Transcript Highlights:

• in an area that has the bottom 10% of performance and either math or English courses like a school zone
• So and and in the past and current statue have it around opportunity zones and for that purpose.
• So today you can open up the school of hope in an opportunity zone or in a persistent low performing
• I feel comfortable explaining this and what the criteria is the opportunity zone.
• That's really what opportunity zones are. It's really not to to in order to benefit of locals.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the Rural School Innovation Zone executive director.
• The zone was established in 2019. It spans five, ISDs, Fremont.
• The rural school innovation zone inspired our PIP, which we're proud to be a member of.
• House Bill 120 is essential to the zone and other RPEP models throughout the state.
• The zone is one of the most established RPEPs in our state.

Bills: HB20, HB120

Keywords: fraudulent solicitation, disaster relief, nonprofit organizations, criminal penalties, consumer protection, fraud prevention, charitable donations, higher education, LGBTQ studies, DEI studies, program prohibition, educational policy, HB120, Texas, Texas Education Code, public universities, public colleges, queer studies, gay studies, lesbian studies

Transcript Highlights:

• It still has to go through the planning process and the zoning process.
• It still has to go through the planning process and the zoning process.
• <00:25:32.960> And<00:25:33.120> what process and the zoning process.
• And what process and the zoning process.
• So, the DOT permit is obviously separate from what the local zoning board will approve and not approve

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The public hearing focused on Senate Bill 153, a proposal to speed up Department of Transportation driveway/entrance permitting for larger residential developments, generally 20 units or more. Senator Mark McConkey, the prime sponsor, said long permit delays can stall financing and housing construction, and explained that the bill creates a second, expedited permitting lane funded by a per-door fee. He said the original 90-day mandate was replaced with a more workable process developed with DOT and the New Hampshire Homebuilders Association, and noted that the fiscal note had been removed. Committee members asked about the fee structure, timing, whether the bill applied to 20 doors/units, and whether it affected income-restricted housing; McConkey said it does not include income-based incentives and does not change zoning or local planning requirements, only the DOT permit timeline. Industry witnesses strongly supported the bill. Matt Mayberry of the New Hampshire Homebuilders Association said the proposal is a public-private partnership the industry requested, that time delays can jeopardize financing, and that builders are willing to pay for faster review as long as safety remains the top priority. Joshua Reap of Associated Builders and Contractors gave similar support, saying DOT bottlenecks have long slowed projects and that the bill would help move approved developments forward without burdening taxpayers. Questions from members focused on whether the expedited lane would pressure DOT to approve unsafe projects, whether consultants would already be vetted, and how the process would work alongside local approvals; witnesses said DOT would still retain final sign-off and that the process would be transparent and safety-focused. Alan Hanscom of DOT then explained the department’s role in more detail. He said the bill would require DOT to issue permits within 60 business days after approval of the traffic impact study for qualifying residential projects, and would create a $120 per-unit fee to fund a dedicated liaison position and software upgrades. He said the applicant would also pay for third-party consultant engineer review under DOT oversight, with the consultant costs passed through at no DOT markup and any unused funds returned to the applicant. Hanscom said DOT has been working with the sponsor and builders to clarify the process and improve transparency, and estimated the fee would support a position that coordinates between applicants, districts, consultants, and DOT bureaus to reduce dead time in the review process.

Transcript Highlights:

• AB 382 would lower the speed limit in school zones to 20 miles per hour.
• Currently, California is just one of nine states that sets our school zone speed limit greater than 20
• And we know that many of these deaths are occurring in our school zones, like 2-year-old Max Elamanza
• In both of these cases, the driver was traveling at roughly the current school zone speed limit of 25
• AB 382 will also give our cities and schools more local control over what school zone standard works

Summary: The Assembly Transportation Committee heard a series of bills focused on transportation safety, climate resilience, wildlife connectivity, parking enforcement, and EV charging reliability. AB 605 would create a pilot program allowing certain hydrogen internal combustion cargo-handling equipment at ports; supporters said it could help ports stay competitive while reducing emissions, while South Coast AQMD raised concerns about possible nitrogen oxide emissions and limits on future regulation. The bill passed on an 11-0 vote to the Natural Resources Committee. AB 1132 would require Caltrans to incorporate community resilience indicators, including socioeconomic factors, into climate vulnerability assessments; supporters from Greenlining, AARP, and others said it would better protect seniors, people with disabilities, and transit users during heat waves and disasters, while some members questioned the cost during a tight budget year. It passed 9-0 to Appropriations, with some members not voting. AB 382 would lower school-zone speed limits to 20 mph and give local agencies more flexibility in how the limit is posted and enforced; supporters cited child pedestrian deaths and safety research, and the bill passed 11-0 to Appropriations. AB 902, as amended, would require transportation projects in wildlife connectivity areas to include wildlife passage features where feasible; supporters emphasized reduced collisions and habitat fragmentation, while the California Building Industry Association and COGs moved from opposition to neutral after amendments. It passed 9-1 to Local Government. AB 1014 would give Caltrans more discretion to lower speed limits on state highways based on local conditions rather than the 85th percentile rule; supporters said it would improve safety in rural and tourist areas, and the bill passed 13-0 to Appropriations. AB 1022 would end towing or booting vehicles solely for unpaid parking tickets, with supporters describing the practice as punitive and harmful to low-income drivers, while cities and parking groups argued it would weaken enforcement and create problems for out-of-state vehicles. The bill passed 9-3 to Appropriations. AB 1423 would require publicly funded EV chargers to meet reliability standards and allow enforcement of uptime requirements; supporters said taxpayers need functioning chargers, while charging-industry opponents objected to retroactive standards and possible conflicts with existing agreements. The bill passed 14-0 to Utilities and Energy. The committee also approved a consent calendar of five bills by voice vote and held roll calls open for additional members to add on.

Transcript Highlights:

• We have to do the zoning.
• You can't build justice on zoning lines that divide, only on foundations that include.
• It requires the creation of a hospitality zone in a city, in a downtown area.
• It also takes into consideration out of zone.
• known as Zone Zero.

Summary: The Assembly met after a quorum call and first dealt with a procedural dispute over four amendments to AB 1240. The Speaker ruled the amendments out of order as not germane, and the Assembly sustained that ruling on a 49-16 vote. Members then added co-authors to several consent-calendar resolutions, including measures on the National Conference of State Legislators, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, ALS Awareness Month, and Men’s Mental Health Month, before adopting the consent calendar. The chamber also heard guest introductions, including a welcome for Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, and took up a motion to bring AB 41 up out of file, which failed 19-48. The bulk of the meeting was floor action on a long series of bills and resolutions, many of which passed with broad bipartisan support. Measures approved included ACR 40 supporting immigrant students and FAFSA privacy; AB 917 on permanent status for certain school employees; AB 985 on anesthesia access; AB 7 and AB 42 on higher education and student services; AB 245 providing property tax relief for wildfire victims; AB 255 allowing funding for drug-free recovery housing; AB 279 updating K-12 library standards; AB 289 creating a pilot for automated speed enforcement in highway construction zones; AB 291 on an educator apprentice program; AB 327 addressing swatting; AB 340 on confidential union communications; AB 341 creating an oral health technical assistance center for people with disabilities; AB 356 on San Diego health care infrastructure; AB 410 on bot disclosure; AB 476 on copper theft enforcement; AB 477 on educator pay targets; AB 485 on stolen wages and business licensing; AB 487, the insurance committee’s technical omnibus bill; AB 573 on tobacco retail license fees; AB 598 on school mapping technology; AB 635 on mobile home law enforcement referrals; AB 651 on remote participation for incarcerated parents in dependency hearings; AB 654 on homelessness hotline assistance in Los Angeles County; AB 662 creating a South County higher education task force; AB 667 on language access in professional licensing; AB 669 limiting early denial of addiction treatment; AB 670 on naturally occurring affordable housing; AB 695 on online continuation of community college for deported students; AB 723 on disclosure for digitally altered real estate images; AB 727 placing Trevor Project information on student IDs; and AB 736, a $10 billion affordable housing bond for the June 2026 ballot, which passed on a 61-11 urgency vote after extensive debate. Debate on AB 736 was the most extensive of the day, with supporters arguing the bond would help address California’s housing crisis and give voters a chance to weigh in, while opponents criticized the state’s bond debt and past spending results. The Assembly then recessed for caucus meetings and later returned to continue the daily file, where additional measures were taken up, including AB 798 adding diapers and wipes to the emergency food bank reserve program, which passed 56-0, and AB 821 on career technical education, which was presented as bipartisan-supported as the transcript continued.

Transcript Highlights:

• Next up we have SB 125, SD2, HD1, relating to State Enterprise Zones.
• retail sales of tangible personal property manufactured and sold in the Enterprise Zone to the final
• HD1 relating to State Enterprise zones HD1 relating to State Enterprise zones and<00:29:45.320><
• retail sales of tangible personal property manufactured and sold in the Enterprise Zone to the final
• Moving on to SB 125 S2 HD1, relating to State Enterprise Zones. We’re going to pass this as is.

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm a senior attorney with the Institute for Justice and the lead of IJ's zoning justice project.
• Many Florida jurisdictions have established transit-oriented development zones consistent with their
• Each type needs its own development standards, not a single state-based zoning code forced on it.
• Any new qualifying stops would trigger permanent, irrevocable TOD zones that double the heights with
• Modifications to the permanence provision of the TOD zones, reducing or eliminating if qualifying to

Summary: The committee first took up CS for SB 1342, a transit-oriented development bill intended to expand housing near fixed transit corridors. The sponsor said the measure builds on the Live Local Act by reducing regulatory barriers and encouraging private investment around transit investments. An amendment was adopted that narrowed definitions, limited the bill to land use and development regulations, removed a private cause of action, and exempted certain sensitive areas including military installations and environmentally sensitive lands. Supporters argued the bill would increase housing supply and maximize the return on state transit spending, while local government groups and other opponents warned it would preempt local zoning, impose uniform density rules, and create infrastructure, evacuation, and public input concerns. The bill was then reported favorably. The committee then considered CS for SB 1334, an elections bill that would require documentary proof of citizenship in certain voter registration and verification processes, update candidate qualification rules, require U.S. citizen markers on driver licenses and ID cards, and clarify that paper ballots are the primary voting method. Two technical amendments were adopted. The sponsor said the bill would streamline verification by allowing agencies to rely on Real ID and DHSMV records, reduce duplicate documentation, and improve communication between state systems. Senators questioned the fiscal impact, data-sharing procedures, storage of sensitive documents, effects on students, disabled voters, and people without driver licenses or Real IDs. A large number of public speakers opposed the bill, arguing it would burden eligible voters, especially students, seniors, disabled people, low-income residents, naturalized citizens, and people with name changes, while a smaller number supported it as an election integrity measure. The bill was ultimately not finished in the portion of the transcript provided, but the committee continued taking testimony and questions. Later, the committee took up CS for SB 1362 on advanced air mobility. A strike-all amendment was adopted to align the bill with the House version and authorize FDOT to fund vertiports and charging systems as part of public-private partnerships, including up to 80% of the non-federal share when federal funds are available and up to 100% if FDOT elects to do so. The sponsor framed the bill as helping Florida lead in advanced air mobility, and the measure was reported favorably with support from industry and local government representatives. Finally, the committee heard SB 174, which would designate a portion of State Road 985 in Miami-Dade County as Charlie Kirk Memorial Avenue and direct FDOT to install markers at an estimated cost of $2,400. The sponsor said the designation was tied to Turning Point USA activity at FIU and civic engagement. Several senators objected in debate, arguing Kirk was divisive and that the state should reserve road memorials for figures more broadly deserving of honor; others defended the designation as symbolic and non-regulatory. The transcript ends during the sponsor’s closing remarks, before a final vote is shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• Milani Technology Park is a foreign trade zone. So, you don't have to pay federal tax.
• If we use the state enterprise zone, uh, you know, they have a levy on the state taxes.
• <00:02:59.440> Milani stateowned enterprise zone worse.
• Milani stateowned enterprise zone worse.
• So, you don't have to pay federal zone.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard several resolutions focused on economic development, tourism, agriculture, and gaming. It first took up a measure to support advanced manufacturing and cybersecurity through the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation, with testimony from DBEDT, HTDC, and APE Hawaii in support. Witnesses said the proposal aligns with federal and university partnerships, could help small and medium-sized businesses, and could support use of industrial sites such as the Mililani Technology Park. The committee then considered a resolution asking DBEDT to sponsor a Michelin Guide for restaurants statewide; testimony was mixed, with support for culinary recognition but concerns about cost and uncertainty over the return on investment. The committee amended that measure to require review and evaluation of the cost and benefit before sponsorship. The committee also heard a resolution directing the Agribusiness Development Corporation to assume routine maintenance and repair of the Kohala ditch. ADC testified that it would need to meet with stakeholders, assess the damage, and likely spend the first year determining needed repairs before seeking additional capital funding; members noted a prior $10 million appropriation and asked that the committee report reflect a transfer of those funds to ADC. The measure was moved forward as is, with that comment for the report. The most extensive discussion centered on a resolution to establish a tourism and gaming working group within DBEDT. Supporters included DBEDT, Aloha Halawa District Partners, labor representatives, the stadium authority, and Boyd Gaming, who described it as a first step to gather data and recommendations before any gaming policy decisions. Opponents argued the gaming industry should not help write the rules, warned about problem gambling and outside corporate influence, and urged the committee to reject the measure. The committee ultimately passed the resolution with an SD1 and technical amendments, and members said they would keep the issue open for further discussion, including possible inclusion of AHDP in the working group. The committee also heard and advanced a separate resolution urging the stadium authority to finalize the new Aloha Stadium contract and continue work on the entertainment district, with testimony both supporting the project and opposing it in favor of more housing. The committee voted to pass the stadium resolution as well.

Transcript Highlights:

• And we cannot forget when we are talking enterprise zone that the strategic investment zone is the job
• zone that is stat strategic investment zone that is the<00:32:14.240> job<00:32:14.480> creation
• actually stripping away local zoning actually stripping away local zoning control.<00:34:59.680>
• <00:35:50.240> uh only applies to enterprise uh zone uh only applies to enterprise uh zone
• is overruled, the system, the zoning is overruled, the local<00:36:11.760> zoning local zoning

Keywords: House streaming session for Friday, March 20, 2026, 957, house, all

Summary: The House met in Annapolis with 107 members present and proceeded through the journal and a series of Appropriations Committee reports. Several bills were advanced on favorable reports without amendment, including measures on constitutional officers’ salaries, correctional officer retirement systems for Dorchester and Allegany counties, Carroll and Calvert County public facilities bonds, higher education financial assistance for incarcerated individuals, and a bill on community college promise scholarship eligibility for Delmar High School graduates. Other bills received amendments before being ordered for third reading, including measures on community college trustee membership, Frederick Community College board meeting and training requirements, Howard County school funding disclosures, courts administrative judges’ stipends, correctional officers retirement membership clarifications, the Children’s Cabinet Fund, and a law enforcement pension bill limiting military service credit eligibility to helicopter pilots in state aviation units. The chamber also considered HB 1581 on horse racing facility ownership, development, licensing, and operations. Amendments expanded the bill to include additional economic development provisions for the Prince George’s County Blue Line corridor, Pimlico-related funding and community input requirements, a larger lottery-fund distribution for the racing community development financing fund, and changes to the bus rapid transit grant program. The bill’s favorable report as amended was adopted, and it was ordered for third reading. During debate on a separate amendment to HB 894, the Maryland Transit and Housing Opportunity Act, members argued over project labor agreements: opponents said PLA requirements raise costs and limit competition, while supporters said the provision was optional, supported stability and predictability, and was part of a broader compromise. The amendment was rejected after discussion, and the bill remained amended. The House also took up HB 1430 on charter school facilities funding, adopting amendments that reduced the per-pupil amount and narrowed eligibility for certain districts, then advancing the bill as amended. In addition, HB 1248 was amended to convert a part-time state employment pilot program into a work group, and HB 680 was amended to adjust future appropriations for local management boards. Across the session, most actions were routine committee report adoptions and amendment votes, with no recorded roll-call counts in the excerpt except the initial quorum call.

Transcript Highlights:

• Petitioned zoning ordinance amendment.
• issue with regards to uh zoning issue with regards to uh zoning ordinance<05:45:05.680> petition
• It is true once a zoning amendment is filed by petition, that's due very early as well.
• The planning board proposes them, and they're adopted like any other zoning amendment.
• <06:17:50.400> Amendment adopted like any other zoning Amendment adopted like any other zoning

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• House file 4362 also rights-free zones.
• I don't know if you watched the zones.
• occurs, so let's not have gun-free zones.
• occurs, so let's not have gun-free zones.
• . zones. zones.

Bills: HF4362, HF4252, HF4440

Keywords: firearms, guns, gun rights, gun control, campus safety, public college, university, postsecondary institution, higher education, visitor carry, concealed carry, open carry, campus policy, Minnesota Statutes 624.714, petty misdemeanor, parking lot carry, firearm possession, public safety, college campus, student carry

Transcript Highlights:

• Hi, Samantha Bim Pong with Make It Bay, representing the Out of Zone Coalition, strongly supporting out-of-zone
• We are in strong support of this bill and look forward to discussions on out-of-zone amendments.
• I'm Hannah Wagner, a member of the Out-of-Zone Coalition, in full support of the bill, looking forward
• to continuing discussions regarding out-of-zone equity.
• , not well even within the zone of.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• IN THE ADVANCED SYSTEM HERE, THEY HAVE ACTUALLY ADDED A ZONE, THEY SUBMERGE SOME IN THE ADVANCED SYSTEM
• HERE, THEY HAVE ACTUALLY ADDED A ZONE, THEY SUBMERGE SOME MEDIA AND ADD A PROPRIETARY CARBON SOURCE.
• INSTEAD OF BROAD RESTRICTIONS, I SUGGEST FLORIDA SHOULD ADOPT A ZONE MANAGEMENT APPROACH.
• FLORIDA NEEDS TO ESTABLISH MANAGED ANCHORAGES AS PROPOSED IN MY WHITE PAPER BY CREATING ANCHORING ZONES
• ZONE MANAGEMENT IS THE SMARTER AND MORE BALANCED ALTERNATIVE AREA I URGE THIS COMMITTEE TO REJECT 164

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• the municipality is you have zoning the municipality is you have zoning regulations,<03:39:57.600
• That's what it's zoned for.
• <03:47:20.080> The um to the the zoning, right? The um to the the zoning, right?
• <03:48:49.760> zoning legal under the current zone zoning legal under the current zone zoning
• <03:54:49.199> I they can address it with zoning." I they can address it with zoning."

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• zones, following 16 other states that have shown that this can be an effective.
• You can't build justice on zoning lines that divide, only foundations that include.
• So again, I'm glad to hear the support for single-family zoned units.
• This takes into consideration out of zone.
• known as zone zero.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Other carriers build in a buffer to allow time for TDI to review the rate before it goes into effect

Transcript Highlights:

• of future production or are they in shallow zones that won't be impacted at all?
• Are the wells in hydraulic connected zones of future production, or are they in shallow 70 zones that
• That water passes through the recharge zone of the aquifer.
• Somebody has 47 wells or however many wells along the river, maybe off of a recharge zone.
• Representative Barry, I think we kind of touched on this last meeting about recharge zones.

Bills: HB24, HB27

Keywords: groundwater, conservation, water permits, sustainability, resource management

Summary: The committee met to hear House Bills 27 and 24 on groundwater issues in East Texas, with members and witnesses focusing on a proposed large-volume groundwater export project and the need for more science before major permitting decisions are made. HB 27, which was within the special session call, would direct the Texas Water Development Board to conduct a hydrogeologic study of the aquifers in the affected area and temporarily pause new export permits while the study is underway. HB 24, a separate bill that would limit certain production and export permits to 5% of modeled available groundwater, was laid out but the chair said it would not be moved out of committee. Testimony on HB 27 was largely supportive, though some witnesses were neutral. Supporters, including representatives from a water supply corporation, the Trinity River Authority, Environmental Defense Fund, and the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, said the region lacks enough hydrologic data, that the proposed pumping could affect private wells, surface water, and local economies, and that the state needs better information on sustainable yield and groundwater-surface water interaction. Several witnesses emphasized that groundwater conservation districts need clearer tools and better data, while also noting concerns about property rights and the rule of capture. Committee members discussed the scale of the proposed project, the absence of a groundwater conservation district in Houston County, and the possibility that the study should examine desired future conditions and maximum sustainable pumping rather than only modeled available groundwater. The committee adopted the committee substitute for HB 27 and voted it out favorably to the full House with a recommendation that it do pass, be printed, and be sent to the Committee on Calendars. The roll call was unanimous, 11 ayes and 0 nays. After the vote, members briefly reflected on the complexity of the issue and the need to continue working on broader groundwater policy in the interim and next session. HB 24 was discussed later in the meeting, but no final action on that bill was taken in the portion provided.

Transcript Highlights:

• Other animals can be inspected, treated, identified, and then moved out of those zones.
• We would take part in the eradication program there in the permanent quarantine zone, yes, sir.
• They'd call that an infested zone and then we would create another 12.2 mile zone. mile radius circle
• So explain how are people within that 12-mile zone going to know that? We're going to put signs up.
• Well, we put it in the... fever tick eradication zones; we put it in the feeders.

Keywords: 997, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This highlights the urgent need for better driver education about dangerous work zones.
• There's over 2800 work zones just with TechSott, active work zones in the state right now and it's critical
• that we do everything to protect both motorists and construction workers in these work zones.
• Uh, the citations are doubled the, the amount of the citation in active work zones, but it seems like
• Um, you know, the driver's ed curriculum right now doesn't, it only matches his work zone and workers

Transcript Highlights:

• They said no housing because part of it is a buffer between around the military bases, so they said no
• being reactive, so people apply for use, or is it going to be proactive, where it's almost form-based zoning
• I'm just not sure if we probably have to talk in-house about a coordinated effort to address those zone

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint Ways and Means and Hawaiian Affairs committee heard a budget presentation from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands on its biennium requests for critical projects, repairs and maintenance, and operations. DHHL described its role in administering the Hawaiian Home Lands Trust, noted the large beneficiary wait list, and said prior funding, including Act 279, has helped the department accelerate land development and reduce vacancies. Officials said they have about 47,219 applications involving 29,548 Native Hawaiians, roughly 28 projects underway, and that about $471 million of a $600 million appropriation has been encumbered, with the remaining lapse-fix funds expected to be resolved before the June 30, 2026 deadline. DHHL emphasized that its current request would support additional lot development and could help produce roughly 6,000 units from the existing project pipeline, with another phase of requests potentially adding about 2,000 more units. The department said it is prioritizing shovel-ready projects, accelerating lease awards and orientations, and using a mix of approaches including paper leases, rental-with-option-to-purchase, owner-builder, and loan programs. Officials also discussed a shift toward denser urban development, citing projects in West Oahu and Honolulu, and said the department is working to reduce its vacancy rate and move beneficiaries onto the land more quickly. Members questioned why Oahu, despite having the largest wait list, was receiving comparatively lower amounts, and DHHL responded that land availability and cost drive those decisions, with Oahu having limited developable land and very high acquisition costs. The department pointed to land acquisition on Kauai and other islands, and to urban high-rise projects that can yield far more units on small parcels. Members also raised long-term maintenance and wildfire risk, asking whether current acquisition and development choices account for future infrastructure costs; DHHL said maintenance is a growing concern, especially on large unused or isolated lands, and that it is pursuing Firewise planning, federal funds, and partnerships to reduce risk. The discussion also touched on mixed-use and community-led development, with DHHL explaining that it leases land to nonprofit homestead associations under general leases with milestones, business-plan requirements, and land-use restrictions to support local services and community goals.