Transcript Highlights:

• A 2017 federal audit report revealed that Texas... were improperly billing for services not permitted

Bills: SB596 , SB961 , SB1398 , SB1183 , SB1952

Committee: House Human Services

Keywords: DFPS, Department of Family and Protective Services, child protective services, foster care, child welfare, Family Code, conservatorship, managing conservator, parental child safety placement, authorization agreement, temporary authorization order, child abuse, child neglect, placement reporting, court-ordered removal, investigation, family preservation, transparency, public reporting, data reporting

Transcript Highlights:

• >> THEY MUST START THE REBUILDING PROCESS IN FIVE YEARS WHICH MEANS THEY SHOULD HAVE ESTABLISHED PERMITS

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:01:42.240><c> for</c><00:01:42.479><c> later</c> move House File 107 for later move House File
• And just on the house floor yesterday.
• So, specifically housing overall event.
• today is House File today is House File 1671.<00:56:24.160><c> Chair</c><00:56:24.480><c> Pinto</c><00
• So, I move House File 1671.

Bills: HF1007 , HF1152 , HF1671 , HF2258

Committee: House Workforce, Labor, and Economic Development Finance and Policy

Keywords: tourism, World Junior Hockey Championships, funding, economic impact, sports events, Minnesota, economic development, livability, marketing, partnerships, labor and industry, electrical licensing, electrical inspection, continuing education, online course approval, Internet continuing education, power limited technician, maintenance electrician, master electrician, technology circuits

Transcript Highlights:

• FIRST ON THE AGENDA TODAY IS HOUSE BILL 355 BY REPRESENTATIVE OLIVER.
• HOUSE BILL 355 STRENGTHENS THE ABILITY OF FLORIDA'S EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS TO TREAT AND STABILIZE CHILDREN
• YOU MAY REMEMBER THIS BILL FROM LAST SESSION AS A PASS ON THE HOUSE FLOOR BUT IT ULTIMATELY STALLED OUT
• HOUSE BILL 355 ESTABLISHES A BASIC COMMON SENSE SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR ANY HOSPITAL WITH AN EMERGENCY
• OKAY MEMBERS, AS PART OF THE HOUSE AI WEEK I HAVE INVITED SEVERAL REPRESENTATIVES IN AN ARRAY OF HEALTH

Transcript Highlights:

• of sessions, originally followed by then Representative Tan Parker, um, and passed out of the Texas House
• We're asking developers to bring us solutions for our housing crisis.
• And then similarly, a lot of our cities have housing authorities, uh, and, you know, they have.
• And my question about housing, um, and, uh, addressing the.
• In 2021, Austin temporarily permitted homeless camping. On public property.

Bills: SB 231 , SB 667 , SB 689 , SB 825 , SB 965 , SB 992 , SB 1059 , SB 1220 , SB 2368 , SB 2601

Committee: House State Affairs

Keywords: temporary emergency electric energy facility, temporary generation, emergency power, backup generation, mobile generator, portable generator, grid resilience, power outage restoration, transmission and distribution utility, TDU, Public Utility Commission of Texas, PUCT, Utilities Code Section 39.918, competitive bidding, lease authorization, emergency procurement, bulk power system, locational marginal pricing, reliability model, black start

Transcript Highlights:

• couple of... ...originally followed by then-Representative Tan Parker and passed out of the Texas House
• We're asking developers to bring us solutions for our housing crisis. sector to step in and help where
• Cities have housing authorities and, you know, they have a broad portfolio of objectives, but one of
• Affecting a lot of our major housing authorities with respect to that.
• Members, in 2021 we passed House Bill 2483. to give transmission and distribution utilities a tool to

Bills: SB231 , SB667 , SB689 , SB825 , SB965 , SB992 , SB1059 , SB1220 , SB2368 , SB2601

Committee: House State Affairs

Keywords: temporary emergency electric energy facility, temporary generation, emergency power, backup generation, mobile generator, portable generator, grid resilience, power outage restoration, transmission and distribution utility, TDU, Public Utility Commission of Texas, PUCT, Utilities Code Section 39.918, competitive bidding, lease authorization, emergency procurement, bulk power system, locational marginal pricing, reliability model, black start

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, signs are not permitted in the hearing room or in the testifiers’ table.
• Um, signs are not permitted in the hearing room or in the testifiers’ table.
• Um, signs are not permitted in the hearing room or in the testifiers’ table.
• </c><00:10:16.480><c> Throughout</c><00:10:16.800><c> the</c> Alerty at my house.
• Throughout the Alerty at my house.

Committee: Senate Education Policy

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> you go around any of the state house you go around any of the state house complex<00:08:44.240><
• They might need housing and then just the physical space for the program.
• They might need housing and then just the physical space for the program.
• ,</c><01:23:48.719><c> HB1507,</c> in the House, HB1507, in the House, HB1507, which<01:23:50.880><c>
• </c> I'm referencing is House Bill 10:15. I'm referencing is House Bill 10:15.

Committee: Senate Education

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:04:16.280><c> Champions</c> we have the two housing Champions we have the two housing Champions
• So if you've got our housing program, that's Housing Champions, that's working with communities with
• a year. also the reality that the housing also the reality that the housing Champions<00:45:35.119><
• </c><00:45:44.400><c> Champion</c> grant funding so the housing Champion grant funding so the housing
• It is House Bill 517.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee held a work session on the Department of Business and Economic Affairs’ budget, with testimony from division leadership on staffing, funding sources, and program changes. Early discussion focused on vacant positions in the agency, including a senior planner tied to FEMA requirements, a federally funded program assistant, a program specialist to be reclassified during a planning reorganization, and two Housing Champions positions that were authorized but not funded in the current biennium and are requested for 2026-27. The witnesses also explained that temporary welcome center positions are filled as funds allow, and that the agency’s requested general fund increase is driven largely by the Division of Travel and Tourism Development and its formula-based funding. Members then reviewed rest areas, welcome centers, outdoor recreation, economic development, procurement, and workforce opportunity lines. The department said there are 12 rest areas, with 5.8 million foot counts in FY 24, and that welcome centers are generally open year-round, though Sutton is currently closed and staffing relies on a mix of full-time and temporary employees. The outdoor recreation position is federally funded through USDA and supports business outreach, trade shows, and industry promotion. In economic development, the agency said increased dues reflect participation in the Northern Borders Regional Commission, and that a marketing line item is intended to support recruitment and promotion of growth industries such as advanced manufacturing and life sciences. The Apex Accelerator Program was described as a state-federal partnership requiring a state match and providing government contracting assistance to businesses, while the Office of Workforce Opportunity was explained as a federally funded WIOA-related effort administered through multiple agencies and subrecipients. A major point of discussion was the proposed reduction to the Small Business Development Center, which members said had generated significant public concern. The department described SBDC as a highly effective technical assistance program for new and small businesses, but said the cut was one of the few places it felt it had room to reduce funding. Members asked about federal support and matching requirements for various programs, and the department said less than half of its overall budget is generally funded by the state and that some programs require state match. The committee also discussed travel and tourism marketing and the Joint Promotional Program, with the department saying those funds support broader advertising campaigns and grants to chambers and trade associations for events such as Bike Week, Restaurant Week, and the Seafood Festival. No votes were taken during the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:16:02.079><c> Bill</c> be heard on House Bill be heard on House Bill 313<00:16:04.399><c> all
• </c> already without this uh in-house already without this uh in-house expansion<00:37:19.040><c> of<
• All right, anyone else wish to be heard on House Bill 601?
• </c><01:29:57.920><c> bill</c> the last one on our list uh house bill the last one on our list uh house
• This is not House Bill 2, right? Okay.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 313 and, on motion by Representative Perez, voted to retain the bill because members felt it needed further work and was not ready for final action. The motion passed 18-0, and no further action was taken on the bill. House Bill 391, an anti-SLAPP measure, was then discussed; supporters said it addressed a real problem and should move forward, while opponents raised concerns that it was too broad, could affect criminal cases, and might create procedural complications. The committee voted 18-0 to retain HB 391 as well, and it was placed on consent. The committee next considered House Bill 462, establishing a cause of action for unwarranted video imaging of residential properties. Representative McFarland moved OTP, saying the bill raised First Amendment and property-rights concerns. The motion passed 18-0, and the bill was also placed on consent. The committee then turned to House Bill 509, which would require reporting on forfeitures. Supporters argued the information was useful for future legislation, while opponents said the reporting would be costly, duplicative, and potentially split data across fiscal years. The committee voted 11-7 to recommend OTP, with a minority of members opposed. House Bill 520, authorizing Department of Education hearing officers to issue subpoenas, drew the most extended debate. Supporters argued DOE needed the same tools other agencies have, while opponents said DOE already had access to needed information, the Attorney General could handle subpoenas, and the bill would create an unbalanced process and raise due process and student-record concerns. Representative Tur offered Amendment 0842H to shift subpoena power from DOE hearing officers to the Attorney General; after debate, the amendment failed 10-8. The transcript cuts off as the committee begins the roll call on the underlying bill after rejecting the amendment.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's a great pleasure to be back in the House Education Committee.
• House Bill 2008. House Bill 2008.
• House Bill 2008.
• Madam Vice Chair, would you please move House Bill 2110?
• You've given House Bill 2110 a due pass recommendation.

Committee: House House Education Committee of Reference

Summary: The committee first heard Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horn’s annual State of Education address, which focused on school safety, academic outcomes, school choice, teacher pay, and opposition to DEI/CRT in schools and teacher preparation. Horn said the department has expanded school police officers, promoted Project Momentum and tutoring, supported cell phone restrictions in classrooms, and pushed for more phonics-based reading instruction and stronger university teacher-prep programs. Members questioned him about DEI complaints, cell phone implementation, ESA oversight, school safety funding, reading proficiency, and teacher compensation; Horn said ESA spending is reviewed and recovered when inappropriate, and argued teacher raises should come directly to teachers, not through districts. No formal action was taken on his presentation. The committee then considered HB 2008, which would prohibit public school libraries from using public funds to pay dues to professional library associations. Sponsor Representative Cooper argued the bill would keep school libraries politically neutral and prevent taxpayer money from supporting ideological advocacy, while saying membership itself would still be allowed if paid privately. Opponents, including a former librarian, a school board member, and the ACLU of Arizona, said the bill would undermine professional development, local control, literacy support, and constitutional rights of association and petition. Supporters said associations promote ideological content and that free professional-development alternatives exist. After public testimony and debate, the committee voted to return HB 2008 with a do-pass recommendation.

Transcript Highlights:

• We hope that you guys would be more than willing to endorse House Bill 482 and pass House Bill 482 so
• This bill has nothing to do with acquisition. here in support of House Bill here in support of House
• </c> a bipartisan bill that passed the House. a bipartisan bill that passed the House.
• I represent Durham in the House.
• </c><00:38:14.320><c> we've</c> effort, and I know in the House we've effort, and I know in the House

Committee: Senate Judiciary

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It does not place restrictions on transitional housing.
• It does not place restrictions on transitional housing.
• suppliers serving the semiconductor industry subject to significant regulatory requirements, including permitting
• and the DA were all frustrated to see a clearly gravely disabled inmate unable to accept reentry housing
• health system, those resources would be better invested in full-service partnerships, supportive housing

Committee: Senate Public Safety

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We also regulate kind of all the vehicle dealers and manufactured housing.
• thing that was a surprise to me when I got here, may be a surprise to you—we have 10 manufactured housing
• I mean, typically we will only give a temporary driving permit if there's something that fails to verify
• So that's not just getting a permit or planning. That's breaking ground within six months.
• a meeting on Friday of that, the Florida Development Finance Corp., CareerSource Florida, Florida Housing

Committee: Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development

Summary: The committee met to receive a base budget overview for agencies under its jurisdiction, which include the Division of Emergency Management, Department of Commerce, Department of State, Department of Transportation, Department of Military Affairs, and Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Staff explained the budget format and noted that the Legislature appropriated more than $20.2 billion to these agencies in the current fiscal year, a 66.7% increase over 10 years. The Department of Transportation then presented on the Moving Florida Forward initiative, describing it as a $7 billion effort to advance 20 major congestion-relief projects statewide. Secretary Jared Perdue said the department is ahead of schedule, with 14 of 20 projects expected to be underway by the end of the calendar year. He highlighted major projects including I-4 in Polk and Osceola counties, I-75 improvements, Southwest 10th Street in Broward County, Fruitville Road, Capital Circle in Tallahassee, and I-275, and discussed innovations such as aggregate supply grants, modified phase design-build, workforce hiring events, and voluntary acceleration. Senators asked about business impacts from construction, tourism-related transit funding, aggregate sourcing, and labor shortages; the secretary said FDOT works with local businesses and that additional revenue sources for transit would require legislative action. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reviewed motorist services, revenue collection, licensing, vehicle titling, specialty plates, insurance compliance, driver safety, and commercial driver licensing. Officials said the department collected about $2.9 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2023-24 and described modernization efforts, including electronic verification systems, Real ID compliance, mobile licensing units, and a planned digital driver license. Members asked about the driver license backlog in Miami-Dade and Broward, and the department said service delays were driven by growth and staffing constraints but should improve with $7.5 million in recent funding and the eventual transition of services to county tax collectors. Questions also addressed temporary paper licenses and birth certificate fraud prevention. The Department of Commerce presented on the Job Growth Grant Fund and Visit Florida. Commerce said the grant fund, created in 2017, has awarded $257 million to 70 projects in 37 counties since 2019, with demand exceeding supply about four to one. Officials emphasized that the program supports targeted industries and workforce and infrastructure projects, and they highlighted examples in CDL training, semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, and health care. Senators raised concerns about small businesses affected by transportation construction, and Commerce said it has an Office of Small Business Innovation and other tools, though the grant fund is limited by statute to targeted industries. Visit Florida then described its public-private tourism marketing role, saying the state’s $80 million appropriation is matched by private investment and that the latest EDR review found a $3.30 return in tax revenue for every state dollar spent. Visit Florida reported record visitation and tourism spending, along with hurricane recovery marketing and rural promotion efforts.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate, House Bill 788 as amended in the Senate, House Resolution 33, House Bill 949, House Bill 940
• House Bill 949, House Bill 950, and House Bill 951. Senate Bill 1394 as amended.
• The House debated House Resolution 32.
• House Resolution 32 passed the House.
• Hearing the House House House floor. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Summary: The House convened with a quorum, opened with prayer and the Pledge, and approved the journal. A lengthy pages’ recognition program followed, with lighthearted awards and remarks about the students’ backgrounds and plans. The House then received messages from the governor and Senate, including notice of signed bills and enrolled measures, and reports from standing committees on enrolled, engrossed, and printed legislation. The chamber considered several measures under suspension of the rules. House Resolution 32, relating to administrative rules review, passed 68-1. Senate Bill 1270 as amended, requiring labeling and disclosure for cell-cultured animal protein, passed 70-0. Senate Bill 1335 as amended, addressing veterinary education and requiring recipients of state-funded out-of-state vet training to return to Idaho and practice large-animal veterinary medicine, passed 54-16 after debate about the state’s veterinarian shortage and the need to recoup the state’s investment. Senate Bill 1299 as amended, barring government from requiring digital identification for access to services and preserving physical ID options, passed 70-0 after questions about whether it affected police dogs. Senate Bill 1376, an elections cleanup bill shifting some candidate filing duties to county clerks and adding verification steps, passed 64-6. The House also passed Senate Bill 1416, the appropriation for the new Office of Species, Minerals, and Energy Coordination, by 55-14, and Senate Bill 1417, Parks and Recreation enhancements funded by fees and federal dollars, by 69-30. House Bill 494 as amended in the Senate, on background-check cleanup for Health and Welfare, passed 69-30; House Bill 728 as amended in the Senate, on education-related transparency and continuity, passed 68-7; House Bill 703 as amended in the Senate, on land surveyor board cleanup, passed 67-0; House Bill 825 as amended in the Senate, on the America 250 license plate and Heritage Trust Fund flexibility, passed 67-2; House Bill 788 as amended in the Senate, a medical preceptorship pilot with a sunset, passed 39-30; House Resolution 33, covering committee review of several natural resources and licensing agencies, passed 68-2; House Bill 949, a net-zero trailer bill consolidating STEM Action Center and Workforce Development Council appropriations, passed 69-1; House Bill 950, appropriating $200,000 for a Medicaid managed care consultant, passed 60-10; and House Bill 951, an Attorney General enhancement bill tied to the Consumer Protection Fund and ICAC support, failed 33-37 after debate over whether the funding was truly needed. Senate Bill 1294 as amended, requiring newborn hearing-screen referrals outside hospitals while preserving parental choice, passed 37-32 after discussion of early hearing loss detection and the bill’s referral-based structure. The House also agreed to send Senate Bill 1351 to the amending order and recessed, then reconvened to take up additional messages and first-reading bills, including child protection and related measures.

Transcript Highlights:

• House Bill 669 with House companies.
• </c> House Bill 565. House Bill 565.
• </c> House Bill 611 as amended by House House Bill 611 as amended by House Committee<00:27:50.680><c>
• </c> nay, House Bill 611 as amended by House nay, House Bill 611 as amended by House Committee<00:28:
• /c> of House Floor Amendment 1 to House Bill of House Floor Amendment 1 to House Bill 762. 762. 762.

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• In the House of Representatives, House of Representatives, House of 907 by Appropriations Committee,
• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 840. House Bill 785 by the Education Committee.
• House Bill 815, House Bill 849, House Bill 745, House Bill 562 as amended, House Bill 825 as amended
• House Bill 815, House Bill 849, House Bill 745, House Bill 562 as amended, House Bill 825 as amended
• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 870 by Appropriations...

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• the house that have expenditures are the education budget that comes from the house.
• the house that have expenditures are the education budget that comes from the house.
• the house that have expenditures are the education budget that comes from the house.
• the house that have expenditures are the education budget that comes from the house.
• </c> &gt;&gt; It's over in the house. &gt;&gt; It's over in the house.

Keywords: MS Senate Floor - 19 February, 2026; 10:00 AM, 925, all

Transcript Highlights:

• House calendar.
• Welcome to the Florida House. Welcome to the Florida House. Welcome to the Florida House.
• Welcome to the Florida House. Welcome to the Florida House. Welcome to the Florida House.
• Welcome to the Florida House. Welcome to the Florida House.
• Welcome to the Florida House. All right. Welcome to the Florida House.

Summary: The House convened with prayer, moments of silence for Reverend Jesse Jackson and former State Attorney Joseph Di Alessandro, and a quorum present. Members then took up a special order calendar and considered a series of bills, with several recognitions and brief recesses interspersed throughout the day. Early floor action focused on civil justice and estates measures. The House passed CS/HB 1407 on commencement of civil actions, clarifying when a complainant may file an employment discrimination suit if the Florida Commission on Human Relations does not issue a right-to-sue notice. It also passed HB 895 on trustee settlement and discharge, allowing certain non-adversarial irrevocable trusts to be discharged without court involvement; CS/HB 1337 on estates, expanding personal representative authority and increasing small-estate thresholds; and CS/HB 131 on curators of estates, codifying a tool for court protection when the state faces potential loss. Each of these bills passed unanimously or near-unanimously after brief sponsor explanations and, in the case of HB 895, a technical amendment. The House also approved CS/HB 351 on concurrent legislative jurisdiction over U.S. military installations, which would allow juvenile offenses on certain installations to be handled in state court rather than federal court, and CS/HB 441 on conservation lands, which increases notice and transparency requirements for land swaps involving conservation property. Members from both parties praised the conservation bill as a response to public concern over land swaps. Additional measures passed included HB 409 requiring K-12 schools to observe Veterans Day, CS/HB 461 allowing eligible students to volunteer at polling locations for community service hours, CS/HB 1115 creating grants for genetic counseling education, HB 569 revising forensic client services for persons with developmental disabilities, CS/HB 505 regulating virtual currency kiosks to combat senior fraud, and HB 271 addressing premium reporting rules for foreign and alien bail bond insurers. The most extended debate centered on CS/CS/HB 919, which creates a statutory definition for major commercial service airports and preempts local naming authority for seven major airports, including a proposal to rename Palm Beach International Airport for President Donald J. Trump. The bill drew sharp partisan debate over local control, costs, trademark/licensing concerns, and the appropriateness of honoring a sitting president. Amendments to delay the naming until after Trump leaves office and to combine his name with John F. Kennedy’s were both defeated. After structured debate, the bill passed 81-? yeas (the transcript records 81 yeas) and was sent on. The House also began debate on HB 191 regarding re-employment assistance eligibility verification, with the sponsor explaining added disqualifications and identity/eligibility checks; questioning began but the transcript ends before final action on that bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• House Amendment barcode 660139.
• House Amendment barcode 279473.
• House Amendment barcode 355-889. House Amendment barcode 355-889.
• House amendment.
• That is the House bill, Madam President. Are there amendments to the House amendment?

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a series of member introductions recognizing interns, pages, and a retiring Senate employee. Leadership also announced that budget talks with the House were continuing and that senators should not plan to be in next week, with hopes of sharing more budget news soon. The chamber then moved to third reading and took up a major bill on citizen initiatives and constitutional amendments, with sponsors saying it was needed to address documented petition fraud and to protect the integrity of the process. That bill drew extensive debate. Supporters argued that recent investigations showed widespread fraud in petition gathering, that the measure would add reasonable guardrails, and that it would prevent taxpayer-funded government messaging from being used to influence ballot measures. Opponents said the bill would make it much harder for ordinary Floridians to place amendments on the ballot by adding costs, deadlines, registration requirements, fines, and felony exposure, and they warned it would chill grassroots participation and effectively favor wealthy or corporate-backed campaigns. After debate, the Senate passed the bill 28-10. The Senate then adopted several House amendments and concurred on a series of education and public-safety measures, including bills on stem cell therapy, student-athlete electrocardiograms, cardiac emergency planning in schools, school safety, Bright Futures and other education policy items, and educator preparation. Most of those measures passed unanimously or with overwhelming support, and the chamber also recognized additional interns and a long-serving education advocate before recessing and returning to continue with House messages.