Video & Transcript : 'memorial garden' :
Page 35 of 384
AR
Transcript Highlights:
- We even have a garden in the backyard. But not only that, we know that people grow.
- mention before I let Senator Boyd speak: Saturday is the Autism Walk here in Little Rock at War Memorial
Committee:
All TASK FORCE ON AUTISM
US
US Federal 2025-2026 Regular Session
Hearings to examine S.222, to amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to allow schools that participate in the school lunch program to serve whole milk. Apr 1st, 2025 at 09:00 am
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee
Transcript Highlights:
- I don't know where things got off the rails because I remember, I have such a vivid memory as a boy,
- building towards figuring out the local infrastructure and getting more local food and starting school gardens
Bills:
SB222
Keywords:
whole milk, school lunch, school meals, National School Lunch Program, Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, Child Nutrition Act, USDA, nutrition standards, dairy, nonfat milk, low-fat milk, reduced-fat milk, lactose-free milk, nondairy beverages, plant-based milk, milk substitution, parental consent, legal guardian, food allergies, allergic reaction
Summary:
This meeting of the committee focused primarily on the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, S222, which aims to permit schools to offer a fuller range of milk options, including whole, reduced, and low-fat varieties, that have garnered bipartisan support. Chairman Bozeman opened the session by highlighting concerns over children's nutrition and the obesity epidemic, emphasizing the significance of nutritious school meals in addressing these issues. Experts from various organizations were invited to discuss the implications of this bill as well as the current challenges facing school meal programs, including budget constraints and food supply issues. The meeting included passionate testimonies about the direct impacts of current dietary guidelines and federal funding reductions affecting schools' abilities to provide healthy meal options.
NJ
Transcript Highlights:
- And you like a garden salad, but I don't know why. Why, you'd get a garden salad at McDonald's.
- Or your garden salad, if that's what you're for. So, Mr.
- I hope it comes with Superman for that cost. $1.25 million for Memorial Park in Rutherford.
- How do we find over $100 million for a city that's home to many of the Garden State's financial elite
- That's home to many of the Garden State's financial elite.
CA
California 2025-2026 Regular Session
Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee Jun 24th, 2026
Transcript Highlights:
- We had an incident in Garden Grove where there was likely...
- We’re going to have a BLEVE explosion larger than the Oklahoma City bombing” in my district in Garden
- know, we have been lucky to be recession-proof and not having lived through a recession in recent memory
Summary:
The committee heard several bills focused on public safety, labor enforcement, pensions, and workplace safety. AB 1054 would create a voluntary DROP-style retirement option for CHP officers and Cal Fire firefighters to help retain experienced personnel; supporters said it would be cost-neutral and help staffing, while an opponent warned it could affect bond ratings and create pension risk. The bill passed the committee 4-0 and was sent to Appropriations. AB 2129, which would improve Cal Fire compensation to aid recruitment and retention, also passed 4-0 to Appropriations with support from firefighters and no opposition. AB 1383, a broader PEPRA-related measure lowering retirement age and adjusting compensation caps for public safety workers, drew extensive support from firefighters and peace officers and strong opposition from cities, counties, and other local government groups over long-term pension costs; after debate over fiscal impacts, it passed 4-0 to Appropriations.
The committee also considered AB 605 on refinery safe staffing during shutdowns, prompted by layoffs and reduced staffing at refineries such as Phillips 66 Wilmington. Supporters argued the bill would protect workers and nearby communities during refinery wind-downs, while petroleum and business groups said closures are not inevitable and opposed the bill’s premise. The bill passed 3-0 to Environmental Quality. AB 1859 would let joint labor-management committees access public works sites to help detect wage theft and safety violations; construction labor supporters backed it as an enforcement tool, while laborers, local governments, and builders raised concerns about duplication, property access, and project disruption. It passed 2-0 to Judiciary, on call.
The committee then heard AB 2321, a pilot program allowing county district attorneys in Alameda and Santa Clara to investigate workplace deaths, which supporters said would address Cal/OSHA’s backlog and weak enforcement; employers and safety practitioners opposed it, citing expertise, due process, and overlapping investigations. It passed 2-0 to Appropriations, on call. Finally, AB 2575 began testimony on healthcare AI guardrails, with the author and nurses arguing that AI should support, not replace, clinical judgment and that patient safety requires human oversight.
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Committee on Jobs and Economic Development - 03/10/25
Jobs and Economic Development
Transcript Highlights:
- through Shiloh Care's Food Shelf, and they're also participating in a youth-led agricultural urban garden
- through Shiloh Care's Food Shelf, and they're also participating in a youth-led agricultural urban garden
- through Shiloh Care's Food Shelf, and they're also participating in a youth-led agricultural urban garden
- through Shiloh Care's Food Shelf, and they're also participating in a youth-led agricultural urban garden
- program so young people learn Garden program so young people learn learning<01:09:55.679><c> to</c><
Committee:
Senate Jobs and Economic Development
MN
Transcript Highlights:
- and yet according to the law she doesn't get this tax credit because she's supposedly more of a gardener
- </c><01:16:04.639><c> we're</c><01:16:04.800><c> not</c> just talking about gardeners we're not just
- talking about gardeners we're not talking<01:16:05.159><c> about</c><01:16:05.320><c> gardeners</c><01
- gardeners we're talking about<01:16:06.520><c> farmers</c><01:16:06.920><c> who</c><01:16:07.040><c>
- </c><01:16:45.000><c> than</c> she's supposedly more of a gardener than she's supposedly more of a gardener
Committee:
Senate Taxes
US
US Federal 2025-2026 Regular Session
US House Floor Proceedings (Wednesday, July 22, 2026)
US Federal House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- And may peace rest upon their memories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
- And may peace rest upon<00:24:58.000><c> their</c><00:24:58.159><c> memories.
- </c> upon their memories. Thank you, Mr. upon their memories. Thank you, Mr.
- without showing a of pastad Olive Garden without showing a photo<02:59:45.520><c> ID.
- </c> But the best way to honor their memory But the best way to honor their memory and<03:13:22.560><
MI
Transcript Highlights:
- be enjoying a well-deserved retirement with his family, and I hear, lots of time in his vegetable garden
- be enjoying a well-deserved retirement with his family, and I hear, lots of time in his vegetable garden
- Westcroft Gardens and Farm has been owned and operated by the same family in Michigan since 1776.
Summary:
The Senate met with 27 members present and a quorum, opened with an invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance, and then moved through a series of motions, recesses, and introductions of bills. Several new bills were read and referred, including measures affecting the Income Tax Act, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act, public utilities, nondisclosure agreements, data centers and community benefit agreements, zoning, Medicaid false claims, and the Neighborhood Enterprise Zone Act, with referrals mainly to finance, energy and environment, and housing and human services committees.
In the Committee of the Whole, Senate Bills 592, 49, and 50 were reported without amendment and advanced. On third reading, the Senate passed Senate Bills 900, 820, 966, 967, 968, 973, 974, 975, 976, 977, and 978. SB 900 dealt with the Vehicle Code, SB 820 with election law, SB 966 and SBs 974-978 with housing and insurance-related changes, and SB 967 with the Income Tax Act. SB 966, 967, 973, 974, 975, 976, 977, and 978 all passed on 20-16 votes, while SB 900 passed 35-1.
Senate Bill 973, creating a state-based health insurance exchange as a nonprofit corporation, drew the most debate. Senators Weber, Lindsay, and Halk offered amendments, all of which were defeated after recorded votes; Weber argued for cost controls and consumer savings, while supporters said the bill would give Michigan more control over health care decisions and could lower premiums. Senator Irwin spoke in support of the housing-related package, saying it would help address the state’s housing shortage. Senate Bill 592, concerning the Corrections Code, was also passed after a 31-5 vote, with Senator Lindsay explaining his no vote as concern about how the bill treats juvenile offenders.
The Senate also adopted Senate Resolution 133, urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to honor commitments to Michigan farmers participating in the Rural Energy for America Program. Senator McCann supported the resolution, citing farm losses from federal rollbacks, while Senator McBroom gave a strong no-vote explanation criticizing state energy policy and the resolution’s framing. The session ended with remarks recognizing Juneteenth and an anecdotal bipartisan exchange between senators before the chamber adjourned until June 23 at 10:00 a.m.
AR
Transcript Highlights:
- Two days later, Janet and I attended the Easter sunrise service at the Garden Tomb.
- And I attended the Easter sunrise service at the Garden Tomb.
- The sunrise service at the Garden Tomb is canceled for safety concerns.
Summary:
The transcript covers the opening of the Arkansas House and a joint session of the 95th General Assembly’s fiscal session. The House first established a quorum, granted leave for absent members, recognized guests, and adopted House Resolution 1001 to convene a joint session with the Senate for Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s address. Several bills and resolutions were read for the record, including House Resolution 1002 and House Bills 1001, 102, and 103, before the House recessed to await the Senate and then the governor.
In the joint session, leaders recognized the late Representative Stan Barry with a moment of silence, introduced constitutional officers, judges, and other guests, and appointed committees to escort the governor. Governor Sanders then delivered a lengthy fiscal-session address focused on her budget priorities and policy agenda. She emphasized continued funding for education under LEARNS, teacher pay and literacy gains, public safety and law enforcement funding, government efficiency and tax cuts, and the 1033 initiative aimed at helping vulnerable Arkansans move from crisis to self-sufficiency. She also urged lawmakers to avoid new Medicaid mandates or ongoing spending and said she would call a special session to cut income taxes further if the budget is passed.
After the governor’s remarks, the joint session adjourned. The House then reconvened briefly, adopted a motion to adjourn until the next day, and announced that the Joint Budget Committee would meet later that afternoon and again the following morning.
OK
Oklahoma 2026 Regular Session
Agriculture and Wildlife Feb 9th, 2026 at 10:00 am
Agriculture and Wildlife
Transcript Highlights:
- farmers who are hungry for more than and better local foods from farm to farm to table, your urban gardens
- , your community gardens, and being able to have a local food economy that can help protect farmland
- for our municipality, when I served on our city council, it was important for me to add community gardens
Committee:
Senate Agriculture and Wildlife
Keywords:
feral swine, nuisance control, wildlife management, hunting permits, agriculture, cultivated meat, food safety, public health, misbranding, advertising, food labeling, food distribution, state regulations, hunting licenses, fishing licenses, veterans, controlled hunts, deer population, wildlife conservation, food policy
FL
Florida 2026 Regular Session
FL House Floor Session - 2026-03-11 (11:00AM Session)
Florida House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- They are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
- You truly are the silent heroes of our caucus and our institutional memory.
- I am a better, You truly are the silent heroes of our caucus and our institutional memory.
- The doctors that I met was from University of Miami and Memorial Health down in South Florida.
- The doctors that I met was from University of Miami and Memorial Health down in South Florida.
Summary:
The House opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and recognition of a quorum, then adopted the special order calendar for the day. The first major item was CS/SB 156, the Officer Jason Rayner Act, which revises laws on resisting officers and adds manslaughter of a law enforcement officer to offenses eligible for a life sentence reclassification. The sponsor said the bill was intended to honor Officer Jason Rayner and clarify that questions of fault belong in court; opponents argued it removed judicial discretion, could sweep in unintended cases, and was a broad response to a case-specific prosecutorial failure. After debate, the bill passed 108-8.
The House then passed CS/SB 688 on naturopathic medicine, which creates a regulatory structure and licensure framework for naturopathic physicians, defines scope and limits of practice, and establishes a board under the Department of Health with medical doctor oversight. Supporters described it as a consumer protection and medical freedom measure; opponents called it an expansion of scope and criticized the low penalty for impersonating a naturopathic physician. The bill passed 85-22. The chamber also passed CS/CS/SB 1062 on speech and debate education, creating a Florida Speech and Debate Hall of Fame, a Florida Speech and Debate Week, and a statewide debate initiative, by a vote of 112-0.
Additional measures approved included CS/CS/SB 1220 on transportation, which covers a wide range of issues including FDOT authority, airports and seaports, drone delivery, autonomous vehicles, toll revenues, and related regulatory changes; it passed 87-23. SB 962 on affordable housing, which clarifies that Live Local Act zoning preemption does not unintentionally capture working farms and farm operations, passed 109-2. CS/CS/SB 1580 on illegal gaming was introduced and explained as a crackdown on illegal slot machines and unregulated gaming arcades, with questions focused on VFWs, sweepstakes, fantasy sports, and the Seminole gaming compact, but the transcript ends before a final vote on that bill. The session also included several recognitions and lengthy farewell remarks from departing members, including Leader Driscoll and Majority Leader Sirois.
NM
New Mexico 2026 Regular Session
Senate - Conservation Jan 31st, 2026 at 09:07 am
Senate Conservation
Transcript Highlights:
- production of biochar be part of the recycling program because biochar can take any organic slash garden
- I'm also a gardener, and there is always a need for more compost.
- I'm also a gardener, and there is always a need for more compost.
- regular trash doesn't stink, and every spring I have just wonderful compost that I can use in my garden
- And every spring I have just wonderful compost that I can use in my garden.
Committee:
Senate Senate Conservation
Keywords:
food recovery, composting, waste management, solid waste surcharge, organic waste reduction, environment, grants, advisory group, bosque management, Rio Grande, environmental protection, water resources, fiscal appropriation, drinking water, well owners, water testing, water treatment, public health, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture
AZ
Transcript Highlights:
- SB 1598, appropriation, schools community gardens. ATT and Education.
- SV 1598 appropriation schools, community gardens. ATT and education.
Summary:
The Senate opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, confirmed attendance, approved the journal, and welcomed several guests in the gallery, including a veteran and House candidate, a former legislative district chair, and two district guests attending in support of future highway-naming testimony. The chamber also extended well wishes to Senator Farnsworth’s wife, who was reported hospitalized, and announced a temporary committee replacement appointment for Senator Fernandez on the Education Committee.
The bulk of the meeting consisted of reading House messages and introducing numerous bills for first reading and committee referral, covering a wide range of topics including transportation, taxation, education, health care, housing, water, public safety, elections, immigration, behavioral health, and appropriations. The Senate also placed many measures on second reading, including bills on school budgets, civics instruction, campaign finance, voter registration, housing, tax deductions, and public safety-related issues. Committee meeting announcements were made for the following day.
The chamber then considered a gubernatorial nomination and, on a voice vote, confirmed James McCain to the Arizona Board of Regents for a term ending January 19, 2032. After a recess and return, additional bills were introduced and referred, including measures on corporal punishment in schools, homeless shelter funding, child care waiting lists, community gardens, solar energy requirements, insurance claims assistance, firearms regulation, and crime victim notification funding. The Senate adjourned at the end of the session until Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at 1:15 p.m.
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Committee on Environment, Climate and Legacy - 03/10/26
Environment, Climate, and Legacy
Transcript Highlights:
- The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, the Woodbury Sundance Committee, the Lakes community in Blaine, and
- The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, the Woodbury Sundance Committee, the Lakes community in Blaine, and
- The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, the Woodbury Sundance Committee, the Lakes community in Blaine, and
- via infiltration, evapotranspiration, and constructed mechanisms such as green roofs, bioretention gardens
- that might be notable to you, including Water Works Park in Minneapolis, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden
Committee:
Senate Environment, Climate, and Legacy
MA
Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session
LGBT Aging Commission Mar 10th, 2026
Transcript Highlights:
- I love gardens and nature. And so when I talk about diversity, You'll learn more.
- I love gardens and nature.
- what I know and supporting you all and just wishing you well as you continue to tend equity in the garden
- what I know and supporting you all and just wishing you well as you continue to tend equity in the Garden
Summary:
The Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Aging opened its March quarterly meeting by welcoming its first full-time director, Alison Bauer, who introduced her background in state government, public health, philanthropy, teaching, and LGBTQ family advocacy. Commissioners approved the December quarterly meeting minutes, then turned to a presentation by Adriana Bullen on diversity, equity, inclusion, power, belonging, and intersectionality. Bullen led an interactive workshop using reflection, anonymous polling, and discussion to connect DEI concepts to the commission’s work, including examples from participants’ personal and professional lives and a brief history of intersectionality rooted in Black feminist scholarship and the DeGraffenreid v. General Motors case.
The group then applied the discussion to the commission itself, identifying examples of successful DEI work such as listening sessions across the Commonwealth, targeted recruitment, inclusive trainings, the strategic plan, the commission website, and advocacy that helped pass the LGBTQI+ and HIV long-term care bill of rights. Participants also named conditions that support the commission’s power, including collaboration, commitment, openness, empowerment, persistence, and strong relationships, while noting barriers such as invisibility of older adults, limited racial and ethnic diversity, and lack of trans elder representation. Several commissioners emphasized the need for more Black, Latino, immigrant, and trans voices, and discussed recruitment challenges, including the difficulty of asking marginalized people to be the only one in the room.
Bullen concluded by introducing an equity-lens tool for evaluating decisions and actions, using the commission’s strategic priority on representation as an example. Commissioners discussed whether to expand membership, create an advisory board, or use a broader network of organizations to cultivate future commissioners, noting that some changes would require legislative or procedural action. The meeting ended with appreciation for the workshop and a commitment to continue the work, with the next quarterly meeting scheduled for June.
HI
Transcript Highlights:
- It often involves hands-on work in gardens, loʻi, fish ponds, and forests, integrated with lessons in
- It often involves hands-on work in gardens, loʻi, fish ponds, and forests, integrated with lessons in
- Mahalo. involves hands-on working in gardens loi involves hands-on working in gardens loi which<00:06
Committee:
Senate Health and Human Services
Summary:
The Health and Human Services committee heard testimony on several resolutions. HCR 190, asking the Department of Health to convene a demolition waste reduction work group, drew only written testimony; the Department of Health provided comments in opposition and the Department of Attorney General Services supported it. HCR 91, on requiring insurers and managed care providers to cover prosthetic and orthotic devices, received supportive testimony from SHIPA and an amputee youth advocate who described the high cost and importance of sports prosthetics. HCR 174, on examining the availability and use of land-based learning programs for youth in the juvenile legal system, drew support from the Office of the Public Defender, youth advocates, and a youth council that described land-based learning as culturally rooted and rehabilitative. HR 171, on assessing the social and financial effects of mandatory coverage for continuous glucose monitors, received support from SHIPA, the Hawaiʻi Medical Association, and kidney care and dialysis groups. HCR 146, on the Elderly Simplified Application Project for SNAP, drew support from disability, hunger, and public health groups, with DHS explaining it could implement the project but would need to do manual certification work until its new system is ready.
During decision-making, the committee deferred HCR 190 because the Department of Health said it could not carry out the work group without an appropriation. The committee voted to pass HCR 91 as is. HCR 174 was recommended for passage with amendments to clarify that the resolution would request continued use of land-based learning programs and to reflect existing work already underway. HCR 171 was recommended for passage with amendments to correct a statute description. HCR 146 was recommended for passage with amendments to add language that DHS should apply for and implement the project when capable, acknowledging current system limitations. All recommendations were adopted, and the meeting adjourned.
MA
Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session
Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies May 19th, 2026
Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies
Transcript Highlights:
- The compromise was that the employer had to pay for garden leave, half of the employee's base salary,
- For their entire garden leave compensation, they've given it away for perhaps a thousand dollars or no
- departure, and that the compensation needs to be agreed to be of equal or greater value than the garden
- We have tons of these people right now doing, being gardeners or cleaning homes and all of that, right
- bill is premised on the notion that other mutually agreed upon consideration, that alternative to garden
Bills:
H5386
Keywords:
economic development, innovation, investment, housing, small business, global trade, infrastructure
ND
North Dakota 2026 1st Special Session
Water Topics Overview Committee Mar 26th, 2026 at 09:00 am
Water Topics Overview Committee
Transcript Highlights:
- Chairman, I'm going to have to do this from memory.
- my memory.
- , you know, refresh my memory.
- Above that, that's where you get into watering your lawns, watering your garden, playing outside.
- We have a small garden. I use 20 units of water in the summer, 14,960 gallons.
Committee:
Joint Water Topics Overview Committee
ND
North Dakota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Water Topics Overview Committee Mar 26th, 2026
Transcript Highlights:
- Chairman, I'm going to have to do this from memory.
- Now, from memory, one of them was ANS.
- That's a quite a nuisance, a nuisance, one of them, you know, refresh my memory.
- , you know, refresh my memory.
- We have a small garden. I use 20 units of water in the summer, 14,960 gallons.
Summary:
The Water Topics Overview Committee met with a quorum and received updates from the Department of Water Resources and the State Water Commission, followed by presentations from Deloitte on two legislative studies required by House Bill 1020. Director Reese Haas reviewed major project and budget updates, including the Northwest Area Water Supply and Southwest Pipeline projects, Resources Trust Fund balances, carryover spending, project prioritization, bid conditions, regional water system coverage, and department process improvements. Members also discussed how the commission prioritizes projects, maintenance expectations, and the impact of limited municipal water supply funding. No formal committee action was taken during the DWR update; the commission’s municipal funding decisions were described as pending its April 8 meeting.
Deloitte then presented the cost-share policy study, which found that under current policy and forecasted revenues, North Dakota faces an estimated $1.3 billion shortfall over 14 years, with a near-term gap of about $1.8 billion through 2031. The firm outlined seven recommended options, including tighter definitions and a 25% cost share for eligible replacement projects, caps and financing strategies for the Mouse River and Red River Valley projects, aligning cost share with commission priority guidance, delaying lower-priority projects, using available lines of credit, and adjusting reimbursement timing for revolving loan funds. Committee members questioned inflation assumptions, affordability, user fees, and the use of legacy fund earnings for bonding, but no decisions were made.
In the governance and finance study, Deloitte said final recommendations are still being refined, with a final report due May 29. The study examined the Southwest Pipeline, NAWS, and Red River Valley systems using governance and finance criteria such as decision authority, transparency, affordability, risk, and access to funding. For Southwest, Deloitte outlined options ranging from improved state-authority coordination to transferring ownership to the Southwest Water Authority; for NAWS, options focused on strengthening the authority’s role and potentially transitioning operations and maintenance; and for Red River, options ranged from enhanced facilitation to formal state oversight or state ownership. Members asked follow-up questions about ownership transfer, capital repayment streams, and why NAWS was not considered for transfer, and Deloitte said NAWS’s limited organizational maturity made that option less viable in the near term.
FL
Florida 2025 Regular Session
January 14, 2025 - 01:00 PM
Transcript Highlights:
- Wallace Aristide, District 107, Miami Gardens, North Miami Beach, parts of North Miami, Biscayne Gardens
- Representative Alex Rizo, District 112, encompasses the majority of Hialeah, Miami Springs, Virginia Gardens
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.