Transcript Highlights:

• Amendment barcode 233-904 by Senator Graal: delete lines 67 through 78.
• So just for clarification, those utility provisions like electronically detectable utilities, the utility
• owner damages for failure or refusal to timely relocate those utilities.
• And the payment for who would relocate the utilities and things like that.
• Delete lines 41 through 43 and insert amendment.

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and several introductions and moments of silence, including tributes to those affected by the Florida State University shooting and recognition of Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, John Thrasher, student advocacy groups, conservation organizations, and visiting school groups. Members also adopted Senate Resolution 1878 honoring Coach Abdur-Rahim. The chamber then moved into special order business and considered a series of bills, many of them with House companions substituted in and passed by wide margins or unanimously. Among the measures passed were bills updating child care and early learning provider regulation, imposing costs on false swatting reports, extending protections against extraordinary hospital collection actions, expanding hazardous walking conditions for schoolchildren, creating young adult housing support for foster and homeless students, clarifying school choice disclosure requirements under the Family Empowerment Scholarship Program, adjusting interest rules for trust accounts supporting legal aid, revising transportation and traffic enforcement provisions, expanding public records exemptions for certain judicial and health care investigators and appellate clerks, changing municipal water and sewer utility rates in Miami-Dade, strengthening motor vehicle offenses involving impersonation and obscured plates, increasing trespass penalties at certain law-enforcement-controlled sites and large ticketed events, requiring refunds of patient overpayments, authorizing certain stem cell therapies, allowing relatives and direct support professionals to administer insulin in group homes, addressing rideshare impersonation and transit funding rules, and updating the Uniform Commercial Code for digital assets and emerging technologies. Several bills drew notable debate. The trust fund interest bill prompted extended discussion over legal aid funding, bank participation, and whether the measure would reduce support for legal services; it ultimately passed 28-10. The transportation bill was heavily amended, including removal of speed-limit increases and changes to school bus camera enforcement and micromobility rules, and passed 37-0. The Miami-Dade water and sewer rate bill sparked debate over fairness, fiscal impact, and accusations of racism, but passed 36-2. Public records bills protecting agency investigators and JQC employees also drew questions about accountability and transparency before passing. Most other measures passed with little or no opposition, and a few bills were temporarily postponed or set aside.

Transcript Highlights:

• Before an electric utility is granted a non-exclusive easement under this section, the electric utility
• So on after line 20, I coming about.
• <00:06:39.360> shall section, the electric utility shall section, the electric utility shall
• <00:07:10.160> shall this section, the electric utility shall this section, the electric utility
• That's the intent of the amendment. lines 2 through 4. Is that correct, lines 2 through 4.

Bills: HB0116, HB0056

Keywords: water rights, beneficial use, industrial production, hydrogen, applications, public welfare, carbon capture, energy standards, public utilities, environmental regulation, state law, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The types of projects may include municipal utility infrastructure, water and sewer lines, fiber optic
• There are simply not enough water utility operators, wastewater utility operators in the field to do
• It's hard to get utilities like upgraded electrical Three-phase natural gas, water, and other utilities
• And then the top line and the bottom line are the lowest.
• That smooth line is the normal, and the green line is the actual.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is going to be a fun line of questions. I've got a really good excuse.
• By the time it comes to me, it should be right in line with what you passed and what Senator Alvarado
• I would say the friction or the fault lines between urban, suburban, moving toward rural and suburban
• Do you see any opportunity, perhaps a silver lining?
• So that's when a utility comes before the Public Utility Commission and says we would like to raise the

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The utility sets the fee and they have a responsibility to make sure that every utility has a fee set
• That's the utility has a fee set.
• referenced in the first line of EN 1000. referenced in the first line of EN 1000.
• we're saying here is that if the utility we're saying here is that if the utility changes<00:45:
• sets a standard by which the utilities sets a standard by which the utilities must<00:54:10.520>

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The meeting began with quorum and seating issues, including the temporary appointment of Representative Shaw to fill in for a House member, followed by approval of the previous minutes and the consent calendar. Two items were then postponed to next month: Mechanical Licensing Board item 25-241 and Board of Veterinarian item 25-223. The committee then took up Department of Energy rulemaking on distributed energy resources interconnection procedures, including items 25-220 and related sections on fees, additional controls, and equipment. The Department explained revised language to address concerns that the original draft improperly suggested agency or PUC approval of utility fees; under the amended language, utilities would set fees designed to recover costs, with complaints handled through existing complaint procedures. Committee members and the Department discussed the statutory basis for that approach, including cost responsibility versus fee-setting authority. Public testimony was mixed. A small solar developer argued the rules still exceed statutory authority, impose unfair costs on customer generators, and allow utilities to shift transmission-related study costs onto interconnecting customers. Clean energy advocates supported the Department’s revised language but asked for clearer limits on charging customers for later-added controls, arguing costs should be tied directly to the customer’s interconnection and not to later utility-driven changes. Eversource supported the revised fee language, said most prior concerns were resolved, and recommended conditional approval, while also suggesting a minor wording change in the “Additional Equipment” section to clarify that only operational performance is covered.

Transcript Highlights:

• Line nine also has an update on FY 26 for the SB 9 distribution.
• And then I'd also like to know, as you'll notice on line one in FY 27 and line 38 for the uncommitted
• Uh, we do utilize the gymnasium.
• These gyms are utilized pretty much all day, all day for PE curriculum.
• Along those lines. I, I, um Wing to ask, how are the.

Transcript Highlights:

• In order to get the revenue, they can assess on utility, but that also raises utility fees, so we're
• raising utility fees because...
• raise utility fees.
• , water lines.
• The top-line number.

Bills: HB4138, HB4139, HB4140, HB4141, HB4142, HB4143, HB4144, HB4145, HB4146, HB4147, HB4148, HB4149, HB4150, HB4151, HB4152, HB4153, SB1831, SB1832, SB1833, SB1834, SB1835, SB1836, SB1837, SB1838, SB1839, SB1840, SB1841, SB1842, SB1843, SB1844, SB1845, SB1846

Keywords: appropriations, education funding, health care, general fund, state budget, local funding, gaming, pari-mutuel, horse racing, regulatory assessment, first-time starters, budget implementation, federal funds, government services, budget stabilization, financial reporting, capital outlay, infrastructure, veterans services, highway construction

Summary: The committee met in a special joint appropriations session to review the FY 2027 budget package, including House Bill 4138 and Senate Bill 1831, the general appropriations or “feed” bills. Staff described the budget as including a one-time transfer of state funds, a 5% lump-sum reduction to most agencies’ discretionary general-fund budgets, continued funding for the state health insurance plan and school facilities, and various one-time restorations or reversions of prior appropriations. Members spent much of the meeting clarifying how the 5% reductions would work, noting that formula and mandatory funding such as K-12 basic aid are excluded, while the governor’s executive branch would decide how to implement the cuts within agencies. The chair repeatedly emphasized that the committee was not specifying line-item cuts and that agencies would have discretion over implementation. A large portion of the discussion focused on the practical effects of the budget on universities, public safety, health care, rural programs, and fund sweeps. Arizona Board of Regents and university representatives said the proposed reductions would amount to more than $85 million statewide and could affect programs such as the Arizona Promise Program, Teachers Academy, and tuition freezes, though no specific program cuts were written into the bill. Other testimony raised concerns about fund sweeps from encumbered balances, including university research funds, housing trust funds, utility regulation funds, and ADOT-related accounts, with some members warning about possible impacts on rural infrastructure and federal matching dollars. The committee also discussed the state employee health plan, including a $228 million general-fund infusion and proposed employee premium increases over three years, as well as questions about corrections, forestry and fire management, and rural critical access hospitals. Public testimony was largely opposed to the budget. Speakers from Opportunity Arizona, the Arizona Board of Regents, health care, and local government argued that the package would reduce support for education, housing, SNAP, health care access, and rural communities while preserving tax benefits for data centers and wealthy taxpayers. A mayor from Globe described severe flood damage and asked for state help for a flood relief fund, while a motorcycle safety advocate questioned a proposed transfer from the motorcycle safety fund. Committee members debated whether the budget’s effects should be described as speculative or as likely consequences of the broad cuts, and several exchanges became contentious over comparisons to the Great Recession and references to federal tax policy. The meeting ended with continued public testimony and no final vote taken in the portion provided, though leadership had earlier said the committee planned a mass roll-call vote on all the bills at the end.

Transcript Highlights:

• Six lines, and those lines remain in our bill. Other questions? Is there debate? Leader Soroy.
• I'm looking at lines 318 and 322.
• Remove lines 5 through 3,033.
• Line 1524. That's on page 63. Representative Gant: Line 1524. That's on page 63.
• first responders need to utilize. are not jamming up necessary lines that first responders need to utilize

Summary: The House took up a series of Senate messages and concurred in several amendments before passing multiple bills. Early actions included unanimous passage of CS/CS/HB 1299 on Department of Health matters, CS/HB 1549 on financial institutions after removing a Senate-added trust-account provision, and CS/CS/SB 768 on foreign ties in business ownership after trimming registration requirements. The chamber also insisted on its housing amendment to CS/CS/CS/SB 184 after the Senate refused to concur. A major portion of the meeting focused on CS/CS/HB 875 on educator preparation. The House adopted an amendment restoring two teacher-prep courses, preserving the Florida Center for Teaching Excellence at Miami-Dade College in partnership with USF, and modifying the teacher candidate testing framework and mentor qualifications. Supporters said it reduced barriers while keeping standards; opponents raised concerns about the remaining “identity politics” language and other provisions. The bill then passed 91-22. The House also passed HB 1101 on out-of-network providers after adopting a House amendment that kept the original bill’s notice and referral provisions with a good-cause exemption, despite objections that it placed too much responsibility on doctors. Later, the chamber approved CS/CS/SB 180 on emergency preparedness and response, with members highlighting debris management, emergency planning, crane safety, and hurricane recovery provisions; it passed unanimously. The House then rejected concurrence in a Senate amendment to HB 1609 on waste incineration, and later spent substantial time debating CS/CS/HB 1115 on education, especially Schools of Hope, expanded co-location authority, funding, transportation, and school-district agreement terms. Critics argued the language was added late and could disadvantage traditional public schools, while supporters said it would expand options for students; the debate continued with the bill still under consideration at the end of the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we'll go from line... Exactly. Yeah. We'll go through line by line. Can you just clarify, Mr.
• We'll go through line by line. Can you just clarify, Mr. Chair?
• So page four, line 14. Representative, so page 4, line 14, DFA.
• here in line 16.
• Okay, yeah, so I’m going to go to line 40, line item 49, to— Okay, yeah, so I’m going to go to line item

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The Committee on Utilities will now come to order. Madam Clerk, please hold the roll.
• The Committee on Utilities. The Committee on Utilities will come back into session, and Mr.
• And then we also have utility partners, both in public and private.
• And then we also have utility partners, both in public and private.
• So with that, the Committee on Utilities is adjourned.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• and and when I say the utilities and and when I say the utilities<01:29:16.280> I<01:29:16.360
• Shannon's concern about the retroactivity, instead of on the last line, if you look at the bill, line
• Shannon's concern about the retroactivity, instead of on the last line, if you look at the bill, line
• Shannon's concern about the retroactivity, instead of on the last line, if you look at the bill, line
• what I call a power generation utility what I call a power generation utility to<01:39:22.920>

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• line, where we have some zip codes where 90% of homes are uninsured.
• If utilities currently pay a billion dollars in fees, you know, it's, you know, it's— If utilities currently
• However, if we have utility companies that pay those fees ahead of time, we would not utilize this GR
• So I started to ask a question that wasn't at the appropriate line.
• I went to get some coffee and I totally missed the line.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Almost as far as Steve Lanier, but I'm closer to the Arizona line, and he's closer to the Colorado line
• utilizing those services?
• That's the dotted green trend line.
• You can look at the dollar figures on line 7 of the table, and you can see if you added up those lines
• The public school line is for below-the-line appropriations and PED's operating budget.

Transcript Highlights:

• they're utilizing that mobile ID. they're utilizing that mobile ID. on<00:15:49.360> that
• But if they're going to have the tool, utilize it, but utilize it as instructed. But thank you, Mr.
• But if they're going to have the tool, utilize it, but utilize it as instructed. But thank you, Mr.
• But if they're going to have the tool, utilize it, but utilize it as instructed. But thank you, Mr.
• question kind of along the same lines. I question kind of along the same lines.

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 28 January, 2026; 9:00 A.M., 925, all

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 21104, a Gaming Commission criminal penalties bill presented by Commissioner Jay McDaniel. He said the measure is essentially the same as a bill passed by the Senate last year and would keep penalties low for people merely playing gaming, but make it a felony for operators of illegal online gaming platforms, with a $100,000 fine per conviction and forfeiture authority for funds tied to the crime. The committee substitute was described as clarifying that the penalties target the operator rather than the platform being used. After no questions, the committee moved and adopted the bill. The committee then heard three Department of Public Safety bills from Commissioner Tindle. Senate Bill 2232 would raise seat belt fines from $25 to $100 and direct the additional revenue into existing driver education-related funds, with the stated goal of supporting driver education programs and improving teen road safety. Members asked about the revenue impact and whether the money would be appropriated back to the department and schools; Tindle said the funds would still be subject to legislative appropriation. The bill was moved and adopted, though some members raised concerns about redirecting local fine revenue. Senate Bill 2314 was described as a cleanup bill for driver’s license statutes, updating outdated references, removing obsolete paperwork requirements, allowing first-class mail and optional digital notice through mobile ID, and reflecting the department’s move from Jackson to Pearl. Members questioned whether first-class mail could shorten response time for suspension notices and how mobile ID notices would work; Tindle said the change was intended to save money and allow electronic notice if users opt in. The committee also adopted this bill. Senate Bill 2817 would reorganize DPS by consolidating several divisions into a new Mississippi State Bureau of Investigations, combine equipment and software purchases, raise autopsy fees from $1,000 to $1,200, increase salvage title inspection fees from $75 to $125, and open a broader discussion about the Highway Patrol’s future role. It was also moved and adopted. The committee then heard Senate Bill 2230 from Senator Hill, which would extend electronic warrants to misdemeanors; members discussed efficiency, warrant databases, and Fourth Amendment concerns, but no final action on that bill was shown in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's about the person at the end of the line. I'm at the end of the line.
• So all of this is about the end of the line.
• So all of this is about the end of the line.
• So when you're driving down the road and you see the fence line or the line of the cropland, it may be
• to establish separate utility rates or service classifications and protect existing utility customers

Summary: The committee met at the Coteau Freedom Mine in Mercer County, approved the June 2 minutes, and heard an overview of the mine from Coteau Properties president Andrew Hawbaker. He described the Freedom Mine as the largest lignite mine in the United States, supplying coal to Dakota Gasification, Antelope Valley Station, and Leland Olds Station. He emphasized the mine’s scale, safety record, reclamation work, workforce needs, community involvement, and economic impact, including payroll, taxes, royalties, scholarships, and local hiring. Members asked about how long land stays in production, how quickly it returns to agriculture after reclamation, labor shortages, and how mining affects groundwater and water wells. Hawbaker said most tracts are mined for about three to five years, reclamation is coordinated with landowners, and the company continues to struggle to find electricians, welders, mechanics, operators, and engineers. The committee then heard from Public Service Commission Chairman Randy Christman on coal mining reclamation and permitting. He reviewed North Dakota’s coal mining history, the state’s reclamation laws, federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act primacy, bonding, permit renewals and revisions, prohibited mining areas, inspection and enforcement, and contemporaneous reclamation requirements. Christman stressed that North Dakota’s program is professional and thorough, with frequent inspections, financial assurance, and a 10-year revegetation monitoring period before bond release. He also discussed federal coal ownership issues that can delay mine plans, the treatment of prime farmland, and how reclamation differs for wind and pipelines. In response to questions, he said one challenge is sometimes releasing land too soon before long-term compaction issues are fully understood, and he noted that data centers do not currently have a comparable reclamation model because they typically own the land. In the afternoon, the committee received an update from Lignite Energy Council president Jonathan Fortner on the lignite industry. He said North Dakota’s lignite sector supports five commercial power plants, four mines, about 12,000 direct and indirect jobs, and more than $5.5 billion in economic activity, while helping keep the state’s electricity rates among the lowest in the nation. Fortner reviewed coal severance and conversion tax revenues, the lignite research fund, federal regulatory rollbacks, carbon capture policy, and the industry’s legal costs fighting federal rules. He also highlighted a study on large-load development, saying new data centers and critical mineral processing facilities could create major local tax revenue and help justify new baseload generation. Members asked whether new gas pipelines would crowd out coal plant development and whether the economic study included jobs and broader local impacts; Fortner said the industry sees room for both and that the study did include construction, operations, jobs, and tax effects.

Transcript Highlights:

• We think that the bill is generally in line with federal law on this subject, except that the Federal
• I live in the Johnson Utilities area, which is now served by EPCOR, I think it's Johnson Utilities versus
• We were reviewing the Johnson Utilities case, and then also there was another case called, I think it's
• called Miller, which came up before Johnson Utilities.
• by up core I think it's Johnson Utilities versus ACC is that something that came up in your research

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The Rules Committee met to consider several bills for constitutional and proper-form review. House Bill 2171, which would bar certain hostile governments and associated persons from owning or possessing Arizona real property and create enforcement penalties, was found to raise possible conflict with federal foreign-relations law, but was still recommended as constitutional and in proper form by a 5-2 vote. House Bill 2446, dealing with English proficiency requirements for commercial truckers and out-of-service orders, was also recommended 5-2, with staff noting a needed floor amendment to carve out the federal border commercial zone to avoid Supremacy Clause concerns. House Bill 2331, which would require electric utilities to obtain 85% of electricity from “reliable” sources by 2030 and assign enforcement to the Corporation Commission, drew concerns about the Commission’s exclusive constitutional authority over utility regulation and rate-making, but was likewise recommended 5-2. The committee then considered House Bill 2589, which would make it a felony to allow minors to attend or view drag shows. Staff said the bill raised First Amendment and parental-rights concerns and could face strict scrutiny, and recommended an amendment to narrow it; the sponsor’s office was reportedly working on changes. Despite objections from members who called it overly broad and unconstitutional, the bill was recommended 5-2. House Bill 2592, concerning state agency use of artificial intelligence and legislative ratification of temporary rules, was flagged for legislative entrenchment issues because it attempted to bind future legislatures and set a simple-majority ratification requirement, but it too was recommended in proper form with a suggested amendment to remove the problematic mechanism. At the end of the meeting, the committee took up a large mass motion covering many additional bills, memorials, resolutions, and one concurrent memorial, all of which staff said were constitutional and in proper form. During that discussion, staff specifically noted House Bill 2976, relating to justice court administration, as needing amendment to avoid tension with the Arizona Supreme Court’s constitutional authority over court administration. The mass motion passed 7-0 with one member absent, and the meeting adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• I've got multiple utility companies that come across.
• I utility companies that come across.
• But I that don't appreciate utilities.
• impacted by a utility contractor. impacted by a utility contractor.
• It's not just talk about power lines.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee discussed House Bill 353, a proposal to tighten eminent-domain procedures and property protections while still allowing public projects. Supporters said the bill would not prohibit condemnation, but would require proof that property is in blight, give owners notice and an opportunity to cure, require a reasonable plan and funding for the public use, and ensure the taking is limited to what is necessary. They argued this would protect good-faith property owners, prevent abandoned projects, and make the process more efficient for utilities and infrastructure by encouraging easements where possible instead of full takings. Much of the discussion focused on the proper measure of compensation and the broader constitutional limits on eminent domain. Several members argued that compensation should reflect current market value and that public benefit should not be treated as the standard for value. Others said market value can be unfair in cases involving unique property uses, damage to land, or public-private projects, and suggested owners should share in some upside. Members also raised concerns about Kelo v. City of New London, the risk of abuse by governments or large corporations, and the need to protect farmers and rural landowners from one-sided treatment. A number of legislators supported the concept but asked for more detail on how the bill would work in practice, whether it is based on model legislation from other states, and how it could be tailored to Kentucky. The bill sponsor said it was a modified model policy and was open to amendments to make it more Kentucky-specific. No vote or final action was taken in the portion of the meeting provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• That was the grant um to build new lines That was the grant um to build new lines between<00:05:
• So the co-ops and municipal utilities.
• the energy assistance program in line the energy assistance program in line with<00:18:50.480>
• set the table uh a little more in line set the table uh a little more in line with<01:07:38.160>
• utility shut offs are at record levels. utility shut offs are at record levels.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• To ensure that utilities are following them?
• Okay, and if the utility fails to execute their plan, What does PUC do about it?
• Whatever the given utility wants it to be.
• And the solid line is actually the historic summer peak.
• That's the Public Utility Commission keeps that list.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• A leaking sewer line suspended over Santa Rita Creek.
• Dollars for Roswell to repair these damaged sewer lines.
• From a technical perspective, They're top of the line.
• As a state, we own all these transmission lines and grids.
• And that is then a utility question. The utilities would own and manage the batteries.