Transcript Highlights:

• Fraudsters also try to gain access to services including things like productivity software such as Office
• <00:08:41.519> such<00:08:41.760> as<00:08:41.919> Office productivity software
• such as Office productivity software such as Office 365.<00:08:43.599> They<00:08:43.839>
• Then they learned they could get software discounts if they had a .edu behind their email address, and
• <00:33:58.080> discounts that they could get software discounts that they could get software

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Funding would support software acquisition, configuration, and staffing to allow the board to shift from
• The first one is modernizing payments for routine software licenses.
• trying to do is create statutory allowance so that advanced payments can be made to certain IT or software
• And basically what this proposal will do is ensure that there’s a more speedy time to acquire the software
• get a discount for the yearly payment versus the monthly, by paying for like three years’ worth of software

Keywords: 988, house, all

Summary: The subcommittee held a May Revision budget hearing on state administration and related issues, hearing presentations from multiple departments and agencies. Early items included the Public Employment Relations Board on funding for implementation of AB 1 and a reduced request tied to AB 288, the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement on a technical College Corps adjustment, and the Secretary of State on building security upgrades, election security grant matching funds, and payroll system readiness costs. The Department of Consumer Affairs presented a Board of Pharmacy modernization request and a General Fund backfill for the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education; the LAO raised no concerns on the pharmacy item but recommended rejecting the private postsecondary backfill and questioned interest-free loan language. The Employment Development Department outlined several large workload and benefit adjustments, including EDD Next document management funding, UI loan interest, DI/PFL benefit increases, WIOA adjustments, school employee benefits, an EMT training reappropriation, and a technical reversion correction; the LAO flagged the size of the DI/PFL increase and the expansion of the document management scope, while members asked about program impacts and timelines. The California Workforce Development Board presented an April adjustment to reimbursement authority for an interagency agreement with Caltrans, which the LAO said raised no concerns. Public comment on that item and others included support for workforce and apprenticeship initiatives, including the Jails to Jobs proposal and renewal of the Apprenticeship Innovation Fund, though those were not part of the May Revision package. The Department of Industrial Relations then presented several proposals: reclassifying legal positions, continuing modernization of the workers’ compensation EAMS system, Cal/OSHA data modernization, creating a Cal/OSHA emerging technologies unit, reappropriating funds for the California Opportunity Youth Apprenticeship program, and trailer bill changes requiring electronic payment of employer assessments and adjusting the statutory treatment of the workers’ compensation administrative director’s salary. The LAO generally found the IT and salary proposals reasonable but urged close monitoring of the new emerging technologies unit. Committee members, especially Assemblymember Ortega, pressed DIR on long vacancy rates, wage theft claim delays, low collection rates for Cal/OSHA fines, and whether new resources would improve outcomes; DIR said it was pursuing recruitment, classification reviews, and process modernization, while the LAO noted that staffing alone may not explain the delays. The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board also sought to make permanent a 2024 change to the 60-day reconsideration clock, saying it had reduced backlog and interim orders; the LAO had no concerns. Finally, the Department of Human Resources presented a statewide Employee Assistance Program contract consolidation that would lower costs compared with renewing separate contracts and requested one program manager position to oversee the contract and first responder services; the hearing continued with Finance’s response after the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• The licensing software is to go with that.
• category, of course, with our e prosecutor case management system is going to come the annual licensing software
• And we would definitely need that, or we'll be running a system that doesn't run without the software
• just heard AODA say a little bit, but we are going to need to be upgrading and updating all of our software
• appreciate the funding that we got. last year in our budget for NICE N I C E, the cloud storage software

Transcript Highlights:

• When I say technology, I mean for things like Microsoft software, which is on every county computer.
• And we can either pay for the increased cost, get another software product, or get out our number two
• With new software and technology, we could have prevented that.
• Our Sheriff's been to Commissioner's Court the last three sessions asking for. new software to help prevent
• That cost is over $200,000 in software. expense that we, as Commissioner's Court, are trying to find

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The software is really the key to bring all these things together.
• <00:09:22.880> The<00:09:23.120> software<00:09:23.440> is aggregator software
• The software is aggregator software.
• Uh, but the power, all the software is there. Uh, the hardware can do it.
• And you can pre-program this in software.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We provide state-of-the-art computers to enable the creation of industry solutions and software.
• So we can provide state-of-the-art computers to help the creation of industry solutions and software.
• will create new companies that take advantage of the quantum internet that do not exist today, both software

Bills: SB145, SB143

Keywords: auditing, financial reporting, state auditor, public agencies, capital outlay, compliance, federal audits, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture, fee update, regulatory fees, egg inspection, egg grading, egg dealer, pesticide control, pesticide registration, pesticide applicator, pest management consultant, plant protection, nursery license

Transcript Highlights:

• The hardware and software for all employees is in working order and is also charged with keeping the
• pricing of all the related things dealing with maintenance enhancements and the related third-party software
• calculated between $25,000 and $25,000. $25,000 to $35,000 and it would give the employee access to some software

Keywords: Texas Ethics Commission, HB18, SB12, political contributions, civil penalties, Attorney General, criminal election offenses, legislation

Summary: In the latest meeting of the Texas Ethics Commission, significant discussions centered around newly passed legislation, specifically HB18 and SB12. HB18 introduces a civil penalty for members who accept political contributions while absent from the state, addressing potential obstructions to legislative actions. Senators and commissioners engaged in an in-depth dialogue about the implications of this bill, with many expressing concerns regarding enforcement and compliance. In contrast, SB12 expands the jurisdiction of the Attorney General to prosecute criminal election offenses, further tightening the oversight of election activities. The meeting concluded with acknowledgement of the efforts put forth by previous commission chairs, highlighting their contributions to the commission's success.

Transcript Highlights:

• You can see the $38 million up there for the software systems integrator contract.
• But we have not pulled the software from another state to answer that part of the question.
• PeopleSoft is public software used by both public and private sector, but it is not unique to Florida

Summary: The State Administration Budget Subcommittee heard presentations from the Department of Financial Services on the My Safe Florida Home program, the My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot, and the Florida PALM financial system replacement project. For My Safe Florida Home, Stephen Fielder explained the wind-mitigation grant program, including its inspection-first process, two-to-one matching grants for most homeowners, low-income exemptions from the match, and eligible improvements such as roofs, clips/straps, water barriers, and opening protection. He reported roughly 109,000 initial inspections, nearly 59,000 grants approved, 31,000 final inspections, 25,000 reimbursements, and about $240 million paid out through the end of 2024. Members asked about premium savings, contractor pricing, fraud, owner-builder eligibility, reimbursement timing, and whether the program should have a dedicated funding source; Fielder said the program is currently closed, more than 40,000 people have signed up for updates, and the office has seen some price-gouging and impersonation issues but no major fraud trend. The committee also discussed the new prioritization rules that took effect July 1, 2024, which direct grant awards by age and income. Fielder said the program used a survey of existing applicants to implement the new priority groups and that the first group was over age 60 and low-income. Members raised questions about how premium reductions are measured, whether insurance company changes or rising insured values affect the data, and whether the program can track long-term outcomes after reimbursement. Fielder said the office reports raw premium changes based on declarations pages, knows the insurer for participants, and has validated results with multiple insurers, but does not track homeowners after they leave the program or enforce continued insurance coverage. For the My Safe Florida Condo Pilot, Fielder said the program is modeled on the home program but uses association-level applications, a maximum grant of $175,000 per association, and a similar two-to-one match. He said the application window opened briefly in November and was closed quickly because available funding could be exhausted and the department is prohibited from creating a waiting list. He identified several needed statutory changes, including better distinguishing condos from single-family homes, adjusting roof requirements for flat concrete roofs, and revisiting the unanimous unit-owner vote requirement, which he said has been a major obstacle. Chair Lopez noted the pilot is intended to be a learning process and thanked DFS staff for identifying implementation issues. The final presentation covered Florida PALM, the state’s effort to replace the 40-year-old FLAIR accounting system with a PeopleSoft-based financial management system. Fielder and PALM Director Jimmy Cox said the project began in 2014, the state contracted with Accenture in 2018, cash management went live in 2021, and the project was paused in 2022 for legislative review and remediation. They said the system is expected to go live in 2026, possibly in July rather than January, and that the project has spent about $225 million to date, with a current-year budget of about $60.9 million and a projected next-year request of about $64 million. Members asked about cybersecurity, cloud hosting, project scope, and whether the system is unique to Florida; staff said the system is not Florida-specific, access is credentialed through agency identity management, and the cloud host location is confidential. After the presentations, Chair Lopez assigned members to work with specific agencies on budget review meetings, asked them to discuss agency structure, priorities, staffing, waste reduction, and other budget issues, and set a deadline to report findings in the first week of regular session. The meeting then adjourned without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so of the 6%, 80% of returns claiming the marriage credit were software-generated and just... federal
• ><00:43:38.000> generated<00:43:38.480> that<00:43:38.720> are are actually software
• generated that are are actually software generated that are submitted<00:43:39.200> on<00:43:
• marriage 80% of returns claiming the marriage credit<00:43:44.000> were<00:43:44.240> software
• , and just under 20% were non-software-generated in tax year 2023.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• She added that some local governmental entities can afford the software, but generally not many can.
• Generally, not not afford the software. Generally, not not many<00:47:48.160> though.
• We've looked into potentially getting software that helps us manage it.
• <02:50:35.600> Some software that helps us manage it.
• Some software that helps us manage it.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And um I use regular kind of software to file my taxes.
• And um I use regular kind of software to file my taxes.
• And um I use regular kind of software to file my taxes.
• And um I use regular kind of software to file my taxes.
• And um I use regular kind of software to file my taxes.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , which is that it says that companies have to ensure that they don't, by any means, including a software
• So you couldn't, by virtue of a software update or other modification... ...so that you couldn't, by
• virtue of a software update or other modification, disable the ability of the human being who bought
• features it has, you could retain the right to drive that car, and the company may not, through software

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , which is that it says that companies have to ensure that they don't, by any means, including a software
• being who buys one of their cars to drive that car themselves, so that you couldn't, by virtue of a software
• update or other modification, So that you couldn't, by virtue of a software update or other modification
• features it has, you could retain the right to drive that car, and the company may not, through software

Summary: The Assembly Transportation Committee met first as a subcommittee due to the lack of a quorum, then later obtained a quorum and took up several bills. The committee heard SB 1064, which would reduce the frequency of Clean Truck Check testing for low-use heavy-duty vehicles; supporters said it would ease burdens on rural agricultural businesses, while clean air advocates opposed it as weakening an important emissions program. The bill was approved and sent to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The committee also heard SB 1174, which would give Caltrans bid preferences to construction firms with employee stock ownership plans; supporters argued it would build worker wealth and improve project quality, while contractor groups opposed it as likely to raise costs and reduce competition. That bill was approved and sent to the Assembly Judiciary Committee. The consent calendar items SB 607, SB 962, and SB 990 were also approved. The committee then heard SB 1279, which would allow Long Beach to place additional speed safety cameras on Pacific Coast Highway. Long Beach officials and several safety and advocacy groups supported the bill, citing high fatality rates and repeated pedestrian crashes on that corridor, while some members raised concerns about fines, affordability, and whether cameras would address pedestrian-related collisions. The bill passed as amended to the Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee. SB 1213, the Clean Truck Transportation Act, would require more price transparency for medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission truck incentives and direct agencies to explore alternative financing tools; supporters said it would improve affordability and competition, while one manufacturer and the trucking association raised implementation concerns. It passed to the Assembly Natural Resources Committee. The committee also heard SB 1013, which would tighten rules for automated license plate reader use by limiting retention to 30 days, requiring audits and training, and restricting access and hot list use. Privacy advocates supported the bill as overdue accountability, while law enforcement groups argued the retention limit would hinder investigations and that some technical definitions needed work. The bill passed to the Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee. SB 1315, dealing with advanced driver assistance systems, would prevent automakers from disabling a consumer’s ability to drive their own vehicle through software updates and would encourage DMV testing questions about ADAS responsibilities; after amendments, industry opposition softened and the bill passed to the Assembly Judiciary Committee. Finally, SB 1246, on autonomous vehicle emergency response, would require U.S.-based remote drivers, quicker on-scene response, and better coordination with local agencies; first responders and labor groups supported it, while AV industry groups remained opposed unless amended. The bill passed to the Assembly Communications and Conveyance Committee. The transcript ended as the committee began hearing SB 1250, a planning bill to incorporate wildlife connectivity into transportation asset management, with the sponsor and supporters explaining it would improve safety and habitat planning without mandating specific projects.

Transcript Highlights:

• Currently, 54 of the clerks use our e-filing software through clerkconnect.com, a public portal.
• The clerks and the clerks association, through the software, have the ability to allow DAs, prosecutors
• And so Tensas pays a lot less in terms of the support of their software than East Baton Rouge.
• Thank you so much. less in terms of the support of their software than in East Baton Rouge.

Summary: The Criminal Justice Committee met on May 12 and took up a series of bills, mostly on juvenile justice, gaming-related background checks, bail/electronic bonds, and corrections policy. Early in the meeting, the committee reported favorably SB 258 on juvenile traffic violations, SB 321 on electronic bonds, SB 134 on limiting certain child sexual abuse material offenses for juveniles under 17 in specific circumstances, HB 75 on promotional play for racetracks as amended, and SB 422 on unsupervised probation for certain fourth-offense impaired driving cases. Later, the committee also advanced SB 440 on the Renaissance District board membership, SB 393 on explosives regulation, SB 487 on charitable gaming rental arrangements, SB 339 and SB 288 on criminal background check procedures in the gaming and related regulatory systems, and SB 325 on excluding certain persons from sports wagering. A major portion of the hearing focused on SB 201, which would change juvenile homicide sentencing procedures, including first- and second-degree murder cases, and how reviewing courts consider parole eligibility and prior death sentences converted to life. Supporters said the bill aligns sentencing with existing Supreme Court precedent and gives courts clearer guidance; opponents from children’s rights and civil liberties groups argued it weakens the “rarest and uncommon” safeguard for juvenile life-without-parole sentences and could expand harsh sentencing beyond constitutional limits. After debate and testimony, the committee adopted an amendment and reported SB 201 favorably by a 7-3 vote, with Representatives Adams, Knox, Moore, and others voting no. The committee also heard SB 523 on clemency and sentencing considerations for defendants who are victims of domestic abuse, human trafficking, or sexual assault. Survivors’ advocates and domestic violence organizations supported the bill’s overall purpose but objected to the mandatory pre-sentence investigation language, warning it could introduce biased information and harm survivors; the Board of Pardons and Parole said its staff and trauma-informed victim assistance coordinators are trained to handle these cases. The committee adopted an amendment narrowing the bill and then reported SB 523 favorably. Finally, SB 320 on DNA detection and crime lab reporting was advanced without opposition, and SB 470 on pregnant women in custody passed after testimony from the Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association and discussion of pregnancy testing, bonding options, and prohibiting shackling during delivery and postpartum periods.

Transcript Highlights:

• facilitated payments for companies that tricked consumers into buying expensive and unnecessary antivirus software
• buying expensive and unnecessary into buying expensive and unnecessary antivirus<00:09:53.079> software
• and<00:09:54.399> services<00:09:55.399> in<00:09:55.560> many antivirus software
• and services in many antivirus software and services in many cases<00:09:56.360> seniors<00:09

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Technology and software, primarily in the healthcare space, but I've enjoyed technology for the past
• Technology and software, primarily in the healthcare space, but enjoyed technology for the past 21, 23
• we're talking about a public sharing of information—this is all public information—can go and have software
• consume one of these services that are listed and be able to... ...have software consume one of these

Summary: The subcommittee held its first meeting to examine Florida’s information technology governance, budgeting, cybersecurity, data management, and telecommunications operations. Chair Schneider and other members framed the panel as a new joint policy-and-budget forum focused on reducing jargon, improving accountability, and asking whether technology investments are feasible, aligned with state goals, cost-controlled, and secure. State Affairs Chairman Will Robinson and members emphasized that the committee should avoid buying “shiny new objects” without clear business cases and should focus on long-term value, cybersecurity, and operational efficiency. Florida Digital Service and Department of Management Services leaders provided an overview of the state IT enterprise. Secretary Pedro Allende described DMS as the state’s business, workforce, and technology service provider, while State CIO Warren Spanholz outlined Florida Digital Service’s four core areas: cybersecurity, project success, data interoperability, and enterprise architecture. Chief Data Officer Ed Ryan said the state data catalog is about 400,000 elements and roughly half of agencies are participating, and he described efforts to identify authoritative data sources and improve interoperability. Chief Information Security Officer Jeremy Rogers discussed the state cybersecurity operations center, enterprise risk management, incident response exercises, and a recurring $35 million cybersecurity resiliency budget. Chief Technology Officer Leo Schoonover described oversight of major IT projects over $10 million, updated project management standards, and a shift toward smaller phased implementations and more flexible methodologies to reduce delays and overruns. Other presenters covered telecommunications, data center operations, and cybersecurity workforce development. Director Denise Atkins said the Division of Telecommunications manages Suncom and MyFloridaNet, with nearly $336.9 million appropriated for fiscal year 2024-25, and is procuring the next network contract while emphasizing security controls and vendor flexibility. Tim Brown said the Northwest Regional Data Center operates on a chargeback basis, serves state and local customers, and returned surpluses to customers in recent years. Cyber Florida Director Ernie Ferraroso described training, workforce pipelines, K-12 outreach, a cyber range, and research programs aimed at building Florida’s cyber workforce and improving public-sector readiness. Members asked about budget setting, project delays, change orders, cybersecurity reporting, data catalog participation, interoperability, and expanding cybersecurity operations centers. Officials said chargeback rates are based on actual direct and indirect costs, project delays often stem from unclear scope and insufficient upfront planning, and cybersecurity success is measured by mean time to detect, respond, and recover. They also said the state is moving toward more modular project delivery, broader agency participation in shared cybersecurity services, and expanded CSOC locations within existing staff and budget where feasible.

Transcript Highlights:

• We'd have to go into our software. We use a software database called Nevern Plus.
• We would have to have the ability to go in and add that opt-out function to our software.
• They're entering it directly into our vital record software known as Never Plus.
• 01:09:52.480> our<01:09:52.719> vital<01:09:53.040> record<01:09:53.359> software
• directly into our vital record software directly into our vital record software known<01:09:53.920

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They don't have to go through the onerous process of the software that is provided.
• They don't have to go through the onerous process of the software that is provided.
• c> and guidelines uh to report on the and guidelines uh to report on the cognia<00:26:34.799> software
• that's<00:26:35.440> used<00:26:35.880> to<00:26:36.039> complete cognia software
• that's used to complete cognia software that's used to complete the<00:26:36.520> CPS<00:26:36.960

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The House Primary and Secondary Education Committee met and first took up House Bill 14, which would establish Alyssa’s Law in Kentucky public schools. The bill, as amended by committee substitute, would allow districts to implement wearable panic alert systems for school staff beginning in the 2025-26 school year. Sponsor Rep. Kevin Jackson and supporters described the system as a silent badge/button that can alert school offices, 911, first responders, and other personnel, with different button sequences for different emergencies. Testimony from Lori Alade, Alyssa’s mother and founder of Make Our Schools Safe, emphasized that “time equals life” and said the technology can help in active threats, medical emergencies, weather events, and other urgent situations. Students from St. Margaret Mary’s Kentucky Youth Assembly also supported the bill, citing the Georgia school shooting response as an example of how such systems can save lives. Members asked about vendor neutrality, costs, training, and whether the system could be used off campus; sponsors said the bill is intended to be vendor neutral, estimated statewide costs ranged from about $2 million to $6 million, training would be provided before the school year, and they would follow up on the off-campus question. The committee approved HB 14 with the committee substitute attached. The committee then reconsidered and approved House Bill 48, a cleanup measure related to school reporting requirements. The substitute was described as addressing department concerns about eliminating certain reporting forms while preserving district flexibility and reducing burdensome reporting. It would allow schools to maintain or use alternative reporting methods, provide KDE a timeline and guidelines for reporting on Cognia software used for CPS and C-dips, and require a written report to the LRC describing reporting requirements imposed on public schools and districts, with items not reapproved by the legislature sunsetting in 2026. The bill passed the committee with the committee substitute attached. Finally, the committee heard House Bill 190, as amended by committee substitute, which would shift the measure from a planning-and-action bill to a planning-only bill for advanced coursework and codify some gifted-student regulations. Rep. Duvall and Dr. Julia Link Roberts of WKU said the bill is intended to expand opportunities for high-potential students by requiring districts to set policies on advanced coursework or accelerated learning options for grades 4 through 12. The substitute changes the standard from “proficient” to “distinguished,” allows districts flexibility in how they implement the policies, and may require automatic enrollment for students scoring distinguished, with opt-out provisions and a principal exception if coursework conflicts with career pathways or CTE access. Members discussed how the proposal differs from current advanced programs, the broader inclusion of students, and district variation in available opportunities. No final vote on HB 190 was included in the transcript excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• guardrails around bulk purchase activity in the state, both through procedure changes and through software
• And we pushed through an emergency software challenge. driver's license ID before you can make a purchase
• Moving on to Item 4, Legacy Software Enhancement, the following recommendations include the following
• Growth, refresh, laptops, desktop computers, hardware and software.
• you have people going to jail been there done all that and in and five years later it's the same software

Bills: SB1, SB 1

Keywords: appropriations, budget, state funding, education, healthcare, infrastructure, campground safety, youth camp regulations, flood safety, emergency evacuation, health and safety standards, 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• as a service cloud-based uh software as a service cloud-based uh data<00:39:51.400> collection
• systems data access and software systems data access and business<01:45:53.040> processes<01:
• money the investments in mostly software money the investments in mostly software and<01:49:43.840
• I've actually been in computer science for over 50 years, and I taught software design, although I'm
• However, our software vendor for billing and all other systems pretty much is the NISC platform, which

Keywords: 1189, house, all