Transcript Highlights:

• and supportive environment where they are known, supported, and taken care of.
• in that direction of making schools<00:46:32.520><c> safer.
• </c><01:02:59.400><c> We</c> schools to take care of our kids. We schools to take care of our kids.
• and treatment, or foster care, would be affected.
• </c> populations, such as homelessness, care populations, such as homelessness, care and<01:19:23.120

Bills: HF3493 , HF4114

Committee: House Education Finance

Keywords: safe schools, charter schools, nonpublic schools, Tribal education, funding increase, special education, funding, education finance, appropriations, budget, cross subsidy, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Are we going to do direct to do.
• If this is considered care and treatment, then we already have care and treatment kind of legislation
• </c><00:24:30.240><c> that</c> working relationship and the care that working relationship and the care
• </c> you care about student safety? you care about student safety?
• The trauma-informed research-based care.

Bills: HF4893

Committee: House Education Finance

Keywords: education finance, student support, aid allowances, appropriation, school funding, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Senator Murdock, we care to close. Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair.
• That's why I've been working so hard to get everybody on board because this is a direction we need to
• Senator, will you care to explain your amendment?
• Senator Mann, do you care to? Close? He waives. The clerk will call the roll.
• Senator, you care to close? He waives. The clerk will call the roll.

Bills: HB3183 , HB4316 , HB4484 , HB3469 , HB3464 , HB3173 , HB3989

Committee: Senate Energy

Keywords: electric utilities, grid congestion, transmission technology, advanced power flow controllers, dynamic line rating, energy efficiency, rural water service, district organization, emergency legislation, Oklahoma, water management, state vehicles, state-owned vehicles, state-leased vehicles, motor vehicle use, commuting use, personal use, fleet management, Corporation Commission, field inspectors

Transcript Highlights:

• where she attended the advocacy summit in Washington, D.C., and met with legislators on key primary care
• Dear Speaker Montenegro and Representative Martinez, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for the care
• Thank you for taking the time to make sure that we receive the care packages.
• And I want to warn members, we've probably got 20-plus bills coming our direction as a result of what
• And I want to warn members, we've probably got 20 plus bills coming our direction as a result of what

Summary: The House opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior journal, and recognition of the doctor of the day. Members also offered personal privilege remarks, including a thank-you for care packages sent to deployed National Guard troops, an introduction of Mom’s Demand Action guests, and a proclamation honoring the 205th anniversary of Greek Independence Day. The Speaker announced several committee assignments and bill referrals, including the withdrawal and reassignment of SB 1050 and SB 1519, and the House then moved into Committee of the Whole. In Committee of the Whole, the House considered and approved three Senate bills. SB 1125 received a do pass recommendation; discussion noted it was part of a broader set of child welfare-related measures stemming from hearings and the Emily Pike case, with emphasis on communication gaps between tribes and DCS, and DCS’s support for the bill. SB 1193 was amended on the floor to include paramedics along with EMTs, with supporters saying the bill protects private information held by DHS vendors. SB 1448 was also amended and passed; it adds utility, telecommunications, and video service workers to the aggravated assault statute when they are engaged in official work duties, and members debated whether the protection was necessary or overly broad, with supporters stressing on-duty protection and opponents questioning the need for a special classification. After the Committee of the Whole rose, the House adopted its report and referred the three bills to engrossing. The chamber then took up third-reading votes on SB 1023, relating to optometrists, which passed 43-10, and SB 1211, relating to sentencing, which passed 53-0. The House also heard announcements about upcoming committee meetings and a proclamation naming April 26 through May 2, 2026, as Arizona Water Professionals Week. The House adjourned until 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'll open enrollment contracting when in the state's best interest and permit direct negotiation of no
• So the initiative directs HHSC, TDCJ, and TWC to collaborate with... ...local workforce development boards
• Currently, this letter, along with our Constitution and Declaration of Independence, is under the care
• Under House Bill 1397, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission is charged with the care, custody
• Statutorily, fraud, waste, and abuse are only addressed in the subsidized child care program.

Bills: HB1397 , HB1893 , HB1950 , HB2027 , HB2791 , HB3698 , HB3699 , HB3700 , SB2603 , SB2607 , SB2565

Committee: Senate Economic Development

Keywords: Texas Constitution, Declaration of Independence, victory or death letter, display, historic preservation, HB 1893, Texas public information law, Public Information Act, Government Code 552.130, Transportation Code Chapter 730, license plate number, vehicle registration, law enforcement video, police body camera, dashcam, redaction, public records request, open records, government transparency, privacy

Transcript Highlights:

• Clerk will call the roll on that motion. different directions which this bill different directions which
• </c><01:31:26.800><c> Thank</c><01:31:26.960><c> you,</c> care of. Thank you, care of.
• It's those who care to show up.
• </c> bill that only goes one direction bill that only goes one direction because<02:07:31.440><c> these
• <02:45:54.720><c> um</c> care um care um at<02:45:56.800><c> 18</c><02:45:57.359><c> and</c><02:45:57.680

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Finance Committee met on October 30 to act on a series of bills that had been considered during the budget process, with many being recommended for inexpedient to legislate because their funding or policy language had already been handled in House Bill 2. Early actions were largely unanimous. House Bill 54, allowing alternate treatment centers to operate for profit, was recommended ought to pass and was approved 25-0, then placed on the consent calendar because it carried no appropriation. House Bill 97, a wastewater and infrastructure appropriation, was recommended inexpedient to legislate because its funding had been replaced in HB 2; Representative Rum opposed the motion and argued the grant funding helps local taxpayers and housing development, but the committee adopted ITL 14-11, with a minority report to follow. House Bill 111, dealing with the right-to-know ombudsman, was also unanimously recommended ITL because the budget had already made related reforms. The committee then took up House Bill 164, and adopted Amendment 225-2979H, which appropriates $150,000 in FY 2027 to the Secretary of State’s Division of Archives and Records Management for a local government records manager position. The amended bill was then recommended ought to pass as amended and approved 25-0. House Bill 197, the Property Tax Relief Act, drew the most extended debate. Supporters said it would restore a state contribution to retirement costs for local employers and provide property tax relief, while opponents argued the earlier change was largely offset by employee contribution increases and other retirement-system adjustments. The committee ultimately adopted ITL 14-11, and a minority report was requested. The committee also acted on House Bill 215, a landfill-related bill. Members explained that most of its language had been included in HB 2 but was removed in conference, so the bill was retained and amended to apply more narrowly to new landfills. Amendment 2025-2970H was adopted unanimously, and the bill was then recommended ought to pass as amended by a 25-0 vote. House Bill 216, which would change retirement eligibility rules for certain workers injured on the job, was recommended inexpedient to legislate after its sponsor said the fiscal impact was too uncertain to support. Finally, House Bill 219 received Amendment 2025-2988H to change its effective date to July 1, 2027, and discussion began on the bill’s broader purpose of returning about $5.7 million annually from RPS funds to ratepayers.

Transcript Highlights:

• How does that reconcile with what the directives and the edicts are of the Constitution?
• How does that reconcile with what the directives and the edicts are of the Constitution?
• And I care that every Floridian who is registered to vote deserves equal access to the ballot.
• Because members, I don't care what's happening across the country.
• I don't care what's happening across the country.

Summary: The Committee on Rules met with a quorum present and took up a presentation from the Governor’s office on proposed congressional reapportionment. Executive Office of the Governor counsel Mo Jazeel argued that mid-cycle congressional redistricting is legally permissible, that race should not be used in drawing districts, and that the Florida Fair Districts provisions are inconsistent with federal equal protection principles and, in the executive branch’s view, are inseverable. Jason Parada then presented the proposed map, explaining that it was drawn using 2020 census block data, with county growth estimates used only as a guide, and that the plan was designed to be race-neutral while also considering compactness, county and municipal boundaries, and other traditional redistricting criteria. He said the map keeps 48 counties and 382 municipalities whole, has compactness scores comparable to the current map, and makes the largest changes in South Florida, with some districts remaining unchanged and others reconfigured around population shifts and geographic boundaries. Members questioned both presenters extensively about the legal basis for disregarding the Fair Districts Amendment, the use of partisan data, the absence of racial analysis, and whether the map truly reflects population growth. Jazeel said the executive branch’s position is that race-based provisions in the state constitution cannot be used if they conflict with the U.S. Constitution, and that the forthcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Calais could further clarify the law. Parada said he did not use race in drawing the map, did use partisan information as one of several traditional criteria, and relied on 2020 census data for population equality. Senators also pressed him on who reviewed the map, why the public and legislators had limited time to review it, and whether the plan was intended to favor Republicans; Parada denied partisan intent and said he was the only person who moved lines on the map, though he consulted with other Executive Office of the Governor staff and counsel. Several senators raised concerns that the map did not clearly reflect Florida’s recent population growth, that some districts remained highly irregular, and that the plan appeared to be based on a legal theory contingent on future court rulings. The presenters responded that congressional districts must be equal to the person, that growth estimates can only guide orientation rather than replace census data, and that the map was designed to preserve as much of the existing structure as possible while making the largest adjustments in South Florida. No vote or final action on the map was taken during the excerpted portion of the meeting, and the committee continued with questions and discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• That said, this is sort of long-term state policy direction to us.
• So how effective is that in producing positive outcomes and pushing us in the direction that we want
• So we're very supportive of moving in a direction that will help us do this.
• That includes basic needs or child care.
• instruction or direct student support services on campuses.

Summary: The committee heard an overview of the California Community Colleges budget proposal, including Proposition 98 funding, a 2.41% COLA for apportionments, enrollment growth funding, repayment of an apportionment deferral, and one-time investments for a student support block grant and deferred maintenance. The Department of Finance described the Governor’s package as providing significant new resources, while the LAO recommended prioritizing COLA and enrollment growth within available funds but raised concerns about some smaller proposals, including making the Healthy School Food Pathways Program ongoing and adding more funding for credit for prior learning before outcomes are known. The Chancellor’s Office supported the COLA, enrollment growth, and one-time investments, and said current projections suggest enrollment growth closer to 3%, with about $85 million to $90 million in ongoing costs if fully funded. Members focused heavily on enrollment growth, the 10% district cap, and whether the state should continue funding growth in the current year and budget year. The Chancellor’s Office said some districts, especially in the Inland Empire and Central Valley, are growing rapidly and that about seven districts are above the cap, with roughly 1,563 FTES and about $30 million in ongoing costs tied to that issue. Members also discussed hold-harmless districts and whether declining campuses should be required to produce turnaround or right-sizing plans. The Chancellor’s Office said districts are already having local conversations and that state funding provides time to adjust, but no formal plan requirement was proposed. The committee then took up common course numbering, where the Chancellor’s Office said all 115 community colleges have implemented the first phase and more than 550,000 students enrolled in the first six commonly numbered courses. The office argued that CCN improves clarity but does not yet guarantee that credits will transfer with full value across UC and CSU, because articulation is still handled campus by campus and can require more than 3,500 separate reviews. Members expressed concern that students can still be forced to retake courses such as calculus or ethnic studies even when they have the same common number, and urged the systems to develop a stronger statewide articulation mechanism tied to outcomes and transparency. The item was left open. Finally, the committee heard the Governor’s proposal to make Calbright College’s funding ongoing at $53.1 million. The LAO recommended instead transitioning Calbright to the student-centered funding formula, with one-time bridge funding in the meantime, arguing the Governor’s proposal lacks a clear enrollment-based rationale and performance expectations. Calbright’s leadership defended the college’s competency-based, flexible model for adult learners, citing more than 6,800 students served, over 2,200 certificates awarded, and wage gains for graduates; they said enrollment is expected to grow from about 7,000 students now to roughly 8,000 to 9,000 next year and around 10,000 over the next couple of years. Members pressed for clearer enrollment and funding data before deciding how Calbright should be funded going forward.

Transcript Highlights:

• I wouldn't care if there was a Dave's Hot Chicken, another one in Rosemount, right?
• I wouldn't care if there was a Dave's Hot Chicken, another one in Rosemount, right?
• And I don't know that this is a really good direction.
• </c><00:30:52.560><c> their</c> are encouraged to direct their are encouraged to direct their advertising
• The direct appropriations don't seem to be pulling in right for the general fund on that line, but it

Committee: Senate State and Local Government

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's not refusal of care.
• primary care settings.
• level of care.
• Care navigation teams.
• to the appropriate level of care.

Summary: The hearing focused first on behavioral health, especially serious mental illness and anosognosia, a condition described by witnesses as a neurological symptom that prevents people from recognizing they are ill. The chair framed the issue around families cycling through emergency rooms, jails, conservatorships, and short-term stabilization without lasting treatment, and warned that federal changes under H.R. 1 could reduce Medi-Cal funding and worsen access. Dawn Marie Anderson gave a personal account of her son’s long history of psychosis, homelessness, arrests, repeated jail and state hospital stays, and eventual stability when he received sustained medication and coordinated support. She argued that the system often treats the problem as criminal rather than medical and that voluntary programs and short-term services are not enough for people who lack insight into their illness. Other panelists, including representatives from the California Behavioral Health Association, Santa Barbara County Behavioral Health, and the County Behavioral Health Directors Association, agreed that anosognosia is not denial or noncompliance and said the system needs long-term, coordinated care, including assertive community treatment, mobile crisis, supportive housing, medication support, and stronger handoffs between county and managed care systems. They said CalAIM and other reforms have improved some coordination, but significant gaps remain, especially for people with serious mental illness, for those in jail or locked settings, and for people with private insurance, which witnesses said often offers little meaningful coverage for early psychosis or intensive behavioral health services. Several witnesses urged the Legislature to protect Medi-Cal, shore up county safety-net services, and invest in training and family engagement. The committee then turned to the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, with a focus on the virtual services platforms BrightLife Kids and Soluna and the CYBHI fee schedule. DHCS reported strong growth in app registrations, coaching sessions, referrals, and positive user outcomes, saying the platforms provide free, culturally responsive, early-intervention support statewide and help connect users to higher levels of care when needed. On the fee schedule, DHCS said more than 500 LEAs, colleges, universities, and school-linked providers are participating, 181 LEAs have submitted claims, and $9.6 million has been reimbursed to date, with 41,556 students represented in claims. The chair and several members criticized the pace of implementation and the amount of money spent relative to reimbursement levels, saying the Legislature had requested data earlier and that the return on investment still appeared low. DHCS responded that many claims are still being submitted, that 70% of denials are correctable, that $400 million in capacity grants has been distributed locally, and that reimbursement is increasing rapidly as more districts come online. Public comment included a rural county behavioral health director who said private insurance denials leave counties with significant uncompensated work, especially for unlicensed staff providing case management and mobile crisis services.

Transcript Highlights:

• can do to improve care um I will<00:10:02.959><c> say</c><00:10:03.200><c> I</c><00:10:03.279><c> do
• models I will say I noted this care models I will say I noted this morning<00:10:16.600><c> the</c><
• </c> committee as a rural healthc care committee as a rural healthc care provider<00:11:48.200><c> access
• </c><00:17:28.919><c> ctor</c> salary and Fringe for a direct ctor salary and Fringe for a direct ctor
• And get that the citizens of the state the access to care in a very strategic, team-based way.

Committee: House Higher Education

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Higher Education met on January 31 and heard six bills. The chair opened by outlining committee practices, including giving at least 72 hours’ notice for hearings, releasing testimony by 5:00 p.m. the day before hearings, and deferring bills needing substantive HT1 changes so members would not vote “blind.” Members briefly thanked the chair for the transparency approach before moving to the agenda. HB 223 would create a Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy special fund and workforce assessment fee to support a pharmacy center. Testimony from the Board of Pharmacy, the Hawaii Pharmacists Association, the University of Hawaiʻi Hilo College of Pharmacy, Mokai Drugs, and others generally supported the measure, emphasizing workforce data, rural access, student loan repayment, and retention. The committee later advanced HB 223 with amendments, including leaving fee amounts blank for further discussion and inserting a defective date, and the motion passed unanimously. HB 940 would appropriate funds for the rat lungworm lab at UH Hilo; HB 546 would establish the Aloha Intelligence Institute at UH to advance AI; HB 549 would create an early learning apprenticeship grant program; HB 1172 would add the Department of Taxation to the Statewide Longitudinal Data System for wage-data sharing; and HB 1320 would require UH to collect and publicly report graduate outcome data and create a dashboard. Testimony on these bills was largely supportive, with some privacy concerns raised on HB 1172 and a request to protect taxpayer confidentiality. In decision-making, the committee passed all five bills with amendments, generally deleting or blanking appropriations and FTEs for Finance Committee review, adding defective dates for further discussion, and in HB 549 adding a statement that the program is a matter of statewide concern. The committee recessed briefly for decision-making and then adopted the chair’s recommendations on each bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• HB 24 modernized this system in a careful and targeted way.
• So we have multiple lanes going in both directions that are separated by a median.
• So it was a direct impact on this site.
• So it was a direct impact on this site.
• I'm here to talk about the direct impact of this bill on communities like mine.

Committee: House Land & Resource Management

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Creator God, give us a heart like yours that inspires us to love without reservation, to step out and care
• eloquently upon receiving this award from CIF, trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring
• None other than Steph Curry recently directed a documentary about Dr.
• Recently, Steph Curry directed a documentary about Dr.
• We planted 20 trees, and they named a play area in his honor at the newest and largest child care center

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• WAS IMMEDIATELY IMPRESSED BY THE DEDICATION BEHIND ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT THE WORK THAT THEY DO AND CARE
• WE PUBLISHED A RULE IN JANUARY DIRECTED THEM TO INTEGRATE WITH OUR SEED TO SALE SYSTEM AND IT REALLY
• THE DIRECT ANSWER THE QUESTION IS NEXT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 24 AND 25 IS NOT NECESSARILY THE WAY WE
• THE DETAILS AND INCREASE EASE OF MEDICAL CANNABIS, CBD, HEMP, ALL THOSE THINGS, SO WE HAVE TO BE CAREFUL
• THIS IS WHAT YOU SHOULD BE CAREFUL WITH HOW DO YOU EDUCATE THAT GROUP BECAUSE IT IS A GROUP THAT IS MOST

Transcript Highlights:

• Transportation HB 3333 by Morales of Maverick relating to the restrictions and permits authorizing direct
• of certain medical consenters to assume financial responsibility for certain out of network medical care
• provided for children in foster care for of the Committee on Human Services.
• By an insured directly to a physician providing direct primary care for the Committee on Insurance, HB

Transcript Highlights:

• It doesn't deny care to anyone.
• , and it will not affect their care.
• If we really care about this issue, let's look at the whole thing. Mr. Speaker. Mr.
• As it costs hospitals in the form of uncompensated care. Please vote yes. I move passage.
• This bill ensures that parents have the right to direct the medical care of their children.

Summary: The House convened with prayer, pledges, and several ceremonial recognitions, including Wilson County Day, San Antonio Mission Indian Descendants Day, and Blue Ribbon Lobby Day, along with acknowledgments of visiting groups and a birthday greeting. The chamber also announced committee meetings and then moved into floor business, including conference committee action on Senate Bill 1, the state budget. A series of motions to instruct House conferees on SB 1 were debated and voted on. One motion sought to restore salary for Attorney General Ken Paxton after his impeachment-related suspension; it passed 88-56. Another, from Rep. Olcott, directed conferees to support amendments requiring data collection on the costs of undocumented immigrants in hospitals and prisons; after extended debate and a failed amendment from Rep. Martinez Fischer to also study immigrants’ economic contributions, the motion passed 86-61. The House also adopted instructions to eliminate Texas Lottery Commission funding, to support amendments restricting public education institutions from affirming gender identities inconsistent with biological sex, and to seek an additional $4 billion in property tax relief, with each motion passing on recorded votes. The House then took up a supplemental calendar and passed several bills, including HB 39 on veteran death data, HB 102 on priority registration for certain students entering military service, HB 126 on student-athlete compensation and representation, HB 290 on tuition and fee assistance for members of the Texas military forces, HB 300 on Texas Armed Services Scholarship Program updates, and HB 2143 naming a highway in honor of Army Specialist Joey Lins. The chamber also postponed consideration of HJR 2 and HJR 6. Later, the House considered HB 120 on career and technology education pathways and HB 20 on applied science pathway programs for high school students. HB 120 received a perfecting amendment and was advanced after discussion about workforce preparation. HB 20 prompted extensive questioning about transportation, costs, and how students would access partner campuses such as community colleges and TSTC sites; debate continued as the transcript ended, with members examining how the program would operate and whether approval authority would rest with TEA.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill before us deals with health care and helping lower the cost of some of those health care materials
• type of medical goods that are government-paid health care already allow.
• In health care products that Mr.
• </c> that at sales tax in healthc care that at sales tax in healthc care products<00:12:02.639><c> that
• Health care is ever-changing.

Committee: Senate Taxes

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• No health care workers should have to go home wondering whether a newborn that they care for might not
• She is a local foster parent with a direct history with the family of Baby Benji.
• But let's say there's a case where the children come into care.
• She's taken care of her, you know, in her case, her husband got out of prison.
• I mean, I want to be able to be behind this piece of legislation because I do care.

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes from February 23 and February 24, 2026. It then heard Senate Bill 1410, a technical measure affecting federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics when they change their scope of services. The sponsor and a representative of the FQHCs said the bill would create a clearer state process for rate reviews tied to scope changes, with added parameters and timing limits to reduce confusion and unnecessary requests. A Department of Health and Welfare Medicaid administrator said the bill would provide budget predictability and clarity. The committee voted to send SB 1410 to the Senate floor with a due pass recommendation. The committee then took up House Bill 776, “Benji’s Law,” which would require faster priority-one child safety responses for infants under one year old when certain high-risk factors are verified, including prior child protection registry history, convictions for injuring a child, prior termination of parental rights, or neonatal abstinence syndrome. The sponsor and supporters, including hospital social workers, foster parents, law enforcement, and child welfare professionals, argued the bill would close a gap exposed by the death of a Nampa infant and ensure quicker welfare checks without automatically removing children. They emphasized that the bill would only trigger a faster response after a report is already made and verified. Several committee members raised concerns about due process, the breadth of the registry-based trigger, and whether the bill could expand CPS authority or create unintended consequences for families. The sponsor said the measure only changes urgency, not custody standards, and that the department worked on the bill and considered it doable. After debate, the committee voted by roll call to send HB 776 to the floor with a due pass recommendation, with five yeas, four nays, and one absence.

Transcript Highlights:

• THAT CHILD'S CARE.
• ALL MY GRATITUDE TO YOU FOR CARING FOR EDUCATION, FOR CARING FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. I KNOW YOU DO.
• PARENTS CARE ABOUT THE CHILDREN, SO TO DOCTORS.
• IT QUITE FRANKLY BLOCKS CARE. SILENCES YOUTH AND THREATENS PUBLIC HEALTH.
• THE PARENTS WHO LOVE AND SUPPORT AND CARE FOR THEIR CHILDREN.

Committee: House Education & Employment Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• And then instituting data-driven practices, both around attendance, like keeping very careful tabs, but
• And certainly the way it was presented in order, but also in the direction given to you.
• And certainly, the way it was presented in order, but also in the direction given to you and what you
• so the better we can do that, right, through something like a mechanism such as AB 2083 system of care
• It sounds like it's pointing us in that direction.

Keywords: 988, house, all