Transcript Highlights:

• It states that the Veterans Services Department's analysis would allow the department to contract for
• It will supplement that, and the need for two-term employees and contracting requirements.
• Under the existing requirements, we would need both full-time employees: one as a contract manager at
• We currently do have a licensed social worker on our staff under our health care coordination so that
• For us to undertake having a social worker to start providing services and managing a... ...of having

Keywords: 996, all

Summary: The House Labor, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee met with a quorum and heard two bills from Representative Martinez. House Bill 56 would appropriate $1 million to the Department of Veterans Services to expand behavioral health and suicide prevention efforts for veterans. Supporters, including the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, the Department of Veterans Services, the Disability Coalition, New Mexico Professional Firefighters, the New Mexico Veterans and Military Families Caucus, and NAMI New Mexico, said the funding would help veterans navigate a difficult system, improve outreach in rural areas, and address New Mexico’s high veteran suicide rate and related alcohol and drug deaths. Committee members asked about whether the program was new or an expansion of an existing effort, how services would be delivered, and whether outreach would reach homeless and rural veterans. The secretary explained that the bill would augment an existing Suicide Prevention Act program, use contracts with outside providers rather than direct services, and require two term employees for contract management and outreach. The committee voted 7-1 to give HB 56 a due pass and send it to the next committee. The committee then heard House Bill 55, which would create an income tax deduction for retirement income earned by first responders, similar to an existing benefit for military retirees. Supporters argued it would help recruit and retain firefighters, law enforcement, and other first responders, and could encourage retirees to move to New Mexico and contribute economically. Several members raised concerns about the fiscal impact, the lack of a sunset, the narrow definition of first responder, and Taxation and Revenue Department concerns that the bill could reduce general fund revenue by about $6.1 million in the first year and might not attract retirees on its own. The sponsor said he had not yet met with Tax and Rev but would do so, and noted he was open to a sunset if it helped the bill move forward. Despite concerns, the committee voted 7-1 to pass HB 55 to the next committee, with members explaining their votes and emphasizing that the bill would receive further vetting in Tax and Revenue.

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:01:57.880> compensation 175a created the workers compensation 175a created the workers
• <00:04:19.600> compensation workers compensation workers compensation fund<00:04:22.079> there
• people of Minnesota the Injured Workers people of Minnesota the Injured Workers Minnesota<00:13:
• lawyers um I'm teaching workers young lawyers um I'm teaching workers comp<00:15:17.519> now<
• comp so all of a sudden you do workers comp so all of a sudden you do workers comp<00:15:58.480>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Labor Committee received an overview from Chief Judge Patricia Millan of the Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals (WCCA). She explained the court’s history, created in 1981, its role as the appellate body for workers’ compensation disputes after Department of Labor and Industry and Office of Administrative Hearings proceedings, and its original jurisdiction over petitions to vacate settlement agreements. She also noted the court is composed of five judges, is funded entirely by the workers’ compensation fund, and operates with five staff attorneys and two full-time employees. The committee then heard introductory remarks from the judges present for confirmation: Deb Sunquist, Katherine Carlson, Shan Quinn, and Thomas Christensen, with a procedural note that Quinn’s reappointment had not yet been formally referred to the committee, so his motion would be held until paperwork arrived. The judges emphasized their collaborative, panel-based work, their experience representing both injured workers and employers, and their commitment to the workers’ compensation system. Quinn also described efforts to teach workers’ compensation at the University of Minnesota and encourage younger lawyers to enter the field. Members asked about the court’s caseload and about delays in workers’ compensation claims. In response, the judges said the WCCA’s caseload has generally declined and fluctuates, and they offered to provide case-count data. In a more detailed exchange, a senator described a family member’s long-delayed claim; judges explained that repetitive-trauma or “Gillette” injuries often require substantial medical proof and can be difficult for insurers to accept, but that the system is intended to be no-fault and typically takes about a year to a year and a half from filing to resolution. No votes were taken during the portion of the meeting reflected here.

Transcript Highlights:

• AB 692 prohibited employment contracts that require workers to pay their employers a debt if they leave
• their job, regardless of whether that worker was fired, laid off, or quit.
• debt employment contracts would therefore not apply until January 1, 2027.
• This bill strengthens the Inspector General's office by giving it position classifications and contract
• We're simply ensuring that every workplace training covers the full scope of what workers are actually

Summary: The Assembly Appropriations Committee met on April 22, 2026, with a quorum present and first took up a large consent calendar. It moved a set of bills to the Assembly Floor consent calendar by unanimous vote, including AB 1773, 1785, 1828, 1873, 1918, 2001, 2085, 2173, 2412, 2536, 2644, and 2781, and separately approved another group of unanimous bills not eligible for floor consent, including AB 1544, 1555, 1614, 1621, 1637, 1704, 1816, 1933, 2529, 2559, 2663, and 2731. The committee then heard several individual bills, with each author describing the measure and witnesses generally testifying in support; no organized opposition was recorded on the bills discussed. Among the measures heard, AB 2393 would create fixed statutory damages for certain false imprisonment and arrest claims, while exempting peace officers, custodial officers, and public entities. AB 1697 would delay implementation of a recently enacted prohibition on employment contracts that require workers to repay employer debts if they leave a job, and AB 2534 would extend Domestic Violence Prevention Act restraining order protections to attempted forced marriages and survivors of forced marriages. AB 1608 would strengthen the High-Speed Rail Inspector General’s office by adding staffing and contracting authority, requiring public reports, and allowing limited temporary confidentiality for sensitive information; the bill drew questions from members about transparency and whether information could be withheld, but the author and Inspector General said the measure would increase accountability and only allow narrow, time-limited confidentiality. The committee also approved AB 1916, which would allow American Sign Language interpreters to participate in the same collective bargaining process as other certified court interpreters, and AB 1803, which would require anti-hate speech training as part of workplace harassment prevention training for employers with five or more employees. AB 1821 would change Public Records Act response timelines from calendar days to business days, with local government sponsors arguing it would better reflect actual processing time for broad and complex requests without reducing access. AB 1919 would establish election procedures to let voters decide the future of Santa Cruz Metro service funding after a one-time grant expires. Each of these bills was moved forward on due pass votes, with some members not voting on certain measures. The committee then approved a long suspense file, and the remaining suspense bills were deemed approved without further discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• Slide three on your contracting.
• Are you contracting with all those New Mexico companies, or are some of those contracts out of state?
• The more you spend on a contract... contract, the greater your odds of failure.
• , out-of-state workers?
• states are being successful in that, i.e., remote workers, out-of-state workers.

Transcript Highlights:

• c><00:13:12.639> some<00:13:12.800> paths contract issues which have some paths contract
• They were going to be contract workers, so they weren't people within the system necessarily, but they
• workers.
• So, they weren't be contract workers.
• So that's really really contracts.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes and then approved an agency amendment to a health and family services regulation. The amendment reversed a prior change so that neonatal ICU beds would remain subject to regular review rather than nonsubstantive review. The remaining administrative regulations were then reviewed without objection. The main presentation was from State Auditor Allison Ball on a report finding $836 million in concurrent Medicaid capitation payments from 2019 through 2022, involving individuals enrolled in Kentucky and at least one other state. Ball said Kentucky relied on the PARIS system, which has limitations because it is updated quarterly and depends on voluntary state participation, while a better federal data source, T-MSIS, was not fully available to the state. She said the audit found weak internal controls, siloed processes, outdated guidance, and a low-priority attitude toward residency checks, all of which contributed to missed alerts and improper payments. She also said the report identified additional problems, including payments made after beneficiaries died and cases involving multiple states paying for the same person. Ball recommended better access to federal data, stronger MCO contract provisions, and more active oversight by the Department for Medicaid Services and managed care organizations. She said the contracts reviewed did not provide a clear way to recoup the improper payments, though she and her counsel suggested possible equitable legal theories might be explored. Members expressed concern about the scale of the waste and the lack of contract enforcement, and asked whether any money could be recovered. Ball said the audit did not identify a clear contractual path to recoup the funds.

Transcript Highlights:

• It can look like a business illegally trying to avoid workers compensation insurance premiums.
• illegally trying to avoid paying workers illegally trying to avoid paying workers compensation<00
• Here today, there's 27 full-time staff and one student worker.
• We contract with a program that focuses on employee wellness and health.
• <00:24:24.679> with you saw in here that we contract with you saw in here that we contract

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The cafeteria people and other kinds of workers there that are also suffering from the heat.
• The rest is in the bid process or hasn't been awarded yet in a contract, but those contracts will be
• It cost these two healthcare workers their lives.
• We want to give them the tools to protect their workers and patients.
• This includes police, patient safety officers, risk managers, and mental health workers.

Bills: HB1826, HB2854, HB3006, HB4614, HB5261, HB5639

Keywords: mental health, women's health, county jail, depression screening, criminal justice, HB 2854, Pokuaa-Flowers Act, parole, mandatory supervision, electronic monitoring, releasee, parole officer, hospital visit approval, general hospital, law enforcement notification, DSHS, Department of State Health Services, corrections, public safety, liability immunity

Transcript Highlights:

• And also, as far as community health workers as well.
• Madam Chair and Representative, it actually leaves open the possibility to contract.
• It actually leaves open the possibility to contract.
• I mean, on your first page, lines 19 through 21, it says that you would contract with, sorry, contract
• It also sends a clear message on behalf of the state of New Mexico: we value health care workers.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• What are... ...workers doing when they go to work?
• And we cannot look silently as we see our workers asked to do more and more.
• a year ago after being out of contract for a historic four years.
• I urge you to maintain your support of state workers and our contracts. Thank you. Thank you.
• Christopher Sanchez, on behalf of the Garment Workers Center of Los Angeles.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• mention the risk to our contracted mention the risk to our contracted employees<00:16:04.680>
• The Producers to come into a contract The Producers to come into a contract with<01:02:00.240>
• <01:02:16.799> it's any say in that in that contract it's any say in that in that contract
• mpca and once they're in that contract mpca and once they're in that contract the<01:03:09.599><
• pro reaching out and having contracts pro reaching out and having contracts with<01:13:54.320>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Workers will suffer too, as the technology can be used to cut hours for workers and eventually eliminate
• Commercial Workers Local 663. So you Commercial Workers Local 663.
• threat that is facing Minnesota workers threat that is facing Minnesota workers and<00:15:26.959
• Um there list, it's about 150 workers.
• I negotiate contracts. I'm union. I negotiate contracts.

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The meeting focused on proposed Minnesota legislation to ban surveillance pricing and restrict AI-powered electronic shelf labels in grocery stores. Speakers from UFCW 1189 and UFCW Local 663, along with Rep. Samantha Sencer-Mura and Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, argued that these technologies could enable real-time price increases based on consumer data, undermine budgeting and privacy, and worsen affordability for families. They also said the technology could reduce hours or eliminate jobs for grocery workers who currently handle pricing and store knowledge, with UFCW Local 663 estimating about 500 affected jobs among its members alone. Testimony emphasized examples such as baby formula, diapers, bananas, and milk to illustrate how fluctuating prices could hurt families, seniors on fixed incomes, and people in food deserts. Speakers also argued that grocery workers provide essential customer service and that automation should be introduced responsibly, not at the expense of workers or consumers. Murphy and Sencer-Mura framed the bill as a response to corporate greed and big tech surveillance, saying Minnesota should act proactively before the practices become widespread. During questions, lawmakers and advocates discussed whether the issue was proactive or reactive, whether disclosure requirements like those used in New York would be sufficient, and how surveillance pricing differs from loyalty programs or coupons. Speakers said disclosure alone would not prevent tracking or price manipulation and that the goal was to stop the practice altogether. The transcript ended with the advocates saying they would continue meeting with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle; no vote or final committee action was recorded in the excerpt, though one question referenced a related bill stalling in committee earlier that morning.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, National Association of Community Health Workers on Zoom.
• <00:15:19.360> in health workers are essential in health workers are essential in connecting<00
• members be community health workers. members be community health workers.
• Havaii Community Health Worker Havaii Community Health Worker Association<00:32:14.480> supports
• include the Havi Community Health Worker include the Havi Community Health Worker Association<00

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The Committee on Health met on April 11, 2025, and heard testimony on a series of Senate concurrent and Senate resolution measures focused on health system oversight, workforce standards, and access to care. Topics included an auditor study on mandated insurance coverage for intravenous ketamine therapy for depression (SCR 8 SD1), a working group on prior authorization reform (STR 10 SD2), a task force on minimum professional standards for community health worker training (STR 16 SD1), a pharmacy benefit manager reform working group (SCR 69 SD1), a pharmacy reimbursement working group (STR 70 SD1), an aeromedical services working group (STR 86 SD1), a catchment-water feasibility study for business use (STR 118 SD1), an auditor study on mandatory coverage for continuous glucose monitors (STR 120 SD1), and a resolution encouraging reduced use of disposable surgical equipment and more sustainable health care practices (STR 194 SD1). Testimony was generally supportive across the measures, with several agencies and organizations noting the need to address complex health policy issues and improve access, transparency, and sustainability. For STR 16 SD1, community health worker advocates strongly supported the resolution but asked for amendments to include the Hawaii Community Health Worker Association on the task force and to require that at least half of the task force members be community health workers. For the PBM-related measures, SHPDA said it was willing to convene the work group and described the issue as complex, while the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association asked that PBMs be included in the working group. For STR 10 SD2, SHPDA supported the effort to reduce prior authorization burdens and said the process is a "black box" that needs reform; the chair later noted the administration’s commitment to the issue. For STR 86 SD1, the Department of Health supported the aeromed working group, and the chair proposed a House Draft 1 with technical changes and added representation from independent provider operators. In decision making, the committee adopted the chair’s recommendations on all measures considered. SCR 8 SD1 was passed as is. STR 10 SD2 was deferred. STR 16 SD1, STR 70 SD1, STR 118 SD1, STR 120 SD1, and STR 194 SD1 were passed as is. SCR 69 SD1 was passed with amendments, and STR 86 SD1 was passed with amendments. The meeting concluded with adjournment after all votes were taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• making, which means if any worker or workers' rights organization would have looked at this, that's
• focus workers focus workers and<00:49:54.280> the<00:49:54.360> workers<00:49:54.960
• all workers.
• > covers<00:58:00.280> all<00:58:00.440> workers, Maine covers all workers, Maine
• <00:58:02.840> workers.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• The cooperative technology contracts cover hardware, software, and IT services.
• for hardware, software, and IT services. and what the cooperative technology contracts for hardware,
• It was expanded in 2019 to include school counselors and social workers.
• The department also contracted with a third party for coordinating the placement of off-duty officers
• In 2019, this legislative body added school counselors and school social workers.

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The Senate Education Committee of Reference met for sunset reviews and first heard a presentation on the Credit Enhancement Eligibility Board from the Governor’s Office. The presenter explained that the board, created in 2016, has no dedicated staff or administrative budget and is supported by existing budget and policy staff and the Treasurer’s Office. The board’s purpose is to lower borrowing costs for qualifying schools by using a guarantee fund to enhance credit ratings, and it has largely been used by charter schools. Because the board has reached its statutory leverage cap and has not met since 2022, it is currently in a monitoring role, but it must remain in place to honor guarantees if any approved financing defaults. The committee asked about financing maturities, demand from schools, and whether a shorter continuation period would make sense. No public testimony was offered, and the committee voted to recommend continuing the board for 10 years, until July 1, 2036. The committee then reviewed the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). WICHE’s president described the interstate compact, its regional role in higher education access, workforce development, and data services, and its major student programs: the Western Undergraduate Exchange, the Western Regional Graduate Program, and the Professional Student Exchange Program. She highlighted tuition savings for Arizona students and the state, the return of many PSEP graduates to practice in Arizona, and additional cost savings through cooperative purchasing and technology contracts. The committee asked no substantive questions, and it voted to recommend continuing WICHE for 10 years, until July 1, 2036. The final major item was the Arizona Department of Education School Safety Program performance audit, followed by testimony from the department. The Auditor General reported that the program has grown substantially, especially after expansion to counselors and social workers and increased appropriations, but that ADE did not consistently ensure schools complied with program requirements. In a sample of 16 schools, most had issues such as missing or incomplete operational plans, inadequate safety team activity, incomplete required training, missing activity logs, or reimbursement requests lacking expenditure reports. The audit said these problems reduced the program’s effectiveness and increased the risk of improper spending, and it recommended stronger monitoring, written procedures, and better documentation review. ADE accepted the findings and said it is implementing the recommendations through more direct staff oversight, training requirements tied to funding, encrypted submission of emergency plans, site visits, and representative desk reviews. The discussion then shifted to whether emergency plans should address federal law enforcement actions; the director said the plans are designed for campus safety threats generally and do not specifically contemplate ICE enforcement. The committee took no vote on the audit presentation and adjourned after discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• For 60% of those workers, the rate of $36 applies, and for 100% of those workers, the rate of $24 per
• Then for all other counties, for 60% of workers, the rate is $28 per hour, and for 100% of workers, $20
• You're an older worker, you're a younger worker, your sexual orientation, You're an older worker, you're
• This bill will set up a minimum wage structure that will allow employers to punish workers—workers that
• None of the people who got up here representing workers actually represent those workers.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Committee held an informational hearing on the final three-party budget agreement and related trailer bills, with the Department of Finance outlining the major budget bill and omnibus measures. Finance described a package built around balancing the state budget amid economic uncertainty, preserving core health and safety-net programs, and making significant ongoing reductions in some state programs. The budget bill included major items such as shifting $1 billion from the General Fund to the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund for Cal Fire, funding universal transitional kindergarten, deferring some UC and CSU funding, supporting foster care and homelessness programs, providing Proposition 36 implementation funding, and achieving Medi-Cal savings through changes to benefits and eligibility. The committee also heard that votes on the budget bills were expected later in the week and the following Monday. Finance then walked through the trailer bills, including health, human services, early learning, education, resources, energy, transportation, labor, housing, tax, public safety, courts, general government, cannabis, and energy-related measures. Notable provisions included a Medi-Cal enrollment freeze for certain adults, new premiums and benefit changes for some immigrants, child care COLA changes, education funding for literacy, teacher support, universal meals, and community college student support, as well as resource and climate measures affecting Cal Fire staffing and energy permitting. The housing trailer bill drew the most discussion, with provisions on CEQA streamlining, a vehicle miles traveled mitigation banking program, a renters’ credit trigger, and a six-year moratorium on new residential building standards. Members also discussed a film tax credit expansion, cannabis enforcement funding, a tribal police pilot program, and changes to tax policy, including military retirement income exclusions and wildfire settlement payment exclusions. Committee members largely praised the staff and the budget process, but several raised concerns and asked detailed questions, especially about the housing trailer bill’s new wage standards, tribal consultation provisions, and possible effects on prevailing wage protections. Finance explained that the housing language was intended to set wage floors for market-rate projects receiving CEQA streamlining, with different county-based tiers and a notwithstanding clause preserving existing prevailing wage laws. Members also questioned the size and timing of funding for the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, Clean Cars for All, Proposition 36, and the film tax credit expansion. Other members highlighted support for public safety, veterans’ tax relief, child care providers, housing production, and higher education, while some expressed concern that the budget’s policy changes were being negotiated too quickly or without enough stakeholder input.

Transcript Highlights:

• they put out for rfps to contract they put out for rfps to contract private<00:57:09.920> pest
• employees we also oversee and contract employees we also oversee and contract for<03:11:40.439><
• We have two contracts with them.
• right now we're funding that contract right now we're funding that contract through<03:19:15.560
• over the years um in terms of workers over the years um in terms of workers comp<03:20:58.920>

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• workers and the retirement system plan. workers and the retirement system plan.
• , Kamakana Kamo, United Public Workers, Kamakana Kamo, United Public Workers, uh,<00:47:30.720>
• benefits from the scope of contract benefits from the scope of contract negotiations negotiations
• Kamakana Kame Law United Public Workers. Kamakana Kame Law United Public Workers.
• related to workers compensation. related to workers compensation.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint hearing of the Senate Committees on Labor and Technology and Public Safety and Military Affairs considered three bills. SB 2141 would reclassify certain Department of Law Enforcement leadership and employees as Class A members for retirement purposes and adjust retirement benefit calculations. DLE supported the bill, saying it would address retirement classification without enhancing benefits, while the Employees’ Retirement System said it had no formal board position but wanted key provisions preserved. The Deputy Attorney General raised a potential title/subject issue and warned the bill could be vulnerable to challenge because the reclassification, contribution changes, and benefit calculations are in separate statutory sections. After questions about the number of affected employees and possible amendments, the committees deferred the bill. SB 2593 would exempt certain Law Enforcement Standards Board positions from civil service and collective bargaining. The board’s administrator said the positions would handle sensitive and confidential information and require specialized experience, and the board chair’s representative said the bill was important to meet certification deadlines. Opposition testimony from HGA argued exempt employees are at-will and suggested civil service protections should remain, with any staffing issues handled through reclassification or other personnel tools. Committee members questioned whether the positions could instead be civil service but excluded from bargaining, and staff explained the distinction between civil service exemption and collective bargaining exclusion. The committees ultimately recommended passing SB 2593 with amendments, including a deferred effective date of January 1, 2077, and the recommendation was adopted. SB 2824 would create a bribery-related reporting duty for public servants. Supporters, including Indivisible Hawaii, said it would establish a clear duty to report known or suspected bribery and strengthen public trust. The Office of the Public Defender opposed the bill, saying it would criminalize an affirmative duty to report another person’s misconduct. After limited discussion, both committees voted to pass SB 2824 with amendments, including a deferred effective date of July 1, 2050, and the recommendation was adopted. The meeting then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• worker. Followup. Uh thank you, Mr. worker. Followup. Uh thank you, Mr.
• on<04:00:41.359> our<04:00:41.600> existing workers to check on our existing workers
• It is the typical start of becoming a quote unquote sex worker, is becoming a quote unquote sex worker
• It is the typical start of becoming a quote unquote sex worker, is becoming a quote unquote sex worker
• You know, it's I'm a sex worker. saying. You know, it's I'm a sex worker.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:03:35.439> at that use webcams to monitor workers at that use webcams to monitor workers
• <00:05:16.000> approximately 177% of Minnesota workers approximately 177% of Minnesota workers
• promote here is strengthening worker promote here is strengthening worker power<00:09:13.399>
• in of workers 1.6 million workers in of workers 1.6 million workers in Minnesota<00:32:01.159
• workers.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It will also make the work of poll workers like Dr.
• primary, or a non-contracted primary.
• In a contracted or non-contracted primary, each party has a lot more control and authority over their
• Luckily, the poll workers were very kind and understanding with me.
• Susana Carranza: So as a poll worker, Dr.