Transcript Highlights:

• This is one of your primary funding drivers when we talk about critical needs.
• We used to have the local funds were a little bit more than state funds.
• This is one of your primary funding drivers when we talk about critical needs.
• We used to have the local funds or a little bit more than state funds.
• Students who need more intensive services may qualify for funding beyond the ESC guaranteed allocation

Committee: Senate Appropriations Committee on Pre-K - 12 Education

Summary: The committee held its first meeting and received an overview of the Pre-K-12 education appropriations jurisdiction and base budget. Staff explained that education funding is driven largely by enrollment and per-student formulas, with most money coming from state and local sources. The presentation highlighted the major budget areas: early learning, the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP), non-FEFP K-12 programs, federal programs, and the State Board of Education. Members asked about instructional materials funding and how scholarship students who return to public schools are counted and funded; staff explained that instructional materials remain in the base and that funding depends on survey timing, with districts ultimately funded through the enrollment count process. The committee then reviewed federal IDEA funding for students with disabilities. Department of Education officials explained how IDEA Part B funds are split between state set-asides and local educational agencies, and noted that Florida ranked fourth nationally in total IDEA Part B funding and received a 95% state determination for meeting IDEA requirements. They also described the bureau’s responsibilities, including monitoring, dispute resolution, instructional support, and the Hope Florida unit for ages 3 to 5. Members asked for more information on student performance outcomes and how the state measures success beyond compliance, and the department agreed to provide follow-up data. The final major topic was the Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System (FDLRS), including associate centers, multidisciplinary centers, and specialized centers for deaf/hard of hearing and visually impaired students. Presenters described services such as child find, family support, assessments, professional learning, accessible instructional materials, and technical assistance. Committee members focused on whether families and schools have equal access to services across the state, how IEP disputes and reevaluations are handled, and whether more support is needed for parents, teachers, and rural districts. FDLRS representatives said they do not write IEPs but help connect families to districts, provide training and assessments, and support compliance and data collection; they also emphasized staffing and resource needs, especially for low-incidence disabilities and multilingual family outreach.

Transcript Highlights:

• Funds will additionally help some essential, urgent upgrades needed at our own Ione Training Center,
• That need funding and what available funding sources there are.
• Things that are priorities and needs, a very limited amount of general funds.
• And so they have immediate needs for funding in this upcoming year that we...
• CAL FIRE will continue to have an increased need for capital outlay funding to address the declining

Transcript Highlights:

• What do they need? Is it more funding? Is it federal funding? Is it state funding? Is it IT?
• In the regional plans, funding regions can submit for whatever their need might be.
• It resulted in more funding for services, but it also results in a general fund need that needs to be
• Around the language, and we needed that funding to sustain rate increases that had already existed.
• The state is meeting the milestones that it needs. It will be funded by the VA to establish that.

Committee: House House Appropriations & Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• Transporting foster youth or youth in state custody needs to be its own funding stream as a separate
• Transporting foster youth or youth in state custody needs to be its own funding stream as a separate
• Transporting foster youth or youth in state custody needs to be its own funding stream as a separate
• for funding through the... ...taken into consideration in terms of identifying the need for funding
• but you are correct: for future years, additional funds would need to be inputted into the fund if this

Bills: SB234 , SB210 , SB243 , SB244 , SM16 , HB8

Committee: Senate House Education

Summary: The Senate Education Committee began by announcing that SB 210 would be rolled over to Friday and would not be heard. The committee then returned to SB 234, which would provide foster child school transportation funding statewide rather than only for Albuquerque Public Schools. Members adopted an amendment striking the APS-only language and making the bill statewide after testimony from the sponsor, PED, and others that foster youth transportation is a growing issue and should have its own funding stream. The committee discussed how the money might be distributed and whether the $1.2 million appropriation would be sufficient, then voted do pass on SB 234 as amended. The committee next heard HB 8, which creates a Higher Education Major Projects Fund for large capital projects that are difficult to fund through existing capital outlay processes. Testimony from the sponsor, LFC, HED, and university representatives explained that the bill would support projects such as the UNM School of Medicine, an NMSU multidisciplinary building, student housing, student life projects, and certain Division I athletic facilities, while requiring design readiness, institutional matches, and legislative oversight. Several senators raised concerns about the clarity of the prioritization process, the Division I-only athletics language, the recurring nature of future funding, and the relationship to other capital funding streams, but the committee ultimately voted do pass on HB 8. The committee then considered SB 243 and SB 244, nearly identical bills for UNM and NMSU that would each appropriate $5 million for student health, student support, nutrition, travel, scholarships, and other athletic department needs. Athletic directors testified that conference realignment, higher travel costs, nutrition demands, and new revenue-sharing/NIL obligations have increased expenses, and sponsors said the bills were intended as one-time appropriations. Some senators questioned whether the requests should be recurring or funded through university revenue rather than the state, but both bills received do pass recommendations. Finally, the committee heard SM 16, as amended, which asks HED to convene a task force to study parenting students in higher education and recommend ways to collect data and improve support. Supporters said better data is needed to understand barriers such as child care and transportation, and the memorial passed with a do pass recommendation. The committee then adjourned until Friday morning.

Transcript Highlights:

• With the ongoing funding shortage at health and human services, we need to ensure we do better for our
• We really need at least $17 an hour for direct care staff, and we need case management funding.
• The necessity for modernizing processes and benefits and eligibility, and the need to properly fund 211
• We need.
• The necessity for modernizing processes... ...benefits and eligibility, and the need to properly fund

Bills: SB1 , SB 1

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• To withdraw funds to provide non-recurring funding for a critical state need in a separate bill passed
• I'm curious generally, first, about the need to increase the stabilization fund.
• How are we defining critical state need in the context of the Budget Stabilization Fund?
• to a degree that we may not be able to fund those items that we need to fund.
• Chair Hooper: We may not be able to fund those items that we need to fund.

Committee: Senate Appropriations

Summary: The Appropriations Committee heard three measures focused on state finances. SB 1906 by Senator Brodeur would add a ninth element to the state debt reduction strategy report and create a program to transfer $250 million annually from the General Revenue Fund to accelerate retirement of outstanding state debt, while exempting the Department of Transportation and Florida Turnpike Enterprise. Members questioned the fiscal tradeoffs and flexibility, but the bill was supported in debate and reported favorably. The committee then considered SJR 1908 by Chair Hooper, which would amend the Constitution to raise the Budget Stabilization Fund cap from 10% to 25% of general revenue collections, require $750 million annual deposits until the cap is reached, and allow withdrawals for critical state needs by separate bill with a two-thirds vote, while keeping existing rules for emergencies and revenue shortfalls. Testimony and debate centered on whether Florida already has sufficient reserves, how “critical state need” would be defined, and whether the new requirement would reduce flexibility during recessions or federal funding cuts. Despite opposition from advocacy groups and several senators, the resolution was reported favorably. Finally, the committee took up HB 7031 as the vehicle for the tax package and adopted a delete-everything amendment to place it in the proper posture for conference. As amended, the bill was described as reducing the state sales tax by 0.75%, lowering the commercial rent tax from 2% to 1.25%, eliminating the business rent tax, and creating permanent sales tax exemptions while preserving sales tax holidays. The amended bill was reported favorably, and the committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• And we need to ensure that we bridge the funding gap effectively so that innovative ideas do not fall
• Your statute needs to be reviewed because of this dependency on funds.
• This is an important consideration as we plan for future funding needs.
• So we have appropriated funds to help those veterans that need help and ask for help.
• We need to maintain our commitment to environmental protection in our state funding as we move forward

Bills: SB1 , SB 1

Committee: Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• I think that was a very clear need. It was well documented. And funding that made sense.
• I think that was a very clear need. It was well documented. And funding that made sense.
• And for that, we need your support and funding. I urge you to support this bill. Thank you.
• And here's reality: the UW fund split provided only 42% of needed state funds last year.
• Fully funding compensation would provide the resources we need to support our growth and fulfill our

Summary: The committee began with a work session on the Workforce Education Investment Act (WEA) Oversight Board, hearing from board co-chair Jane Broome and Joel Anderson of WASAC. They described the account’s origins as a public-private partnership intended to supplement, not replace, existing higher education funding, and emphasized the board’s role in oversight and outcomes. Members discussed the need for better data, especially outcome-based data, and concerns that recent budget actions have used WEA funds to supplant general fund support for higher education, particularly at the University of Washington. The presenters said WASAC staffing has improved transparency, but they urged the committee to preserve the original “do not supplant” intent and to keep WEA focused on high-demand programs, financial aid, and student success. The committee then held public hearings on three bills. SB 6251 would require public medical schools to use letter grades or a tiered grading system; the sponsor said the bill was meant to standardize grading, while both Washington State University and UW Medicine testified in opposition, arguing that pass-fail and competency-based systems better support collaboration, student mental health, and residency competitiveness. SB 6259 would make students ineligible for state aid and require repayment of aid if they are found by a court to have caused major damage to a public institution; the sponsor framed it as accountability for serious vandalism, while the lone testifier from WSU student government supported free speech but opposed the bill’s penalties as inequitable for lower-income students. SB 6235 would address the higher education “fund split” by requiring state funding of compensation and central services to return to 2023-25 levels over time and directing a study on essential student services; nearly all testimony from university, faculty, and community college leaders supported the bill, saying the current approach shifts costs to tuition, creates instability, and forces cuts to classes, staffing, and student services. In executive session, the committee advanced several bills. It adopted proposed substitutes and gave do-pass recommendations to SB 5978, SB 6209, SB 6217, and SB 6227, sending them to the Ways and Means Committee. The committee did not take action on SB 6235 in executive session. The meeting then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• To those who return year after year advocating for critical funding to support those in need, we see
• I need the funds to open that second location so that I can help other kids and people, regardless of
• legal services programs and increase this funding to meet the growing needs.
• We urge you to increase funding to ensure every family has the support they need. Thank you.
• So we will need to take another look at our federal funding and blended funding in California.

Transcript Highlights:

• So, it's not that there isn't a need for the funding, but this year was an unusual scenario where we
• I would ask is, do we need to go about creating a whole other fund like this, or do you think that we
• 20 years, so there's no need to fund that.
• Capital Fund.
• We're now talking about $36 million, so we have $7 million that we need from those funds.

Committee: House New Mexico Finance Authority Oversight Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• fund.
• They put forward the need for funding to meet the monitoring...
• On being able to have the funding and support that they need for prevention services, frontline services
• While the funding may not be substantial, we need to figure out how to include these programs.
• passage, we weren't able to get the funding we need.

Transcript Highlights:

• When colleges enroll students without the funding that they need, they must absorb those costs locally
• And I did want to thank LAO for acknowledging the ongoing need for Calbright and the additional funding
• We're proposing $120.7 million one-time in Prop 98 General Fund to address deferred maintenance needs
• than waiting for the evaluation report and assessing the need for further funding next year.
• We are having to turn students away because we need more hours, more help, but we don't have the funding

Transcript Highlights:

• And we know that the state funding for the CSU has not kept up with need. And educator...
• And we know that the state funding for the CSU has not kept up with need, and educator preparation is
• And we know that the state funding for the CSU has not kept up with need.
• High-need districts and subjects need the full $100 million funding from the GSTG. Thank you.
• High-need districts and subjects need the full $100 million funding from the GSTG. Thank you.

Transcript Highlights:

• SSI is federally funded and SSP is funded by the state General Fund.
• First, I'd like to highlight the... ...funded and SSP is funded by the state General Fund.
• Review of this formula is intended to ensure that funding is getting to where it is needed most, crucially
• We simply can't meet the rising need under the same funding allocations.
• funding.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Subcommittees held a joint hearing on older adults and long-term care supports and services, with members and witnesses focusing on the growing “forgotten/overlooked middle” of Californians who are too wealthy for Medi-Cal but unable to afford long-term services and supports (LTSS). Administration witnesses from DHCS and the Department of Aging described Medicare’s limited long-term care coverage, Medi-Cal’s role for low-income residents, and ongoing state work on LTSS financing, including a 2024 financing initiative and a final report due in 2026. Testimony emphasized rising costs, caregiver shortages, homelessness among older adults, and the need to preserve home- and community-based services to avoid more expensive institutional care. Several advocates urged immediate action, especially Medi-Cal share-of-cost reform, housing supports, and protection of HCBS funding. Members asked for the most urgent budget priorities and were told to focus on share-of-cost reform and assisted-living rate protections, along with broader system navigation and caregiver support. The committee also heard testimony on the Community-Based Adult Services (CBAS) program. CDA reported that CBAS serves about 42,000 participants through 304 centers, with demand generally stable but geographic gaps in some regions and staffing challenges after the pandemic. DHCS explained a rate-setting issue: a 10% CBAS rate increase had been mistakenly posted on the Medi-Cal fee schedule in 2024, and while Proposition 35 later made the targeted SB 159 rate increase inoperative, DHCS said any repayment by managed care plans would depend on contract terms and the department would not require clawbacks. CBAS providers and advocates warned that the program is in a financial crisis, with six center closures since June 2024, and requested $74.8 million ongoing General Fund to close about half the gap between current reimbursement and costs. Members expressed concern that clawbacks could accelerate closures and noted the program’s role in preventing institutionalization and supporting family caregivers. In the final panel, CDSS presented on In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) provider recruitment and retention and on the AB 102 statewide bargaining report. CDSS said the IHSS Career Pathways program has concluded successfully, with more than 59,000 providers completing training, and that the AB 102 report—based on workgroup meetings and consultant analysis—will be sent to the Legislature shortly. The department said the workgroup viewed statewide bargaining as more viable than regional bargaining, but identified major issues around consumer participation, county fiscal impacts, administrative responsibilities, and the need to define bargaining scope in statute. CDSS estimated that each $1 per hour statewide wage increase would cost at least $1.3 billion to $1.5 billion annually. Provider unions supported statewide bargaining, arguing it would improve wages, benefits, and workforce stability, while county representatives said any statewide model should preserve consumer focus, protect county finances and realignment funds, and keep core administrative functions with local public authorities. The hearing concluded without votes, with members requesting additional follow-up information and urging continued engagement ahead of the May revise.

Transcript Highlights:

• sources that may be needed are in place before they come to you all asking for funding.
• that may be needed are in place before they come to you all asking for funding.
• for, or that I guess there might be a broad need for projects that were fully funded and now aren't.
• And we all fund this portion, you fund that, so it's fully funded.
• And we all fund this portion, you fund that, so it's fully funded.

Committee: House House Appropriations & Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• We need our local assistance funding through our state arts agency increased.
• is a hugely important need for us to be able to fund and clearly has a lot of demand.
• They're awaiting funding. They just need that to begin construction.
• We totally 100% agree with you, Assembly Member, about the need to invest more funding in HAP.
• It has zero money funding left as of today. So we really do need that support.

Summary: The committee opened with the State Controller’s Office May Revision requests, including funding for Fiscal book-of-record stabilization, a Broadcom IDMS licensing adjustment, the California State Payroll System, ACFR reporting automation, and $3 million for unclaimed property outreach. Testimony emphasized progress on Fiscal becoming the state’s accounting book of record in July, faster ACFR publication, and the move to electronic unclaimed property claims. Members asked about the size of the unclaimed property fund and how quickly money is transferred to the General Fund; the Controller’s office said about $15 billion is held, with most excess transferred regularly, and the LAO noted the fund is the General Fund’s fourth-largest revenue source. No concerns were raised by Finance or the LAO, and the item was closed after no public comment. The committee then heard the administration’s proposal to tax prewritten digital software and software-as-a-service, with Finance saying it would modernize sales tax treatment and raise an estimated $450 million General Fund and $560 million local revenue in 2026-27. The LAO supported modernizing the tax but suggested broader digital goods coverage and a business-use exemption; industry and taxpayer groups opposed the proposal, warning of higher costs for consumers and businesses. Members also heard CDTFA’s administrative request tied to the proposal, plus a separate CDTFA budget reduction reflecting lower operational needs; that reduction was presented as a savings item and drew positive reactions. Next, the committee considered federal conformity for “Trump accounts,” which would align California tax treatment with federal rules for tax-deferred children’s accounts and avoid tracking burdens for families. The LAO recommended approval, and the item drew no opposition. The committee also heard a proposal to cut the first-year $800 annual business tax to $400 for LLCs, LPs, and LLPs; Finance argued it would lower startup costs and encourage new business formation, while the LAO said the benefit was not well targeted and could subsidize entities that would form anyway. Members discussed the policy tradeoff, and public commenters split between support for small business relief and concern about revenue loss. The final major revenue item was a permanent business tax credit limitation, capping credits at the greater of $5 million per corporation or 50% of pre-credit liability, while excluding the low-income housing tax credit and personal income tax credits. Finance said it would raise significant revenue from large profitable corporations, and the LAO said it was a reasonable option but noted it would mainly affect the R&D credit and could have future implications for programs like California Competes. Public testimony was sharply divided, with business groups opposing the cap and anti-poverty advocates supporting it as a way to recapture revenue. The committee also heard FTB’s CalFile realignment request, which would return most of the direct-file-related resources to the General Fund while retaining a smaller staff to improve CalFile, and the California Arts Council’s request to reauthorize the Keep Arts in Schools voluntary contribution fund, which members and advocates supported despite relatively modest annual donations. The hearing continued with GoBiz proposals on civic media funding, CA RISE reappropriation, and a semiconductor facility reversion, with the LAO supporting the latter two and members raising questions about the civic media program’s scope, outreach, and inclusion of broadcast and ethnic media.

Transcript Highlights:

• Formula (SCFF) is that we do see a deficit of around 1.5% to 2% in overall funding need to fully fund
• to the actual programs that need to get funded.
• funding is needed for this purpose in the future.
• We urgently need university funding.
• It needs to be fixed, and fair funding floors need to be established for colleges, particularly like

Transcript Highlights:

• still continues to need general fund support.
• So we need some additional funding to reduce vacancies, as well as increased funding to support utility
• How do we fund counties? Which counties really need it?
• into that later on, but ultimately, we need the funding.
• The need for recurring funding: we've been very generous with Indian Water Rights settlement funding,

Committee: Senate Senate Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• And is it just a sense overall that more funding is needed to address the backlog of infrastructure problems
• this funding.
• To continue to lead both on Chapter 90 and on the need, and on presenting the need for MBTA funding to
• We know there's a long-standing need for better, more fair, and more timely funding for local transportation
• they need to build and maintain modern infrastructure, and the funding model proposed here today recognizes

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Transportation

Summary: The Joint Committee on Transportation held its first hearing of the session on H. 53, Governor Healey’s Chapter 90 proposal to increase state funding for municipal roads, bridges, sidewalks, and culverts. Committee chairs outlined the hybrid hearing process and invited testimony from municipal officials, labor groups, regional planning organizations, contractors, and administration officials. Across the hearing, speakers consistently supported the bill, emphasizing long-deferred maintenance, inflation in construction costs, climate-related flooding, and the need for more predictable, multi-year funding so cities and towns can plan projects and take advantage of the construction season. The administration described H. 53 as part of a broader $8 billion transportation package, proposing to raise annual Chapter 90 funding from $200 million to $300 million for five years, with the additional $100 million distributed by road mileage to better support rural and small communities. They also highlighted $200 million for culverts and small bridges, plus other transportation investments, and said the five-year authorization would provide certainty for municipal capital planning. Municipal witnesses from places including Carlisle, Beverly, Granby, Hatfield, Newton, Nahant, Gardner, Beckett, and Yarmouth described local road and culvert backlogs, rising asphalt costs, and the difficulty of maintaining infrastructure on limited local budgets. Labor and industry witnesses from the AFL-CIO and MAPA said the bill would support good-paying jobs and provide stability for contractors and producers. The MBTA Advisory Board and regional planning representatives also backed the proposal, noting the connection between local roads and the broader transportation system. Committee members asked questions about the road-mile formula, culvert needs, asphalt costs, and the rationale for a five-year authorization. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the committee adjourned after testimony concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• and help them identify potential strategies for funding those needs.
• Those students and the calculation of the funding and facilities needed to implement those plans.
• Those schools needed those funds, but it could have been done without the loss of funds to other schools
• So when we don't have that funding, we have to put that... ...and we need three buses.
• Fully funding the hold harmless at $12.8 million this year gives the schools the time they need to plan

Summary: The committee first heard a presentation on strategic resource management in public education. LESC staff and PED officials argued that New Mexico has increased school funding, but local budgeting and planning remain fragmented and overly compliance-driven. They described long-term pressures including declining enrollment, rising special education costs, falling cash balances, changes in federal funding, and leadership turnover, and said schools need more intentional multi-year planning tied to student outcomes. They also outlined the many disconnected planning requirements schools must complete, compared New Mexico’s current approach with Ohio’s three-year budget forecasting model, and recommended continuing multi-year appropriations, adding $2.5 million for state grants in the unified application, and directing LESC, LFC, and PED to develop a long-term financial planning proposal. PED said it is working to reduce administrative burden through school accreditation, a unified application for federal and state funds, and internal alignment of guidance and coaching, with pilot schools reporting time savings and better alignment. Members raised concerns about four-day school weeks, the burden on small districts, the need for outcomes and return on investment, and whether the state should move toward a two-year or three-year planning cycle; staff clarified that the proposal was to streamline or eliminate redundant requirements, not add another layer. The committee then received an update on the Educator Fellows program. PED described it as a Grow Your Own pipeline that employs candidates as supplemental educational assistants while they work toward licensure, providing salary, benefits, paid leave, mentoring, and coursework support. Officials said the program helps address teacher shortages, improves student-to-teacher ratios, increases workforce diversity, and supports the Martinez-Yazzie action plan. They reported 370 current fellows across 86 LEAs and about 180 schools, with many fellows being people of color, first-generation college students, or second-career educators; roughly 85 are expected to become certified this year. A local HR director from Belen testified that the program has been especially valuable in small communities, where fellows are already rooted in the community and several have moved into teaching roles. Members asked about high school recruitment, tuition, retirement and benefits, the relationship to the Higher Education Department’s Grow Your Own scholarship, and the role of university partners. PED said fellows choose among accredited higher education partners, the program is separate from the scholarship but complementary, and the state is also building an apprenticeship model and seeking to expand the program to more LEAs, though some districts are on a waiting list because of funding and local match requirements.