Transcript Highlights:

• purpose of investing in cryptocurrency and the investment authority of the Comptroller of Public Accounts
• In her honor, Anne Manning is a proud graduate of Texas Tech University and the Texas Tech School of
• career, and in congratulating her on receiving the Distinguished Alumni Award. award from the Texas Tech
• 1388 by Buckley relating to an indicator of achievement for military readiness under the public accountability

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Yes, I moved to sever Douglas McReeven—I'm sorry, McReecon—nominee for the Texas Tech Board of Regents
• Senator Alvarado requested Douglas McRican, who has been appointed to the Texas Tech... Thank you.
• Senator Alvarado requests that Douglas McRieken, who has been appointed to the Texas Tech University
• Sunset directed us to update a lot of our tech, and I'm not a techy person, but our website is being
• Midwestern went to the Tech system, and Stephen F. Austin went to the UT system.

Summary: The Senate Committee on Nominations met with a quorum and first took up pending nominations from an earlier agenda. Members severed Douglas McReecken, nominated to the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents, from the rest of the list and then voted to report the remaining nominees to the full Senate by a 7-0 vote. The committee then voted on the severed nomination itself and reported Douglas McReecken to the full Senate as well, by a 5-2 vote. The committee heard testimony from Brooke Pop, reappointed as chair of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and later from Commissioner Katarina Gonzalez, also of TCEQ. Questions focused on whether TCEQ rules comply with state law, ex parte restrictions, public transparency, concrete batch plant permitting, MUD approvals, water availability, illegal dams, enforcement, and the agency’s role in local environmental disputes. Both nominees said they follow the law as written, described internal legal review of rules, and emphasized transparency, public outreach, and enforcement; Gonzalez said she had already sent back two rules she believed did not comply with legislation. Members also discussed TCEQ’s authority limits and the need for clearer public communication about what the agency can and cannot regulate. The committee also considered Alethea Sullivan, nominated to the Texas Southern University Board of Regents. Questions centered on TSU’s status as an independent institution, the role of HBCUs amid DEI-related legal changes, and student outcomes. Sullivan said she would focus on ensuring taxpayer and student resources produce valuable credentials and noted concerns from her review of graduation and bar passage rates. The committee then heard from Benjamin Barkley, appointed chief executive and public counsel of the Office of Public Utility Counsel. Barkley said OPUC’s main need is additional funding to recruit and retain attorneys and expert witnesses, reduce turnover, and continue representing residential and small commercial consumers in utility rate cases; he said the office was involved in 73 contested cases and saved Texans $2.2 billion in FY 2024. No final action was taken on the later nominees, and the committee recessed with nominations left pending.

Transcript Highlights:

• My favorite thing was learning about the Holocaust because I got to read a first-hand account of what
• While severe forms of sexual misconduct account for less than 1%, according to a 2022 survey reflecting
• low income regions in our state local education agencies need to have the ability to create higher tech
• We take biology classes to prepare for science careers and computer science classes to prepare for tech
• We take biology classes to prepare for science careers and computer science classes to prepare for tech

Summary: The Assembly Education Committee heard a series of bills focused largely on school safety, immigrant student protections, Holocaust and genocide education, civic engagement, and workforce pathways. SB 631 would expand the charter school revolving loan fund by increasing loan amounts and broadening eligibility, including for charter schools affected by natural disasters; it drew support from the Treasurer’s Office and the California Charter Schools Association and was advanced on a 4-0 vote, with the bill held on call. SB 472 would reinforce Holocaust, slavery, and genocide education requirements and create or expand teacher training and grants; it received strong support from survivors, educators, and Jewish organizations and passed 6-0, with several members asking to be added as coauthors. The committee also took up a package of immigration-related school bills. SB 48 would bar school officials from allowing immigration enforcement access to campuses without a judicial warrant and protect student records; it was backed by Superintendent Tony Thurmond, teachers, school districts, and many advocacy groups, and passed 5-0 to the Judiciary Committee. SB 98 would require K-12 schools and higher education institutions to notify campus communities when immigration enforcement is present; it also drew broad support from student groups, colleges, and education organizations and passed 3-0 to Higher Education, with the bill held on call. Both measures were presented as responses to recent immigration enforcement activity near schools and the chilling effect on attendance and student well-being. Other measures advanced included SB 848, which would strengthen protections against employee sexual misconduct in schools by updating safety plans, training, reporting, and misconduct tracking; it was supported by education groups and a survivor who described grooming at her high school, and passed 6-0 to Public Safety. SB 638 would create a statewide coordinating entity for education and workforce programs and support career pathways, with testimony emphasizing the need to align fragmented funding and improve access for underserved communities; it passed 7-0 to Higher Education. SB 316, on high school voter registration and pre-registration, passed 8-0 to Elections after testimony from students and civic engagement advocates, and SB 334, which would add sexual harassment prevention content and a Sexual Harassment Safety Week to school curriculum, was presented with support from student advocates and AAUW, with no opposition noted in the portion of the transcript provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• Texas will be unusable by high-tech industry.
• They will continue to provide the tech, especially with the train set, but our Japanese partners are
• We met with JRC, who's the provider of the Japanese tech.
• HB 3019 is a bill that requires a certain level of scrutiny and accountability. before we let a local
• It requires a simple level of accountability before those local government agencies may seek billions

Bills: HJR58, HJR63, HB263, HB542, HB905, HB 1288, HB1402, HB2003, HB2262, HB2323, HB2429, HB2876, HB3019, HB263

Keywords: healthcare, insurance, elderly, retirement, benefits, transit-oriented projects, constitutional amendment, state highway fund, funding allocation, voter approval, highway fund, funding, public transportation, transit projects, transportation, local transit, fund allocation, voting rights, election integrity, ballot access

Transcript Highlights:

• So is it more of a A uh assistance role than an accountability role?
• workforce demand, and that accountability drives continuous improvement.
• I started this conversation speaking about trust and accountability.
• To ensure legislative insight and my accountability.
• Uh, uh, or the, uh, uh, workforce tech and credential task force, if you will.

Transcript Highlights:

• Young people aged 15 to 24 account for half of all new STI cases.
• Young people aged 15 to 24 account for half of all new STI cases.
• And I think tech companies need to be held accountable in the fact that this is happening on their watch
• I am very interested in working with you with tech companies.
• We've got to hold them accountable. We have bad CRAs in the state.

Summary: The committee first took up SB 1272 on guardianship, which would limit a guardian’s ability to isolate an adult ward from family and require notice to family or other named persons about major events such as a ward’s death or medical relocation. Senator Jones said the bill was intended to curb abuse by bad actors while not affecting good-faith guardians. Fortuna Smuggler and Phyllis Smith spoke in support, describing the need for family notification and closure. The bill passed unanimously, 8-0, and was reported favorably. The committee then considered CS/SB 1284 on wrongful death for an unborn child. Senator Graal explained that the bill would expand Florida’s Wrongful Death Act to allow parents to recover economic and non-economic damages for the death of an unborn child. An amendment was adopted to define “unborn child” as a member of the species Homo sapiens carried in the womb and to state that the act does not authorize a wrongful death action against the mother or a health care provider acting within the applicable standard of care. The amendment drew questions about abortion, medical emergencies, and whether fathers could sue; the sponsor said the bill was not intended to create claims against mothers or lawful medical care. Public testimony was sharply divided, with supporters arguing it gives families parity and accountability, and opponents warning it could be used to target abortion care, increase malpractice pressure, and worsen physician shortages. The committee approved the bill as amended by a 6-4 vote. Finally, the committee heard a strike-all amendment to SB 1288 on parental rights. The amendment would strengthen parental consent requirements for minors’ medical care, with exceptions for emergencies, court orders, certain legal categories of minors, and other existing statutory exceptions. It also would require parental consent for treatment related to STD screening, give parents more control over school or health surveys, and address use of biofeedback devices. Supporters said the measure restores parents’ authority and protects children from inappropriate questioning or treatment, while opponents argued it could block needed care for minors in unsafe homes, reduce access to STI treatment and mental health services, and create unintended consequences. The amendment was adopted, and the committee continued hearing testimony on the bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• There are so many more jobs available in healthcare tech, and there are so many great people out there
• , where there is a big shortage of accountants that are African-American.
• Especially right now, the big project they have going is accounting, and that is preparing students on
• This allows them to get interested in accounting and get more people involved. to go into accounting
• A Career Tech High School—not that it's the only model, but it is a new model where students are enrolled

Keywords: 924, joint, all

Transcript Highlights:

• create walled gardens where big tech create walled gardens where big tech firms<00:30:09.800>
• Tech in charge of prices and Minnesota Tech in charge of prices and Minnesota consumers<01:12:28.760>
• Bookstores have the reputation of being a little old-fashioned, a little bit anti-tech.
• So, it was really important anti-tech.
• I tech industry association mentioned.

Bills: HF3794, HF3408

Keywords: surveillance, price discrimination, wage discrimination, automated decision systems, consumer protections, data privacy, biometrics, consumer protection, price setting, biometric data, retail, privacy, 1183, house

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes from March 3, 2026, and then received a presentation from the Minnesota Office of the Attorney General on the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act. Assistant Attorney General Caitlin Miko and Deputy Attorney General Jessica Whitney reviewed the law’s scope, consumer rights, business obligations, and enforcement history. They said the law took effect July 31, 2025, gives Minnesotans rights to access, delete, and opt out of sale, profiling, and targeted advertising, and is enforced by the Attorney General with penalties up to $7,500 per violation. They reported more than 200 complaints in the first six months, many warning letters, and a shift from education to active enforcement now that the initial warning-letter period has expired. Committee members asked about how the universal opt-out works, what happens when companies deny deletion or editing requests, how the office determines willful noncompliance, and whether the law could burden small businesses. The AG’s office said the opt-out can be set through privacy-protective browsers or extensions, companies must respond to consumer requests within 45 days, small businesses are exempt as defined by the SBA, and investigations look for patterns and evidence of willful conduct rather than minor technical violations. The office also said it needs additional funding to fully staff enforcement efforts and noted that it has already issued subpoenas and civil investigative demands. The committee then took up House File 3408, the Stop Grocery Surveillance Price Gouging Act. The author explained that the bill would prohibit retail grocers, physical and online, from setting individualized prices based on consumer information, would limit certain uses of facial recognition and electronic shelf labels, and would preserve narrow exceptions for discounts and loyalty programs. Public testimony followed from the Minnesota Farmers Union in support, arguing that grocery consolidation and surveillance pricing could worsen already high food costs and harm fair competition. The Minnesota Grocers Association opposed the premise that grocery stores use surveillance pricing, said shelf prices are generally uniform and set from a single storewide database, and argued electronic shelf labels are efficient and not nefarious. A technology company representative similarly said ESLs do not use personal data or facial recognition, prices are uniform, and a 2025 study found no meaningful price increases after ESL adoption. The bill was laid over for possible further discussion after the testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• running some AA dollars for backing the Nursing workforce with some colleges, universities, and career techs
• We've got 27 colleges, universities, and career techs that all received different amounts, and she's
• So we got, and these farmers are they'll they'll they stay with tech with technology.
• Across our desk and we're like, I guess we need to account for this.
• Overall, FY2027 is about accountability, using data and evaluation to ensure legislative initiatives

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're accounting<00:10:29.040> for<00:10:29.200> the<00:10:29.440> one-year<00:10
• :29.920> final accounting for the one-year final accounting for the one-year final inspections
• students going into those careers from the impact last year or not, but I do know that our career tech
• c> year or not, but I do know that our year or not, but I do know that our career<00:24:22.640> tech
• <00:25:38.960> and be able to handle the new accounting and be able to handle the new accounting

Keywords: 924, joint, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There's lots of reserves in different legislative accounts.
• And yes, some of us don't like all the accounting maneuvers that the Senate put forward.
• And we can no longer hide behind politics or accounting maneuvers.
• She's about to start the Delaware County Tech School to also study culinary science.
• The reversionary clause was never meant as a punishment; it was for accountability.

Summary: The House met in extended session with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, quorum call, and a series of journal, committee, and Senate bill reports. Members also received several referrals and Senate messages, and the Speaker signed multiple bills already prepared for the Governor. The chamber then took up a long slate of measures, largely budget-related and conference/concurrence items, with repeated roll-call votes and several brief floor remarks for and against the bills. Among the major actions, the House passed or concurred in a number of Senate bills addressing fiscal code and budget implementation, abusive towing practices, telemarketing robocalls and caller ID spoofing, prostitution penalty changes, veteran notification procedures, the cosmetology licensure compact, solar decommissioning, Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, E85 flex fuel definitions, local road transfers, civil penalties for unlicensed commercial driving schools, and trailer sales. The House also adopted House Resolution 580 designating July 18, 2026, as Piping Plover Day. Most of these measures passed overwhelmingly, many by unanimous or near-unanimous votes. The most significant debate centered on House Bill 2400, the General Appropriations budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, and House Bill 1505, the education-related budget implementation bill. Supporters described the budget as a bipartisan compromise that funds adequacy and tax equity for schools, public safety, mental health, roads and bridges, veterans, seniors, and workforce programs while avoiding broad-based tax increases. Opponents argued the budget used accounting maneuvers, deferred spending, and was structurally unbalanced. After extended debate, the House concurred in the Senate amendments to HB 2400 by a 167-35 vote and to HB 1505 by a 172-30 vote. The House also considered House Bill 2559, which included Commonwealth property conveyances and a controversial provision affecting Penn State branch campus properties. A motion to recommit the bill failed, and the House ultimately concurred in the Senate amendments by a 105-97 vote after members debated property rights, labor effects, and the future use of the campuses. The session concluded with the Senate later concurring in several House amendments, the Speaker signing the final bills, and the House adjourning until September 9, 2026, unless recalled sooner.

Transcript Highlights:

• Tech is poised to transform our lives in ways you cannot imagine, and we must be ready.
• Tech is poised to transform our lives in ways you cannot imagine, and we must be ready.
• <01:21:25.639> trainee trainees and one surgical tech trainee trainees and one surgical tech
• apprenticeships and more these accounts apprenticeships and more these accounts would<01:36:02.719
• but in addition to creating the account but in addition to creating the account which<01:47:19.800

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So, uh, light tech. Oh, light tech.
• My tech budget, technology budget in 2021 was a little over $5 million for the county.
• Every year in, in our budget hearings, I will drill my tech services director about these increases.
• And what's even further distressing, I think, to us is that that doesn't take into account things like
• So in cities throughout Rockwall County, um, city and regulatory fees account for really only about 3%

Transcript Highlights:

• Try think about it, please, and be accountable and have respect for him and for our awai people.
• and have respect for him and accountable and have respect for him and for<01:15:52.560> our<01
• and some tech and some tech amendments<01:16:54.600> on<01:16:55.120> Senate amendments
• on aahu by building one cultural center on aahu by 2040<01:17:31.920> some<01:17:32.320> tech
• M on 624 uh chair as okay um only Tech M on 624 uh chair votes<01:21:12.360> I<01:21:13.000><

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Committee on Hawaiian Affairs opened its first meeting of the 33rd Legislature with housekeeping announcements, including live streaming, a two-minute testimony limit, and notice that the committee would reconvene later if technical problems forced an early adjournment. Members introduced themselves, and the chair explained that written testimony was already on file and that public testimony would be taken measure by measure. On SB 109, which concerns the relationship between Hawaiian and English versions of state laws, the Department of the Attorney General raised concerns that broadly allowing the Hawaiian text to supersede English could create ambiguity, and recommended narrowing the bill to laws originally drafted in Hawaiian that were never later amended in English. The Judiciary supported the bill, saying it reinforces Hawaiian as an official language, while OHA and several individuals also supported it. Testimony in support emphasized the importance of honoring Hawaiian language and preventing it from being treated as secondary. The committee then heard SB 268 on burial councils and SB 269 on the OHA budget. SB 268 drew strong support from OHA-related witnesses and many members of the public, who said burial council quorum problems and delays have hindered protection of iwi kupuna; one Moka representative opposed the bill, arguing the island had not been adequately consulted and that the real issue was the state process rather than council size. SB 269 received support from OHA and public testifiers who said OHA should be strengthened and better funded to serve Native Hawaiian needs. The committee also heard SB 624 relating to Prince Jonah Kūhiō, with DHHL and OHA supporting the measure to display portraits of Prince Kūhiō in public buildings; testifiers said the bill would promote cultural pride, education, and recognition of his legacy. No votes were taken during the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• federal mandates or whatever for accountability.
• She's more of our school accounting office for that.
• Was that what accounted for that? You said rising costs.
• and next year no mills for tech. ...year a school district might need six mills for tech and next year
• no mills for tech.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee met to discuss special education funding and retention, beginning with approval of the prior meeting minutes and then hearing a presentation from North Dakota United on a statewide special education survey and retention rubric. Presenters described how the rubric and survey were developed from special educator input around four domains: paperwork and due process support, workload, student and staff safety, and paraprofessional management. They reported high levels of stress and burnout, including increased workload, difficulty taking prep and lunch time, concerns about mental health, and widespread difficulty filling special education positions. Committee members questioned the survey’s lack of a general-education comparison group, the interpretation of terms like “rarely” and “sometimes,” and whether results could be broken down further by district size, unit, or disability area. The survey results showed the weakest area was workload, with respondents reporting caseloads increasing without corresponding adjustments, little additional support or compensation when workloads rise, and few negotiated-agreement protections. Paperwork and due process also scored poorly, with many teachers saying they rarely receive dedicated time during the duty day, often work outside contract hours without compensation, and take work home on evenings and weekends. Student and staff safety scored somewhat better but still showed gaps in crisis follow-up, notification about violent behavior, protective gear, and leave options after incidents. Paraprofessional management also drew concern, especially low pay, insufficient staffing, limited administrative support, and the burden placed on teachers to supervise and train paras. Several teachers then testified directly about the practical impact of these issues. One special education teacher described the job as combining instruction, legal compliance, and paraprofessional supervision, often requiring work beyond contracted hours and contributing to burnout and turnover. Another testified that special education case managers are effectively doing three full-time jobs and that the paperwork and caseload demands are a major reason people avoid or leave the field. Committee members discussed whether the problems are primarily local or state-level, whether more funding would solve them, and whether changes to the funding formula or weighting for high-cost students might be needed. No formal vote or action was taken beyond a recess and return to order for the next presentation, which continued the discussion of possible special education study objectives and potential policy directions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Accountable to the voters to be responsible for the start of this disaster.
• Yeah, and talking to them this morning, I talked to Tech.
• This is a project I think that Texas Tech is working on.
• Senate 8, relating to public school accountability and transparency.
• accountability plans into an account in their unique indicators of student achievement.

Bills: SB8, SB4, SB43, SB1, SB2, SB13, SB6, SB10, SB16, SB14, SB3, SB8, SB4, SB43, SB1, SB2, SB13, SB6, SB10, SB16, SB14, SB3

Keywords: education, accountability, public school assessment, state law, transparency, intervention, performance ratings, Texas congressional redistricting, U.S. House districts, congressional map, redistricting, gerrymandering, 2020 Census, census tracts, block groups, voting districts, election law, Texas House of Representatives districts, federal congressional districts, 2026 elections

Transcript Highlights:

• We are asking for accountability from our school systems to improve student achievement.
• Their accountability model accounts for more. Students than we do.
• They will be accountable.
• That was supposed to be a vo-tech school, and the other one was a voc-tech school.
• I will add that I have had some conversations with Assessment and Accountability.

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill promotes accountability.
• to bank account.
• Think of it more like a bank account.
• I want to send money from my bank account to this bank account, and that bank account happens to be a
• Um, we offer a free savings account.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, if the traditional sources of funding, which account for 62% of what you're using to build Texas,
• We account for the mileage that exists in those districts. conditions.
• I represent an area that doesn't have any roads, at least not many tech stock roads.
• more and more. more of that now, is that the new planning funds that go to those districts. go to account
• There is qualifications met, certainly I know for sure that with techs not, I don't know about... every

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• One thing I would like to mention is that over the last couple of years, TOPS Tech has been underutilized
• That's one of the reasons we've seen that TOPS Tech has been historically underutilized.
• Chairman, there were nearly 500 students that initially were awarded TOPS Tech, but as a result of them
• So TOPS Tech is restricted to specific programs, and so only those programs would be eligible.
• The average $361 more per case at an ASC at that time of service, but again, that doesn't account for

Summary: The Finance Committee met on May 27, 2026, with six members present and took up a series of House bills, most of them dealing with education funding, criminal justice staffing, transportation, health care access, and economic development. HB 325 was reported favorably after testimony that it would expand TOPS eligibility by allowing dual-enrollment credits to satisfy eligibility criteria and by making part-time students eligible for TOPS Tech, with supporters saying the program has been underused and the change would help working students. HB 719 was amended and reported favorably to increase assistant district attorney positions in various judicial districts; the Louisiana District Attorneys Association said the changes were based on workload data and local input, and members discussed the need to coordinate any expansion with public defender funding. The committee also reported HB 749 favorably, which would move Louisiana’s 529 savings accounts to a more secure online platform after a cyber incident, and HB 1028 favorably, which concerns transportation reimbursement for providers and was described as already subject to appropriation. Several bills focused on food access and local economic development. HB 1222, the Grocery Initiative Act, was reported favorably to let LED use existing grant resources to map food deserts and develop a program, with members noting it could return for funding later if needed. HB 1194 was amended and reported favorably to define food deserts and direct the LSU AgCenter and the Department of Agriculture and Forestry to identify and map them, with authors emphasizing it was a study and not a government-run grocery program. HB 755, which would create IDIQ contracting for architects and engineers on smaller state projects, was reported favorably with no fiscal impact. HB 823, a local diversion pilot for Orleans Parish, was also reported favorably after the fiscal note was revised to remove state impact and reflect only local costs. The committee spent substantial time on HB 488, a proposal from Plaquemines Parish to use severance-tax revenue to help buy out a private toll concession on the parish’s bridge. The author and local officials described severe toll burdens, economic harm to local businesses, and what they called an unfair contract, but members noted the bill was not funded and ultimately deferred it without a motion. HB 797, the Bayou Gold/Louisiana Sound Money Act, was amended to make implementation subject to appropriation and then reported favorably. The committee also took up HB 198, which would raise Medicaid reimbursement for ambulatory surgery centers for certain outpatient procedures; after extensive discussion about fiscal notes, access to care, and potential long-term savings, the bill was amended to narrow its scope and make implementation subject to appropriation, then reported favorably as amended. The meeting ended with the chair noting it would be the committee’s last meeting and asking members to spread the word.