Transcript Highlights:

• What about a career and tech center?
• Science Center grants, I'm suggesting we remove that.
• The Center for Distance Ed... The Center for Distance Ed. So, Mr.
• But there are companies out there that do provide secure pouches.
• But there are companies out there that do provide secure pouches.

Committee: Senate Appropriations - Education and Environment Division

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee met to hear and discuss three education bills and related budget items. House Bill 1214 would revise K-12 transportation funding by replacing the current rider-based formula with a new formula tied more closely to district size, square mileage, building counts, and the weighted student payment. Sponsors and DPI said the change would better reflect actual transportation costs, hold districts harmless overall, and likely increase funding by about $4 million beyond current spending; they also said parent-provided transportation and open-enrollment mileage rules would remain largely unchanged. No opposition was heard, and the committee closed discussion without taking final action in the transcript. The committee then reviewed House Bill 1013, the education appropriations bill, and walked through proposed adjustments to program and pass-through grants. The chair proposed keeping or reducing some items, eliminating others, and moving one-time items to the stabilization fund; examples included leaving free meals at $4.5 million for now, keeping the paraprofessional-to-teacher program, reducing some grant lines, and removing several new or one-time grants. DPI also explained that the student information system would remain a flow-through grant for this biennium but would move in-house after July 1, 2026. The committee also discussed adding an FTE for the School for the Blind and making a small equipment swap at the Center for Distance Education. House Bill 1369 was discussed as the main school aid bill, including a proposed 2 percent and 2 percent per-pupil payment increase, higher construction bidding thresholds, elimination of the 12 percent cap, and a transfer of $75 million from Foundation Aid to the School Construction Revolving Loan Fund, with the chair suggesting $100 million instead. DPI explained that the bill also included a policy change returning placement decisions for students with disabilities in congregate care to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with support from the governor’s office. The committee heard testimony from school officials seeking gap funding for Title I losses caused by a switch from free-and-reduced-lunch to census-based allocations, saying districts with many open-enrolled students could lose substantial funding and staff positions. Later, the governor’s office presented a proposed $1.5 million one-time appropriation to help schools buy secure storage for student cell phones if a statewide device policy is adopted; members raised concerns about cost, local control, and whether the money would be enough. The committee also heard student testimony and then recessed without voting on the amendment in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• We're operating as a subcommittee.
• Internet-connected devices require security updates from manufacturers in order to remain secure and
• We have both legal and operational concerns. Thank you.
• We are still operating as a subcommittee.
• And second, in our view, this bill is operational as written.

Summary: The committee began as a subcommittee due to the lack of a quorum and heard several privacy- and technology-related measures. The first item was H.R. 117, a resolution urging Congress to reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The author and supporters argued the law is outdated and shields platforms from accountability for harms such as harassment, exploitation, scams, and other online abuse. Witnesses, including a survivor parent and a gender justice advocate, described harms to children, women, and LGBTQ people and urged a two-year sunset to force federal reform. Some members supported the resolution as a call for federal action, while one member said he could not support it because the resolution was too general and lacked specificity about the reforms being sought. No vote was taken because the committee lacked a quorum. The committee then heard SB 898, which would require manufacturers of connected consumer products to disclose how long they will support the software and to notify consumers when products approach end of life. The author said consumers deserve transparency about security updates and continued functionality, and supporters from Consumer Reports and PIRG emphasized cybersecurity risks, consumer confusion, and electronic waste from unsupported devices. Opponents, including business and industry groups, raised concerns about enforcement through the unfair competition law, notice burdens, labeling issues, and compliance challenges, especially for products with long support windows or third-party dependencies. One member expressed support, noting the cybersecurity risks of end-of-life devices, but again no vote was taken because there was no quorum. The committee also heard SB 435, which would narrow the CCPA definition of publicly available information to limit how businesses classify data as public. The author and supporters said the bill would close a loophole that allows data brokers and others to monetize personal information without meaningful consent and could help prevent surveillance and misuse of data, including by government agencies. Opponents argued the bill would upset the balance between privacy and the free flow of information, create compliance uncertainty, and retroactively reclassify information that businesses reasonably believed was public. Some members said they supported the goal of stronger privacy protections, while others said the bill was too broad. The committee again could not vote due to the lack of a quorum. Later, the committee heard SB 923, which would expand Californians’ right to delete personal information to cover data obtained from third parties and require online businesses to offer a web form or similar method for deletion requests. Supporters, including the California Privacy Protection Agency and consumer advocates, said the bill would make deletion rights meaningful and better address data broker practices. Opponents sought an opt-out-of-processing alternative and raised operational and legal concerns, but supporters said deletion is not the same as retention or processing limits. Members largely spoke in favor of the bill’s privacy goals, but no action was taken. The committee also heard SB 947, the “No Robo Bosses Act,” which would require human review for certain automated employment decisions and limit predictive analysis in workplace discipline and termination. Labor groups supported the bill as a safeguard against biased or erroneous AI-driven decisions, while business, public employer, and local government groups opposed it as overbroad and burdensome. Members voiced support for human oversight in employment decisions, but the item was not voted on because the committee still lacked a quorum. Finally, the committee began hearing SB 1114, the SOGI Data Privacy Act, which would restrict disclosure of sexual orientation, gender identity, and intersex data to federal agencies absent a court order or legal requirement; the author and witness framed it as a response to federal efforts to obtain sensitive LGBTQ-related data.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> doing uh pro needing a social security doing uh pro needing a social security number<00:23:37.120
• </c> body work lure for the person operating body work lure for the person operating the<01:55:19.360
• </c> department to collect social security department to collect social security numbers<01:55:53.280
• Their operating costs are completely self-sustained. They pay for their own operating costs.
• </c> F. whether the coalition has operated F. whether the coalition has operated with<03:47:24.960><c

Committee: House Executive Departments and Administration

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• If you could come to the center, you will have two minutes. We do time you.
• Good morning, Jerry Shallow, President and CEO of the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber, New Mexico Chamber
• Now we're looking at data centers, and I'm very concerned.
• And the data center there, but in other places, the use of the water, the pollution of the air.
• We actually have two big clean energy companies that operate in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that

Committee: House House Energy, Environment & Natural Resources

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The Health Services child care centers.
• detention center, local correctional facility,<00:45:19.599><c> or</c><00:45:19.839><c> regional</c>
• <00:45:20.319><c> jails</c><00:45:20.720><c> to</c> facility, or regional jails to facility, or regional
• Clark Center for Kentucky History.
• There is a success of our region.

Keywords: Convene 00:00:00 Calendar/2nd Readings 00:05:55 Report of Committees 00:07:26 Orders of the Day/HB 419 00:09:02 HB 103 00:12:30 HB 276 00:37:54 HB 188 00:43:39 HB 189 00:47:11 HB 258 00:53:52 Motions, Petitions, and Communications 00:58:16 Introduction of New Bills and Resolutions 01:11:11 Recess for ConC/Rules Meeting 01:13:29 ConC/Rules Report 01:17:06 Adjournment 01:18:20, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• But I will say for Jay's Health Center, we have five contracts that he can utilize.
• Prezay, who's over the Human Development Centers, she has multiple contracts.
• So the Human Development Centers are allocated 1,880 budgeted positions.
• It's inefficient the way it's operated today.
• Our fiscal operation, we centralized our fiscal; they used to do their own fiscal operation, DSB did.

Committee: All ARKANSAS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (ALC)

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• These bills have been at the center of conflicting claims about kratom and 7-OH.
• We operate a county helpline.
• We must put the impacted communities front and center.
• I've also lived with complex regional pain syndrome.
• Even though I'm limited, I've lived with complex regional pain syndrome for 25 years.

Committee: Senate Health

Summary: The committee held an informational hearing on kratom and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), focusing on public health risks, overdose deaths, and regulatory gaps in California. The chair opened by noting that FDA and CDPH consider kratom and 7-OH products unlawful for consumption, yet they remain widely sold in smoke shops, vape stores, gas stations, and convenience stores. The hearing was framed as part of ongoing legislative work, including a future review of AB 1088, and members emphasized the need to weigh potential benefits against risks and consider whether stronger safeguards are needed. Expert testimony from a toxicology professor and several public health and medical officials described kratom as a plant with multiple alkaloids, with 7-OH identified as the more potent opioid-like compound associated with tolerance, dependence, withdrawal, and respiratory depression. CDPH reported 362 kratom-related overdose deaths in California from 2019 to 2023 and 15 deaths involving 7-OH, while Los Angeles County officials described unexplained deaths in young adults that led them to expand toxicology testing and identify 7-OH as a common factor. County and state public health representatives said they have issued advisories, contacted retailers, removed products from shelves, and taken enforcement actions, but they stressed that local enforcement is patchy, under-resourced, and limited by unclear jurisdiction and lack of testing capacity. Medical witnesses said patients are presenting with 7-OH dependence and withdrawal in ways similar to fentanyl-related cases, sometimes requiring buprenorphine, methadone, or repeated naloxone. They argued that unregulated retail sales and misleading marketing make the products especially risky, and that a statewide framework would be more effective than a patchwork of local ordinances. Some officials said the safest current policy is to keep kratom and 7-OH unlawful for consumption, while others said any new regulation would need resources, packaging rules, and clearer authority for enforcement. Industry and consumer advocates urged the committee to distinguish natural kratom leaf from concentrated or synthetic 7-OH products. They argued that kratom leaf has long-standing use, that 7-OH should be targeted rather than the whole plant, and that regulation should focus on age limits, labeling, testing, serving-size caps, and restrictions on adulterated products rather than prohibition. Several speakers warned that bans could push demand to the black market and reduce access for people using the products for pain relief or harm reduction, while critics of the industry said the products are being marketed deceptively and that more comprehensive regulation is needed.

Transcript Highlights:

• director of Governor Abbott's child sex trafficking team, and the former director of the National Center
• for Missing and Exploited Children's Texas Regional Office.
• With limited knowledge of CSCD operations and state requirements, current statute requires judges to
• As the primary oversight body for the operation of fiscal management of CSED and the operation of programs
• , And community corrections facilities, CAAD is positioned to understand the resources needed to operate

Committee: House Corrections

Transcript Highlights:

• director of Governor Abbott's Child Sex Trafficking Team and the former director of the now National Center
• for Missing and Exploited Children's Texas regional office.
• With limited knowledge of CSCD operations and state requirements, current statute... ...requires judges
• and fiscal management of CSCDs and the operation of programs and community corrections facilities.
• CJAD is positioned to understand... ...the resources needed to operate CSCDs and community corrections

Bills: SB663 , SB958

Committee: House Corrections

Keywords: community supervision, budget approval, corrections department, strategic plan, judicial oversight, SB 958, Texas Government Code, nondisclosure, order of nondisclosure, criminal history record information, trafficking of persons, human trafficking, compelling prostitution, survivor rights, record sealing, expunction, deferred adjudication, prostitution, controlled substances, theft

Transcript Highlights:

• Jaden graduated from Whitman-Hanson Regional High School in 2022, where he played varsity baseball.
• The House bill relative to the safe operation of motor vehicles, House No. 3748.
• An act relative to the safe operation of motor vehicles, House No. 3748.
• An act relative to the safe operation of motor vehicles, House No. 3748.
• This money is sitting at the Clean Energy Center accruing interest.

Keywords: 1212, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We look at the Small Business Development Center, we look at the Florida High Tech Corridor, folks at
• And with all of that, we are keeping our operating budget at a very low percentage, approximately 7%,
• And with all of that, we are keeping our operating budget at a very low percentage, approximately 7%,
• When we started to see that traffic was building up a lot, we would adjust our operations.
• But with the education center and just the way the whole facility is laid with the education center and

Committee: Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development met to hear presentations from the Department of Commerce and the Florida Department of Transportation. Jason Mahon of Florida Commerce outlined the state’s economic development strategy, emphasizing Florida’s GDP growth, business formation, and strengths in manufacturing, high-tech, life sciences, defense, and financial services. He described the department’s tools for small business lending, rural investment tax credits, venture capital support, infrastructure and workforce grants, performance-based incentives, and disaster recovery loans, and highlighted examples such as ServiceNow, Williams International, Asteris, and Point Blank Enterprises. Senators asked about grant availability for small businesses, foreign companies relocating to Florida, workforce shortages in manufacturing, and whether additional tools may be needed; Mahon said most small-business support is loan-based and noted ongoing workforce and infrastructure challenges. Jennifer Marshall of FDOT then reviewed major transportation projects and the Moving Florida Forward initiative, describing the state’s large portfolio of active contracts and major congestion-relief projects across Florida. She highlighted early completions and accelerated timelines on projects including the NASA Causeway Bridge, I-95 at US 1 in Volusia County, I-4 congestion relief lanes, the First Coast Expressway, the Howard Frankland Bridge, I-4 interchanges in Central Florida, A1A coastal protection work, I-75 improvements in Southwest Florida, and the I-395 reconstruction in Miami. Senators asked about how express lane projects are selected, whether toll revenues are used for local maintenance and improvements, the status of the Miami I-395 project, and the impact of losing electric-vehicle express lane exemptions. Marshall said FDOT works with local long-range plans and congestion data, and that she would follow up on several specific funding and project questions. Committee members generally praised both agencies for project delivery, cost savings, and coordination with local partners. Senator Mayfield noted the importance of using savings and working with local governments, while Senator Wright commended Commerce’s role in economic development and FDOT’s work on major road projects. The meeting concluded with no further business, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Through call centers, doctor visits, pre-clearance, and everything else.
• They took the vision in Alaska and the call center in Alaska out of Alaska.
• The call centers say, "Okay, drive to—well, wait, it's an island."
• from a day-to-day operation.
• The Indianapolis Medical Center is due for a total replacement.

Committee: Senate Senate Veterans' Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• housing but also to secure jobs.
• </c> that is helping people not only secure that is helping people not only secure housing<00:41:40.400
• also to secure housing but also to secure jobs<00:41:44.319><c> what</c><00:41:44.440><c> is</c><00:
• </c><00:42:58.359><c> um</c> extremely difficult ult to operate um extremely difficult ult to operate
• :21.719><c> are</c> qualified um Health Centers uh there are qualified um Health Centers uh there are

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee first recessed briefly, then took up HB 570, the prescription drug affordability board (PDAB). The chair and several members discussed the House amendment to repeal the board, which removed the fiscal note. The main concern raised was that the PDAB had not yet produced a clear business case showing value for the taxpayer investment, despite several years of work and four annual reports. Supporters of the repeal said the board’s recent report was largely redundant and that the board should either demonstrate a strong return on investment or be shut down; others cautioned against discarding the program too quickly and urged more time to refine the mission and legislative language. No vote was taken, and the committee appeared to agree to retain the bill for further work, with the possibility of revisiting it in a formal executive session on Tuesday. Members also shifted into discussion of HB 2, beginning with Section 85 on opioid abatement trust fund dollars for shelter programs. Department of Health and Human Services officials explained that the provision would provide $10 million from the opioid abatement trust fund, replacing general funds in the governor’s budget, while also noting an additional $2.5 million prioritized needs request for shelter care that was already fully funded. Committee members asked about shelter bed capacity, job placement efforts, and the remaining balance in the opioid fund; DHHS said there are 934 contracted beds and that case management includes help with housing and employment. Officials also said the current proposed budget includes another $1 million later in HB 2 from the opioid fund. The committee then began discussion of Sections 86 through 87, which would preserve the department’s ability to transfer funds between personnel lines. DHHS said the provision is operationally critical and that losing it would make it extremely difficult to manage the department, though it would not have a direct fiscal impact. The next item introduced was Section 88, extending a suspension related to eligibility for services until July 1, 2027; DHHS indicated that if the suspension were not continued, it would likely increase expenditures for Community Mental Health Centers and potentially others. No votes were taken during this portion of the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill does not have enough votes to be released, so I'm going to walk it and try to secure enough
• And to make, like, honestly, I'll probably vote this out because if we just send things to operations
• Because, yeah, I know somebody who then went and worked in securities.
• of them is the cemeteries because there are very few veteran cemeteries that are not full in this region

Summary: The House Revenue and Finance Committee met to consider House Substitute 1 for House Bill 386, which would create a temporary Delaware income tax deduction for qualified tip income from tax years 2027 through 2029. The sponsor described it as relief for service workers in restaurants, salons, and similar tipped occupations, with a deduction of up to $15,000, income-based phaseouts, a refundable credit for lower-income workers, and a sunset for later review. Committee members raised questions about the resident/non-resident language, the fiscal note, and whether the Department of Finance could implement the change; Finance said the department could administer it and expected only modest administrative costs, while the Comptroller’s office said the bill would reduce general revenue. After a brief recess to review updated language, the committee took public comment, but no one testified. A motion to release the bill failed to receive enough votes, and the chair said she would walk it to seek additional signatures. The committee then considered Senate Bill 219, which would phase in an increase in the military pension income exemption from $12,500 to $25,000 by tax year 2029. The sponsor argued the measure would help attract and retain military retirees, citing economic return estimates, workforce benefits, and support from all 21 Senate co-sponsors. Some members supported the bill as a way to reward service and bring in long-term residents, while others questioned whether the exemption should be income-based rather than available to all military retirees, including those with substantial second careers. The Department of Finance said it could operationalize the bill and that the non-resident language was unnecessary because the subtraction is already picked up in the non-resident code section. Public testimony from veterans’ organizations strongly supported the bill, emphasizing that the exemption can influence retirement decisions and help veterans and their families stay in Delaware. A motion to release the bill also failed to get enough votes, and the chair said she would walk it for signatures before adjourning the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• Good morning, Linda Wei with Western Center on Law and Poverty in support. Thank you.
• Quest is one of the largest clinical laboratories in the state with 400 patient service centers and 17
• regional and rapid response labs.
• Our state and local governments spend over $400 million annually in operating animal care and control
• There are a total of 174 federally qualified health care centers throughout the state.

Committee: House Business and Professions

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The California Health Interview Survey is an annual health survey administered by the UCLA Center for
• And this CHIS food security screener, our best remaining state tool, is at risk.
• We aim to retain the existing CHIS food security measurement, and it also expands from 200% to 400% of
• So NAMS is committed to integrated, patient-centered care. AB 1949 supports that mission directly.
• , along with the economic activity and jobs those operations bring.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Health heard presentations on several bills, beginning with AB 1734, which would expand California Health Interview Survey food insecurity data collection to households up to 400% of the federal poverty level. The author and supporters from food banks, AARP, county governments, and nutrition groups argued the bill would improve California’s ability to measure hunger amid federal cuts; there was no opposition. The committee also heard AB 1949, which would treat acupuncture as its own Medi-Cal benefit and allow up to 24 visits per year. Supporters said the current two-visits-per-month cap limits effective treatment and can increase reliance on medications; the bill drew broad support and no opposition. AB 1910, a postpartum pelvic floor health bill, was presented as an education and awareness measure encouraging patients to discuss pelvic floor concerns with providers, with no opposition. AB 2011 would codify federal mental health parity standards into state law; supporters said it would preserve enforcement if federal rules are rolled back, while insurers opposed it as premature given ongoing federal litigation and possible new rules. AB 2706 would modernize California’s cannery law to align with federal food safety standards and reduce duplicative requirements for food processors, with support from the dairy industry and no opposition. AB 2041 would require certain public safety agencies to report compliance with 911 dispatcher pre-arrival instruction training requirements, building on prior legislation; it also faced no opposition. After quorum was established, the committee voted on the bills. The consent calendar bills AB 1571, AB 1864, and AB 1956 were approved 6-0. AB 1734, AB 1910, AB 1949, AB 2041, and AB 2706 all passed the committee unanimously or near-unanimously and were re-referred to Appropriations or Education as applicable. AB 2011 passed 8-2, with some members expressing concern about federal litigation, implementation costs, and the timing of codifying the 2024 parity rule into state law. All bills were placed on call after the votes, and the committee adjourned after completing its agenda.

Transcript Highlights:

• I've introduced legislation to protect them from data center-related costs being shifted onto them.
• But ever since this state went to the vote center model, voters almost everywhere have had to do that
• were waiting four-plus hours at the vote centers to vote.
• of a computer data center.
• My constituents operate a hot dog cart.

Summary: The House convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior journal, and several guest introductions and proclamations, including recognition of Dr. Victoria Tannenbaum as Doctor of the Day, Lutheran Day at the Legislature, a veterans treatment court judge, and Adrian Ace Stubbs Day. Attendance was recorded at 56 present, one absent, and three excused. The chamber then moved through communications, committee reports, and first/second readings before beginning a long third-reading calendar. Members considered and voted on a wide range of bills covering tax administration, groundwater and water rights, licensing timeframes, homicide, school employee transparency, mining, retirement system cleanup, utility regulation, AI and digital privacy, sexual extortion, adult protective services, salvage vehicles, veterinary board changes, geological survey reorganization, court fees, real estate licensing, probation, and several education-related appropriations and policy measures. Many bills passed on largely party-line votes, while others passed overwhelmingly or unanimously. Several members explained votes on issues such as superintendent contract transparency, ESA administration funding, mining reclamation, water supply and drought policy, motorcycle safety, AI and adult-content verification, and abortion-pill coercion. The House also passed multiple concurrent resolutions and memorials, including measures on election administration, Judea and Samaria, Route 66, and a memorial to rename State Route 69. Election-related debate was especially pointed, with supporters arguing for precinct-based voting and opponents warning of cost, reduced access, and logistical burdens. The chamber then moved into Committee of the Whole to begin consideration of measures on Calendar No. 1, starting with HB 2174 and related amendments.

Transcript Highlights:

• That high-speed rail should be in operation today.
• for promotion of or operation of high-speed rail operated by a private entity have already created confusion
• Well, typically in any type of security...
• So, you're operating for the new owner, but the owner is not the CEO.
• Railroads have safely operated... Longer trains for over 80 years.

Bills: HB341 , HB791 , HB1564 , HB1695 , HB1722 , HB1729 , HB1772 , HB2003 , HB2954 , HB2989 , HB3084 , HB3134 , HB3135 , HB3309 , HB3611 , HB3679 , HB3727 , HB3832

Committee: House Transportation

Keywords: affordable housing, zoning, development, community support, local regulations, bicycle lanes, traffic collisions, Texas Department of Transportation, study, public safety, bicycles, electric bicycles, scooters, road safety, transportation study, HB 791, Central Catholic High School, San Antonio, specialty license plate, specialty plates

Transcript Highlights:

• Vote centers: The bill eliminates vote centers and forces precinct-only voting.
• If—and this happened in my district—there was, at the vote centers, at the voting centers, a lot of technology
• We have some of the safest, most secure elections in the country.
• If it were so secure, we wouldn't have a grand jury.
• That's not what I call a secure environment.

Summary: The committee first took up SB 1066, which would allow the Attorney General or a county attorney to sue researchers for knowingly or recklessly publishing fraudulent scientific research, and would let injured parties recover damages. The sponsor and a supporting witness argued the bill would create personal accountability for deliberate research fraud and cited examples of retracted or manipulated studies; opponents warned that peer review and existing scientific processes already address bad research and that the bill could chill research and speech. The committee later passed SB 1066 on a 4-3 vote. The committee then heard SB 1015, which would impose strict personal liability on providers who perform gender transition procedures on minors for later detransition costs and related injuries. Supporters, including the sponsor, a doctor, a detransitioner, and a parent, said the bill would protect children, create accountability, and help families seek redress for irreversible harm. Opponents from the ACLU and others argued the measure discriminates against transgender patients, would likely chill care by making providers uninsurable, and could function as a backdoor ban; the committee nevertheless advanced the bill on a 4-3 vote. SB 1049, as amended, limited spousal maintenance to four years and adjusted eligibility and guideline factors. The sponsor and a family law attorney said the bill would curb overly long awards and better account for assets and income, while the Judicial Council explained the existing guideline work and noted the new calculator was intended to add uniformity; one senator objected that the cap was arbitrary and ignored case-specific context. The committee adopted the amendment and passed the bill 4-2. The committee also unanimously passed SB 1189, allowing campaign funds to be used for candidate and family security, and SB 1133, eliminating a duplicate financial disclosure filing for candidates who already filed an annual statement. Finally, the committee heard SB 1081, which would bar a DCS attorney from appearing before a judge after appearing before that judge in any of the attorney’s previous five DCS cases, and advanced it 4-3 after debate over judicial familiarity and rural-court impacts. The committee also heard SCR 1001, a proposed constitutional referral to end early voting the Friday before the election, require proof of citizenship and government ID, and restrict mail ballots to voters who affirmatively request them; supporters framed it as an election-integrity measure, while ADOT testified neutrally but warned that free IDs could cost tens of millions in lost revenue and affect road funding. The transcript ends during testimony on SCR 1001, before any vote on that measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• but they will talk about the abuse of other, specifically children that go to the child protection center
• We do not represent the people who are unlicensed and operate facilities that are substandard and do
• They are confronted, and if they are operating illegally and substandard, they can be arrested, and that
• If you know of a situation of someone operating illegally, you are perfectly free to call the Department
• Academies, Kansas City Regional Police Academy's curriculum that is posted online, they do not cover

Committee: House Special Committee on Urban Issues

Summary: The Special Committee on Urban Issues held a public hearing on House Bill 2292, sponsored by Rep. Holly Jones, which would require cross-reporting and training between child/elder abuse systems and animal welfare personnel. Jones said the bill is intended to help identify abuse earlier by training investigators to recognize signs of abuse in both people and companion animals, and she announced planned amendments to narrow the definition of animal to dogs, cats, rabbits, and birds and to extend training time from one hour to one and a half hours. She emphasized the bill is focused on companion animals, not livestock, and said it would use existing agencies rather than create a new department. The committee heard questions about the definition of companion animal and the scope of the bill. Supporters included Humane World for Animals, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office, the Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation, the Missouri Animal Control Association, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Wayside Waifs, and the St. Louis County Police Association. They argued that animal abuse is closely linked to child, elder, and domestic abuse, that animal control officers and humane investigators often see warning signs first, and that cross-reporting would improve early intervention and save lives. Several witnesses described cases where animal abuse coincided with child abuse or other violence, and some said current reporting systems are inconsistent or delayed. One witness also said the training could be provided at low cost through existing mechanisms. Opponents, including the Missouri Pet Breeders Association, Missouri Cattleman’s Association, Missouri Federation of Animal Owners, and Missouri Animal Husbandry Association, raised concerns about the bill’s wording, possible inclusion of commercial breeders or livestock-related issues, and the role of humane investigators. They argued that animal abuse is already reported to law enforcement, that the bill could create confusion about authority or access to private property, and that it could impose costs and training burdens on agencies already stretched thin. Some rural witnesses said they wanted any investigations to remain with law enforcement and the Department of Agriculture, not animal welfare groups. The hearing ended without a vote or other action on the bill.