Transcript Highlights:

• ,</c> economy. those factors, education, economy. those factors, education, workforce<00:43:56.640><c
• </c> education. Uh families just get it. education. Uh families just get it.
• </c> jobs change faster than education jobs change faster than education pathways<01:30:23.840><c> and
• </c> level, SHERM has launched the education level, SHERM has launched the education to<01:33:21.199>
• </c> a question for you, our education a question for you, our education person.<01:35:48.560><c> So,

Committee: House Workforce, Labor, and Economic Development Finance and Policy

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> education here in Minnesota. education here in Minnesota.
• </c> It has created an education crisis. It has created an education crisis.
• </c> prioritizing survival over education. prioritizing survival over education.
• </c> pursue an education is not a crime. pursue an education is not a crime.
• </c> educated workforce is in healthcare. educated workforce is in healthcare.

Committee: House Higher Education Finance and Policy

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee adopted the minutes from its February 24, 2026 meeting after a motion by Vice Chair Coulter. The hearing then focused on the impact of federal immigration enforcement, referred to throughout as Operation Metro Surge, on Minnesota college campuses. The chair said the purpose was to document alleged abuses, campus fear, and racial discrimination, and to hear from testifiers about effects on students, faculty, and staff. Representative Novotny briefly objected to the framing, saying the committee should be finding facts rather than making a predetermined presentation, and the chair responded that members should remain respectful and that questions would be held until after all presenters testified. Augsburg University President Paul Pribbenow described what he called relentless and unprecedented disruption, including student stops and interrogations, family separations, and an ICE operation on campus in which armed masked agents allegedly detained a student without a warrant and pointed weapons at students and staff. He said the campus received bomb threats afterward, increased virtual learning options, and saw spikes in student support needs, housing assistance, and leaves of absence. Jenna Chernega of the Inter Faculty Organization said faculty across Minnesota State universities reported widespread student and colleague stress, increased workload, disappearing students, and a need for clearer sensitive-location protections and academic freedom guidance. Mark Grant of Minnesota State College Faculty said community conditions inevitably affect classrooms, that campuses have not yet had an ICE incident but are bracing for one, and that faculty want to support students and may need financial help if enrollment declines. Jennifer Irwin of AFSCME said fear from ICE activity extends beyond campus boundaries and is affecting attendance, work, and daily life for staff and students; she cited a member detained in St. Paul while trying to prove legal status. Student testifiers Brendan Frazier of Concordia University, St. Paul, Jonathan Fitzgerald of Minnesota State Mankato, Sudi Adow of Lead MN, and Will Luther of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities described panic, reduced attendance, food insecurity, disrupted classes, and fear of leaving home or commuting to campus. They urged stronger student privacy protections, support for international and immigrant students, emergency aid, and policies to keep campuses safe. No further committee action or votes were taken after the minutes approval.

Transcript Highlights:

• , Equity and Education Coalition.
• Would enable us to expand our work to include education data.
• I don't know education data.
• We invited Equity in Education to work with us.
• The second thing that they were required to do is sanitize the education data. The education...

Keywords: 904, all

Summary: The hearing concerned a Legislative Ethics Board complaint against Representative Tara Simmons in Washington State OAH Docket 401-645. The judge outlined the process, the two issues on appeal—whether Simmons violated RCW 42.52.020 and RCW 42.52.070, and, if so, what penalty should apply—and admitted a number of exhibits by stipulation or prior ruling, while taking one exhibit under advisement pending an offer of proof. The board also moved to sequester witnesses, which was granted, and the judge deferred ruling on a motion to exclude three defense witnesses until after hearing the board staff’s case. Opening statements followed, with staff alleging Simmons used her position to benefit an outside organization and to secure special privileges, and the defense arguing the conduct was lawful, technical in nature, and consistent with prior ethics guidance. Board staff then called Kimberly Gordon, an attorney and founding board member/treasurer of American Equity and Justice Group (AEJG), as its first witness. Gordon testified that AEJG used data dashboards to make justice-system data more accessible, received state proviso funding sponsored by Simmons, and also received two donations from Simmons—$10,000 and $40,000. She said the first donation was intended to help hire Antoine Coleman, whom Simmons had recommended and who was later identified as Simmons’s romantic partner, and that AEJG returned the $10,000 and declined the $40,000 after concluding there was a potential conflict of interest. Gordon also testified that AEJG believed Simmons’s involvement in the organization and her communications about Coleman created ethical concerns. Gordon further testified about a second proviso intended to expand AEJG’s work into education data and its subcontract with Equity in Education Coalition (EEC). She said EEC did not perform the expected deliverables, prompting repeated communications with the Administrative Office of the Courts and a meeting involving Chris Stanley, where AEJG raised concerns that EEC was not complying and that Simmons had intervened in the dispute. According to Gordon, Stanley ultimately directed the parties to rewrite the subcontract and continue, but AEJG later moved forward largely without EEC’s assistance. The board staff introduced AEJG’s complaint and related timeline exhibits during her testimony. After direct examination, the hearing recessed for lunch, and cross-examination by Simmons’s counsel began when the hearing resumed.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm sure that educators in our schools.
• </c> end educational inequity. end educational inequity.
• </c> for educational equity. for educational equity.
• The trend to root out DEI from public education continues.
• </c> students into STEM and STEM education students into STEM and STEM education fields<00:46:06.800>

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The subcommittee met without a quorum and did not approve minutes, but heard testimony on budget line items for Data Seam and Teach for America. Andrew McNeel of Kentucky Free and representatives from the Commonwealth Policy Center argued that both programs rely heavily on recurring taxpayer support and should be re-evaluated. McNeel cited a 2020 Office of Policy and Audit examination of Data Seam, saying the program had received more than $30 million in state support since 2006, including $3.5 million in the current budget, and that the audit raised concerns about administrative overhead, alleged threats to districts, and the use of line-item language to justify sole-source contracting. He recommended suspending Data Seam funding this biennium, directing a new special audit, and requiring reimbursement of audit costs. The witnesses also urged the committee to withhold funding for Teach for America, saying the organization’s materials and history showed a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion that they opposed. They pointed to past statements, leadership titles, and program language as evidence that DEI concepts remained embedded in the organization, and suggested any funding should be redirected directly to school districts instead. Mike Harmon and Richard Nelson echoed those concerns, while also saying long-running programs should be periodically reviewed for efficiency. Teach for America Appalachia representatives then testified in support of the program. Executive director C.D. Morton described the organization as a teacher-preparation and leadership-development program serving rural eastern Kentucky, saying it had recruited and supported more than 325 teachers since 2011, with about 30 current core members in several counties and roughly 2,800 students impacted daily. He said the program helps fill hard-to-staff vacancies, that about 80% of teachers stay for a third year, and that many alumni remain in education. In response to questions from Representative Bojanowski about retention and cost, Morton said more than 60% of alumni are still in education, but he could not give a precise classroom-teacher retention number beyond the program’s broader alumni data.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so there is a request in the health education budget to expand 15 graduate medical education and
• And so there is a request in the health education budget to expand 15 graduate medical education and
• Establish a health education director.
• If not, it's gonna be with the Board of Education.
• The Department of Education and the Board of Education statutorily both should be doing the same thing

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The meeting focused first on a legislative working group report created under House Bill 368 from the prior session on medical education in Idaho. The presenter described Idaho’s physician shortage, noting the state ranks 50th per capita in physicians and would need roughly 1,400 additional physicians to reach the national average. The group’s unanimous recommendations included maintaining current state-supported medical school seats, adding 10 new non-WAMI seats this year, expanding graduate medical education by 15 seats, prioritizing in-state training, and creating a dedicated health education coordination role to manage undergraduate and graduate placements, clinical sites, and data. Members discussed whether WAMI should also expand, the quality of WAMI graduates, the need for more clinical preceptors and residency sites, rural recruitment incentives, and whether the plan should include other health professions such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants. The presenter said the plan includes benchmarks and timelines, and estimated costs of about $350,000 for coordination, $350,000 to $485,000 for 10 new UME seats depending on placement, and $900,000 for the GME request. The committee then heard from Legislative Audit Division Manager April Renfro on the state’s 2024 single audit and related accountability work. She reported $5.4 billion in federal assistance audited, 21 major federal programs across 15 agencies, 45 findings, seven repeat findings, $2.4 million in known questioned costs, and $2 million in projected questioned costs. Major issues were concentrated at the Department of Health and Welfare, including Medicaid findings involving delayed health and safety surveys, managed care provider eligibility and roster controls, and capitation payments tied to ineligible members; Child Care and Development Fund reporting and cost-allocation errors; and repeat issues in vocational rehabilitation and low-income home energy programs. She also noted Department of Environmental Quality problems with indirect cost proposals and a duplicate grant draw, while Transportation had no findings. Members asked about accountability for repeat findings, the role of Luma in reporting errors, fraud detection, and how to prioritize corrective action; Renfro said agencies, federal management decisions, and legislative oversight all play a role, and she planned to send a prioritized list of key findings to the co-chairs. A later presentation by budget analyst Brooke Dupree introduced front-end reports in the legislative budget book, explaining state government structure, the constitutional limit of 20 executive departments, and how the Legislature uses decision units to build appropriations. She walked through the original appropriation, reappropriations, supplemental appropriations, and how those pieces roll into the current-year total appropriation, with members asking brief questions about departmental divisions and the budget model.

Transcript Highlights:

• Consequently, the Plyler decision requires that Idaho public schools bear the cost of educating the children
• government to recognize this imposition and perform its own study to determine the full cost of educating
• And it's like saying if somebody doesn't make enough money, well, then why are we going to educate their
• They didn't want to have to educate Black and brown kids.
• education modes.

Committee: House Education

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 516 by Education Committee, an act relating to education,
• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 635 by Education Committee, an act relating to education,
• In the House of Representatives, Houseville 516 by Education Committee, an act relating to education,
• In the House of Representatives, Houseville 635 by Education Committee, an act relating to education
• In the House of Representatives, House Bill 515 by Education Committee, an act relating to education,

Summary: The Senate convened with 32 members present, approved the journal, and received communications including the designation of Brian Merrill as a substitute senator for District 23. Senators also adopted a consent request to read petitions, resolutions, and memorials by number and title only, and Senate Concurrent Resolution 120 was introduced and referred to Judiciary and Rules for printing. Committee reports were received on several measures, including enrolled Senate Bill 1222 and Senate Joint Memorial 108, and multiple bills were reported out for second reading or referral, such as SB 1276, SB 1291, SB 1292, SB 1293, and HB 613. The Senate also received House-passed bills and referred them to the appropriate committees, including HB 528, 521, 498, 539, 516, 522, 635, 594, and 610. On third reading, the Senate passed SB 1242, a cleanup bill for the Idaho Potato Commission, by a 35-0 vote, and SB 1243, which removed obsolete references to the Idaho One Plan, also by 35-0. The Senate then passed HB 514, allowing cosmetology students to take licensing exams after completing 80% of required hours, and HB 515, which removed an unused state bullying-reporting requirement while strengthening parent notification when suspensions occur; both passed 35-0. The chamber also passed SB 1244, repealing outdated regional library system statutes, by unanimous consent using the same roll call vote. The Senate next took up SB 1261, which revises PERSI re-employment rules so retired members appointed or elected to certain offices can serve without losing benefits; it passed 35-0 and was declared an emergency measure with an effective date. After the floor business, the Senate recessed for page graduation and held a lengthy recognition program for the pages, including remarks about their future plans and a musical performance. The meeting concluded with announcements and adjournment until 11:00 a.m. the following day.

Transcript Highlights:

• With us today, we have the State Department of Education and the Superintendent.
• So, I will start with an overview, a bit of a state of the state for education, if you will.
• Our special education is up roughly 3% over the last 10 years. Another.
• We don't have firsthand interactions with students as most educators do.
• educating them.

Committee: House Appropriations and Budget

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill requires a reporting from the State Department of Education to report to the Adult Education
• This will help our adult education departments in the state know that these students exist.
• educational pathway that supports their goals.
• That's not good motivation to pursue education.
• We also do integrated education and skills training.

Bills: HB266 , SB85 , SB166 , HB266 , SB85 , SB166

Committee: Senate Education Policy

Keywords: education, diploma, adult education, dropout prevention, nontraditional high school program, driver's license eligibility, vaccination exemption, religious exemption, medical exemption, vaccine mandate, testing requirement, public schools, K-12, students, parents, guardians, higher education, college enrollment, university attendance, public institutions of higher education

Transcript Highlights:

• a vocational education building, and a gym.
• Our educational programming includes secondary, vocational, and post-secondary education.
• We have a director of education, Lisa Hamilton.
• We offer high school and postgraduate classes, special education services, and vocational education,
• What services do they need post-education?

Committee: House Courts, Corrections & Justice Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• and re-referred to the Committee on Education Finance.
• I am glad to ask to move HF 1771 out of Education Policy to go toward Education Finance and Committee
• I ask that the Committee on Education Finance refer this HF 1771. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
• Thursday, March 6, 2025. education policy uh I'm sorry that the education policy uh I'm sorry that the
• 06.279><c> uh</c><00:11:06.600><c> refer</c> committee of Education Finance uh refer committee of Education

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• education students within the DOC and those pursuing other types of educational programming, but we
• education students within the DOC and those pursuing other types of educational programming, but we
• education students within the DOC and those pursuing other types of educational programming, but we
• education students within the DOC and those pursuing other types of educational programming, but we
• education students within the DOC and those pursuing other types of educational programming, but we

Bills: HF3006 , HF2130 , HF1290

Committee: House Ways and Means

Keywords: Department of Corrections, DOC, corrections budget, supplemental appropriation, deficiency funding, public safety finance, incarceration, prerelease services, community supervision, postrelease services, supervised release, probation, reentry, reentry services, prison reform, body-worn cameras, corrections officer cameras, ARMER radio system, PREA, Prison Rape Elimination Act

Transcript Highlights:

• So, you know, the education system is already well underfunded.
• As we focus on providing parents with parents, with the choice of education, education, will districts
• And when I look at that education code and it's 3 and a half inches thick.
• The Florida Education Association waiving in support.
• So we are continuing to move in the right direction as it comes to education.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Attendance actually stands in the Department of Education, DCYF, and Human Services.
• As educational neglect, so we need to work on that.
• Education, plain and simple.
• I've gone to several education conferences.
• The number one issue in education right now is chronic absenteeism.

Transcript Highlights:

• We have a scheme where apparently the conduct with no due diligence on the educational partners provided
• In the end, the child is denied legitimate education, the parent is essentially robbed of their entitled
• We have a scheme where, apparently, there was no due diligence on the educational partners providing
• </c><00:02:28.640><c> tax</c> to half the eligible education tax to half the eligible education tax credit
• </c> legitimate educational legitimate educational expenses<00:02:39.680><c> the</c><00:02:40.000><c>

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• The executive has $4 million to implement special education initiatives by the Public Education Department
• Public Education Reform Fund.
• So, Senator, the public education.
• Joey, is Sonny here on education or somebody in education? What's the dollar amounts for that?
• All those higher educational institutes.

Committee: Senate Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> of the members of the education of the members of the education committee<00:20:58.080><c> in</c
• I'm on the board of education.
• I'm on the board of education.
• One of my personal things is sex education. I think kids should have sex education.
• Education.

Committee: House Criminal Justice and Public Safety

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> passion uh for working in arts education passion uh for working in arts education and<00:08:31.280
• ,</c><00:11:13.360><c> and</c> statewide arts advocacy, education, and statewide arts advocacy, education
• ,</c> arts as a vital force for education, arts as a vital force for education, well-being,<00:14:36.320
• </c><00:16:48.160><c> in</c> movement to strengthen arts education in movement to strengthen arts education
• 32:29.279><c> really</c><00:32:29.840><c> just</c> education is important and really just education is

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The Committee on Culture and the Arts held an informational briefing on May 22 with the Hawaii Arts Alliance, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA), and the King Kamehameha Celebration Commission. Chair Capella said the purpose was to better understand the organizations’ work and strengthen relationships ahead of the interim and next session. The Hawaii Arts Alliance, led by Executive Director Gay Humphrey, described its mission to enrich Hawaii’s cultural fabric through arts education, advocacy, and community engagement, and highlighted its history tied to Alfred Price, including the creation of Hawaii’s 1% for art law and the alliance’s 45 years of service. The alliance outlined its current work, including administering SFCA-funded statewide programs such as Artist in the Schools and the new folk and traditional arts program, with 34 teaching partners serving more than 100 public and charter schools and Kumu Hawaii as the single grantee for traditional weaving instruction. It also discussed Arts First Partners, the incubation of Arts at Mark’s Garage, expanded advocacy efforts supported by Creative West grants, and new multi-year philanthropic support from the Hawaii Community Foundation and Atherton Family Foundation. The alliance said it is launching statewide listening sessions and an arts advocacy training program, and noted that most SFCA funds pass through the alliance to program partners, with the organization retaining 10 to 14 percent for administration. SFCA Executive Director Karen Ewald then described the agency’s role as the state arts agency, its strategic planning process, and its main programs, including Art in Public Places, the Capital Modern museum, Artist in the Schools, apprentice mentoring grants, community arts grants, the Hawaii State Poet Laureate program, a statewide cultural extension program, and the Hawaii Open Arts Program. She said SFCA has 21 staff with one vacancy, is awaiting a federal NEA partnership agreement, and is considering new revenue streams such as a cultural trust. She also noted that the King Kamehameha Celebration Commission was recently attached to SFCA, which has improved coordination and allows SFCA to provide funding for conservation and upkeep of the King Kamehameha statues statewide. No votes were taken; the meeting was informational only, with questions deferred until after the presentations.

Transcript Highlights:

• So I think the educational piece about this—what it is, how it works.
• Just the education and awareness that we might want to make available to them.
• Their education would probably be subtly different.
• Their education would probably be subtly different.
• Their education would probably be subtly different.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Working Group on Education and Training of the Special Commission on Xylazine held its first meeting to begin developing findings and recommendations on education and training for first responders, the medical community, the substance use treatment community, and people who use drugs. Members discussed the need for baseline information on what xylazine is, its clinical effects and harms, signs of exposure or poisoning, wound care, and immediate response steps, while also noting that training should be tailored by audience, geography, and role. Several members emphasized that the training should be practical and action-oriented, helping people recognize xylazine exposure and know what to do next, including whether naloxone is relevant and how to reduce risk and mitigate harm. A major theme was whether the group should recommend a needs assessment or survey to identify what different audiences already know and what they still need to learn. Members suggested that BSAS, DPH, local public health departments, licensing boards, and other stakeholders could help gather this information, and that existing resources such as DPH materials, MADS data, Brandeis materials, and trainings already being funded at BMC should be reviewed. The group also discussed the importance of using plain language for non-clinical audiences while still including clinical detail for providers, and of distinguishing between clinical and non-clinical training tracks. The working group agreed to divide into subgroups: Senator Keenan will focus on first responders, Dr. Simon on the medical community, and Millie Batiya on the substance use treatment community, while Chair Domb will focus on people who use drugs. Staff will send meeting notes, an early draft PowerPoint framework, and a shared Google Drive folder for materials. Members were asked to gather sources and ideas by November 25 ahead of the December 11 public meeting. The meeting ended with a motion to adjourn, a second, and unanimous thanks to staff and participants.

Transcript Highlights:

• We had 84 respondents say higher education or go to college.
• That's post-secondary education.
• That's post-secondary education.
• It's a general education opportunity, but that doesn't mean it's for only general education students.
• Zreak, the new Secretary of Education.

Keywords: 1212, all

Summary: The Employment Subcommittee of the Commission on the Status of Persons with Disabilities met on April 27 and approved the prior meeting minutes. The main presentation was from the Lawrence Partnership for Transition to Employment (LPTE), a five-year grant project focused on improving transition outcomes for youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Lawrence. Presenters described the project’s community conversations, consortium, and four work groups, with emphasis on the family-partnership work group and a family survey designed to better understand engagement barriers and transition needs. The survey results showed that family participation increased sharply when Lawrence Public Schools helped distribute the survey, rising from about a dozen responses to more than 200. Key findings included barriers such as scheduling conflicts, language access, childcare, and limited understanding of the IEP and transition process. Many families said they wanted their children to pursue college or employment after high school, but fewer reported access to pre-employment training, suggesting a gap between expectations and awareness of available services. The Lawrence team also described a bilingual transition website, workshops offered at different times with interpretation and childcare, and efforts to make transition planning more visible and accessible. Committee members responded with questions and comments about cultural barriers, early transition planning, college and community college pathways, trades, summer youth employment, and how to reach families earlier, especially in middle school. Presenters said Lawrence has a strong transition team and existing resources, but needs more real-world work experiences and better communication so families understand and use them. The meeting ended with thanks to the presenters, a note that committee members would meet with SEED later in the week about Massachusetts as a model employer, and an announcement that the May meeting would feature the Office of Veterans Affairs.