Transcript Highlights:

• This issue is more important now than ever. as California is increasingly facing devastating natural
• disasters.
• AB 1069 requires, as part of disaster planning and response, an area agency on aging, AAA, or an aging
• Even the stamina needed to stand in a line at a disaster center becomes problematic for some frail older
• Having access to personnel that understands their needs when requesting to enter a disaster shelter to

Committee: House Aging and Long-Term Care

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• therapies and use them to help grow cartilage, to help, you know, cancer patients and things of that nature
• They're taking what nature gave us.
• Again, these are products available in nature.
• I firmly support this because of the disaster we have seen over the last several years when it comes
• As we're talking about preparedness and disaster preparedness, I would like to follow up and find out

Committee: Senate Senate Health and Human Services COR

Summary: The committee approved the minutes and then took up a large agenda of health-related bills. SB 1214, the Arizona Stem Cell Therapy Act, drew extensive testimony from supporters who said it would create guardrails for regenerative medicine, protect patients, and encourage biotech investment, while opponents argued it was tied to abortion politics and imposed harsh penalties. The bill passed on a 4-3 vote. SB 1194, which would prohibit health professionals and institutions from denying care based on vaccination status, also passed 4-3 after testimony from supporters framing it as an access-to-care and religious-freedom measure and opponents warning it would interfere with private practice policies and parental choice. SB 1814, creating a study committee on substance use disorder treatment standards and oversight, passed unanimously 7-0. SB 1602, increasing stipends for kinship foster parents, passed as amended 7-0, and SB 1603, expanding child-only cash assistance eligibility, also passed as amended 7-0. The committee then considered several bills focused on gender-related care and public funding. SB 1177, which bars public monies from funding gender transition procedures and makes intentional violations a felony, passed 4-3 amid testimony that it protects taxpayers and counterarguments that it is discriminatory and unsupported by evidence. SB 1014, requiring insurance coverage for detransition procedures when transition care is covered and directing data reporting on transition and detransition, passed 4-3 after supporters said it would help detransitioners and collect needed data, while opponents argued it would chill providers and target transgender patients. SB 1094, creating civil liability for physicians who perform irreversible gender reassignment surgery on minors, was heard with testimony from supporters citing malpractice concerns and detransitioner harms and from opponents saying it would create a hostile environment for providers and treat trans patients differently; the transcript cuts off before the vote is shown. SB 1752, which classifies commercial harvesting or sale of mescaline as a felony while preserving bona fide religious use defenses, passed unanimously 7-0. Later, SB 1628, requiring insurers to report claims-denial and prior-authorization data and DIFI to publish standardized reports, passed unanimously 7-0 after supporters emphasized transparency and opponents called it redundant to federal reporting. SB 1629, requiring AHCCCS managed care organizations to give advance notice and network-adequacy documentation before terminating high-volume providers without cause, also passed 7-0; supporters said it would prevent patients from losing access to behavioral health care, while health plans and Access said existing oversight already covers much of this and warned the bill could slow necessary network changes. Throughout the meeting, the committee repeatedly adopted motions for due-pass recommendations and, where applicable, amendments, with several bills passing on party-line or near-party-line votes.

Transcript Highlights:

• Signs, placards, or other objects of similar nature are prohibited.
• disaster like a hurricane or a fire, and people are very generous.
• Harvest methane gas out of the waste stream, clean that up and set it as renewable natural gas.
• We provide a habitat for the Texas wildlife, and we also help conserve natural resources.
• The veterinary emergency team at Texas A&M has responded to fires, hurricanes, and other natural disasters

Committee: House Agriculture & Livestock

Transcript Highlights:

• I suspect it has to do certainly with the public safety nature of the work that we do.
• disaster or a declared emergency...
• disaster a declared emergency Or inmate.
• Four, to render aid during a natural disaster, a declared emergency, or to prevent a serious threat to
• So they get... ...you know, obviously similar in nature.

Committee: Senate Judiciary and Rules

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• environmental funding and regulatory sections of Prop. 64, and it works to protect water quality and other natural
• back taxes, which must first be approved by a local tax assessor in the event of a state-declared disaster
• AB 1460 expressly authorized an assessor to grant a disaster-related deferral if an installment plan
• AB 1416 would ensure that victims of a disaster are not caught up in the bureaucratic process before
• is return to their home to find it being sold because their request was not approved prior to the disaster

Summary: The Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee met with a delayed start while waiting for quorum, then heard several bills before moving to the suspense file. AB 564 by Assemblymember Haney would freeze the planned cannabis excise tax increase at 15% rather than allow it to rise to 25%; supporters argued the legal cannabis industry is struggling against the illicit market and high taxes, while opponents said the measure would reduce funding for children, youth programs, environmental restoration, and enforcement promised under Prop. 64. The bill was sent to suspense during regular order and later approved out of suspense on a 6-0 vote with amendments, including a five-year sunset and a reduced rate. AB 1265, also by Haney, would extend and expand the state historic tax credit to encourage rehabilitation of vacant historic buildings for housing and mixed-use projects; preservation and housing advocates supported it, and it was also sent to suspense rather than voted on immediately. The committee then heard AB 1377 by Assemblymember McKenna, which would require studios seeking optional diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility film tax credits to complete the plans they submit to the California Film Commission. Labor supporters said studios should do more than make good-faith efforts, and the bill passed 5-1 to Appropriations. AB 1416 by Vice Chair Ta would clarify disaster-related property tax deferrals for homeowners who have requested installment plans, and it passed 7-0 to the Assembly Floor. Afterward, the chair gave a general warning that the bills on suspense represented large revenue losses and emphasized the committee’s need to weigh tax expenditures against other state priorities. On the suspense file, the committee approved AB 27, AB 53, AB 97, AB 231, AB 232, AB 429, AB 613, AB 984, and AB 1485, mostly on unanimous or near-unanimous votes, while AB 547 passed 5-1. Several other bills, including AB 386, AB 389, AB 490, AB 6991, AB 814, AB 1057, AB 1219, AB 1282, AB 1354, AB 1431, AB 1435, and AB 1481, were held in committee. The meeting concluded with the committee adjourning after completing the suspense-file actions.

Transcript Highlights:

• Maybe we do have an inquiry or two of a general nature.
• Bean, and of a more general nature and related to your...
• Page 531 is the Missouri Disaster Medical Assistance Corps budget.
• And we also will be closing out the COVID disaster that we had.
• So for instance, in this one, it's the disaster appropriations.

Committee: House Budget

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Catastrophe models predict the future losses of natural disasters and are often used as benchmarks to
• At United Policyholders, we work with families every day who are trying to rebuild after disasters, and
• We work with families every day who are trying to rebuild after disasters, and we know the struggles
• In the aftermath of large-scale wildfire and other disasters, United Policyholders works closely with
• In the aftermath of large-scale wildfire and other disasters, United Policyholders works closely with

Summary: The Assembly Insurance Committee met to hear several bills related to insurance coverage, wildfire risk, workers’ compensation, and paid family leave. SB 8 by Senator Ashby would extend workers’ compensation and disability protections to Sacramento County park rangers, with testimony emphasizing that they perform law-enforcement-like duties and should receive the same protections as comparable officers. SB 429 by Senator Cortese would create a public wildfire catastrophe model and related wildfire safety program, with support from the Department of Insurance and consumer advocates who said public access to modeling data would improve transparency and help evaluate private insurance risk models. The committee also heard SB 525 by Senator Jones, which would require the FAIR Plan to offer coverage options for manufactured and mobile home owners, including replacement cost coverage. Supporters said the bill would help lower-income residents obtain meaningful insurance protection, while no opposition testified. SB 495 by Senator Allen, as amended, would require insurers to provide a larger contents-coverage advance after a total loss during a declared emergency without requiring an immediate itemized inventory, extend proof-of-loss deadlines, and require insurers to provide catastrophe modeling and reinsurance data to the Department of Insurance. Several insurers withdrew opposition after amendments, and the Department of Insurance and United Policyholders supported the measure. SB 590 by Senator Durazo would expand paid family leave to cover care for designated persons or chosen family members, with strong support from AARP, labor, civil rights, caregiving, and health organizations, and testimony from a parent describing the need to care for a non-legal family member during surgery recovery. The committee also took up consent items SB 230 and SB 854. After roll calls, SB 8, SB 429, SB 495, SB 525, and SB 590 all received do-pass votes, with SB 429 sent to the Committee on Emergency Management, SB 495 to Judiciary, and SB 525 and SB 590 to Appropriations. The consent calendar bills were also approved, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• The floodway is where the river naturally floods. That is very important to understand.
• Let me be clear: they were not killed by Mother Nature, but by complacency, ego, and tradition.
• They were not killed by Mother Nature, but by complacency, ego, and tradition.
• I would say that if we got a complaint of that nature, we would investigate.
• You don't think you have a complaint of that nature? Okay, we'll move on.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So our first panel this morning is Water and Natural Resources Workforce. Development and Wrap Up.
• but a long term recovery for a disaster.
• It's mother nature... That's what it boils down to, Madam Chair. I'm going to stop right there.
• Trustee is involved in the preparation of a natural resource damage assessment.
• And we have all the data when it comes to natural resources.

Committee: House Water & Natural Resources Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• People don't think about our natural environment.
• There are some federal requirements with that; those funds are federal in nature.
• Here's the caveat: for a presidentially declared disaster.
• How do we empower our state to be in the position to forecast these, not just the natural disasters,
• What may no longer be a natural monopoly?

Committee: House Economic & Rural Development & Policy Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• Are there any questions of general nature before we get started in the book?
• Given the escalating frequency and severity of storms and natural disasters, this educational initiative
• Given the escalating frequency and severity of storms and natural disasters, I'm sorry, this educational
• disaster, tornado, fire, or drought and things of that extent.
• "Deployed during times of disaster?

Committee: House Budget

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It provides a laundry list of what we define as a disaster today, but I'm trying to keep an open-ended
• </c> what we Define as a disaster what we Define as a disaster today today today um<00:15:04.519><c>
• know the the nature of of that<00:16:05.800><c> pandemic</c><00:16:06.399><c> so</c><00:16:06.759><c
• </c> approach to if we have a major disaster approach to if we have a major disaster you<00:25:19.120
• </c> the um Department of land and natural the um Department of land and natural resources<02:14:49.960

Committee: House Public Safety

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The committee held its first hearing of the 2025 session and began with housekeeping on testimony deadlines, hybrid participation rules, time management, and expectations for civility. The chair said testimony posted at least 24 hours in advance would be available to members and the public at the same time, late testimony would still be processed, and decision-making would generally be deferred to later in the day so morning hearings could adjourn before the noon floor session. The first bill heard was HB 673 on emergency management. Hawaii Emergency Management Agency administrator James Barros testified in opposition, saying the bill could undermine the executive’s unity of command during emergencies and objecting to provisions allowing the legislature to terminate a state of emergency by a two-thirds vote. Members asked about the difference between an emergency order and a state of emergency, whether other states use legislative checks and balances, and whether long-running emergencies such as COVID-19 or homelessness should have clearer end conditions. Barros said the agency, along with the Attorney General’s office and the governor’s office, would review the language and that the issue is setting conditions for when an emergency ends. The committee then heard HB 596, also on emergency management, which would clarify types of events that count as dangers and emergencies. Barros opposed the bill, saying the current list covers known hazards but should remain open-ended for future threats; he cited COVID-19 as an example of an unforeseen event and said the bill could limit flexibility. Members asked whether the list could be expanded, and Barros said the agency would look at that possibility. Testimony included support from the Grassroots Institute of Hawaii and concerns from the Tax Foundation of Hawaii about the bill’s special fund provisions; the committee also corrected testimony that had been submitted for the wrong bill. The final measure discussed was HB 1060 on emergency preparedness and the Community Readiness Center Program. Barros explained the proposal as part of HEMA’s effort to build local readiness centers and community hubs, with an initial target of 10 communities through a federal grant and a longer-term concept of roughly 100 statewide. The Climate Advisory Team supported the bill’s intent but urged that centers be developed with strong community and nonprofit involvement through the HARRP program. The Department of Taxation offered comments on the special fund, and members raised questions about cost, size, use of existing school facilities, public messaging, and equity across communities. Barros said the centers would provide backup communications, power, water, and food for a community group, would not function as general shelters, and would be designed to help communities hunker down and recover after a disaster.

Transcript Highlights:

• disasters.
• I mentioned Texas Department of Emergency Management. of disaster that affects the state of Texas be
• disaster. disasters, the fentanyl and methamphetamine crisis, a pandemic. and many other issues, just
• disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes and wildfires.
• People on the spot when there is a a a traffic crash or wreck, something of that nature.

Committee: Senate Nominations

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• legacy continues through his art, which I hope you come see, a tribute to both his nation and the natural
• So Senate Bill 18 works to ensure that climate disasters are lessened in our state.
• Natural disaster devastation on our communities isn't a matter of if; it's a matter of when.
• The new norm of natural disasters is why we're spending so much time as a body to find ways to fund disaster
• as the Executive Order for Disasters Fund, and authorizing expenditures from that fund for a natural

Summary: The Senate opened with roll call, an invocation, pledges, and a series of announcements and guest introductions tied to several recognition days, including Disability Rights Awareness Day, Elevate the Spectrum Day, Geothermal Rising Legislative Day, DWI Awareness Day, and Adult Education and Literacy Day. Senators also welcomed guests for New Mexico Down Syndrome Day and other constituent visits, and the chamber read certificates recognizing the Hurley family and the New Mexico Military Museum, as well as adult education and literacy programs across the state. Testimony and remarks highlighted the service of the Hurley family, the importance of adult education for workforce and civic participation, and the contributions of people with disabilities and their families. The Senate adopted multiple committee reports and received House messages on several bills and resolutions. On third reading, the Senate passed Senate Bill 96, as amended, which streamlines child care licensing and reduces administrative barriers to opening or expanding child care homes and centers; an HOA-related floor amendment was adopted after discussion about local restrictions and neighborhood traffic concerns. The chamber then passed Senate Bill 14, as amended, which expands the state’s health professional loan repayment program with $25 million in funding split between physicians and allied health professionals/nurses, with questions focused on eligibility, prioritization, and whether the funding would be sufficient to address shortages. Senators also debated the bill’s support for part-time service and its role in helping New Mexico compete for medical workers. The Senate next passed Senate Bill 104 unanimously, establishing a process for removing a wildlife commissioner that requires gubernatorial initiation, notice and a hearing, and direct review by the state Supreme Court; debate centered on due process, the removal standard of incompetence, neglect of duty, or malfeasance, and how the new process compares with prior law. Finally, the chamber took up Senate Bill 50, which would give the Law Enforcement Training Standards Council more flexibility to set training curricula for officers, especially in rural departments; sponsors said the bill preserves minimum training while allowing updates for current issues, but several senators raised concerns that the measure could weaken explicit statutory requirements for domestic violence and sexual assault training and asked how those topics would remain protected in the future curriculum.

Transcript Highlights:

• sure we're doing, you know, the right thing in terms of environmental mitigation from LNG, like the natural
• One I wanted to ask you, Colonel, on your infrastructure needs, I'll use natural gas, for example.
• for local, state, national, we work with businesses like Leonardo and other aerospace companies, disaster
• for local, state, national, we work with businesses like Leonardo and other aerospace companies, disaster
• We're solar-powered and naturally cooled.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and heard first from Space Florida President and CEO Robert Long, who described the agency’s role as the state’s aerospace finance and business development authority and spaceport authority. He reported a pipeline of about 187 projects, nearly $7 billion in potential private investment, and roughly 8,000 potential jobs, with 161 projects in the fiscal-year pipeline, up about 30% from the prior year. Long said Space Florida is focusing on workforce development through its Space Florida Academy with 23 school districts, and on target markets including advanced air mobility/eVTOL, flight simulation, and satellite manufacturing. Members asked about infrastructure, federal-state coordination, LNG planning, environmental mitigation, workforce, and how the Legislature’s recent $5 million recurring increase is being used; Long said the funds are mainly supporting staffing, contracted services, and IT improvements to handle growth and move projects through faster. The panel then heard from Blue Origin, Leonardo (through LSN Partners), and Lone Star Data Holdings. Blue Origin said its Florida manufacturing and launch operations have grown far beyond initial commitments, with more than $3 billion invested and over 3,000 employees in the state, and emphasized the need for roads, water, wastewater, and other launch-site infrastructure as launch cadence increases. Leonardo highlighted its TH-73A Navy helicopter program in Milton and a new 70,000-square-foot maintenance facility at Whiting Aviation Park, crediting state, local, and federal partners and noting future potential for its AW-609 tiltrotor aircraft. Lone Star Data Holdings described its satellite-based data storage and disaster-recovery business, said Florida was its first customer, and urged the state to use Florida as a pilot project for protecting data and expanding space-based data infrastructure. Members repeatedly focused on what the state should do next, and the panel’s main answer was continued investment in infrastructure and long-term planning. Specific needs mentioned included road widening, traffic signals, fire suppression, water pressure, wastewater capacity, power, transportation links, environmental mitigation, and LNG-related planning at the spaceport. No formal votes or bills were taken up in the meeting, and the session ended after member questions and comments with a motion to rise and adjourn.

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you for bringing it through the Natural Resource Committee, and I respectfully ask for an aye vote
• Is that when you blow open, using a laser, that is, by the way, electrically driven from natural gas.
• While competition is driving down prices naturally, the lowest-cost plans are still out of reach for
• The average citizen has no idea that a settlement for disasters and destruction of their home would be
• When you are impacted by a natural disaster, we need to show up for you, regardless of party, regardless

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2023, we had the most devastating fire, the most devastating disaster that ever happened in Spokane
• We were not prepared for that disaster at all. And we learned a lot of lessons.
• We were not prepared for that disaster at all. And we learned a lot of lessons.
• Thank you very much for clarifying that, because would you naturally say that there's just so much more
• Northeast Washington is rich in natural beauty and outdoor recreation, but we are also geographically

Bills: SB6061 , SB5844 , SB6079 , SB6137 , SB5831 , SB6031 , SB6178

Committee: Senate Business, Trade & Economic Development

Keywords: tourism, self-supported assessment, funding, statewide promotion, economic development, storage rental, tenancy agreements, tenant rights, landlord obligations, termination notice, insurance, wildfire prevention, policy nonrenewal, cancellation, risk management, sports wagering, sports betting, sports gambling, bookmaking, gambling regulation

Transcript Highlights:

• And what you're seeing there is lapse from natural attrition and the time it takes to backfill positions
• She added that Christina would get into the disaster recovery item on page 88 in more detail, and that
• they are still waiting on many of the national declared disasters from last year.
• Carver continued that on page 88, the decision item is for disaster recovery.
• Missouri was awarded about $300 million because of the hard-to-reach nature of some of our...

Committee: House Budget

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And simulated disaster town is there.
• So, we know of disasters in our state.
• </c><00:28:34.320><c> like</c> If we continue to have disasters like If we continue to have disasters
• So, um, but it is important disasters.
• </c> at the gorge and you do during natural at the gorge and you do during natural disasters<01:11:45.280

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The committee met with a quorum, approved the August minutes, and heard a brief announcement from Senator Richardson about the Missing in America Project interring unclaimed veterans’ remains at the Western Kentucky Veterans Cemetery in Hopkinsville. He read the names of several veterans being laid to rest with military honors, and the chair thanked the volunteers involved in the effort. The main presentation was an update on Kentucky’s urban search and rescue program from the Department of Military Affairs and Kentucky Emergency Management. Officials said the program is being built around two regional task force hubs, a helicopter aquatic rescue team, an incident support team, and a rescue aid fund for local search and rescue units. They reported that the $8.3 million appropriated for the program in the 2025 budget was fully executed, that $482,670 of the rescue aid fund went to 29 local teams, and that $493,592 has already been allocated in the current year to 36 teams. They also described warehouse and equipment purchases, staffing with full-time and part-time personnel, and a new training site on state property for collapsed-structure and multi-agency exercises. Officials said the program has already been used in recent disasters, including flood response and urban search and rescue operations in several parts of the state, and claimed the effort has impacted more than 1,500 citizens through rescues, evacuations, and related assistance. They said the helicopter aquatic rescue team is fully operational, the task force roster should be finalized by January, incident support should be online by April, and the full program should be deployable by June 30 or July 1, 2026. Members asked about statewide response times, K-9 search capabilities, and the long-term cost of the program, including concerns about reliance on federal matching funds. The presenters said K-9 assets will be part of the task force, that pre-positioning during forecasted storms can reduce response times significantly, and that they would provide more detailed budget information later.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> Conservation and Natural Resources. Conservation and Natural Resources.
• I'm Nala Cheney representing the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
• Anytime there are any issues with disasters that might be coming our way, he updates the agency senior
• Anytime there are any issues with<00:10:15.279><c> disasters</c><00:10:15.920><c> that</c><00:10:16.240
• that might be coming our with disasters that might be coming our way,<00:10:17.279><c> he</c><00:10:

Keywords: 924, joint, all