Transcript Highlights:

• appropriated as well as direct appropriations.
• appropriated as well as direct appropriations.
• appropriated as well as direct appropriations.
• </c><00:14:34.120><c> appropriated</c><00:14:35.079><c> as</c> directly legislatively appropriated as
• directly legislatively appropriated as well<00:14:35.680><c> as</c><00:14:36.120><c> um</c><00:14:36.279

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• In 2021, the first piece of legislation ran off this floor.
• It was actually an opt-in piece of legislation.
• It will be enforced just as the other four pieces of legislation.
• And so it's an extensive piece of legislation.
• This body has overwhelmingly supported legislation... ...this week.

Summary: The House convened, completed the roll call, prayer, and Pledge of Allegiance, and then took up several measures. The main floor debate centered on House Bill 2787, a one-time $2 million supplemental for the Choosing Childbirth program through the State Department of Health. Supporters said the money would prevent a lapse in services for more than 4,000 mothers and children, especially in rural areas, until the organization can reenter the bidding process in 2028. Opponents questioned the nonprofit’s transparency, donor base, leadership, and prior use of state funds, arguing the Legislature should not provide another supplemental without clearer accountability. The bill passed 70-19, and the emergency clause also passed. The House also considered Senate Bill 546 on data privacy. After floor amendments removed the emergency clause and set a January 1, 2027 effective date, the bill was explained as a comprehensive consumer data privacy measure applying to certain businesses operating in Oklahoma. It would give consumers rights to access, delete, and opt out of the sale of personal data, with enforcement through the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division and civil penalties for violations. The bill passed 84-4. In addition, House Bill 2786 received a joint committee report and passed with no debate; it provides supplemental funding to the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to complete fiscal year 2025 payments to CCBHCs and other vendors, and its emergency clause also passed. The House adopted House Resolution 1034 recognizing February as Black History Month. The chamber also heard several introductions and announcements before adjourning.

Transcript Highlights:

• The following riders provide contingent appropriation.
• The agency has no exceptional item requests.
• I'm not going to speak to the Education Committees, but I think Appropriations is the appropriate committee
• funds so we can kind of move along and appropriately.
• A LBB transfer, a GR transfer, it has to come through the appropriations committee to be appropriated

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Tom Coseill, who is one of my legislative aides. Can you stand, Tom? We have Ms.
• This legislative session, she has also served as an intern in our office.
• So that is definitely much better than it was when we had an appropriations.
• I’m going to be a no since I was in Appropriations.
• This legislation is needed because, without concurrent legislative jurisdiction, juvenile misconduct

Summary: The Senate convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a series of introductions recognizing interns, staff, visitors, and a military veteran. After routine announcements, the chamber took up several House-returned bills and special-order measures, with most motions to concur or refuse to concur adopted without objection. Early actions included unanimous concurrence in House amendments to SB 118 on RV park special assessments and SB 572 on ethics rules for public officers and employees, both passing 38-0. The Senate then debated and passed CS/CS/HB 991 on election integrity by a 27-12 vote after extensive opposition focused on voter registration documentation, student IDs, provisional ballots, and potential disenfranchisement; the sponsor defended the bill as a citizenship-verification and election-security measure. The chamber also passed CS/CS/SB 182, an education package combining several related provisions, by 37-0, and later approved SB 474 on military affairs by 39-0 after a technical amendment restoring certain retirement eligibility positions. The Senate refused to concur in the House amendment to CS/CS/CS/SB 1014 on municipal utility service, and refused to concur in the House strike-all amendment to SB 598 after the House had added composting language to the cremation definition. Several other messages were temporarily postponed. On the special-order calendar, the Senate passed CS/CS/HB 425 on historic cemeteries by 39-0, allowing historic Black cemetery boards to sell surplus property not used for burial to fund maintenance. It also passed HB 929 on chickee regulation by 39-0, limiting local restrictions on chickee construction and setting spacing, fire-safety, and permitting rules. SB 1370 on habitual traffic offender designation was substituted with identical CS/HB 35 and passed 39-0, expanding habitual offender treatment to repeated driving without a valid license. The chamber then returned to CS/CS/CS/SB 902, the Department of Health package, which was substituted with CS/HB 733 and amended to retain the Senate’s medical marijuana location limits, adjust NICU nutrition language, modify the dental student loan repayment program, and require a pediatric trauma center designation for certain specialty children’s hospitals; it passed 37-0. The Senate also moved CS/CS/CS/HB 905 on foreign influence to the special-order calendar and began debate on a strike-all amendment defining foreign terrorist organizations and foreign countries of concern, restricting gifts and business ties, tightening sister-city affiliations, and adding ethics training and reporting requirements, but the transcript ends before final action on that bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• Tom Coseill, who is one of my legislative aides. Can you stand, Tom? We have Ms.
• This legislative session, she has also served as an intern in our office.
• So that is definitely much better than it was when we had an appropriations.
• I'm going to be a no since I was in Appropriations.
• This legislation is needed because without concurrent legislative jurisdiction, juvenile misconduct is

Keywords: 998, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• a</c> Roll call requested.
• I would appeal the ruling of the president and request a roll call. Roll call requested.
• I request a roll call. I request a roll call. Roll call. Request a roll call granted.
• Roll call requested. Roll call call. Roll call requested.
• Um I uh have a request. Mr. President. Um I uh have a request.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We respectfully request a small appropriation.
• We respectfully request a small appropriation.
• We respectfully request a small appropriation.
• We respectfully request a small appropriation.
• We respectfully request a small appropriation.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• And I would like to request a moment of silence. Thank you very much.
• Thank you, President Pro Tem, and I'd like to request a present...
• President Pro Tem, and I'd like to request a presentation of the Arizona State flag.
• Legislative Council needs time to convert rough drafts into printed intro sets.
• , intersection improvements; FDN 63, appropriation, Route 70 safety improvements; SB 1064, appropriation

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, then completed roll call, approved the prior journal, and welcomed several guest groups to the gallery, including CSG West and NCSL visitors, Tucson Electric Power/UniSource Native BRG members, Pascua Yaqui constituents, Marcos de Niza High School students, and guests from Payson. Members also observed a moment of silence for former Attorney General Mark Brnovich. Senator Hatathlie read a proclamation honoring the life and service of Amaya Curley, a Navajo woman and Navy veteran, and the chamber recessed for presentation of an Arizona state flag flown in her memory, with her family present. The President Pro Tem announced extended deadlines for opening Senate folders and for Senate bill intro set preparation, and the Senate received House messages regarding adjournment. The chamber voted to accede to the House request to adjourn after Thursday, January 15, 2026, until Tuesday, January 20, 2026. No substantive bill debate occurred; instead, the body moved a large number of measures to second reading, including election, education, health care, firearms, immigration-related reporting, cryptocurrency, transportation, and various memorial and appropriation bills. Committee and caucus announcements were made for Thursday, January 15, including Rules Committee and both party caucuses. The Senate then adopted a motion to adjourn until Thursday, January 15, 2026, at 10 a.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• Appropriating additional money...
• Is it appropriate to ask the Senator from 14 to yield to a question? It's appropriate if he yields.
• He then walked senators through the legislation, saying the first page contains legislative findings
• appropriation to the Department of Fish and Game, appropriating additional money to the Department of
• appropriation to the Department of Correction, appropriating additional money to the Department of Correction

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum present, approved the journal, and moved through messages and committee reports before taking up several bills on third reading. Early actions included transmitting enrolled bills to the House, filing gubernatorial and House messages, and introducing new appropriation bills. The chamber then debated and passed Senate Bill 1420, which creates a long-term funding source for medical education by dedicating 1% of certain insurance premium tax revenue beginning in 2028; the bill passed 18-16. Senate Bill 1430, revising firearms preemption enforcement and adding penalties and remedies against local laws, rules, executive orders, or policies that conflict with state firearms law, also passed, 31-3. Senate Bill 1432, the Health and Welfare indirect support budget, passed 23-11, and Senate Bill 1433, the Medicaid enhancement budget, passed 20-15 after extensive debate over rising costs, federal-state funding shares, and the effects of House Bill 345 and federal policy changes. Senate Bill 1434, the Welfare division budget, passed 24-10, and Senate Bill 1437, an appropriation for Idaho State Police tied to DNA collection for sexual battery and domestic violence offenses, passed as well. Senate Bill 1439, which delays a school facilities model report deadline to 2027, passed unanimously. The Senate also passed Senate Bill 1264 as amended, creating a rural health transformation account and oversight committee for federal rural health funds, after debate over legislative control versus executive administration of the funds; it passed 25-10. The latter part of the meeting focused heavily on Senate Bill 1418, the Kratom Consumer Protection and Safety Act. Supporters described kratom as a legal botanical product that needs consumer protections, age limits, labeling, manufacturing standards, and restrictions on synthetic or highly concentrated 7-OH products, citing concerns from physicians, law enforcement, and addiction specialists. Opponents argued the bill could amount to de facto legalization, questioned the lack of input from the State Board of Pharmacy, raised concerns about warrantless inspections, and urged either a full ban or further study. The debate remained ongoing in the transcript, with multiple senators asking questions and offering contrasting views on regulation versus prohibition.

Transcript Highlights:

• the legislation because we would need a request now for general permit coverage, correct? Mr.
• requests, Mr.
• There was a legislative appropriation from Either the House or the Senate of $200,000.
• I'm looking at this list, and the total appropriations from this legislative session that will fully
• That's why I'm a legislator: to pass legislation like this.

Transcript Highlights:

• Appropriating additional money...
• Is it appropriate to ask the Senator from 14 to yield to a question? It's appropriate if he yields.
• That's what this legislation accomplishes.
• appropriation to the Department of Fish and Game, appropriating additional money to the Department of
• appropriation to the Department of Correction, appropriating additional money to the Department of Correction

Summary: The Senate convened with a quorum present, approved the journal, and moved through routine orders before taking up committee reports, gubernatorial messages, House messages, and first and second reading calendars. Several bills were advanced, including appropriations measures and enrolled bills transmitted to the House, Governor, or Secretary of State. The chamber then proceeded to third reading and final action on a series of bills, with debate focused largely on budget priorities, Medicaid, firearms preemption, medical education funding, rural health, and kratom regulation. The Senate passed Senate Bill 1420, creating a dedicated funding source for medical education beginning in 2028; Senate Bill 1430, strengthening state firearms preemption enforcement and authorizing penalties and injunctions against local violations; Senate Bill 1432, an appropriation for Health and Welfare indirect support and related modernization items; Senate Bill 1433, a large Medicaid enhancement budget with discussion of MMIS procurement, estate recovery, program integrity, hospital assessment fund alignment, and population/cost growth; Senate Bill 1434, the Division of Welfare budget reflecting SNAP administrative cost changes and Medicaid eligibility system updates; Senate Bill 1437, an appropriation for Idaho State Police tied to DNA collection for sexual battery and domestic violence offenses; Senate Bill 1439, delaying a school facilities model report deadline to 2027; and Senate Bill 1264 as amended, creating a rural health transformation account and legislative oversight committee for federal rural health funds. Most of these measures passed on party-line or split votes, while SB 1437 and SB 1439 passed unanimously. The most extended debate centered on Senate Bill 1264, where supporters said the bill would give the Legislature oversight over already-awarded federal rural health money and help ensure sustainable uses, while opponents argued it would deepen federal debt and create a process that could still leave control with the executive branch. Another major debate was on Senate Bill 1418, the kratom consumer protection bill, which would restrict sales to adults 21 and older, set product limits and labeling standards, and allow inspections and enforcement against synthetic or adulterated products. Supporters framed it as a consumer protection and harm-reduction measure; opponents raised concerns about warrantless inspections, lack of pharmacy board support, and whether the bill would effectively normalize kratom. The transcript ends during continued debate on SB 1418, before a final vote is taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• I think also part of it is looking at legislation on what is appropriate and not appropriate for drones
• But we are appropriating, so that's, you know, sometimes I know we're not allowed to legislate through
• So I'm just putting a request out there to whoever would be the appropriate person to make the ask of
• And when speaking of House Appropriations, if they send a request without a specific deadline...
• Speaking of House Appropriations, if they send a request without a specific deadline, if we could just

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> legislative day. legislative day.
• Um, no ABRs, essentially included agency budget requests. They're additional budget requests.
• They're additional budget requests.
• Uh, very few if any capital requests.
• </c> act making appro making appropriations act making appro making appropriations for<01:38:16.320><

Keywords: Convene 00:00:00 Senate Message 00:04:59 Orders of the Day 00:06:19 Recess 00:06:38 Reconvene 01:11:12 HB 306 01:11:42 HB 34 01:14:19 Motions, Petitions, and Communications 01:16:25 Rep. Petrie Statements on Budget 01:16:42 Motions, Petitions, and Communications continued 01:23:50 Introduction of New Bills and Resolutions 01:36:28 Recess for ConC and Rules Meeting 01:38:52 ConC/Rules Report 01:45:18 Floor Amendments 01:46:21 Adjournment 01:46:32, 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> executive and the legislative branch. executive and the legislative branch.
• </c> legislative branch remains independent. legislative branch remains independent.
• would not be appropriate.
• The requesters are the requesters.
• I serve as legislative director with ASME Council 5, and we respectfully request that this conference

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The conference committee met late on Friday evening to discuss the Public Safety and Judiciary budget agreement, beginning with a brief exchange among members about concerns that the executive branch had been delaying the committee’s work by waiting to approve legislative decisions. Members emphasized that the legislature should retain its independence while still allowing normal collaboration with the governor’s office. The committee then moved through several outstanding policy items and adopted them without opposition, including the A38 amendment addressing data-sharing concerns involving disability-related information, a study of firefighting services by the state fire marshal, and an A46 amendment governing access to unredacted portable recording system data in collision investigations, with guardrails on disclosure and use. The committee next reviewed the spreadsheet and budget targets. Fiscal staff explained the judiciary side of the agreement, including funding for court operating costs, a one-time Justice Partner Access Program appropriation, forensic exam rate increases, guardian ad litem funding, public defense, human rights, the competency attainment board, the cannabis expungement board, and fee increases for civil filings and motions. On the public safety side, staff described the target as well as the discretionary items funded, including nonprofit security grants, BCA staffing changes, fire marshal initiatives, a 10-year arson statute of limitations, prosecutor training grants, legal representation for children, E911 funding for critical infrastructure, Philando Castile Training Fund support, corrections-related savings from the Stillwater phased closure and sentence-to-serve elimination, a mandatory minimums task force, a victims of crime account transfer, a decommissioning study, in-service use-of-force training, and extensions of several expiring appropriations. The committee also noted a correction to a spreadsheet label related to the Stillwater closure item. After the spreadsheet walkthrough, the committee took testimony from Chief Justice Natalie Hudson and State Court Administrator Jeff Shorban on behalf of the Minnesota Judicial Branch. Hudson thanked the committee for its work and said the agreement covers some unavoidable costs, including insurance, lease expenses, forensic examiner pay, and the new access system, but argued it does not adequately address the judiciary’s most urgent problem: staffing and judicial compensation. She said court employees are leaving for better-paying jobs, judicial salaries are frozen for two years, and applicant pools for judgeships have declined, especially in greater Minnesota. She also said the judicial branch was not meaningfully consulted on the budget target and urged lawmakers to recognize the courts as a constitutional obligation rather than a discretionary program.

Transcript Highlights:

• Legislation of California, in support.
• Legislation of California, in support.
• refine legislation as it moves forward, I want to first acknowledge that this piece of legislation,
• It would be the most appropriate one.
• That is our legislative counsel, who's already reviewed this and written in the legislative language

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• special appropriation request in November.
• We did submit a $3 million special appropriation request in November.
• We requested some funding.
• There was legislation.
• You're requesting grow money from the grow money that legislators get this year or other grow money.

Keywords: 996, all

Summary: The committee first heard an Aging and Long-Term Services Department budget presentation comparing the LFC and executive recommendations. The main differences were in the Aging Network, Adult Protective Services, Program Support, and Long-Term Care Division, especially the executive’s proposed $10 million infusion into the Kiki Savadra Senior Dignity Fund and $6.2 million for expanding New Mexico Care. LFC staff explained that the committee recommendation was lower in general fund and fund-balance use, while the executive emphasized rising senior population needs, meal and transportation costs, and the cost savings of keeping older adults at home. The secretary also reviewed the department’s special requests, including the conference on aging, outreach, emergency preparedness, and the Kiki fund, and described New Mexico Care’s growth, its evaluation results, and the department’s plan to separate Kiki into its own accounting fund. Members largely focused on senior services, rural meal delivery, transportation, caregiver support, and the Kiki fund. Several members urged stronger support for non-metro aging providers and for New Mexico Care, citing its role in keeping seniors out of nursing homes and the program’s reported savings and outcomes. Questions also covered eligibility, background checks for caregivers, respite care, dementia and Alzheimer’s screening, and whether Kiki funds can support home modifications such as ramps. The committee then voted to adopt the LFC recommendation with one executive language change: adding the executive’s page 14 language allowing an additional 12.5% distribution for initial payments to aging network providers at the start of FY27. Representative Dow opposed the motion. The committee then moved to the Attorney General’s budget. LFC staff explained that the office’s budget relies heavily on the Consumer Settlement Fund, with both recommendations reducing general fund revenue while increasing settlement-fund use, and that performance measures were in consensus. The Attorney General said the office was not seeking more general fund, but wanted greater ability to use funds it recovers. He highlighted major consumer and public safety work, including litigation against major social media and AI platforms, a case involving Snapchat and child exploitation/extortion, the statewide crime gun intelligence center, efforts to address oilfield theft, work on missing and murdered Indigenous persons, and efforts to protect federal funds coming into New Mexico.

Transcript Highlights:

• information, but it would require a much larger appropriation.
• The House had appropriated $260 million to that project.
• We have cities all over that is continually requesting stormwater.
• The House Appropriations made changes on page 2, lines 25 through 27, which was done at the request of
• Bill 46 to 0, and I request a green vote. Is there any discussion?

Keywords: 908, all

Summary: The Senate met with a quorum present and handled a mix of conference committee appointments, appropriations bills, policy bills, and House amendments. Early in the session, the chamber appointed conference committees for SB 2399 and for House-amended SBs 2213 and 2354, and also named conference committees for HB 103, HB 1308, and HB 1169. The Senate then took up several appropriations measures, including HB 1612, which creates the North Dakota Center for Aerospace Medicine at UND; the Senate adopted an amendment shifting the funding to a one-time $250,000 Community Health Trust Fund appropriation with a required $250,000 match from other sources, and the bill passed 39-7. HB 1193, the “Back the Blue” grant, was amended to make the funding one-time and focus on officer retention, then passed 41-5. HB 1329, a government spending database proposal for school districts, was amended into a legislative study and passed 42-4. HB 1020, the water budget, received extensive amendments reducing and reallocating funding across major water projects, adding studies and oversight changes, and passed 45-0 with the emergency clause. HB 1581, a tribal tourism grant, also passed 40-6. The Senate rejected HB 1330, which would have authorized divestment from direct investments in Chinese companies; after debate over the prudent investor rule, trade impacts, and whether the bill singled out one nation in law, it failed 20-26. HB 1534, limiting property valuation increases, and HB 1266, adjusting the disabled veterans property tax credit, both failed unanimously or nearly so after committee recommendations against them. HB 1566, which would have created a regulatory framework for a product discussed as kratom, was amended on the floor to convert it into a study and then passed 31-15. The chamber also passed HB 2241 on charter schools after a House amendment changed the funding formula to the statewide average from the prior year, and HB 2022, the indigent legal counsel budget, after House changes added funding flexibility, offset lost fee revenue, and included a study on a public defender office. The Senate concurred in several House amendments and then passed a number of Senate bills. SB 2375, allowing joint negotiations between dental providers and insurers under Attorney General oversight, passed 44-2. SB 2251, clarifying that open records requests during state audits should be referred to the audited agency, passed 46-0. SB 2159, related to nuclear energy research, passed 43-3 after House amendments required Industrial Commission approval and consultation with the radioactive waste advisory council. SB 2155, changing gratis antelope license rules, passed 30-16 after debate over landowner rights and tag distribution. SB 251, setting fees and an audit for the Private Investigative and Security Board, passed 44-2. SB 2280, the prior authorization health insurance bill, passed 43-3 with a House-added study and consumer protections. SB 2023, the Racing Commission budget, passed 41-5 after a House change made internship funding one-time. SB 2232, changing prenatal substance exposure reporting requirements and related toxicology rules, passed 44-2. SB 2241, authorizing public charter schools, passed 39-7. The session ended while the Senate was still processing SB 2022’s final passage vote, but the bill had already cleared concurrence on House amendments.

Transcript Highlights:

• In the following year, the agency will come before the legislature to request the appropriation to zero
• In the following year, the agency will come before the legislature to request the appropriation to zero
• These three requests are for dedicated and federal fund appropriation only and were recommended by the
• The department is requesting 1,298,600 in one-time appropriation for exotic species response. 998,600
• And finally, the last request is for 3,393,000 in one-time dedicated fund supplemental appropriation

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The Senate Agricultural Committee met to receive a JFAC budget update focused on the Idaho Department of Agriculture and broader state budget conditions. Morgan Poloni reviewed the department’s structure, funding mix, and 2027 enhancement requests, including a CEC adjustment for fruit and vegetable inspectors, replacement items, IT hardware, reappropriation authority for a resilient food systems grant, and 2026 supplemental/deficiency requests for exotic species response and quagga mussel treatment. She also described holdbacks and budget shifts that relied more heavily on dedicated funds and reduced pass-through noxious weed money. Committee members asked about exotic species treatment and whether policy should better drive ongoing budget decisions; Senator Lent emphasized concern that broad cuts can affect the wrong programs while leaving underlying policy unchanged. Keith Bybee then gave a high-level JFAC presentation on state revenue and structural balance. He said the legislature is at an inflection point, with revenues below earlier forecasts and ongoing spending growth outpacing revenues over the business cycle. He explained that JFAC work groups are reviewing agency budget-cut plans to preserve policy priorities while finding efficiencies, rather than eliminating whole programs. He also noted uncertainty in the economy, the impact of House Bill 559 conformity, and that January revenue numbers were preliminary but appeared to be tracking closer to the legislature’s projection than the governor’s. Senator Groh added comments stressing that Idaho is not structurally balanced because one-time money is being used for ongoing expenses, and that policy bills must accompany budget decisions, especially for the governor’s proposed cuts. He pointed to the need for caution in using stabilization funds and the importance of maintaining reserves for future downturns. The committee then turned to rules, approving a large group of agriculture-related dockets in one motion. One docket on seed production and distribution rules was held back at Senator Lakey’s request because of concerns about incorporation by reference and publication dates; Mr. Knight said he would work with DFM and senators to resolve the issue before bringing it back.

Transcript Highlights:

• By Appropriations, Senate Bill 2506.
• By the Committee on Appropriations, SB 2500, a bill to be entitled an act making appropriations.
• I know that these legislative budget requests are intensive and they contain a lot of data, and it's
• General Appropriations Act.
• General Appropriations Act.

Summary: The House convened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a quorum present, then adopted the special order report and moved into a series of budget-related bills. The chamber first took up HB 5011/SB 2506 on environmental resource management and natural resources funding, where Democrats argued the bill would reduce recurring support for the Resilient Florida program, the Florida Wildlife Corridor, invasive species removal, and other conservation efforts. Supporters said the change would shift money from recurring to nonrecurring funding so the Legislature could reassess priorities each year and rely more on private-sector stewardship. After a strike-all amendment and conference posture change, SB 2506 passed 97-12. HB 5013, reducing state-funded property reinsurance reserves, passed 108-0, and HB 5501, redirecting documentary stamp tax distributions from housing and transportation trust funds into general revenue, passed 82-26 after extended debate over its impact on affordable housing and transportation funding. The House also passed HB 5015 on state group insurance, which requires DMS to develop a formulary management system and was described as producing significant savings; members raised concerns about prescription access and implementation, but the bill passed 109-0. HB 5201 on state financial accounting and HB 5203 on the Capitol Center both passed unanimously, as did HB 5009, which creates a Florida Accountability Office and reorganizes audit functions. The chamber then passed HB 7031, a major sales tax reduction bill lowering the state sales tax rate and several related rates; supporters framed it as permanent relief for all Floridians, while opponents said property tax relief would be more meaningful and that the sales tax cut would also benefit tourists and out-of-state visitors. HB 7031 passed 112-0. The House then began consideration of HB 501, the proposed fiscal year 2025-26 budget, totaling $112.9 billion and emphasizing reduced recurring spending and large reserves. Subcommittee chairs outlined their budget silos: K-12 education at $20.6 billion with teacher raises, school hardening, literacy, transportation stipends, and security funding for Jewish day schools; health care at $47 billion with full Medicaid and KidCare funding, opioid settlement spending, mental health beds, and senior services; transportation/economic development at $18.5 billion; agriculture and natural resources at $5.8 billion with reduced Everglades spending but continued water, resiliency, and land management funding; higher education at $8.7 billion; state administration at $2.9 billion; justice at $7.3 billion; and IT at $529 million for Florida PALM, FX, and other systems. Members then began questioning the K-12 budget, focusing on FEFP funding, proration, voucher growth, stabilization dollars, mental health and school safety funding, and whether districts would be held harmless under the proposed allocations.

Transcript Highlights:

• So that was legislation that the legislature adopted in 2022, so not too long ago, legislation that the
• And then there's a billion for high-speed rail and a billion for legislative appropriation every year
• And so I'm going to ask that there are quarterly updates to the appropriate legislative staff in a bipartisan
• I wouldn't say it to request. It's state law, right?
• So it's not a request from Assembly Members, Ms.

Summary: The Assembly Transportation Committee held an oversight hearing on California High-Speed Rail, focusing on the authority’s supplemental project update report and the newly released 2026 draft business plan. Committee leaders emphasized transparency, the project’s funding challenges, and the need for clear answers on costs, schedule, and scope. The High-Speed Rail Authority said the project has made major progress in the Central Valley, including substantial construction completion, right-of-way acquisition, and railhead development, and highlighted over $14 billion in savings from a rebased project plan, plus an additional $2 billion in savings in the draft business plan. The authority also said it expects to begin laying track by the end of the year and continues to pursue private-sector partnerships and clean-energy opportunities. The Legislative Analyst’s Office and the Inspector General both raised concerns about whether the current funding plan is sufficient and whether the authority has clearly identified the timing of future expenditures versus revenues. The LAO said the project likely still faces a funding gap for Merced-to-Bakersfield once financing costs and the loss of $4 billion in federal funds are considered, and warned that cap-and-invest revenues are volatile and may not be well suited for borrowing without additional safeguards. The Inspector General said the authority still has not provided a precise funding plan, estimated the project is about two years away from lacking funds on hand to stay on schedule, and urged lawmakers to focus on financing costs, procurement timing, schedule risks, and distinguishing true cost cuts from scope changes. Members questioned the authority about proposed statutory changes, including CEQA and permitting streamlining, court resources, third-party process changes, sales tax exemptions on materials, and expanded land-use/value-capture tools. They also pressed the authority on the loss of federal funds, the withdrawal of litigation over those funds, and whether the project’s revised savings depend on moving station locations away from downtown Merced and Bakersfield and on other scope changes such as more single-tracking and blended operations south of Palmdale. The authority said it is still committed to Merced-to-Bakersfield, believes the business plan shows a path to completion with sufficient funding, and will work with the Legislature on any needed changes before the final plan is submitted.