Transcript Highlights:

• I get a little bit more concerned as we move things from the operating budget out of the operating budget
• But I had no idea what a state-operated flower nursery.
• It's protecting religious assembly in states of emergency officially.
• This bill doesn't prevent any emergency orders.
• It doesn't inhibit any locality from implementing an emergency order.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> country, countless emergency country, countless emergency departments,<00:16:27.120><c> nursing<
• c> corn,</c><00:21:13.679><c> soybeans,</c> grain operation raising corn, soybeans, grain operation raising
• I'm a registered nurse in the emergency department at United Hospital in St. Paul.
• Have any of you recently had the unfortunate opportunity to visit an emergency room?
• </c> healthcare ownership is emerging. healthcare ownership is emerging.

Committee: Senate Health and Human Services

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So are you referring to operators? No, excavators. Sorry, not operators, the locators.
• one bat operator on the 460s.
• . operators on the ranch that are very good operators.
• If he can't operate safely, I don't think he ought to be operating. Right. Thank you, Joe.
• Who's the operator of your wells? These are all. Who was the operator?

Bills: HB2766 , HB2891 , HB3334 , HB3791 , HB3911 , HB4021 , HB4041 , HB4042 , HB4384 , HB4426

Committee: House Energy Resources

Keywords: inactive wells, oil and gas regulation, environmental protection, Railroad Commission of Texas, well plugging, Railroad Commission, penalties, violations, pipeline safety, civil penalties, criminal penalties, wildfire prevention, oil and gas, safety inspections, administrative penalties, excavation, notification, utilities, underground facilities, regulatory compliance

Transcript Highlights:

• So can you explain to us where we are on the Emergency Management Trust Fund?
• The operating expenses at New College per student are $83,000.
• Just normal operating costs for that $35,000? Chair Brodeur. Thank you, Mr. President.
• It's just operating costs. Okay, thank you. Senator Brodeur, one last question.
• DOC operates that are not in compliance with DMS standards.

Summary: The Senate took up the 2026-2027 budget package, beginning with an overview of the $115 billion General Appropriations Bill (SB 2500). Appropriations Chair Hooper said the budget reduces overall spending from the prior year, preserves reserves, and includes a 3% pay raise for state employees and 5% raises for law enforcement, firefighters, correctional officers, and park rangers. Committee chairs then highlighted major spending in their areas, including K-12 education, higher education, health and human services, criminal and civil justice, transportation/economic development, and environmental/agricultural programs. Major items discussed included school funding increases, workforce and university investments, Medicaid and child welfare funding, corrections operating deficits, housing and hurricane recovery, Everglades and water quality projects, and state employee compensation. Members asked detailed questions about several budget items. In education, senators discussed teacher salaries, declining enrollment supplements, scholarship funding growth, and charter school capital outlay. In higher education, they asked about Bright Futures, New College funding, and the EASE grant program. In health and human services, senators focused on the iBudget waiver, Medicaid hospital rate reductions, the ADAP HIV drug program, and the use of opioid settlement funds. In criminal justice, questions centered on DOC deficits, inmate health care and food service costs, public defender and state attorney funding, and whether the budget would prevent the need for National Guard support. In environmental and state agency budgets, senators discussed Florida Forever land acquisition, conservation easements, cultural grants, the Emergency Management Trust Fund, and election security funding. After the budget presentations and questions, the Senate substituted House bills for the Senate budget bills and adopted amendments to place Senate language onto the House vehicles for conference. The chamber passed HB 5001, the appropriations bill, by a 36-0 vote and agreed to conference. It also passed the implementing bill, collective bargaining and state employee bills, retirement legislation, fuel tax and SLERS bills, the court trust fund bill, judicial certification bill, K-12 and higher education conforming bills, and other related measures, generally by unanimous votes. Several motions were adopted to request the House to pass the Senate versions or include them in budget conference.

Transcript Highlights:

• We had a team when we operated this program.
• Small businesses may just stop operating.
• However, a lot of these small businesses may just stop operating.
• Sustainability, as evidenced by an operating budget and a future projected sustainable operating budget
• So that's one way the program operates.

Committee: House New Mexico Finance Authority Oversight Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> emergency-only evacuation route. emergency-only evacuation route.
• </c> So,<03:56:00.760><c> they're</c><03:56:00.960><c> operating.</c> So, they're operating.
• So, they're operating.
• I don't want that agency to be operating." Now, they are operating because they're essential.
• This change also hurt operations.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The Department of Licensing estimates one-time operating expenditures of $186,000 from the motor vehicle
• do not apply to rounding fiscal note is available the department of licensing estimates one-time operating
• First of all, they offer emergency loans to individuals.
• So in terms of your business operation, you do more than just loan?
• A customer could use the money to pay off an emergency bill, fill their gas tank, pay part of a medical

Bills: HB1269 , HB2624

Committee: Senate Business, Trade & Economic Development

Keywords: pawnbroker, fees, interest rates, consumer protection, financial regulation, real estate transactions, nonprofit, land conservancies, unsolicited offers, property rights, 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That said, we have three operating programs.
• DMS has three main service areas: business operations, workforce operations...
• DMS's three main service areas are business operations, workforce operations, and the Florida Digital
• operations center and work... ...in total contracted construction projects, including the state emergency
• FLDS operates the state's cybersecurity operations center, a central point to detect and neutralize threats

Summary: The State Administration Budget Subcommittee met for an introductory overview of the agencies under its jurisdiction and their current-year budgets. Chair Vicki Lopez welcomed members and staff, and each member briefly introduced themselves and identified areas of interest, with recurring themes including fiscal restraint, insurance regulation, revenue administration, condominium issues, and government efficiency. The chair then outlined the subcommittee’s overall budget, about $3.1 billion, and noted major recent policy areas affecting the budget such as condominium legislation and emergency communications funding. Agency heads then presented high-level summaries of their missions and budgets. The Department of Revenue described property tax oversight, tax administration, and child support enforcement; the Department of Management Services reviewed state purchasing, telecommunications, fleet, state insurance, retirement, and digital services; DBPR highlighted licensing, enforcement, condominiums, and building code work; DFS covered insurance consumer services, risk management, unclaimed property, fire marshal functions, and criminal investigations; the Gaming Control Commission discussed pari-mutuel and tribal gaming oversight and enforcement; OIR explained insurer solvency and rate review; the Lottery emphasized education funding and record sales; OFR described regulation of banking, securities, lending, and money services; DOAH outlined administrative and workers’ compensation adjudication; PSC covered utility rate regulation and consumer complaints; PERC described labor relations and career service appeals; and FCHR summarized discrimination complaint investigations and outreach. Several members asked questions about utility returns, insurance regulation staffing, DMS’s state employee health plan deficit and prescription drug formulary management, agency recommendations for reducing regulatory burden, and state facilities usage. Responses generally emphasized that utility rates and insurer filings are determined through evidentiary and actuarial processes, that OIR has reduced vacancies but still seeks specialized staff and a Tampa office expansion, and that DMS acknowledged rising health plan costs and said the issue likely requires broader budget-level discussion. The chair also pressed multiple presenters to stay focused on agency operations and budgets rather than broader policy issues. No votes or formal actions were taken in the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• of how hospitals best operate.
• </c> ongoing emergency repairs. ongoing emergency repairs.
• :32.200><c> operate.
• </c> hospitals best operate. hospitals best operate.
• </c> address their own operational needs. address their own operational needs.

Committee: House Taxes

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> unless they operate in other states. unless they operate in other states.
• </c> operating the facility. operating the facility.
• </c> the entities responsible for operating the entities responsible for operating and<01:17:58.000><
• </c><01:31:31.960><c> in</c> forensic facility becomes operative in forensic facility becomes operative
• This amendment also emergency rules.

Keywords: 926, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And whereas Lori McDonald's ability to step into emergency response roles, such as serving as a housing
• ALC co-chairs to finalize the authorization by emergency action, and those actions are attached to your
• The ALC co-chairs to finalize the authorization by emergency action, and those actions are attached to
• One, reviewed and approved emergency rules for the Department of Human Services and the Department of
• By this report, the ALC co-chairs report emergency actions taken May 18, 2026, as authorized with the

Committee: All ARKANSAS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (ALC)

Summary: The Arkansas Legislative Council met and first adopted the previous meeting minutes, then honored Lori McDonald of the Department of Human Services for nearly 28 years of state service. Members read a resolution recognizing her legislative, constituent, and leadership work at DHS, and the council adopted it unanimously. McDonald thanked members for their support, and the Senate also presented her with a citation, a flag flown over the Capitol, and a commemorative coin. The council then received the May 2026 revenue report, which showed gross adjusted collections of $7.76 billion year-to-date, up 4.4% from the prior year, and net available for distribution of $6.36 billion. The Bureau of Legislative Research noted collections were running above last year and that the updated forecast reflected a surplus. The Executive Subcommittee report was adopted after members were told it had approved captive insurance premiums and deductibles, a claims administration contract, emergency DHS rules, waiver requests, committee fund allocations, and the cancellation of the regular July ALC meeting in favor of only meeting for urgent matters. Several subcommittee reports were then adopted, including Administrative Rules, Game and Fish and State Police, Hospital/Medicaid/Developmental Disabilities, Lottery Oversight, Occupational Licensing Review, Peer Review, Review, State Insurance Programs Oversight, and Personnel. During the Administrative Rules discussion, members questioned the Department of Education about delays and vendor performance under the ClassWallet contract; department officials said they were meeting regularly with the vendor, keeping expense review in-house, and would consider other options if needed. In Personnel, the Department of Commerce clarified that a reallocation request was part of a broader departmental realignment and shared services move, not the Arkansas Workforce Connection waiver. The council also reviewed and took action on several communications, including filing retirement system investment summaries as reviewed, approving rural community grant funding, giving favorable advice for state park acquisitions/expansion, approving special maintenance funding for state parks, and filing proposed Office of State Technology service rates as reviewed before adjourning.

Transcript Highlights:

• However, he asked to go home with an emergency backup provider.
• I'm going to touch on three themes that really emerged in our report.
• I'm going to touch on three themes that really emerged in our report.
• I have seen how power and wealth operate firsthand.
• to a consumer emergency.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , temporary staffing shortages, and operational continuity.
• AB 1582 threatens to cripple this operational lifeline.
• Similarly, transplant services operate within narrow clinical windows.
• Today, CalSavers is already operating at scale.
• This creates a clear gap as this technology expands across government operations.

Committee: Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So if we do not do that, we're going to be in a state of emergency, okay?
• We're going to be in a state of emergency, okay? Even if we can get them in the seats.
• Currently, we have an emergency compensation provision.
• . ...have an emergency compensation provision for elections that are going to require more.
• You're still going to have that emergency provision. Thank you very much. Thank you. All right.

Committee: House House and Governmental Affairs

Summary: The committee met on March 31 with a quorum present and heard three bills by Representative Bacala. House Bill 205 sought to increase compensation for election commissioners, with the author and several clerks of court and commissioners testifying that pay had not changed in 19 years despite greater responsibilities, longer hours, and additional training tied to election security and new voting systems. To avoid a state fiscal note, the committee adopted amendment set 2855, which removed the base pay increase and instead allowed parish governing authorities to provide a supplemental payment of up to $100 for commissioners in charge and those who complete instruction. The bill was then reported favorably. House Bill 67 addressed protected information for certain public officials and aligned the rules for clerks of court with those already applied to the Secretary of State’s office. The author described it as a technical correction to prior legislation governing what personal information may be published or removed. Stephen Procopio of PAR raised broader concerns about transparency, possible constitutional issues, and inconsistent treatment of information depending on the source, suggesting the law may need a larger review. The committee did not amend the bill and reported it favorably. House Bill 73 would allow local public bodies to vote by electronic voting machine, so long as the vote is publicly displayed, instead of being limited to voice votes. Bacala said the change was intended to clarify that electronic in-place voting is permissible and does not affect quorum, proxy voting, or remote participation. Representatives asked about whether members and the public must be able to see the vote and whether the bill changed existing procedures; the author said it did not. Support came from local government associations, and the bill was reported favorably.

Transcript Highlights:

• ,</c><00:05:36.680><c> and</c><00:05:36.800><c> they</c><00:05:36.880><c> operate</c> stress uh emergencies
• , and they operate stress uh emergencies, and they operate 24<00:05:37.720><c> hours</c><00:05:37.919
• </c><00:10:50.680><c> room,</c> occur coming through the emergency room, occur coming through the emergency
• </c> emergencies in all schools. emergencies in all schools.
• </c><00:32:36.480><c> I</c> preparedness, emergency response. I preparedness, emergency response.

Committee: House Veterans, Military Affairs, & Public Protection

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Substitute Senate Bill 5249 allows the use of kit homes as emergency housing under certain conditions
• The Ponderay Valley Railroad has been owned and operated by the Port of Ponderay since 1984.
• Our day-to-day operations require qualified and certified railroad employees.
• The Pondere Valley Railroad has been owned and operated by the Port of Pondoree since 1984.
• Our day-to-day operations require qualified and certified railroad employees.

Summary: The Ways and Means Committee met on January 20, 2026, hearing several bills related to retirement systems, school employee health coverage, port district pensions, environmental fee accounts, developmental disability services, legislative budget transparency, and a new Apple Health employer assessment. Early in the meeting, the committee heard SB 5834, which would make permanent a temporary expansion allowing certain retirement trust fund earnings to pay broader administrative expenses, and SB 5835, which would raise the lump-sum retirement allowance threshold for Plan 2 members from $50 to $250. Both bills were presented by Department of Retirement Systems staff and supported by the department, with questions focused on the scope of the administrative-expense language in SB 5834 and the technical nature of SB 5835. The committee then entered executive session and moved three bills without recommendation to the Rules Committee: Substitute SB 5249, allowing kit homes as emergency housing; Substitute SB 5053, allowing certain counties to include school district boundaries when forming a public facilities district; and Substitute SB 5203, directing state agencies to develop a wildlife habitat connectivity strategy and creating related accounts. After returning to public hearing, members heard SB 5883 on SEBB eligibility for school employees in their second school year of employment. Supporters, including labor representatives and individual school workers, said the bill would reduce coverage gaps and improve recruitment and retention, while school district officials and administrators argued it would create an unfunded mandate, increase costs, and add administrative burden. No action was taken on the bill. The committee also heard SB 5905, which would exclude certain port district employees from PERS if they are covered by the federal Railroad Retirement Plan or a collectively bargained defined benefit pension plan. Port representatives, labor stakeholders, and the Department of Retirement Systems described it as a narrow technical fix to avoid duplicate pension coverage and retroactive liabilities, and the bill drew support. SB 6151 would create dedicated accounts for Ecology fee revenue tied to laboratory accreditation and landfill methane work; Ecology and county representatives supported the measure as a way to reinvest fees in the programs that generate them. SB 6163 would require the Individual and Family Services waiver for developmental disability services to be budgeted at maintenance level; advocates said it would stabilize services and prevent waitlists, and no opposition was heard. The final two bills were SB 6177, which would require LEAP’s budget website to display additional budget detail such as carry-forward data, program and subprogram expenditures, and balance sheets for all public accounts, and SB 6173, which would create an Apple Health employer assessment on larger private employers with workers enrolled in Medicaid expansion coverage. SB 6177 was framed as a transparency measure, while SB 6173 drew extensive testimony both in support and opposition: supporters said it would help offset expected Medicaid losses after federal work requirements take effect and stabilize the health safety net, while opponents argued it would be an unfunded tax, create administrative and legal complications, and could discourage hiring or reduce hours. The committee heard no final votes on the public hearing bills, and staff reminded members that signature sheets would be held for 24 hours under Senate rules.

Transcript Highlights:

• Look, I am 100% for safety and emergency response.
• But I was a production operator for five years and flowed wells.
• I have one road in Lafourche Parish that has oil and gas operations on it.
• And on the local side, to make sure there's an emergency response.
• And on the local side to be, make sure there's an emergency response.

Committee: House Natural Resources & Environment

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• administered by the Office of Drinking Water under the Department of Health that pertain to the operations
• Further, Thurston PUD has invested heavily in capital expenses to ensure these systems are operating
• emerging large energy use facilities.
• The effect of the... gross second subsidy house bill 2115, an act relating to addressing emergency emerging
• It makes a technical edit to the definition of emerging large energy use facility tariff or policy.

Summary: The committee held a public hearing on Second Substitute House Bill 1906 concerning water systems, focusing on a striking amendment that would require more notice to customers and relevant entities before ownership changes, require certain planning documents to be submitted, and direct the UTC to consider cost of capital, external funding, rate smoothing, notice, and planning compliance when setting rates for private water companies. Testifiers from the Washington PUD Association, Northwest Natural, Thurston PUD, and Washington Water Service generally supported the bill, saying it would improve transparency for customers, help avoid failed systems ending up in receivership, and better inform customers about future costs; one senator asked about PFAS contamination, receivership, and the removal of a right of first refusal, and staff explained the bill’s intent was to improve front-end notice rather than change the back-end takeover process. The committee then moved into executive session and received briefings on several bills and proposed striking amendments, including measures on distributed energy resources (HB 2296), emerging large energy use facilities (HB 2115), AI disclosures (HB 1170), waste-to-energy facilities under the Climate Commitment Act (HB 2416), low-income energy assistance (HB 1903), environmentally sustainable urban design (HB 1742), and the Spark Act AI grant program (HB 1833). Members discussed issues such as utility worker installation authority, data center load and ratepayer protections, AI provenance and disclosure requirements, waste-to-energy allowance timing, reimbursement mechanics for energy assistance, and safeguards for an AI regulatory sandbox. The committee adopted striking amendments and passed HB 2296, HB 2115, HB 1170, HB 2416, HB 1906, HB 1903, and HB 1833 out of committee, generally with due-pass recommendations and referral to Ways and Means where applicable. The committee did not take action on HB 1742. The meeting concluded with members and staff offering personal thanks and farewell remarks to the chair, who was noted to be leaving the committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is to ensure that individuals who are seeking care—whether emergency care, reproductive health care
• Nobody can just walk into an emergency room or an operating room or certain parts of a medical facility
• Nobody can just walk into an emergency room or an operating room or certain parts of a medical facility
• This is a very tall order for people who are already overwhelmed by often unexpected medical emergencies
• The current three regional registries of the CCR have been in operation since 2000, and they are also

Summary: The Assembly Health Committee heard several Senate bills focused on health care access, privacy, and public health data. SB 81 (Arreguín) would require health care facilities to create nonpublic areas and bar immigration enforcement from entering without a judicial warrant or court order, while also protecting disclosure of immigration-related information in medical records. The bill drew strong support from labor, immigrant-rights, health care, and patient advocacy groups, with committee members emphasizing patient safety and privacy; one member raised implementation concerns about how the restrictions would work in practice. The committee voted the bill out on a due pass motion to the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee, with one no vote recorded. SB 250 (Ochoa Bogh) would add skilled nursing facilities to DHCS’s managed care provider directory so Medi-Cal beneficiaries can more easily identify covered facilities. Supporters said the change would help seniors and people with disabilities avoid confusion and rushed placement decisions, especially during hospital discharge, and would make existing information easier to use. The committee passed the bill to Appropriations on a unanimous vote. SB 717 (Richardson) would formally recognize California’s three regional cancer registries in state law to help preserve federal funding and support cancer surveillance data collection. The author and supporters said the measure would protect more than $15 million in annual federal support and strengthen cancer research and tracking; the committee approved it unanimously to Appropriations. SB 504 (Laird) would allow health care providers to disclose personally identifying information about previously reported HIV infections to state or local health officials when needed for disease control or care coordination. The author described the bill as a modernization of reporting and coordination practices, and supporters from the California Medical Association and Planned Parenthood backed it. The committee sent the bill out as amended to the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee on a unanimous vote. The meeting also included routine consent-calendar action and multiple add-on votes, with the committee repeatedly holding the roll open to record additional members’ votes.

Transcript Highlights:

• I am the chief operating officer at CYFD.
• Brenda Donald, Chief Operating Officer at CYFD. Donald? Donald, yes, sir. Okay, thank you, Ms.
• And so if that's not spelled out, that is core to all of our operations.
• We'll just call it an emergency withdrawal from the compact. How do we do that?
• include cardiac emergency situations occurring in their school athletic activities in the emergency

Summary: The Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee heard several measures focused on health and child welfare. House Bill 65 would codify and fund CYFD’s foster care plus short-term stabilization pilot for children in state custody with behavioral health needs, using clinical experts and specialized foster parent training to reduce office stays, hotel placements, and multiple placements. CYFD and child welfare advocates supported the bill, while senators raised concerns about cultural competency, ICWA/IFPA compliance, LGBTQ youth placement, and the need to spell out protections in statute. The bill passed 9-0 to the next committee. The committee then considered House Bill 13 and House Bill 14, joining the occupational therapy compact and the dentist/dental hygienist compact. Both bills drew support from health agencies, chambers of commerce, and professional groups as workforce tools to improve licensure portability and recruitment. Members, however, were uneasy about late-arriving amendments, venue provisions, commission authority, and how much control New Mexico would retain over compact rules and enforcement. After debate, HB 13 advanced 6-3 and HB 14 advanced 7-3, both to Judiciary. House Bill 256, which would require school emergency response plans to include cardiac emergencies during athletic activities, received support from the American Heart Association and nursing advocates, who cited survival benefits from rapid AED use and CPR. Questions centered on travel across state lines, private and religious schools, homeschool athletics, and enforcement, but the bill passed 10-0. House Bill 66, which updates the health care professional loan repayment program to increase physician awards and broaden recruitment incentives, was backed by provider groups and business organizations; dentists noted concerns about equity, but the bill passed 5-0.