Transcript Highlights:

• We will also ask panelists representing the Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst's Office
• I do also have an update about the CYBHI fee schedule program, if you'd like me to continue.
• They have to submit regular updates to their security plan.
• Yes, Will Owens with the Legislative Analyst's Office.
• With respect to our lawsuit, I did want to provide just a really brief update.

Summary: The hearing focused first on behavioral health, especially serious mental illness and anosognosia, a condition described by witnesses as a neurological symptom that prevents people from recognizing they are ill. The chair framed the issue around families cycling through emergency rooms, jails, conservatorships, and short-term stabilization without lasting treatment, and warned that federal changes under H.R. 1 could reduce Medi-Cal funding and worsen access. Dawn Marie Anderson gave a personal account of her son’s long history of psychosis, homelessness, arrests, repeated jail and state hospital stays, and eventual stability when he received sustained medication and coordinated support. She argued that the system often treats the problem as criminal rather than medical and that voluntary programs and short-term services are not enough for people who lack insight into their illness. Other panelists, including representatives from the California Behavioral Health Association, Santa Barbara County Behavioral Health, and the County Behavioral Health Directors Association, agreed that anosognosia is not denial or noncompliance and said the system needs long-term, coordinated care, including assertive community treatment, mobile crisis, supportive housing, medication support, and stronger handoffs between county and managed care systems. They said CalAIM and other reforms have improved some coordination, but significant gaps remain, especially for people with serious mental illness, for those in jail or locked settings, and for people with private insurance, which witnesses said often offers little meaningful coverage for early psychosis or intensive behavioral health services. Several witnesses urged the Legislature to protect Medi-Cal, shore up county safety-net services, and invest in training and family engagement. The committee then turned to the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, with a focus on the virtual services platforms BrightLife Kids and Soluna and the CYBHI fee schedule. DHCS reported strong growth in app registrations, coaching sessions, referrals, and positive user outcomes, saying the platforms provide free, culturally responsive, early-intervention support statewide and help connect users to higher levels of care when needed. On the fee schedule, DHCS said more than 500 LEAs, colleges, universities, and school-linked providers are participating, 181 LEAs have submitted claims, and $9.6 million has been reimbursed to date, with 41,556 students represented in claims. The chair and several members criticized the pace of implementation and the amount of money spent relative to reimbursement levels, saying the Legislature had requested data earlier and that the return on investment still appeared low. DHCS responded that many claims are still being submitted, that 70% of denials are correctable, that $400 million in capacity grants has been distributed locally, and that reimbursement is increasing rapidly as more districts come online. Public comment included a rural county behavioral health director who said private insurance denials leave counties with significant uncompensated work, especially for unlicensed staff providing case management and mobile crisis services.

Transcript Highlights:

• AND IF YOU COULD PLEASE UPDATE US ON THESE OBJECTIONS?
• AGAIN, SINCE THEY WERE LAST UPDATED IN 2021, I COULD NOT SPEAK TO THE ANALYSIS. I WAS NOT HERE.
• YOU LUCKILY ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A LEGISLATIVE SESSION RIGHT NOW THAT COULD CERTAINLY HELP YOU.
• IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT UPDATING A POLL.
• ARE WE PLANNING TO PROPOSE LEGISLATION OR DO AN AMENDMENT ON CURRENT ISSUES?

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, House Bill 4506 would update current legislation and reduce costs to local municipalities and zoning
• As part of the legislative process to create the mud, I met in person with legislative representatives
• This is a legislative council draft, and it utilizes the mud template.
• The city of Mustang Ridge has been advised of this project and has no objection to the legislation.
• I mean if they look at it and they've already got an updated TIA then there's no need to update it but

Transcript Highlights:

• One, obviously, is legislation that is referred to us by the Senate President and the Rules Committee
• I was asked to provide a brief update on our litigation portfolio.
• Because this update will concern active, ongoing litigation, I can provide a status update, but I will
• The legislative change was important because it had been the legislative recommendation of the commission
• If not, do you have any further comments about your legislative priorities?

Summary: The Senate Committee on Ethics and Elections convened, established a quorum, and members introduced themselves and the committee staff. Chair Gaetz outlined the committee’s jurisdiction over election law, ethics law, executive appointments, and related confirmations, and described the committee’s process for handling gubernatorial nominations and member concerns about nominees. The committee then received a briefing from the Florida Commission on Ethics on its 2025 legislative priorities and on implementation of Senate Bill 7014 from the prior year. The commission recommended three changes: expanding the definition of “relative” in the gift law to include current and former foster parents and foster children; authorizing salary withholding to help collect civil penalties and restitution; and adding whistleblower-like protections for people who file ethics complaints. Commission staff also explained how SB 7014 changed complaint processing by requiring allegations to be based on personal knowledge or non-hearsay information and by imposing new deadlines for legal sufficiency review, investigations, and advocates’ recommendations. They said the commission has adapted its intake and review process and is currently meeting the new timelines, though the tighter deadlines may create staffing and scheduling challenges. Commission counsel also provided an update on two active lawsuits. One challenges the constitutional in-office lobbying ban, and the other challenges the requirement that elected municipal officers and mayors file Form 6 financial disclosure forms. The committee discussed the impact of the new complaint standards, the possibility of litigation if deadlines are missed, and whether local ethics boards are implementing SB 7014 similarly. Members expressed support for the commission’s work and asked for written legislative recommendations and proposed statutory language. No votes were taken, and the meeting ended with a motion to adjourn.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, it updates statute is Senate only.
• Update and clarify 30 are the same.
• So, senators, I would strongly encourage you as the legislator to look closely at why this legislation
• So, senators, I would strongly encourage you as the legislator to look closely at why this legislation
• <01:15:49.520> assistants, and each of the legislative assistants, and each of the legislative

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The bill reflects that shift by updating state law to match the spirit, pun intended, of that decision
• This legislation provides TDR with explicit statutory authority under Chapter 51 of the Occupations Code
• Regulations throughout the state that way we as legislators can then follow how the programs are doing
• Of when the legislation was passed, I guess it would, would be the appropriate answer.
• In 2024, ASTM updated the seasonal vapor pressure pressure standards for the United States.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's also been in multiple pieces of legislation.
• These updates follow the Legislature's landmark passage...
• My name is Helen Kirstein with the Legislative Analyst's Office.
• I'm going to start with legislative intent.
• And was that agreement part of the legislative reauthorization?

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate pertaining to the legislative Senate pertaining to the legislative auditor.<00:21:54.640>
• c><00:22:08.960> to require the legislative auditor to require the legislative auditor to submit
• minority members of legislative minority members of legislative committees<00:22:14.000> every
• <01:02:07.839> voter about updating voter about updating voter registrations.<01:02:10.720
• <01:04:02.480> some Section 17 and 21 update some Section 17 and 21 update some terminology

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And they had last been updated in 2016. So we were a little bit behind...
• And they had last been updated in 2016.
• So we were a little bit behind on the schedule in updating them.
• So that's why we want to update the weights.
• the methodology because of the updating of the weights.

Summary: The committee first heard an update from the Florida Department of Corrections on the proposed Lake Correctional Institution mental health project in Clermont. Tim Fitzgerald explained the project’s history, including the 2016 Disability Rights Florida litigation, the 2018 consent decree, and the original plan for a 550-bed inpatient mental health facility. He said inflation and design changes pushed the project above the bond amount, leading the department to shift to a “continuum of care” alternative with 572 beds total: 92 inpatient beds and 480 residential treatment beds in three special housing units. Fitzgerald said the project is currently paused pending House concurrence, while the Senate has already agreed to the alternate plan, and noted the bond balance, prior expenditures, and the need to spend down the tax-exempt bond by August 2026. Members questioned how the new plan differs from the original facility, whether it satisfies the consent decree, and what caused the cost increases. Fitzgerald said the department believes it has already met the consent decree through systemwide improvements to housing, staffing, programming, and out-of-cell time, though he said he would confirm the court documentation. He also said the original scope grew from 275,000 to 350,000 square feet as treatment, nursing, security, and programming needs were refined, and that inflation, fees, permitting, and contingencies contributed to the higher cost. Several members asked for follow-up information on Senate approval, consent decree documentation, and the project’s impact on crisis-stabilization capacity. The committee then received a joint court-system presentation from State Courts Administrator Eric McClure and Clerks Corporation Executive Director Jason Welty on caseload trends, case tracking, and staffing. McClure described statewide filing trends, the use of weighted caseload studies to certify judicial need, and recent Supreme Court rule changes aimed at active civil case management, including differentiated case tracks, stricter deadlines, and proportional discovery. He said the latest workload study led the Supreme Court to certify a need for 23 circuit judges and 25 county judges. Welty reviewed clerk workload trends, the statewide case maintenance and CCIS systems, and declining clerk FTE despite rising case volumes, and said clerks are seeking additional funding for injunctions, Baker Act/Marchman Act/sexually violent predator work, and juror management. In questions, members pressed both presenters on data quality, case-weight calculations, filing fees, and whether current resources are enough to reduce delays. McClure clarified that the workload weights are based on judge time studies and that a capital murder case averaged 3,177 minutes, while other examples such as auto negligence and dissolution cases were much lower. Welty said the Legislature could help by increasing funding or potentially revisiting filing fees, and noted that many clerk services are unfunded or underfunded, especially indigent and protective filings. The chair and members also raised concerns about backlog, inconsistent case reporting across circuits, and enforcement of judicial time standards; McClure said there is no direct sanction in the rules, and compliance is largely managed through chief judges and the Supreme Court. The meeting ended with no votes taken and adjournment by motion.

Transcript Highlights:

• will update the statutes governing the Commonwealth of Kentucky's Board of Physical Therapy.
• > modernize<00:10:43.760> and legislation is to modernize and legislation is to modernize
• These updates improve written in 1958.
• So it's just updating that language to say licensed instead of certified.
• <00:26:56.720> your working towards these and updating your working towards these and updating

Keywords: 00:00 Call to Order 00:05 Roll Call 1:00 HB 357 Discussion 4:53 HB 357 Vote 6:40 HB 45 Discussion 8:00 HB 45 Vote 9:29 HB 48 Discussion 15:00 HB 48 Vote 16:25 HB 212 Discussion 20:17 HB 212 Vote 21:50 HB 49 Discussion 25:55 HB 49 Vote 27:16 Adjournment, 958, all

Summary: The Licensing, Occupations, and Administrative Regulations Committee met with a quorum and took up several bills, beginning with House Bill 387. The bill was presented as a measure to ensure veterinarians are not subject to controlled-substance reporting requirements through regulation or other means, while also revising the controlled substance council to remove an emergency medicine physician and an acute care nurse and add two veterinarians. Supporters said the change was needed because veterinary reporting would be overly complicated, especially in rural Kentucky and for large-animal practices. The committee adopted the committee substitute, approved a committee amendment, and passed the bill unanimously, including the title amendment and emergency clause. The committee then heard House Bill 45, which would modernize Kentucky CPA licensure. The sponsor and the State Board of Accountancy said the bill updates outdated rules, supports workforce mobility and remote practice, reduces barriers to interstate commerce, and adds a new licensing option to address time and cost concerns for candidates. The committee passed the bill unanimously. House Bill 48 followed, a long-updated physical therapy practice act revision. Testimony said it would clarify and streamline the statute, add definitions for physical therapist assistants, change certification language to licensure, allow expungement of minor non-patient-harm violations, clarify sexual misconduct language, adjust disciplinary and fee-setting provisions, and ease requirements for some internationally trained practitioners. The committee again passed the bill unanimously. House Bill 212 was next and would allow licensed veterinary technicians, under direct veterinarian supervision, to administer rabies vaccinations to dogs, cats, and ferrets. The sponsor and Kentucky Veterinary Medical Association said the change would help shelters, humane societies, and mass vaccination clinics, improve recordkeeping, and address rising rabies concerns in Kentucky. The committee approved the bill unanimously. Finally, House Bill 49 was presented by Representative Matt Cook and the Board of Licensure for Engineers and Surveyors as a scholarship program funded by $5 from each annual license renewal plus fines and penalties, aimed at encouraging Kentucky students to enter engineering and surveying and remain in the state for six years after graduation/licensure. Members asked about the service commitment and funding source; the sponsor said the program would use existing funds and not raise renewal rates. The committee passed the bill unanimously, with the chair noting it as a positive example of board modernization.

Transcript Highlights:

• Happy to continue working on the legislation, uh, with the, with the witness, uh, may bring you back
• So these updates enhance transparency, reduce red tape, and ensure long-term stability for renters.
• some counties like, uh, Harris County can update almost daily. uh, Dallas County is weekly.
• Uh, we are also all for websites that are updated, uh, in Fort Bend County, we update our website, uh
• Appreciate the opportunity to hit for the legislative cycle today.

Bills: HB148, HB203, HJR30

Keywords: HB 148, Texas Education Code, Texas Education Agency, TEA, artificial intelligence, AI, machine learning, automated scoring, constructed response, open-ended answers, student assessments, state testing, standardized tests, public schools, education policy, assessment instruments, school accountability, test scoring, 2026-2027 school year, ad valorem tax

Transcript Highlights:

• Just to give an update, know where we stand right now and be able to answer some questions.
• And you are recognized to offer and implementation update. >> Chair and members.
• Finally, I will give an update on the workforce.
• So final question just based on the legislation. I know what it reads.
• So what challenges Iowa seeing that we as a legislator can help you?

Transcript Highlights:

• 2012, needs to be updated.
• So I would not be able to comment on legislative matters.
• Can you provide on the update on that status of that rulemaking?
• That's why we're legislators. That's why we're here.
• The legislation method that we're talking about about today is not that method.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're going to go to the 105 item, and it's a presentation by Legislative Council.
• We'll have a lot of updated numbers, hopefully in the...
• And then we also have legislators both on the House and the Senate side.
• So that's just a quick update I wanted to share on that.
• Yes, Representative Hanson, we've provided it to legislative council.

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee met to hear the Attorney General’s budget and related agency presentations. Legislative Council first reviewed the compliance with legislative intent report and the base budget worksheet, highlighting current and ongoing appropriations, FTE changes, one-time funding items, continuing appropriations, and major special and federal funds. Members asked about items such as the Missing Indigenous People Grant Fund, the Internet Crimes Investigation Fund, and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit grant funding, and staff explained the funding sources and status of those programs. Assistant Attorney General Clare Ness then outlined the Attorney General’s office structure, staffing, and budget pressures. She emphasized the office’s broad statutory duties, the value of its legal and investigative work for state and local governments, and concerns about attorney salary competitiveness, the new and vacant FTE pool, and the impact of the 3% operating budget reduction on BCI, IT, and the crime lab. Members also discussed AG opinions, boards and commissions training, and the office’s litigation and settlement recoveries. Ness and committee members raised the possibility of broader attorney salary benchmarking across state government. The crime lab director described severe space and infrastructure constraints, including overcrowding, shared workspaces, glycol leaks, air handling limits, and aging fire and burglar alarm systems. She said the 2024 study projected a much larger facility would be needed and that a new building on the current health department site would best address the lab’s needs. She also reported that backlogs have improved significantly in DNA, drug, fingerprint, and firearms work, though toxicology had a recent delay after an air compressor failure. The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit director described the unit’s fraud, abuse, and neglect work, noted federal-state funding and recent federal scrutiny, and said the unit needs more staff. The gaming division reviewed charitable gaming growth, e-tabs, trust accounts, and compliance issues, while BCI covered its caseload, cybercrime and child sexual abuse material investigations, the missing indigenous person task force, and the use of lottery funds for drug task forces. No formal votes or budget actions were taken during the meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• update. That will take us to our 9:00. update. That will take us to our 9:00.
• So we have 3 days to 180 days. legislation. This is a class. This is a legislation.
• Uh, contact your own local legislator. Perhaps an individual legislator will bring a bill.
• 34:59.120> legislator legislator perhaps individual legislator legislator perhaps individual legislator
• We have legislators.

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• kind of update us.
• I did just hand out an updated amendment.
• Smith, this updated language, has it been relayed to Representative Novak at all?
• , have them update that amendment.
• We can update and put it into Legislative Council amendment.

Bills: SB2339

Keywords: wildfire mitigation, utility liability, strict liability, electric utility, public service commission, PSC, rural electric cooperative, municipal utility, transmission provider, vegetation management, power lines, reclosers, electrical safety, wildfire prevention, grid reliability, public safety, first responders, ANSI A300, National Electrical Safety Code, community outreach

Summary: The Energy and Natural Resources Committee continued work on House Bill 1459, which concerns rare earth and critical mineral recovery from North Dakota lignite coal. Testimony from UND researcher Dan Ludo and industry representative David Straely focused on the urgency of developing the process quickly, the technical differences between extracting minerals from coal versus ash, and the potential value of elements such as terbium, dysprosium, gallium, germanium, and synthetic graphite. Straely argued the bill is constitutional, limited to minerals within the coal seam, and needed to avoid years of quiet title litigation and provide certainty for development and compensation to royalty owners. Committee members raised questions about landowner rights, compensation levels, possible amendments from the Department of Trust Lands, and whether the bill should be modified to address constitutional concerns or sunset provisions. No final action was taken on HB 1459; the chair said parties could work on language until Monday before the committee revisits it. The committee then returned to House Bill 1579, a high-load study bill with a possible energy infrastructure investment amendment. Jody Smith of the Retirement and Investment Office presented updated language adding guardrails for in-state infrastructure investing, including requiring approved projects to be underwritten and managed by a qualified investment manager or financial institution and to follow the Legacy Fund investment policy. Members discussed whether the amendment had been shared with the House sponsor and noted that the related bill 1330 was still pending, so HB 1579 was being held for the time being. Finally, the committee took up House Bill 1566, which had an amendment from the Agriculture Commissioner’s office. The committee adopted the amendment 7-0, then passed a due-pass motion on the amended bill and referred it to Appropriations, also by a 7-0 vote. Members discussed the bill’s fiscal impact, including an estimated $580,000 for two FTEs over two years, and clarified that the study component remains in the bill. Senator Gerhardt was assigned to carry the measure.

Transcript Highlights:

• We were commissioned by the Legislative Counsel Service to conduct the study.
• Legislative Counsel Service to conduct the study.
• The problem is that these get updated a lot.
• The ICD only has large updates every decade but still has minor updates more frequently.
• There was some legislation to take out the miniatures, the smaller...

Transcript Highlights:

• Here in the Senate, when we talk about legislating legacy, we're talking about passing on and preserving
• for 30 some years is has not been update for 30 some years and<00:03:34.159> so<00:03:34.799>
• you know our state park um to updating you know our state park um trails<00:04:28.400> and<00
• And so over time, more and more people know about it, and people are applying to it, and legislators
• c><00:16:29.839> have to help them and legislation now have to help them and legislation now have

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We're now dealing with the executive branch legislating, taking away codified legislation that says we
• >> We're dealing with the executive branch legislating, taking away codified legislation that says we
• community members from legislators community members from legislators ourselves<00:14:31.839>
• <00:14:52.480> are to an agency when the legislators are to an agency when the legislators
• So legislation of course passes around So legislation of course passes around May<00:37:00.320> or

Bills: HF3379

Keywords: housing stabilization, disability services, predatory funding, provider requirements, housing accessibility, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So we don't see updated resale certificates as often as you would think. Number one.
• So the question really is, what should be the legislative amount?
• In the Seventh Legislative Session, this body passed a bill which created the Texas.
• Remedical agrees with the need for legislation to protect veterans.
• in the registry with whatever was updated with House Bill 4.

Bills: HB 1087, HB2504, HB4113, HB5144, HB5146, HB5377, HB5543, SB140, SB264, SB1244, SB1343, SB2121, HR868

Keywords: property owners, board vacancy, special election, association governance, community management, property owners' association, resale certificate, fees, real estate regulation, homeowners, HB 4113, Texas Rising Star Program, child care, child-care providers, Texas Workforce Commission, TWC, safety barriers, crash-rated bollards, bollards, playground safety