Video & Transcript : 'compensation prohibition' :
Page 96 of 500
WY
Wyoming 2026 Regular Session
House Floor Session-Day 18, March 3, 2026-AM
Wyoming House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- on patients as specified, allowing health care insurers to cover stem cell therapy as specified, prohibiting
- on patients as specified, allowing health care insurers to cover stem cell therapy as specified, prohibiting
- c> says,</c><00:41:27.800><c> "This</c><00:41:28.240><c> is</c> Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit
- And with the increase in salaries and compensation we give them this year, it brings them up to the 2024
- can be impacted by regional compensation can be impacted by regional cost<01:15:29.520><c> adjustment
WA
Washington 2025-2026 Regular Session
Senate Floor Session Mar 6th, 2026 at 09:00 am
Washington Senate Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- He also worked as a private attorney for 13 years, and he had worked on workers' compensation and safety
- And when he was a business rep, he served on the Workers' Compensation Advisory Committee from 2014.
- He served on the Workers' Compensation Advisory Committee from 2014 until, at least until, I think he
- It prohibits engaging with an emotional relationship, establishing an emotional relationship, which we
Bills:
SB6061 , SB6234 , SB6176 , SB6335 , SB6047 , HB2235 , HB2464 , HB2619 , HB1376 , SB5808 , SB5949 , HB1347 , HB1759 , HB1983 , HB2120 , HB2264 , HB2338 , HB2385 , HB2495 , HB2521 , HB2604 , HB2610 , HB2675 , HB2426 , SB6061 , SB6234 , SB6176 , SB6335 , SB6047 , HB2235 , HB2464 , HB2619 , HB1376 , HB1796 , HB2091 , HB2249 , HB2353 , HB2431 , SB5808 , SB5949 , HB2124 , HB2104 , HB2624 , HB2510 , HB1347 , HB1759 , HB1983 , HB2120 , HB2264 , HB2338 , HB2385 , HB2436 , HB2495 , HB2521 , HB2604 , HB2610 , HB2675
Keywords:
tourism, self-supported assessment, funding, statewide promotion, economic development, sewage, grinder pumps, residential buildings, regulation, construction, vehicle registration, enforcement, renewal, transportation, state law, state commission, infrastructure, traffic safety, responsibilities, state capital projects
TX
Texas 89th Regular
Senate Committee on Business and Commerce (Part II) Apr 1st, 2025
Business & Commerce
Transcript Highlights:
- the rules by which they're going to be interconnected, the costs of that interconnection, the compensation
- to deny interconnectivity, and it doesn't provide any assurance that DER owners will be fairly compensated
- And then we can talk about the compensation of it.
- Although this bill will not prohibit association membership, it will undoubtedly make paying for membership
Bills:
SB75 , SB715 , SB776 , SB1299 , SB1405 , SB1968 , SB2021 , SB2077 , SB2148 , SB2321 , SB2330 , SB2411
Committee:
Senate Business & Commerce
NH
New Hampshire 2025 Regular Session
JLCAR Administrative Rules (08/21/2025)
Transcript Highlights:
- Um, there was absolute prohibition in the rule that was presented.
- I'd just like to note that there is rarely ever a prohibition in rules because we have a waiver process
- criteria in B, it also says not require the construction of a new dug-in basin, which basically compensates
- </c> the rules had an absolute prohibition the rules had an absolute prohibition and<00:23:07.760><c>
- things and I'm not start prohibiting things and I'm not sure<00:23:18.400><c> that</c><00:23:18.640>
Summary:
The committee first approved the minutes and adopted the consent calendar after removing two items: DES rule FP 25127 concerning dug-in boat basins and HHS child care licensing rule 25132. The child care licensing item was then taken up separately. HHS staff said the rule had been developed over more than a year with the child care advisory council and the broader child care community, and that it was urgent because the department is out of compliance with federal Office of Child Care requirements and needs database changes completed in time for a September 30, 2025 implementation deadline. After brief questions, the committee moved to approve the rule as presented, and it passed unanimously.
The committee also considered an HHS interim rule to restore expired rules and keep them in compliance while regular rulemaking proceeds. HHS explained the rules had expired in April and that the filing was intended to minimize the gap until permanent rulemaking could occur; the only fee in the rule relates to copying medical records, and the department said it is not collecting those fees. Committee members noted broader problems with keeping rules current in the state’s tracking system, but said the situation had improved. The committee then moved to approve the interim rule, and it was adopted unanimously.
For DES rule 25127 on project-specific requirements for boat houses, staff and committee members focused on language about new dug-in basins. Some members were concerned the rule read like an absolute prohibition without clear statutory authority, while DES staff said a waiver process exists and offered possible edits to clarify that dug-in basins could still be approved in rare cases if a waiver is granted or if they are the least impacting alternative. Because the language needed further work, the committee postponed the item for one month and asked DES to return with written conditional-approval language. The committee also voted to move its October meeting to October 17 at 9:00 a.m. in State House 100, and was told to expect an emergency Lottery Commission rule on slot machines next month. The meeting then adjourned.
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
House Floor Session 5/11/26 - Part 3
Minnesota House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- or um receive adequately compensated or um receive remedy<01:29:43.360><c> for</c><01:29:43.760><c>
- So, this amendment would actually create a statewide payment prohibition following a fraud conviction
- </c><01:31:54.639><c> uh</c> statewide payment prohibition uh statewide payment prohibition uh following
- First reading of Senate File 3720, an act relating to workers compensation.
- Baker moved that Senate compensation.
CA
California 2025-2026 Regular Session
Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 6 on Public Safety May 18th, 2026
Transcript Highlights:
- However, that is primarily driven by employee compensation...”
- So item one provides $100 million General Fund to address increased workers' compensation costs.
- CDCR receives an annual adjustment for workers' compensation costs, which is typically included in the
- CDCR receives an annual adjustment for workers' compensation costs, which is typically included in the
- Third, we recommend that the Legislature adopt budgetary language to prohibit state funds from being
Summary:
Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 6 heard the Governor’s May Revision proposals for the judicial branch, the Board of State and Community Corrections, the Department of Justice, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The Legislative Analyst’s Office opened with a warning that the state budget remains structurally imbalanced and urged the Legislature to avoid new ongoing spending unless offset by reductions elsewhere. In the judicial branch discussion, the Judicial Council highlighted language access funding, appellate court security, a backfill for the state court facilities construction fund, and an extension of the lactation room mandate; Finance supported most items but suggested reporting language on interpreter costs and reducing the General Fund backfill. Members raised concerns about judicial vacancies, long-term salary freezes, remote hearings, and the lack of progress on court staffing in some counties.
For the Board of State and Community Corrections, the administration proposed $10 million one-time each for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People grant program and a human trafficking vertical prosecution grant program. The LAO said both should be weighed against other priorities and suggested the Legislature consider whether the Tribal Nations Grant Fund could support MMIP work, while Finance said it preferred General Fund support and wanted more review before any fund swap. Members strongly supported MMIP funding and asked whether ongoing support would be considered. On the human trafficking grant, Finance said BSC was a good fit because of its grant administration experience and prior vertical prosecution work, while legislators asked why the program was not placed with the Office of Emergency Services as originally contemplated in prior legislation.
The Department of Justice presented antitrust litigation funding, Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse staffing, completion of organized retail criminal enterprise cases, and trailer bill language for a continuous appropriation from the Victims of Consumer Fraud Restitution Fund. The LAO supported the antitrust account use but questioned the Unfair Competition Law Fund’s ability to cover the full request without General Fund repayment, and recommended against a continuous appropriation for the restitution fund in favor of a more limited mechanism with legislative oversight. Finance said the fund would remain solvent and defended the continuous appropriation as necessary to pay victims promptly. In the CDCR portion, the largest discussion centered on the Boston Consulting Group efficiency review and sharply reduced savings estimates; LAO said the department had not fully explained the proposed position eliminations or future $100 million savings target, while Finance said the work reflected deeper analysis and ongoing efforts to find savings. Members repeatedly pressed CDCR and Finance on the gap between earlier promised savings and the revised figures.
CDCR also outlined population projections showing continued declines in prison and parole populations, while LAO again urged the state to close an additional prison to save ongoing costs. The department then walked through several May Revision items, including workers’ compensation funding, a Corcoran honor housing dorm, incarcerated firefighter pay implementation, an incarcerated menopause program, mental health receiver staffing, mental health resource teams and crisis intervention teams, medical classification staffing changes, and AI note-taking for the electronic health record. LAO generally recommended limiting-term funding and more reporting for many of these proposals, while Finance defended them as necessary ongoing investments or court-ordered obligations. Members questioned the cost of workers’ compensation, the need for more prison closures, the lack of funding for women’s facility violence prevention, and the timing and transparency of the BCG savings process. No votes were taken.
CA
California 2025-2026 Regular Session
Assembly Floor Session Apr 21st, 2025
California House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- To our guests and visitors today, state law prohibits persons in the gallery from interfering with legislative
- work, these loans offer a critical lifeline until they can recover a judgment or settlement to compensate
- agreements to disclose key terms in plain English, provides consumers a five day right of revocation, prohibits
- conflict of interest between attorneys and litigation funders, and prohibits legal funding providers
TX
Transcript Highlights:
- It represents roughly 14 full-time teachers with an average compensation package of $70,000 per year.
- It prohibits school districts from opening new campuses within 1,500 feet of a school.
- Madam Chair, the substitute prohibits a superintendent's contract from including a clause that stops
- Does the provision prohibiting that contract clause for superintendents, is that prospective only?
Bills:
SB2920 , SB2929 , SB2398 , SB865 , SB401 , SB2619 , SB2927 , SB1395 , SB1972 , SB2540 , SB1635 , SB1581 , SB2008
Committees:
Senate Education , Senate Education K-16
AZ
Arizona 2026 Regular Session
02/03/2026 - House Democratic Caucus Calendar #3
Transcript Highlights:
- House Bill 2248, Medical Interventions Prohibition, prohibits a business entity from refusing to provide
- Madam Chair, members, HB 2086, Vaccination Mandates, Mask Prohibition, prohibits any governmental entity
- House Bill 2085, gender transition minors prohibition.
- Madam Chair and members, House Bill 2134, critical infrastructure for an adversary's prohibition, prohibits
- Madam Chair and members, House Bill 2134, critical infrastructure for an adversary's prohibition, prohibits
Summary:
The caucus reviewed a long list of bills and resolutions, with members frequently asking to pull measures from consent and noting party-line or unanimous votes. Topics included medical and vaccination restrictions (HB 2248, HB 2086), state investment and conflict-of-interest rules for the treasurer (HB 2303), budget and reporting requirements (HB 2688, HB 2015), procurement limits involving China-linked companies (HB 2170, HB 2134), homelessness administration (HB 2533), traffic and transportation measures (HB 2109, HB 2574, HB 2210), school testing and education policy (HB 2032, HB 2033, HB 2075, HB 2266, HB 2395, HCR 2003), and several health-care bills involving lactation services, gender-transition care for minors, abortion-related restrictions, and hospital immigration-status reporting (HB 2072, HB 2085, HB 2364, HB 2689, HB 2796). Members also discussed water policy, including desalination, groundwater transport, and water-use limits (HB 2052, HB 2056, HB 2098, HB 2758, HB 2328), as well as food and agriculture measures such as SNAP restrictions, cultivated-cell food labeling and bans, and the Beef Council extension (HB 2396, HB 2762, HB 2791, HB 2155). Several members criticized bills as unconstitutional, costly, or harmful to affordability, while sponsors described them as clarifications, consumer protections, or administrative fixes.
The caucus also considered a number of bills affecting labor, property, and consumer issues, including unemployment eligibility changes, mobile home park submetering fees, appraisal management company rules, digital goods seller requirements, property tax clarifications, and protections for minors in online content creation (HB 2690, HB 2459, HB 2501, HB 2010, HB 2120, HB 2192, HB 2261, HB 2279). Other measures addressed sexual extortion penalties, name-change procedures for sex offenders, and restrictions on abortion-inducing drugs and gender-transition procedures for minors (HB 2666, HB 2223, HB 2364, HB 2085). Members repeatedly raised concerns about federal preemption, constitutional issues, implementation costs, and unintended consequences, and several sponsors or members indicated they were working on amendments or stakeholder discussions.
At the end of the meeting, the caucus also heard memorials and resolutions, including a proposal to limit voting centers and precinct voting, and memorials urging withdrawal from the United Nations and defunding the IMF (HCR 2016, HM 2001, HM 2004). The meeting concluded with caucus announcements, including an affordability-themed award recognizing Rep. Betty Villegas, a Black History Month sign-up request, and reminders about upcoming affordability and Latino Caucus events. No final floor votes were taken in the transcript, but multiple bills were pulled from consent or noted for opposition.
NM
New Mexico 2026 Regular Session
House - Commerce and Economic Development Feb 11th, 2026 at 05:14 pm
House Commerce & Economic Development Committee
Transcript Highlights:
- They go from over $100,000 in compensation to pocket change. ...go from over $100,000 in compensation
- a sales prohibition.
- Heller was addressing a total prohibition on all handguns.
- So Madam Chair, Representative, Senators, what prohibits...
- It was only a question of whether federal law prohibited that prohibition.
CA
California 2025-2026 Regular Session
Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee Jun 23rd, 2026
Privacy and Consumer Protection
Transcript Highlights:
- For example, this bill prohibits the use of ADS systems to... employees.
- For example, this bill prohibits the use of ADS systems to interfere with labor and employment rights
- However, public employers are already prohibited from deterring or discouraging union membership under
- Dylan Hoffman, on behalf of TechNet, Prism, the California Coalition on Workers' Compensation, and the
- It establishes essential privacy safeguards by prohibiting state agencies and public universities from
Committee:
House Privacy and Consumer Protection
LA
Louisiana 2026 Regular Session
Administration of Criminal Justice Apr 15th, 2026
Administration of Criminal Justice
Transcript Highlights:
- And then it goes on and says nothing in this section shall prohibit the issuing of authority following
- It's important to note that the board members will serve without compensation.
- It's important to note that the board members will serve without compensation.
- And as I read the bill, I see nowhere in the bill that it prohibits the smell of marijuana, the appearance
- I know it's prohibited in banks, and I'm not sure where all it's prohibited. Can you tell me that?
Bills:
HB59 , HB74 , HB159 , HB167 , HB175 , HB255 , HB330 , HB364 , HB458 , HB525 , HB568 , HB656 , HB1033 , HB1034 , HB1070
Committee:
House Administration of Criminal Justice
TX
Texas 89th Regular
Senate Committee on Health and Human Services Mar 11th, 2025
Health & Human Services
Transcript Highlights:
- And deferred compensation, $6 a day out of $120,000. And those costs are about 30%. About $30.
- We especially support prohibiting the purchase of sugar-sweetened beverages under Senate Bill 379.
- So just rereading it, it's fairly described as energy. drink, I'm sorry, get back to the prohibitions
- Yeah, I don't, but it's not a prohibition on sugar.
- And it still has a prohibition on hot. correct? It does.
Committee:
Senate Health & Human Services
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Judiciary Committee Meeting - 2026-03-25
Judiciary Finance and Civil Law
Transcript Highlights:
- Standing or sitting in walkways and aisles is prohibited.
- thankfully, where an individual at a recent meeting obtained a job and then filed for workers' compensation
- </c><00:17:47.280><c> insurance</c><00:17:47.919><c> and</c> workers uh compensation insurance and workers
- uh compensation insurance and they<00:17:48.480><c> never</c><00:17:48.720><c> existed.
- </c> neighboring states that have prohibited neighboring states that have prohibited cannabis,<00:32:
Committee:
House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law
NH
New Hampshire 2025 Regular Session
House Environment and Agriculture (05/13/2025)
Transcript Highlights:
- c><00:37:53.520><c> having</c> conflict of interest not having conflict of interest not having compensation
- </c><00:37:55.760><c> Have</c> compensation in the recent past.
- Have compensation in the recent past.
- /c><00:43:29.040><c> has</c> uh, beginning on line 11, it has uh, beginning on line 11, it has prohibitions
- Um and it prohibitions and restrictions.
Summary:
The Environment and Agriculture Committee held a hearing on a non-germane amendment to SB 302, a Senate bill originally requiring background checks for solid waste and hazardous waste facility owners. Representative Patenza explained that the amendment was intended to preserve and separate out language developed for the governor’s budget proposal and HB 2 concerning a solid waste facility site evaluation committee, a moratorium, and related public-benefit/site-benefit provisions, so the policy would still have a vehicle if the budget language did not advance. He said the proposal reflects extensive work by the House, the governor’s office, and DES, and he was open to further changes to align with any budget conference committee outcome.
Dr. Adam Finkele testified in support of the amendment and the underlying site evaluation concept, arguing that landfill siting decisions should be based on cost-benefit analysis that includes public harms, local impacts, and regional impacts rather than only private benefits. He praised the committee process and prior legislation requiring agencies to respond substantively to public comments, and said the new language improves on the governor’s version by moving the committee’s review earlier in the process and requiring more complete application information, including alternatives and impacts on nearby wells and aquifers. He also supported a three-year moratorium on new landfill applications, saying it would give the state time to address leachate, PFAS, waste reduction, and weak siting rules.
Members asked about possible conference committee changes, the value of having a separate review body, and whether the new rules would invite litigation. Dr. Finkele said he would likely sue over the rules because he считает them too weak, but also said the legislature could fix the problems through other bills such as HB 77. He acknowledged that the site evaluation committee is not a perfect solution, but said it is a useful intermediate step between the agency and the courts and likely would meet only rarely if capacity need remains the main trigger for future landfill decisions. No vote or final action was taken during the hearing.
MN
Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session
Conference Committee on HF2431 5/9/25
Transcript Highlights:
- So, it's not cost prohibitive for those that want to participate. want that taken out so that we can
- ><00:15:02.240><c> it's</c><00:15:02.399><c> not</c><00:15:02.560><c> cost</c><00:15:02.880><c> prohibitive
- So, it's not cost prohibitive for you.
- So, it's not cost prohibitive for those<00:15:03.760><c> that</c><00:15:03.920><c> want</c><00:15:04.079
- will be provided additional compensation will be provided for<01:08:46.000><c> participation</c><01:
Summary:
The committee first took up a series of “same and similar” provisions between the House and Senate higher education bills and adopted them one by one, with brief explanations from members and staff. The items included a cybersecurity addition for a doctoral degree program, Northstar Promise definitions and eligibility limits, self-loan provisions on institution eligibility and data disclosure, and dual training language requiring certificates, diplomas, or degrees to come from accredited postsecondary institutions. The committee also adopted an amendment to the private career school provisions that clarified exempt institutions remain within the act, and removed certain limited-license and renewal fees for institutions participating in dual training grants or the eligible training provider list. Each of these motions prevailed by voice vote.
The committee then moved into policy differences between the House and Senate bills, beginning with emergency grants and hunger-free campus grants. Members discussed shifting funding from OHE-administered competitive grants to direct appropriations for the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State, while the Senate retained competitive grant access for private and tribal colleges and added reporting requirements. OHE Commissioner Dennis Olson said the added reporting would be an extra administrative task but raised no significant concerns. Testifiers from the University of Minnesota, Minnesota State, and the private college sector supported faster, more direct funding and described the grants as important for emergency housing, transportation, food insecurity, and other student basic needs. A LeadMN representative also supported the changes, saying campus staff and students wanted funds delivered more quickly.
The committee also discussed direct admissions on R31. The Senate proposal would require public and charter high schools to participate in the direct admissions program by the 2029-2030 school year. Assistant Commissioner Wendy Robinson said OHE supports statewide expansion and that the program has improved FAFSA completion, college enrollment, and student retention in Minnesota. Members noted the bill had bipartisan support and heard from advocates such as Ed Allies and Students United. No votes were taken on the policy-difference items during this portion of the meeting, and the chair said further discussion of state grant and sexual misconduct policy differences would be held at a later hearing with additional OHE staff present.
AZ
Arizona 2026 Regular Session
02/18/2026 - Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency
Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency
Transcript Highlights:
- Well, and so just the past one, I mean, the past one allows me—the only medication that it prohibits
- The bill specifies that an intern or student is not prohibited from practicing, rather than operating
- The bill specifies that an intern or student is not prohibited from practicing rather than operating
- Madam Chair, exactions statutes fall under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution—just compensation
- The bill prohibits a municipality or county from requiring a person to obtain a journeyman's license
TX
Transcript Highlights:
- Outbursts or vocal displays of support or opposition from visitors in the audience are prohibited, and
- Signs, placards, or other objects of a similar nature are prohibited.
- Food and drink are prohibited in the hearing room, and members of the committee and witnesses must confine
- It would be totally cost-prohibitive to both the state and to landowners.
- I would be very slow to go and prohibit export. There's a reason the law was changed.
Committee:
House Natural Resources
Summary:
The committee held a hearing on high-capacity groundwater wells proposed in Anderson, Henderson, and Houston counties, with members framing the issue as one of local water supply, fairness, and the need to modernize groundwater law while protecting private property rights. Opening remarks focused on the scale of the proposed Redtown Ranch and Pine Bliss projects, the potential export of tens of thousands of acre-feet of groundwater annually, and concerns that the applications lacked sufficient technical detail and could harm nearby landowners, cities, agriculture, and manufacturing. Members also noted the broader context of the recent flooding tragedy in central Texas and the Legislature’s intent to address water-related loss of life in the upcoming special session.
Witnesses from the Texas Alliance of Groundwater Districts and the Texas Water Development Board explained the current groundwater management framework. They described groundwater conservation districts as the state’s preferred management method, the role of groundwater management areas and desired future conditions, and how the Water Development Board uses those conditions to calculate modeled available groundwater. They emphasized that districts rely on local data, monitoring wells, and planning processes, but that information is often more limited in areas without a district, where the rule of capture applies. Members pressed witnesses on recharge rates, export permits, subsidence, the effect of pumping on nearby wells, the age and real-time availability of model data, and whether the proposed project would exceed modeled available groundwater in some counties.
TCEQ explained its limited oversight role over groundwater conservation districts, including inquiries, compliance actions, and, in extreme cases, dissolution authority. Water Development Board staff also outlined funding programs, saying the New Water Supply for Texas Fund is limited to projects such as brackish desalination, reuse, ASR, and other new-supply projects, and does not fund fresh groundwater exports alone. They said the project at issue had not applied for board funding. A water lawyer then testified on the rule of capture, ownership in place, and district regulation, arguing that districts must use permitting and other tools to manage production within modeled available groundwater and that the Legislature could consider additional authority over groundwater exports under current law.
CO
Colorado 2026 Regular Session
Colorado House 2026 Legislative Day 093 Apr 17th, 2026
Colorado House Floor Meeting
Transcript Highlights:
- So, we have some of that compensated already, and we compensate it.
- They get paid, they get compensated.
- So, we have some of that compensated already, and we compensate it.
- They get paid, they get compensated.
- They get paid, they get compensated.
Summary:
The House convened with 58 members present and seven excused, establishing a quorum, and approved the April 15, 2026 journal as corrected. The chamber then moved through announcements recognizing visiting railroad workers, LIUNA Local 720, Colorado West Christian Schools, Religious Freedom Day, and several school and community groups, along with birthday acknowledgments and committee schedule notices. The House also adopted a motion to remove House Bill 1245 from special orders and returned it to the general orders second reading calendar, and set House Bills 1290, 1312, and 1321 as special orders.
The House adopted Senate Joint Resolution 18, recognizing Nowruz and expressing support for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Iranian people, including the Women, Life, Freedom movement. Supporters described Nowruz as a holiday of renewal and resilience and tied the resolution to solidarity with Iranian communities. Representative Zokaie also spoke at length about the personal impact of war on Iranian families and urged a vote. The resolution passed 59-2 with four excused.
The chamber then considered several bills in committee report. House Bill 1290, concerning assault and clarifying sentencing, was amended in Judiciary to remove the medical professional provision and passed after testimony emphasizing strangulation as a serious warning sign in domestic violence cases; it then passed the House. House Bill 1312, dealing with peace officer participation, POST Board composition, academy training, and related grants, was amended for clarity and passed the Judiciary report and then the bill. House Bill 1321, modifying the School Security Disbursement Program, had the Education Committee report defeated, but amendments were adopted to broaden eligible service providers and adjust funding language; the bill then passed as amended.
MA
Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session
Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources Jul 1st, 2026
Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources
Transcript Highlights:
- Thank you for the opportunity to testify in strong support of H. 5137 to prohibit the sale of parrots
- This bill simply bans the lawful sale and compensated transfer of parrots.
- By banning the sale, trade, barter, lease, or transfer of parrots for compensation, it would...
- By banning the sale, trade, barter, lease, or transfer of parrots for compensation, it would effectively
- Nor does it state that rescues can receive compensation for the adoption of a parrot.
Summary:
The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources held a hybrid hearing on late-file bills, with testimony focused first on multiple home rule petitions seeking local authority to restrict anticoagulant rodenticides in towns including Andover, Topsfield, North Andover, Williamstown, Georgetown, Lexington, and others. Municipal officials, residents, wildlife advocates, and conservation groups described documented harm to hawks, owls, foxes, turtles, pets, and other wildlife, and argued that towns should be able to regulate these poisons locally. Several speakers said their towns had already voted to support restrictions and were using integrated pest management and other alternatives. Committee members noted that statewide rodenticide legislation had already advanced out of committee in both chambers and that the environmental bond bill was in conference committee, but no votes were taken during the hearing itself.
The committee then heard testimony on H. 5137, a bill to prohibit the retail sale of parrots. Supporters, including animal welfare groups, veterinarians, rescue operators, and advocates, said parrots are often sourced from large breeding facilities with poor conditions, that many birds are surrendered because they are difficult long-term pets, and that rescues are overwhelmed. They argued the bill would encourage adoption, reduce demand for commercial breeding and trafficking, and improve bird welfare and public health. Opponents, including breeders, pet retailers, aviculture representatives, and rescue operators, said the bill would harm small businesses, reduce consumer access and transparency, and push sales to unregulated markets without improving welfare. Several speakers said the bill should instead focus on stronger standards and enforcement rather than banning sales.
A separate bill, S. 310, designating the Marion Stoddard River Walk, was also briefly discussed in testimony supporting Marion Stoddard’s environmental work. The hearing ended after the committee finished taking testimony and adjourned; no roll-call votes or formal actions were taken in the transcript.