Transcript Highlights:

• People talk about this as a new Gilded Age.
• , different than it was in the golden age, different than it was in the golden age, which<00:53:56.280
• We've also talked about the golden ages here.
• We've also talked about the golden ages here.
• We've also talked about the golden ages here.

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The committee heard presentations on two tax bills: House File 4123, by Representative Agbaje, would expand Minnesota’s net investment income tax to include certain business income, especially income from S corporations and LLCs not subject to federal self-employment taxes, while keeping the current rate and million-dollar threshold; she said it would raise an estimated $88.7 million next year. House File 4616, by Chair Gomez, would impose a 1% annual tax on fortunes above $10 million. Gomez framed the bill as a response to growing wealth inequality and argued that wealthy households and large fortunes should contribute more to public services, while Agbaje said her bill would broaden the tax base and help meet state needs. Public testimony was sharply divided. Supporters, including Nan Madden of the Minnesota Budget Project, Erica Mominee of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees, Lauren Richards, and teacher Kristen Sinicariello, said the bills would help address wealth and income inequality and provide needed revenue for public health, education, and other public services. They pointed to federal tax cuts for high-income households, cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, and strains on state agencies and schools. Richards said small businesses already pay more than large corporations like Amazon, and Sinicariello argued that higher revenue would support classrooms and help equalize opportunity. Opponents, including Brian Cook of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, Dalton Danielson of the Minnesota Business Partnership, and John Beschi of NFIB Minnesota, warned that both bills would hurt business competitiveness and investment. They argued that HF 4123 would effectively create a new higher tax tier for pass-through businesses and that HF 4616 would be difficult to administer, could force sales of illiquid assets, and could discourage entrepreneurship and capital investment. No votes or final committee action were taken in the portion of the meeting provided; the committee moved through bill presentations and public testimony before member discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• 'I was stalked for 13 years, from age 12 to 25, across multiple counties in Wyoming.'
• 12 to 25 across 13 years from age 12 to 25 across multiple<00:09:41.040> counties<00:09:41.360
• If 18 years of age or older and not less than four years older than the minor, and they purposely and
• I know that they had some amendments that helped clear up the language of the age definition.
• and the four-year age gap.

Bills: HB0008, HB0009, HB0028

Keywords: stalking, minors, felony, protection orders, criminal penalties, grooming, sexual offenses, child protection, sexual exploitation, law amendment, explicit conduct, sex crimes, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So some homes have naturally sort of aged out of the last price cohort, if you will.
• out of the last naturally sort of aged out of the last price<00:12:36.680> cohort<00:12:37.480
• And so look at the age of first-time home buyers: 38.
• older each year and so look at the age older each year and so look at the age of<00:35:32.560>
• He asked about the age of 38 for buying their first home and how that number is being used.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• To your question about expansion of the age range, really bringing the age down from 25 to 24 lets us
• To your question about expansion of the age range, really bringing the age down from 25 to 24 lets us
• To your question about expansion of the age range, really bringing the age down from 25 to 24 lets us
• age range um really bringing um the age age range um really bringing um the age down<00:32:07.919>
• And then expanding from age workforce.

Keywords: 918, senate, all

Summary: The conference committee received a nonpartisan walkthrough of the House and Senate side-by-side for higher education-related legislation, with staff identifying Senate-only, House-only, identical, and technical-difference provisions. Topics included paid blood donation leave for Minnesota State employees, a revised higher education attainment goal, athletic fee restrictions, developmental course disclosures, American Indian Scholars Program eligibility, protections and definitions for pregnant and parenting students, online program management contracts, student aid reporting, work-study and dual training grants, private and out-of-state postsecondary education regulation, private career school licensing and data privacy, college savings plan changes, and several University of Minnesota-related provisions. House-only items also included an unemployment insurance aid adjustment, a $1.5 million ongoing appropriation for an identity verification system to combat enrollment fraud, and $5,000 for Bemidji State University reforestation; Senate-only items included Board of Regents appointment language, limits on for-profit control of medical school curriculum, and reporting on for-profit funding in medical education. After the walkthrough, the committee moved to adopt the same and similar provisions and direct staff to make technical corrections. A senator asked about proposed adjustments to the pregnant and parenting student language, and the chair said amendments would be considered after adopting the same and similar provisions. The motion to adopt prevailed. During public testimony, Sydney Spre of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees supported the Senate’s paid blood donation leave language, saying it would create parity for Minnesota State employees and encourage blood and plasma donation. Commissioner Dennis Olsen of the Office of Higher Education thanked the committee for adopting most of the agency’s proposed language and said he was available to help clarify remaining differences. In response to questions, he explained the Senate’s higher education attainment goal proposal, saying it would extend and broaden the existing goal, raise the target from 70% to 75%, expand the age range, and use additional metrics and partner agencies; he also said the overall attainment rate had been 63.5 under the prior goal. The transcript ends as the commissioner was being asked whether the proposal would require additional appropriations.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, um, you know, as we know, unfortunately, the many innovations that have come into this digital age
• ><00:05:14.560> into<00:05:14.880> this<00:05:15.039> digital<00:05:15.440> age
• into this digital age um that have<00:05:16.800> helped<00:05:17.120> us<00:05:17.600>
• can't recover the restitution and the AG can't recover the restitution money<00:09:06.959> from
• Um and I'm them under an age of 13.

Bills: HF1392, HF2233, HF695, HF2228, HF1289

Keywords: consumer protection, restitution, attorney general, consumer enforcement, unclaimed funds, victim compensation, settlement funds, special revenue fund, general fund, restitution account, consumer fraud, state treasury, eligible consumers, distribution of funds, tax subtraction, income tax, refund, unpaid compensation, Minnesota Department of Revenue, consumer redress

Transcript Highlights:

• We can't forget that the experience of aging and the experience of receiving health care services is
• We've never been better positioned to support our loved ones across the aging journey by modernizing
• We can't forget that the experience of aging and the experience of receiving health care services is
• support our loved ones across the Aging support our loved ones across the Aging journey<00:31:34.840
• with a parent or guardian over the age of 60.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• neglect, and right now educational neglect is defined as seven unexcused absences for children under the age
• They might need to help their parents with some of the language barrier issues, so the ...that age 12
• Uh, the response to the under age 12 and the over age 12 is important because those that are over age
• 12 there under those that are over age 12 there are<00:16:11.880> different<00:16:12.319>
• again just to share reproductive age again just to share some<00:42:47.680> um<00:42:47.920><

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• SB 1410 is an Ag in the Classroom request bill from the Department of Agriculture.
• Members, Senate Bill 1477 limits concurrent enrollment to students 21 years of age or under.
• How many students currently are enrolled in programs over the age of 21? More than one.
• Are enrolled in programs over the age of 21? More than one, less than 10,000. Thank you.
• It also can't be used for retention or promotion, and it also requires that it must be age appropriate

Bills: SB710, SB843, SB1317, SB1338, SB1410, SB1477, SB1489, SB1593, SB1614, SB1630, SB1632, SB1633, SB1670, SB1726, SB1734, SB1725, SB1735, SB1894, SB1975, SB346, SB2045

Keywords: teacher preparation, teacher education, teacher shortage, teacher workforce, educator pipeline, alternative certification, apprenticeship, residency program, paraprofessional pathway, high school to teacher pathway, nontraditional teacher candidates, Commission for Educational Quality and Accountability, TeachForwardOK, higher education, public school districts, workforce development, grant program, technical assistance provider, mastery-based assessment, emergency clause

Transcript Highlights:

• Question nine: Should Minnesotans aged 65 and older be allowed to receive a free fishing license?
• A bill introduced during the 2025 legislative session would have let Minnesota residents aged 65 and
• Question nine, should motans<00:04:02.640> aged<00:04:02.959> 65<00:04:03.439> and
• > older<00:04:04.000> be<00:04:04.159> allowed<00:04:04.400> to motans aged
• 65 and older be allowed to motans aged 65 and older be allowed to receive<00:04:04.879> a<00:

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The segment presented the results of the 2025 Minnesota House legislative opinion poll, which asked fairgoers about a range of policy issues tied to recent or possible future legislative action. Topics included school calendar flexibility before Labor Day, state funding for sports stadiums and arenas, undocumented immigrants’ access to state programs, unemployment benefits for hourly school workers in the summer, banning guns in the Capitol, budget-balancing options for a projected 2028-29 deficit, removing party labels from legislative ballots, limiting free school meals by income, free fishing licenses for residents age 65 and older, local control over cannabis businesses, a post-employment lobbying ban for legislators, and a higher income tax rate for the highest earners. For several questions, the segment noted the underlying legislative context. It referenced the 2023 law making undocumented immigrants eligible for MinnesotaCare and the 2025 law ending adult eligibility at year’s end, the school meals program’s higher-than-expected costs, and a 2025 proposal to remove party designations from legislative ballots that did not receive a committee hearing. It also mentioned the projected nearly $6 billion budget shortfall for the 2028-29 biennium, the Xcel Energy Center renovation funding request, and the recent killings of House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and the shooting of Senator John Hoffman and his wife as part of the discussion about Capitol gun restrictions. The poll itself was presented as a public opinion survey rather than a legislative vote, so no formal committee action or roll call occurred. The segment closed by thanking participants and saying the poll would return next year at the fair.

Transcript Highlights:

• Can you please all of you share what you're seeing when a child ages out of foster care?
• They have access to those programs, but whenever they're in a facility and they age out, they do not
• When kids are aging out of the foster care system, that is one of the most vulnerable times, and that
• You moved around your whole life, then aging out of a system in a state where half the time you don't
• The system and who have aged out will tell you that they went with their trafficker because they're trafficked

Bills: HB2646, HB3941, HB5153, HB5155, HB5394, HB 1106, HB426, HB4529, HB3984, HB4273, HB 1097, HB3940, HB1941, HB4377, HB3153

Keywords: child care, task force, high-quality care, affordability, prekindergarten partnerships, foster care, transitional living, Medicaid reform, youth assistance, independent living, services for youth, employment training, educational support, mental health services, health care, public health, child health program, reimbursement, local health entities, maternal health

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2023, over 21% of Hawaii residents are over the age of 65 years old.
• Navian's mission is to make sure that each of these residents get the care they need to age gracefully
• the care<00:06:53.680> they<00:06:53.919> need<00:06:54.080> to<00:06:54.319> age
• <00:06:54.639> gracefully<00:06:55.199> and care they need to age gracefully and care
• they need to age gracefully and with<00:06:55.759> dignity.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• to the creation and publication of the material, and verification that the individual was over the age
• be posted to their website or host on their website any pornographic material must first verify the age
• Requiring age and consent verification before publication is a reasonable safeguard that helps prevent
• Requiring age and consent verification before publication is a reasonable safeguard that helps prevent
• This is the typical age of these type abortions at that stage.

Bills: HB2043, HB2045, HB2046, HB2048, HB2064, HB2074, HB2126, HB2133, HB2144

Keywords: felony murder, unborn child, homicide, Arizona Revised Statutes, life imprisonment, death penalty, drive-by shooting, gun violence, firearms, felony, vehicle forfeiture, driver license revocation, drive by shooting, public safety, criminal penalties, education, funding, school districts, state aid, education reform

Summary: The Judiciary Committee heard a series of bills dealing largely with sexual exploitation, homicide, reproductive issues, child support, venue changes, domestic violence service of process, probation notice, and traffic offenses. HB 2133 would require websites distributing sexual material to verify age and consent for each depicted person, including AI-generated or altered images; it drew opposition from Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice over added complexity, and support from survivors and trafficking advocates, and passed 7-1. HB 2043 would expand felony murder to include the death of an unborn child; reproductive rights groups and defense attorneys raised personhood and abortion-related concerns, while prosecutors and victims’ advocates supported it, and it passed 6-2. HB 2144 would allow child support calculations to begin during pregnancy and limit pregnancy-related orders to medical and related expenses; supporters framed it as responsibility and support for pregnant women, while opponents warned about fetal personhood and abortion-related implications, and it passed 6-2.

Transcript Highlights:

• along with some legislation that has passed in the last several years establishing **12** as a minimum age
• Minimum ages of jurisdiction, so those young people that are under a certain age get access to services
• If you look at the age range of some of these young people who may be 16 or 17, I would venture...
• And that's another age group, but they follow the same time frame when we had a shutdown, and there was
• Weights vary from carrier to carrier and then from weighting area, and they're also based on age.

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, another provision in the bill is a provision that allows those age 17 to be able to serve alcohol
• /c><00:03:45.280> allows<00:03:45.840> those<00:03:46.480> um<00:03:46.640> age
• <00:03:47.120> 17 provision that um allows those um age 17 provision that um allows those
• um age 17 to<00:03:48.080> be<00:03:48.239> able<00:03:48.400> to<00:03:48.480><
• to be able to raise some money for college or for other kinds of things while they're at a younger age

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm telling you your state's National Guard's your homegrown guardsmen when they hit that retirement age
• implementation of federal law, a CalLabel account, you have to have a disability that begins before the age
• of 26, so it doesn't matter how old you are as long as the disability started before the age of 26 then
• Now that's going to be expanding next year to disabilities that start before the age of 46 and that's
• So like I mentioned right now, it's for disabilities that start before the age of 26.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• People are aging. The entire population of the state is aging.
• People<00:10:16.920> are<00:10:17.160> aging.
• The The entire People are aging.
• <00:10:19.880> It's population of the state is aging.
• It's population of the state is aging.

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: Representative Schomacker delivered a lengthy farewell-style floor speech reflecting on his path into public service, from growing up around news and debate, to starting a teenage Republican group, serving as a page, and eventually being unexpectedly recruited to run for office. He described being elected despite early polling that had him far behind, and said the experience taught him to hold competing viewpoints at once and to focus on getting work done rather than ideological tests. He then reviewed major policy accomplishments from his legislative career, especially in health and human services. He highlighted work on the Lewis and Clark water project for Luverne, the competitive workforce factor in disability waiver rates, expansion of bed capacity at Regions Hospital, and, most prominently, the overhaul of long-term care nursing home funding to a value-based reimbursement system. He emphasized that these efforts required extensive research, negotiation, and input from stakeholders, and said they helped support local care, businesses, and communities. Schomacker also spoke about the importance of long-term care in his district, the aging population, and the role nursing homes play in emergencies. He thanked family, staff, colleagues, mentors, and friends for their support over 16 years in the Legislature, sharing several personal anecdotes and expressing gratitude for the relationships built across party and committee lines. The speech ended with applause and well-wishes; no formal vote or bill action occurred in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• Ag economy locally is important to the community, and so has entered into an agreement with a tenant
• Senator Dunn will, along with providing an ag economy and literally... ...will, along with providing
• an ag economy and living up to the promise of the cities and that water moving, will also provide water
• It simply clarifies what ag property is and ensures that the longstanding income approach is applied
• It simply clarifies what ag property is and ensures that the longstanding income approach is applied

Bills: HB2014, HB2031, HB2078, HB2102, HB2103, HB2117, HB2261, HB2262, HB2264, HB2278, HB2428, HB2494, HB2756, HB2758, HB2762, HB2782, HB2932, HB2933, HB2986

Keywords: air emissions, fuel blends, environmental quality, feasibility study, Arizona Department of Agriculture, water rights, groundwater, Willcox, active management area, certificate of grandfathered rights, Arizona legislature, aggregate mining, reclamation plans, environmental protection, public safety, land use, domestic water, improvement district, water delivery, water hauling

Summary: The committee began with an informational presentation from Gordon Shemp of Nemecu Analytics on Arizona transportation fuel supply and pricing. He explained that Arizona sits at the end of the pipeline system, relies on limited terminal inventories, and can experience only about a seven-day fuel supply if pipelines are disrupted. He attributed recent price spikes to constrained pipeline capacity, Kinder Morgan pressure reductions after PHMSA anomaly reviews, and recovering demand, and he also discussed California refinery closures, increased imports from overseas, and proposed new pipeline capacity into Phoenix from the east. Committee members asked about fuel formulations and pipeline logistics, and Shemp said the proposed project would not change fuel specifications, only transport capacity. The committee then took up House Bill 2758, which would allow eligible entities in La Paz County’s McMullen Valley groundwater basin to transport groundwater to AMAs under specified limits and conditions, with related provisions on fees, districts, and water improvement programs. Supporters, including Stan Barnes, Jim Downing, and Barry Arons, argued the bill follows the Harquahala model, provides needed augmentation for urban Arizona, and includes local benefits and guardrails. Opponents, including La Paz County Supervisor Holly Irwin, Devonna Sater, and Ed Curry, said the bill would worsen groundwater decline, subsidence, and well failures in Salome and Wenden and favored outside investors over rural residents. After debate, the committee approved HB 2758 on a 4-3 vote. The committee also heard and advanced several other water-related bills. HB 2031, extending the deadline to apply for grandfathered groundwater rights in the Wilcox AMA from 15 to 27 months, passed 5-2 after some members said the extension was unnecessary and would delay protections. HB 2102, allowing county improvement districts in subsequent AMAs or groundwater transportation basins to use eminent domain for a well and standpipe site and water hauling, passed 4-3 after Sierra Club testimony called it a limited “band-aid” rather than a real solution. HB 2103, which would let water improvement programs accept gifts and dedicate groundwater transportation fee revenue to local residential water hauling and delivery, also passed 4-3. HB 2117, a technical cleanup bill shifting Environmental Special Plate Fund administration to the Natural Resource Conservation Board and raising education-center distributions from $5,000 to $10,000, passed 5-2 despite concerns about the fund’s administration. The committee then considered HB 2261, which changes agricultural property tax terminology and valuation rules. County assessors and the Arizona Association of Counties opposed it, warning it would effectively exempt many agricultural improvements from taxation and shift costs to residential taxpayers; the Arizona Farm Bureau supported it as a clarification that would provide certainty for agriculture. The bill passed 4-3. Finally, HB 2262, transferring the Resource Analysis Division from the State Land Department to the Arizona Geological Survey and revising geospatial advisory responsibilities, was introduced, with State Land Department staff saying they were neutral but noting the bill would need clearer statutory duties if RAD is removed.

Transcript Highlights:

• School districts phased into matching that 3%, and retired teachers under the age of 65 began paying
• It picked up new teachers under the age of 65, those who are new retirees under 65, those who retired
• teachers under the age of 65 begin<00:07:53.039> paying<00:07:53.280> an<00:07:53.520>
• <00:08:22.319> of up um uh new teachers under the age of up um uh new teachers under the age
• of 65 who retired on or after the age of 65 who retired on or after July<00:08:29.199> 1st,<00

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The House Budget Review Subcommittee on Personnel, Public Retirement, and Finance heard testimony from Bo Barnes, deputy executive secretary and general counsel for the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS), on the TRS budget request for the upcoming biennium and how it compares with House Bill 500 as introduced. Barnes emphasized that the bill fully funds the system’s additional funding request to pay down TRS’s legacy unfunded pension liability, which he described as critical to the system’s long-term funding plan. He also explained that the pension and health insurance requests are broken into several line items, including legacy benefit items, state shared-responsibility payments for retiree health insurance, and reconciliation items that adjust for prior over- or underpayments. Barnes said the state portion of shared responsibility for retiree health insurance was funded below the request in House Bill 500, but he described the health insurance trust as a success story under the post-2010 shared-responsibility model. He said the trust is projected to be fully funded in about two years if medical inflation and federal subsidies remain stable, and he noted that any shortfall in the current budget would be reconciled later and could reduce investment income. In response to questions, he explained that the legacy benefit items are treated as part of the total actuarially determined employer contribution and that unpaid legacy benefits would have the same impact on the retirement trust as unpaid ADC amounts. Barnes also addressed questions about whether the $47.2 million SEEK-related teacher contribution reconciliation could be split between fiscal years, saying it could be done but would reduce investment income and potentially increase future contribution needs. He said the pension fund is currently about 61% funded and that TRS has received full funding for the pension for 10 straight years, with the state having provided full additional funding and more in recent budgets. He concluded by asking the committee to consider TRS’s original budget request, warning that underfunding now would be reflected in future actuarial calculations and could cost the Commonwealth more over time.

Transcript Highlights:

• are often shamed or denied service when trying to purchase condoms or even asked for ID, despite no age
• SB 971 is geared toward individuals ages 60 and over, for opportunities that allow them to And over,
• That sense of purpose and connection is itself an important part of healthy aging.
• That sense of purpose and connection is itself an important part of healthy aging.
• Alzheimer's disease, while often thought of as a condition of aging, reflects broader disparities in

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Next is the Division of Aging, Adult and Behavioral Health Services, and their Department Appropriation
• It says 896 Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Health.
• Senior centers on a Division of Adult and Aging, are we going backwards on those?
• Okay, so you're just there representing the Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Health.
• Representing the Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Health.

Summary: The committee heard a series of Arkansas Department of Human Services budget presentations and questions, beginning with the Secretary’s Office and then the Division of Aging, Adult and Behavioral Health Services. Staff described the divisions’ appropriations, funding sources, and major programs, including senior centers, Meals on Wheels, mental health grants, substance abuse treatment, community alcohol safety, the Medicaid tobacco settlement program, and crisis stabilization units. Members raised concerns about flat or limited funding for senior services, the use and tracing of federal block grants, the lack of a funding source for the veterans’ mental health grant, and the mechanics of the community alcohol safety and treatment programs. The committee also discussed patient benefits funds at state facilities, transportation for senior center clients, and whether some special-language appropriations or fund balances should be revisited. Executive recommendations were adopted for the divisions considered. The committee then reviewed the Division of Children and Family Services and the Division of County Operations. Questions focused on foster care growth, adoption subsidies, professional fees tied to staff training and onboarding, vacancies, the Children’s Trust Fund, and TANF subgrants. Members asked about the reduction or elimination of TANF funding to child advocacy centers and other subgrantees, and DHS explained that prior reserves had been spent down and that the department was now trying to live within the annual TANF block grant and rebuild reserves. County operations questions also covered summer EBT, SNAP employment and training, the farmers’ market program, and the expected impact of a federal SNAP administrative match change, which DHS estimated would increase state costs by about $24 million annually, with roughly $18 million affecting the current year because the change begins October 1. Executive recommendations were again adopted. Finally, the committee heard from the Division of Developmental Disability Services and the Division of Medical Services. DDS testimony covered vacancies, staffing shortages, human development center construction and repairs, the reopening of the Boonville work training program, and funding for infant infirmary and child/family life programs. Medical Services testimony covered the Medicaid program, the current FMAP rate, the Our Kids B CHIP program, Medicaid payments to schools, nursing home distress funding, and large appropriation lines used to provide flexibility for claims and potential facility closures. Members asked for more detail on school Medicaid payments, reserve balances, and why some appropriations were much larger than actual spending. In each division, the committee moved and adopted Executive REC after questions concluded.