Transcript Highlights:

• I'm going to pass it to J.
• I'm going to pass it to J.
• I'm going to pass it to J.
• CAPI's most recent report shows that they have served 674 low-income households gain access to home buyer
• Painter, is this the one that needs to go to taxes? This does have to go to taxes.

Committee: Senate Housing and Homelessness Prevention

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Today, people from all sectors of society have access to go to a land-grant university.
• Because we believe that that's one of the critical things that we can do in service to the state.
• And that brings us to a real-world example of sharing services at that VP of finance position.
• And so from a budgeting standpoint, it shouldn't be... ...NDSU to cover those services.
• maybe portions or add-ons to their degree and be able to access that directly and send it to employers

Committee: Joint Higher Education Institutions Committee

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I don't have any problem with the basic concept of limiting minors' ability to get access to pornographic
• </c><00:31:04.559><c> get</c><00:31:04.960><c> access</c> of limiting miners ability to get access of
• limiting miners ability to get access to<00:31:06.320><c> pornographic</c><00:31:07.679><c> uh</c><00
• limit the use of the phone or the entire access to the internet.
• limit the use of the phone or the entire access to the internet.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee began by explaining that the meeting was a work session and that votes would only be taken where there was clear consensus. CACR 6, the proposed constitutional amendment on a “right to compute,” was discussed first but not acted on because the prime sponsor was absent. Members raised concerns about whether the issue belonged in the constitution and what the amendment would mean in practice, and the chair recessed the matter for a future meeting. HB 74, concerning the definition of “citizen” for the right-to-know law and disclosure of preliminary drafts circulated to a quorum or majority of a public body, drew little support. Members noted the Senate’s prior rejection of a related bill and agreed the proposal was unlikely to advance. A motion to ITL the bill passed unanimously by roll call, 15-0, and the bill was placed on the consent calendar. HB 232, dealing with rights of conscience for medical professionals, was also recessed. Members said they had not yet seen the amendment, which was described as narrowing the bill to abortion-related issues and limiting penalties. Several members said they could not judge the bill without the amendment and expected disagreement, so the chair recessed it. HB 253, on interest-bearing pooled trust accounts maintained by lawyers, was discussed at length; the chair said the bill did not address the underlying IOLTA issue and would likely create conflict with the bar and judiciary. Members cited existing Supreme Court procedures and suggested the bill was unnecessary. A straw vote showed support for interim study and ITL, and the committee ultimately voted 15-0 to place HB 253 on consent. HB 293, aimed at preventing minors from accessing obscene material on internet-connected devices, prompted substantial debate. Members generally supported the goal but objected to the bill’s private right of action, its focus on manufacturers rather than content providers or internet platforms, uncertainty about the filtering technology required, and concerns about defining obscenity on a national rather than community basis. The committee discussed forming a subcommittee to work on the bill further, and members volunteered to serve, indicating the issue would be revisited rather than voted on immediately.

Transcript Highlights:

• It helps maintain access to anesthesia care in hospitals, rural, and underserved communities.
• goal is to bolster the program to support community-based organizations that provide direct services
• be the that messy truth, then we need to put money into services to prevent trafficking instead of money
• This bill gives OCA access to the additional information that it needs to understand cost drivers and
• SEIU California is proud to strongly support AB 1415 and proud to have worked with Health Access. consumer

Committee: House Appropriations

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• access to parent contact information.
• Some charged her money to access that superintendence contract.
• Now tell me again, to access that superintendents contract.
• We were told how easy it was to get access to the contract previously by a previous speaker.
• How difficult was it for you to get access to the contracts? What challenges did you face? Mr.

Committee: House Education

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• My commitment to this work has been shaped by a career in public lands and conservation and public service
• And to your point about ensuring more than access, but actually the engagement and feeling welcome, and
• So we have bus service that is taking people from urban areas to some of our state parks.
• bring cell phone service to some of those rural areas?
• We've been working with D.C. and D.P. to try to figure out how to bring cell service to people in those

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The joint meeting of the Senate Finance Committee and the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Tourism, Parks, and Recreation considered Governor Hochul’s nomination of Kathleen “Kathy” Moser to serve as Commissioner of the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. Moser described her background in conservation and public lands, and said her priorities would include improving access and belonging for all New Yorkers, maintaining health and safety, modernizing infrastructure, addressing climate change and sustainability, and strengthening partnerships with local governments, community groups, and the Legislature. Members questioned her on a range of park issues, including visitor fees, safety at swimming areas such as Lake Welch, security measures at parks, access for urban residents through nature buses and school transportation grants, maintenance and capital needs, event permitting, workforce recruitment and retention, and coordination around the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Moser said the department has targeted capital and safety investments at popular parks, is installing fencing, lighting, cameras, and license plate readers at entrances at selected sites, and is planning extensive 250th commemoration programming and historic-site renovations. She also discussed efforts to expand community stewardship, including partner groups, culturally specific amenities like cricket fields, and outreach through traveling exhibits and social media. Senators raised concerns and suggestions about renewable energy siting, cell service in rural areas, invasive species prevention, and local infrastructure needs. After questioning concluded, the committees voted to advance the nomination, and the motion was reported to the Senate floor.

Transcript Highlights:

• But Californians shouldn't have to... to get justice, and many don't have that access.
• We're a non-profit legal services organization serving low to moderate-income consumers across California
• to safe, affordable financial services to low-income families.
• Or the access is not heard via a door-to-door type of sale, if you will?
• I do have a remaining concern, and it's related to non-home improvement services.

Committee: House Banking and Finance

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• we want to say thank you for your to we want to say thank you for your service<00:02:30.440><c> and<
• /c> toward student services in order to add toward student services in order to add a<00:42:18.280><c
• Conversely, this provision stands to potentially cause us to reduce services available to students, as
• Conversely, this provision stands to potentially cause us to reduce services available to students, as
• We appreciate your service to our community.

Committee: House Education Policy

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• ability to access grant funding this ability to access grant funding does<00:47:49.120><c> not</c><00
• To maximize the benefits and minimize the risks, to promote the ethical and responsible use in service
• /c><01:54:09.280><c> reflect</c> Services or designee just to reflect Services or designee just to reflect
• While these technologies have the potential to increase access to information and support, they also
• to increase access to the potential to increase access to information<02:18:11.679><c> and</c><02:18:

Keywords: 926, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• With these limited options, some residents resort to illegal dumping because they lack access to transport
• That's why we're trying to get down into the South Sound to service more of Seattle and Tacoma.
• make sure that open access to the grid does happen.
• make sure that open access to the grade does happen.
• A lot of reforms at the federal level to make sure that open access to the grid does happen.

Summary: The Senate Environment, Energy, and Technology Committee held public hearings on two producer-responsibility bills and then a work session on consumer electrical equipment. On SB 6271, which would create an extended producer responsibility program for mattresses, staff explained the bill’s requirements for a producer responsibility organization, collection and recycling targets, reporting, and enforcement. Senator Hunt said the measure would reduce landfill burden and illegal dumping while creating recycling jobs. Local governments, a recycler, and environmental advocates testified in support, citing landfill capacity concerns, high disposal costs, and the potential to recover most mattress materials. Retail and industry groups said they support the goal but opposed the bill as drafted, arguing it differs from existing state models and could create unnecessary cost and administrative burden. The hearing closed with 459 signed in support and 172 opposed. The committee then heard SB 6174, a proposed substitute on textile producer responsibility that would first require a needs assessment and the creation of a coordinating organization. Supporters, including the sponsor, environmental advocates, Seattle Public Utilities, and a student testifier, described textiles as a fast-growing waste stream with major landfill, pollution, and global labor impacts, and said the needs assessment is an important first step. Opponents from retail, business, apparel, and hospitality groups said they support continued stakeholder work and the needs assessment concept, but raised concerns that the bill still presumes a future EPR program, could impose fees and penalties, and may sweep in retailers and company uniforms in ways that create burdens for small businesses. The hearing closed with 1,253 signed in support and 364 opposed. In the work session, Jeremiah Miller of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory briefed the committee on codes and standards for grid-connected and portable solar equipment. He explained how the National Electrical Code, UL certification standards, and IEEE interconnection standards work together, and described newer supplemental standards such as UL 3141 for power control systems and UL 3700 for portable or plug-in solar. Members asked about safety, certification timing, and how Washington could allow these products while ensuring proper installation and consumer protection. Miller said UL 3700 is very new and not yet widely certified in the market, but that the current code framework can accommodate certified products while standards continue to evolve. The committee took no votes and adjourned after the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• My fellow New Mexican transplant patients who did not have access to PFML, who, like me, struggle to
• It will help ensure that cancer patients have access to critical care without having to sacrifice their
• Patients need the option of being able to take twelve full weeks so they can access their life-saving
• When employees have access to paid family leave, they can attend to critical life events, such as the
• employees and business owners to fund public service and programs.

Committee: House House Health & Human Services

Transcript Highlights:

• don't have to go back and rely on repeated local referendums simply to maintain services.
• don't have to go back and rely on repeated local referendums simply to maintain services.
• You're allowed have to allow you access.
• Um, and that a manager of access to us.
• a strong commitment to integrity in public service.

Committee: Senate Elections

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Food pantries and food banks report that local procurement diversifies diets, improves access to... .
• making sure that all New Mexicans have access to the food they need.
• Recent changes to federal law are making it harder for families to access federal food assistance programs
• We get the full range of folks accessing our services.
• Services Department for senior centers to have fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat.

Bills: SB66 , SB79 , SB108

Committee: Senate Senate Conservation

Keywords: environment, cleanup, contamination, uranium mining, abandoned sites, state funding, mosquito control, public health, surveillance, prevention funds, local government grants, food security, agriculture, food bank, regional program, appropriation, 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And that was due to lack of accessible communication and his sensory needs not being met.
• Staffing shortages, limited access to behavioral health supports, and inconsistent training leave frontline
• With the greater knowledge we have access to today on how to support students with complex behavioral
• else might be able to speak to that.
• This has been very challenging to listen to. and um This has been very challenging to listen to, and

Summary: The committee opened by explaining that several bills had been removed from the agenda because the Senate must physically possess a bill before holding a public hearing. The chair said the missing bills would be rescheduled for Tuesday. The committee then waived the five-day notice rule for considering substitute House Bills 1705 and 32010, and proceeded to hear substitute House Bill 2219 and substitute House Bill 1795. House Bill 2219, on child care operational efficiency, would allow longer mixed-age ratio periods in child care centers, waive repeat DCYF orientation requirements in certain cases when staff have recently completed the same training, and require licensing standards to include a zero-tolerance policy for imminent physical harm involving high-potency synthetic opioids and related drug residue or paraphernalia. The prime sponsor and supporters said the bill would help child care providers manage staffing shortages, take breaks, and reduce duplicative licensing burdens. Testimony was strongly supportive, with advocates and providers describing the bill as a low-cost way to improve retention and flexibility. Questions focused on how the fentanyl language would apply to prescribed medications. House Bill 1795 would narrow and update state law on restraint and isolation in public schools and other public educational programs. The bill prohibits mechanical and chemical restraints and restraints that restrict breathing or blood flow, bars planned isolation in IEPs and 504 plans, limits planned restraint to cases with parent request and medical necessity, and prohibits new construction or remodeling of spaces intended primarily for student isolation. Supporters, including disability advocates, educators, school psychologists, principals, and state education groups, said the bill is a needed step toward reducing trauma and disproportionality and cited demonstration sites showing reductions in restraint and isolation. Some educators and paraeducators raised concerns about staffing, training, and what tools remain available in crisis situations, while others asked for future work on professional development and resources. No vote was taken on either bill during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• access to public transportation to community technical college students.
• access to public transportation to community technical college students.
• budget, including $1.4 million for a second DOL to Go team designed to bring services to underrepresented
• At this time, with all that uncertainty, and because we were able to, I think, do good service to our
• I know that we have access to see that. When does the public have the opportunity to see it online?

Summary: The House Transportation Committee held public hearings on a proposed substitute for House Bill 2306, the 2026 transportation supplemental budget, and on proposed substitute House Bill 2711, a transportation resources bill. Staff described HB 2306 as revising the enacted 2025-27 transportation budget, increasing spending by about $1.1 billion to $16.5 billion, largely through reappropriations and new funding for preservation, maintenance, rail, transit, active transportation, ferries, licensing, and State Patrol needs. The chair and ranking member emphasized caution because of downward revenue forecasts, uncertainty around major project bids and future fish passage costs, and the decision to use existing bond authority without new bonding. Public testimony on HB 2306 generally supported preservation, maintenance, rail improvements, dredging, transit access, and local safety projects, while some witnesses urged more support for EV incentives and long-term transportation funding stability. For HB 2711, staff explained that the bill responds to administrative issues in last year’s transportation resources law, including fuel tax inflation adjustments, luxury vehicle/aircraft/vessel taxes, the indigent tow reimbursement program, tire fee language, and other tax administration provisions. The proposed substitute would repeal the luxury aircraft tax, adjust peer-to-peer rental car tax administration, restore authority for the Transportation Commission to exempt transit buses from tolls, waive certain penalties and interest tied to early compliance with the luxury vehicle tax, allow lease payments to be taxed incrementally, add exemptions for tribal members and nonresidents, change transfer timing between accounts, and create a Preserve Washington Account for highway preservation and maintenance. Fiscal notes projected additional revenue from aligning use tax with sales tax and modest administrative costs, while delaying the tow reimbursement program reduced near-term expenditures. Testimony on HB 2711 was mixed. RV dealers asked for a delay to the luxury vehicle tax, arguing the industry is already in decline and the tax could push sales out of state. WFSE supported the new Preserve Washington Account and urged higher bid limits for highway maintenance work. Committee members asked for clarification on the peer-to-peer rental car tax and the transit bus toll exemption. The chair announced that executive session on the bills, along with one other measure, would occur Wednesday, and members were told to submit amendment requests by the next day.

Transcript Highlights:

• To rise closer to the ideals it professes.
• To speak truth to power, to work to change the status quo, that is something that has inspired countless
• . diagnosis or the lack of access to treatment and care because of financial hardships or geographic
• To new treatment and cures, and work to ensure that access to healthcare is equitable and affordable
• Over his decades of service His advocacy for working people and dedication to fighting for workers' rights

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• /c><00:19:30.520><c> to</c> consistent transfers and access to consistent transfers and access to programs
• to the eight correctional facilities during their 38-hour shifts, including access to the M8 housed
• to to the provided unfettered access to to the eight<00:41:36.720><c> Correctional</c><00:41:37.240>
• 20, 25, or 30 years of service, but that is tied to them coming to work 80% of the time.
• > besides</c> have access to the leadership besides have access to the leadership besides just<00:59:

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• have access to those funds.
• ensure that those students have the same access to achieving grade-level standards that apply to all
• Our responsibility is not to limit access but to actually identify the needs.
• And a lot of it's not them wanting access to screens or something.
• Those funds are going to special education and providing the services that we're obligated to do, not

Committee: House Education

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The founders intended public service to be a temporary duty, an honorable calling to some...
• The public service to be a temporary duty, an honorable calling to serve the country for a term or two
• To not only protect but expand access to abortion.
• I thank you very much for your service to our country, and I'll give it over to Jim from AFSCME.
• I thank you very much for your service to our country, and I'll give it over to Jim from AFSCME.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The hearing of the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs was opened by Chair Joe McGonagle and Vice Chair Senator Mike Rush, who noted that Chair John Velis was deployed with the Massachusetts National Guard. The chairs explained the hybrid format, three-minute testimony limit, live streaming, and filing deadlines, and said the committee would hear 11 House bills and eight Senate bills dealing with federal and overseas issues. Much of the hearing centered on competing resolutions about Article 5 constitutional conventions, along with related resolutions on D.C. statehood, child labor, Citizens United, and Cambodia. Supporters of H. 4692 and S. 284, a joint resolution to rescind all prior Massachusetts Article 5 convention applications, argued that old resolutions from the 1930s and 1970s could be used to count Massachusetts toward the 34-state threshold for calling a federal constitutional convention. Testifiers from Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, the ACLU, Reproductive Equity Now, labor groups, and others warned that a convention would have no clear rules, could not be reliably limited to specific topics, and could put civil rights, reproductive rights, labor protections, and other constitutional protections at risk. Several speakers also cited a recent federal lawsuit and said the safest course was to remove outdated applications from the books. A large opposing panel testified in support of H. 3888, a resolution calling for a Convention of States to propose amendments limiting federal power, imposing fiscal restraints, and establishing term limits. Supporters argued that Article 5 provides a lawful way to address federal overreach, debt, and congressional stagnation, and said the process would be limited by state applications and ratification by 38 states. Some committee members and witnesses raised concerns about a runaway convention, broad language in the resolution, and whether Congress could or should set rules for such a convention. Representative Gentile also testified in support of several related resolutions on overturning Citizens United, D.C. statehood, and the child labor amendment, while Representative Howard and Representative Tongue supported a Cambodia resolution condemning political oppression and urging free and fair elections. No votes or final actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• Parents are feeling that they don’t have access to high-quality behavioral health services, and the kids
• immediate access to training videos and resources about diabetes care management for all caregivers.
• access to a car seat.
• We also support them in their debriefings with staff, how to create safety for that, how to gain access
• to really beneficial information. ...staff, how to create safety for that, how to gain access to really

Committee: Joint Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on the Department of Child Safety

Summary: The Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on the Department of Child Safety met to review child welfare reforms developed after prior oversight hearings on the deaths of Emily Pike, Zariah Dodd, and Rebecca Baptiste. Committee members and the chair described a series of stakeholder meetings with tribes, DCS, law enforcement, county attorneys, schools, and other advocates that produced several bills aimed at improving communication, reporting, investigations, and court decision-making. The chair said SB 1125, creating a tribal-DCS memorandum of understanding, had already been signed, and highlighted HB 1126 on school records access, HB 1127 on mandatory reporting by people with direct knowledge, HB 1174 on hotline case history and review of prior reports, HB 1175 on photo documentation of children in care, HB 1496 on allowing attorneys to share more safety information with judges, and HB 1631 requiring advanced forensic interviews within 72 hours in sexual abuse cases, with some exceptions. DCS Director Catherine Patak presented agency data showing nearly 160,000 hotline calls in 2025, about 43,000 investigations, and a relatively steady out-of-home care population that ended the year at 7,077 children. She said about 3,000 children were reunified, 1,300 adopted, and 800 entered guardianship, while 1,100 young adults received transition services. She also reported 534 new foster homes licensed, a 50% reimbursement increase for older youth caregivers, a 40% decrease in youth missing from care since September 2024, and a 30% reduction in fatalities of children in care since 2024. Patak discussed the annual fatality review process, noting that 52 of 123 alleged fatality or near-fatality reports had prior DCS involvement, and described agency responses such as health plans for children with complex medical needs, a diabetes training app, expanded LifeSet services, fentanyl and safe-sleep prevention campaigns, staffing realignment, retention efforts, and improved coordination with law enforcement and tribes. Members asked about group home notification rules, the distinction between “missing” and “runaway,” behavioral health needs driving children back into care, training under Jacob’s Law, and whether best practices exist for placing sexually abused youth with appropriate staff. Patak said DCS is updating rules to remove “runaway” and “AWOL” in favor of “missing,” and that the agency is considering whether the statute’s immediate-or-24-hour reporting language should be clarified. She also said DCS does not currently have a specific staffing requirement tied to a child’s sex in group homes, but would look into practices in other states. The committee then heard from Malcolm Hightower of Casey Family Programs, who said Arizona is generally in the middle of the pack nationally: slightly higher than average in foster care entries and congregate care use, but near the national average on screening, substantiation, recurrence, re-entry, and maltreatment fatalities. He praised Arizona’s kin placement rate, said congregate care remains a challenge, and noted that neglect definitions and poverty-related removals remain an area of policy discussion. Finally, K.C. Melsick of Collaborative Safety described the organization’s safety-science approach to systemic critical incident reviews, arguing that child welfare systems should move away from blame and toward learning from near-misses and system failures. Members discussed applying similar methods across state agencies, and the committee adjourned after members and witnesses emphasized continued collaboration and further reforms in the interim and next session.