Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you, Chair. the BCA to um staff the investigators on the BCA to um staff the investigators on in
• </c> learning checking to make sure staff learning checking to make sure staff have<00:26:34.760><c>
• </c> children um background checks for staff children um background checks for staff electrical<01:37
• We could, for those staff, order that those staff are immediately removed to remove that risk as well
• </c><01:44:07.599><c> people</c><01:44:07.960><c> who</c> staff person or several staff people who staff

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• As always, I’m proud of our staff. We have some staff in the room with us today.
• </c> proud of our staff.
• We have some staff proud of our staff.
• </c> there, u, our staff was busy once again. there, u, our staff was busy once again.
• So we lost staff. they have to support. So we lost staff.

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Attendance Roll Call 00:00:09 Approval of Minutes 00:00:48 KOAP Report 00:01:09 Update from CHFS 00:20:27, 958, all

Summary: The meeting opened with a quorum, approval of the September 18, 2025 minutes, and a staff update on recent tobacco settlement-funded agriculture activities. The agriculture side highlighted Commissioner Shell’s outreach, including school visits, farm visits, and speaking engagements in Kentucky and a trip to Tennessee to discuss program models. A representative also described a national conference in Iowa, where Kentucky’s agriculture finance program was praised as a $180 million loan program built with tobacco settlement funds. The board noted September approvals totaling $950,000 for the agriculture development board and $3.3 million for the finance corporation, along with staff activity such as site visits, program closures, and project reports. The board also announced that the KKMP report covering 2015-2022 would be distributed and that the annual report, marking the program’s 25th anniversary, was being prepared. The board then reviewed two featured projects. The Organic Association of Kentucky requested $425,000 for organic producer support, but the board approved only one year of funding at $29,000, with members noting concern about recurring applicants and the need to evaluate long-term funding. The second project, by Joseph Dale Bentley in Lewis County, sought $51,300 to expand a small ruminant facility for goat production and export. Members were particularly interested because the project was already operating and creating market opportunities for Kentucky goat producers; the board approved half the project cost to help expand infrastructure and potentially allow quarantining on site. The cabinet then presented its annual update on tobacco settlement fund use in public health. Julie Brooks, Sarah Johnson, and Andrea Day reported on the HANS home visitation program, tobacco prevention and cessation efforts, lung cancer screening, and early childhood oral health. HANS served more families in FY25, rising from 6,293 to 6,715, and increased services from 139,943 to over 143,000. Tobacco prevention and cessation programs continued to support Quit Now Kentucky and My Life, My Quit, though officials noted federal uncertainty and the loss of federal tobacco control infrastructure. They also reported a slight decline in student outreach and cessation requests, but continued demand from schools and communities for vaping and nicotine prevention support. Lung cancer screening expanded to 55 screens, with Kentucky cited as a model for other states due to improved incidence, survival, and early detection rates. Early oral health efforts continued through local health departments, with more trainings for public health nurses, continued varnish kits, and expanded support for dental graduates and hygiene teams.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> dramatically as have injuries to staff dramatically as have injuries to staff and<00:12:20.959><
• </c><00:27:36.240><c> I'm</c> student and staff injuries, etc. I'm student and staff injuries, etc.
• LCC staff are authorized to legislature.
• </c><00:52:36.880><c> I</c> staff, increased trauma with students.
• I staff, increased trauma with students.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• All members' guests and staff will please rise to recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.
• I'd like to thank the Senate President and her staff, the Senate Ways and Means Committee and their staffs
• , my co-chair, Stanley, and our staffs, especially Vicki Halal, my chief of staff, who has been working
• Vicki Halal, my chief of staff, who has been working on elder issues for many, many years.
• Vicki Halal, my Chief of Staff, who has been working on elder issues for many, many years.

Summary: The Senate took up a series of local and statewide measures, including bills on parking fines in Scituate, a conservation restriction in Middleton, park and field dedications in Boston, toxic-free medical devices, a regional school district vote, and several local personnel and land-use matters. It also approved or engrossed bills concerning the Dalton Fire District, fire and police employment in Conway, reclassifying Beverly fire alarm operators, a Waitley Water District dissolution, a Dighton conservation land/public way issue, Milton liquor licenses, Billerica bike path land transfer, and an easement exchange involving Eversource. Several of these were advanced by suspending rules, ordering third readings, or concurring in House amendments; the Senate also accepted a committee report consolidating S. 545 with H. 899 and passed the consolidated park-dedication bill to engrossment. A major focus was the bill requiring health care employers to develop and implement workplace violence prevention programs. Senators and sponsors described the measure as a compromise aimed at protecting health care workers through annual risk assessments, prevention plans, paid leave, reporting requirements, privacy protections, and a narrow warrantless-arrest provision for assaults on health care workers. The Senate adopted a number of amendments, including changes to employee definitions, complaint protections, disfigurement language, paid leave coverage, federally qualified health center exemptions, de-escalation and community-based response language, mental health treatment coverage, and a one-year pause for certain DDS-related provisions. Some proposed amendments were adopted, while others were rejected or withdrawn, and the bill was ultimately ordered to third reading and passed to be engrossed. The Senate also considered the home care and long-term services bill, with members emphasizing home care licensure, oversight, and planning for long-term care financing. Amendments added or modified provisions related to home care training, evacuation procedures, minority-party representation on commissions, MassPACE participation, and representation for people living with dementia; one amendment on family caregiving was withdrawn after discussion. The chamber likewise advanced an economic development bond and appropriation package through a Ways and Means substitute and adopted a conference committee process on a separate energy affordability bill after the House disagreed with the Senate’s version. The session included ceremonial moments honoring guests and memorializing Jane Yolen and Charlene M. Naylor, and it ended with the Senate adjourning to meet again the following Monday.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we are thrilled to represent the incredible work that that staff does.
• We currently have four faculty and staff members total: three faculty and one staff member, who teach
• We do pay the registered behavior tax more than we pay our regular staff.
• And so, if the direct support professional staff are the critical link to...
• And so the challenge for my son is having appropriately trained staff.

Summary: The meeting opened with routine business, including approval of the January 13, 2026 minutes, and a brief recognition of Autism Awareness Month. The task force then heard a presentation from the University of Arkansas College of Education and Health Professions on two student support programs: the Empower Program for non-degree-seeking students ages 18–24 with mild intellectual disabilities, and the Autism Support Program for degree-seeking students with autism. Speakers described academic coaching, peer and career coaching, residential supports, person-centered planning, internships, and scholarship/fee structures, noting that both programs charge a $5,000 per-semester fee and rely on scholarships and fundraising to offset costs. Members asked about dorm arrangements, individualized plans, and how students transition in and out of supports; presenters explained that Empower students remain in the program throughout, while Autism Support Program students may enter or leave services as needed. The committee next heard from Pulaski Technical College’s 3D program, a three-year transition and post-secondary program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities focused on culinary, baking, and hospitality training. Presenters outlined integrated classes with traditional students, faded support over time, internships, and outcomes such as 97 students enrolled since the program began, 57 graduates, strong completion rates, and many graduates obtaining and retaining jobs in the food service industry. Members asked about how success is measured, why rates are not 100 percent, the role of integrated classes, tuition, and community partnerships; staff explained that grading includes technical and professional skills, tuition is $5,700 per semester, and scholarships such as GETS and FAFSA help reduce costs. They also noted plans to expand offerings and pursue accreditation through the Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council. Finally, the task force received a presentation from SLS Community, a Fayetteville nonprofit serving neurodivergent adults through residential supports, supported employment, community activities, and advocacy. Leaders described a long-term vision tied to the Cato Springs mixed-use development, where housing, jobs, clinical services, and community amenities would be integrated in a “live, work, play” model. They discussed a residential program, a new vocational program called Program Forge, community events, and the challenges of the “services cliff” after age 21, especially for adults with complex support needs. Members and parents spoke about the importance of trained direct support professionals, ABA-based supports, and the need for better funding and service models for adults. The meeting ended with announcements about upcoming autism-related events and a request for future discussion on task force appointments and broader issues around ABA oversight and misuse.

Transcript Highlights:

• Brian Moore, committee staff.
• Any questions for staff?
• Are there any questions for staff?
• Danny Masterson, committee staff.
• Are there any questions for staff?

Summary: The Senate Transportation Committee held a work session on two major corridor projects before moving to public hearing and executive session. In the Yakima area, WSDOT, Yakima County, and Ecology described the Interstate 82/east-west connector work as a coordinated effort to add capacity, improve interchanges, and address the Boise Cascade mill site contamination that sits in the project footprint. County and Ecology witnesses said the county is ready to remove wood waste and contaminated material, but the project is stalled pending a draft work plan and a de minimis consent decree; several senators pressed for faster action and clearer direction from Ecology. The committee then heard an update on the SR 3 Belfair freight corridor, where WSDOT said environmental review is complete and the next major step is an access hearing this summer, followed by right-of-way acquisition and construction likely in late 2027 or early 2028. Local and tribal partners emphasized the project’s importance for freight mobility, housing growth, emergency access, and regional economic development. The public hearing was on engrossed substitute House Bill 2711, a transportation resources bill that largely tracks provisions from prior legislation but also adds or changes several tax and account provisions. Staff explained that the bill clarifies fuel tax and peer-to-peer tax distributions, treats trade-in value differently for recreational vessel and luxury vehicle taxes, provides a six-month motor home exemption and penalty waiver for the luxury vehicle tax, allows lease payments to be made over time, exempts tribal members and nonresidents, creates a Preserve Washington account, changes some transfer timing, and repeals the luxury aircraft tax. Testimony was mixed: aviation groups supported repealing the luxury aircraft tax; trucking and some citizens opposed fuel tax and diesel tax increases; Sound Transit, transit advocates, labor, and ferry interests asked for amendments such as 75-year bonding authority, mobile driver’s licenses, ferry funding, and bike education funding. Alaska Airlines and Delta also supported adding mobile ID language. In executive session, the committee advanced several bills, including SHB 1823, SHB 2114, E2SHB 2251, SHB 2323, SHB 2410, EHB 2588, 2SHB 1923, and HB 2495, all with due pass recommendations after adopting amendments where applicable. The committee adopted a striking amendment to E2SHB 2251 adjusting Climate Commitment Act account distributions and a striking amendment to EHB 2588 limiting the ferry district changes to Whatcom County and removing the voter-approval tax provision. It also adopted an amendment to 2SHB 1923 that added further conditions for passenger-only ferry districts, including whale-protection and fare-related provisions. Senator King voted no on E2SHB 2251, objecting that the bill reduced the transportation share of Climate Commitment Act revenues. The chair announced one more executive action meeting would be held Wednesday morning, with amendment requests due the prior day.

Transcript Highlights:

• Are there any questions for staff?
• And thank you, staff, for that great briefing.
• I'm Kelly Simpson with committee staff.
• Senator Lovelett, is that a question for staff or for Senator Gainer?
• Brandon Popovac with a staff report. Thank you, Chair Liias.

Bills: SB5839, SB5824, SB5864, SB6032

Keywords: county authority, transportation, ferry district, infrastructure, government powers, fifth-wheel, travel trailers, vehicle regulation, state law, motor vehicle, insurance verification, automobile regulation, state compliance, traffic safety, highway safety, load limits, 904, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I also want to thank Senator Heinrich and his staff for working with us.
• Huge staff departures are expected from offices that spearhead advanced nuclear, grid innovation, and
• I've got the nodding approval of my staff director for that. Yeah. Thank you.
• After a brief stint in finance, I arrived here on committee staff in 2012. 2012.
• staff.

Transcript Highlights:

• If you require assistance in registering or testifying, please get in touch with our, Uh, committee staff
• illegal drug brought into a prison is significantly higher as well, making financial enticement to staff
• While he was incarcerated, he cut the hair of other prisoners and prison staff, including the warden.
• I'm the Chief of Staff with the Board of Pardons and Paroles.
• It's been an honor of my life to be on Sunset and work with Sunset staff.

Bills: HB153

Transcript Highlights:

• I have approximately 160 children with nearly 30 staff members.
• Are there other training rules for your staff?
• When you mentioned that a staff member comes in and fills the voids.
• Finding qualified staff in itself is tough.
• We may have space in classrooms, but we don't have the qualified staff to meet those.

Transcript Highlights:

• and members, the resolution is a policy on the 2025 P1 service award program that we have for the staff
• This allows our staff to donate vacation and/or compensatory time to someone who has had an extended
• </c><00:05:02.080><c> to</c> and we do allow staff to and we do allow staff to use<00:05:03.840><c> any
• And again, it is never my practice to use nonpartisan staff to make a political point.
• Chair and members, this is a policy on photographs and digital images taken by House staff.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• But if I look at the list of positions, it went to office staff.
• All this money went to office staff instead of to firefighters like the Legislature intended that money
• But if I look at the list of positions, it went to office staff.
• , and they went to office staff instead.
• So it doesn't seem appropriate to me to be adding more money for fire staff here.

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The committee first approved a $3,700 dedicated-fund enhancement for the Endowment Fund Investment Board to replace a high-end laptop. It then took up several Department of Lands items. A $125,000 supplemental for Forest and Range Fire Protection to help stand up firefighters was rejected after concerns were raised that prior firefighter bonus money had gone largely to office staff rather than firefighters. The committee did approve a supplemental shifting 1.25 FTP and $160,000 from the Abandoned Mines Lands Fund to the Navigable Waterways Fund to align spending with statutory uses, and later approved a broader FY 2027 Department of Lands package including radio equipment, vehicle storage, a UTV, legal counsel fund shifts, Idaho Geological Survey support, replacement items, and OITS hardware. A proposed substitute that would have omitted the $140,500 general-fund restoration for eastern Idaho fire preparedness failed, but the original motion including that amount passed. The committee also adopted language for the Idaho Geological Survey and later approved Parks and Recreation FY 2027 enhancements for staffing, trail work, a mower, grant pass-throughs, staff housing, interpretive displays, Farragut entrance work, RV campsite development, and replacement items, after questions about federal replacement-item funding were answered by the director. A FY 2026 Parks and Recreation supplemental allowing program transfers above the 10% cap also passed. The committee then moved to the Department of Health and Welfare’s Division of Public Health Services. It approved FY 2027 funding for the Idaho Home Visiting Program, immunization assessment fund restoration, disaster planning and training, fee-for-service lab testing, ARPA multi-year grants, HIV prevention, hepatitis prevention, and a $19,000 suicide prevention restoration; a substitute motion that would have reduced the home-visiting restoration to $500,000 failed, and the original motion passed. The committee adopted reporting language for suicide prevention, HIV prevention, hepatitis prevention, and immunization assessment funds. It then considered the Division of Early Learning and Development, approving funding for Idaho Child Care Program capacity, replacement items, population forecast adjustments, and the transfer of the Idaho Home Visiting Program from Public Health; a separate motion to require an open competitive acquisition process for Idaho STARS was set aside and the committee instead held the language in committee for further work. The committee also adopted language for Idaho Home Visiting reporting, Idaho Child Care Program reappropriation, Idaho Child Care Capacity Grant restrictions, and a transfer-limitation exemption for the division. Finally, the committee began the Division of Family and Community Partnerships and heard a request for $180,000 in federal funds for kinship navigation services to help relatives and close family friends care for children and prevent foster care entry. The transcript cuts off before the vote on that item, so no final action on it is shown here.

Transcript Highlights:

• The staff analysis for the PCS came out like a day or two—was it Sunday or Monday?
• Since this PCS staff analysis has come out.
• Since this PCS staff analysis has come out.
• And I know that it's appreciated by the kids and staff, especially by their parents.
• I don't think I've ever read a staff analysis that depicts that.

Bills: S0332, S0464, S0576, S0830, S0964, S0984, S1096, S1296, S1298, S1612, S1656

Keywords: public records, public meetings, property rights, transcripts, settlement negotiations, Veterans Day, K-12 schools, holiday observance, education, Florida statutes, cybersecurity, local government, grant program, data-sharing, Florida Digital Service, ransomware protection, county administrators, city managers, exemption, privacy

Summary: The committee first heard a committee substitute for SB 332, which creates a narrow public meetings and public records exemption for certain pre-suit settlement communications in Bert Harris claims involving local governments and private property rights. The sponsor said the change is intended to allow confidential legal strategy and negotiation during the 90-day pre-suit period while keeping settlements and outcomes public. The strike-all amendment was adopted, supportive testimony was waived in, and the bill was reported favorably. Members then approved several other measures, including SB 464 requiring K-12 schools to formally observe Veterans Day as a school holiday; SB 984 on firefighter cancer benefits and prevention, which was amended to add a statement of important state interest and reported favorably after testimony from firefighters both supporting the bill and urging a longer benefit window; SB 576 on local government cybersecurity, which was amended to route the program through the Florida Digital Service and strengthen state-local coordination; SB 964 clarifying how certain gift and honoraria disclosures are filed with the Commission on Ethics; SB 1612 requiring local governments to accept electronic payments with a delayed effective date; SB 830 creating public records exemptions for certain local government administrators and their families; SB 1096 clarifying the filing deadline for employment discrimination complaints; and SB 1656 designating the SS American Victory as Florida’s official state flagship. All were reported favorably. The committee also considered a slate of appointments, including a separate vote on Jeffrey Aaron to the Public Employees Relations Commission, which was recommended favorably after Senator Polsky objected to the appointment and cited concerns about political ties and prior work. The remaining appointees on tabs 12 through 30 were also recommended favorably. After a recess, the committee took up SB 1296 on the Public Employees Relations Commission, as substituted by a committee PCS. The PCS would change union certification and recertification rules, require stronger showing-of-interest and voting thresholds, limit paid union leave in some cases, require equal access to employer communication spaces, and speed up impasse procedures for state-funded salary increases. The bill drew extensive testimony, with supporters arguing it would improve accountability, transparency, and taxpayer fairness, and opponents—many of them teachers, bus drivers, and other public employees—saying it would weaken collective bargaining, burden workers, and function as union busting. Members raised constitutional concerns about the single-subject rule and collective bargaining protections, and debate was ongoing at the end of the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• So would the staff be able to run through that?
• Yeah, staff could maybe just start at that R77, run through that.
• So would the staff be able to run through that?
• So would the staff be able to run through that?
• So would the staff be able to run through that?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Chair, members, and staff.
• Chair, members and staff.
• And I also want to thank the committee staff, the author staff in particular, for being so willing to
• And I also want to thank the committee staff, the author staff in particular, for being so willing to
• Chair, committee members, and committee staff.

Summary: The Assembly Education Committee met for its first hearing of the session, adopted its committee rules on a 6-0 vote, and then heard several bills. AB 347, which would require written notice to students about the right to opt out of animal dissection and receive a comparable assignment, drew strong support from the author, a student, and multiple advocacy and education groups, while opponents argued it would burden teachers and duplicate existing law. The committee approved AB 347 on a 7-0 vote and sent it to Appropriations. AB 281, which would expand parent access to sex education materials and require disclosure of outside consultants’ credentials, drew mixed testimony. Supporters framed it as a transparency and parent-rights measure, while school administrators and county education officials said current law already allows inspection and that the bill would create an unfunded administrative burden. After extended member discussion, the bill failed on a 4-3 vote with one abstention, though reconsideration was granted. AB 65, which would provide paid pregnancy leave for educators without requiring them to exhaust sick leave first, was supported by teachers, CTA, and the State Treasurer, but opposed by school administrators and business officials over cost concerns; it passed 6-0 to Higher Education. The committee also approved AB 361, which would extend and expand LAUSD’s best-value procurement authority for school construction to all school districts for five years, on a 5-0 vote with one abstention. AB 86, which would require the State Board of Education to adopt standardized K-8 health education instructional materials, passed 5-0. Finally, AB 228, the Zaki Fast Act, was introduced to clarify that schools may stock any federally approved epinephrine delivery system, including newer devices beyond auto-injectors, and was presented with testimony from the bill’s young namesake and his family; the transcript cuts off before the committee vote on that measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• Members, questions for our staff. I can take any questions. Members, questions for our staff.
• I just want to implore this committee and staff...
• I talked to staff, and I'll get some data behind it from ADOT.
• So we'll bring up the staff.
• Staff, please pull up 4140. Mr.

Summary: The joint appropriations committee met on April 28 to review the FY 2027 budget package, including the general appropriations feed bills (HB 4138 and SB 1831) and related budget reconciliation measures. Staff described the budget as including about $17.96 billion in general fund appropriations, a one-time transfer of state monies to increase revenues, a 5% lump-sum reduction to most agencies’ discretionary general fund budgets, and several one-time restorations or continuations for items such as school facilities, child care, child safety, corrections stipends, and public safety operating costs. Members spent much of the meeting debating how the across-the-board cuts would be implemented, which programs might be affected, and how fund sweeps from prior-year appropriations and special funds would work, including questions about universities, public safety, rural hospitals, transportation grants, the Corporation Commission, and health insurance costs for state employees and troopers. A major point of discussion was the impact on universities and higher education. Arizona Board of Regents representatives said the proposed reductions and fund sweeps would affect already obligated dollars, research, staffing, and student aid programs, and could force difficult decisions about programs such as the Promise Program, Teachers Academy, and other pass-through funds. Committee members also raised concerns about whether the cuts could lead to tuition increases or reductions in services, while majority members emphasized that agencies and the executive branch should decide how to absorb the reductions. Another major topic was health care and the state employee health plan: staff explained that the budget includes a $228 million general fund infusion to stabilize the plan, while a separate reconciliation bill would raise employee premiums over three years. Members also discussed whether the budget’s changes to AHCCCS/Access and hospital eligibility rules could increase costs for hospitals and reduce coverage. Public testimony largely opposed the budget. Speakers from Opportunity Arizona, the Arizona Board of Regents, and local governments argued that the proposal would shift costs onto working families, reduce support for education, housing, SNAP, health care, and rural infrastructure, and protect tax benefits for data centers and higher-income taxpayers. A mayor from Globe asked for state help after severe flooding damaged roads, water lines, and homes, while a motorcycle safety advocate asked the committee to review a DPS motorcycle safety fund appropriation. Committee members and staff repeatedly clarified that some items discussed were one-time appropriations not continued into FY 2027, that some fund sweeps were from unspent or unencumbered balances, and that the committee planned to take a mass roll-call vote on the budget bills at the end of the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:43:16.160><c> to</c> the uh no longer needing the staff to the uh no longer needing the staff
• </c> permanent engineers and permit staff permanent engineers and permit staff over<01:14:19.600><c>
• </c> new air quality permit staff in 2024. new air quality permit staff in 2024.
• </c> lack of staff. lack of staff.
• So I counted up the number of occurrences of lack of staff, 40 number of occurrences of no staff, for

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:12:40.199><c> within</c> Grant M that Grant making staff within Grant M that Grant making staff
• </c><00:22:37.120><c> have</c> 2024 nearly 300 State staff have 2024 nearly 300 State staff have attended
• Christensen and her staff to beef up their staff, create the training resources.
• </c><00:32:45.360><c> uh</c> her staff to beef up their staff uh her staff to beef up their staff uh
• to eight staff in the office now.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So, I'll check in with non-partisan staff just in case to make sure that everything is aligned. that
• :01:47.240><c> in</c><00:01:47.440><c> with</c><00:01:48.120><c> non-partisan</c><00:01:48.760><c> staff
• </c> I'll check in with non-partisan staff I'll check in with non-partisan staff just<00:01:49.720><c
• Right alongside them are providers who built programs, hired staff, and invested in good faith based
• ,</c><00:09:43.080><c> gaps</c> staff turnover, disrupted routines, gaps staff turnover, disrupted routines

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Staff and the chair for their collaboration on this bill.
• I really appreciate the support from the chair and committee staff.
• It's very personal to our staff.
• It's very personal to our staff. It's very personal to me. It's very personal to our staff.
• Good morning, members and staff. Nice to see you all.

Keywords: 988, house, all