Transcript Highlights:

• I AM EAGER TO UNDERSTAND HOW THESE FUNDS WERE UTILIZED.
• OUR SOCIETY AFTER THE BOARD MEETING AND THOSE FUNDS WERE ISSUED IMMEDIATELY TO SAVE OUR SOCIETY WITHOUT
• SO THE LARGE PART OF THOSE FUNDS THAT WE HAVE OUR SNAP FUNDS WHICH ARE ABOUT 50, 50. 50 PERCENT OF THE
• CAN YOU EXPAND. >> THE $100 MILLION IN SAVINGS DOES NOT INCLUDE A MEDICAID SAVINGS.
• FUNDS. >> Rep.

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill holds general fund spending steady. that re-prioritizes how other funds are used.
• We were able to fund that at $50 million.
• There's a bridge in Maple Grove that got hit by a truck, and we're using general fund dollars to fund
• Can we use those funds?"
• Things like funding for Metro Mobility—we were able to fund Metro Mobility.

Transcript Highlights:

• It creates a retirement fund trust for future retirement contributions.
• Fund treatment coordination services at 100% of the Medicare rates.
• We also fully fund the operations for that treatment facility.
• This is a savings reform work group.
• </c><00:14:37.839><c> that</c> that there are real um cost savings that that there are real um cost savings

Transcript Highlights:

• So under that report, the available funding... As well as funding for the project.
• That does produce cost savings.
• taxes or the general fund.'
• So you have station savings costs, and the local... ...you have station savings costs and the length
• The first being full funding transparency, given the widely discussed increases and funding gaps that

Committee: House Transportation

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you for saving time as well as for serving as chair.
• The preferences did not meet the fuel savings target.
• It saves $2.9 million to $13 million.
• of small beneficiaries and their savings are decreasing.
• Those funds in the year that the home sells.

Summary: The meeting began with JLARC’s biennial executive committee elections. Members elected Representative Pollitt as chair, Senator Wagner as vice chair, Representative Orcutt as secretary, and Senator Solomon as assistant secretary, all by roll call vote. The committee then approved the May 14 meeting minutes unanimously, and Chair Pollitt noted plans to strengthen bipartisan input and coordination on future audit scopes and agendas. Staff then presented a preliminary report on Washington State recreational boating programs. They said six agencies collect or spend boating-related funds, that the state collected $108 million in boating-related revenue during the 2021-23 biennium, and that $86 million was spent on boating-related activities. Most spending went to infrastructure and water access, with additional amounts for environmental protection, boater safety, and marine law enforcement. Staff also summarized a survey of other states showing Washington’s boating laws are broadly similar to those elsewhere. The committee spent most of the meeting on preliminary tax preference reviews. JLARC staff reviewed preferences for natural gas used for transportation, travel agents and tour operators, nonprofit low-income housing development, multipurpose senior citizen centers, disabled veteran adapted housing, trade convention attendance, agricultural fertilizer and seed wholesaling, hazardous substance tax treatment for certain pesticides, and energy sold to silicon smelters. Recommendations ranged from continuing preferences, modifying reporting or performance metrics, and in some cases allowing preferences to expire. Members raised questions about emissions benefits, missing employment data, low utilization by veterans, housing reporting gaps, and whether some preferences still fit current policy goals. The committee also adopted the proposed final cannabis market study. Staff reported that Washington businesses produced two to three times more cannabis than retailers sold in 2023, and that the Liquor and Cannabis Board’s reporting system is incomplete and unreliable. LCB said it is working toward a new system and concurred with JLARC’s recommendations, though it said the timeline may extend beyond 2026. The committee then began the proposed final report on Department of Health oversight of hospital data reporting, inspections, and complaints, with staff saying DOH was late on most acute care hospital inspections and does not consistently verify third-party inspections or fully review complaint and reporting issues; DOH concurred with the recommendations.

Transcript Highlights:

• But this is how nonprofits are funded.
• Funds that we now aren't able to use in our programming and provide more services.
• But the bill is not the reason why SNAP is not being funded next.
• So savings on that alone, you know, the sales tax savings... system which is not always reliable sometimes
• This loss of $20,000 to $30,000 reduces... ...or eliminates savings, big issue savings that insulate

Committee: House A&B Finance Subcommittee

Summary: The committee heard an interim study on expanding or simplifying sales tax exemptions for Oklahoma nonprofits. Representatives Stark and Schreiber said the issue has been filed repeatedly over several sessions and framed it as a bipartisan effort to keep more charitable dollars in service of communities rather than paying sales tax. Schreiber also suggested broader tax reform or an omnibus approach rather than continuing to add individual exemptions. Marnie Taylor of the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits gave an overview of the sector, describing nonprofits as a major part of the state economy and safety net, and argued that many organizations are highly regulated, under-resourced, and facing declining donations and funding. She said the current patchwork of exemptions is uneven and that a blanket or broader exemption would help organizations serving public needs. Committee members asked for sources behind some of the poverty, education, and health rankings cited in her presentation. Several nonprofit leaders testified about how sales tax affects their operations. RG Foods described the cost of opening neighborhood grocery markets in food deserts and said sales tax on a Tulsa project would divert about $85,000 from programming. Jubilee Partners, Skyline Urban Outreach, the Pencil Box, the Tulsa Police Foundation, Blue Rose Ranch, and Legacy Parenting Center each explained how exemption status or the lack of it affects food assistance, school supplies, public safety equipment, animal rescue, and diapers and family support. Members asked follow-up questions about food desert definitions, budgets, and how much sales tax savings would change operations. No vote was taken in the excerpt, but the study concluded with closing remarks emphasizing that the exemption would keep more money in direct services and support the nonprofit sector statewide.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's us, and it accumulates in a fund and we use part of that fund every year to fund positions that
• </c> in a fund and we use part of that fund in a fund and we use part of that fund every<00:28:53.600
• Because I can save<00:40:57.920><c> money.</c> save money. save money.
• So, if you reduce the judges in here, there was no cost savings because they weren't funded in the House's
• Not funds but funds but people. Pardon? Not funds but people.<00:49:50.480><c> Okay.

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• As I said, it is funded by, you know, currently a SAMHSA grant and also the 988 fund.
• You saved me.”
• fund administrator.
• So when this integration actually happens, there's potential funding or funding savings there.
• So when this integration actually happens, there's potential funding or funding savings there.

Summary: The hearing focused on California’s 988 suicide and crisis lifeline and the broader crisis response system, with members and witnesses emphasizing both the system’s life-saving role and the risks posed by funding gaps, rising demand, and uneven local implementation. Opening remarks highlighted the personal impact of suicide and the need to strengthen crisis response so calls are answered quickly and linked to appropriate care rather than defaulting to 911, emergency rooms, or law enforcement. State officials described the AB 988 five-year implementation plan, which sets goals around public awareness, equitable access, high-quality call/chat/text response, and better integration with ongoing behavioral health services. State agencies reported progress on infrastructure, coordination, and related behavioral health investments. CalHHS said California has expanded mobile crisis teams, crisis stabilization units, and youth behavioral health supports, and is preparing additional public awareness and grant programs tied to Proposition 1. DHCS explained that 988 is funded through a federal SAMHSA grant and the AB 988 surcharge, while Medi-Cal separately funds mobile crisis services; officials said the mobile crisis benefit is active in 53 counties and that statewide expansion remains a work in progress. Cal OES described the statewide technical buildout, including network infrastructure in all 11 crisis centers, interoperability with 911, and a pilot of next-generation routing and call-handling tools. The 988 California Consortium said call volume continues to rise sharply, missed calls remain a major concern, text/chat capacity is limited, and centers need more stable funding, better reimbursement, and stronger feedback loops with the state. County and community witnesses stressed that local systems need more flexible, sustained support to match the demand. Lake County described a peer-led rural mobile crisis model that has reduced law enforcement holds and increased housing placements, but said county-run mobile crisis teams still cannot reliably access 988 surcharge dollars and face reimbursement problems from Medi-Cal and commercial plans. Santa Clara County reported strong performance metrics, rapid call answer times, and a broad continuum of mobile crisis services, but said staffing and funding are strained and commercial reimbursement remains slow. The Mental Health Association of San Francisco said the peer-run warm line complements 988 by offering non-emergency support and warm handoffs, but recent budget changes forced cuts to Spanish-language service, federation support, and hours. No formal votes or legislative actions were taken during the hearing; members mainly asked questions about surcharge levels, budget timing, coordination among agencies, data collection, and how to improve collaboration with frontline crisis centers.

Transcript Highlights:

• The Rainy Day Fund is a new fund that was approved by the U.S. Department of Labor last year.
• It limits the legislature's ability to either withdraw funds from the BSA or to suspend funds into the
• The general fund taxes, everything that's above 8% of general fund taxes is considered excess capital
• And then how are the funds invested in the Radio Day Fund?
• from the Rainy Day Fund?

Transcript Highlights:

• at the time, we started down a road to save money for our future and to fund our future.
• fund, which saves the into our general fund, which saves the day<01:34:42.400><c> of</c><01:34:42.639
• And if we have these funds in the short-term savings of LISRA, that future legislature can choose to
• we have these funds in the short-term<01:40:22.800><c> savings</c><01:40:23.119><c> of</c><01:40:23.360
• </c> new funds? new funds?

Committee: Joint Appropriations

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, we are reducing funding in a lot of areas and we're trying to save money, but yet there was no cuts
• Um, we are reducing funding in a lot of areas and we're trying to save money, but yet there was no cuts
• Um, we are reducing funding in a lot of areas and we're trying to save money, but yet there was no cuts
• Um, we are reducing funding in a lot of areas and we're trying to save money, but yet there was no cuts
• Um, we are reducing funding in a lot of areas and we're trying to save money, but yet there was no cuts

Transcript Highlights:

• So this proposed legislation will be funded by a newly created Senior Breakfast and Lunch Fund, managed
• The fund will draw from various sources.
• We also have funding, local funding for legal services, state funding, some other robust programs that
• We also have funding, local funding for legal services, state funding, and some other robust programs
• And while service coordinators are primarily funded through housing funds, H. 1369, which I hope the

Summary: The committee heard testimony on several aging-related bills, with most speakers focusing on housing stability, home-based services, and care transitions. Representative Badger and a commissioner testified in support of H4039, which would create a universal breakfast and lunch program at senior centers funded through a new Senior Breakfast and Lunch Fund, arguing it would reduce food insecurity and social isolation among older adults. Representative Lipper-Garabedian and multiple providers then supported H780/S495, the hospital-to-home partnership program, describing how embedded aging-services liaisons help older patients transition safely from hospitals to home, reduce readmissions, and avoid nursing facility placement; witnesses from Mystic Valley Elder Services and Mass Aging Access cited pilot results, including hundreds of patients served and examples of substantial cost savings and successful discharge planning. The committee also took testimony on S478, which would require continuing care retirement communities to disclose entrance-fee refund policies more clearly at enrollment. Senator Lovely and LeadingAge Massachusetts said the bill would improve transparency for residents and families, while a consumer witness said her family experienced delays and confusion in getting a refund after her mother left a CCRC. Members noted the issue is also being examined by a special commission on CCRCs. A large portion of the hearing focused on S475, a statewide bridge subsidy program for older adults facing housing instability. Advocates from the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, Western Massachusetts, Somerville, Northampton, East Hampton, Old Colony Elder Services, and Somerville’s Office of Housing Stability described rising senior homelessness, long waitlists for subsidized housing, and cases where short-term rental assistance kept older adults housed while they waited for permanent housing. Somerville witnesses said the pilot program helped nine households remain housed and that some participants have since moved into permanent housing. Members asked about wait times, program design, and how to prioritize applicants; witnesses emphasized flexibility, emergency risk, and the need for a statewide expansion. The hearing also included testimony on S465, an ALS bill that would expand home care access regardless of age and bar the use of quality-adjusted life-year metrics in coverage decisions, with the sponsor and ALS Association arguing the measure would reduce discriminatory treatment and better center patient care. No votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• money from that fund.
• Can you tell me exactly what these funds will be used for?
• Those funds that you referenced or the funds that are in this bill? These, the $20 million. So Mr.
• , and $2 million in additional funding from the Getham sub-account.
• I think, as a budget, we need to look at the funds that's in the Gettam funds and reposition or reallocate

Bills: HB2416 , HB2663 , HB2759 , HB2806

Committee: Senate Military Affairs and Border Security

Keywords: border security, drug trafficking, human smuggling, law enforcement funding, Arizona, public safety, immigration, military leave, national guard, employment rights, paid leave, disaster response, veterans services, education programs, funding, appropriation, Yavapai county, lawful presence, public programs, verification

Transcript Highlights:

• Fong, about the assumed savings. The assumed savings were $3.6 billion overall in General Fund.
• To utilize the ongoing $6.2 million in savings of the General Fund debt service item, Finance notes that
• That is correct. $6.2 million in savings of the general fund depth service item.
• Typical, for some projects or other departments, we reconcile their General Fund savings or their ongoing
• General Fund.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Education Finance held an extended hearing focused primarily on University of California budget issues, enrollment, housing, and Title IX. Chair David Alvarez opened by noting the governor’s proposed 8% ongoing General Fund reduction to UC, the deferral of compact funding, and the College of the Law budget item, while emphasizing that no votes would be taken that day. Public commenters, including UC Davis employees and lecturers, urged restoration of UC funding and opposed the hiring freeze, saying cuts would worsen staffing shortages, reduce research capacity, and harm students and patients. On UC core operations, the Department of Finance said the governor’s budget maintains the compact but defers $240.8 million in ongoing support and continues a planned 7.95% reduction, while the LAO recommended rejecting the deferrals and instead making any changes in the budget year. UC San Diego’s chancellor and UC Office of the President argued the cuts and deferrals would create major campus shortfalls, force hiring freezes, larger class sizes, fewer course offerings, delayed projects, and possible layoffs. Committee members questioned whether cuts could be shifted away from students and toward administration, discussed UCOP reserves and bond debt, and noted that UC’s budget structure makes the campus-level impact larger than the headline reduction. The committee also reviewed enrollment trends and nonresident replacement. The LAO said UC resident enrollment has grown and recommended revisiting 2026-27 targets and pausing the nonresident replacement plan if state funding does not improve. UC said it has exceeded California undergraduate enrollment and nonresident replacement goals, but warned that continued growth without funding would force enrollment reductions and harm quality. Members discussed the role of nonresident and international students, tuition rates, and the value of UC as a pathway for California students and a source of talent for the state. A separate housing item covered the state’s Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program. UC reported that recent bond savings could support additional affordable beds at UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara, but the LAO and Finance noted the Legislature would need to decide how to use the $6.2 million in savings from the original projects. The committee also heard a Title IX update from UC’s systemwide civil rights office, which described campus Title IX structures, training, and policy enforcement, and said the system has been working to improve confidentiality guidance and streamline complaint processes after survey feedback showed confusion and lengthy procedures.

Transcript Highlights:

• Courts would be funded. Civil courts would be funded.
• when there isn't a dedicated funding source to that trust fund.
• funding source.
• that trust fund.
• Save Our Homes.'

Committee: Senate Appropriations

Summary: The Committee on Appropriations took up SJR 2-F, the proposed constitutional amendment on property tax relief, which would reduce assessment growth on non-homestead property, expand homestead exemptions, create a new exemption for new homesteaders, and direct counties, cities, and school districts to use property tax revenues for specified core services. Senator Avila presented the measure as the governor’s plan to provide historic relief and argued that local governments should tighten budgets and prioritize core functions. Senators raised concerns about the lack of fiscal scoring, the breadth and ambiguity of the permitted uses, the effect on special districts and local services, and whether the proposal would shift costs to fees or other taxes. The committee adopted several amendments, including Avila’s amendment clarifying that ad valorem revenues could be used for county and municipal operations and administration and other expenditures not prohibited by law, and Trumbull’s amendment removing school board ad valorem taxes from the proposal. Other amendments failed, including proposals to allow user fees and non-ad valorem assessments, add a sunset, redirect tourism development taxes, narrow the small-business provision, and change the ballot title to reference local service reductions. Grall’s amendment removing the constitutional trust fund requirement was adopted, while the committee also rejected Berman’s title-change amendment and Smith’s sunset and tourism-tax amendments. The committee then returned to the bill as amended for questions, including extended debate over whether the proposal would affect noncitizen residents, the impact on local government finances, and whether local governments would respond with higher fees or special assessments. The meeting ended with the bill still under discussion after the final round of questions, with Avila saying he would continue working with the governor’s office on the language before the next vote.

Transcript Highlights:

• And so that does that, but it helps them become, removes the general funding and becomes self-funding
• And so that does that, but it helps them become, removes the general funding and becomes self-funding
• , not general funds support.
• And so, in the vein of being self-funded and not taxpayer-funded, that language is stricken there from
• And so, in the vein of being self-funded and not taxpayer-funded, that language is stricken there from

Committee: House Revenue and Taxation

Transcript Highlights:

• This board is also looking into savings with biosimilar drugs. Funding the board is crucial.
• This board is also looking into savings with biosimilar drugs. Funding the board is crucial.
• This board is also looking into savings with biosimilar drugs. Funding the board is crucial.
• with bioimilar savings with bioimilar uh uh uh drugs.<00:50:30.400><c> Funding</c><00:50:30.800><c>
• Please fully fund this program and keep life-saving health care accessible to all Granite Staters.

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• Federal funds move through a streamlined sub-grant process, while state funds must go through a more
• terms of timeline between federal and state funds.
• have put their savings into these projects.
• AB 2650, the Save for All Workers Act, creates workplace emergency savings accounts for CalSavers participants
• , which is a state fund.

Committee: House Labor and Employment

Transcript Highlights:

• funded for us.
• It's a special fund agency.
• This is their life savings.
• We're just asking to redirect funds to use the funding we have in-house.
• We're just asking to redirect funds to use the, we have the funding in-house.

Summary: The hearing focused on the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (Go-Biz) and several related budget proposals. Director D.D. Myers described the California Jobs First economic blueprint, regional planning efforts across 13 regions, and the state’s strategy to target sectors such as ag tech, space, life sciences, semiconductors, and emerging technologies. She also discussed the California brand campaign, export promotion, film tax credits, and the California Civic Media Fund, emphasizing job creation, regional equity, and business attraction/retention. Members raised questions about support for journalism, arts and creative industries, AI’s impact on jobs, foreign direct investment, manufacturing, tariffs, and how the Jobs First framework is being implemented across regions. Go-Biz then presented trailer bill language to extend the encumbrance deadline for remaining Jobs First administrative funds and to codify the Office of Regional Economic Development Initiatives. The department said $95 million of the $100 million Jobs First appropriation had already been deployed to grants for counties and tribes, and members asked for more information on regional outcomes, including Orange County and the North State. Public comment supported Jobs First and the Small Business Development Centers’ role in helping businesses access capital and create jobs. The committee also heard a request for ongoing CalExport funding to replace uncertain federal STEP support; the LAO noted the Legislature may want to weigh whether to backfill federal reductions, while Go-Biz argued the state program is needed because federal support appears unlikely to continue and demand exceeds available funding. The committee next heard the film and television tax credit staffing request. Go-Biz asked for funding for three permanent positions to manage the expanded program, and the LAO recommended approval given the increased workload. The Film Commission reported a sharp rise in applications after AB 1138 and the program expansion, with productions taking place both inside and outside the Los Angeles 30-mile zone and activity spread across the state. Finally, Go-Biz presented a request for one permanent position and one graduate student assistant to support innovation and emerging technologies, including quantum and fusion. Members asked about the use of the state’s quantum funding, and staff explained it would support microgrants, state capacity-building, and workforce education. No formal votes were taken in the portions provided, and the chair indicated some items would be moved and heard later in the agenda.

Transcript Highlights:

• the state general fund about $15 million, which is a great savings to the state general fund.
• We're going to look towards the best savings on the state general fund as well.
• And I don't know if the State Police, if we pay off your debt entirely, if it only saved... ...fund as
• If we pay the whole $144 million, it would actually save the state general fund this year around $30
• If we pay the whole 144 would actually save the state general fund this year around $30 million.

Summary: The Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget met on February 19, 2026, and first received an unchanged fiscal status statement and five-year baseline projection from the Office of Planning and Budget. Members approved the fiscal status statement, and the baseline budget was noted as unchanged from the prior month. The committee also approved Facility Planning and Control’s request to add five higher education deferred maintenance projects to the Act 751 eligible list, and reviewed four change orders over $50,000 for informational purposes. The committee then approved the Louisiana Lottery Corporation’s fiscal year 2026-2027 operating budget. Lottery officials reported $610 million in projected gross revenue, emphasized 29 consecutive years without legislative auditor findings or management comments, and noted the corporation’s long-running transfers to the MFP and State General Fund. Members also approved the 2026-2027 operating budgets for LASERS, TRSL, the School Employees’ Retirement System, and the State Police Retirement System en bloc. The retirement systems described modest budget increases or decreases, strong investment performance, and continued progress in reducing unfunded liabilities; members discussed COLA prospects, UAL paydown, and the impact of surplus dollars on retirement debt reduction. The committee approved prior-year deputy sheriff supplemental pay expenditures of $20,262.32 and then approved several legislative intent clarifications for prior appropriations, including items for Tangipahoa Parish, Harahan, Allen Parish, Morgan City, and DeSoto Parish. It also approved the Water Sector Commission’s recommendation for an additional $2.8 million for four ongoing water and sewer projects. Several contract items were reviewed without action, including DEQ’s extension with RTI International, Tourism’s marketing contract amendments, and the Office of Risk Management’s Sedgwick claims administration amendment. The meeting concluded with adjournment after no further business.