Transcript Highlights:

• I noticed the nice round numbers for the management study and the decommissioning study.
• for the management study and the decommissioning<01:17:30.640> study.
• How'd you uh decommissioning study.
• studies. Scope is large. Represent ston. studies. Scope is large. Represent ston.
• um and that as request is for a study um and that as this<01:20:05.199> study<01:20:05.920>

Bills: HF3220

Keywords: school safety, school security, emergency access, law enforcement access, master key box, secure key box, entry device, school grants, education finance, Department of Education, charter schools, school districts, cooperative units, appropriation cancellation, one-time appropriation, school safety plan, emergency preparedness, public safety, school building security, 1183

Transcript Highlights:

• It's a study, yes, sir. It's not an abolishment.
• to do that study... ...if we're going to go to a study and we're going to ask the LDOE to do that study
• , it needs to be an open-minded study.
• And I know it's just a study, but it was repeatedly said, if we pass this, will you follow it?
• However, many of these studies do not utilize Louisiana-specific data.

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So the bill that we actually have in front of us, 1580, is a study on employee comp. When Ms.
• So would our intent be then that we would study, or that we'd have this study look at, all compensation
• existence that we can broaden the scope of this study.
• So we also studied that kind of thing, but that's a much, much more in-depth study than, I mean, that's
• But I think that's part of the study.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The State and Local Government Committee met to reconsider and amend House Bill 1165, which dealt with petition circulation requirements and ballot receipt rules. The committee walked through technical changes requested by the Secretary of State’s office, including moving petition-title language, adding a 15-business-day submission deadline for petition packets, and revising language related to mailed absentee ballots and the presidential executive order requiring ballots to be received by election day rather than merely postmarked. The State Election Director explained that the change was intended to provide clarity and consistency for voters and election officials, while Senator Braunberger objected that it was an unnecessary reaction to an executive order that could be challenged. The committee adopted the amendment 5-1 and then passed the bill as amended on a 5-1 vote, with Senator Braunberger voting no. The committee then took up House Bill 1307, which concerned election authority, home rule powers, and related city and county petition/signature provisions. After questions from members and clarification from the Deputy Secretary of State and a League of Cities representative, the committee agreed the amendment was intended to preserve city petition power and align the bill with changes made in another election bill, while also addressing park district language. The amendment was adopted 6-0, and the bill was passed as amended 6-0. Senator Castaneda was designated as the carrier. Finally, the committee discussed House Bill 1580, a study bill on state employee compensation. Members used language from an earlier draft tied to health plan changes and broadened it to study total rewards compensation, including pay grades, classifications, comparisons among state employees across departments and with similar private-sector jobs, equity funding and bonuses, prevailing wages on state projects, and the impact of changes to health plan benefits and premium structures. The committee agreed to make the language more generic and adopted the amendment 6-0, then passed the bill as amended 6-0. House Bill 1601 was not acted on and was held until after floor session so members could continue discussions and await additional input.

Transcript Highlights:

• With this, mostly ACE did a project studying PM levels from PM10 to PM1.
• Many studies have found adverse events in children and adults.
• The issue has been studied. There's been an interagency task force.
• Studies have found no measurable LD50 level or lethal dose level for 7-OH.
• I live in Dorchester and I study at Northeastern University.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Public Health held a lengthy hearing to take testimony on a wide range of bills related to environmental health, PFAS, medical device chemicals, food access, lead poisoning, air quality, oral health, and school food additives. Chair Driscoll and Chair Decker emphasized that the hearing was for testimony only, no decisions would be made that day, and that written testimony could still be submitted. They also noted the high volume of speakers and asked witnesses to keep remarks brief. A major portion of the hearing focused on PFAS-related legislation, including bills to restrict PFAS in products and food packaging and to create a PFAS remediation trust fund. Municipal officials and advocates described the high costs of PFAS cleanup, especially for drinking water systems, citing Easton’s multimillion-dollar treatment investments and rate increases. Testimony from legislators and advocates argued that Massachusetts should act despite federal uncertainty, and that the state should stop PFAS at the source rather than leaving municipalities and residents to pay for remediation. The committee also heard strong support for a bill banning DEHP in medical devices, with physicians, nurses, and a bill sponsor saying the chemical can leach from IV bags and tubing and that safer alternatives already exist. The committee also heard testimony on bills to establish statewide food truck permitting, with food truck owners and a senator describing the current system as costly, duplicative, and inconsistent across municipalities. Another set of witnesses supported the “Bean New Deal,” which would expand plant-based food options in public institutions, senior nutrition programs, and WIC, citing health, equity, and cost savings. On lead poisoning, housing advocates and a representative backed bills to expand lead-safe housing requirements to all rental units, arguing the current law contributes to discrimination against families with children and leaves too much pre-1978 housing uncertified. The committee also heard support for an outdoor air pollution bill that would create an advisory committee, identify pollution hotspots, expand monitoring, and set reduction targets, with testimony from environmental justice groups, pediatricians, and legislators describing disproportionate asthma and other health harms in overburdened communities. Later testimony addressed oral health bills to create dental therapists and allow dental hygienists to administer nitrous oxide, with supporters saying the measures would expand access, reduce costs, and help underserved patients. The committee also heard testimony on a bill to prohibit harmful food dyes in competitive school foods, with parents describing behavioral and health concerns tied to synthetic dyes. No votes or formal actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• The chair has provided a lot of the background and context of what gave rise to the study.
• And that's the rationale that is now driving the SB 254 study.
• So I think, you know, it's great that the 254 study says we need wildfire mitigation.
• So I think, you know, it's great that the 254 study says, we need wildfire mitigation.
• I did not know that other study that you cited, so I appreciate that.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Summary: The committee held the first of several informational hearings on the SB 254 Natural Catastrophe Resiliency Study, focused on wildfire risk, utility liability, and how to finance catastrophic losses. Chair Allen opened by describing California’s recent utility-ignited wildfires, the creation of the wildfire fund under AB 1054, and SB 254’s extension of that fund and requirement for a study. The California Earthquake Authority, as wildfire fund administrator, presented the report’s process and findings, emphasizing that the study was intended to be neutral and broad, based on extensive stakeholder outreach, and that the status quo is not working well for survivors, communities, ratepayers, insurers, or utilities. CEA’s report organized recommendations into three policy pathways: continued mitigation investment, more equitable allocation of catastrophe burdens, and expanded state roles in catastrophe financing. For utilities, the report discussed options such as setting a binding risk-tolerance standard, preserving safety certificate accountability, tying executive compensation more directly to safety, creating confidential reporting with safe-harbor protections, reforming utility liability including possible changes to inverse condemnation, limiting damages, reducing insurance subrogation, and creating a fast-pay facility for survivors. The financing analysis compared a more durable wildfire fund, risk transfer/reinsurance, liability reforms, and state-backed mechanisms such as a state insurer, a state backstop, and broader funding for community wildfire mitigation. The CPUC said wildfire mitigation oversight has improved, but wildfire-related costs are driving electricity bills higher and creating an affordability crisis. The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety highlighted its wildfire mitigation plan review and field inspections, and recommended stronger safety reporting and more safety-weighted executive compensation. In member discussion, senators and assemblymembers focused on the cost of the status quo, whether the burden should be shared by ratepayers, utilities, the state, or other parties, and whether California should consider broader disaster-financing approaches. Several members raised concerns about inverse condemnation, the pace of survivor compensation, local land-use responsibility, and the need for a more comprehensive statewide solution rather than piecemeal bills. No votes or formal actions were taken; the hearing was informational only.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm just curious: this isn't eliminating a previous study. It's adding a new study.
• I'm just curious: this isn't eliminating a previous study. It's adding a new study.
• It's a study bill. It's just a study to look at it.
• It's just a study to it's a study bill.
• from the study? from the study?

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And that is where a study Gilmore.
• The difference between a study commission and a study committee is..." "I do not.
• Representative Gilmore." difference between a study commission difference between a study commission
• <01:04:20.720> I to study commissions. We know that. I to study commissions.
• study this bill and to study this is to study this bill and this<02:26:50.240> issue?

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• She's a graduate of Loyola University and studied political science. Her name is Cameron Rivers.
• It's just a task force to study blockchain technology in Louisiana. Rep. Thomas for a question.
• So I think it's very important that we study it. This is one task force that I think are created.
• Is there another way to study it other than a task force that's going to cost us money?
• The amendment would change some of the membership of the study group.

Bills: HB410, HR310, HR314, HR316, HR317, HR321, HR275, HR276, HR279, HR282, HR286, HR289, HR292, HR295, HR302, HR319, HR307, HR273, SCR59, SCR61, SCR62, SCR68, SCR69, SCR70, SCR54, SCR55, SCR64, SCR75, HCR32, HB776, HB42, HB119, HB159, HB302, HB1017, HB1028, SB217, SB283, HB953, SB208, HR74, HB998, HB901, HR20, HCR65, HCR71, HCR98, HB284, HB306, HB341, HB366, HB393, HB458, HB577, HB603, HB605, HB614, HB625, HB646, HB733, HB752, HB773, HB798, HB911, HB955, HB996, HB1035, HB1069, HB1113, HB1140, HB1180, HB1191, HB1240, HB1255, SB82, SB89, SB97, SB123, SB237, HB36, HB74, HB75, HB258, HB259, HB414, HB459, HB784, HB848, HB956, HB1095, HB1220, HB1252, SB469, SB479

Keywords: recording, privacy, notification, direct conversation, law enforcement, first responder, penalties, oil and gas, orphan wells, inactive wells, shut-in wells, marginal wells, plugging and abandonment, well decommissioning, site remediation, site restoration, Oilfield Site Restoration, OSR program, financial security, bonding

Summary: The House convened with a quorum, opened with prayer, the pledge, and a national anthem performance, then moved through several personal privileges and recognitions. Members welcomed a student cancer survivor and entrepreneur, Bella of Brave Bella Bead Company, and also recognized a new legislative assistant, a page leaving for college, and a resolution honoring National Mississippi River Day. The chamber also received conference committee reports and enrollment reports, and returned some previously failed measures to the calendar, including H.R. 119 and H.B. 410. The main floor action centered on a series of Senate concurrent resolutions, most of which were adopted overwhelmingly. These included SCR 59 on re-evaluating flood maps and insurance rates tied to the Comite River Diversion Canal, SCR 61 urging higher reimbursement for behavioral health crisis centers, SCR 62 calling for review of school-zone safety and speed limits, SCR 68 creating a blockchain and digital innovation task force, SCR 69 encouraging continued research to reduce sugarcane burning, SCR 70 supporting the Major Richard Star Act for medically retired combat-wounded veterans, SCR 54 supporting the Mississippi River Basin Fishery Commission Act, SCR 55 designating the Peggy Martin Rose as the official state rose, SCR 64 creating a construction manager-at-risk task force, SCR 75 studying a Louisiana maneuvers museum and trail, and SCR 80 creating a task force on the minimum foundation program and long-term teacher pay funding. Most passed with little or no opposition, with SCR 84 on earthquake seismic activity in several parishes amended to adjust task force membership before final adoption. The House also heard a personal privilege statement honoring the late Ponder P.C. Clinton Jr., a noted Black farmer, cattleman, and community leader in Shreveport’s Cedar Grove neighborhood, and expressed condolences to his family. Later, members received a hurricane-season reminder from Rep. Jay Galle about disaster response procedures and the need to work through parish emergency offices. The transcript ends as the House moves into additional concurrent resolutions returned from the Senate with amendments.

Transcript Highlights:

• We just need some time to get it fully vetted and fully studied.
• We've got to get studying it right here in our own state.
• Or they're studying the effects on the soil and animal and human health or they're studying some sort
• They're I'm not sure what all they want to study.
• They came to me at the interim study and wanted to get their hands on some bowel solids.

Bills: HB3126, HB3177, HB3311, HB3465, HB3786, HB3915, HB4333, HB4476, HB3403

Keywords: education funding, concurrent enrollment, school aid, Oklahoma State Regents, permanent school funds, higher education, revolving fund, court reporters, salaries, legislation, employment compensation, state administration, Oklahoma, community development, infrastructure, economic development, local government, financing, pooled finance, Oklahoma Emission Reduction

Transcript Highlights:

• study group already.
• study group already.
• <00:28:08.159> commission<00:28:08.480> study [clears throat] study commission study
• [clears throat] study commission study group<00:28:08.960> already.
• <00:28:47.679> group pretty good little study group pretty good little study group >>

Bills: HB259, HB206, HB207, HB259, HB206, HB207

Keywords: income tax credit, tax incentive, recruitment, remote work, remote worker, recruited worker, rural counties, small counties, county population tiers, opportunity zone, teacher recruitment, nurse recruitment, law enforcement recruitment, workforce development, economic development, relocation incentive, Alabama Department of Revenue, nonrefundable tax credit, tax carryforward, state income tax

Transcript Highlights:

• Support for House Bill 3585, that's the one that I filed, an act establishing a special commission to study
• This bill would establish a special commission to study and assess the financial, environmental, public
• We would like to testify for S2325, an act relative to grid battery storage innovation study.
• We would like to testify for S2325 an act relative to grid battery storage innovation study.
• Study. My name is Sophia Flores-Cara, and I go to Groton High School.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on a wide range of energy bills, with much of the discussion focused on offshore wind, battery storage, solar, nuclear study proposals, and a bill to redefine clean energy. Several Barnstable-area legislators and witnesses raised concerns about offshore wind transmission infrastructure near neighborhoods, beaches, and drinking water supplies, and supported bills to create a special commission and increase local input and oversight. In contrast, environmental, consumer, labor, and clean energy groups strongly backed offshore wind expansion bills, arguing that offshore wind lowers long-term costs, improves winter reliability, reduces fossil fuel dependence, supports jobs and local supply chains, and should include wildlife protections, labor standards, and community benefits. Some witnesses and committee members noted that parts of the offshore wind legislation overlap with the Governor’s energy affordability bill, and asked for clarification on which provisions were new versus duplicative. The committee also heard testimony on battery storage and solar legislation. Two student witnesses and several industry representatives supported a bill to study grid battery storage, saying storage can reduce outages, lower peak prices, and improve grid resilience during extreme weather. Witnesses from solar and storage companies supported a broader clean energy transition bill that would expand storage procurement, create a retail-style storage program for distributed batteries, set a 10-gigawatt solar target by 2035, and streamline siting and interconnection. Committee members pressed witnesses on whether these provisions were already included in the Governor’s affordability bill and asked for a section-by-section breakdown of what was new. One witness also urged allowing developers to bond interconnection payments to reduce financing costs. Another major topic was a bill defining clean energy, especially whether existing pumped-storage hydropower should qualify for subsidies or be excluded. Supporters of the bill argued that existing pumped storage should not receive additional ratepayer subsidies because it is already built, can have environmental impacts on rivers and ecosystems, and could cost ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars. Opponents said pumped storage is an important reliability resource and should remain eligible. The committee also heard testimony on nuclear-energy study bills: some witnesses supported creating a commission to examine nuclear power as a reliable, carbon-free option, while others opposed nuclear study bills and argued that nuclear is costly, unsafe, and inconsistent with the state’s clean energy goals. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• This limitation affected the results of several wastewater treatment plants in the study.
• They did start a study, but I don't know if it was completed.
• You can see the list of study sponsors there on the right-hand side.
• Our study is taking a regional look at this challenge.
• The way we do those studies, I'll give you a little bit of technical background about how these studies

Summary: The committee held a work session covering PFAS regulation and impacts, no-cost allowance allocation for emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries (EITEs), and regional resource adequacy and data center load growth. Senator Victoria Hunt was welcomed as a new member. The Department of Ecology reviewed Washington’s Safer Products for Washington PFAS work, including completed restrictions on PFAS in outdoor furniture, carpets, rugs, stain/water-resistant treatments, and newer rules adopted in November restricting PFAS in most apparel, cleaning products, and automotive washes, with reporting requirements for some other products such as cookware and firefighting gear. Ecology also described Cycle 2 PFAS reviews now underway, including artificial turf and paints, and answered questions about compliance, online sales, sell-through periods, and how Washington’s approach differs from broader bans in states like Maine and Minnesota. The Department of Ecology also presented on PFAS in biosolids, describing a 2024 sampling study, limitations in testing methods, and a 2025 statutory amendment requiring additional sampling between 2027 and 2028 and a report to the legislature in 2029. The Department of Health then updated the committee on PFAS in drinking water, reporting that most Group A public water systems have completed sampling, that 317 sources and 188 systems are expected to exceed new contaminant levels, and that treatment costs for public systems are estimated at about $970 million, leaving a large funding gap; members also asked about private wells, health effects, bathing exposure, and home filters. The Board of Health’s new state action levels are being aligned with federal MCLs, and the department said it expects to continue monitoring and notification under state rules. Ecology also briefed the committee on no-cost allowance allocations to EITEs under the Climate Commitment Act, explaining the leakage-mitigation rationale, the current allocation schedule through 2034, and a forthcoming report on policy options for 2035-2050; members asked about industry barriers, competitiveness, and whether facilities might leave the state. Finally, E3 presented a regional resource adequacy study showing rising load, retirements outpacing additions, limited winter reliability value from wind, solar, and batteries, and a projected shortfall beginning in 2026 that could grow to about 9,000 MW by 2030 if planned projects are not built. The presentation emphasized winter cold-weather events, hydro variability, the importance of permitting and transmission, and longer-term options including nuclear, geothermal, hydrogen, carbon capture, and long-duration storage. EPRI then introduced its DC Flex initiative, which is studying how data centers can provide flexible load through workload shifting, cooling optimization, and on-site backup or bridging resources to reduce grid stress and protect ratepayers.

Transcript Highlights:

• So in 2019, we had this first study done.
• This is a study on elk.
• I looked at those studies.
• There's no point in even studying anymore.
• That are studied in the exact same way that I've studied this. It looks like a metabolic syndrome.

Bills: HB3270, HB3145, HB3056

Keywords: farmed cervidae, chronic wasting disease, genetic resistance, wildlife management, agriculture, wildlife tagging, hunting regulations, Cervidae family, feral swine, exotic wildlife, conservation, commercial hunting, raw milk, unpasteurized, farm sales, Oklahoma Milk and Milk Products Act, local producers, advertising, 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• removes several long-standing work study removes several long-standing work study provisions.<01
• talked about to the work study program. talked about to the work study program.
• To the second question about the federal part where state work study overlaps with federal work study
• study overlaps with<01:44:31.840> federal<01:44:32.560> work<01:44:32.800> study
• finding it harder to attract work study finding it harder to attract work study students.<01:46:

Bills: HF4362, HF4252, HF4440

Keywords: firearms, guns, gun rights, gun control, campus safety, public college, university, postsecondary institution, higher education, visitor carry, concealed carry, open carry, campus policy, Minnesota Statutes 624.714, petty misdemeanor, parking lot carry, firearm possession, public safety, college campus, student carry

Transcript Highlights:

• um who has been legally um studied um who has been legally um studied status. status. status.
• And that's why this study is It spreads. And that's why this study is so<00:19:37.840> important.
• Minnesota This study will help Minnesota This study will help Minnesota understand<00:20:44.680><
• the resources to do that kind of study. the resources to do that kind of study.
• Um, but what's missing from this study, if we're going to do an economic impact study, is what is the

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The study started two years ago. We had multiple firms study our lake, and we had...
• We had multiple firms study our lake.
• group that studied the lake.
• Then we put the studies together.
• At that same time, we're running studies and having these departments and organizations do the studies

Bills: HB471, HB473

Keywords: water authority, sewer management, fire protection, local governance, board of directors, local officers, water recreation, public access, water bodies, recreational use, water commissions, 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That's the study.
• That's the study. So the study, we've selected these 14 project.
• Good luck with your studies.
• No studies have been submitted.
• Studying cluster studies or batch studies of generation, and you may have read over the years long queues

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Just to take a look at it, do a study and see.
• And so I would appreciate this study.
• So you may, you know, do a study to go into the school systems.
• So these amounts This is a study, correct?
• So the study part is what? It's not actually a study.

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 105, which reinstates a sunset-expired TOPS Tech benefit for eligible veterans. Senator Kathy said the bill would use existing TOPS dollars, not new funding, and would help veterans stay in Louisiana and enter the workforce. After brief questions about eligibility and funding, Representative Marcelle moved the bill favorably, and it was reported favorably without objection. House Resolution 3, by Representative Newell, asked the Louisiana Housing Corporation to study whether vacant state-owned property could be repurposed for housing and rental assistance for cost-burdened state employees. Members discussed the high fiscal note and whether the work could be absorbed in existing budgets. Fiscal staff said LHC had requested a full-time position and four part-time positions for the study, but the committee also talked about narrowing the study’s scope. Representative Marcelle moved the resolution favorably, and it was reported favorably without objection. The committee then debated House Bill 189, which would extend supplemental pay to fire protection officers at the Lakefront Management Authority’s airport fire department. Representative Newell and airport representatives argued the firefighters perform specialized, hazardous ARFF duties and should receive the same supplemental pay as other qualifying public firefighters. Some members questioned whether the airport and its employees qualify under existing law and whether the supplement should be expanded further. After discussion, Representative Marcelle moved the bill favorably, but the motion failed on a roll call vote of 8 yeas to 10 nays. Later, Senate Bill 461, concerning Office of Group Benefits coverage for certain small employee groups, was reported favorably without objection. House Bill 623, creating a three-tier permitting system for vapor products, was amended to clarify direct-to-consumer shipment restrictions and then reported favorably as amended. House Bill 1222, creating a grocery initiative grants and financial support program through LED to address food deserts, drew extended debate over whether it would amount to government-run grocery stores; supporters framed it as an incentive and grant program for private grocers, while critics raised concerns about government involvement. After amendment, it was reported favorably as amended by a vote of 16 yeas to 2 nays. Finally, House Resolution 80, directing a comprehensive fiscal audit related to Board of Regents and university system spending on certain executive budget metrics, was amended into a substitute version. Members debated whether the resolution would require universities to do additional work and whether it belonged in Appropriations at all, especially since the fiscal note had been removed. The discussion also raised concerns about the listed schools and the resolution’s purpose in light of a federal civil rights investigation. The transcript ends while the committee is still discussing the resolution and related procedural motions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Next one, we had discussions on the infrastructure study, $100,000.
• We'll leave the language in, but we were removed $100,000 study.
• Yeah, we took the study out. Yeah, we took the study out. We took the money out for the study.
• Representative Louser mentioned a couple; one of them for sure was a study.
• So, the study was for $100,000, so as of right now the $100,000 would be removed, but the study would

Bills: SB2003

Keywords: higher education, student loans, scholarships, capital projects, workforce development, funding, North Dakota university system, 908, all

Summary: The committee first reconsidered Senate Bill 2003 in the higher education budget and adopted several changes. It removed $3 million for enterprise resource planning, struck $2 million for a grant program for students who are pregnant or recently gave birth, and then added $3 million back into workforce education and innovative grants, restoring that line to $12 million. Members also discussed a possible purchase of the 19th Avenue building in Fargo for the State School of Science, but the motion was withdrawn for later consideration. Other higher ed items were briefly noted, including tribally controlled community colleges and a state magazine funding line, but no final action was taken on the building proposal during this segment. The committee then moved to Senate Bill 2018, the Commerce budget, and reviewed a long list of funding items. It restored a vacant workforce FTE, increased tourism marketing to $10 million and Find the Good Life to $5 million, raised Operation Intern by $1 million, removed a $100,000 infrastructure study, increased autonomous agriculture grants to $15 million, and set the Regional Workforce Impact Program at $10 million. It also kept or adjusted several other items, including the uncrewed aerial vehicle replacement program, the global talent office, tribally controlled community colleges, Native American small business grants, and technical skills training grants. A major new provision would transfer $50 million total, split between SIF and Bank of North Dakota profits, to the Theodore Roosevelt Library Museum Endowment Fund, matching a private fundraising challenge; members expressed both support and concern, and said they would revisit it later. The committee also discussed language to allow commercialization of Vantis and to permit the Turtle Mountain gaming compact proposal to move forward with required federal approvals, while clarifying that a previously discussed $100,000 study had been removed. Commerce officials said the workforce language was intended to centralize data and strategy, and they noted Operation Intern would need an emergency clause because applications begin in May. No final vote on the Commerce budget was taken in this segment, and the chair said the committee would return later to finish both budgets.

Transcript Highlights:

• We need to add the study for the, what do you call it, rebasing?
• There was a study in the interim, but the study never said the rates should be X.
• Couldn't we go back and look at the study from last biennium?
• When it studies rates, it's easier to come up with more of a defined...
• When it studies rates, it's easier to come up with more of a defined...

Bills: SB2015

Keywords: corrections, rehabilitation, prison budget, department of corrections, adult services, youth services, correctional facilities, Heart River correctional center, Missouri River correctional center, James River correctional center, minimum security facility, county jails, regional jails, deferred maintenance, capital construction, strategic investment and improvements fund, Bank of North Dakota, line of credit, tasers, body cameras

Summary: The committee first discussed a wastewater infrastructure bill, centered on whether state support should be provided as a grant or through the existing Clean Water State Revolving Fund as a low-interest loan program. Department of Environmental Quality official David Brushwine explained that the SRF already finances wastewater projects, can leverage federal funds with state bond proceeds, and could accommodate the Washburn, Lincoln, and Peasant projects if they are ready to proceed. Members noted that losing federal grant support would make projects harder for local residents to afford because costs would be recovered through utility rates or special assessments, but the projects would still be eligible for loans. Senator Magrum indicated he would likely concur with the budget after this discussion, and the bill was set aside for later consideration. The committee then turned to a proposed amendment for a four-plex housing project for people with disabilities or other special needs. Senator Mathern described Sections 7 and 8 as creating a design consultation appropriation and a revolving loan fund modeled on existing hospital and nursing home loan programs, while Section 9 would transfer $3.3 million from the state infrastructure fund. Members debated ownership, rent subsidies, repayment terms, and whether the state should finance the project directly or leave it to a private developer with Department of Human Services oversight. Concerns were raised that the state should not own the housing and that the proposal needed more work to be workable, but the committee ultimately reached consensus to adopt Sections 7 and 8 and leave out Section 9 for further conference committee discussion. The committee also reviewed provider inflation and long-term care rate issues, with members discussing whether to support a 2% and 1.5% inflation adjustment and how to handle the $5-per-day basic care rate. Staff explained that the $5 payment was already in the base budget, but members debated whether it should remain ongoing or be treated as one-time funding and paired with a study of rate rebasing. The committee agreed to have draft language prepared to remove the $5 from the base budget and add study language, then moved the bill forward for drafting.