Transcript Highlights:

• is not bank regulation.
• If this bill is passed, it will add thank regulation with their is non and create more government and
• will have to comply with the regulation by the lawyers will still have to continue to play with the
• Then you have P 2 is when they have the app on and they and they click.
• Another one that might be a little closer national on the app.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And then on top of that, I also made an app that is abhorst. Yeah.”
• And then, for the app portion and to get maybe diagnosis, you do need... is it like a cheek swab?
• But the reason for the app is because... ...depressed or not depressed.
• But the reason for the app is because it's not just about what the AI model can tell you.
• That was right after the app. She had about 20 minutes before she had to go to bed and did that.

Summary: The Committee on Science and Technology met to hear a presentation from Ananya Lakaraju, a Hamilton High School junior, on her research into the biology of major depressive disorder. She described a project using saliva metabolomics and machine learning to identify potential biomarkers of depression from a UCSD dataset of 261 patient samples, explaining that the goal was to move beyond subjective screening toward more objective, biology-based diagnosis. She also discussed using multiple statistical methods and an ensemble AI model, along with SHAP and permutation importance, to identify top metabolites and related pathways, and said her work suggested some novel biomarkers and possible links to depression-related pathways. Lakaraju further explained a drug-discovery component of the project, in which she used pathway analysis and molecular docking software to identify a potential target protein and test candidate compounds, saying flupinazine showed the best binding energy in her simulations. She noted that the model achieved about 90% accuracy and a 97% AUC, and said she also built an app to collect mood and activity information to complement the biological data. Members asked questions about the metabolites, whether the findings were novel, how the saliva data were obtained, and how the app and future at-home testing might work. She said the biomarkers were computationally identified, the saliva data came from an online UCSD dataset rather than direct collection, and the app was intended to support more holistic diagnosis rather than replace clinicians. Committee members praised the presentation as impressive and timely, especially in light of the growing role of AI in medicine and the need for AI regulation. Lakaraju also spoke about her interest in coding and biology, her experience in robotics, and receiving the Governor’s Future Innovator of the Year Award. No formal votes or legislative actions were taken, and the meeting adjourned after the presentation and discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm sorry, I was thinking towns with special regulations.
• I'm sorry, I was thinking towns with special regulations.
• As you know, the regulated utilities are assessed a fee to pay for the regulation.
• </c><00:43:22.760><c> on</c> there is no virtually no regulation on there is no virtually no regulation
• </c><00:43:32.599><c> that</c> having them pay for the regulation that having them pay for the regulation

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• My text app blew up. They all said some variation of, I certainly support this bill.
• a decade ago, they don't bother regulating under thousand hens.
• Our North Texas operated a retail store at the Dallas Farmer's Market for about 8 years.
• So we bring them back, we store them.
• what they buy if grocery stores feel like it's a good thing to do.

Bills: SB500, SB719, SB912, SB1232, SB1467, SB1777, SB1864, SB2023, SB2119, SB2458

Keywords: SB 500, Texas adoption law, Family Code, DFPS, Department of Family and Protective Services, child-placing agency, prospective adoptive parents, adoption records, confidential information, nondisclosure agreement, child history report, health history, social history, educational history, genetic history, termination of parental rights, permanency plan, single source continuum contractor, privacy, redaction

Transcript Highlights:

• You can also use our award-winning app, the GoVote Mobile app. It'll tell you where to vote.
• Also available on our website, you can find out where that is, or the GoVote Mobile app.
• Or if you're voting on election day, you would go to your regular App.
• the first Secretary of State who had ever actually visited the warehouses where our equipment is stored

Summary: The committee heard a budget presentation for the Department of State. House Fiscal Division said the FY27 recommended budget is $128.6 million and 367 positions, with elections making up the largest share. Secretary of State Nancy Landry said the office is implementing Louisiana’s first closed party primary, continuing voter education efforts, and moving toward procurement of a new voting system that would produce a voter-verifiable paper ballot and support risk-limiting audits. Members asked about polling place confusion, machine replacement costs, election commissioner pay, and the cost of educating voters about the new primary system. Landry said polling places are not changing because of the new primary law, the new system is expected to cost about $100 million total, and a bill this session would raise election commissioner pay by $100 per day. Fiscal staff also estimated the closed primary law will add about $31.5 million in costs over five years, mostly from converting local elections to statewide elections and voter outreach. The committee then reviewed the Department of Veterans Affairs budget, which was presented at about $105.2 million with a mix of federal, state, self-generated, and interagency funds. The department said most costs are tied to personnel and veterans’ homes, and that the homes are funded largely by federal dollars plus self-generated revenue. Members focused heavily on delays in processing National Guard disability claims and payments to veterans. Representatives said constituents had waited about a year for claims to be resolved, while the department said it had increased staffing and was processing a backlog of more than 400 claims, but still had about $950,000 in approved claims awaiting funding. The department said the payout program is governed by statute and that additional supplemental funding has been requested. Members also discussed veterans’ home care, including how service-connected disability status affects eligibility and costs, and whether chronic wound care and related complications could increase long-term costs. The department said veterans with higher service-connected ratings receive care with federal support, while others pay fees. Several members urged the department to provide clearer timelines and better communication to claimants, and one member suggested a separate oversight hearing to address the disability claim process and any needed statutory changes. The committee adjourned after the presentations and questions.

Transcript Highlights:

• You can also use our award-winning app, the GoVote Mobile app. It'll tell you where to vote.
• Also available on our website, you can find out where that is, or the GoVote Mobile app.
• Or if you're voting on election day, you would go to your regular App.
• the first Secretary of State who had ever actually visited the warehouses where our equipment is stored

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• targets using an unencrypted, or using a commercial app?
• Okay, we're talking about a commercial app like Signal.
• Would it ever be appropriate to discuss imminent plans to strike military targets on a commercial app
• This was shared with a journalist on a commercial app. You need more information than that?
• Well, how about discussing denigrating our European allies on a commercial app?

Keywords: John Eisenberg, assistant attorney general, national security, China Initiative, Department of Justice, judicial authority, executive actions, nomination hearing

Summary: The committee meeting primarily involved discussions around key nominations and pressing legal issues pertaining to the Department of Justice. Notable discussions included the nomination of John Eisenberg for assistant attorney general for national security, where concerns over the revival of the China Initiative were raised. Senators expressed significant apprehensions regarding previous actions taken under this initiative and its implications for national security. Additionally, there were critiques of the broader implications of executive actions that challenge judicial authority, aligning with ongoing dialogues about the integrity of the judiciary and executive oversight.

Transcript Highlights:

• Store if they are helping. promote apps or websites that are breaking the law and targeting Texans.
• While we do need regulation, and there is regulation in place, there is no, at this time, clinical or
• I just have one question for you, sir, as a regulator.
• Regulation, not a ban, fixes that.
• Just this month, I've had 1,000 customers come into my store.

Bills: SB31, SB33, SB510, SB871, SB1868, SB2024, SB2166, SB2309, SB2880, SJR27, SJR39, SJR40, SB 31, SB 33

Keywords: SB 31, Life of the Mother Act, Texas abortion law, medical emergency, reasonable medical judgment, pregnancy complications, maternal health, life-threatening condition, ectopic pregnancy, spontaneous abortion, miscarriage, unborn child, abortion exception, abortion ban, physician liability, health care liability claim, aiding and abetting, Texas Medical Board, State Bar of Texas, continuing medical education

Transcript Highlights:

• Personalization makes apps useful and engaging. It also helps teens to stay connected and informed.
• We should support default safeguards inside apps, things like teen accounts.
• Without personalization, apps struggle to deliver relevant content.
• It allows families to manage downtime, school time, control what apps are downloaded, and more.
• It allows families to manage downtime, school time, control what apps are downloaded, and more.

Bills: HB1170, HB1570, HB1834

Keywords: artificial intelligence, AI, generative AI, AI-generated content, deepfake, synthetic media, content provenance, provenance data, metadata, watermarking, disclosure, transparency, consumer protection, unfair or deceptive acts, unfair competition, Washington RCW, Title 19 RCW, platform regulation, AI detection tool, media authenticity

Transcript Highlights:

• This is impacting what is happening in commerce and the ability to regulate commerce.
• This is part of the user agreement that they accept. that they have when they use these apps.
• social media programs. apps that like direct marketing.
• So if it's a problem for some folks as a mental health issue, simply don't use the app.
• To the general fund, we should find a way to regulate this from the use of their data.

Transcript Highlights:

• For example, a connected TV that loses updates may not support certain apps like the latest version of
• The bill establishes a legal framework for regulating artificial intelligence, voice, image, and video
• California is leading the nation in AI regulations. However, a significant gap remains.
• Because if we're not comfortable with DOJ seeing the photos and storing them temporarily, why are we
• would have qualified as racial profiling and should not have been collected, shouldn't have been stored

Summary: The committee heard several privacy, technology, and public safety bills. SB 898 would require manufacturers of connected consumer products to disclose how long software support will last and to notify consumers when support is nearing its end; Consumer Reports supported the measure, while members raised concerns about private enforcement, notice mechanics, and replacement obligations for leased devices. The bill was amended and passed 5-1 to Judiciary, with the measure placed on call. SB 1279 would authorize Long Beach to install additional speed safety cameras on Pacific Coast Highway under the same privacy and equity guardrails as the existing pilot program, including limits on data use, no facial recognition, warning periods, and reduced fees for low-income recipients. Supporters cited severe crashes and fatalities on PCH, while opponents raised civil liberties and due process concerns and questioned how the system identifies the actual driver. The committee approved the bill 6-2 and placed it on call. SB 1111, the Artificial Intelligence Abuse Protection Act, would create civil remedies for non-consensual AI voice, image, and video cloning and digital replicas. Support came from SAG-AFTRA and Common Sense Media, and members discussed concerns about background images and employer liability, including a request to preserve a rebuttable presumption for good-faith employers. The bill passed 7-1 to Public Safety and was placed on call. SB 1217 would create a DOJ-run clearinghouse for survivors of non-consensual intimate imagery and deepfakes to request removal from online platforms; survivors and advocacy groups testified in strong support, and members discussed privacy, cybersecurity, funding, and the lack of a private right of action. It passed 8-0 to Public Safety and was placed on call. The committee also heard SB 1095, which would require fusion centers and participating agencies to adopt MOUs barring use of sensitive personal information for immigration enforcement or racial/identity profiling, require annual reporting, and allow audits and inspections. Supporters argued fusion centers have operated with too little oversight and have been used to circumvent state privacy and immigration laws; some members supported the transparency goals while others raised concerns about operational ambiguity and the bill’s interaction with existing law. The discussion continued, with the author and members debating the scope of permissible information sharing and enforcement consequences for violations.

Transcript Highlights:

• . >> In regard to any federal state or other regulation may be the bog.
• And I certainly would be interested in complying with any federal state or bog regulation to make sure
• I have my wife of 45 years and I have to marry children and they each app to grant or 2 to get.
• We started as a single store Mall mall store about 2 decades ago and through the last 20 years we've
• It's fanatics and fanatics started in Jacksonville is a single store.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Personalization makes apps useful and engaging. It also helps teens to stay connected and informed.
• We should support default safeguards inside apps, things like teen accounts.
• Without personalization, apps struggle to deliver relevant content.
• It allows families to manage downtime, school time, control what apps are downloaded, and more.
• It allows families to manage downtime, school time, control what apps are downloaded, and more.

Summary: The House Appropriations Committee held public hearings on several bills related to artificial intelligence, student employee bargaining, and online safety. For HB 1170, staff explained that the bill would require certain large generative AI providers to offer provenance detection tools and include latent or optional manifest disclosures in AI-generated audio, image, and video content, with enforcement by the Attorney General under the Consumer Protection Act. Committee discussion focused on whether the bill would apply to AI-generated text code, and staff clarified that it would not. Testimony from the Washington Technology Industry Association opposed the bill as written, citing enforcement ambiguity, definition changes, and interoperability concerns, while noting support for continued work on the issue. For HB 1570, staff described the underlying bill as extending collective bargaining rights under the Public Employees Collective Bargaining Act to student employees at several state higher education institutions, with a striking amendment narrowing the bill to non-academic student employees at Western Washington University and listing covered job classifications. Staff estimated the original bill’s fiscal impact at about $1.5 million per biennium, reduced to roughly $200,000 per biennium under the striking amendment. Testimony from labor and student representatives supported the narrowed bill, emphasizing student worker safety, organizing support, and the need to move forward after prior union votes. The committee also heard substitute HB 1833, which would create the Spark Act grant program in the Department of Commerce to support innovative uses of AI, with grants requiring a state benefit and shared technology, and with Commerce consulting the Attorney General’s AI Task Force. Staff estimated administrative costs of about $160,000 per year plus grant funding that could bring total annual program costs to roughly $660,000 to $1.6 million. Representative Keaton said an amendment would update dates and incorporate changes. Testimony was generally supportive from industry and retail representatives, who framed the bill as a pro-innovation public-private partnership. Finally, the committee heard a proposed third substitute for HB 1834, which would prohibit addictive feeds for minor users and restrict push notifications during evening and school hours unless parents consent, while allowing all users to limit feeds and privacy settings. Supporters, including the Attorney General’s Office, Children’s Alliance, and a parent who lost a child to social media harms, argued the bill would protect children and reduce behavioral health costs. Opponents from technology, civil liberties, and industry groups raised constitutional, privacy, and vagueness concerns, warning that age determination could function like age verification and that the bill could restrict access to beneficial content. No votes or executive action were taken; the committee concluded public hearings and announced amendment deadlines for upcoming executive sessions.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm wondering, from a regulation standpoint, if you can give us some feedback about existing regulation
• Apps, servers, databases, cybersecurity controls.
• But in the regulated market, that's what we're doing.
• But in the regulated market, that's what we're doing.
• Regulate the heck out of us. We can compete if you do your job as regulators.

Summary: The hearing in Barnstable opened with remarks from the House and Senate co-chairs about the importance of holding Ways and Means budget hearings on the Cape, especially given the region’s seasonal economy and infrastructure needs. The committee then heard testimony from Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Lauren Jones on the governor’s FY27 budget proposal. She highlighted funding for workforce programs including the Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund, Career Technical Initiative, registered apprenticeship, YouthWorks, reentry workforce programs, and services for young adults with disabilities. She also discussed MassHire career centers, the MassHire Innovation Project, and the Department of Unemployment Assistance modernization effort, noting improved call wait times and claims processing, but acknowledging continued challenges and federal funding uncertainty. Members asked about job-seeker barriers such as child care, housing, and transportation; domestic outmigration of young workers; youth work permits; unemployment insurance costs and the COVID assessment on employers; and the state’s unemployment rate and UI trust fund solvency. Jones and Undersecretary Josh Cutler explained the difference between workforce training funds and the unemployment trust fund, described the statewide trigger that extends unemployment benefits from 26 to 30 weeks when regional unemployment averages 5.2 percent, and said the administration is reviewing the trust fund with labor and business stakeholders. They also said the administration is trying to preserve front-line DUA staffing while shifting resources to customer service and adjudication, including a Friday adjudication pilot and seasonal hires. Senators and representatives also pressed the administration on regional equity in workforce funding, especially for Hampshire Franklin MassHire, which was described as serving a large rural area with fewer resources than other regions. Administration officials said they are reviewing MassHire funding formulas and modernizing the system with a policy committee and state workforce board input, but did not offer an immediate fix. The committee also heard that early childhood education apprenticeships are expanding quickly, with state funding leveraged to secure federal grants and support new Grow Awards. The hearing then moved to the Executive Office of Economic Development, where Secretary Eric Paley outlined House 2 proposals for economic development, including support for the Community One Stop for Growth, rural economic development, workforce partnerships, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, AI, small business assistance, tourism, and tax incentives. Undersecretary Leila D’Amilia followed with testimony on consumer affairs and business regulation, describing funding for consumer protection, banking oversight, occupational licensure, and public safety inspections.

Transcript Highlights:

• It's bringing uniformity to our advertising regulations.
• Regulations.
• We haven't changed anything in terms of content regulation in the bill.
• Voluntary self-regulation has failed, as our report card shows.
• Federal law is clear here: this kind of state regulation is preempted.

Summary: The committee hearing covered several bills related to privacy, consumer protection, and online harms. SB 259 by Senator Wahab would prohibit surveillance pricing based on device data such as geolocation or battery level; supporters argued it would curb discriminatory and predatory pricing, while opponents raised concerns about geolocation definitions, legitimate location-based pricing, and impacts on discounts and loyalty programs. The bill was moved on a due pass motion to the Judiciary Committee and passed 8-1, with members noting amendments and ongoing discussions with stakeholders. SB 22 by Senator Laird would raise the amount of gift cards that can be redeemed for cash, with the author saying the goal is to update the long-standing $10 threshold for inflation and preserve consumer value. Consumer advocates supported the bill, while retailers, restaurants, grocers, and chambers of commerce opposed or opposed unless amended, citing fraud concerns, safety issues, and the need for clarification on donated or returned gift cards. The committee voted the bill out on a 6-1 vote and kept it on call. SB 576 by Senator Umberg would apply broadcast-style loudness rules to streaming advertisements. The author said the bill is intended to prevent ads from being much louder than programming, especially for children, while the opposition argued that streaming ad insertion is technically different and that existing industry standards and FCC oversight already address the issue. The bill passed 8-0. SB 683 by Senator Cortese would clarify that people can seek injunctive relief, including a TRO, for unauthorized use of name, image, or likeness; supporters said it strengthens privacy protections, while opponents warned about prior restraint and First Amendment concerns. The bill was moved out on a due pass motion and kept on call. The final bill discussed, SB 771 by Senator Stern, would clarify that existing civil rights and hate-related laws apply to social media platforms and their algorithms, with higher penalties for intentional or reckless violations. Supporters, including the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Islamic Networks Group, described online hate as fueling real-world violence and urged stronger accountability; opponents argued the bill could conflict with Section 230, chill lawful speech, and create vague standards. Members raised questions about constitutionality, definitions, and whether the bill would be workable, but several expressed support for the author’s goals.

Transcript Highlights:

• So if you go into one of these stores, it looks like a candy store or a firework stand.
• I can buy aspirin in the store. I can buy 200 mg of ibuprofen in the store.
• or bars and restaurants, liquor stores or grocery stores for that matter.
• I am all for testing, COAs, regulation, and extensive regulation, establishing a...
• You said you had stores, or you have a store? I do not have stores.

Bills: HB28, SB3, SB 3

Keywords: hemp regulation, consumable products, cannabinoids, state health, youth protection, licensing fees, criminal offenses, flash flood, flood warning, outdoor warning siren, emergency alert, disaster preparedness, flood mitigation, Hill Country floods, Texas Water Development Board, municipalities, counties, local government mandate, public safety, grant program

Transcript Highlights:

• So federal regulations were loosened significantly in 2024 to allow methadone clinics to operate a little
• But the way that it's regulated, it pains me so much. ...of addiction.
• But the way that it's regulated, it pains me so much, especially as a primary care doctor.
• so there’s this company called Geocompli, and they’re responsible for the GPS in the sports betting apps
• So, men 18 to 49, 50% of them have a sports betting app on their phone.

Keywords: 959, house, all

Summary: The task force opened with new leadership and a review of its statutory charge to study current and future substance use, explore solutions, draft legislation, and report recommendations. The chair outlined the year’s plan: hearings would focus first on field experts, then on alternative therapies such as psilocybin and ibogaine and on the Department of Mental Health, with an eye toward developing legislation for the next session. Members were told the goal was to identify practical policy ideas and to keep notes for possible future bills. Dr. Rachel Winograd gave the main presentation on Missouri’s overdose crisis. She said overdose deaths have declined for a third straight year, with preliminary 2025 data showing about 1,200 deaths, but emphasized that fentanyl remains the main driver and that the current crisis is now a “fourth wave” involving polydrug use and animal tranquilizers such as xylazine and medetomidine. She argued that policy should focus less on trying to eliminate supply and more on reducing harm and demand through evidence-based treatment, especially medications for opioid use disorder, naloxone, peer and family supports, housing, transportation, and care navigation. She strongly recommended expanding methadone access, including more take-home doses, use of the federal 72-hour hospital rule, and broader methadone delivery sites. Members also discussed tobacco, Medicaid coverage, peer reimbursement, and whether naloxone still works with fentanyl-laced drugs; Winograd said it does, because fentanyl is what is causing the fatal overdose. Dr. Heidi Miller, the state medical director, followed with a call to integrate substance use disorder care into whole-person health care and to follow the science on substance policy. She highlighted the state naloxone standing order, which leads to more than 11,000 Medicaid naloxone prescriptions annually, and recommended five best practices: integrating SUD care into primary care, maternal health, provider training, EMS administration of buprenorphine after overdose, public health prevention, and greater use of methadone. She also urged enforcement of parity between behavioral health/SUD and physical health reimbursement, and said team-based reimbursement models in Medicaid and value-based care should support community health workers, peers, and recovery specialists. Dr. Doug Burgess then emphasized care coordination and integration across the treatment continuum. Using heart attack care as an analogy, he argued that people with substance use disorders are often stabilized and then sent back into fragmented systems that do not connect them to the next level of care. He said Missouri should build a seamless system with standardized assessment, discharge planning from day one, transition coordinators, peer recovery coaches, and better information sharing, and he noted that treatment courts can be effective when they are staffed by people who understand addiction as a chronic disease. Members asked about remission, relapse, emergency department referrals, and how to standardize care; Burgess said remission is common, relapse is part of the disease course, and policy can help by incentivizing integrated, coordinated treatment models such as certified community behavioral health organizations.

Transcript Highlights:

• inundated your lives and your family's lives, and the TV when you turn it on, and the radio, and every app
• that you open, and when you walk into stores, and billboards on the interstate.
• So if you see from the casinos on the online sports betting apps, you know, you see on the interstate
• right now and ask if them and all their friends are being inundated with this and starting to use an app

Summary: The committee reconvened and took up several amendments and bills. Senate Bill 15 was amended to transfer Keep Arkansas Beautiful functions to ARDOT and replace the current commissioners with an advisory council; the amendment was adopted without objection. An amendment to Senate Bill 7 lowering the claims-data threshold for group health insurance from 50 employees to 25, to help smaller employers and municipalities shop for coverage, was also adopted. An amendment to Senate Bill 41 that would have restricted University of Arkansas at Fayetteville athletic funding from academic funds was rejected after members questioned its scope and fiscal basis. The committee then considered an amendment to House Bill 1051 that would cap online sports-betting free play at 5% of gross receipts. Senator Hester argued the current unlimited promotions were predatory and effectively subsidized casinos, while other members questioned the tax and accounting assumptions and whether the proposal belonged in a fiscal committee. The amendment failed, and a separate agriculture-related amendment from Representatives Vaught and Painter to exempt certain tractor parts tied to diesel exhaust fluid systems was also not adopted, with members citing drafting and enforcement problems and suggesting it should go through the revenue committees. After suspending the rules to add items, the committee adopted a technical correction to Senate Bill 4 clarifying physician licensure language so the rural workforce pathway would apply to underserved and primary care shortage areas, rather than the narrower federal term originally used. The committee also adopted an amendment to Senate Bill 77 deleting a fund-transfer section and instead increasing appropriation authority and creating a matching-fund mechanism to help Arkansas TV pay PBS dues, with supporters saying it would leverage private donations and preserve PBS access while allowing the commission to decide programming. The bill passed as amended, and the meeting adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• It has become common practice for schools to not store unofficial records in a student's cumulative file
• But if parents are unaware of what information is being shared and stored, how can they possibly know
• What student information is being shared with third party vendors, lists of online services and apps
• If I could jump in, I, I, I, on the issue of apps, what app students are using, what tech they're using
• OEHA needs to adopt regulations by 2028.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They absolutely are already regulated. This bill is not necessary.
• We need to regulate because we want to keep this industry going.
• Would they be mandated to follow these regulations?
• I hope we can do more to regulate that.
• are making each day, so they actually see the real amount there on the app.