Transcript Highlights:

• Do you think this will help them pay their bills on time, or pay the clientele or the people and entities
• out their ARPA projects and transfer funds between the projects, including administrative costs, to cover
• So it says here that the monies would go to cover costs related to water, wastewater, sewer, air parks
• So, with these appropriations to these specific entities, I mean, these are administrative contracts,
• This is a big chunk of this is the money that we're using to cover those. Follow up. Thank you, Mr.

Bills: HB4028, HB4029, HB4059, HB4063, HB4073, HB4074, HB4075, HB4076, HB4077, HB4078, SB1130, SB1131, SB1132, SB1133, SB1134, SB1142

Keywords: tax deduction, venture capital, economic development, Oklahoma, investment, ALS, funding, healthcare, State Department of Health, emergency declaration, public finance, state budget, financial regulations, monetary policy, referendum, constitutional amendments, special election, Oklahoma legislature, public voting, recovery fund

Summary: The Joint Committee on Appropriations and Budget met and first took up House Bill 4063, adopting a committee substitute over objection by a 17-4 roll call vote. The bill, as explained by the Pro Tem, moves the election dates for House Bill 4440 and Joint Resolution 1024 to August 25, 2026. Members debated whether the measure violated the single-subject rule or was an attempt to revisit proposals that had previously failed, but the committee advanced it and it passed 16-6 after debate. The committee then considered a series of appropriations and reappropriations, largely involving ARPA and interest funds. These included Senate Bills 1130 through 1134 and 1142, which redirected funds to the University Hospital Authority and Trust, the Office of Juvenile Affairs, the State Department of Health for rural hospital rebuild efforts, the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services for Griffin Memorial Hospital capacity, and DHS-related projects including Boys & Girls Club and YWCA funding. All of these bills passed, with most receiving broad support and only a few dissenting votes. Members also advanced several House bills: HB 4029 appropriated funds to the State Department of Health and the ALS fund; HB 4074 gave the Health Care Workforce Training Commission flexibility to close out ARPA projects and transfer funds among nursing-related programs; HB 4075 reappropriated water and wastewater funds within OWRB; HB 476 provided rural economic impact grant funding for water, wastewater, sewer, air park, industrial park, and broadband-related projects; HB 477 funded emergency response and relief grants with standard administrative language; HB 478 covered ARPA closeout costs for consultants and the grants management office; HB 428 extended a qualified equity investment tax deduction sunset; and HB 473 and HB 4073 pulled back ARPA funds for reappropriation and closeout. Most measures passed on strong roll-call votes, and the committee adjourned after HB 4073 passed 21-0.

Transcript Highlights:

• We will operate as a federally funded, state-managed, but locally executed entity.
• Well, I think we have just about covered all of our member questions. All right.
• Well, I think we have just about covered all of our member questions.
• Salinas said the original recurring amount covers about six OPS help desk staff.
• Our original, our recurring amount, covers about six staff, OPS staff, help desk staff. covers about

Summary: The subcommittee heard updates on several state technology modernization efforts, beginning with the Florida Division of Emergency Management’s Enterprise Business Solution (DEMS). FDEM said DEMS is about 50% complete, with some grants and finance functions already live, and is intended to replace manual disaster and grants processing with a cloud-based system. Officials described faster reimbursement timelines after recent storms, major return-on-investment claims, and a planned final phase focused on design, testing, communications, data governance, and additional functionality. Members asked about the total cost, the role of Florida Digital Service, deliverables-based contracting, and how much of the system is live; FDEM said the project is expected to cost about $16 million to $16.8 million and finish by June 2027, with some follow-up information to be provided. The Department of Legal Affairs presented its Office of Attorney General Modernization Program, a follow-up to an earlier effort that failed after spending about $26 million. Acting Attorney General John Gard said the department has now moved to an off-the-shelf case management product, LawBase, and is in development and testing, with the Office of Statewide Prosecution already live and full implementation expected by the end of the fiscal year. The request includes funding for staff augmentation, cloud storage, the LawBase license, redundancy through a backup site in Orlando, and OnBase support. Members questioned the prior failure, the use of Florida Digital Service standards, data location and cloud migration, and the redundancy plan; Gard said lessons learned included better scoping and that the current effort is on track. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles then updated the committee on Motorist Modernization, including the Orion system and the MyDMV portal. Officials said Phase 1 and Phase 2 have modernized driver license and motor vehicle services, with Phase 2 statewide rollout scheduled to begin in April 2025 and Phase 3 proposed at $16.5 million for dealer services, data warehouse improvements, and call center modernization. Members asked about payment options, organ donor questions, staffing, cybersecurity, cloud strategy, and the digital driver license program. The agency said the portal already allows some sanctions to be cleared online, an ACH option is being developed, the digital driver license vendor has changed with a fall go-live anticipated, and the department is using security testing and a managed security service provider. Officials also said the system is currently on an on-prem private cloud, with future workloads expected to move to public cloud where appropriate. Finally, Florida Commerce presented on the Reemployment Assistance modernization system, Reconnect, and the FLWINS workforce system. Commerce said Reconnect is hosted in the Azure Government Cloud, has reduced claim filing time, improved fraud detection, and increased appeals capacity, and now needs $4.9 million in recurring funding to cover ongoing operations, cloud hosting, licenses, and staff augmentation. Members asked about adjudication issues, wait times, fraud prevention, and whether the system stores caller identifiers; Commerce said the average wait to speak to a representative is about 18 minutes and claims are generally processed in four to six weeks. The committee then began hearing about FLWINS, which is intended to create a “no wrong door” workforce portal under the REACH Act, but the transcript cuts off before that presentation concluded.

Transcript Highlights:

• SO, WE RECOGNIZE THAT WE ARE NOT AS SEPARATE ENTITY WITHIN YOUR BUDGET AND YOU DON'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT
• BUT HOW DO THEY COMPARE TO COUNTY FUNDED ENTITIES?
• BUT AT SOME POINT OUR EMPLOYEES THEY GET OUTBID BY AN ENTITY THAT IS LESS FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE OR MAYBE
• MEANING WE HAD TO PULL FUNDS FROM ELSEWHERE TO COVER THE SHORTFALL.
• NUMBER THREE, I KIND OF FEEL LIKE THEY SHOULD CHANGE CHAPTER 33 TO COVER MY NUMBER TWO ABOUT THE LESS

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:12:47.480><c> including</c> ogm policies several entities including ogm policies several entities
• </c><00:47:48.559><c> we've</c> investigated 4,000 entities we've investigated 4,000 entities we've stopped
• , or 5% of the entities we oversee.
• </c><00:58:19.000><c> we</c> entities or po five% of the entities we entities or po five% of the entities
• recovered because the entity went out of business.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• You may have an entity who owns the land and a different entity who may own the buildings and another
• entity who owns the livestock.
• ><c> received</c> That particular entity had received That particular entity had received uh uh uh a<
• </c> accuracy of or if this would um cover accuracy of or if this would um cover our<00:17:19.760><c>
• appropriately covered.

Bills: HF4740, HF3940

Keywords: financial assurance, feedlot permits, manure storage, environmental compliance, agriculture regulation, abandoned infrastructure, pollution control, environmental impact, animal feedlot, livestock, regulations, Minnesota Rules, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And that covers their entire use of the right-of-way.
• the physical asset in the right of way. way or whether you just provided the service over it, that entity
• that if you take a significant position in an organization, I mean, you could do that. a private entity
• make sure that this revenue is only included in the total revenue of his company. single taxable entity
• Reducing them shift costs onto local taxpayers. who will have to cover the funding gap or face reduced

Bills: SB264, SB542, SB924, SB1008, SB1029, SB1036, SB1057, SB1058, SB1185, SB1202, SB1358, SB1364, SB1376, SB1569, SB1664, SB1697, SJR50

Keywords: SB 264, Texas Workers' Compensation Act, group self-insurance, self-insured groups, workers' compensation, Texas Department of Insurance, commissioner of insurance, certificate of approval, guaranty fund, trust fund, wind down, dissolution, labor code, insurance regulation, employer coverage, risk pool, business and commerce, trade workforce economic development, property owners' association, water conservation

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> 254 through 260 are sort of are entities 254 through 260 are sort of are entities that<00:16:13.440
• </c><00:27:04.880><c> that</c> legislative grantee, so an entity that legislative grantee, so an entity
• She said they cover the nine cities north of 394 and west of Highway 100.
• Is this part of covered under this bill.
• Didn't we allowed to cover maintenance?

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That is an Idaho entity with the Secretary of State's office registered to fill this function.
• To have that title, they have to be an Idaho entity. Further discussion on the motion or questions?
• I'm wondering, I noticed in this new version the definition of covered entity has changed a bit.
• Okay, so then I come down here and the entities include an educational institution.
• ...the need for one of these entities to contact parents.

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The House State Affairs Committee considered several RS drafts and one bill. It introduced RS 33231, requiring in-person canvassers to be qualified electors and wear name badges, with exceptions for volunteers, campaign workers, and phone banking. It also introduced RS 33375, which lowers the threshold for ballot name rotation from 100,000 to 25,000 voters so candidate names are rotated more broadly on ballots. RS 33429 was introduced to merge the Office of Species Conservation and the energy and minerals coordinating agency, with members asking for more information later to ensure both missions are preserved. RS 33438 was introduced to allow LLCs to use an Idaho commercial registered agent address instead of a home address, aimed at protecting residential privacy for home-based businesses. The committee then debated RS 33449, a revised version of a bill restricting social transitioning of minors without parental knowledge or consent. The sponsor said the new draft changed the civil enforcement provisions, moved the penalty to an Attorney General action with funds going to the state general fund, and narrowed the covered entities to schools, child care providers, and medical, behavioral, or mental health providers. Several members raised concerns about the breadth of the definitions, possible conflicts with confidentiality obligations, and the size of the potential penalty; others questioned how educators or providers would know when a child’s name, appearance, or dress triggered the bill. Despite objections, the motion to introduce RS 33449 passed, with Representatives Church and Haas recorded as voting no. The committee also heard House Bill 548, which would require reasonable suspicion before law enforcement can stop and board a boat on the water, rather than allowing suspicionless stops for safety inspections. The sponsor said inspections could still occur at boat launches and that the bill was meant to protect Fourth Amendment rights. After discussion, the committee voted to send HB 548 to the floor with a do pass recommendation. Finally, the committee returned RS 33-408 to sponsor at the sponsor’s request, and the meeting ended with thanks to a departing page and an announcement that the committee would take the next day off.

Transcript Highlights:

• Is that going to be covered, the quantum computing that Representative Gray was talking about?
• Would that still cover an advanced diploma?
• The High School Athletic Association is not a governmental entity, nor is the AISA a governmental entity
• And so although it may be somewhat of a quasi-like government entity, I recognize that it is viewed as
• governmental entities.

Bills: HB298, HB342, HB332, HB344

Keywords: athletic classification, public high schools, English language learners, state education policy, athletic associations, religious instruction, elective credit, released time, public education, school policy, educational intervention, State Superintendent, local boards of education, subpoena, accountability, state control, 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The first part will cover indigent health, and the second will cover the State Leadership Accountability
• For some of them, are they eligible for Covered California?
• But for Covered California overall, what's our current, how far up are we covering with Covered California
• Yeah, as of right now, Covered California is covering populations up into 400% of the federal poverty
• They're not even on Covered California.

Summary: The hearing focused on the expected loss of health coverage in California due to H.R. 1 and related federal policy changes, and what that could mean for county indigent care programs. Members and the chair said the state expects large Medi-Cal and Covered California disenrollments, with concerns that counties will again become the safety net for uninsured residents. The committee also framed the hearing as a chance to assess whether current systems are ready and what policy or budget changes may be needed before the next budget cycle. The Legislative Analyst’s Office described county indigent care as a long-standing, county-run program of last resort with wide variation in eligibility and benefits, funded largely through realignment dollars that also support public health. LAO said enrollment in county indigent care fell sharply after the ACA, but could rise again, and estimated that 20% to 50% of newly uninsured people might seek county care. LAO and administration witnesses emphasized that data on county programs is fragmented, not centrally collected, and would need to be standardized before the Legislature could make major structural decisions. Administration officials said Medi-Cal disenrollment could reach more than 1 million members at full implementation, with additional losses possible because a new federal rule makes medical-frailty exemptions more restrictive. They also said Covered California enrollment is projected to decline, though state subsidies may soften the drop. Members pressed the administration on the lack of real-time data and whether statutory authority might be needed to require county reporting. Officials said a statewide, apples-to-apples data system would likely take years, though some existing HCAI and DHCS data could help in the meantime. County representatives from Santa Barbara, San Diego, and Tulare described the practical effects of the coverage losses and asked for state help. They said their indigent care systems are limited, often reactive, and far less comprehensive than Medi-Cal, with many patients likely to show up only after conditions worsen. Counties warned that they would need bridge funding, updated statutory authority, and more flexible realignment rules to rebuild capacity and serve newly uninsured residents. The California Health Care Foundation echoed that the problem is statewide and cannot be solved county by county alone.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh we'll now cover some of &gt;&gt; Thank you.
• So, we've got we're going to cover bill.
• </c><00:21:12.799><c> tax</c> will forego the pass through entity tax will forego the pass through entity
• </c><00:21:34.480><c> tax</c> limit, the pass through entity tax limit, the pass through entity tax election
• Um so requirements on these entities.

Keywords: Meeting Start 00:00:00 Major Tax Provisions in H.R. 1 (Public Law 119-21) 00:02:45 Kentucky’s Workforce 00:33:35, 958, all

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes and heard a brief member introduction before taking up an overview of major tax provisions in HR1, referred to by the presenters as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Representatives from the Kentucky Society of CPAs explained new federal deductions for tips, overtime, and car loan interest; a new tax-favored “Trump account” for children; expanded bonus depreciation and Section 179 expensing for businesses; changes to R&D expensing; and a new limit on wagering loss deductions. Members asked several clarifying questions about the duration of the provisions, W-2 and 1099 reporting changes, and how overtime deductions would work. The presenters emphasized that tips and overtime remain subject to payroll taxes and that many of the business provisions are permanent, while the individual deductions are temporary through 2028 or otherwise phased in over time. The discussion then shifted to individual and nonprofit provisions, including the increase in the state and local tax itemized deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 with income-based phaseouts, the temporary senior deduction, and a new deduction for car loan interest with income limits and vehicle qualifications. On charitable giving, the presenters described a permanent nonitemizer deduction, new floors for individual and corporate charitable deductions, and a new scholarship-granting organization credit that would allow donors to receive a dollar-for-dollar federal credit up to $1,700, beginning in 2027. Members focused heavily on the SGO provision, asking about state implementation, oversight, whether churches would qualify, and whether the credit could support both public and private education. The presenters said the state would need to establish the mechanism and that additional federal guidance is still pending. After the tax presentation, the committee heard from the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce on workforce issues, with a focus on child care and housing as barriers to labor force participation. Chamber representatives said they were not proposing large new government programs, but rather targeted policy recommendations for the 2026 session. They described Kentucky’s long-term decline in workforce participation since 2000, attributing much of it to demographic change, an aging population, and fewer younger workers entering the labor force. The presentation continued into a broader discussion of workforce trends and the need for practical policy responses, but no votes or formal actions were taken on these informational items.

Transcript Highlights:

• it something totally different, but I call it a data lake— ...which can be accessed by multiple entities
• We are experts in standing up new state entities or councils or commissions.
• We are experts in standing up new state entities or councils or commissions.
• First, there are two existing statewide entities, one in workforce and one in higher education, that
• public entities.

Summary: The Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Education Finance heard an overview of the governor’s new Career Education Master Plan and related budget items. Labor Secretary Knox described the plan as an effort to reduce fragmentation across K-12, community colleges, workforce boards, and other systems by improving statewide and regional coordination, data sharing, skills-based hiring, career pathways, and wraparound supports such as child care, housing, food, and transportation. Members asked how success would be measured, how the plan would serve disconnected youth and adults, and whether the proposed data integration would rely on Cradle to Career; the secretary said it would. The Department of Finance said it was available to answer questions on the education side. The committee then reviewed existing CTE funding and oversight. The LAO, CDE, and Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office described the major ongoing programs, including CTIG, Perkins, K-12 Strong Workforce, and Community College Strong Workforce, and noted that many programs overlap in purpose and administration. Members repeatedly raised concerns about duplication, annual applications and reporting burdens, lack of clear outcome metrics, and whether funding incentives should be better aligned to regional collaboration. CDE and the Chancellor’s Office said they support alignment and dual enrollment, and Finance and CDE said LCFF/local match dollars are part of the funding structure. The committee also discussed child care as a barrier to participation and the need for better tracking of enrollment, completion, and job outcomes. On the consolidated application proposal, Finance proposed a study directing CDE to examine whether three long-standing CTE grant programs—Specialized Secondary Programs, CTIG, and California Partnership Academies—could be streamlined into a single application and reporting process. The LAO supported reducing administrative burden but noted that the largest programs, CTIG and K-12 Strong Workforce, were excluded from the proposal even though districts most often cite them as burdensome. CDE said it did not oppose the study but warned that statutory differences may limit consolidation. Members said the proposal should better address regional coordination, multi-year funding stability, and outcome measures rather than only simplifying paperwork. Finally, the committee heard a proposal for a $5 million ongoing California Education Interagency Council. GovOps said the council would provide a neutral venue for statewide coordination across education and workforce systems. The LAO opposed the proposal, arguing that existing bodies already provide coordination, the proposal does not change agency incentives, and the council would lack authority to implement decisions. Members expressed mixed views, with some supporting a coordinating body and others questioning whether it would differ from past efforts. No votes were taken during the portions summarized here, and the committee indicated it would hold some items open for further discussion.

Transcript Highlights:

• I had to recently do that with my mother, and I started interviewing various entities in St.
• No, this covers it? Okay. All right, members, what is the will of the body?
• Kids are already covered, and the disability community is already covered.
• Some pregnant women are covered. But otherwise, they are only covered for dentures.
• So if there is an infection and they just need a tooth pulled, most people are not covered.

Bills: HB199, HB222, HB223, HB224, HB235, HB246, HB405, HB535, HB554, HB907, SCR3, SB43, SB52, SB54, SB113, SB168, SB219, SB222, SB270, SB311, SB359

Keywords: nursing facilities, moratorium, healthcare, patient care, data collection, Medicaid, dental coverage, healthcare access, medical necessity, Louisiana Department of Health, Department of Children and Family Services, sunset law, statutory entities, regulatory authority, re-creation, termination dates, child welfare, foster care, children's rights, legal guardianship

Transcript Highlights:

• The next department that we will cover is the Department of Corrections.
• The next department that we will cover is the Department of Corrections.
• And members, again, we're still on our second entity, just on a second entity.
• entity as best we can.
• We appreciate the information, but we do have a lot to cover today.

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , so this is strictly for legal entities, corporations, and companies, and not individuals.
• If not, sure, but it'll still cover family corporations though, so if it's companies, then they're covered
• </c><00:23:02.039><c> um</c><00:23:02.320><c> Family</c> say but it'll still cover um Family say but
• retention of covered employees and to<00:28:14.559><c> Bar</c><00:28:14.880><c> reduction</c><00:28:
• a limit on the fee char person or entity a limit on the fee char chared<00:32:28.159><c> by</c><00:32

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committees considered a large number of Senate bills, with many measures advanced either unamended or with technical or substantive amendments. Early action included SB 88 and SB 11 SD1, both passed unamended, and SB 562 SD1 and SB 642 SD1, which were passed with amendments reflecting agency testimony. SB 1133 SD1 was amended to remove duplicative county requirements and clarify tax credit carry-forward eligibility, while SB 1569 SD1 on sports wagering was deferred. Later, SB 933 on nonprofit/federal funding support drew strong testimony from nonprofit and health advocates emphasizing the risk of federal funding freezes and the importance of protecting services such as early learning, domestic violence support, housing, and workforce supports; the committee recommended amendments to define eligible organizations, require reporting, and include the Judiciary. SB 934 and SB 935 were also amended, with SB 934 tying mass transit funding to Honolulu project milestones and SB 935 revising retirement-system language to change “fewer than five years” to “five or more years.” The committees then took up additional measures with targeted amendments. SB 1033 was amended to clarify that the bill applies to legal entities, not individuals, though members noted concerns about closely held family corporations and asked that the issue be reflected in the committee report. SB 1166, SB 1249, and SB 1256 were advanced with amendments or committee-report notes reflecting concerns from the Attorney General, Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council, and Hawaii Farmers Union United, respectively. SB 1432 and SB 137, both relating to electric utilities, were amended to require retention of covered employees after mergers or acquisitions and to direct the PUC to consider whether proposed transactions further state policy goals. SB 157 on antitrust was narrowed to focus on coordinator conduct in rental housing markets, SB 252 on invasive species received a defective effective date, and SB 336 on defense of state employers and employees passed unamended. SB 536 on the Hawaii Community Development Authority was deferred to a later hearing, and SB 1064 on medical cannabis was heavily amended to authorize cultivator licenses with limits on canopy size, license counts, physician fees, and a special-fund appropriation for enforcement. In the Ways and Means portion, the committee passed several bills unamended, including SB 19, SB 124, SB 264, SB 345, SB 422, and SB 741 and SB 747 later in the agenda. SB 361 was amended to remove references to the attorney general and delete an appropriation section, SB 438 was amended to redefine buffer zones and landfill-unit language, and SB 441 and SB 494 were amended to blank appropriations and, in SB 494, assign charter-school audit responsibility to the state auditor. SB 659 was substantially amended to promote local procurement, including county-level geographic preferences and higher thresholds for locally sourced purchases, and SB 732 was amended to adjust film tax credit provisions, including the streaming-platform definition and sunset-related language. SB 819 was amended to replace references to “educators” with “teachers.” Throughout, most measures were adopted without recorded opposition, though several members noted reservations on particular bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• um to to provide you know the the entity um to to provide you know the the funding<00:54:24.640><c>
• so um when a bill comes like covered so um when a bill comes like that<01:04:40.079><c> uh</c><01:04
• It must also have 50% of all patients served in that most recent calendar year who must be covered by
• uh by medical assistance or covered uh by medical assistance or Minnesota<01:37:42.760><c> care</c><
• </c><01:38:08.080><c> by</c> 15% of its patients who are covered by 15% of its patients who are covered

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And that care has been covered by private insurance plans for the last 16 years because that is what
• They shall be covered. The other word for shall is must. Period.
• THEY SHALL BE COVERED THE OTHER WORD FOR SHELL IS MUST.
• It is bought up by entities like the Conservation Fund, and the Minnesota taxpayers come in.
• It would maintain the health plans and cover the things they say they are going to cover.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• These services have not been previously covered under Medicaid and are often covered by DCF or Medicaid
• I'll be covering Governor DeSantis' recommendations in his Floridian's First Budget.
• And thank you for working with the managing entities to create and launch this dashboard.
• H.B. 633 required a programmatic and financial audit of the managing entities.
• And that covers both the maintenance and operations, as well as enhancements to that system.

Summary: The Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services heard presentations on the governor’s proposed fiscal year 2026-2027 budget for the health and human services agencies. Kendall Kelly outlined the overall HHS budget at $48.5 billion, with AHCA accounting for the largest share, and agency heads then highlighted major proposals for Medicaid behavioral health redesign, APD waiver enrollment and facility needs, DCF child welfare, opioid, and mental health investments, DOEA funding for Alzheimer’s, home care, and community services, DOH funding for cancer research, public health initiatives, and lab capacity, and VA funding for facility improvements, cybersecurity, and medication management. Several members praised specific proposals, including increased reimbursement for private duty nursing, Alzheimer’s supports, and the Florida FIRST blood-in-ambulance initiative. Senators also questioned the proposed changes to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), with the Surgeon General explaining that the department expects a reduction in covered patients from about 30,000 to about 20,000 because of funding pressures tied to rebates, federal changes, and premium tax credit issues. Public testimony strongly criticized the ADAP changes, citing lack of transparency and warning that many patients could lose access to medications. Other questions focused on the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, DCF’s substance abuse and mental health data dashboard, Kids Care/CHIP expansion implementation, APD bed and facility planning, and the FX Medicaid technology project. DCF said about $7 million is set aside for the dashboard system, and AHCA said the governor’s budget includes $124.4 million for FX maintenance and continued module development, with $13.5 million to begin claims processing work. The committee did not take a substantive vote on the budget presentations and adjourned after questions and public testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• Lardy, how many people do you employ through this whole entity? There’s a lot.”
• So, with that, I've covered a lot of ground in a short period of time.
• And these degrees are covering a lot of different areas.
• I've covered. So actually, I'll just piggyback off that really quick.
• When we received the award last year, that was the first time they could cover...

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The committee first reviewed the 2024-25 tuition waiver report for the North Dakota University System. Staff explained that waivers were reported for degree-seeking students and broken out by residency, institution, and waiver type. Members asked about partial versus full waivers, institutional discretion, athletic waivers, and whether campuses have published guardrails or transparency requirements. Staff said most waivers are set by institutions, with some statutory and board-required categories, and that athletic waivers are a small share of total waiver dollars. The report showed total gross tuition of $354.5 million, tuition waived of $38.9 million, and 11,193 of 42,040 students receiving some waiver. Members also discussed how waivers affect net tuition revenue, housing and food collections, and whether campuses are using waivers strategically compared with scholarships and other funding sources. The committee then heard a presentation on tuition rates by campus and State Board policy. Staff explained the board’s tuition factors for resident, Minnesota reciprocity, contiguous-state/U.S. nonresident, and international students, and noted that campuses often seek exceptions based on program-specific competition and enrollment goals. Members asked whether rates are based on cost or competition, and staff said campuses typically bring forward estimates and market comparisons when requesting special rates. The presentation also reviewed general fund appropriations versus net tuition revenue by campus, and members discussed how local tuition decisions and waivers do not directly affect the state funding formula, though they do affect institutional revenue and reserves. Questions were also raised about the Higher Learning Commission’s financial composite indicator and how it differs from the more intuitive reserve and revenue figures. The committee next received a broad overview of non-higher-education entities affiliated with the State Board of Higher Education, beginning with NDSU agriculture-related units. Dr. Greg Lardy described the State Board of Agricultural Research and Education, the NDSU Extension Service, the Agricultural Experiment Station, and the branch research centers, emphasizing their statewide role in crop and livestock research, extension education, and county-based outreach. He outlined funding mixes for extension, the experiment station, and branch stations, noting that grants and contracts support both research and education, while the agronomy seed farm is self-funded through seed sales. Members asked about the new and vacant FTE pool, R1 research status, matching requirements for grants, and whether state appropriations count toward research expenditures. Dr. Lardy also highlighted major research impacts, including crop varieties, virtual fencing, AI-assisted weed control, and NDAWN weather data. The Northern Crops Institute and the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute also presented. NCI described its role in market development, technical services, and education for regional agriculture, its governance through the Northern Crops Council, and its funding from state appropriations, other states, and earned revenue. Members asked about the source of out-of-state funding, intellectual property, and the institute’s international reach. UGPTI then outlined its transportation research, federal and state funding structure, and work on road and bridge condition assessments, travel demand modeling, and workforce training. No votes were taken during the portion of the meeting reflected in the transcript.

Transcript Highlights:

• We always levy in dollars needed to cover expenditures after we’ve used up our cash reserves.
• Again, it’s always dollars to cover what is needed in our budget.
• So, I mean, it was the highest amount possible for any of those entities that they would levy.
• Probably to cover our cost.
• But again, the state would probably have to cover that. Well, I think they would.

Summary: The subcommittee of the Tax Reform and Relief Advisory Committee met to begin its study of whether the content of the real estate tax statement should be revised to improve transparency. Legislative Council staff reviewed the study directive from HB 1176 and the statutory requirements for tax statements, including required line items such as true and full value, mill levy, legislative tax relief, primary residence credit, legacy fund share, discounts for early payment, and special assessments. The Tax Department then explained how the current uniform statewide statement is prescribed and approved, and noted that changes are typically driven by statute and implemented collaboratively with counties and vendors. County officials from NDACO, including auditors from McKenzie and Richland counties, described the full annual property tax timeline from budgeting through mailing final statements. They explained how counties gather budgets, calculate levies, verify taxable values, handle centrally assessed property, and prepare required notices and statements. They also said public attendance at budget hearings is generally very low, though the notices and statements generate some calls, mostly about whether attendance is required or why taxes are changing. Several members questioned the usefulness of the legislative tax relief line and the complexity of the 5% discount calculation, and county officials said the current process can be confusing and depends on manual data entry and coordination among counties, vendors, and taxing districts. The committee also discussed assessment frequency, valuation equalization, the 3% cap, and whether more frequent reassessment would reduce large jumps in taxable value. County officials said they try to use rotating reassessments and sales-ratio reviews to keep values within statutory tolerance, but staffing, training, and local market changes make the work difficult. NDACO staff estimated, based on a small county survey, that tax statement preparation and mailing costs average about 74 cents per statement, with outsourcing generally cheaper than in-house printing, and said HB 1176 added some mailing and administrative costs even if the tax statement itself did not change dramatically. Software vendors from CPT and Tyler then began presentations showing how their systems handle budgeting, valuation notices, tax statement generation, primary residence credit processing, and levy worksheets, emphasizing that many of the required calculations and reports are still manually entered or verified by county staff.