Transcript Highlights:

• operations.
• First, we will be able to report on the cost of operating the program for a four-year period, and that
• Uh, and I think part of the problem is the 10:00 hour. >> Jay, I'll let you take that one.
• hour.
• </c> the 10:00 hour. the 10:00 hour.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes from its October 3 meeting unanimously. It then reviewed follow-up status on prior performance audits, beginning with the Department of Corrections’ sex offender treatment program. DOC said all audit items from the 2016 review were resolved except one related to tracking benchmarks, progress, and recidivism. Officials explained that a new offender management system, Chorus, was recently implemented but has had rollout problems affecting operations, including restitution checks, and that they hope the system will be stable enough within about six months to begin tracking the needed metrics. Members asked about treatment inside prison and after release; DOC described in-prison treatment, parole aftercare, probation and parole oversight, administrative restrictions, and reassessment if conditions are not met. The committee next heard from OPLC on the Real Estate Commission audit. OPLC reported that all but one finding is substantially or fully resolved, with the remaining issue involving review of applicants’ adverse financial history and liabilities. The delay is tied to ongoing rulemaking, and OPLC said the commission is amending its criteria and integrating universal application procedures into board rules. The office estimated substantive completion by March 2027, with rule filing expected sooner. The committee then took up the Board of Pharmacy audit, where OPLC said most findings remain partially resolved because the board is in the middle of a major rule overhaul and a new licensing software project. Officials described a shift toward a compliance bureau and more routine, risk-informed inspections, rather than inspections driven only by complaints, and said updated manuals and forms will follow the new rules and technology. Finally, the Legislative Budget Assistant reported on ongoing audits. For special education, staff said they are writing the report, have 25 completed observations, and have expanded to 70 identified observations, with a full draft expected in the first quarter of 2026 and a final report by summer 2026. For education freedom accounts, 40 observations have been identified, 15 finalized, and a draft is expected by midspring with a fiscal committee presentation in summer. For the Doorway program, the audit plan was finalized with DHHS help, financial activity was isolated, fieldwork is expected to finish by Thanksgiving, and a draft report is planned for January or February 2026, with a final report by March or April 2026. The committee discussed scheduling its next meeting for February 6 at 10 a.m. and emphasized the value of follow-up on older audits; the meeting adjourned after members agreed the follow-up process should continue.

Transcript Highlights:

• I responded to many mass-casualty incidents, most recently two of them within 24 hours of each other.
• On the morning of the Annunciation shooting, I had already been on trauma call for about 27 hours, during
• My partners and I quickly determined who needed to be in the operating room, and a couple of my partners
• and the depth of suffering was because of the type of weapon used.
• There is a rule that within 48 hours of someone being civilly committed who was incarcerated, they have

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We also have a member of a number of... ...and sustainable housing is part of what we do.
• That will start as of January 1 of 2026.
• CalHFA has a board of directors, and while we often administer state or federal funds, our operating
• And so we are going to spend a lot of hours together.
• We're going to spend a lot of hours together, deep diving into spaces and trying to thoughtfully come

Summary: The Assembly Select Committee on Housing Finance and Affordability held its first hearing of 2025 to examine California’s housing finance system, with opening remarks emphasizing the state’s severe housing shortage, high costs, and the need for practical recommendations to the Legislature and Governor. Co-chairs described the committee as an educational and problem-solving forum focused on financing housing production, first-time homeownership, mixed-income developments, and affordability across the income spectrum. Witnesses from state agencies and the development sector were invited to explain how housing is financed and where the system is breaking down. Panelists from the California Housing Partnership, the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency, the Tax Credit Allocation Committee/State Treasurer’s Office, CalHFA, and Related outlined the “capital stack” used to finance affordable housing, stressing that projects typically rely on multiple public and private sources, including federal and state low-income housing tax credits, tax-exempt bonds, state subsidies, local funds, and rental income. Speakers noted that affordable housing rents generally cannot support full project costs without public subsidy, and that recent federal changes—especially the expansion of the 4% and 9% tax credit programs and the reduction of the bond financing threshold for 4% credits—should allow California to finance substantially more units. CalHFA also described its homeownership programs, including My Home, Dream For All, and disaster-related mortgage assistance, as well as its multifamily lending and bond issuance programs. Several witnesses and committee members emphasized that the system remains too complex, too slow, and underfunded. They pointed to the need for more state funding, a housing bond, a permanent funding source, and better coordination among agencies, while also citing recent streamlining efforts such as AB 434’s SuperNOFA, AB 519’s one-stop-shop working group, and the planned California Housing and Homeless Agency reorganization. Members raised concerns about equity, access, missing-middle housing, gender and racial disparities, and whether current programs adequately serve extremely low-income households and those at risk of homelessness. No formal votes or actions were taken during the hearing; the discussion ended with committee members and witnesses agreeing that both funding and administrative reform are needed to increase production and improve affordability.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's sort of the operating deficit in the multi-year document.
• of that type of investor optimism.
• in the budget, I think really is a dereliction of duty because we cannot continue to operate the way
• one of those in the absence of one of my colleagues.
• It's a thousand hours of battery storage, instantly dispatched to the grid all underground.

Summary: The Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee heard opening remarks on the Governor’s 2026-27 budget, which the chair described as roughly balanced in the budget year but still facing large out-year structural deficits. The vice chair criticized the revenue assumptions as overly optimistic and stressed the need to review recent program expansions and address the state’s $20 billion federal unemployment insurance debt. The Department of Finance said the budget is a “workload” plan with about $350 billion in total spending, $23 billion in reserves, a projected $2.9 billion budget-year deficit, and out-year gaps above $20 billion, while the LAO warned of downside revenue risk tied to stock market volatility and urged earlier action on the structural deficit rather than waiting for May. Finance and the LAO discussed major budget components, including Proposition 98 funding, higher education base increases for UC and CSU, climate and wildfire spending, a new ZEV incentive, child care COLAs, and tax proposals involving marketplace facilitators, renewable aviation fuel, and an extension of the California Competes tax credit. Members raised concerns about proposed Medi-Cal and CalFresh changes tied to federal HR1 impacts, the MCO tax extension, hospital finances, county costs, and the decision not to backfill all federal funding losses. Finance said the administration is not in a position to replace all lost federal funds, but wants to work with the Legislature on priorities and timing before the May Revision. Several senators used the hearing to preview subcommittee priorities and request more detail on spending growth, reserves, and program cuts. Topics included homelessness funding, Care Court throughput, wildfire and climate investments, AB 617, data centers, the judicial branch’s facilities backlog, displaced workers, transit funding, and preparations for the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics. No budget action or vote was taken at this hearing; the committee mainly received presentations and member questions, with public comment scheduled later.

Transcript Highlights:

• utilities necessary for operation of the proposed data center, including but not limited to fuel, sewer
• estimated scope of utilities necessary for<01:33:29.040><c> operation</c><01:33:29.520><c> of</c><01
• data for operation of the proposed data center,<01:33:30.800><c> including</c><01:33:31.120><c> but<
• But the immense size of these new data centers, the way their operations are beyond what most of us can
• </c><01:40:15.920><c> us</c> operations are beyond what most of us operations are beyond what most of

Committee: Senate State and Local Government

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• ><02:34:10.560><c> electric</c> operators of the private uh electric operators of the private uh electric
• This was a very minor change for hours of keno operation. We had absolute hours.
• uh for hours of kino operation.<02:45:18.479><c> We</c><02:45:18.640><c> had</c><02:45:18.880><c> absolute
• </c><02:45:19.600><c> The</c> operation. We had absolute hours. The operation.
• </c><02:45:21.359><c> of</c> Senate changed it to business hours of Senate changed it to business hours

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the director of federal program operations for the Office of Broadband.
• And these funds will sustain operations from now through project closeout in March of 2027.
• It creates a panel consisting of the Office of Broadband, the underground facility operator, and the
• Because in some of these rural parishes, particularly, the 48 hours to respond just isn't adequate.
• Because you can do a lot of damage in four hours if we don't watch. Thank you.

Committee: House Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs

Summary: The House Committee on Commerce met on May 18, 2026, with a quorum present and the chair noting it was the committee’s last meeting of the session. The committee first considered Senate Bill 254, which would prohibit certain excess debit card surcharges and authorize enforcement by the Attorney General. After adopting technical amendments and a committee amendment requiring written notice before a private right of action, the bill was reported favorably as amended. The committee then took up Senate Bill 80 on broadband administration fees and GUMBO program closeout. Members questioned the proposed increase in administrative and contractor fees, the timing of project completion, and how withheld reimbursements would work for utility damage. After adopting several amendments, including cleanup language and a provision to restore the reimbursement process, the bill was reported favorably as amended, though the Louisiana Telecommunications Association voiced concerns about the withholding language and lack of a clearer fault-determination process. The committee next considered Senate Bill 469, updating the Louisiana Underground Utilities and Facilities Damage Prevention Law. Technical amendments were adopted, along with amendments clarifying that the bill’s 30-day notice to utility owner-operators is separate from existing GUMBO notice requirements and creating a rapid dispute-resolution process involving the Office of Broadband, the utility operator, and the local governing authority. Testimony from broadband and municipal stakeholders emphasized the need for quicker responses to excavation damage and better enforcement, while some witnesses raised concerns about the late amendment and the need for clearer recourse and standards. The bill was reported favorably as amended. Senate Bill 468, dealing with fuel rewards programs and fuel discount limits, was also amended to allow such discounts while capping them at $1 below the advertised price; it was reported favorably as amended. Senate Bill 131, concerning attorney’s fees and costs in professional licensing disciplinary proceedings, drew testimony from a cosmetology board representative and the Pelican Institute. Supporters argued the bill would curb incentives for boards to generate revenue through enforcement and give licensees a fairer opportunity to resolve cases; board testimony noted that some boards already have fee caps and that enforcement actions are relatively limited. After adopting an amendment clarifying when a licensee is the prevailing party, the bill was reported favorably as amended. Senate Bill 251 on critical infrastructure protection also received technical amendments and several substantive changes, including adding ports and airports to the definition of critical infrastructure, clarifying “significant access,” adding a knowledge requirement, and adjusting exemptions and enforcement timing; it was reported favorably as amended after testimony from State Armor representatives about foreign adversary threats. Finally, House Resolution 253 was introduced to create a task force to study how post-2005 building code additions and inspection requirements affect residential construction costs, with the sponsor explaining the goal was to gather industry input and return recommendations next session.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:49:57.200><c> school</c> operations of the school or school operations of the school or school sponsored
• of two hours<01:49:18.720><c> every</c><01:49:19.080><c> year.
• hours, I want to get your impression, um, Holly, on the thought of maybe setting aside the number of
• </c><02:06:50.400><c> get</c> specific number of hours, I want to get specific number of hours, I want
• the actual amount of So the change of the actual amount of hours<02:15:30.920><c> um</c><02:15:31.080

Committee: Senate Education

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's kind of like a badge of honor.
• It is part of our use of force continuum.
• Internally, we have under state operations reviews of use of force.
• We have an ideal of a 14-hour schedule based on my staffing availability.
• Both of them had stolen a car and drove 100 miles an hour creating havoc.

Committee: House S/C on Juvenile Justice

Transcript Highlights:

• hour of 10:22<01:31:23.840><c> a.m.
• </c><01:31:30.560><c> of</c> leader listed on the hour of leader listed on the hour of &gt;&gt; 10:22
• </c> special orders at the hour of 10:22. special orders at the hour of 10:22.
• Dozens of hours, thousands of dollars of investment to prove your innocence.
• and dozens of hours, thousands of dozens and dozens of hours, thousands of dollars<02:25:40.000><c>

Keywords: 981, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The hour of 12 noon having arrived, the time established for the convening of the second regular session
• Second day of July, in the year of our Lord 2025, and of the independence of the United States of America
• Last year we had a 35 of four hours. That would be, yeah, all right, our little secret. Exactly.
• The agencies of my administration got to work, dedicated countless hours to scrub the Idaho Code and
• We're finding operational efficiencies, and we will make disciplined use of cash balances and interest

Summary: The Idaho House convened for the opening day of the second regular session of the 68th Legislature, with ceremonial opening proceedings including the color guard, prayer, and Pledge of Allegiance. The House received and filed several gubernatorial certificates appointing members to fill House vacancies, including Ann Henderson-Haws (District 16), Michael Veile (District 35), Donald Hall (District 25), and Aaron Bingham (District 32), and the Secretary of State’s certificate listing all House members for the session was also filed. The chamber then adopted House Concurrent Resolution 20, which authorizes a joint session with the Senate to hear the governor’s message, after suspending the rules by a 69-aye vote. The House also approved standing committee assignments for the session and filed a letter appointing an acting chief clerk. Committees were appointed to notify the governor and the Senate that the House was organized, and later to escort the Senate to the House chamber for the joint session. No substantive legislation was debated beyond HCR 20, and the House moved through organizational business only. In the joint session, Governor Brad Little delivered the State of the State and budget address, outlining his “Enduring Idaho Plan.” He emphasized continued tax cuts, reduced regulation, a balanced budget, protection of K-12 funding, support for Idaho LAUNCH, rural health care investments, water infrastructure, and maintaining the state’s AAA credit rating. He also highlighted public safety efforts, alignment with President Trump’s agenda, and Idaho’s defense of its women’s sports law. After the address, the Legislature voted to print the governor’s message in the House and Senate journals, dissolved the joint session, and the House adjourned until the next day.

Transcript Highlights:

• The hour of 12 noon having arrived, the time established for the convening of the second regular session
• Second day of July, in the year of our Lord 2025, and of the independence of the United States of America
• Last year we had a 35 of four hours. That would be, yeah, all right, our little secret. Exactly.
• The agencies of my administration got to work, dedicated countless hours to scrub the Idaho Code and
• We're finding operational efficiencies, and we will make disciplined use of cash balances and interest

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This is Amendment 1 to an existing contract, and this is to extend the contract for the operation of
• Number 17, DHS Division of County Operations with Health Management Systems.
• Number 15, DHS, Division of County Operations, with Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance.
• Can you give me an approximate number of hours flown on that aircraft in 2025?
• We came up with kind of a cost per hour per aircraft.

Committee: All ALC-REVIEW

Summary: The subcommittee reviewed multiple methods of finance and construction items, including projects for Arkansas State University, Black River Technical College, UAMS, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and UCA. The UAPB Allied Health and Sciences Building appeared both as a method of finance and as an alternative delivery construction project, with East Harding Construction selected and AMR Architects as designer. Members approved the methods of finance, the alternative delivery project, and several discretionary grants, including Department of Health grants for a heart attack center designation and community health worker training, and DHS grants related to homeless services, behavioral health transition support, and an enabling technology pilot. The committee then reviewed service contracts, including RFQs, construction-related contracts, intergovernmental agreements, and a large number of out-of-state and in-state contracts. Testimony focused heavily on DHS staffing and state hospital contracts, the Arkansas State Police seatbelt survey, AEDC’s lithium supply chain analysis, and Shared Administrative Services’ new SuccessFactors performance-management contract. Members asked detailed questions about contract nursing costs, turnover, hiring timelines, and whether some contracts were being renewed or amended beyond their original projected costs. DHS and Veterans Affairs officials explained staffing shortages, retention incentives, and the use of contract labor as a supplement to state employees. Several contracts drew scrutiny and were held for further review. Representative Wardlaw raised concerns about projected costs and repeated amendments on the Department of Education security contract and on DHS staffing contracts, arguing that some had exceeded their original projected totals. The committee voted to hold contracts 5, 7, and 8 until Friday, while adopting the remaining contracts. The meeting ended after informational reports on service contract amendments without material change, executed contracts, and emergency procurements were presented, with no further business before adjournment.

Transcript Highlights:

• and members of both sides of the aisle and both chambers.
• I speak from the weight of history and the cry of conscience.
• We no longer have a functional, operable set of protections at the federal level, and that shifts a responsibility
• And most of the time, a business's operating agreement can override this legislation. Thank you.
• And most of the time, a business's operating agreement can override this legislation. Thank you.

Bills: HB344

Committee: Senate Elections & Government Affairs

Keywords: campaign finance, elections, transparency, political committees, reporting requirements, enforcement

Summary: The Senate Elections and Government Affairs Committee heard several election- and campaign-related bills. House Substitute 2 for House Bill 155 would make Public Integrity Commission reports publicly available on the commission’s website, add a specific travel-expense reporting category, and remove the FOIA requirement for accessing reports; Senator Richardson said he supported the transparency measure and asked to be added as a co-sponsor. The committee also took up House Bill 444, the Delaware John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which would create state protections against voter suppression and vote dilution, expand language access, prohibit intimidation and deception, and allow court remedies for violations. The bill drew strong support from advocacy groups including YWCA Delaware, the League of Women Voters, the ACLU, and the Legal Defense Fund, and several senators voiced support and interest in moving it quickly. House Bill 430, a constitutional amendment proposal, would make explicit that only natural persons may vote in Delaware elections, including municipal elections, in response to concerns about corporate or other artificial-entity voting in some towns. The discussion focused heavily on Fenwick Island, where the mayor testified that the town’s charter has long allowed certain artificial entities to vote in local elections and said the system is limited and has worked for years; other speakers argued the bill was needed to prevent corporate dilution of residents’ votes. Senator Richardson expressed concern about restricting entities with a local stake, while Senator Hoffner and others emphasized the principle of one person, one vote. Senator Townsend presented House Bill 344, which would tighten campaign finance rules by requiring Delaware bank accounts for candidates and committees, recurring training, better documentation of candidate loans, longer record retention, automatic filing extensions, and inactive status for noncompliant committees; one public commenter opposed the bill on cost grounds. He also presented House Bill 448, which would allow campaign funds to be used for reasonable security expenses for candidates and elected officials, with guardrails, and a commenter suggested allowing electronic security systems without a cap. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 472, a local de-annexation measure for Noble’s Pond in Cheswold to remove scattered residential lots from town boundaries and resolve uneven tax treatment; Senator Hoffner noted local law enforcement supported the change. The committee adjourned after hearing no further public comment on HB 472, and the vote to adjourn was unanimous.

Transcript Highlights:

• and members of both sides of the aisle and both chambers.
• We no longer have a functional, operable set of protections at the federal level, and that shifts a responsibility
• I have the pleasure of serving as the mayor of Fenwick Island, and I just want to correct a couple of
• And most of the time, a business's operating agreement can override this legislation. Thank you.
• And most of the time, a business's operating agreement can override this legislation. Thank you.

Committee: Senate Elections & Government Affairs

Keywords: 1064, all

Transcript Highlights:

• House Bill 1033 by Joint Budget, an act for the Office of the Treasurer of State refund of local taxes
• has contributed greatly to the operation of the Senate.
• has contributed greatly to the operation of the Senate.
• A lot of y'all because of the term limits.
• Justin Tate for his selection as a guardian of the flame of the final leg of the law enforcement torch

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The concerns for shelf life and spoilage of food because of changing use of packaging and technology
• And I would say that of the 30-plus changes we made, none of them were at the behest of the environmental
• utility prices is due to the price of natural gas and our over-reliance. ...operator have both plainly
• the state of New York.
• Act amending Chapter 306 of the Laws of 2011, authorizing owners of residential real property in high-risk

Committee: Senate Environmental Conservation

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Environmental Conservation Committee met with a quorum and a very full agenda, moving quickly through a series of environmental and natural resources bills. Early action included approving S.1343B, the clean fuel standard bill, which was referred to Finance with one nay. The committee then took up S.1464A, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act, where supporters said it had been heavily amended to address industry concerns and protect public health by reducing packaging waste and toxic chemicals. Opponents, including Senators Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick and Stec, raised concerns about costs, unintended consequences for business, agriculture, dairy, food safety, and consumer prices. Supporters argued the bill would reduce waste, protect people from toxins, and that many farms and dairy operations were exempted. The bill was advanced to Finance with two nays and one without recommendation. The committee also considered several bills tied to climate and energy policy. S.2712, sponsored by Senator Stec, would delay CLCPA implementation for 10 years and require a cost-benefit analysis; Stec argued New York has not adequately studied the law’s costs and cited rising utility bills, while Chair Harckham and others defended the state’s clean energy direction and said the bill would not move forward. S.3652, which would prohibit certain restrictions on motor vehicle sales, and S.5611, which would create a Climate Action Cost Council and limit annual climate-related rulemaking, were both voted down and not referred onward. By contrast, S.797A, the Mohawk River Basin Management Act, advanced to Finance with support from its sponsor, Senator Fahy. The committee then took up S.8933, Senator Helming’s bill to prohibit PFAS in photovoltaic modules. Helming said the bill was a common-sense measure to keep forever chemicals out of solar panels and protect water and soil; Harckham responded that the bill’s timeline would effectively halt the solar industry and said there was no evidence of PFAS leaching from solar panels. The bill was not advanced. The committee also advanced S.9206 on brush-fire area reed removal for Staten Island, S.9280 on open water data, S.9462 on deer management permits, S.963 on Atlantic bonito and false albacore management, and S.9479A on tidal wetlands definitions. In the final portion of the meeting, the committee rapidly approved a long slate of routine end-of-session fisheries and marine resource extender bills, including measures on sharks, lingcod, black sea bass, blueback herring, fluke, scup, commercial food fish licenses, special management areas, American eel, Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon, squid, and winter flounder.

Transcript Highlights:

• which put dozens of hours into this.
• which put dozens of hours into this.
• which put dozens of hours into this.
• which put dozens of hours into this.
• which put dozens of hours into this.

Committee: Senate Ways and Means

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That's a broad overview of the entire system operating budget.
• That's a broad overview of the entire system operating budget.
• And I'm looking at the out-of-state numbers, the out-of-state tuition.
• How do we, how does the system allocate the number of out-of-state versus the number of in-state?
• In the fall of 2013. So we have not increased out-of-state tuition since 2013.

Committee: Senate Appropriations Committee on Higher Education

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Higher Education received a presentation from Tim Jones, Senior Vice Chancellor and CFO for the State University System of Florida, on the system’s funding methodology, budget structure, tuition, and performance-based funding. He outlined the system’s scale, including 12 universities, more than 430,000 students taking classes, about 78,000 employees, and a roughly $20 billion operating budget. He also reviewed tuition levels, noting Florida’s low resident undergraduate tuition, the lack of tuition increases since 2013, and the distinction between state-set resident tuition and Board of Governors authority over other tuition categories. Jones described several funding components, including performance funding, preeminence funding, faculty recruitment and retention programs, universities of distinction, nursing pipeline and matching programs, and operational enhancements. He explained that performance funding is based on a 100-point model tied to retention, graduation, employment, and other metrics, with student success plans required if scores decline or fall below 70 points. He said the current performance funding allocation is $350 million and the legislative budget request seeks $400 million. He also said the new SUS 30 strategic plan will lead to updates in the performance metrics and benchmarks, with some changes possibly phased in over time. Senators asked questions about how the new strategic plan will affect future scoring, how long universities have to improve after declining scores, and how out-of-state enrollment and tuition are handled. Jones said universities will be evaluated on the current metrics for the upcoming budget cycle, while the new plan’s changes will be developed later and may include glide paths. He also said there is no statutory cap on nonresident students, though the Board of Governors has a 10% systemwide guideline under discussion, and that graduate out-of-state tuition varies by program and requires institutional and Board of Governors approval. No votes were taken, no public testimony was offered, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• The State Auditor is elected directly by the people of the State of Washington, and the office operates
• hours of care that Medicaid will pay for.
• a concern, so our analysis set a threshold of 75% or less of hours used.
• We found that about one-third of Medicaid clients use 75% or less of their authorized hours, with some
• Causes for less use of authorized hours in some parts of the state may include an older population that

Keywords: 904, all

Summary: The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee heard a State Auditor’s Office performance audit on the Restoring Quality Home Care Initiative (I-1163), which created home care aide certification requirements, FBI background checks, and an abuse/neglect registry. Auditors said some requirements likely improve safety, especially background checks and training, but the state lacked pre-2011 data to measure outcomes directly. They also found Washington has a long-term care workforce shortage, though its workforce supply ranks better than many states, and that more stringent entry requirements do not appear to reduce workforce participation compared with other states. The audit’s main concern was that the certification process is slow and burdensome. Auditors reported that most applicants never finish certification, that only about one-third of fiscal year 2025 applicants were certified within the 200-day legal deadline, and that the average time to certification was 463 days. They identified delays between training and testing, limited testing access in some areas, and redundant Department of Health verification of FBI background checks as key causes. The audit recommended streamlining the process by accepting applications later in the process, expanding testing within training programs, and eliminating the redundant background-check verification. Department of Health and Department of Social and Health Services staff largely agreed with the audit’s findings and recommendations. They said they have already made improvements, including moving exams into more than 110 training programs, increasing credentialing staff, and reducing barriers through rule changes. DSHS noted testing is offered in 13 languages. Committee members asked about testing contract incentives, language access, and whether the agencies would seek statutory or budget changes to implement the recommendations. No public testimony was offered, and the meeting adjourned without any vote or formal action by the committee.