Transcript Highlights:

• I'm third-generation grape grower. But what it is is in. I'm third-generation grape grower.
• Many of these companies have remained family-owned for generations.
• This work is funded by a combination of fees and general fund state.
• This work is funded by a combination of fees and general fund state.
• This work is funded by a combination of fees and general fund state.

Summary: The committee heard public testimony on Senate Bill 5816, which would add juice grapes to Washington’s Agricultural Marketing and Fair Practices Act. Staff explained that the bill would allow juice grape producers to form an accredited association to negotiate with processors under the same timelines used for pears, and the prime sponsor said the measure was intended to help growers obtain fairer prices. A grape grower testified that Washington producers face a small number of buyers, little real negotiation, and prices far below New York’s, arguing the bill would give growers a way to bargain collectively. The public hearing closed with 47 people noted in support and one in opposition. The committee then heard Senate Bill 5971, which would create a green fertilizer incentive program for low-carbon nitrogen fertilizer production and use in Washington. Staff described the bill as directing WSDA to establish the program, adopt rules by 2028, and report to the Legislature, with costs shown in the fiscal note. The prime sponsor and several supporters, including Atlas Agro, a port representative, labor, NRDC, WSDA, the League of Women Voters, and the Washington State Potato Commission, said the bill could reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support local manufacturing and jobs, stabilize fertilizer supply and prices for farmers, and help Washington compete for federal clean hydrogen tax credits. WSDA said the program was implementable with consultation and that the Climate Commitment Act could be a funding source, though it noted rulemaking costs. The committee then held a work session on commercial shellfish fee assessments after the Department of Health adopted major fee increases for shellfish licensing and certification. Shellfish growers and association representatives said the increases—described as ranging from roughly 233% to 789% overall, with some individual licenses rising much more—would hit small and family farms hardest, could force closures, and were based on a fee structure they said is outdated and not tied well to production. DOH explained that the program has long relied on general fund support, that federal shellfish safety requirements must be maintained, and that the new fees are intended to move the program toward full cost recovery after years without increases. The department said it had used a phased approach, reopened rulemaking to look for a fairer structure, and would continue working with industry and the Legislature; no vote was taken during the work session.

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you, Chair, and General Counsel.
• General counsel, please introduce this item. Yes.
• Generally, travel is not permitted. Providing travel is generally not permitted.
• The client may attend the general event, but he may not, depending on your ruling. the general event
• Because, you know, a good communication to generate goodwill, right, or expenditure to generate goodwill

Summary: The Texas Ethics Commission met on March 11, 2025, first in executive session and then in open session. The chair announced that, in light of Texas Attorney General Opinion KP-484, the commission would conform its practices to the opinion and move to repeal tolling rules for sworn-complaint deadlines. The chair also said the commission would dismiss 36 pending sworn-complaint cases in which the 120-day settlement deadline had been exceeded, even though the delay had been tolled under prior TEC rules. The commission then set future meeting dates for June 12 and September 17 and approved prior meeting minutes. The commission adopted a new criminal-referral rule clarifying that, once jurisdiction over a complaint is accepted, commissioners may vote to make a criminal referral. It also adopted revised advisory-opinion rules, with a clarifying amendment from a commenter, and republished proposed changes to the definition of “principal purpose” for political committees after staff recommended a 49 percent political-activity threshold and further public input. The commission published for comment proposed changes to ethics training rules, facial-compliance review procedures, late-filing waiver and reduction rules, and sworn-complaint procedures, including tighter discovery limits, a default-order set-aside process, and removal of tolling language inconsistent with KP-484. It also republished Chapter 28 rules on Speaker-candidate reporting. The commission adopted several advisory opinions. It declined to give an affirmative defense on whether certain school-district communications were political advertising because related litigation had already addressed the issue. It reaffirmed that a House member may use donated district-office space if it is not reimbursable with public funds and was accepted before the contribution moratorium. It also concluded that a judge may use political funds for travel to a Navy-hosted event as a local dignitary, that legislators’ use of a corporate aircraft for a border-region fact-finding trip could be permissible but would likely trigger reporting obligations, that a TCEQ commissioner’s revolving-door restrictions apply only to matters actually placed before the commissioner, and that a part-time legislative staffer may not take outside employment assisting a registered lobbyist. The commission then heard and acted on numerous fine-waiver appeals, granting several full waivers or reductions and approving staff recommendations on others, and terminated a number of inactive campaign treasurer appointments. Finally, the executive director briefed the commission on the 2025 legislative session, noting that staffing requests are tied to Sunset recommendations and that the House had preliminarily recommended about half of the commission’s appropriations requests.

Transcript Highlights:

• Yes, I had a conversation with the Attorney General on January 17th, broadly about what the Attorney
• The only thing he said to me in that conversation was that he was concerned about generally the cost
• I think that might be an interesting conversation about the Data Practices Act in general.
• </c> conversation with the Attorney General conversation with the Attorney General on<00:06:39.599><c
• </c> years of alls that the attorney general years of alls that the attorney general has<00:14:54.839

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: House Majority Leader Harry Niska discussed House File 20, a bill he said would amend Minnesota’s Data Practices Act by adding the words “on individuals” to clarify that the private-data exemption applies only to information actually tied to an individual person. He argued the bill would overturn a 2022 Minnesota Supreme Court decision in Energy Policy Advocates v. Allison that, in his view, allowed the Attorney General’s office to withhold policymaking and closed investigative data even when no individual privacy interest was involved. Niska framed the measure as a transparency and democracy issue, saying the Attorney General’s office should not have a special secrecy privilege that other state agencies and prosecutors do not have. In response to questions, Niska said the Attorney General opposed the bill, citing concerns about the cost and burden of data practices requests and raising a broader question about whether some businesses might have privacy interests similar to individuals. Niska said the bill is not meant to eliminate legitimate privacy protections for actual individuals, including sensitive investigative information, but to prevent the office from using the private-data category to shield non-personal information. He also said the issue arose in part from information about outside influence on the Attorney General’s office, including funding for positions through NYU and the Bloomberg Foundation. Niska said the bill had been introduced by Republicans two years earlier but did not receive a hearing, and he expected it to come to the House floor because Republicans now control committees. He said Democrats were expected to vote as a bloc against it, and he suggested the vote would show where members stand on transparency. He also said other GOP priorities may move through committees and to the floor as they are ready, mentioning permitting reform, repeal of the nuclear moratorium, and an OIG-related bill, but he did not provide a detailed schedule. No vote on the bill was taken during the exchange.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> uh source of of a a fuel to be generated uh source of of a a fuel to be generated by<00:16:41.279
• One thing that business in general cannot stand nor thrive within is uncertainty.
• One thing that business in general cannot stand nor thrive within is uncertainty.
• </c><05:40:38.798><c> that</c> are actually doing the generation that are actually doing the generation
• </c><05:52:22.718><c> correct</c> on more distributed generation correct on more distributed generation

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> the statute that allocated the general the statute that allocated the general fund<00:49:10.760>
• fund—everybody keeps saying general fund—so then my assumption is general fund.
• fund—everybody keeps saying general fund—so then my assumption is general fund.
• fund—everybody keeps saying general fund—so then my assumption is general fund.
• equipment, buses, generally.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The largest transfer from the general fund to another account is to the disaster response account at
• There's a transfer from the public works assistance accounts to general fund state.
• And then in terms of non-general near general fund transfers, pension stabilization to the budget stabilization
• It shows the two-year near-general fund and total budgeted impact and the four-year near-general fund
• So for behavioral health, the net impact in the four-year near-general fund is minus $218 million.

Summary: The conference committee on Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5998 met to review the operating budget conference report. House and Senate budget coordinators walked through comparison documents showing the Senate-passed budget, House-passed budget, and the conference proposal, including statewide totals, agency detail, revenue assumptions, transfers, and the four-year outlook. They said the conference budget uses the February 2026 ERFC forecast, includes an $880 million transfer from the budget stabilization account to the general fund, and reflects a four-year net near-general-fund impact of about $800 million, with an ending fund balance of $231 million in 2025-27 and $563 million in 2027-29. They also noted that future collective bargaining agreements are not included in the outlook beyond those already settled. The briefing highlighted major policy items across the budget, including Working Families Tax Credit expansion, a proposed city and county fiscal health account, changes to Working Connections child care attendance payments, behavioral health facility and staffing adjustments, long-term care funding for certain non-citizen residents affected by federal changes, Apple Health and other health-related responses to H.R. 1, K-12 changes such as free school meals contingent on related legislation, Running Start and transportation depreciation adjustments, higher education administrative reductions, corrections staffing and bed changes, wildfire response funding, and state employee compensation agreements. Members also discussed the budget’s reliance on revenue measures and transfers, including legislation referenced as 2487, 6228, 6231, and 6346. After the presentation, Senator Robinson moved adoption of the conference report and passage of the bill as recommended by the committee. In discussion, supporters said the budget protected core services and responded to federal H.R. 1 impacts, while opponents criticized the size of the budget, the use of reserves, future outlook assumptions, and reductions in some K-12 and other programs. The committee then voted 4-2 to recommend the conference report and ESSB 5998 to the legislature, with Representatives Gregerson and Ormsby and Senators Robinson and Stanford in favor, and Representative Couture and Senator Gildon opposed.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> to merchant electric generating to merchant electric generating facilities,<00:20:45.600><c> KLC
• </c><00:21:01.200><c> assembly</c> up or if you all the general assembly up or if you all the general
• </c> each county each countyy's general fund. each county each countyy's general fund.
• </c> The county corner does not generate The county corner does not generate revenue.<00:29:42.720><c
• :59:57.119><c> know</c><00:59:57.599><c> property</c> general funds from you know property general funds

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:08 Roll Call 00:00:29 Discussion of Large Project Siting in Local Governments Following Clover Creek Solar v. Breckinridge County 00:03:34 Discussion of Coroners’ Issues 00:24:49 Adjournment 01:01:11, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> thank you that's sort the general thank you that's sort the general clarification<00:39:23.760><
• thought was for generally funded things we're<00:49:53.400><c> using</c><00:49:53.760><c> general</c>
• </c> funds like you have the ent ent General funds like you have the ent ent General as<00:50:27.160>
• general general fund<00:51:15.160><c> yes</c><00:51:15.640><c> yeah</c><00:51:15.799><c> that's</c><
• It is a tourism generator.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Department of Administrative Services presented its capital budget process and priorities, explaining how agencies assess facility needs, rank projects, and submit requests to the governor’s office. DAS described its Plant and Property division, which maintains 96 state buildings, and Public Works, which develops detailed cost estimates for selected projects. Officials said the governor’s office has traditionally narrowed requests into priority tiers, but this year all projects were estimated, creating more work and less detail. They also emphasized that the capital budget book functions as legislative intent and can be binding on how approved funds are used. On the substance of the request, DAS highlighted several priorities: continued funding for the state ERP system upgrade to the cloud, with about $5 million requested for sustainability and related Treasury functions; emergency fund and annex renovation work; a sprinkler replacement at DMV; and elevator repairs at the main building. Karen Rocky also identified maintenance projects that rose in priority after a facility condition assessment, including HVAC work for Portsmouth Circuit Court and Coos County Courthouse, boilers and controls for Carroll County and Lebanon Circuit Court, brick repointing at the main building and annex, window replacement at Spalding, and Brown building elevator replacement. Officials noted that the governor’s proposed capital budget included fewer DAS projects than in past years and no projects for the Bureau of Court Facilities. The committee also discussed lapses and reprogramming of prior appropriations. DAS said the first eight projects approved in 2023 remain under construction and should be extended, while many 2021 projects are delayed because of ARPA-related workload and broader construction backlogs. Members reviewed a 2019 project list and agreed to lapse project number 49, the Spalding roof project, with about $81,000 remaining. DAS also said some small 2019 balances, including courthouse generators, a boiler, cooling and controls, roof and exterior repairs, and the State House Annex elevator, could be redirected through Capital Budget Overview toward the Hillsboro County South Cell Block project. The hearing ended with questions about project schedules, ARPA deadlines, and the division of authority between DoIT and DAS for the ERP system.

Transcript Highlights:

• Will the Auditor General please come to the podium.
• Page 13 of the Auditor General report regarding the rulemaking.
• I'm with the Arizona Auditor General.
• Two specific that are highlighted in the Auditor General report.
• Two specific that are highlighted in the Auditor General report.

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Pacific Air Forces; Major General James Bartholomew, U.S. Army; Major General Mark Hashimoto, U.S.
• Mike Ketchen, Council General of New Zealand; Mr. Yoshinori Kodama, Council General of Japan; Mr.
• Pacific Air Forces; Major General James Bartholomew, U.S. Army; Major General Mark Hashimoto, U.S.
• Lieutenant General Laura Hawaii Lieutenant General Laura Lenderman<00:10:07.600><c> us</c><00:10:08.120
• </c><00:11:20.920><c> of</c> Japan Mr Cy Yang Lee Council general of Japan Mr Cy Yang Lee Council general

Keywords: House Agenda:, 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Just a comment on rate caps in general.
• A single-cycle or open-cycle power generation facility is not an acceptable energy generation technology
• That's like a natural gas generator type.
• Capacity to generate a lot more than we do.
• It also states the General Assembly may change or revoke delegated zoning States the General Assembly

Keywords: 1064, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Those people are generally going to get discharged on a general discharge.
• Those people are generally going to get discharged on a general discharge.
• Those people are generally going to get discharged on a general discharge.
• Those people are generally going to get discharged on a general discharge.
• Those people are generally going to get discharged on a general discharge.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You'll see that we have general revenue and we also have dedicated general, or dedicated tax revenue,
• resources for our education here, first beginning with general revenue.
• They receive the largest share of general revenues of any agency each year.
• So that's the general revenue.
• English learner students generate $366 per student, or $16 million in 2025.

Keywords: 1204, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Unfortunately, historically, the General Assembly has not done that well.
• It spends its money that it generates. The city decides.
• In fact, in 1983, the federal law prohibits the diversion of airport-generated income for general municipal
• I do just in general, as Mr.
• Louis general revenue budget. So it can be utilized for anything.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• fund. general fund.
• Pages 5 and 6 are the non-general fund provisions or tax provisions that have non-general fund impact
• Turning to page 6 of the non-general funds spreadsheet, line 69 shows a new item.
• We can now move to page 10, which covers the non-general funds.
• to the General Register.

Bills: HF2730, HF2257, HF2768, HF1932, HF2437

Keywords: local government debt, municipal bonds, county bonds, capital improvements, public financing, bond issuance, public hearing, notice period, bond guarantee, Minnesota Public Facilities Authority, volume cap, private activity bonds, housing finance, residential rental bonds, LIHTC, low-income housing tax credits, redevelopment, courthouse financing, jail financing, law enforcement center

Transcript Highlights:

• be required to build new generation and what types of mixes of generation we can have is crucial.
• I know we need to have reliable generation.
• The generation that's going to be built. Yes, to have more accurate forecasts. That's right.
• If you look at our generation build queue, it has 400 gigawatts.
• No, that's actually your General Counsel, your resource, right? Okay, that's fine.

Bills: SB 438, SB 512, SB 647, SB 648, SB 1495, SB 2121, SB 2145, SB 2154, SB 2167, SB 2184, SB 2211, SB 2268, SB 2349, SB 2443, SB 2629, SB 2702, SB 2902

Keywords: SB 438, Texas, State Office of Administrative Hearings, SOAH, administrative law judge, ALJ, public information act, open records, confidentiality, privacy, home address, home telephone number, emergency contact information, social security number, family members, Government Code 552.117, Government Code 552.1175, Tax Code 25.025, public records, government transparency

Summary: The meeting of the committee commenced with the establishment of a quorum, where members discussed and voted on five significant bills related to energy efficiency, insurance regulation, and public utility governance. Notably, Senate Bill 2717 was presented, incorporating feedback to foster collaboration among various state agencies for improved energy efficiency performance. This was followed by a detailed discussion on Senate Bill 1642, which proposed changes to the Texas Department of Insurance's executive structure to optimize management and consumer focus. Each bill saw active participation from senators who moved to adopt committee substitutes for clarity and responsiveness to stakeholder concerns, indicating a proactive approach to legislative issues.

Transcript Highlights:

• The appointee will serve until the 2028 general election, at which time...
• Members, as a side note, 2044 is also... 2044 general election.
• And so— Wait, what are you doing to the Auditor General?
• They could say, let's leave it as is with the Attorney General.
• In other words, I... ...effectiveness of the inspectors general.

Summary: The Government Operations Subcommittee heard several measures focused on government structure, oversight, and public policy designations. The most debated bill was HJR 1325, which proposed a constitutional amendment to create a statewide Commissioner of Government Efficiency, abolish the lieutenant governor office and the Government Efficiency Task Force, and eliminate the constitutional requirement for an Auditor General appointment. Sponsors said the new commissioner would be a watchdog over waste, fraud, and abuse across state and local government, while opponents raised concerns about cost, single-subject issues, lack of implementation details, and whether existing oversight structures were sufficient. After extensive debate, the resolution was reported favorably by a recorded vote. The committee also approved HB 575, which redesignates the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America in Florida statute, and HB 1445, which requires certain state officials and agency heads to have stronger ties to Florida and, for some positions, to live in the county where their agency headquarters is located. HB 1445 drew questions about practicality and whether a proximity standard would be better than a strict county requirement, but the sponsor said he would continue working on that issue. Both bills were reported favorably, with HB 1445 passing unanimously. In addition, the committee unanimously approved HB 259, designating August 21 as Fentanyl Awareness and Education Day, with supporters emphasizing the need for public education about fentanyl overdoses. The committee also passed CS/HB 29, the public records and meetings bill linked to the social work licensure compact, which creates confidentiality and meeting exemptions needed for the compact to operate. Public testimony on that measure was supportive, and it too was reported favorably without opposition.

Transcript Highlights:

• We think you probably will need to spend even new general fund.
• It proposes general fund. It's not Prop 4. Oh, I see.
• The climate package, the General Fund... The State of California.
• We do not believe this is a good use of General Fund.
• We do not believe this is a good use of General Fund.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're not asking for additional state general fund.
• self-generated revenue that you really generate within your own agency.
• And maybe what can we do to generate more? Can we do to generate more?
• How is that funding generated?
• And it is recognized that $114 million is self-generated versus $11.9 million state general fund.

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Before we get to the Attorney General, before we even get to the Attorney General, there is a restriction
• Then the Attorney General will come take it back from you. Fair?
• Then the Attorney General will come take it back from you. Fair?
• What would the Attorney General be looking at?
• Everything we do has impact on generations to come. Absolutely.

Summary: The House convened with a quorum, offered an invocation and pledges, and received several announcements and recognitions before moving to legislation. Members honored the UTRGV chess team for winning a share of the 2025 President’s Cup, educator Jessica Lopez, the late Jennifer Maddenly, Jeanette Valdez Duran and Mobile Blessings from the Heart, TAMAC’s 50th anniversary, and journalist Bernardine Steptoe’s retirement. The chamber also adopted motions allowing committees to meet, setting a local and consent calendar, and suspending posting rules for a Public Health hearing on SB 2721. The House then considered a long series of Senate and House bills on third reading, with many passing by wide margins. Measures included SB 906 on Ysleta del Sur Pueblo peace officers; SB 1229 designating Veterans Memorial Highway; SB 855 on foster care medical costs; SB 703 on massage therapy licensing and trafficking protections; SB 1025 on tax-increase ballot language; SB 1119 on water park liability; SB 1080 on provisional occupational licenses for people with criminal convictions; SB 929 on lien deadlines; SB 1355 on liquor sales credit disputes; SB 2231 on fee waivers for college applications; SB 1877 on Public Utility Commission data access; SB 1998 on pediatric preceptorships; and several House bills on topics such as bond forfeiture notice, health workforce planning, civil commitment counsel, expunction of contempt records, consumer transactions, nuisance birds, theft venue, military grant applications, AI cancer-detection grants, cybersecurity contract language, military-related tuition, utility recovery mechanisms, psychedelic therapy studies, teacher retirement funding transparency, election procedures, juvenile parole eligibility, and more. Some bills drew notable debate or amendments. HB 200, creating a “second look” parole process for certain juvenile offenders after 20 years, prompted extended discussion about serious offenses and juvenile rehabilitation before passing 102-4. HB 2298 on AI-assisted cancer detection passed 85-62 after the sponsor emphasized “augmented intelligence” and physician oversight. HB 5247 on utility capital recovery saw a failed amendment to require ratepayer credits, then passed. HB 3045, a franchise tax exemption for spaceport operators, initially failed 73-74 but later passed after verification showed a 70-69 result. SB 2420, regulating app stores and mobile software distribution, was postponed for later consideration after substantial debate over age verification responsibilities. Several other measures were postponed, including SB 888, SB 552, SB 17, and SB 2420, while HB 1128 on election judges carrying concealed handguns passed 85-57 after a withdrawn point of order.