, program evaluators, AI tools, and possible rule or statutory changes to require performance measurement. Toman said the task force will continue meeting with agencies such as the courts, university system, auditor, HHS, Commerce, and ITD to identify workflow bottlenecks and potential efficiencies. Phil Davis of Job Service North Dakota gave a workforce update, reporting that North Dakota’s unemployment rate is 2.5% and labor force participation is about 68.7%, both well above national performance. He described Job Service’s 15 workforce programs, including H-2A housing inspections for foreign agricultural workers, the job placement partnership program with DOCR, WOTC, and other federal and state workforce efforts. Davis said the agency served more than 11,000 individuals in 2025, operates nine workforce centers, and tracks outcomes through quarterly and annual reporting. In response to questions, he said job openings data reflect only positions in the system and may understate actual hiring needs, that child care and other assistance programs could be better tied to employment outcomes, and that the DOCR partnership has shown strong results with lower recidivism and higher earnings. He also said the H-2A inspection workload is growing quickly and additional staffing or less frequent federal inspection requirements could help. Allen Knutson then presented S&P Global’s updated revenue forecast. He said oil prices have risen sharply since the prior month’s outlook, improving the state’s near-term revenue picture, though the economy remains volatile and agriculture is facing weaker commodity prices. Based on the updated forecast, total major tax revenues for the current biennium are projected to be about $89 million above the legislative forecast, and the next biennium could be about $500 million higher, though that estimate is preliminary and may change. He also walked through an alternate oil-price scenario showing significantly higher oil and gas collections and a larger Strategic Investment Fund balance if prices remain elevated. Members asked whether another forecast should be requested once oil markets stabilize and about tribal allocation changes in the alternative scenario; Knutson said additional updates are possible through OMB and future forecast cycles.

Transcript Highlights:

• Lee in the human services space.
• This is the human services trailer bill.
• And finally, we support services, sorry, we support funding for immigration legal services.
• Forest Service and the qualified product list.
• Forest Service and the qualified product list.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Committee held an informational hearing on the September budget package, which included SB 105 and a series of trailer bills covering health, human services, education, resources, child care, transportation, labor, public safety, housing, revenue, background checks, collective bargaining, and a special election. The Department of Finance described the package as largely technical and clarifying, but also responsive to state and federal changes, especially H.R. 1. Key items included roughly $3.3 billion in Proposition 4 climate and environmental spending, $540 million in discretionary greenhouse gas reduction funds, and major responses to H.R. 1 such as CalFresh error-rate mitigation, food bank support, and Medicaid-related changes. Other notable provisions included vaccine policy flexibility, an Abortion Access Fund, a gender-affirming care program, community college basic-needs and aid changes, CEQA and coastal permit exemptions tied to the 2028 Olympics, invasive mussel prevention funding, a civic media program, labor and pension-related provisions, and special election administration changes. Members raised questions and concerns about several parts of the package. There was support for climate, water, transit, offshore wind, food security, and health investments, but also significant criticism of the lack of cleanup language for SB 131 and its advanced manufacturing exemptions, with multiple members saying promised fixes had not materialized and expressing concerns about tribal consultation, labor standards, and environmental protections. Members also questioned the scale and timing of some Proposition 4 allocations, including fairground upgrades, regional conveyance, and a UC Davis alternative protein research center. The Department of Finance said some programs would roll out over time and that certain funding levels reflected current implementation capacity. The hearing also featured discussion of Bay Area transit financing, with Finance saying SB 105 directs the department and CalSTA to examine loan or other financing options rather than immediately providing loans. Members and public commenters also discussed the state’s response to H.R. 1, with advocates supporting food bank, health care, and immunization provisions while warning of ongoing harm to immigrants, foster youth, and other vulnerable groups. Public testimony broadly supported the health, food, water, offshore wind, and golden mussel provisions, while many speakers echoed legislative concerns about SB 131 and urged cleanup action in the next session. No votes were taken because the hearing was informational only, though the chair noted votes on the bills were expected later that night or the next morning.

Transcript Highlights:

• We don't say it with the hydroelectric generation, so it would read advanced nuclear technologies, hydroelectric
• know. ...to support the advancement of responsibly developed conventional and advanced nuclear technologies
• nuclear..." ...supports the advancement of responsibly developed conventional and advanced nuclear technology
• deal... ...were it to come to any of these different industries, I just think it does a good deal of service
• Line 21 supports the advancement of responsibly developed conventional and advanced nuclear technology

Committee: House State Affairs

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• GAMING EXPERTS AND TECHNOLOGICAL EXPERTS DON'T REALLY FULLY UNDERSTAND HOW THEY WORK BUT THEY DO KNOW
• THE PROGRAMMERS ARE NOT USING LAWFUL GAMING TECHNOLOGY.
• MAINTENANCE CONTRACT. >> EARLIER YOU SAID THEY'RE BEING RETURNED AND SPARE PARTS ARE BEING USED TO SERVICE
• IS A BECAUSE WE ARE NOT PROPERLY EQUIPPING YOU AND YOU DON'T HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY AND RESOURCES TO GO
• ACTUALLY SEE THINGS BUT MY CONCERN IS OF THE 3 MILLION IN THE BUDGET OR'S GOVERNMENT 740,000 ARE FOR TECHNOLOGY

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• My state service began in 2018 under former Governor Doug Ducey at the Arizona-Mexico Commission.
• Execution of AOT's mission delivers strong returns for taxpayers, supporting infrastructure, local services
• Execution of AOT's mission delivers strong returns for taxpayers, supporting infrastructure, local services
• if you want to add, because I always ask this question to how you're using, you know, advancing technology
• if you want to add, because I always ask this question to how you're using, you know, advancing technology

Committee: Senate Director Nominations

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We like that Tab. 2 is the program review presentation from our Department of AG and Consumer Services
• Office of Agriculture and Water Policy within the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
• Look at the newest technology and look at the Raw data management staff to see what's going on.
• We work with our research partners to try to figure out with the newest technology we can have.
• Technology today provide consistent structure.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Certainly long before technology, which has tremendously changed over the course of the last 65 years
• It comes down to modern fire suppression technology and the bravery of modern fire departments.
• that services that area.
• that services that area.
• But you have to talk about funding the service to support that style of living density.

Committee: House Housing and Community Development

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They have a very specific tie to want to dominate this and dominate the technology in the industry in
• On these vehicles, who maintains the data for those cameras and all that technology? Mr. Addis. Mr.
• would like to keep the option and the opportunity that we could come and have physical sales and service
• As a result, many consumers may be forced to travel out of state to buy or service the vehicle of their
• Appreciate all your service and working with you, and we'll wrap it up for the year.

Committee: Senate Transportation

Summary: The committee began with routine business, approving the March 12 and March 17, 2026 minutes. It then heard House Bill 927, which would restore consequences for unpaid moving violations by requiring the DMV to notify drivers with delinquent traffic fines and giving them 60 days to pay, while preserving limited driving privileges for work and medical emergencies and excluding parking, cycling, and jaywalking violations. The sponsor and supporters, including the Idaho Fraternal Order of Police and AAA, argued the bill would improve public safety and accountability and help address more than $23 million in unpaid traffic debt; opponents said collection agencies and existing tools were preferable and raised concerns about license-related penalties. After debate, a substitute motion to hold the bill in committee passed, so HB 927 was not advanced. The committee next considered House Bill 508, a follow-up to prior bicycle/pedestrian facility legislation. The bill would clarify that federal grants or funds may be used for highway projects involving bike or pedestrian improvements and would limit a violation provision to elected officials rather than consultants. After questions about how the underlying law works, the committee rejected a motion to hold the bill and instead voted to send HB 508 to the floor with a due pass recommendation. Senate Bill 1424 followed, a measure to close Idaho’s direct-to-consumer vehicle sales model to new manufacturers while grandfathering existing manufacturer-owned dealerships. Supporters framed it as a response to Chinese economic and national security threats and argued it would protect Idaho’s franchise dealer system; opponents, including Scout Motors and the Electrification Coalition, said it would harm American startups and consumer choice. Despite concerns about federal preemption and impacts on future direct-sales companies, the committee voted to send SB 1424 to the floor with a due pass recommendation. Finally, the committee took up House Bills 666 and 717, both aimed at requiring new Idaho residents to register vehicles and obtain Idaho licenses within a set time. HB 666 would have imposed a 30-day deadline, but members raised enforcement and fairness concerns and moved it to the 14th order for possible amendment. HB 717, an amended version, was also sent to the 14th order for possible amendment, but the roll call failed, leaving the bill held in committee. The meeting ended with thanks to members and adjournment.

Transcript Highlights:

• In the seventh meeting of our Senate Standing Committee on Health Services.
• recruitment,</c> forgiveness, scholarships, recruitment, forgiveness, scholarships, recruitment, technology
• :03.520><c> what</c><00:04:03.800><c> are</c><00:04:04.280><c> all</c><00:04:04.640><c> the</c> technology
• , uh what what are all the technology, uh what what are all the different<00:04:05.200><c> assets</c>
• </c> our services as a PA. our services as a PA.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The Senate Standing Committee on Health Services met with a quorum and first took up Senate Joint Resolution 116, sponsored by President Stivers. The resolution directs the University of Kentucky, the University of Louisville, and Eastern Kentucky University to work over the next year on a statewide framework to improve health care access, especially in underserved and unserved areas. Members discussed physician shortages, maldistribution of doctors, recruitment and retention, loan forgiveness, scholarships, technology, and the connection between health care access and economic development in rural Kentucky. The resolution was reported favorably on a unanimous roll call vote. The committee then considered Senate Bill 116, relating to physician assistants and a shift from a supervisory to a collaborative practice model. The sponsor and PA witnesses explained that the bill was heavily revised through a committee substitute after discussions with the Kentucky Medical Association, physicians, and hospitals. They said the substitute keeps physician supervision in place while allowing health care teams to function more efficiently, and they emphasized that the bill is intended to improve access to care, particularly in rural areas with few doctors. Some members supported the compromise and the collaboration, while others raised concerns that expanding PA practice could worsen long-term physician shortages or reduce incentives for doctors to practice in rural Kentucky. The bill passed the committee 7-2 with favorable expression.

Transcript Highlights:

• requirements as most other Medi-Cal services.
• on standards for BHT services, issue and maintain clear clinical guidance for BHT services based on
• Our members provide behavior analysis services, or ABA services, across a range of settings, including
• Human security jobs, replacing them with modern advances in technology.
• He and Win, with Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, in opposition.

Committee: House Public Safety

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• [applause] Welcome back to Senate services.
• tomorrow for the nanonuclear lunch and learn across the street in the cafeteria annex, not in the State Services
• President, the Senate Business, Labor, and Technology Committee will meet at 2 p.m.
• Technology Committee will meet at 2 pm. Technology Committee will meet at 2 pm.

Keywords: 981, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We've sent Director Alex Adams back there to join at the Health and Human Services level.
• can step in and not only tell Congress, we can tell President Trump, we can tell Health and Human Services
• And we upgraded our planters to some precision planting technology.
• So we are very reliant on GMO technologies and Roundup.
• Garner, I appreciate that presentation and the thoroughness and the demonstration of how technology can

Committee: House Agricultural Affairs

Summary: The House Agricultural Affairs Committee approved the January 20, 2025 minutes and then took up an RS, introduced by Rep. Jaron Crane, promoting natural sugar in school lunches and breakfast programs as part of Idaho’s support for the MAHA movement. The committee voted to introduce RS 32944C1, with lighthearted discussion about “sweetening” the proposal. Crane and others framed the memorial as a way to encourage federal officials to prioritize real sugar over artificial sweeteners and to support Idaho sugar beet growers. The committee then heard a panel from the Snake River Sugar Beet Growers Association and Amalgamated Sugar on the economic condition of the sugar beet industry. Growers described sharply lower prices, rising input costs, and tightening margins, saying many farms are near break-even or losing money and that smaller family farms are especially vulnerable. A presentation on regenerative agriculture emphasized soil health practices such as strip-till, cover crops, and compost/manure use, while noting that cover crops are costly and may be reduced in tight years. Questions from members focused on glyphosate availability, the effect of losing herbicides on tillage practices, and whether more incentives or federal help could support production. Amalgamated Sugar’s Jake Hancock explained the cooperative’s role in Idaho’s economy and described the federal sugar program, arguing that low prices are being driven by excessive imports, USDA demand overestimates, and an outdated high-tier import duty that has not kept pace with inflation. He said the recent federal increase in the sugar loan rate helps, but long-term sustainability requires raising the duty and better aligning import policy with domestic production costs. Several members expressed support for a joint memorial to Congress and federal agencies asking them to review sugar policy and protect the domestic industry. The chair closed by stressing that agricultural policy decisions affect rural jobs, families, and local economies, and then adjourned the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• Our utility bills should be spent on services, not on political activities and commercials, especially
• One would be political advertising, and the other is public service communication.
• And yet the technologies move fast, but the policy and the operations have not moved fast.
• The Moss Landing facility was one of the very first, and its technology was old.
• And yet people look at the newer technology and just conflate it and think there's a real reason to be

Summary: The Assembly Committee on Utilities and Energy met without a quorum at first and began as a subcommittee, then later established quorum and heard several measures. The main policy bills discussed were SB 24, which would restrict investor-owned utilities from using ratepayer funds for political advertising, lobbying, and efforts against municipal utilities, and SB 283, the Clean Energy Safety Act of 2025, which would strengthen safety standards for battery energy storage facilities after the Moss Landing fire. The consent calendar also included SB 80, SB 491, SB 593, SB 804, and SCR 25, which were taken up without debate. SB 24 drew strong support from consumer and environmental advocates, who argued that ratepayer money should not be used for political or promotional activity and that current rules lack meaningful consequences. Opponents from the utilities and business community said the bill was too broad, could interfere with shareholder-funded advocacy and legal work, and might unintentionally affect public service communications and expert consulting. Several committee members shared support for the bill’s goal but raised concerns about its breadth, especially around legal fees and communications; the author said he was willing to work on amendments, including on consultant fees, and accepted committee amendments. SB 283 received broad support from firefighters, local governments, utilities, labor, and business groups. Supporters said the bill would improve fire safety, require fire authority consultation and inspections, and prevent battery storage from being sited in unsafe indoor combustible facilities. The author described the Moss Landing fire and said the bill would add standards based on NFPA guidance while preserving local governments’ ability to adopt stricter rules. No opposition testimony was presented. The committee voted SB 283 out 16-0, and SB 24 was also approved after a roll was held open and later closed, ultimately passing 11-1. The consent calendar passed 16-0, and the meeting adjourned after the final roll calls were completed.

Transcript Highlights:

• Services, and the Bureau of Family-Centered Services.
• 15% for uh developmental Services 15% for uh developmental services<00:07:57.120><c> and</c> services
• </c><00:15:08.959><c> let</c> for services um funding for services let for services um funding for services
• services in the community.
• </c> those Services um the the major service those Services um the the major service types<01:37:17.119

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Division of Long-Term Supports and Services presented its budget and program overview as part of the Department of Health and Human Services operating budget review. Leadership described the division’s three bureaus—Aging and Adult Services, Developmental Services, and Family-Centered Services—and explained that the division provides guidance, technical assistance, quality monitoring, and contracted provider oversight across the lifespan. Members also discussed staffing, with reported vacancy rates of 4% in Aging and Adult Services, 15% in Developmental Services, and 6% in Family-Centered Services; the division said the higher BDS vacancy rate is partly due to the small number of authorized positions. The governor’s budget had left eight positions unfunded in the division, including three in Aging and Adult Services and five in BDS. A major topic was the division’s roadmap initiatives, especially building a system of care for healthy aging and strengthening developmental disabilities systems through a new reimbursement rate structure. The division said it contracted with an actuary to study DD service costs and found rates had not been reviewed since 2017 and were significantly below actual costs and other states’ rates, contributing to provider shortages even when services are authorized. Members asked about the impact on service delivery and whether rates would need to rise overall; the division said its strategy is to focus on lower-cost services that help people remain in the community. The division also reported waiver enrollment figures, including about 4,161 people on the Choices for Independence waiver, 3,688 average nursing facility residents, 5,061 people on the DD waiver, 228 on the acquired brain disorder waiver, and 488 children on the in-home support waiver, while noting there is no funding waitlist but provider availability remains a constraint. The division highlighted IT modernization as a major accomplishment, especially moving Adult Protective Services and Developmental Services into the New Heights system. Officials said these changes improve case-note access, data retrieval, service authorization tracking, and transparency for providers, and they asked for future oversight discussion focused on IT leverage. Members noted that New Heights maintenance is budgeted in the Office of the Commissioner under class 27 and suggested better transparency on system costs and benefits. The division also reported that it closed out a long-running CMS corrective action plan for BDS on July 1, 2023, and said it is now focused on strengthening the system rather than compliance alone. Other discussion covered the Aging and Adult Services bureau’s name change from Elderly and Adult Services to Adult and Aging Services, intended to avoid negative connotations and better reflect preventative services. The bureau described Adult Protective Services trends involving scams, financial exploitation, self-neglect, and isolation, and explained that it administers the CFI waiver, determines medical eligibility for nursing facility level of care, and braids funding from Medicaid, state funds, Older Americans Act money, Social Service Block Grants, and other grants. Members asked about waiver growth targets and federal consequences if enrollment remains below projections; the division said it would explain the shortfall in a future waiver amendment and did not anticipate a federal penalty. The meeting ended without any votes or formal actions taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• . >> There's cost savings with many of these energy technologies.
• . >> There's cost savings with many of these energy technologies.
• </c><00:02:15.760><c> So,</c> many of these energy technologies.
• So, many of these energy technologies.
• We don't have to get to 100% technology.

Keywords: 918, senate, all

Summary: The program focused first on Minnesota’s energy and affordability agenda, with Senator Nick Frentz discussing the state’s clean-energy leadership, rising electricity demand, and the Senate’s 100% clean energy framework. He said Minnesota’s clean energy growth supports jobs, lowers costs for ratepayers, and includes recent wins such as sustainable aviation fuel tax treatment in the supplemental budget. Frentz also said the Senate passed an energy omnibus bill that continues clean-energy permitting reforms, promotes conservation and demand response, and includes a nuclear study rather than lifting the nuclear moratorium. Frentz spent much of the interview defending data centers as both a challenge and an opportunity. He said large hyperscale projects can create major construction jobs and substantial local property-tax revenue, while a 2025 law requires data-center companies to contribute to low-income energy assistance and report water use. He pointed to the Google data center planned for Pine Island as an example, saying it is air-cooled, will pay $5 million a year, and will fund 1,600 MW of clean energy at its own expense, which he argued could save Xcel ratepayers money over time. He also said climate change is already driving higher costs through homeowners insurance and storm damage. The second segment highlighted Senator Zach Duckworth’s housing and banking bills. Duckworth said Senate File 4168 would make it easier to finance investment properties by giving buyers more flexibility to roll closing costs and lender fees into payments, while keeping strong protections in place for primary residences. He emphasized that the bill is not about predatory lending and is intended to expand options for informed investors. He also described Senate File 4652 as an anti-fraud, no-cost measure that lets bank customers name a trusted contact so banks can alert someone if suspicious activity is detected. Duckworth said both bills passed unanimously in both chambers, and he credited quick action and good working relationships across the aisle for their success. The program closed with a broader reflection on the end of session and the Senate’s political climate. It noted that 15 senators are retiring and two are leaving for higher office, and that final floor votes often split along party lines, including one bill passing 34-33. Several retiring senators used farewell speeches to urge civility, compromise, and putting people first, while the segment emphasized that despite partisan conflict, quiet bipartisan cooperation still produced much of the session’s enacted legislation.

Transcript Highlights:

• Garson, for your service. Thank you very much, Dr. Garson, for your service.
• So we've done huge changes in our information technology section, worked with the Department of Technology
• Garson, thank you so much for your service, your continued service, and after today continuing your service
• Garson, thank you so much for your service, your continued service, and after today continuing your service
• And those services are almost non-existent.

Committee: Senate Rules

Summary: The Senate Committee on Rules established quorum and approved several routine items on the agenda, including governor’s appointments not required to appear: Courtney Welsh to the California Housing Partnership Corporation Board, Janessa Goldbeck to the California Veterans Board, and Tom Huntington to the State Parks and Recreation Commission, each by 3-0 vote. The committee also approved reference of bills to committees, the 2026 committee chair/member assignments, the 2026 session schedule, the 2026 holiday schedule, and floor acknowledgments, all by unanimous votes. The committee noted that some 2026 committee changes would take effect February 1, 2026, and that new committees would depend on adoption of a Senate resolution. The committee then heard from Dr. Hernando Garson, nominated as chief medical officer of the Emergency Medical Services Authority. He described his background in emergency medicine, disaster response, and EMS leadership, and members questioned him about EMSA’s strategic plan, data integration, statewide standards versus local flexibility, ambulance patient offload time regulations, stakeholder engagement, and emergency response coordination. Dr. Garson emphasized data-driven decision-making, technical assistance to local agencies, collaboration with hospitals and EMS stakeholders, and the need for safer alternatives to routine ambulance transport such as community paramedicine, telehealth, and nurse triage. He also discussed disaster preparedness for vulnerable and rural communities and the use of regional and state assets, including ambulance strike teams, during fires and floods. The committee approved his appointment 4-0. The final item was Stephanie Weldon’s nomination as Deputy Director of the Office of Health Equity at the Department of Public Health. Weldon, who identified as Yurok-Tolowa and Karuk, spoke about her tribal, county, nonprofit, and state experience, her role as the first Native American woman in the position, and her commitment to health equity, rural communities, and culturally responsive public health work. Senators asked about how the office sets priorities, measures outcomes, addresses behavioral health, tribal consultation, youth mental health, and how it responds to political pressure around DEI language; Weldon said the office focuses on community-driven, data-informed work and transparency. Public commenters strongly supported her confirmation, citing her leadership on the California Reducing Disparities Project and related equity efforts. The committee approved her appointment 4-0, sending it to the full Senate for confirmation.

Transcript Highlights:

• So the biggest part of this pie chart, as you can see, is for health and human services.
• To note our Human Services Agency budget is three hundred and forty million dollars.
• from our Human Services Agency including 240,000 Medi-Cal enrollees.
• and then use those dollars to fund a very vital public service in the state.
• It's about attacking our basic ability. to provide human services and healthcare services to Californians

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That's why if the book thinks, you know, they have this technology to catch that.
• <01:06:14.400><c> that</c> technologies that technologies that calculating<01:06:16.080><c> the</c><01
• ,</c><01:34:31.520><c> housing,</c> jobs, new jobs, services, housing, jobs, new jobs, services, housing
• Murph's community service was legendary.
• </c> Murph's community service was legendary. Murph's community service was legendary.

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• General obligation bond debt service.
• FAA to estimate debt service on commercial paper and bonds.
• , and support. and direct services.
• legal services.
• Services.

Committee: House Appropriations - S/C on Articles I, IV, & V

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And so not only do we have to have innovations in science and technology, but we have to have people
• I'd like to go back to your comments about the role of the Office of Financial Services.
• The service would be at the same means that the scammer used to scam the person.
• Please note that this type of service would only be used for those who are unascertainable.
• Admitted from the decrease was psychological services. House Bill 839 looks to correct.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and heard five bills. HB 1097 would rename the Florida Catastrophic Storm Center at FSU as the Florida Center for Excellence in Insurance and Risk Management, transfer the public hurricane loss projection model from FIU to FSU, and provide recurring and nonrecurring appropriations to support independent insurance research and collaboration with OIR and other universities. Members discussed university roles, model oversight, independence from industry funding, and student/workforce benefits. The bill passed favorably on a roll call vote. HB 319 would create a regulatory framework for virtual currency kiosk businesses, requiring registration with the Office of Financial Regulation, consumer disclosures, and penalties for violations. Much of the discussion focused on fraud prevention, especially for seniors, and whether the bill should include transaction caps or stronger recovery tools; AARP supported the bill but urged additional protections. The bill passed favorably. CS/HB 385 made technical changes to the Florida Trust Code and Community Property Trust Act, including decanting, trustee claims, redemption by satisfaction, and homestead transfer treatment; an amendment conforming to the Senate version was adopted, and the bill passed favorably. CS/HB 97 would allow service of process for exploitation injunctions against unascertainable scammers through the same communication method used to contact the victim, such as text or social media, and would let courts freeze funds temporarily while the matter is heard. Testimony from elder law practitioners and AARP supported the bill as a tool against scams, while some members raised due process and overreach concerns; the bill passed favorably. HB 839 would shorten the overpayment recovery window for claims submitted to psychologists and HMOs to match other health providers, with the goal of improving parity and access to mental health care; an amendment was adopted, and the bill passed favorably. The meeting concluded with adjournment after the final roll call votes.