Transcript Highlights:

• But with the passage of H.J.R. 3, as long as government fulfills their duty to fully assess and minimize
• Construction projects might need additional environmental assessments, permits, and mitigation measures
• Projects could face delays while awaiting environmental impact assessments, public consultations, and

Committee: House House Government, Elections & Indian Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• And then finally, at 2:00, we will hear SP 4, relative to commercial property assessed clean energy and
• </c><05:28:12.920><c> clean</c> commercial property assessed clean commercial property assessed clean
• James Wallace continued that because it is a tax assessment, the loan sticks with the property.
• He added that C-PACER borrowers are paying their loan every month, even if the assessment is not due
• </c><05:38:47.200><c> isn't</c> month um even if the assessment isn't month um even if the assessment

Committee: House Science, Technology and Energy

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And what they have informed me is in both instances, both in the death and hospice and in the lead screening
• In both instances, both in the death and hospice and in the lead screening, they will continue to collect

Keywords: 927, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Members, when my one-and-a-half-year-old watches our proceedings online at home, and the screen cuts
• away from us into this red and green screen... ...she points and says, 'Not working.'

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• psychedelic facilitator training program, where part of our studying is safety, ethics, and proper screening
• years of struggle... ...training program, where part of our studying is safety, ethics, and proper screening

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on SB 3025, relating to medical debt, with multiple organizations and individuals, including the Office of Wellness and Resilience, Healthcare Association of Hawaii, Queens Health Systems, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Aloha Care, Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction, Hawaii Data Collaborative, and Hawaii Appleseed, all speaking in support. No opposition was heard, and the member present had no questions. The committee then took up SB 3199, which would establish a mental health emerging therapies task force. Testimony was overwhelmingly in support, with speakers including veterans, clinicians, researchers, and advocacy groups describing personal experiences with PTSD, depression, traumatic brain injury, and treatment-resistant conditions, and arguing that Hawaii should prepare for regulated access to emerging therapies such as MDMA, psilocybin, ketamine, and ibogaine. The Department of Health and some medical organizations provided comments, and one opposition witness was called but not present. The chair noted broad support, especially from veterans, and no vote was taken during the excerpt. The final measure discussed was SB 3324, relating to Medicaid. The Department of Human Services, Department of Health, Hawaii State Council on Developmental Disabilities, Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Aloha Care, and numerous care-provider and aging/disability organizations testified in support, while one witness was in opposition and several others offered comments. The discussion then moved to SB 2563, relating to homelessness, where the Department of the Attorney General offered comments on specific sections and recommended adopting suggested amendments if the bill proceeds. Additional testimony on SB 2563 began with support from several individuals, including Shelby Pikachu, who emphasized the severity of homelessness and related social problems in the community.

Transcript Highlights:

• receive some additional funding from the Legislature to conduct another round of election security assessments
• some additional grant funding that had come in from the federal government, to pay for security assessments
• The Legislature did allocate some additional funding so that we could begin another round of assessments
• law seminar, and we'll begin that process of signing counties up to do another round of security assessments
• where the county's physical and cybersecurity and other security components to what they do will be assessed

Committee: House Elections

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I mean, I think my honest assessment of the situation is that CEQA ends up being blamed for the large
• in both recycling and composting streams, and direct the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• contamination in both recycling and composting streams, direct the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• This framework will outline best practices for assessing the impacts of H2S emissions from natural and
• Am I able to assess? Opening the roll for the consent calendar? Absent members: Haney? Haney, aye.

Committee: House Natural Resources

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It caps the increase on assessments for certain mobile home parks to 3% annually.
• It caps the increase on assessments for certain mobile home parks to 3% annually.
• vegetable packing houses located on or contiguous with land with an agricultural classification to be assessed
• ... ...or contiguous with land with an agricultural classification to be assessed as part of yield per
• Everyone came together to assess what to do or what actions to take considering the conditions.

Summary: The Senate convened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, then moved to the conference report on House Bill 501E, the General Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2026-27. Budget chairs presented the major spending areas, describing a $114.5 billion overall budget that they said was fiscally responsible and below the prior year’s spending. Highlights included pay increases and retirement adjustments for public safety employees, education funding for K-12, higher education, health and human services, criminal justice, transportation, environmental programs, and agriculture/regulatory agencies. Members then questioned chairs on several items. In education, senators discussed K-12 declining enrollment funding, teacher salary set-asides, private school scholarship spending, mental health funding, preeminence funding for universities, the Hamilton Center at UF, and charter school PICO funding. In health and human services, questions focused on the iBudget waiver waitlist, provider rates, ADAP/HIV funding and the return of Biktarvy to the formulary, KidCare, rural health funding, SNAP-related IT and error reduction efforts, and the IDD managed care program. In criminal justice, senators asked about correctional officer pay, prison staffing and infrastructure, air conditioning in prisons, juvenile justice facilities, law enforcement recruitment, and court system funding. Environmental and transportation questions covered Florida Forever, water quality, state parks, water projects, housing, elections funding, and emergency management. Several specific actions and explanations were given during debate: the budget includes $8.8 million for state attorney competitive area differentials but no funding for public defender CAD requests; assistant state attorneys will start at $70,000 and assistant public defenders at $65,000; the battery disposal issue was described as a temporary study/preemption approach; and the Senate said the budget does not fund Medicaid expansion, preeminence funding, or the SunBucks Summer EBT state share. Senators also noted that some proposals discussed in committee did not make it into the final budget. The transcript ends with debate statements from members praising the budget process and Chair Hooper, while also expressing concerns about public schools, health care access, affordability, and the lack of funding for certain priorities.

Transcript Highlights:

• execution of intellectually disabled individuals without any future legislative debate, medical assessment
• And in fact, there are new ways to assess the IQ of children like mine that enable practitioners to IQ
• They at that time had him assessed for intellectual ability and any other mitigating factors that may
• They at that time had him assessed for intellectual ability and any other mitigating factors that may
• they're based upon contemporaneous observations of the... ...child or the individual who's being assessed

Committee: Senate Judiciary C

Summary: The committee first heard House Bill 137, which would strengthen penalties for knowingly making threats against schools, school activities, students, or school employees. The author said the bill responds to repeated false threats that disrupt schools, frighten families, and divert law enforcement, and it adds education and parental acknowledgment requirements. Members discussed possible juvenile consequences such as public service or physical work at schools, and the bill drew support from law enforcement, district attorneys, and Catholic bishops. It was reported favorably without objection. House Bill 321 followed, addressing Louisiana’s Safe Harbor law by expressly exempting minors from prostitution offenses and treating them as trafficking victims rather than offenders. The author, clergy, trafficking advocates, and a survivor testified that children involved in commercial sex are typically coerced, groomed, or controlled by traffickers, often family members or caregivers, and should receive protection and services instead of arrest. Witnesses described statewide advocacy and crisis-response services created in 2022, and committee members asked about prosecution of perpetrators and the prevalence of trafficking in rural areas. The bill was reported favorably without objection. The committee then approved House Bill 1246, a response to a fatal drunk-driving crash involving Jada Bright, which would allow law enforcement to keep intoxicated offenders in jail if they are not safe to release. An amendment was adopted to clean up the language, and the bill was reported favorably. House Bill 1104, creating a misdemeanor for possession of motor vehicle key-programming or emulating devices used to steal cars, also passed favorably with support from prosecutors and police. House Bill 552, a cleanup measure replacing references to intoxication with impairment in prior drug-related statutes, was reported favorably as well. Finally, the committee took up House Bill 310, which would require random reassignment when a defendant waives a jury trial in districts with more than two judges, unless the prosecutor agrees otherwise. Supporters said it would prevent judge shopping and address concerns about unusually high acquittal rates before particular judges, while opponents argued it raises due process concerns and effectively lets prosecutors choose the judge. Despite the opposition, the bill was reported favorably. The last major item was House Bill 1107, dealing with post-conviction death penalty cases involving claims of intellectual disability; the bill would set a 75 IQ threshold and create procedures for Atkins claims. Supporters said it would bring finality to long-pending capital cases and follow U.S. Supreme Court guidance, while opponents argued it would be unconstitutional under Atkins, Moore, and Hall because intellectual disability cannot be reduced to a single number. After extensive testimony and debate over amendments, the committee adopted the amendment and then reported the bill favorably.

Transcript Highlights:

• execution of intellectually disabled individuals without any future legislative debate, medical assessment
• And in fact, there are new ways to assess the IQ of children like mine that enable practitioners to have
• They at that time had him assessed for intellectual ability and any other mitigating factors that may
• They at that time had him assessed for intellectual ability and any other mitigating factors that may
• They're based upon contemporaneous observations of the child or the individual who's being assessed by

Committee: Senate Judiciary C

Keywords: 974, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Okay, so next I wanted to talk about the Legislative Analyst's Office assessment and recommendations
• around humans and the environment, obviously in the enforcement side of things, human health side, assessment
• Human health side, assessment side of things, integrated pest management side of things.
• So, you know, but what you're saying here is that next year and the year after that the assessment might
• DRIP Collaborative, which came out of the last drought, and which was to do a much more thorough assessment

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The LAO's assessment and recommendations on this proposal are as follows.
• around humans and the environment, obviously in the enforcement side of things, human health side, assessment
• Human health side, assessment side of things, integrated pest management side of things.
• So, you know, but what you're saying here is that next year and the year after that the assessment might
• DRIIP Collaborative, which came out of the last drought, and it was to do a much more thorough assessment

Summary: The subcommittee met to discuss budget issues related to vacant positions across several natural resources and environmental departments, with no votes taken and all items held open for a future hearing. The Legislative Analyst’s Office and the Department of Finance explained the administration’s proposal to eliminate about 6,000 vacant positions statewide, including roughly 293 positions in the departments before the committee, as a way to capture salary savings and reduce flexible funding tied up in vacancies. The LAO recommended retaining special-funded positions, while noting that eliminating General Fund positions would reduce savings. Finance argued that vacancy levels have remained steady statewide, that departments need flexibility to manage operations and hard-to-fill jobs, and that some vacant positions can be reclassified to higher-priority work. Members raised concerns that many of the proposed eliminations would affect core public-safety, permitting, and environmental-protection functions. The Department of Fish and Wildlife said the cuts would affect permitting, environmental protection, and law enforcement, while State Parks said its proposed ranger reductions were chosen from historically vacant, hard-to-fill positions and would still leave many vacancies to fill through the academy. The Coastal Commission said its positions supported sea-level rise planning under SB 272. The Department of Pesticide Regulation and DTSC said the reductions would affect multiple program areas, though Finance said the special funds involved were not in structural deficit and the cuts could help avoid future fee increases. The State Water Resources Control Board said its proposed reductions were spread across programs, with public-health functions protected as much as possible. The committee then heard an overview from the State Water Resources Control Board on its responsibilities for water quality, water rights, drinking water, and funding for water infrastructure. Chair Joaquin Esquivel described ongoing work on the Bay-Delta Plan update, the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes voluntary agreements, and the need to actively administer water rights. Members also discussed the board’s response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Sackett decision, which narrowed federal Clean Water Act jurisdiction. The board requested $2.6 million and 12 permanent positions to address resulting permitting and enforcement gaps; the LAO said the request met its high bar for new proposals and was supported by the board’s data and reporting.

Transcript Highlights:

• contamination in both recycling and composting streams and direct the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• And then also it's this part about the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.
• As of December 2024, the regional housing needs assessment found that San Diego will need over 100,000
• But the criteria that the judge used to assess this was it really set an impossible standard for developers
• Because, and so. ...to assess this was it really set an impossible standard for developers because how

Committee: Senate Environmental Quality

Summary: The committee heard several bills related to environmental quality, housing, transportation, and waste policy. SB 1375, by Senator Cortese, would create a narrow CEQA exemption category for certain transit and rail projects that have already undergone extensive environmental review. Supporters, including VTA, the City of San Jose, BART, Caltrain, MTC, and Climate Reality Silicon Valley, said it would reduce duplicative review and speed projects like the Diridon Station modernization. Committee members emphasized added amendments requiring displacement, construction-impact, and natural resources plans, and the bill passed 5-0 as amended to Transportation. The committee then took up SB 1031 on compostable plastics labeling. The author and supporters such as Californians Against Waste and the California Compost Coalition argued the bill would reduce consumer confusion, curb contamination in compost and recycling streams, and direct OEHHA to study health and environmental impacts. Opponents including manufacturers, BPI, retailers, and other industry groups said the bill would effectively ban compostable products in California, harm businesses, and fail to fix the underlying National Organics Program issue. After extensive discussion about labeling, composting capacity, and costs, the bill passed 2-2 on call to Appropriations. SB 958, relating to the Midway Rising redevelopment project in San Diego, was presented next; supporters said it would help move forward a large housing and mixed-use project on city-owned land after years of review and voter approval, and it passed 3-0 on call to Local Government. SB 1075, the Clean Air Promise, drew the most extensive debate. The bill would strengthen implementation and enforcement of AB 617 community emissions reduction plans and local plans in overburdened communities. Environmental justice advocates and youth supporters backed the measure, while local governments, business groups, air district representatives, and industry groups warned it would create uncertainty, add land-use constraints, and act as a housing and cost driver. The author accepted several committee amendments and said the bill was still being worked on, but the motion to pass it to Local Government resulted in a 2-2 tie and the bill remained on call. SB 1064, by Senator Dahle, would reduce clean truck check testing frequency for low-use heavy-duty vehicles and equipment from twice a year to once a year. Agricultural and trucking witnesses supported it as a practical, cost-saving change, while air quality advocates opposed weakening a program they said prevents excess emissions and protects public health. The bill passed 4-0 on call to Transportation. Finally, SB 1258 was presented as a revised measure on remediation of hazardous waste sites on the Cortese list. The author said the committee amendments replaced the bill’s original approach, but he continued to argue that remediation should be aligned with housing development so contaminated infill sites can be cleaned up and built on more efficiently. Developers and environmental consultants supported the concept, saying current timing rules create risk and leave sites idle, while the committee continued to hear testimony as the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• contamination in both recycling and composting streams and direct the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• And then also there's this part about the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• As of December 2024, the regional housing needs assessment found that San Diego will need over 100,000
• But the criteria that the judge used to assess this was that it really set an impossible standard for
• Because, and so... ...to assess this was that it really set an impossible standard for developers because

Summary: The committee heard SB 1375 by Senator Cortese, which would streamline environmental review for certain transit and rail projects that have already undergone extensive prior review. Supporters, including VTA, San Jose transportation staff, BART, Caltrain, MTC, and Climate Reality Silicon Valley, said the bill would reduce duplicative analysis, save time and money, and help advance projects like the Diridon Station modernization in San Jose. Committee members emphasized the bill’s narrow scope and the added amendments requiring displacement planning, legal services for displaced residents, construction-impact mitigation, and natural resources planning. The bill was approved on a 5-0 vote and sent to Transportation as amended. The committee also took up SB 1031 on compostable plastics labeling and waste-stream impacts. The author and supporters such as Californians Against Waste argued the bill would reduce greenwashing, clarify labeling, cut contamination in compost and recycling streams, and direct OEHHA to study health and environmental effects. Opposition from manufacturers, BPI, retailers, and others focused on concerns that the bill would effectively ban compostable products in California, create costs, and fail to fix a separate federal/NOP labeling problem. After extensive discussion about composting capacity, labeling clarity, and costs, the bill passed 3-2 to Appropriations. SB 958 by Senator Weber Pierson addressed the Midway Rising redevelopment project in San Diego. The bill, as amended, would no longer create a full CEQA exemption but instead clarify CEQA treatment of building-height impacts in the project’s future EIR. Supporters said the project would deliver thousands of housing units, including affordable housing, along with parks, a new arena, and economic benefits on underused city land. The committee voiced support for the project’s housing and revitalization goals, and the bill passed 3-0 to Local Government as amended. The committee also heard SB 1075 on strengthening AB 617 community air protection plans, with environmental justice supporters backing stronger enforcement and local implementation while local governments, business groups, and air district representatives warned it could create uncertainty, raise costs, and function as a land-use mandate; the bill was held on a 2-2 vote after the author accepted several amendments and continued negotiations.

Transcript Highlights:

• contamination in both recycling and composting streams and direct the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• And then also there's this part about the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
• As of December 2024, the regional housing needs assessment found that San Diego will need over 100,000
• But the criteria that the judge used to assess this was it really set an impossible standard for developers
• Because, and so. ...to assess this was it really set an impossible standard for developers because how

Committee: Senate Environmental Quality

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• As the department continues to assess the impacts of this legislation and monitor interment trends under
• Our other cemeteries are, too, but I think this gives us time to assess the trends and plan ahead. is
• 15:44.320><c> with</c><00:15:44.600><c> Senator</c><00:15:45.000><c> Hall's</c><00:15:45.600><c> assessment
• </c> I agree with Senator Hall's assessment. I agree with Senator Hall's assessment.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard an introductory presentation from Sam Daily of Believe It Canine Service Partners, a nonprofit that trains service dogs free of charge for disabled veterans. Daily described the organization’s work with veterans, including placements with MACV and a service dog at Veteran Village in Eagan, and said the group has placed 80 teams so far. Senator Howe asked whether the organization had pursued Support Our Troops grants, and Daily said it had received two SOS grants. The first bill taken up was Senate File 4172, as amended, which would expand eligibility for burial in Minnesota state veterans cemeteries to honorably discharged reservists, National Guard members, and Air National Guard members, and would allow some honor guard use for eligible people. Senator Howe said the bill corrects an inequity for Guard and reserve members who served honorably but are not currently eligible. Glenn Pence testified in support, saying the bill recognizes National Guard service and should allow those veterans to be buried with others they served alongside. MDVA’s David Swantek supported the concept but warned that expanded eligibility would increase demand, especially at Little Falls, and could shorten its projected capacity timeline from about 48 years to about 30 years. The committee adopted the A1 amendment and then laid the bill over for inclusion in the Veterans and Military Affairs Finance Omnibus Bill. The committee then heard Senate File 4026, which sets standards for MDVA competitive grants and adds accountability and residency requirements. Senator Koran said the bill would help the department review grants and ensure funds serve Minnesota veterans and families. MDVA chief of staff Dave Belfi supported the bill, saying it reflects agency feedback, aligns with existing residency rules, and does not affect CVSO, VSO, or Support Our Troops grants. The A1 amendment was adopted, and the bill was laid over for inclusion in the omnibus bill. Next, Senate File 4807 was heard, a bill to update pay for National Guard soldiers and airmen called to state active duty. MDVA and National Guard officials said the bill would simplify statute language and raise the minimum base pay for lower ranks to the E5 level, with future adjustments tied to federal pay tables. Senator Kunesh asked about funding, and staff explained the cost would come through an open general-fund emergency appropriation, estimated at about $30,000 annually but varying with activations. The committee adopted amendments to incorporate SF 4172 and SF 4026 into SF 4807, made technical corrections, and then recommended SF 4807, as amended, to pass and be referred to the full committee. Finally, the committee heard Senate File 3603, which would create a program allowing school districts to issue high school diplomas to Minnesota veterans who left school to serve during the Korean conflict or Vietnam War. Senator Rasmussen said the bill recognizes veterans who interrupted their education for service. MDVA’s John Kelly supported the bill, noting it reflects input from MDVA and the Department of Education and that similar programs exist in other states. The committee voted to recommend the bill to pass and refer it to the full committee. The meeting also began discussion of Senate File 4560, which would formalize the Commander's Task Force, but the transcript cuts off before that bill was acted on.

Transcript Highlights:

• receiving services will not lose access to services because of an adoption of a new level of care assessment
• those services at 18, but they will then, once they become age 18 and over, be subject to those new assessment
• <00:12:25.800><c> new</c> would then be subject to those new would then be subject to those new assessment
• tools,</c><00:12:26.680><c> but</c><00:12:26.839><c> not</c><00:12:27.280><c> automatically</c> assessment
• tools, but not automatically assessment tools, but not automatically lose<00:12:28.040><c> that</c><

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee met with a quorum to consider the Senate Committee Substitute for House Bill 2, a major Medicaid bill. Members first adopted the substitute and then adopted Amendment 9770. The bill was described as a lengthy rewrite aimed at aligning Kentucky Medicaid policy with federal requirements under HR 1, while also preserving program integrity and addressing due process concerns. Senators and staff repeatedly emphasized that the measure was the product of extensive meetings with providers, associations, and work groups. The sponsor’s section-by-section summary highlighted several key changes: delaying and reducing cost-sharing requirements; pushing eligibility redetermination deadlines to the federal date; restoring some flexibility for hardship waivers; allowing self-attestation as a last resort; modifying MCO audit provisions; clarifying non-emergency medical transport GPS costs; expanding waiver attestation authority to nurse practitioners and licensed psychologists; adding qualified aliens to waiver eligibility to comply with federal law; requiring Medicaid data sharing with the oversight board; limiting changes to Medicaid benefits without General Assembly authorization; narrowing the prescription drug exclusion to drugs prescribed primarily for weight loss; and delaying the dental ASO transition until 2029. The substitute also deleted a proposed auditor review requirement and retained an emergency clause. Committee discussion focused heavily on the policy and fiscal implications of the cost-sharing and recertification provisions. Senators raised concerns about whether the co-pays would be effective or simply shift costs to providers, whether the recertification process would burden the Cabinet and cause eligible people to lose coverage, and how the bill would affect people transitioning from Medicaid into work. Supporters said the lower cost-sharing amounts were intended to encourage appropriate use of care, protect providers, and comply with federal law, and they noted that the Medicaid Oversight and Advisory Board would help shape future changes. A public witness, Maggie Chisholm, gave emotional testimony about her daughter’s experience with a Medicaid waiver and argued that policy delays and administrative disconnects can harm vulnerable families. No final vote on the bill itself was recorded in the excerpt, but the substitute and amendment were adopted and testimony continued.

Transcript Highlights:

• It says that an application for convenience and assessing must be submitted...
• Thank you. ...for convenience and assessing must be submitted to the Public Service Commission.
• provision in the bill would set, for purposes of taxation, value of the property at $6,000 per megawatt assessed
• Page 4, line 46, allows assessors to take any system at any size and assess it at any amount that they
• Page 4, line 46, allows assessors to take any system at any size and assess it at any amount that they

Committee: House Special Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That brings me to the end of our assessments and recommendations, and happy to take questions at the
• on was hoping to accomplish this, but we do not currently have—CDCR currently does not have an assessment
• Yeah, we did a space assessment a couple of years ago to ensure we’re maximizing our space opportunities
• Colleges report a lack of sufficient space to hold in-person courses, yet CDCR lacks a comprehensive assessment
• We still haven't seen an assessment of that.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Accountability and Oversight held a hearing on the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) budget, with a focus on prison population trends, spending, facility closures, and efforts to find savings. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) presented data showing the prison and parole populations have fallen sharply over the past 20 years while CDCR spending has remained high, driven largely by security, health care, litigation-related requirements, and aging infrastructure. The LAO also said the state is likely to have several thousand empty beds by 2030 and recommended closing another prison, identifying the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad as the strongest candidate, while also urging more transparency around facility deactivations and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) efficiency contract. CDCR Secretary Jeff McCumber said the department faces structural budget pressures from retirement payouts, workers’ compensation, overtime, medical transport, aging facilities, and violence in prisons, but emphasized declining recidivism, expanding reentry beds, and the need for more single-celling and rehabilitation. Department of Finance representative Anthony Franzoa said the administration is not proposing another prison closure at this time, opposed new reporting requirements on deactivations, and said the BCG contract is intended to produce long-term savings even if near-term estimates are being revised downward. Amber Rose Howard of California United for Responsible Budget argued the state should close more prisons, redirect funds to community services, and stop spending on excess prison capacity. Members questioned why CDCR still relies on vacancy savings, why rehabilitation is only a small share of the budget, and whether the department should be more transparent about capacity reductions and legal liabilities. Several members criticized the $20 million BCG contract and the lack of competitive bidding, while others pressed CDCR on staffing levels, single-celling, suicide prevention, and health care costs for older incarcerated people. The hearing did not take a formal vote, but it ended with clear committee concern about CDCR’s budget transparency, the pace of prison closures, and the need to align spending more closely with the declining prison population and the department’s stated rehabilitation mission.

Transcript Highlights:

• They wouldn’t be authorized, if someone chokes, to assess the swallowing capability of a patient.
• The final one would be assessment models.
• So not the assumption being if that fee cap was granted, the assessment through the regulatory process
• But when you're having a patient come in directly and you're trying to evaluate and assess their needs
• But we feel like we should be able to assess that person about their ability or the rehabilitation efforts

Keywords: 988, house, all