Transcript Highlights:

• Yvonne Fernandez California Labor Fed in support.
• A coordinating entity could provide actionable labor market information and use it to elevate career
• EDGE has brought together leaders from business, labor, education, workforce development and social justice

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• one that gives all parties a fair opportunity to be heard without compromising the enforcement of labor
• whether they're being paid the defined rate, or whether they're being classified as the right kind of labor
• employer is notified so they have the opportunity to, number one, educate the public agency about the labor

Bills: HB842, HB1907, HB2844, HB2892, HB3439, HB4211, HB4536, HB5111, HB5138, HB5182, HB5247, HB5269, HB5323, HB5435, HJR201, SB871, HB3896, SJR40

Keywords: power lines, Gulf Coast, weather-related outages, Public Utility Commission, infrastructure, government contracts, Chinese companies, information technology, cybersecurity, state regulations, food safety, mobile vendors, licensing, permitting exemptions, health inspections, nonprofit organizations, personal information, government disclosure, privacy, criminal penalties

Transcript Highlights:

• AB 841, due pass to the Committee on Labor and Employment.
• Item 6, AB 841, do pass to the Committee on Labor and Employment.
• An erotic service provider is anybody who earns a living from their erotic labor.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the business manager of Laborers Local 1091 in Duluth, Minnesota, and Lyon, Minnesota, and North
• We need our laborers to go to work.
• We need our laborers to go to work.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I think the limiting resource we have is labor. And it's really very important.
• mean, and it's unbelievable, but at one point I had union contractors in my factory and non-union labor
• We need to really double down on our ability to grow labor.

Keywords: 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• My residents right now that have PTSD from the Creek Fire that happened on Labor Day where we evacuated
• fixture as a fierce. advocate for workers throughout San Francisco as a delicate to the San Francisco Labor
• He managed, in the San Francisco Labor Council, to bring people together, which is always not the easiest

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• :59.520> technology,<00:46:00.319> in<00:46:00.480> emerging<00:46:00.960> labor
• emerging technology, in emerging labor. emerging technology, in emerging labor.
• For example, a November 2025 paper out of the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School titled "The Labor
• For example, a November 2025 paper out of the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School titled "The Labor
• For example, a November 2025 paper out of the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School titled "The Labor

Bills: HF3127, HF3816, HF3814, HF3815, HF3817

Keywords: taxation, pass-through entity, qualifying owner, partnership, S corporation, tax return, corporate franchise tax, individual income tax, research expenditures, federal compliance, Minnesota Statutes, income tax, corporate tax, section 179, federal conformity, HF3815, Minnesota taxes, tax conformity, Internal Revenue Code, IRC conformity

Transcript Highlights:

• right to lawful labor demonstrations. right to lawful labor demonstrations.
• It imposes mandatory jail and powerful civil penalties on some advocates while expressly exempting labor
• It imposes mandatory jail and powerful civil penalties on some advocates while expressly exempting labor
• 21:04.640> exempting advocates while expressly exempting advocates while expressly exempting labor
• demonstrations and strikes, giving labor demonstrations and strikes, giving one<00:21:07.760> favorite

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on a large number of health-related measures, with the most extensive discussion on SB 2283, which would expand mail-order pharmacy access for prescription drugs. Supporters including HMSA, the Board of Pharmacy, and health plan groups said mail order could lower costs, improve adherence, and reduce hospitalizations, while independent pharmacies and rural neighbor-island providers warned it could harm local pharmacies, reduce access for patients who rely on face-to-face service, and create delivery and storage problems for medications. No vote was taken on SB 2283 during the excerpt, and the chair moved on after hearing testimony. The committee also heard SB 2855 on opioid antagonists, with the Insurance Division and HMSA noting that medically necessary opioid antagonists are already covered and suggesting the issue may be addressed through education or administrative fixes. Fentanyl and substance abuse groups supported the measure. SB 3045 on health insurance coverage for continuous glucose monitors drew broad support from diabetes and health organizations; HMSA said it had already expanded coverage for members on injectable insulin but raised concerns about supply constraints and said it had not yet seen an auditor study referenced in discussion. Members asked whether the bill would extend coverage beyond current policy. SB 2843 on domestic violence received support from the Public Defender’s Office, prosecutors, and victim-related organizations, who said the pilot program for misdemeanor domestic violence cases had reduced backlogs and improved court efficiency. A prosecutor also supported retaining coercive control as a petty misdemeanor tool in larger domestic violence cases. SB 2845 on healthcare facility access drew strong support from many health, legal, and advocacy groups, who said it would protect patients and staff from disruptive interference at healthcare facilities; one opponent argued it would chill lawful speech and protest and unfairly exempt labor demonstrations. The committee then heard SB 2854 and SB 3202, both healthcare-related measures, with testimony largely in support. SB 2854 drew comments from health and dental groups, and SB 3202 focused on workforce and licensing issues, including support for retired physicians volunteering, preceptor tax credits, and adding advanced midwifery and physician assistant-related provisions. The chair repeatedly enforced a one-minute testimony limit and moved through the agenda without recorded votes in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• These include things like emergency care, trauma, labor and delivery, chronic and ongoing patient care
• Errors on drugs and medical expenses, market closures of labor and delivery units that shift patient
• And we have to keep pace with the growth in the labor market.
• I mean, most cities will tell you their general funds are probably 75% to 80% labor costs.
• But there are indices out there that track labor costs that would be a better indicator of growth and

Bills: HB26, HB73, SB 14, HB46

Keywords: HB26, law enforcement contracts, sheriff, constable, county commissioners court, commissioners court, private security, special law enforcement district, property owners association, POA, municipal utility district, school district, junior college district, local government, contract policing, supplemental police services, large counties, population over 3.3 million, Texas Local Government Code, Harris County

Transcript Highlights:

• The daughter of a steel worker, she went on to become a strong advocate for the labor movement and Speaker
• ><00:24:16.000> advocate<00:24:16.960> for<00:24:17.200> the<00:24:17.360> labor
• <00:24:18.000> labor a strong advocate for the labor labor a strong advocate for the labor
• labor movement<00:24:19.200> and<00:24:19.919> speaker<00:24:20.240> Ammerita movement
• Whereas Mary was passionate about women's rights, labor, and advocacy issues, health care, and criminal

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Now, the Medical Board and the Labor Code define... what major bodily function is.
• far as numbers are concerned, I don't have specific numbers from THA but in looking at the Bureau of Labor
• is as simple as going out and trying to find a place to grab food and while you're your wife is in labor
• There's no bill that anybody ever believed could not be amended by this labor.
• The state compels pregnant children to go through the very dangerous process of pregnancy, labor, and

Bills: HB44, HB2200, HB1612, HB2747, HB2038, HB3717, HB1431, HB3800, HB3801, HB3560, HB3246, HB44

Keywords: HB 44, Life of the Mother Act, abortion exceptions, medical emergency, reasonable medical judgment, pregnancy complications, maternal health, life-threatening condition, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage, spontaneous abortion, fetal survival, Texas abortion law, abortion ban, physician liability, health care provider, disciplinary action, aiding and abetting, emergency abortion, obstetric care

Transcript Highlights:

• No, I don't have the chair of labor either. Okay. excused. Senator Ashimoto I senator hi excused.
• Call to order the joint committees on Higher Education and the Committee on Labor, and Technologies,
• Labor and Technology Committee, same recommendation.
• <01:14:49.440> Labor<01:14:49.679> and Madam Chair, thank you. Okay.
• Labor and Madam Chair, thank you. Okay. Labor and technology<01:14:50.400> committee.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee heard three University of Hawaiʻi-related measures. HB 718 HD1 would appropriate funds for faculty and staff positions at the John A. Burns School of Medicine in cardiovascular, law, biology, tropical medicine, quantitative health/biostatistics, and environmental health and safety. Testimony was in support, including from university representatives and others who submitted written testimony. Members asked whether the positions were additional and how they would affect enrollment; the university said the hires would teach medical students and conduct biomedical research, helping increase the class size to about 77 and eventually 80, and noted a workforce paper requested by the committee would be provided soon. The committee then discussed SB 1170 HD1, which would grant resident tuition at any UH campus to certain graduates of Hawaiʻi high schools enrolling in undergraduate programs. UH supported the bill and said it had adjusted its testimony in response to prior committee concerns. Members focused on the proposed four-year window, asking why that timeframe was chosen and whether the change was needed at all. UH explained that four years would allow students who left the state to return and still complete an undergraduate degree or prepare for graduate school, and said the bill would help students who come back after one or two years but otherwise would have to wait a year to reestablish residency under current rules. UH also said it was discussing possible administrative rule changes as an alternative if the bill did not pass. Finally, the committee heard HB 1300 HD1, which would fund a University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center pilot study on cancer disparities among Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, Filipinos, and people living near landfills in Nanakuli, focusing on social determinants of health, lifestyle, environmental exposures, and resilience factors. Testimony from researchers and advocates strongly supported the measure, saying the study could help explain cancer disparities and support future research funding. Members questioned the cost, the reliance on future federal or foundation funding, and the practical outcome of the study. The Cancer Center said the pilot would cost about $500,000 per year for two years, with later funding sought from federal, nonprofit, or private sources; it said the study would produce longitudinal data that could help identify at-risk groups and provide evidence for policy decisions, though members expressed concern that the project needed a clearer end goal and stronger case for public investment.

Transcript Highlights:

• Yes, labor is expensive in New England, materials are expensive, although that's largely pretty similar
• Yes, labor is expensive in New England, materials are expensive, although that's largely pretty similar

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses held a brief hearing on several housing and planning bills. Testimony focused on Senate Bill 176 and House Bill 313, which would update Chapter 40R smart growth zoning incentives and double municipal payments for adopting qualifying zoning districts, and Senate Bill 177, a technical correction to Chapter 40S so starter-home districts created under Chapter 40Y would also qualify for school cost reimbursement. Benjamin Fierro, representing the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Massachusetts, strongly supported the bills, arguing that the current incentives are too modest, that starter homes are needed for young and first-time buyers, and that the school reimbursement fix is necessary to align the statutes. Nally Soto of the Massachusetts Housing Coalition also supported the bills, saying the higher incentives would help municipalities approve more housing and address the housing shortage. Representative Kassner testified on House Bill 303, a remote community development planning bill modeled on Executive Order 418. She said it would restore and expand statewide comprehensive planning for land use, transportation, housing, open space, infrastructure, and climate resilience, with regional planning agencies playing a key role. Committee members asked about how Chapter 40S reimbursement is calculated and how the planning bill would interact with existing regional planning commissions. One member also spoke in support of the housing bills and described local challenges with affordability, land costs, and compliance with the MBTA Communities law. No votes were taken during the hearing. The chair closed testimony after a final call for additional witnesses and announced that the committee would continue working on the bills and hold one more hearing in September on additional measures and late-filed bills. The committee then adjourned by motion and second.

Transcript Highlights:

• Just this year, we've lost labor and delivery units in Ouachita and Sebastian counties, an ER in Jacksonville
• As of today, there are only 31 hospitals in the entire state that provide labor and delivery services

Keywords: 1204, all

Summary: The House convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and quorum established, then recognized guests including Arkansas State Police and Game and Fish officers, a doctor of the day, and several nurses in honor of National Nurses Week. Members also granted leave requests and approved dispensing with the reading of the previous day’s journal. The main item of business was House Bill 1001, which would reduce the top individual income tax rate to 3.7 percent and the corporate rate to 4.1 percent. Representative Eaves presented the bill as a continuation of Arkansas’s long-term tax reduction strategy, arguing it would provide broad relief to working families and improve competitiveness. Representative Hudson spoke against it, saying the benefits would be small for many taxpayers and that the state should instead use the revenue for priorities such as postpartum Medicaid, food insecurity, child care, rural hospitals, and agriculture. Representative Ray spoke in favor, emphasizing cumulative tax savings, economic growth, and the state’s recent investments in education, teacher pay, highways, paid maternity leave, and other programs. The House passed HB 1001 by a vote of 79 yeas to 17 nays. Afterward, the chamber adopted a motion to adjourn until 9:30 a.m. the next day. Members announced upcoming committee meetings, including Girl State, Boy State, Joint Budget, and Revenue and Tax, and the Speaker noted the House would return to consider Senate Bill 1 if it clears committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• And for our institution, we have four contract colleges: ILR, Industrial Labor Relations, College of
• Human Ecology, and the Contract colleges: ILR, Industrial Labor Relations, College of Human Ecology,

Keywords: 993, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Agriculture Committee met and first took up five bills. It reported S.593 (land used in agricultural production), S.879A (the Garden Protection Act), S.3277 (transfer-on-death beneficiaries for farming implements), and S.4754 (creating an Office of Urban Agriculture). S.1529A, the Carbon Farming Act, was moved to the Finance Committee. The committee briefly discussed S.4754, with Senator Borrello asking about its status and members noting strong support for urban agriculture and food-system resilience; the bill was then reported to Finance by voice vote. The committee then heard from Julie Suarez, Associate Dean for Land Grant Affairs at Cornell CALS, who described Cornell’s role in research, extension, and public service across New York agriculture. She highlighted Cornell’s economic impact, growth in FFA participation including new urban chapters, dairy investment, and the potential of the maple industry, while emphasizing the need for continued agricultural science funding to address climate change, invasive species, and market challenges. She also pointed members to Cornell programs supporting food entrepreneurs, soil health, small farms, veterans entering agriculture, and community integrated pest management. Members asked questions about tick increases, with Suarez attributing them to deer, rodents, climate change, and invasive species, and said Cornell’s community IPM program offers landscaping and prevention guidance. She also explained Cornell’s land-grant and contract-college structure, including its statutory mission and state support. The meeting ended after members expressed interest in further outreach and informational sessions, and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Senate Bill 3248 establishes labor requirements for Aleha Products.
• Senate Bill 3248 establishes labor requirements for Aleha Products.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Committee on Hawaiian Affairs heard several Department of Hawaiian Home Lands measures. SB 2635 would appropriate funds for DHHL land development, land purchases, and mortgage or rental subsidies to address the wait list; DHHL and five supporters testified in favor, and the committee later recommended passage with amendments, including a date defect, with the measure adopted as amended. SB 2924 would authorize funding for a capital improvement project for the Kaneili Community Hall, access road, and parking lot; DHHL stood on testimony in support, Randall Ao and another online testifier spoke in favor, and the committee later amended the bill to shift the funding structure from general obligation bonds to general funds before passing it. SB 3127 would raise the state liability cap for DHHL-related borrowing and guaranteed loans from $100 million to $500 million; DHHL testified, no other testimony was offered, and the committee passed it with amendments, including a date defect. The committee also heard SB 3248, which establishes labor requirements for Aleha Products. No testifier from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands Board was present, and there was no additional testimony or questions during the hearing. During decision-making, the chair noted there was both support and some opposition but recommended passage with amendments, including a date defect, and the committee adopted the recommendation unanimously. The meeting concluded after all three decision-making votes were completed and the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• that we would have a problem with that, although the bill It provides that the Oklahoma Department of Labor
• they know the programs the best, to be able to develop those in partnership with the Department of Labor

Bills: HB3043, HB3044, HB3078, HB3940, HB4117, HB3428, HB4275, HB3257, HB3901, HB4298

Keywords: HB3043, Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, ODVA, seasonal employees, project labor, pro rata jobs, unclassified service, state personnel law, state employee benefits, paid leave, paid holidays, retirement benefits, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, temporary workers, veterans affairs, Title 72, Oklahoma Personnel Act, budget reporting

Transcript Highlights:

• This aligns statute with both current practice and federal standards under the Fair Labor Standards Act
• Fair Labor Standards Act. Again, this is Fair Labor Standards Act.
• ><00:27:04.600> the worker's ability to move within the worker's ability to move within the labor
• 06.480> approach<00:27:06.920> in<00:27:07.040> this<00:27:07.280> bill labor
• The approach in this bill labor market.

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House opened with a devotional by former member Jason Lorber, who spoke humorously about the difference between asking questions and making statements, urging members to be direct and add value in deliberation. The chamber then took up several resolutions: JRH 11, urging Congress to enact the National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2025, was read and referred to the Committee on Commerce and Economic Development; JRS 51, setting weekend adjournment for May 1, 2026, was adopted in concurrence; and H.C.R. 261 was read, recognizing May 2026 as Older Americans Month and designating May 6, 2026 as Age Strong Vermont Day. Members also used announcements to welcome guests and highlight events, including the Age Strong Vermont initiative, a former member’s return, visitors connected to psychedelic medicine advocacy, an art social, fisheries and trout-in-the-classroom guests, a legislative intern, and a reminder about the May 16 NAMI walk. The House then took up Senate Bill 230, an omnibus labor measure relating to fair employment practices. The committee explanation described technical clarifications to parental and family leave for full-time teachers, expansion of protections for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, removal of outdated statutory language on mandatory retirement for tenured faculty, and clarification that elected and appointed municipal officers are not employees for minimum wage and overtime purposes. The main new policy in section 3B would prohibit non-compete agreements for non-exempt employees, with an exception for collective bargaining agreements, and would restrict certain non-compete and related clauses in health care provider contracts while preserving continuity of care and excluding non-clinical business support services. The committee reported extensive testimony and voted 11-0-0 to recommend the bill favorably with amendment; the House agreed to propose the amendment to the Senate and ordered third reading. The House also began consideration of Senate Bill 179, updating Vermont’s Uniform Disclaimer of Property Interests Act. The committee presentation explained that the bill would eliminate the current 9-month deadline for disclaimers, reflecting changes in federal tax law and the much larger modern estate and gift tax exclusion, and would modernize the statute in several ways. Proposed changes include clearer rules for jointly held property, allowing pre-death disclaimers, authorizing trustees and parents in limited circumstances to disclaim on behalf of trusts or minor children, permitting disclaimers by proxy for infirm persons, clarifying partial disclaimers and entity disclaimers, improving delivery rules for non-real-estate property, and specifying that a disclaimer is not a transfer for transfer-tax purposes. The bill was described as a response to outdated law in light of an impending large intergenerational wealth transfer, and the House proceeded with second reading discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• I just want to begin by thanking MnDOT for allowing labor to weigh in and provide our insight, and also
• So, we would encourage you to engage with all the stakeholders, especially labor and industry, if you
• So, we would encourage you to engage with all the stakeholders, especially labor and industry, if you
• 3 years unchallenged. with all the stakeholders, especially with all the stakeholders, especially labor
• and industry, if you choose to labor and industry, if you choose to move<01:22:39.120> forward

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Unlike many recycling processes, mattress recycling is very labor intensive because each unit must be
• > springs<00:07:50.920> are Unlike many recycling processes, mattress recycling is very labor
• Unlike many recycling processes, mattress recycling is very labor intensive because each unit must be
• does now have to proceed to Health and Human Services, and then also, um, we may want it to go to Labor
• <01:13:27.200> as uh we may want it to to go to Labor as uh we may want it to to go to Labor

Keywords: 1187, senate, all