Transcript Highlights:

• <00:18:52.520> So, for our fee-for-service program. So, for our fee-for-service program.
• fee-for-service program. fee-for-service program.
• require on the fee-for-service side. require on the fee-for-service side.
• , Medicaid program across fee-for-service, Medicaid program across fee-for-service, managed<00:47
• because of of increased TEFRA fees. because of of increased TEFRA fees.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We simplified the fee structure in this proposal and with a flat $500 fee for grain buying, a flat $300
• 48.800> in<01:14:49.120> this simplified the fee structure in this simplified the fee structure
• Um, and that fee structure and everything. And that program is uh uh dipping into our general fund.
• <01:20:00.080> And<01:20:00.239> that fee structure and everything.
• And that fee structure and everything.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And any fees, whether it was an upfront fee or any combination of upfront fees and fees tacked on to
• For registration fees, not many states have this.
• The registration fee itself is low. I think it's around $30 or something.
• and other fees.
• I'm worried about credit reporting and attorney's fees.

Bills: AB49, AB169, AB188, AB284, AB296, AB306, AB356, AB366, AB467, AB499, AB515, AB540, AB542, AB595

Keywords: educational personnel, teacher licensing, reciprocal licensure, provisional teaching, school counselors, school nurses, school social workers, state education standards, health insurance, speech-language pathology, stuttering, rehabilitative services, habilitative services, coverage requirements, health plans, retired public employees, subsidy, Medicare, health reimbursement arrangement, Public Employees' Benefits Program

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:04:48.960> things we there would be some structural things we there would be some structural
• We actually are a 50-year-old structure.
• The structure.
• We're 47, but the structures are now 50 years old.
• let you know what the administrative fee let you know what the administrative fee is<00:57:10.160

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• What CDPH is proposing is changes to the fee structure for this program, which have not been changed
• We're going to update the phlebotomist certification fee from a biannual to an annual fee and make technical
• That's the laboratory field sciences fees.
• We wouldn't have to do it every time we needed to increase fees.
• From the fee-setting authority it currently has right now? Sure.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, Chair O'Driscoll, the question I have is I'm interested in knowing the full list of taxes and fees
• and assessments are often taxes fees and assessments are often passed<00:20:21.600> on<00:20:
• An insurance fee has funded reinsurance programs in red states like North Dakota, Idaho, and Montana.
• It is largely based in their administrative fees, which are then passed on to consumers.
• <01:02:42.640> change<01:02:43.599> um non-structural change um non-structural change um

Bills: HF837

Keywords: health insurance, premium security plan, federal funding, state innovation waiver, Minnesota, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So the fee related to the systems.
• on R86 were to go forward and the fees on R86 were to go forward and the fees were<00:12:04.880>
• language on and or if there was a fee language on and or if there was a fee increase<00:13:41.360
• fee fees associated to wouldn't be any fee fees associated to this<00:14:49.279> or<00:14:49.519
• In addition we they're structured In addition we they're structured differently<00:59:48.240>

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Because again, we can all rationalize the firefighter who is killed in the line of duty in a structure
• fire, but at what point do... ...structure fire, but at what point do these line of duty death benefits
• Alabama ABC Board the authority to create a new license fee to have enforcement out in the field.
• Is this a fee on the wholesaler, right?
• So, it's an additional fee that the ... it's an additional fee that will be collected at the wholesale

Bills: HB227, HB255, HB465, HB472, HB482, HB483, HB526, HB529, HB484

Keywords: firefighter benefits, occupational disease, line of duty, disability pension, death benefits, retirement benefits, hypertension, heart disease, respiratory disease, cancer presumption, HIV, hepatitis, municipal firefighters, state firefighters, fire districts, workers' compensation, public safety employees, post-retirement benefits, benefit eligibility cutoff, occupational illness

Transcript Highlights:

• Nearly $12 million in tolls and admin fees were billed, okay?
• So there is a final market structure bill that's in committee.
• So, Chad, so this is no other increased fees at all to that, right?
• So, Chad, so this is no other increased fees in all to that, right?
• , the structure is different ways percentage-wise—so it'd be about a 75/25 split.

Summary: The House Appropriations Committee met on April 27 and first took up House Bill 175 and its companion House Bill 165, both dealing with lottery proceeds for veterans. HB 175 was amended to create a Veterans Service Grant Board within the Department of Veterans Affairs and direct $500,000 annually from Louisiana Lottery net proceeds into a Veterans Service Grant Fund, with unused money returned to the lottery proceeds fund that supports the MFP. Supporters, including the bill sponsor, The Boot Louisiana, LDVA Secretary Charlton McGinley, and Bastion Veterans Organization, argued the grants would help veteran services, workforce placement, mental health, housing, entrepreneurship, and retention of veterans in Louisiana. Members raised concerns about drawing from lottery proceeds that traditionally support education, but the committee adopted amendments and reported HB 175 favorably as amended. HB 165, the constitutional amendment companion, was also amended for technical and ballot-language changes and then reported favorably as amended for voter consideration. The committee then considered House Bill 457, which would authorize the Louisiana Department of Health and the State Fire Marshal to set minimum housing standards for homeless shelters, group homes, and halfway homes. The sponsor said the bill responded to a state auditor recommendation and to unsafe conditions in some facilities; he also explained an amendment changing the Fire Marshal’s duties from mandatory to permissive to reduce fiscal impact and allow agencies flexibility. Some members questioned whether local standards already existed and how enforcement and funding would work, while others supported the need for statewide minimum standards for human housing. The committee adopted the amendment and reported HB 457 favorably as amended. House Bill 488, by Representative Brough, sought to create a Belle Chasse Bridge Merit-Based Special Fund using recurring severance tax revenues from Plaquemines Parish to help buy out the Belle Chasse toll bridge and end what the sponsor described as excessive tolls and fees. He and several local witnesses, including business owners, a YMCA representative, and a parish council member, testified that the tolling arrangement had harmed access, businesses, and quality of life. The committee adopted a technical amendment clarifying the revenue source and then reported HB 488 favorably as amended. House Bill 566, which would prohibit state funds from supporting net-zero greenhouse gas initiatives tied to the 2022 Louisiana Climate Action Plan, drew significant debate over whether it would interfere with agency funding and economic development efforts; the sponsor argued the plan lacked legislative approval and should be repudiated, while members urged caution and suggested hearing from affected agencies. The sponsor agreed to consider deferring the bill, and the committee did not advance it at that time. House Bill 603, a constitutional amendment authorizing investment of state funds in digital assets and precious metals, was discussed as a way to hedge inflation and preserve value; members asked about limits and safeguards, and the bill was reported favorably. The committee then began hearing House Bill 763, a transparency measure creating a public database for settlement agreements involving state agencies.

Transcript Highlights:

• A toll should not be on this type of structure in a community.
• The state has already put in $100 million on its structure.
• It's the exact same type of structure.
• You go to the ambulatory surgery center, you have three charges: a facility fee, an anesthesia fee, and
• a professional fee.

Bills: HB198, HB325, HB488, HB719, HB749, HB755, HB797, HB823, HB1028, HB1194, HB1222

Keywords: Medicaid, reimbursement, ambulatory surgical centers, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, healthcare funding, Louisiana Department of Health, surgical procedures, TOPS-Tech, scholarship, education, eligibility, college credit, dual enrollment, state funding, HB 488, Belle Chasse Bridge, Belle Chasse Bridge Merit-Based Special Fund, Plaquemines Parish

Transcript Highlights:

• allow for moving fees and a and a regime allow for moving fees and a and a regime that<00:03:18.239><
• It also eliminates structure is fair.
• Immigration and visa fees lost profits.
• <00:32:24.880> that that we are creating a structure that that we are creating a structure
• Chair Baker and I have been talking a lot about program structure.

Bills: HF3889, HF2567, HF3878

Keywords: workforce development, grant program, employment, economic development, funding, employment contract, labor policy, employee rights, unconscionable provisions, public policy, legal enforcement, airport workers, wage standards, labor rights, minimum wage, economic equity, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• This tool is not designed to be a structured interview with a child.
• And second, it shifts the responsibility for arbitration fees to... ...billing models.
• fees evenly regardless of the outcome.
• system and these types of fee-for-service rates.
• It is the main core structure of Medicaid managed care.

Bills: HB136, HB451, SB425, SB466, SB905, SB1986, SB2311, SB2450, SB2805, SB2826, SB2919, SB3001

Keywords: Medicaid, lactation, healthcare, consultation, reimbursement, maternal health, infant care, commercial sexual exploitation, child sex trafficking, human trafficking, child welfare, foster care, DFPS, Department of Family and Protective Services, juvenile probation, risk assessment, needs assessment, trauma screening, child abuse prevention, exploitation screening

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and announced it would vote on pending bills at 10:30, with public testimony limited to two minutes. It first took up Senate Bill 905, a TDLR cleanup bill on licensing regulation of speech-language pathologists and audiologists. Senator Zafferini said the committee substitute would streamline advisory board consultation, remove obsolete provisional licenses, and allow any licensed physician to authorize hearing instruments for minors; the substitute was adopted and the bill left pending. The committee then heard House Bill 451, which would require universal screening for commercial sexual exploitation risk for children in DFPS conservatorship and youth under TJJD jurisdiction. The author and witnesses from Children at Risk, the Fort Bend Anti-Trafficking Collective, and Texas CASA supported the bill as a prevention tool with existing infrastructure and training; the committee adopted the substitute and left the bill pending. The committee next considered Senate Bill 466, which would clarify that families may request a fetal death certificate at any gestational age, while keeping existing filing requirements for physicians. A constituent father testified about losing his 11-week-old daughter and being told he could not obtain a certificate, which he said prevented funeral arrangements; the substitute was adopted and the bill left pending. Senate Bill 2311 followed, requiring residential treatment centers to have a written agreement with the school that will educate resident children before becoming operational. The author cited a local dispute where an RTC and school district lacked communication, and witnesses from Texas CASA and Disability Rights Texas supported clearer educational planning while suggesting the Education Code may need conforming changes; the bill was left pending. The committee then heard Senate Bill 2826, known as Alyssa’s Law, which would create a statewide education program on medical child abuse for medical students, health care professionals, and CPS caseworkers. The author and Sheriff Bill Weyburn described Alyssa’s case as involving repeated unnecessary surgeries and argued the bill would improve awareness and early identification, while several witnesses and members raised concerns about false accusations, impacts on medically fragile children, and the need for scientific, peer-reviewed training and safeguards. After extensive discussion, the chair left the bill pending. The committee also heard House Bill 136, which would add certified lactation consultants as Medicaid providers to expand breastfeeding support; witnesses from lactation and nutrition fields said the bill would improve access, maternal and infant health, and long-term savings, and the bill was left pending. Finally, the committee took up Senate Bill 2805, a surprise-billing/arbitration measure that would clarify provider identifiers and shift arbitration costs to the losing party. The author said the substitute was a legislative counsel draft with no substantive difference, and witnesses from the Texas Medical Association, Texas Society of Anesthesiologists, and U.S. Anesthesia Partners supported the bill as a modest improvement that would reduce administrative confusion and make arbitration fairer without weakening patient protections. Members discussed how arbitration costs affect settlement behavior and how to define the “winner” in close cases. The bill was heard but not voted out during this segment.

Transcript Highlights:

• New Mexico receives about 48% of those royalty payments, which is half less a 2% administrative fee.
• Then you've got fee-for-service payments that private insurers are making to practitioners.
• Essentially, they're only taxed at the current moment on fee-for-service payments.
• One of the issues embedded in this structure about...
• It would also solve the fee-for-service problem.

Transcript Highlights:

• There's a lot of ways that states structure their property tax systems.
• their property tax states structure their property tax systems<00:04:13.200> uh<00:04:13.280>
• That change did not change the overall structure of the distribution formula.
• That change did not change the overall structure of the distribution formula.
• And then the third one is state and local taxes and fees as a share of personal income.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The House Tax Committee met to hear a House Research presentation from Jared Swanson on Minnesota’s property tax system. Before the presentation, the chair announced that the committee would put the governor’s budget on hold until the department could provide the information needed for a proper hearing. The committee then approved the prior meeting minutes without objection. Swanson gave an overview of how property taxes are structured and collected in Minnesota, explaining that the state uses a levy-based system in which local governments set levies and counties collect and distribute payments. He described the property tax cycle, the difference between referendum market value and net tax capacity, and how classification rates shift tax burdens among property types. He also outlined the state general property tax, noting it is split between commercial-industrial property and seasonal recreational property, and reviewed how Minnesota compares with other states, with residential taxes generally around the middle and commercial-industrial taxes relatively higher. The presentation also covered major property tax relief and aid programs. Swanson explained three broad relief mechanisms: shifting burdens through exclusions and classification rates, state-paid credits and refunds, and state aid to local governments or levy reductions. He discussed local government aid (LGA), township aid, and county program aid (CPA), including their funding levels, formulas, and general-purpose nature. Members asked why some cities receive no LGA and how the funds may be used; Swanson said cities with strong tax bases often receive zero aid and that the money generally can be used for the same purposes as property tax revenue. No votes were taken on the presentation itself.

Transcript Highlights:

• Okay, so the people listening, it's a fee unlike property taxes, which are based on the value of your
• You know, um, I will tell you we have quite a few structures similar to this in Maple Grove.
• for it and then they assess penalties on top of the fine and then they nailed her with attorney's fees
• for it and then they assess penalties on top of the fine and then they nailed her with attorney's fees
• and now she's looking at fees and now she's looking at foreclosure.<00:35:47.400> Jesus.

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: House File 2614 was heard with a delete-everything amendment adopted at the outset. The bill, as explained by the authors, would prevent local governments from requiring amenities or common property that effectively force the creation of a homeowners association, while still allowing developers to create HOAs voluntarily when needed. The authors said the language was negotiated with stakeholders, including the League of Minnesota Cities, and was intended to be moved on to the Housing Committee for further discussion. Supportive testimony came from Housing First Minnesota and the Minnesota Homeownership Center. They argued that unnecessary HOA mandates can raise housing costs, reduce homebuyer choice, and shift public infrastructure costs onto homeowners through dues in addition to property taxes. Testifiers cited examples involving single-family developments, a Burnsville case involving a large roof assessment and disputed ACH withdrawal, and the Heritage Park development in Minneapolis, where an HOA was required but later became difficult to dissolve. They said the bill would preserve HOAs where they are genuinely needed, such as townhomes or shared-amenity developments. Members raised questions about the removal of county-specific language in the amendment, the meaning of the bill’s references to services and common property, and whether the bill would still allow neighborhood signs or other developer-requested features. A major point of concern was stormwater ponds and drainage infrastructure: one member argued that prohibiting cities from requiring HOA maintenance of such facilities could shift costs to taxpayers, while the authors responded that the bill was meant to stop cities from mandating discretionary amenities and that maintenance issues had been partly addressed in the amendment. The committee did not take a final vote in the portion provided, but the amendment was adopted and the bill was discussed for referral onward.

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2003, the Texas Legislature adjusted the blended rate structure associated with credit provided by
• Right now, the rate structure in the state is broken out in three parts.
• I know there were a lot of concerns about that structure in other states.
• So you're factoring in the admin fee, the origination fee, any ancillary insurance products, whatever
• So depending upon the structure of the loan, it will also influence the interest rate.

Bills: HB886, HB1514, HB2434, HB2688, HB2802, HB3161, HB3221, HB4029, HB4339, HB4591, HB4774, HB4802, HB4853, HB5627, SB1737

Keywords: retirement, supplemental payment, benefits, Employees Retirement System, eligible annuitants, legislation, annuity, service credit, Employees Retirement System of Texas, employee benefits, pension reform, public retirement systems, municipality pensions, firefighters, police officers, retirement age, DROP program, actuarial studies, pension benefits, municipal retirement

Transcript Highlights:

• because I have been helped honestly through everything, from covering my shoes and scrubs to the class fees
• scrubs<00:08:44.959> to<00:08:45.959> the<00:08:46.240> class<00:08:46.600> fees
• ><00:08:47.200> to<00:08:47.720> helping<00:08:48.120> me scrubs to the class fees
• to helping me scrubs to the class fees to helping me through<00:08:48.600> a<00:08:48.800>
• I'm thinking a lot and talked to the chair a lot about kind of how to structure our use of Workforce

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• it would not have been 499 structures it would not have been considered catastrophic<00:09:21.839>
• um and a lot of premiums relating fees um and a lot of premiums relating to<00:19:28.960> kind
• ...below the 500 structures and the fund doesn't activate, that's another place where shareholders are
• <00:53:16.559> is the numbers there the reserve fee is the numbers there the reserve fee is
• <01:22:57.679> the into an existing structure the into an existing structure the architecture

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint Senate hearing focused primarily on SB 1201, a wildfire measure that would create a wildfire recovery fund and allow securitization for electric utilities. Hawaiian Electric strongly supported the bill, saying it would help protect customers, property owners, insurers, and the broader economy from future catastrophic wildfire liability while improving the utility’s credit profile and lowering financing costs. Support also came from DCCA Consumer Advocacy, the Attorney General’s office on written comments, Ulupono Initiative, Clearway Energy Group, IBEW Local 1260, Par Hawaii, KIUC, the Chamber of Commerce Hawaiʻi, Plus Power, and numerous organizations and individuals. Opponents or commenters raised concerns about the liability cap, victim compensation process, and fund structure, including the Hawaiʻi Association for Justice, the Hawaiʻi Regional Council of Carpenters, and the Hawaiʻi Insurance Council; Henry Curtis of Life of the Land supported the concept of a fund but questioned the catastrophe threshold and whether the fund would be empty without a prudency finding. Much of the discussion centered on whether the proposed fund would actually help restore Hawaiian Electric to investment grade, with senators comparing the proposal to California’s wildfire fund. Hawaiian Electric said the bill was only one part of a broader process, alongside physical risk reduction and settlement finalization, and argued that without the bill the utility would not regain investment grade. Senators also questioned the proposed $1 billion fund size, the fairness of ratepayer contributions versus shareholder contributions, and whether customers should pay for consulting and administrative costs; Hawaiian Electric said its proposed amendment would remove those consulting-related charges. The company also said the fund would accrue interest and, if unused, could be returned to customers, and that there would be replenishment and supplemental contribution mechanisms if the fund were exhausted. The Attorney General’s office said it still had further amendments to discuss, and the departments had not yet resolved where the fund should reside administratively, though Hawaiian Electric said it believed DCCA was the appropriate place but was open to alternatives. KIUC requested two amendments. No vote or final committee action was taken during the hearing, and the measure remained under discussion with questions and proposed amendments still outstanding.

Transcript Highlights:

• The filing fee.
• This fee is not paid by the only time this fee is paid by local money or by county money is in the case
• This fee is not paid by transcripts.
• c><00:03:56.480> local the only time this fee is paid by local the only time this fee is paid
• And the way that we were structure.

Keywords: Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency - Room 210; 28 January, 2026: 10:30 AM, 925, all

Summary: The committee first nominated and elected Senator Lane Taylor as secretary by voice vote, with no opposition. It then took up several bills and reported each one out after brief explanations and no recorded opposition. Senate Bill 2372, from the Department of Archives and History, would allow county filing-fee revenues now used only for preservation of historic records to also support records management, historic preservation, and museum services in counties. Barry White said the money is not for capital projects, but could fund services such as building assessments and recommendations. The committee also heard Senate Bill 2378, which would raise court reporter transcript fees from $2.40 to $4.00 per page; the sponsor said most costs are paid by litigants, while county funds are mainly affected in indigent criminal appeals. Both bills were advanced. The committee next considered Senate Bill 2401, relating to Accelerate Mississippi. Senator Sparks said it would extend the repealer to 2029, update procurement and reporting provisions, change some federal terminology, move the annual report deadline from October 1 to November 1, and repeal obsolete workforce-area references. It was reported out after a brief question about the obsolete sections. The committee also advanced Senate Bill 2402, the Amy Act, which removes the five-day grace period for lobbyist registration so registration must occur before a person begins lobbying; sponsors said the goal is transparency and tracking misinformation, not changing the definition of lobbyist. Finally, the committee heard Senate Bill 2445 on community mental health centers. Department of Mental Health Executive Director Wendy Bailey said the bill would create a formal performance audit process, with standards developed by June 30, 2027 and audits beginning in FY28 every two years. Centers failing standards would be placed on probation, and continued failure could lead to temporary replacement of leadership by DMH-selected contractors until compliance is restored. Members asked about current probation and decertification procedures, the number of struggling centers, and whether consolidation would be preferable; Bailey said the department wants to preserve local centers and use the process only as a temporary intervention. The bill was discussed but the transcript cuts off before a final vote is shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• , but it's taking the fee and putting it where it should be.
• I think it's based on the fee per barrel. Mr.
• , pause that fee, or find some other way to lessen the burden on operators.
• The EIB could grant a fee increase. However, Mr.
• This 10 cent fee is consistent with other states' fees, including Texas.