Transcript Highlights:

• twos and levels three that the money in the budget was available to cover that.
• twos and levels three that the money in the budget was available to cover that.
• Level twos and level threes, that the money in the budget was available to cover that.
• Those decisions were made at a different level from me.
• I cannot personally identify the budgetary aspect for this regulation for 360.

Summary: The Administrative Regulation Review Subcommittee met to reorganize its leadership for the new term, renewing Representative Derek Lewis as House co-chair and Senator Steven West as Senate co-chair. The committee then approved the minutes and moved through a series of agency regulations, generally adopting staff-suggested amendments without objection. Among the regulations reviewed were an Attorney General rule changing how a commission reviews and distributes funds and how grant reporting is handled; Personnel Board changes abolishing and renaming certain job classifications and adjusting probationary periods; an Education and Labor Cabinet rule removing references to local board of education members; several Public Protection Cabinet rules covering Board of Claims and Crime Victims’ Compensation procedures; an Alcoholic Beverage Control rule on direct-to-consumer shipping forms; and a Medicaid Services emergency regulation establishing the Kentucky Trauma Hospital Rate Improvement Program for rural hospitals serving many Medicaid patients. The committee also heard that the Board of Claims and Crime Victims’ Compensation regulations included both staff and, in one case, an agency amendment, which were approved. The most extended discussion came on the Department for Community Based Services’ regulation increasing per diem rates for private child-placing therapeutic foster care levels 2 and 3. Committee members questioned the estimated $10 million biennial cost, the source of the funding, and why the cabinet had not yet filed regulations implementing Senate Bill 151 on kinship care. DCBS staff said the rate increase was discretionary and intended to address placement crises for children with high needs, while acknowledging they could not personally explain the budget decisions. A kinship caregiver testified in support of the rate increase but urged the cabinet to also implement SB 151 and expand support for kinship families. The committee expressed frustration over the lack of SB 151 implementation but stated the rate increase itself was appropriate and allowed the regulation to proceed.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> at that level, there are the next level at that level, there are the next level eventually<01:00
• Because I... um incredibly stressful budgetary with um incredibly stressful budgetary with no<02:14:14.800
• ,<03:39:31.120><c> 100K,</c> level, 100K, level, 100K, the<03:39:33.600><c> local</c><03:39:34.000><c
• </c> skin in the game at a level period. skin in the game at a level period.
• </c> levels of special education. levels of special education.

Committee: House Education Funding

Transcript Highlights:

• budgetary budgetary um<00:09:16.000><c> any</c><00:09:16.320><c> additional</c><00:09:16.800><c> budget
• This national level<00:15:19.760><c> recognition</c><00:15:20.399><c> reflects</c><00:15:20.800><c> the
• </c><00:15:20.959><c> high</c> level recognition reflects the high level recognition reflects the high
• On the state level, was there a $70 fee? Is that how that's funded?
• </c> local level. local level. &gt;&gt; Okay. &gt;&gt; Okay. &gt;&gt; Okay.

Summary: The House Budget Review Subcommittee on General Government heard presentations on several Attorney General and Homeland Security budget items. Amy Burke of the Department of Child Support Services said the program inherited a structural shortfall of more than $13 million after the transition from CHFS, including about $14 million in federal child support incentive funds that had been used to cover core operating costs and county attorney contracts. She explained that federal law requires incentive funds to supplement, not supplant, baseline services, and said the Attorney General’s budget request seeks general fund support to replace that gap and help balance the program going forward. Members asked for clarification on the misuse of the funds, the size of the shortfall, and whether the requested money would be unrestricted; staff said the intent is to use it as a contract offset for core services. Commissioner Rich Ferretti then presented the Department of Criminal Investigations’ request for additional staffing and a Western Kentucky Digital Forensics Lab. He said DCI wants one additional special victims unit investigator and one digital forensic examiner to handle increasingly digital cases involving child exploitation, sexual assault, human trafficking, and technology-facilitated abuse. He also described plans for a lab in Mayfield, co-located with the new Mayfield Police Department facility, to reduce travel time, speed forensic processing, and improve access for rural communities. Committee members responded positively and asked no substantive questions. Finally, the Office of Homeland Security outlined Kentucky’s Next Generation 911 project. Officials said the current 911 system was built for landlines, while most calls now come from mobile devices, and the upgrade will add precise location routing plus text, photo, and video capability. Shelley Clark described the funding model, including wireless subscriber fees and a dedicated tech fund, and reviewed progress on mapping, vendor selection, and migration to the new platform, with completion expected by July 2027. Members asked about local maintenance costs and the impact on rural areas; officials said maintenance is local but supported in part by collected funds, and implementation will not be delayed for rural localities. The meeting concluded with no votes or formal actions taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• Discretionary inflation consists of the estimated cost to maintain current service levels.
• </c> to maintain the current service levels to maintain the current service levels that<00:04:44.960>
• </c> at both the national and state levels at both the national and state levels there<00:08:53.480><
• </c><00:18:41.200><c> the</c> persists above the target level the persists above the target level the
• </c><00:31:19.559><c> entitlement</c> assistance is a state level entitlement assistance is a state level

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• The budgetary needs of each of your agencies and commissions.
• I can totally understand this from a budgetary perspective.
• Those funds could make a real difference on the local level.
• We rely on agencies to do the first level of investigation.
• Federal level, as I said, fines and fees go into the fund.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Ways and Means

Summary: The hearing was held in Clinton Town Hall as part of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means’ budget review, with local officials welcoming legislators and noting the long agenda of many panels. The main presentation was from Secretary Terrence Reedy of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, who outlined the Healey-Driscoll administration’s FY26 proposal for the secretariat, including a $1.7 billion budget and a 7% increase over FY25. He described investments in emergency preparedness, hate-crime prevention, reentry programming, technology modernization, internships, and public safety training, while also noting some reductions driven by resource constraints, including cuts to certain grant programs and administrative costs. Committee members also raised concerns about federal uncertainty and how it could affect state budgets and public safety planning. A major portion of the questioning focused on the Department of Correction. Secretary Reedy and Commissioner Sean Jenkins said the biggest challenges are staffing, officer wellness, facility safety, and contraband—especially K2. They described steps taken at MCI Souza and other facilities, including reducing population at the maximum-security unit, changing management, removing metal products and free weights, improving screening and roll calls, adding a rapid response team, and increasing investigative and technological efforts to combat K2. They also discussed the closure of MCI Concord, saying it was driven by high maintenance costs and staffing needs, and explained that savings are being used to improve staffing patterns and address deferred maintenance over time rather than producing immediate large budget reductions. Members also questioned the budget’s impact on police training and community policing. The administration defended the increase in police academy tuition from $3,200 to $6,000 as reflecting true training costs and said it would still be subsidized by the state, while acknowledging the burden on small municipalities. They said the MPTC is expanding regional training and considering proposals such as Greenfield Community College’s. On community policing, officials emphasized uniform statewide training, de-escalation, and communication skills. The State Police also announced an outside review of the academy by the International Association of Chiefs of Police and said the next class will be split into two smaller groups to improve oversight and allow quicker implementation of recommendations. Other topics included ICE and federal immigration enforcement, with Reedy saying state law prohibits Massachusetts law enforcement from acting in a civil immigration capacity and that no state dollars were used in the Tufts-related ICE operation mentioned by a member. Senators and representatives also raised the upcoming FIFA World Cup, warning that it will require significant public safety resources and likely federal funding. Additional discussion covered restorative justice and juvenile diversion, health care costs in DOC, electronic health records, and the need for more diverse and culturally competent public safety staffing. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:10:08.959><c> Uh</c> have impacts at the state level. Uh have impacts at the state level.
• Um and what income level they acrew to.
• </c> what will happen at the federal level what will happen at the federal level but<00:52:05.599><c>
• </c> would need to consider budgetary would need to consider budgetary solutions<00:52:16.400><c> to<
• </c> would potentially go below that level. would potentially go below that level.

Committee: House Ways and Means

Transcript Highlights:

• This chart shows price level growth year over year all the way back to 1960.
• And you see that for about 30 years before the pandemic, price levels were pretty stable.
• That's what we're hearing at the local level.
• We see the budget tightening. for sure at the state level. So where do you invest?
• A lot of the low-level type jobs are going to go away in the next 20, 30 years.

Committee: House Economic Development, Growth, and Household Impact

Transcript Highlights:

• Um we what we call mid-level providers.
• </c> level of care, right? level of care, right?
• </c><00:52:20.319><c> It's</c> get them to that level of pay. It's get them to that level of pay.
• </c> with the departments and our budgetary with the departments and our budgetary um<01:41:21.920><c
• </c> understand um all of your budgetary understand um all of your budgetary requests<01:42:43.920><c

Transcript Highlights:

• Simultaneously, a $16 billion budgetary shortfall impelled some elected officials in the building behind
• Washington renters are facing a statewide eviction crisis, with the highest levels of evictions across
• Washington renters are facing statewide eviction crisis with the highest levels in evictions across the
• So we need progressive revenue in this state to overcome what is happening at the federal level to help
• Now, part of the reason why that budgetary shortfall existed was because Washington, through last year

Summary: The meeting was a press conference and Q&A led by Rep. Shaun Scott to promote the proposed Well Washington Fund, a new dedicated account intended to raise about $3 billion annually through a corporate payroll tax on wages above $125,000. Scott said the bill would help offset expected federal cuts under Trump-era policies and support programs most at risk, including cash assistance, higher education, health care, housing, and wildfire mitigation. He also referenced two related proposals: restoring wildfire mitigation funding by ending a tax break for large banks, and allowing counties to raise corporate taxes. Several advocates and affected residents testified in support of progressive revenue. Michelle Thomas of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance warned that federal homelessness policy changes and state underinvestment could worsen homelessness and evictions. Christina Savitsky, a disabled veteran, described how Medicaid, food assistance, and work requirements would affect her family. Representatives from the University of Washington AAUP said federal cuts and Medicaid changes threaten teaching, research, workforce training, and hospital finances. Fatima Boxwala of Tech for Taxes and Mikey Stramskis of the Washington Federation of State Employees argued that large corporations and the wealthy should pay more to sustain public services and address understaffing, burnout, and service backlogs. In the Q&A, Scott said the bill may need an emergency clause to make it referendum-proof and argued that the legislature has a mandate to act, citing the 2024 capital gains tax referendum and the state’s regressive tax system. He acknowledged concerns about businesses leaving but said he was more concerned about working people being displaced by unaffordable housing, child care, and health care. No vote or formal committee action occurred; the event was a call for a hearing in the House Finance Committee in 2026 and for legislative passage in both chambers.

Transcript Highlights:

• How can we have their back at the state level if the feds are going to leave them out to dry?
• </c><00:05:15.360><c> how</c> level. How can we look out for them? how level.
• </c><00:21:02.559><c> Would</c><00:21:02.720><c> that</c> help at the state level.
• Would that help at the state level.
• </c> are working under tight budgetary are working under tight budgetary restrictions<00:21:17.200><c

Transcript Highlights:

• Is that at the educator level? Is that at the administrative level?
• They have the highest level of consumer demand.
• And she said to me, Phil, you're at the state level.
• I've been through one at the municipal level.
• But it's not productive and certainly not at the state level of governance.

Summary: The House first established a quorum after several members were absent, then moved into bills for perfection. House Bill 261, dealing with anti-Semitism in public schools and higher education, drew extensive debate. The sponsor described rising anti-Jewish incidents and said the bill would require educational institutions to adopt nondiscriminatory policies, use the IHRA definition as a guide, and treat failures to address harassment as Title VI issues. An amendment from the gentleman from Pulaski was adopted to clarify that protected First Amendment speech, religious expression, and political viewpoints would not be reported or cataloged. Supporters said the bill was needed to protect Jewish students; opponents argued it singled out one group, could chill speech about Israel and Palestine, and created unequal reporting requirements. The House ultimately ordered the bill perfected and printed as amended. The chamber then took up House Bill 2384 on housing affordability and building codes. The sponsor said the bill would lower housing costs by rolling back energy-code mandates to 2009 standards, setting clearer permitting timelines, and allowing certain multifamily buildings to use a single staircase. Supporters argued current codes raise costs, discourage builders, and contribute to Missouri’s housing shortage. Opponents raised concerns about local control, preemption of municipal energy standards, and public safety, especially the single-stair provision; the sponsor responded that the design has been used safely in other states and cities. A Pulaski amendment requiring municipalities with online ordinances to keep only one hard copy available was adopted, and after debate the previous question was moved and approved. The House then adopted the committee substitute and ordered the bill perfected and printed. House Bill 1766, addressing personal property tax, was also perfected and printed. The sponsor said the bill would apply Hancock/CPI-style tax limitations to personal property tax growth, arguing that rapidly rising vehicle values had created a windfall for political subdivisions and unfairly increased taxpayer burdens. Supporters said the bill would slow growth without eliminating it, while opponents argued local governments need revenue to keep up with inflation and that the measure would reduce resources for schools and other services. Finally, the House began consideration of House Joint Resolution 154, which would place into the Missouri Constitution a Medicaid work requirement mirroring federal policy. The sponsor said adults ages 19 to 64 would need to work, volunteer, participate in a work program, or attend school for 80 hours a month to remain eligible, and the discussion began with questions about whether the constitutional change was necessary and how documentation requirements would work.

Transcript Highlights:

• THAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR FROM US WHICH THEN IN TURN CAN HELP US DRIVE OUR POLICYMAKING AT THE AGENCY LEVEL
• OVERVIEW, THIS SLIDE REPRESENTS A HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW OF THE CBC LEAD AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES.
• CHILDCARE, ARE THERE OTHER BUCKETS OF IS A PASS THROUGH WHICH IS A COST REIMBURSEMENT, CHILDCARE, LEVEL
• WE SPOKE ABOUT THEIR LEDGER WHICH IS THEIR ACCOUNTING STRUCTURE AND HOW THIS WORKS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL
• THEY MAKE 20 PERCENT HIGHER THAN PROVIDERS WHO ARE OPERATING AT A CERTAIN LEVEL.

Transcript Highlights:

• A forecast is a high-level, A forecast is a high-level, forward-looking<00:05:00.000><c> budgeting</c
• </c> forecast must estimate the budgetary forecast must estimate the budgetary impacts<00:10:11.960><
• </c> just want to start with that level set. just want to start with that level set.
• </c> any level of fraud is unacceptable. any level of fraud is unacceptable. Right?
• The other thing I would like to just kind of level set: I really want to level set this.

Transcript Highlights:

• the prohibition on employee furloughs as well as paragraphs related to budget implementation and budgetary
• :04:37.840><c> and</c> related to budget implementation and related to budget implementation and budgetary
• :39.960><c> And</c><00:04:40.080><c> those</c><00:04:40.320><c> are</c><00:04:40.440><c> the</c> budgetary
• And those are the budgetary priorities.
• Thank you. although I do feel like I have a good although I do feel like I have a good high-level<00:

Summary: The Kentucky Senate Appropriations and Revenue Committee met with a quorum and first took up House Bill 503, the legislative branch budget, adopting a committee substitute and reporting it favorably. The chair said the Senate version fully funds defined calculations, provides 2% raises in each fiscal year for legislative employees, removes a paragraph on operating expense reductions, and includes $1 million in the first year for a judicial branch salary study. House Bill 504, the judicial branch budget, was then amended and reported favorably; changes included 2% annual raises for judicial employees, revised operating expense language, $1 million each year for county current services, retention of Boyle County fit-up language, reporting requirements for smaller capital projects, full funding for nine judges added in 2022, and removal of furlough prohibitions and certain budget implementation language. Both bills passed the committee unanimously with favorable expressions to the floor. The committee then considered House Bill 500, the executive branch budget, adopting a committee substitute before hearing a lengthy summary of major spending and policy changes. The chair described statewide 2% annual employee raises, agency base reductions with many exemptions, increased school safety and 911 funding, veterans and military funding, local government and severance-related changes, attorney general and auditor funding, pension and retirement system support, education funding changes including SEEK, postsecondary and scholarship provisions, public safety and corrections funding, and multiple capital projects. The chair also highlighted Medicaid-related provisions, including added waiver slots, increased state-directed payments, a 2.5% reduction in managed care vendor payments for plan years 2027 and 2028 with savings redirected to fee-for-service rates, and additional funding for behavioral health and public health programs. The bill was reported favorably after members explained their votes, with several noting they had only recently received the full 228-page bill and wanted more time for detailed review. Finally, the committee adopted a committee substitute for House Bill 900, an appropriation measure for government agencies, and reported it favorably. The chair said the bill remains a work in progress and that one-time funding requests from across the Commonwealth and across party lines would continue to be addressed as the process moves forward. All measures considered during the meeting passed the committee with unanimous or near-unanimous favorable votes, and the meeting adjourned after no further business.

Transcript Highlights:

• We were certainly not aligned in level of investment of different areas. priorities are different.
• We were certainly not aligned in level<00:08:24.879><c> investment</c><00:08:25.440><c> of</c><00:08:
• </c><00:08:26.400><c> So,</c> level investment of different areas.
• So, level investment of different areas.
• </c><00:20:27.440><c> balance</c> Senate DFL had their budgetary balance Senate DFL had their budgetary

Summary: House Democratic leaders and House Republican leaders announced a compromise set of budget targets reached Friday night, describing it as a numbers-only deal that leaves policy issues aside. They said the targets are the first step in the budget process: House committee chairs will write bills to fit the targets, those bills will go to Ways and Means, and later leaders will negotiate global targets with the governor and Senate. Leaders emphasized that the agreement reflects compromise rather than either party’s ideal budget, and that they will continue talks with Governor Walz and the Senate over the next several weeks. The speakers highlighted what was not included in the deal, saying it does not target paid family and medical leave, earned sick and safe time, reproductive rights, or universal school meals. They said the House priorities that did make it in include housing, education, pensions, public safety, and transportation. On education, they said the compromise provides $40 million in new money in the first biennium for the READ Act and no cuts in either biennium, contrasting that with larger cuts in the governor’s and Senate proposals. They also said schools could still choose to fund unemployment insurance for school workers from existing resources, though it was not earmarked in the targets. Leaders said the agreement leaves room for committee chairs to make choices within the targets, including in health and human services, where they described the target as a reduction in projected growth rather than a cut to existing appropriations. They said the budget plan sets aside discretionary inflation adjustments in the first biennium while preserving inflation indexing for items like the K-12 formula. They also said the deal improves the state’s long-term balance, with a projected $1.6 billion balance in the first biennium and a $1.3 billion deficit in the second, and that the House’s numbers do not include the same revenue assumptions as the governor’s and Senate’s plans. In questions, leaders said conference committees will require majority support from both House and Senate conferees, and that the House will send equal numbers of Democratic and Republican conferees. They said the bonding bill size is still under discussion, but the adopted numbers would allow for roughly a $700 million general obligation bill. They also said large state spending for professional sports facilities is likely over, and explained that the press conference was held without Republican leaders for logistical reasons after the deal was reached late Friday.

Transcript Highlights:

• Simultaneously, a $16 billion budgetary shortfall impelled some elected officials in the building behind
• Washington renters are facing a statewide eviction crisis with the highest levels of evictions across
• Washington renters are facing a statewide eviction crisis with the highest levels of evictions across
• So we need progressive revenue in this state to overcome what is happening at the federal level to help
• Now, part of the reason why that budgetary shortfall existed was because Washington, through last year

Summary: State Rep. Shaun Scott and supporters held a press event promoting the proposed Well Washington Fund, a new dedicated account intended to raise about $3 billion annually through a corporate payroll tax on wages above $125,000. Scott said the fund would help Washington respond to federal austerity policies and protect programs at risk from H.R. 1 and related Trump administration cuts, especially in housing, health care, higher education, cash assistance, and wildfire response. He also referenced related revenue ideas, including restoring wildfire mitigation funding by ending a bank tax break and allowing counties to raise corporate taxes. Several speakers testified in support of the proposal. Michelle Thomas of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance warned that federal housing policy changes could put more than 5,000 people at risk of losing housing and said the state needs progressive revenue to address evictions and homelessness. Christina Savitsky, a disabled veteran, described how Medicaid, food assistance, and housing cuts would affect her family and said recertification and work requirements would be difficult to meet. University of Washington faculty representatives said federal cuts are threatening teaching, research, nursing and public health workforce training, and hospital funding. Fatima Boxwala of Tech for Taxes and Mikey Stramskis of the Washington Federation of State Employees argued that large corporations and wealthy residents should pay more to support public services. In a question-and-answer session, Scott said the bill’s urgency could justify an emergency clause and argued that voters had already endorsed taxing the wealthy in the 2024 capital gains referendum. He rejected concerns that the tax would drive jobs away, saying corporations already shed jobs and invest in automation, while public services and affordability are what attract residents and businesses. He said he had held encouraging conversations with some lawmakers and a credit union lobbyist, but not with major corporate interests, and urged passage of the bill in the 2026 session.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's additional levels that it can go to, but generally the written is sufficient.
• There's additional levels that it can go to. most of the action has been.
• There's additional levels that it can go to, but generally the written is sufficient.
• Our audit work is subject to a rigorous multi-level review.
• I'm not sure of the level of detail that you're looking for, but we do, well, we can quantify it.

Summary: The Joint Legislative Auditing Committee met to receive annual overviews of its oversight responsibilities and the work of the Auditor General and OPAGA. Committee staff reviewed the committee’s authority over state and local governments, enforcement of audit-report filing requirements, repeated audit findings, Transparency Florida reporting, and lobbying compensation audits. Auditor General Cheryl Norman described her office’s independence, audit standards, quality control, and major audit areas, including the state’s annual financial and single audits, school district and university audits, operational and performance audits, and attestation work. She also noted staffing shortages, recruitment efforts, and a request for carry-forward funds to study salaries. Members asked about whether audits can quantify recoverable dollars, how school district spending comparisons are handled, and how to raise concerns about DCF-related audits or a local city audit that has been pending for years. Norman said her office can quantify findings when possible, sometimes compares costs across districts in operational audits, and that members can bring specific concerns to the appropriate deputy auditor general or the committee. She also explained that citizen or local-government audit requests may require payment of audit costs. OPAGA Coordinator Kara Collins-Gomez outlined OPAGA’s role as a legislative research unit that conducts studies directed by law, the presiding officers, or the committee, and described its policy areas, methodologies, contract monitoring, and recurring statutory reports. Deputy Auditor General Matthew Tracy explained how to read operational audit reports, including findings, criteria, condition, cause, effect, recommendations, and management responses. Deputy Auditor General Greg Senators explained financial audit reports, including audit opinions, required supplementary information, internal control and compliance findings, federal program compliance, and management letters. The meeting concluded with thanks to the presenters and a motion to adjourn, which passed without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• practices that have come to our attention and which I believe are exploiting the employees at certain levels
• They were, from speaking to them on various levels, they have the capacity to be able to do this.
• be faced and The agencies are faced with directly, they have many budgetary concerns.
• Representative was a 30-day session and we knew of the budgetary constraints that we would be faced and
• the agencies are faced with directly they have many budgetary concerns the logical place to begin was

Summary: The House Labor, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee met and first heard House Memorial 7, which asks Legislative Council Service, the State Personnel Office, DFA, and GSD to study the use of temporary, term, seasonal, casual, on-call, and other non-regular classifications in state government. The memorial was presented as a response to concerns that some workers are repeatedly terminated and rehired, sometimes after a one-day break, to avoid regular status and associated benefits. Testimony from CWA and AFSCME described long-term temporary workers at the National Hispanic Cultural Center and other agencies who allegedly do full-time work without health insurance, retirement, leave, or consistent pay progression, and who in some cases were denied union coverage. Committee members questioned the scope, definitions of temporary employment, and whether the issue should instead be referred to the state auditor; the sponsor said the study would gather data and recommendations first. The committee voted due pass, and House Memorial 7 passed unanimously. The committee then heard House Bill 177, which appropriates funds to the Veterans Services Department to contract for shelter and care of service and companion animals so veterans can access housing, medical care, and other services without fearing separation from their pets. Support came from the Veterans Services Department, Animal Protection New Mexico, and the Veterans and Military Families Caucus/Veterans Integration Center, all of whom said pets are often a barrier to veterans seeking care and that existing community-based animal boarding models could be used. The bill received no opposition, and the committee voted due pass with no opposition. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 43, a PERA cleanup bill intended to update and clarify the Public Employees Retirement Act and align it with administrative practice. Testimony focused on a provision allowing PERA to use licensed physicians, including out-of-state physicians who can be licensed in New Mexico, to serve on the disability review process when needed so disability cases are not delayed. Committee members raised concerns about ensuring medical expertise and avoiding abuse of the licensing flexibility, but PERA explained the change was meant to address recruitment difficulties and maintain timely review. The committee voted due pass on House Bill 43.

Transcript Highlights:

• So specifically, what I was doing was to live within our own budgetary limitations.
• Again, 88% of the budgetary limitations.
• There's one more level in between, but I'm afraid I'd quote it to you wrong. I believe it's $1,200.

Committee: All ALC-PERSONNEL

Summary: The committee first reviewed several personnel actions. It approved the Arkansas State Police request to swap three corporal positions for three lieutenant positions to supervise increased trooper staffing along the I-40 corridor, with no net increase in positions and an estimated cost of $89,000 from general revenue. It also approved Arkansas State University-Jonesboro’s request for three project/program administrator pool positions to support the new College of Veterinary Medicine, and approved the Department of Commerce Economic Development Commission’s request for an extra help position tied to Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act work. One item was pulled from consideration. The committee then received a report on a reduction in force at the Department of Veterans Affairs that eliminated six positions. Senator Petty asked for reassurance that veterans’ services would not be harmed, and VA Secretary Colonel Rob Ader explained that the action was part of a broader restructuring rather than a simple cut, intended to realign the agency, free resources, and expand services such as a new continuum-of-care program, veteran employment support, and stronger coordination with employers as veterans transition out of service. He said the agency also expected to save money. Members also questioned VA officials about the impact on county and district veteran service officers and about severance and retirement implications for affected employees. VA officials said the county VSO program remains in place, with efforts underway to improve training, supervision, and consistency across counties, including reporting to county judges. They also explained that severance is based on years of service, is not recouped if an employee later takes another state job, and that retirement eligibility and early-retirement penalties would still apply under existing rules. The committee took no further action after the reports and adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• And we want to continue to sustain that level of bridges in good condition We want to decrease our miles
• That level was eight. Some changes were made on the Transportation Commission today.
• , and our funding projections are relatively flat, so we don't project increases into our funding levels
• When you consider all of those factors and our investment levels currently, this is where we end up.
• This is a budgetary need that will become either we get it or we don't.