Transcript Highlights:

• And I started doing the math on it, and I'm like, you're getting squeezed.
• When I think about greater Minnesota, what we hear time and again is that the math doesn't math to do
• <00:27:29.679> doesn't<00:27:30.000> math<00:27:30.320> to<00:27:30.640>
• to<00:27:30.880> do<00:27:31.039> the uh the math doesn't math to to do the uh the
• math doesn't math to to do the workforce<00:27:31.840> housing<00:27:32.240> projects<00

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• One of these teachers has five tested math preps, and she had 50% mastery on the STAAR Algebra I last
• Currently, only 48% of Texas third graders are reading on grade level, and it drops to 42% in math.
• That's a crazy thing, that it would drill down to his math teacher getting a raise because he did well
• Fewer than half of Texas students meet grade-level standards in math and reading by third grade.
• I have seen 10-year math and science teachers leave the profession to go out to a public job.

Bills: HB2

Keywords: disaster preparedness, emergency management, flooding, mass fatality, mass casualty, fatality tracking, body recovery, autopsy, justice of the peace, medical examiner, county judge, sheriff, mayor, emergency coordinator, emergency manager license, volunteer management system, volunteer registration, criminal history check, background check, Texas Division of Emergency Management

Summary: The committee continued public testimony on House Bill 2, which would make major changes to public school funding, teacher pay, special education, early learning, school safety, and related programs. Many superintendents and education advocates supported the bill’s overall direction but urged changes, especially a larger basic allotment and more flexible funding for rural and small districts. Witnesses from Paint Creek, West Hardin, Cushing, Blooming Grove, Mildred, Buffalo, Plano, and rural school groups said the bill’s targeted raises and new requirements would not fully cover inflation, TRS/Medicare costs, transportation, insurance, or support staff salaries, and several asked the committee to restore the House version’s higher basic allotment and small-school allotment. Charter school representatives supported the facilities funding changes and said charter schools need state help because they cannot levy taxes, while also noting the funding gap with ISDs. Fine arts advocates asked the committee to restore the fine arts allotment, arguing arts improve engagement, attendance, and academic outcomes, especially in rural and at-risk communities. Early learning and special education witnesses supported parts of the bill but raised concerns about pre-K restrictions, disability-related pre-K access, and the need to preserve or clarify special education provisions and mental health oversight language. Several witnesses praised the teacher pay raise, teacher incentive allotment expansion, and teacher preparation investments, saying they would help recruit and retain educators and improve student outcomes. Others, including counselors and support staff advocates, argued the bill should also include raises for counselors, nurses, librarians, bus drivers, custodians, aides, and other non-teaching employees who keep schools running. One witness from the Texas Counseling Association opposed the substitute because it removed a counselor pay provision, warning of counselor shortages and inequities. A parent and special education advocate said the bill’s structure creates too many strings attached and asked for a larger basic allotment instead of more targeted funding. Another witness from Mental Health America urged keeping the collaborative task force on public school mental health services through 2031, and a disability rights advocate said the committee substitute appears to omit some special education items that were in the House version. The committee also briefly took up House Bill 6, a school discipline bill. After questions about automatic mandatory expulsion for vape possession and concerns about younger students, the committee adopted the substitute and voted to report HB 6 favorably to the full Senate by a 9-1 vote, with Senator Menendez voting no and Senators West and Menendez expressing reservations but supporting further discussion. After that vote, testimony on HB 2 resumed. Senators used the hearing to ask about the bill’s cost, the difference between the basic allotment and the bill’s targeted funding buckets, and whether the permanent teacher pay increase shifts pressure off districts. The bill’s supporters emphasized that it represents an historic, roughly $8 billion investment and that many of the new funding streams are intended to be permanent or to address specific district needs.

Transcript Highlights:

• I think in the areas of reading and math, we've worked really, really hard.
• We know what the best way to teach math is. We've used that knowledge to develop those TEKS.
• We know what the best way to teach math is. We've used that knowledge to develop those teaks.
• Our approach has shown that when MAP scores dip, the solution isn't necessarily more math.
• So there's a math example from 7th grade on page 6.

Bills: HB8

Keywords: HB 8, Texas public school accountability, school accountability, public school transparency, STAAR, state assessments, instructionally supportive assessment program, Student Success Tool, Texas Education Agency, TEA, accountability ratings, A-F ratings, through-year assessment, benchmark testing, norm-referenced assessment, college career military readiness, CCMR, local accountability plan, school district performance, campus turnaround

Summary: The House Committee on Public Education met to hear House Bill 8, which would replace STAAR with a new assessment and accountability system beginning in the 2027-28 school year. The chair described the bill as reducing testing time, limiting benchmark tests, adding beginning-, middle-, and end-of-year assessments, requiring faster score turnaround, involving Texas teachers in test development, and tightening accountability timelines and transparency rules. Members also discussed provisions on A-F ratings, cut scores, CCMR, local accountability plans, and TEA reporting requirements. Committee members and invited witnesses split sharply on the bill’s approach. Supporters, including the chair, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath, and Ed Trust’s Nicholas Munyon Penny, argued the bill would reduce high-stakes pressure, provide quicker and more actionable data, limit over-testing, and better align assessments to Texas standards while preserving criterion-referenced accountability. They said the new system would help teachers and parents intervene sooner and would improve transparency, including parent access to student responses and automatic rescoring in some writing cases. Opponents, including Rep. Hinojosa and student witness Ella Moran, argued the bill still increases testing and replaces one high-stakes test with multiple TEA-created tests. Moran testified that STAAR creates anxiety, disrupts instruction, and does not reflect real learning, while Hinojosa said the House had previously passed a better bill based on a nationally norm-referenced model and criticized the new proposal as a concession to the Senate. Questions also focused on AI scoring of writing, rescoring rates, and whether the bill’s new accountability rules would be reliable and fair. The committee did not take a final vote during the portion provided, but the chair said a vote on HB 8 would be called after public testimony later in the day.

Transcript Highlights:

• One of these teachers has five tested math preps.
• And it drops to 42% in math.
• It also funds math academies for K-8 educators, a proven model for improving. Instruction.
• Fewer than half of Texas students meet grade-level standards in math and reading by third grade.
• We've seen 10-year math and science teachers leave the profession to go out to a public job.

Bills: HB2

Keywords: public education, teacher compensation, certification, funding, school finance, educator rights, education funding, charter schools, staff compensation, state aid, retention allotment, 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, section four is the Minnesota Math Corps program.
• Uh section four is the Minnesota<00:04:05.439> Math<00:04:05.760> Core<00:04:06.080>
• <00:04:06.560> It<00:04:06.799> requires Minnesota Math Core program.
• It requires Minnesota Math Core program.
• It requires uh<00:04:08.239> MA<00:04:08.560> Minnesota<00:04:08.959> Math<00:04

Bills: HF1306

Keywords: education, school policy, teacher training, student health, emergency response, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And the impact to the state, when you do the math, you're looking at about a $12 million, $200 impact
• pick a candidate that will ensure that more students in your school district are reading and doing math
• How do you decide who is the stronger... ...of students reading and doing math on grade level.
• While Superintendent A also has 50% of students reading and doing math on grade level, Superintendent
• B has 50% of students reading and doing math on grade level, but they're doing it in a population of

Summary: The Committee on Education K-16 heard testimony on SB 1635, which would give certain coastal, recapture-paying school districts a credit against recapture payments for mandatory windstorm and hail insurance costs. Senator Hinojosa said the bill is intended to offset unusually high insurance expenses for districts in Tier 1 or Tier 2 coastal zones, and he estimated about a $12 million impact to state revenue. Witnesses from Port Aransas ISD and Gregory-Portland ISD described sharp premium increases, reduced coverage, higher deductibles, and the effect on teacher pay and classroom spending. Senators asked about the number of affected districts, the accuracy of the fiscal estimate, and whether the bill might encourage districts to maintain coverage. Public testimony was closed and SB 1635 was left pending. The committee then took up several other bills and committee substitutes, adopting and reporting favorably SB 2786, SB 2623, SB 646, SB 843, SB 2392, SB 1998, SB 1418, SB 2788, and SB 2076, with most votes unanimous or near-unanimous. SB 2392 was amended to add improper relationship between educator and student to mandatory reporting offenses and to authorize an attorney general civil penalty for failure to report. SB 2623 was revised to clarify duties and exemptions related to the Safe Schools and Neighborhood Task Force and school proximity restrictions. SB 843 would create a TEA database of school district bonds and related projects, and SB 2788 would exempt certain PSAT scorers from the Texas Success Initiative assessment. The committee also heard SB 2929, which would allow referees and other officials at school athletic events to immediately eject disruptive spectators. The Texas Association of Sports Officials testified in support, citing abusive spectator behavior and a shortage of officials. SB 2929 was left pending. Finally, the committee heard a substitute for SB 2927 on 1882 partnerships and a substitute for SB 2619, which would require more transparency and accountability for failing school districts, superintendent hiring, trustee training, and takeover timelines. Testimony on SB 2619 was mixed, with one witness from Texas 2036 supporting parts of the bill’s accountability provisions. The committee adopted the substitute for SB 2619, left it pending, and then recessed subject to the call of the chair.

Transcript Highlights:

• parents and educators to have easy access to the critical metrics of school performance: reading, math
• performance metrics of school performance metrics of school performance reading<00:14:58.160> math
• <00:14:59.320> science<00:15:00.199> social<00:15:00.639> studies reading math
• and implementing practices focused on promoting academic achievement in those core areas: reading, math
• and implementing practices focused on promoting academic achievement in those core areas: reading, math

Keywords: 1183, house

Summary: The committee heard presentation on House File 6, an education omnibus-style bill advanced by Representative Peggy Bennett and other Republican members. Bennett said the bill reflects caucus priorities around literacy, parental engagement, local control, and school flexibility. She described three articles: Article 1 on revisions to the READ Act and the science of reading; Article 2 on education innovation and parent-friendly school information; and Article 3 on funding flexibility and temporary relief from several new mandates enacted in recent biennia. On Article 3, Bennett said school boards would be allowed to transfer certain funds and delay implementation of specified mandates through the 2028-29 school year, including provisions tied to recent early childhood and education omnibus laws as well as paid family and medical leave and earned sick and safe time. She framed this as giving districts time to implement requirements carefully and with fidelity, and said such decisions would be made by local school boards in public meetings. She also argued the bill would reduce the burden of new mandates and preserve local decision-making. Representative Mueller then presented Article 1, saying it strengthens the state’s commitment to the science of reading, ends the Department of Education’s partnership with CAREI, repeals some 2024 requirements she said were ideological, and restores expectations for teacher preparation and assessment. Representative Bakeberg presented Article 2, which would require a more user-friendly school performance report, consolidate certain innovation-related programs into a new chapter, and replace the Department’s equity/diversity/inclusion center with an Office of Achievement and Innovation focused on academic achievement. He said the office’s guidance would be advisory only and that local districts would retain final authority. The chair then laid House File 6 over for possible inclusion in an omnibus bill and further consideration at a later date.

Transcript Highlights:

• programs caused more learning loss than Hurricane Katrina and COVID-19, with dramatic decreases in math
• 13:52.480> dramatic<01:13:53.199> decreases<01:13:53.840> in<01:13:54.040> math
• covid-19 with dramatic decreases in math covid-19 with dramatic decreases in math scores<01:13:55.320
• Our constituents do not want to face longer wait times for important cancer screenings, surgeries, cardiac
• Our constituents do not want to face longer wait times for important cancer screenings, surgeries, cardiac

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Y'all could do the math, okay? That's only $6 in how many years? 54 years. All right.
• I'm sorry, I thought I had my math here. Okay, so you add that up, and what we come up with here.
• Let me hear on that math.
• But when they look at the circumstances and when they lay it all out, the math does not work.
• But when they look at the circumstances and when they lay it all out, the math does not work.

Summary: The Committee on Local and Municipal Affairs met on May 21, 2012, with a quorum present and first approved the minutes from the prior meeting. The committee then heard Senate Bill 230 by Senator Barrow, a proposed constitutional amendment to let voters decide whether Louisiana should establish a state livable/minimum wage starting at $10.25 per hour in 2027, with future increases tied to the Consumer Price Index. Senator Barrow and several supporters framed the bill as a response to stagnant wages, rising housing and living costs, poverty, and related social problems, including crime, family instability, and child care barriers. A technical amendment was adopted to correct the bill’s language after questions were raised about whether it improperly required all employers to pay the stated wage rather than setting a minimum wage floor. Public testimony was largely in favor. Supporters included Mother Pearl Porter, who described decades of wage stagnation compared with sharply rising costs of rent, food, and gas; Angela Adkins of 10,000 Women Louisiana, who said workers should be able to cover basic expenses and that indexing wages to inflation would prevent future erosion; Jan Moeller of Invest in Louisiana, who argued the bill would help the ALICE population and noted Louisiana’s high poverty and inequality rates; Julie Schwamm Harris, who linked low wages to broader economic and social harms; Tom Costanza of the Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops, who cited Catholic social teaching and the common good; and Tyler Phillips, who spoke about the impact of low wages on students and low-income communities. The Louisiana Restaurant Association opposed the bill, arguing it did not account for tipped workers and would increase costs for restaurants and consumers. After debate, Senator Boudreaux moved to report SB 230 as amended. The motion failed on a roll call vote, 2 yeas and 3 nays, so the bill was not reported from committee. The meeting then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• where the salaries follow, but the number of positions to the drop of the requested salaries doesn't math
• looking at, on page two of 24, line item one, regular salaries, $13,840,000 reduced to $13,520,000, the math
• And if we're going from 335 to 308, in my simple, marine head, the math usually those lines...
• In my simple marine head, the math usually those line up. If you add a position, you add $100,000.
• So I'm just trying to make it math in my head. Mr. Chairman, if your permission... Yes. Okay. Yes.

Summary: The committee first considered the Lieutenant Governor’s Office budget and personnel request. Office representatives said they wanted to move the office to the state pay plan to better align salaries with other constitutional offices and remain competitive, noting that OPM had approved the positions and grades. Senators questioned the size of the requested increases and the office’s workload, and after discussion the motion to adopt the proposal failed on an 8-8 tie. The committee then voted to expunge that vote and returned to the regular agenda. The committee approved a series of Governor’s letters involving position transfers and appropriation adjustments across several agencies. These included changes for AETN, the Department of Health and Nursing Board/Dietetics Board, multiple DHS divisions, DFA shared services and budget management, and the Department of Public Safety shared services division. Most of these items involved moving positions and associated salary appropriations between divisions, with no major opposition and motions passing. A lengthy discussion followed on the transfer of child nutrition and related nutrition programs from the Department of Education to the Department of Agriculture. Education and DFA officials explained that the programs fit better under Agriculture because the funding and commodities are tied to USDA programs, and they clarified that both state and federal funding and all related positions would move. Senators raised concerns about the math in the letters, the split between state and federal funding, and whether all program resources were being transferred. After the explanation, the committee approved the Education side of the transfer and then approved the Agriculture companion letter. The committee also discussed the Educational Freedom Account program budget. Officials said the $309 million request matched current participation and included a $70 million reserve in case applications increase. Several senators expressed concern about the program’s growth and its effect on public education funding and adequacy, while others noted that the program’s rules and funding levels could be adjusted through the State Board and future legislative action. The committee then approved a Public Safety classification change and a member amendment changing a title at East Arkansas Community College from assistant to the president to assistant to the chancellor, with no change in positions or appropriation.

Transcript Highlights:

• where the salaries follow, but the number of positions to the drop of the requested salaries doesn't math
• looking at, on page two of 24, line item one, regular salaries, $13,840,000 reduced to $13,520,000, the math
• And if we're going from 335 to 308, in my simple, marine head, the math usually those lines...
• In my simple marine head, the math usually those line up. If you add a position, you add $100,000.
• So I'm just trying to make it math in my head. Mr. Chairman, if your permission... Yes. Okay. Yes.

Summary: The committee first considered the Lieutenant Governor’s Office budget and personnel request to move that office onto the state pay plan and increase salaries for its positions. Office representatives said the request was intended to make pay competitive with other constitutional offices and state agencies, that OPM had approved the grades, and that the office did not plan to max out any positions. Members questioned the size of the increase and the office’s workload. A motion to adopt the proposal failed on a tie vote, and the committee then voted to expunge the vote before moving on. The committee then approved a series of Governor’s letters and related personnel transfers, including cuts for Arkansas Educational Television Network, transfers within the Department of Health and several DHS divisions, and a DFA shared services reorganization. The committee also approved moving child nutrition and related nutrition programs from the Department of Education to the Department of Agriculture, with department officials explaining that the programs fit better under Agriculture because the grants come from USDA and the transfer would include the positions and funding tied to the programs. Members raised questions about how the appropriations and positions were split between state and federal funding, and about the broader implications of the transfer, but the committee ultimately approved both the Education and Agriculture sides of the move. The meeting also included extended discussion of the Educational Freedom Account program. Members questioned the $309 million appropriation, whether it matched current participation, and whether future demand could require additional funding. Department officials said the amount covered current participation and that the governor had set aside an additional $70 million in case applications increased, but that any amount beyond the appropriation would require returning to the committee. Some members argued the program’s growth could threaten funding for public schools and adequacy, while others noted that the program is governed by rules under the LEARNS Act. The committee also approved a technical title change at East Arkansas Community College from assistant to the president to assistant to the chancellor.

Transcript Highlights:

• That's the higher-up math.
• Not math, just remembering numbers. I'm terrible with numbers. Not math, just remembering numbers.
• I don't think that math is correct, because I think what I saw in the line item in the Industrial Commission
• So that would be the math, whereas the full $600,000 then for that one year would be available to the

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 2023 for the Racing Commission. Members confirmed the bill’s existing items, including the internships program and copier replacement, and then adopted an amendment based on the worksheet that moved those items to one-time funding. The committee then passed SB 2023 as amended, with the only noted differences from the Senate version being the one-time treatment of the $20,000 internship item and the copier replacement. Next, the committee considered House Bill 2011 for the Highway Patrol. Representative Pyle explained a series of verbal amendments that shifted several one-time and ongoing expenses from the general fund to the electronic permit fee fund, including body armor, preliminary breath test devices, handgun replacement, emergency vehicle operations course resurfacing, and related items, while also removing the shooting range ventilation project because it could be completed with existing funds. The committee also added a section allowing carryover authority for federal grant dollars tied to the in-car router system. After adopting the amendments, the committee passed HB 2011 as amended. The committee then discussed Senate Bill 2014 for the Industrial Commission, focusing on a proposed amendment by Representative Fisher that would direct additional percentages of North Dakota Mill net income to wheat breeding programs at NDSU’s main experiment station and branch research centers. Members asked about current funding, the size of the proposed transfers, and how the money would be used, with Fisher arguing the funds would support breeding, disease resistance, and related research. Several members said they wanted more information on existing funding and program costs before advancing the idea, so the committee held the amendment for further review and took no final action on the bill during this discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• So if you just do the simple math, you see that we have way more projects than we really have project
• of, you know, almost 1,000 active projects and there's about 15 to 16 of y'all, then I can do the math
• > I<00:08:37.479> can<00:08:38.200> do<00:08:38.399> the<00:08:38.560> math
• of yall then uh I can I can do the math of yall then uh I can I can do the math real<00:08:39.240

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Status of Hiring Four Project Managers within Facilities & Support Services in HB6 from the 24RS 00:02:01 Attendance Roll Call 00:09:32, 958, all

Summary: The Budget Review Subcommittee on Personnel, Public Retirement, and Finance, and Administrative Cabinet met for an informational update, with the new chair noting the committee does not vote on issues and is mainly reviewing implementation of budgeted items. The main presentation came from Scott Baker of the Finance Cabinet’s Office of Facility Development and Efficiency, who explained how the office has shifted experienced staff to lead Department of Parks projects and hired new staff to be trained into project management roles. He said the office is managing 146 ongoing parks projects and has moved from weekly to biweekly meetings as work has progressed. Baker said the budgeted staffing changes were intended to speed project delivery while maintaining expertise, since state project management also requires knowledge of procurement law and other Commonwealth-specific rules. He described the workload as heavy, with 15 project managers handling 1,149 active projects, including one western Kentucky manager overseeing 127 projects, and said the office is trying to add more staff and create new positions to improve recruiting. Members asked about staffing levels and workload, and Baker said the office is not overstaffed but is competing with a strong construction industry for talent. Committee members praised the office’s work on parks projects, noting campground and infrastructure needs at places like Lake Barkley and emphasizing prudent use of the large capital budgets approved in recent years. No votes were taken because the subcommittee lacked a quorum, as some members were in other committee meetings. The chair said the committee would continue to meet during session and interim periods and adjourned the meeting after the update.

Transcript Highlights:

• a very large house that was 10,000 ft², you could have a 2,500 square foot, uh, well, whatever the math
• We looked at a car, like a Volvo, and the test drive had a nice big screen map software.
• Um, and software components, you know, the navigation on the screen, they have subscription services,
• , they have subscription on the screen, they have subscription services.<04:27:54.159> um<04:27
• and underwriting factor because the math and the<05:26:31.440> experience<05:26:32.480> say

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We've been bringing together math teachers from across the state to help strengthen math education.
• One was for the math uh funding. One was for the math learning<01:25:36.719> communities.
• school students improve their math school students improve their math learning<01:25:50.800>
• <01:26:03.360> The help strengthen math education. The help strengthen math education.
• <01:27:02.639> community flattened the math learnings community flattened the math learnings community

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's not partisan; it's just math. ...to accommodate both. It's not partisan; it's just math.
• Cities have reacted to the math by blocking housing.
• The state must not ignore the math.
• cities have reacted to it's just math cities have reacted to the<00:25:09.760> math<00:25:10.080
• The math is just bad and the projects don't pencil.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• So is there still a shortage in math and science teachers?
• Hey, uh, I do have an inclination to not just single out science and math.
• math and other people are are left out. math and other people are are left out.
• back and get their science math back and get their science math certification certification certification
• and math. and math.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh mostly I'm a math topic specifically.
• I know that in 2023 we passed some laws here for early intervention screening for dyslexia.
• I can see the math concept here. Most budgets are 85% personnel.
• I can see the math<04:03:41.680> concept<04:03:42.080> here.
• I mean, obviously, math concept here.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• If you take a different math at other institutions, it won't transfer.
• So maybe they hold off on taking that math course until they arrive at the institution so they don't
• math at other institutions, it won't<00:47:58.319> transfer.
• <00:48:15.280> course hold off on taking that math course hold off on taking that math course
• <00:48:18.880> for they don't take the the wrong math for they don't take the the wrong math

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The House Standing Committee on Postsecondary Education opened its first meeting with roll call, member introductions, and introductions of numerous interns from Kentucky colleges and universities. The chair reviewed committee rules for the 2026 session, including witness oaths, sign-up procedures, limits on testimony, and the deadline for submitting committee substitutes and amendments. The committee then took up House Bill 96, sponsored by Chair Tipton, which would revise the membership and timing of the performance-based funding work group. Tipton said the bill would expand legislative participation from one House and one Senate member to five from each chamber, keep university and KCTCS presidents on the group, make the CPE president a nonvoting chair, and change the work group’s schedule from a fiscal year to a calendar year. He argued the changes would build institutional knowledge, allow university leaders to meet without creating quorum/open-meeting issues, and help the group develop recommendations for the next General Assembly. Members raised concerns about politicization and the even-numbered membership, while Tipton said he wanted consensus rather than a tied vote. The committee approved HB 96 on a roll call vote, with most members voting yes and Representative Willner voting no but saying she might change her vote later on the House floor. The committee also heard House Bill 94 for discussion only, so no vote was taken. Representative Vanessa Gracel and CPE counsel Travis Pal described the bill as a transfer-pathways measure aimed at making two-year-to-four-year and four-year-to-four-year transfers more seamless in high-demand programs. They said the proposal would require CPE, public universities, and KCTCS to collaborate on statewide transfer pathways based on student and workforce demand, with institutions able to opt in or out of specific pathways but required to disclose nontransferable courses for transparency. Gracel argued the bill would reduce credit loss, lower time and cost to degree, improve completion rates, and help students and families understand transfer options; she also criticized some universities for not engaging in the process. No action was taken on HB 94 at this meeting.

Transcript Highlights:

• I ran it through AI, and the math points out to corruption because we're from W.I.
• <00:28:07.640> points ran it through Ai and the math points ran it through Ai and the math
• is not mathing.
• ,600 leases the math is not mathing this ,600 leases the math is not mathing this is<00:42:39.280
• So to me it doesn't make sense, and I definitely don't trust the numbers or the math, and they're all

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The joint Housing and Public Safety/Water and Land hearing first took up HB 1096, which would repeal statutory tenant-selection preferences for disabled veterans and spouses of deceased veterans in state low-income housing. HPHA testified in support, saying the change was a housekeeping measure because the same preferences already exist in administrative rules and could be adjusted later to align with other local preferences, while also noting the federal VASH program provides stronger veteran housing support. Several members questioned why the preference should be removed at all, emphasizing that veterans have long been underserved and asking for a stronger justification; the committees ultimately deferred HB 1096. The later Housing/Hawaiian Affairs agenda heard HB 606 HD1, a measure to extend Act 279 funding and related exemptions for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. Supporters argued the bill would give DHHL more time to use the $600 million appropriation to acquire land, work with developers, and address a wait list of about 29,000 applicants, while also helping restore Hawaiian communities and reduce the Hawaiian diaspora. Opponents focused on accountability and oversight, saying DHHL needs clearer plans, measurable goals, and stronger safeguards before receiving more money, and warning that prior spending and strategic-plan changes had reduced the number of applicants served. The committee also heard testimony that the bill would help DHHL fulfill long-standing obligations to Native Hawaiians and that the housing need affects the broader state, not only Hawaiian Home Lands beneficiaries.