Transcript Highlights:

• are made in accordance with the order of the day and the supplemental orders of the day that may be filed
• No further business. various departments and commissions various departments and commissions file<00:
• 23.360><c> message</c><00:04:23.759><c> number</c><00:04:24.120><c> 654</c><00:04:24.919><c> to</c> file
• Governor's message number 654 to file Governor's message number 654 to 664<00:04:26.000><c> transmit

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> So, our next agenda item is House File 4893.
• </c><00:40:37.119><c> storage</c> file establishes uniform firearm storage file establishes uniform firearm
• I'm testifying here today on behalf of MISPA in support of House File 4893.
• We respectfully urge your support for House File 4893. And thank you.
• </c> urge your support for House File 4893. urge your support for House File 4893.

Bills: HF4893

Committee: House Education Finance

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

Transcript Highlights:

• Article two is the battery stewardship program from Senate File 1690.
• [music] [music] [music] [music] Senator Pappas on Senate File 4737.
• Members, we're going to move the Senate file. Senator Kupec, would you move the Senate file?
• Uh Senator Senator the Senate file.
• </c> Kupec, would you move the Senate file? Kupec, would you move the Senate file?

Committee: Senate Environment, Climate, and Legacy

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So, the first bill in front of us today is House File 3902.
• </c><00:01:48.720><c> um</c> front of us today is House File 3902. um front of us today is House File
• Thank you for the opportunity to testify on House File 3902.
• </c> testify on House File 3902. testify on House File 3902.
• </c> House File 3895. House File 3895.

Bills: HF3902 , HF3895

Committee: House Housing Finance and Policy

Keywords: housing tax credit, Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, qualified projects, taxpayer contributions, greater Minnesota, zoning, housing, local government, multifamily development, affordable housing, land use, urban development, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• [laughter] Senator Swedzinski will be presenting Senate File 1310 today. Senate File 1310 today.
• Uh, and I Senate File 1310 today.
• And I do not believe that Senate File 1310 removes transparency.
• And I do not believe that Senate File 1310 removes transparency.
• And we are next going to hear Senate File 3627. Senate File 3627.

Committee: Senate Elections

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, first on the agenda today is House File 3379.
• House File 3379 is intended to be a technical bill.
• </c> is House File 3379. is House File 3379.
• </c> agenda is House File 3379. agenda is House File 3379.
• House file 3379 is &gt;&gt; the motion passes.

Bills: HF3379

Committee: House Human Services Finance and Policy

Keywords: housing stabilization, disability services, predatory funding, provider requirements, housing accessibility, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I appreciate the opportunity to speak briefly on House File 1867.
• The Minnesota Lottery strongly supports House File 1867.
• 1867 this bill supports house file 1867 this bill provides<00:16:09.639><c> much</c><00:16:09.880><c
• 1867 ensures that officers file 1867 ensures that officers directors<00:16:24.079><c> and</c><00:16:
• With that, Representative Joy renews his motion for House File 1867 to be re-referred to the General

Bills: HF1867 , HF1240

Committee: House State Government Finance and Policy

Keywords: lottery, retailer contracts, Minnesota Statutes, contract qualifications, public integrity, criminal background, legislative auditor, public funds, state government, compliance, transparency, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm Senator Gary Dames, and today I have Senate File 673.
• Chair, if you would recognize them. 673 Senate file number 673 deals with 673 Senate file number 673
• </c> afternoon with Senate file afternoon with Senate file 627<00:07:56.800><c> uh</c><00:07:56.960><
• </c> will lay over Center file will lay over Center file 627<00:16:13.319><c> uh</c><00:16:13.440><c>
• Senate file 575 for possible inclusion.

Committee: Senate Environment, Climate, and Legacy

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• bill, If the agency is intending to submit an agency pre-file bill on this topic, yes or no.
• If the agency is intending to submit an agency pre-file bill on this topic, yes or no.
• We have a lot of old file cabinets with personnel records.
• In 2011, we were the first state to fully adopt electronic filing.
• The Supreme Court has also adopted electronic records and mandated e-filing.

Committee: Joint Legislative Task Force on Government Efficiency

Summary: The task force met with a quorum and first reviewed a memorandum summarizing a survey of state agencies on possible statute revisions. Levi reported that 20 agencies submitted 70 proposals, with about 33 potentially becoming agency pre-file bills. Common themes included procurement, concessions, architect/engineering services, liability limits, and IT-related efficiencies. Members asked about sharing the survey results more broadly and about cross-agency coordination, especially with higher education and ITD-related issues. OMB then presented three topics from its survey responses: concessions, pre-qualification of architects/engineers/construction managers/land surveyors, and publication of legal notices. OMB said the current concessions law is too rigid because it requires award to the highest responsible bidder and does not fit newer concession models, and it suggested a best-value approach, a higher threshold, and standardized templates. On architect/engineering pre-qualification, OMB said the law is fragmented across several statutes and should be consolidated and expanded for broader use. On legal notices, OMB described the current rate-setting and publication process, noted rising costs and shrinking newspaper availability, and proposed a collaborative effort to modernize notice delivery, improve accessibility, and explore online options. The task force discussed how to move these ideas forward, and a motion passed directing OMB to implement its suggestions and report back at the next meeting. The University of North Dakota then presented several proposed revisions focused on public buildings and procurement. UND recommended raising the threshold for treating routine maintenance and one-for-one replacements as construction, arguing that the current $250,000 threshold forces unnecessary architect/engineer involvement and adds cost. It also proposed changes to bid advertisement language to reflect electronic bidding, revisions to construction manager-at-risk selection criteria, changes to architect/engineer procurement criteria, a higher direct-hire threshold for design services, and an increase in the legislative approval threshold for privately funded projects. Members discussed the need for data, risk and complexity considerations, and collaboration with counsel and industry groups. A motion passed directing Levi and counsel to work with UND on bill drafts based on its proposals for a future meeting. DPI followed with a shorter presentation on credentialing and statutory cleanup. It suggested reviewing the department’s 23 credential categories for relevance, and said DPI and the Education Standards and Practices Board have discussed transferring some credentialing authority to ESPB. DPI also recommended removing outdated school safety patrol language, cleaning up waiver provisions, and updating dyslexia screening reporting requirements so districts are not burdened by obsolete reporting mandates. Members agreed the screening itself should remain in place, while the reporting requirement could be reconsidered. The committee then recessed until the afternoon session.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> system in and have electronic filings system in and have electronic filings and<00:10:32.040><c>
• So, a petition gets filed. I don't think the process is complicated. I've seen a lot of petitions.
• And I think there's utility if they're not willing to go and file a petition for expungement, knowing
• </c><00:26:09.240><c> the</c> to appear in court if they filed the to appear in court if they filed the
• for to go and file a petition for expungement<00:26:30.200><c> of</c><00:26:30.280><c> knowing</c><00

Committee: Senate Judiciary

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Some of these advice letters are of a category that gets filed in an application.
• To integrate those into the GRC and streamline filings, what would be your response to that?
• Today, we are in a position that we have many more separate filings and separate recovery mechanisms
• I mean, would you dispute that the way a GRC filing comes to you, you don't put something out?
• We have now reformed that process, so a full year before the utilities file their general rate case..

Summary: The Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities and Communications held an oversight hearing focused on electric rates, utility regulation, affordability, reliability, and wildfire-related costs. The chair framed the discussion around the challenge of transitioning to a cleaner grid while keeping bills affordable and the system reliable, and noted the hearing also served as the annual update from the CPUC and Public Advocates Office. Professor Severin Borenstein gave a primer on utility regulation, explaining the split between deregulated generation and regulated transmission/distribution, the basics of cost-of-service regulation, and the role of return on equity. He argued that high allowed returns can encourage capital-intensive spending and that many public policy costs now embedded in rates would be better funded through the state budget, while warning that price caps or performance-based regulation are not silver bullets. CPUC President-designate Alice Reynolds described the commission’s role as economic regulator of investor-owned utilities and said affordability is being addressed through rate case scrutiny, reasonableness reviews, and legislative direction. She said wildfire mitigation and insurance costs have been major drivers of rate increases, but some wildfire-related costs are time-limited and will roll off rates over time. She also highlighted progress on clean energy procurement, battery storage growth, and integrated resource planning to meet climate goals while maintaining reliability. Reynolds said the CPUC is reviewing utility spending, disallowing imprudent costs where appropriate, and litigating at FERC to challenge transmission costs. Members pressed both witnesses on several issues, including whether rates are being inflated by legislative mandates and balancing accounts, whether utility returns are too high, and whether the state should shift more public-policy costs off electric bills and into the General Fund. Senators also raised concerns about load growth from data centers and ports, gas-system stranded assets as electrification advances, and whether the CPUC is over-regulating or discouraging innovation. Reynolds said the CPUC is working with the Energy Commission, CAISO, and the Air Resources Board on a holistic planning process, and pointed to tools such as interconnection reforms and demand flexibility. No votes were taken; the hearing was informational, with several follow-up requests for reports and data.

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill has one late-file delete-all amendment.
• Unless there is objection, let's take up the late-file delete-all amendment. Amendment.
• So in other words, when a client files like a Nelson hearing, it's a 3.850.
• There is one late file. Okay. Are there any questions on the bill? Senator Jones.
• There is one late-file amendment unless there's objection.

Committee: Senate Fiscal Policy

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And neither of those were apparent in the filing.
• I think what we all want is to reject the filing if it's incomplete.
• And neither of those were apparent in the filing.
• And neither of those were apparent in the filing.
• And neither of those were apparent in the filing.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The committee convened after briefly waiting for a quorum, approved the minutes and consent agenda, and then moved through several agency rule items. The Department of Transportation’s outdoor advertising rule filing was approved after staff noted the department had addressed substantive comments, though the rules had been expired since 2021 and the agency said it had been operating under statute. Members asked about a denied digital sign proposal, and DOT said that decision was based on statute rather than the rule. The Department of Safety’s administrative license suspension item was postponed with a waiver so the agency could submit conditional approval materials and resolve issues between its forms and rules. The Board of Architects item was conditionally approved, with the condition that the board later approve updated incorporation-by-reference materials at its April 3 meeting or the matter would return as a preliminary objection. The Department of Agriculture’s expired rules prompted extended discussion. Staff and committee members questioned why the department was seeking to adopt rules that had been expired for many years and whether the statutes already provided enough authority to operate without them. Agriculture officials said they were working through a broader modernization effort, focusing on statutes that use mandatory language and updating outdated rules to match current practices, federal standards, and current products such as apples, cider, eggs, and other agricultural commodities. They said the rules before the committee were part of that effort and recommended approval, but members remained concerned about whether some rules were unnecessary. The committee ultimately granted a waiver and postponed the agriculture item for one month so staff could review the underlying statutes and determine whether rulemaking is actually required. Under other business, the committee took up an emergency Department of Safety rule to update DMV forms to reflect statutory fee changes enacted in the 2025 budget. DMV officials said the new fees were already in effect, but the corresponding forms still showed old amounts, causing confusion for customers and elected officials who were fielding complaints. They argued the forms needed immediate updating because the affected forms are widely used, and they said the department had already tried to treat the changes as editorial before being told full rulemaking was required. The department emphasized it was trying to follow the process while avoiding continued use of incorrect fee forms, and asked the committee to allow the emergency rule to proceed.

Transcript Highlights:

• The first bill that we have today on the agenda to consider is House File 5, Representative Jim Joy.
• with some of the uh on the file with some of the stakeholders<00:07:51.639><c> um</c><00:07:52.360><
• Thank you for allowing me to testify today on House File 5.
• Thank you for the opportunity to testify on House File 5, specifically repealing the delivery fee.
• We’ll continue to work on the file. Is there any other final discussion on the bill?

Committee: House Transportation Finance and Policy

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• for supplementing certain existing appropriations and for certain other activities and projects, was filed
• Committee on Rules reports recommending the following resolutions ought to be adopted: resolutions filed
• Lucas Bendowski on achieving the rank of Eagle Scout of the Boy Scouts of America, and resolutions filed

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The House convened with the Pledge of Allegiance and announced that Ann-Margaret Ferrante had completed the required oaths and was now duly qualified as a member. The House also received a message from the Governor submitting fiscal year 2025 supplemental appropriation requests, which were referred to the Committee on Ways and Means. The Temporary Committee on Rules reported two congratulatory and recognition resolutions: one honoring Lucas Bendowski for achieving Eagle Scout and another recognizing David P. McKenna for three decades of service to the Danvers Committee for Human Rights and Inclusion. The House suspended the rules and adopted both resolutions. The House adopted an order to adjourn to Monday at 11 a.m. Representatives Donato, Barber, and Garballey also moved that the House adjourn in memory of former Representative John R. Grinara of Medford. The House then adjourned to meet Monday at 11 a.m. in informal session.

Transcript Highlights:

• The benefit of this bill in general, though, is if you do not file an ordinance with your city council
• You have to go and file an ordinance very specific to what the bill says before you can opt into this
• Our biggest concern, as the bill was originally filed, is that it doesn't apply only to municipalities
• As I mentioned, there's about 26,000 who fall within a ranking file plan two and higher.
• We had the bill filed and we came back and knew that it was not going to be in its final form.

Committee: House Retirement

Summary: The Retirement Committee heard several retirement-related bills and deferred two measures at the start: HB 26 and HB 993 were voluntarily deferred by the author. HB 31, by Rep. Eccles, would allow certain small municipalities to terminate participation in the municipal police employees’ retirement system and create a lower-cost “Plan C” option for small towns like Stirlington. After discussion about population and officer-count limits, the committee adopted amendments, heard concerns from the Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System about remaining issues, and reported HB 31 as amended favorably. The committee also advanced HB 1134, which creates a backdrop-style retirement option for judges whose positions are abolished, and HB 24, which would allow retired teachers to return to work as one-year contract teachers without the current retirement contribution structure. TRSL testified that return-to-work policy is complex and that a broader Senate study-group proposal is also moving, but the committee reported HB 1134 and HB 24 favorably. HB 21, a technical correction to the Municipal Employees’ Retirement System law, was amended to remove a sunset problem that would be fixed in another bill and was reported favorably as amended. Later, the committee reported HB 1017 favorably, which limits former spouses’ claims to post-divorce earnable compensation in the Firefighters’ Retirement System, with testimony that the bill would reduce litigation over promotions and raises after divorce. HB 43, which would let certain LASERS members retire after 35 years of service at any age, drew testimony from LASERS about its cost and workforce effects but received no motion and was voluntarily deferred. HB 30 was also voluntarily deferred because its substance would be moved into another bill. The committee then took up two major municipal police bills. HB 45, after extensive negotiations among the author, the Louisiana Municipal Association, EMPERS, and the City of New Orleans, was substantially rewritten by amendment to address retention pay, out-of-state service credit purchases, survivor benefits for certain officers killed in the line of duty, COLA funding, and a reduction in the non-hazardous accrual rate. The committee adopted the amendments and reported HB 45 as amended favorably. HB 49, a related bill on municipal police and firefighter retirement issues, was also replaced by a substitute that changed opt-out procedures, revised partial dissolution rules, and preserved full dissolution liability; after testimony that the changes would save New Orleans and other cities significant money, the committee adopted the substitute and reported HB 49 as substituted favorably. The meeting ended with adjournment.

Transcript Highlights:

• The subcommittee received agency updates on outstanding rulemaking from the 2023 regular session and filed
• The subcommittee received agency updates on outstanding rulemaking from the 2023 regular session and filed
• Well, let me tell you that there was not legislation filed last year to merge the Division of Services
• So we did not file that legislation. We worked on it.
• I do have H1 that I need a motion to file as reviewed. That is the APER. I have a motion.

Committee: All ARKANSAS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (ALC)

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We actually just filed our 50th lawsuit this morning against the Trump administration, which is one I
• And we filed that in the District of Massachusetts, asking the court to enjoin that particular use of
• So what you'll see us do, meaning the Attorney General's office, you'll often see us filing amicus briefs
• , not because we don't have the resources or desire to file a lawsuit, but because in terms of judicial
• A group of plaintiffs in different courts have filed lawsuits challenging that termination of Haiti TPS

Summary: The commission approved the December minutes and heard opening remarks on upcoming initiatives, including a second “Meeting the Moment” community forum in Lowell on March 27 focused on digital accessibility, education-to-employment transition, workforce supports, long-term services and supports, and health equity. The chair also previewed planning for National Disability Employment Awareness Month in October, including formation of a small planning group to help select employer awardees and shape the program. A major portion of the meeting featured an update from the Attorney General’s office on federal litigation affecting Massachusetts. The presentation covered lawsuits and amicus work involving higher education diversity data requests, anti-DEI funding conditions, immigration and Haiti Temporary Protected Status, NIH research grant disruptions, and Department of Education mental health training grants. Commissioners asked about possible impacts on Medicaid and whether disability is included in the federal administration’s undefined “DEI” restrictions; the AG’s office said it was monitoring Medicaid developments closely, had not seen a CMS letter at that time, and would share guidance on DEI and employment initiatives. The meeting also included a workforce and apprenticeship presentation from Undersecretary Josh Cutler and Amara Riemann. They described registered apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs, emphasizing paid, employer-driven training, classroom instruction, wage progression, and transferable credentials. Commissioners highlighted the Bridgewater State University Excel program for neurodivergent individuals and people with disabilities as a promising model and discussed the need to build similar pathways through community colleges and employer partnerships in fields such as direct support, CNA work, and other in-demand jobs. Subcommittee reports noted that the disability employment subcommittee heard from SEED and will host future presentations from the Lawrence Partnership for Transition to Employment and the Office of Veterans Affairs. The long-term services, supports, and health equity subcommittee discussed MassHealth budget pressures, a projected $3.5 billion budget gap tied to federal changes, upcoming Medicaid eligibility changes, and crisis standards of care. The executive director reported on collaboration with the Massachusetts Office on Disability, planning for the Lowell event, participation in statewide disability employment and autism advocacy work, and upcoming engagement with the Massachusetts Caregiver Coalition. Commissioners also announced several honors, including awards for Regina Marshall, Jay Livingstone, and Vanna Howard.

Transcript Highlights:

• purpose of allowing members to co-sponsor bills and resolutions or to submit vote modifications and have filed
• Speaker, this substitute bill that was filed, it was looked at last year, and upon filing it, we realized
• Speaker, this substitute bill that was filed, it was looked at last year, and upon filing it, we realized
• I am the primary sponsor and I have filed the proper paperwork with the ...
• <00:19:57.679><c> have</c> I am the primary sponsor and I have I am the primary sponsor and I have filed

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So thank you, Representative Connelly, for filing this bill and naming it in his honor.
• they didn't like what I was saying online about a coating or film, or in their words, in their FDA filing
• And I said what I had to say about it after reading their entire 36-page FDA filing. filing.
• I knew that in committee you can file an amendment.
• That's why I filed other bills protecting the freedom of speech in public schools for those who express