Transcript Highlights:

• No federal agency should have the power to cut off access to our financial services industry simply .
• This bill also strengthens the dual banking system by creating a strong pathway for both state and federal
• banking.
• The Bipartisan Safer Banking Act and this amendment would prohibit the banking agencies from debanking
• My amendment would help ensure that the banking agencies will continue to have all the authority that

Bills: SB875

Keywords: banking regulation, federal agencies, reputational risk, financial services, supervision, FIRM Act, bank supervision, depository institutions, federal banking agencies, FDIC, OCC, Federal Reserve, NCUA, CFPB, credit unions, Operation Choke Point, financial discrimination, safety and soundness, supervisory guidance, examination manual

Summary: This meeting focused on the markup of the Genius Act and the FIRM Act, two significant pieces of legislation addressing stablecoin regulation and the financial industry's regulatory framework. The Chairman noted the importance of providing clarity to the digital asset community and protecting American consumers, while also promoting innovation and competition within the financial sector. Members of both parties expressed varying viewpoints, with some highlighting concerns related to national security and the potential risks associated with stablecoins.

Bills: SCR74, SR68, SCR108, SCR76, SCR150, SR141, SCR69, SR64, SCR25, SR22

Keywords: no-bid contracts, emergency procurement, audit, state agencies, public funds, accountability, auditor, state and county agencies, government accountability, emergency declarations, easement, submerged lands, drainage, Kahala Hotel, Oahu, state land regulations, biomarker testing, health insurance, precision medicine, H.B. No. 1971

Transcript Highlights:

• Chairman, members, Senate Bill 1520 requires the state and its agencies to share any data requested by
• the federal government regarding the status of or any information relating to an unauthorized alien,
• The bill requires the state and its agencies to share any data requested by the federal government regarding
• I would have to check with our agencies. Mr.

Bills: SB1216, SB1391, SB1493, SB1520

Keywords: trauma, public safety, counseling, mental health, employee benefits, law enforcement, stress management, suicide prevention, workforce readiness, disciplinary action, appeals, termination, superior court, investigative process, reinstatement, immigration, data sharing, federal government, undocumented immigrants, visa overstays

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> agencies must provide it within 7 days. agencies must provide it within 7 days.
• </c><00:58:25.000><c> In</c> moment agencies won't provide it. In moment agencies won't provide it.
• </c> agency did not bulk at your requests. agency did not bulk at your requests.
• </c> Budget Office and for agencies. Budget Office and for agencies.
• labor intensive for an agency. Is that labor intensive for an agency. Is that correct?

Bills: HF1234, HF3528, HF3672, HF3679, HF3680, HF1944

Keywords: payment transparency, public contracts, contractor rights, government accountability, construction payments, barbering, licensing, examinations, barber schools, public safety, certifications, Barber Examiners Board, data transparency, Legislative Budget Office, state agencies, fiscal notes, public data, standard time, federal law, time zone

Transcript Highlights:

• Witness on this from the banking department? Yes, we do. Thank you.
• Furthermore, HB 4233 allows... lines with federal initiatives by instituting state-level transparency
• The chair calls Marcus Adams on behalf of the Texas Department of Banking. He's a resource witness.
• Is there a federal overlay concerning cyber currency, or is it solely under state jurisdiction?
• There may be other oversight through other agencies at the state and federal level.

Bills: HB3803, HB3804, HB3805, HB3806, HB3833, HB4134, HB4233, HB4238, HB4243

Keywords: HB 3803, Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 712, perpetual care cemetery, perpetual care trust fund, cemetery regulation, financial confidentiality, confidential records, regulatory examination, Texas Department of Banking, commissioner disclosure, interagency information sharing, state agency enforcement, federal agency disclosure, trust fund oversight, burial services, cemetery trust, consumer protection, state banks, Texas Finance Code

Transcript Highlights:

• , the applicant's residency determination shall align with applicable federal regulation.
• No, this bar wants to allow them to spend it on their agency operations. Okay.
• And this is one where the investment agency sees what another investment agency got, and they're like
• , I want... ...one where the investment agency sees what another investment agency got, and they're like
• So what is the federal committee? We'll look at public school support.

Bills: SB241, SB145

Keywords: child care, child care assistance, child care subsidy, early childhood education, early childhood care, daycare, preschool, pre-K, Head Start, Early Head Start, Children's Code, early childhood education and care department, ECECD, child care facilities, licensed child care, registered child care, copayments, waitlist, subsidy, federal poverty level

Transcript Highlights:

• This ensures that we do not jeopardize federal dollars.
• We're only pulling it out like withdrawals like we would out of our own bank account.
• Well, you have to ask your federal... Well, I guess why they're not doing that.
• That's federal money. That slot is guaranteed, and it doesn't count as part of the cap.
• So federal money, no cap; state money, cap. So we have those fiscal controls built in.

Bills: SB241, SB145

Keywords: child care, child care assistance, child care subsidy, early childhood education, early childhood care, daycare, preschool, pre-K, Head Start, Early Head Start, Children's Code, early childhood education and care department, ECECD, child care facilities, licensed child care, registered child care, copayments, waitlist, subsidy, federal poverty level

Transcript Highlights:

• The legislature, through state agencies like the Texas Water Development Board, has made significant
• American Development Bank, NADBank.
• . agencies to leverage NADBank funding for water infrastructure projects along the border.
• We show you registered as John Beckman on behalf of North American Development Bank, and you will be
• The bank finances projects on both sides of the U.S.

Bills: HB 1240, HB1353, HCR76, HCR90

Keywords: border region, infrastructure, economic development, government operations, education, international cooperation, infrastructure investment, bond issuance, state agencies, shrimp industry, federal regulations, foreign imports, economic impact, public health, Gulf Coast communities, Texas-Israel relations, Israel, Jerusalem, trade office, foreign relations

Transcript Highlights:

• How does this state, how does this eliminate a federal loan program, Mr. Chair? Mr.
• CATF supports this bill, which would provide the agencies with the funding needed to address ongoing
• Chair and Representative Dow, the state and federal dollars. So, okay. Thank you, Mr.
• We were faced with this shortfall through the federal legislation.
• Chair and Madam Leader, so if the federal subsidies get reduced, what happens to the general fund?

Bills: SB241, SB145, HB2

Keywords: child care, child care assistance, child care subsidy, early childhood education, early childhood care, daycare, preschool, pre-K, Head Start, Early Head Start, Children's Code, early childhood education and care department, ECECD, child care facilities, licensed child care, registered child care, copayments, waitlist, subsidy, federal poverty level

Transcript Highlights:

• So the way we pay for it is federal dollars. We pay for it from the land grant permanent fund.
• No, this BAR wants to allow them to spend it on their agency operations. Okay.
• And this is one where the investment agency sees what another investment agency got, and they're like
• , I want— One where the investment agency sees what another investment agency got, and they're like,
• So what is the federal committee? We'll look at public school support.

Bills: SB241, SB145, HB2

Keywords: child care, child care assistance, child care subsidy, early childhood education, early childhood care, daycare, preschool, pre-K, Head Start, Early Head Start, Children's Code, early childhood education and care department, ECECD, child care facilities, licensed child care, registered child care, copayments, waitlist, subsidy, federal poverty level

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 241 and reviewed a Senate Finance Committee substitute that incorporated several amendments. Staff explained changes related to the child care fund, residency determinations for federally eligible applicants, expanded child care assistance eligibility for grandparents raising grandchildren and foster parents, updated payment-rate rulemaking, tribal child care sovereignty and culturally appropriate services, limits on land grant permanent fund use for nonsectarian/non-denominational services, provider licensure pathways, and reporting clarifications. Members also discussed whether the bill would maximize federal and state child care tax benefits and how the nonsectarian language would apply to faith-based child care providers. The committee adopted the substitute and then passed it on a 7-3 vote. The committee then moved into House Bill 2 budget language review, focusing on budget adjustment authority and other fiscal provisions. Members discussed proposed BAR language for the State Investment Council, State Treasurer, PERA, and the Economic Development Department, with concerns about caps, whether the language was too broad, and whether some items should revert to existing law or be removed. The committee approved some of the BAR language items, but flagged the Treasurer and Economic Development provisions for later review. Members also discussed extending certain appropriations and project timelines, including a Rio Grande Trail Commission item and several IT and public safety projects, generally favoring extensions where work was still underway. The committee then debated proposed public school support language that would bar PED from approving budgets for schools with fewer than 180 instructional days and from approving new moves to four-day school weeks. Several members argued the 180-day language conflicted with existing statute, which is based on instructional hours, and that the four-day-week restriction could have unintended consequences. The committee ultimately voted down both public school support provisions. The meeting ended with a brief discussion of reviewing the rest of House Bill 2 and related supplemental and language items in the next session, and then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Going the other way, if we wanted an SPDI to convert to a national bank, that would be under federal
• And again, that would all be following national bank rules and regulations at the federal level.
• And again, that would all be following national bank rules and regulations at the federal level.
• And again, that would all be following national bank rules and regulations at the federal level.
• And again, that would all be following national bank rules and regulations at the federal level.

Bills: SF0021, SF0022, SF0054, SF0055

Keywords: stable token, liquidity, trust account, Wyoming, fund distribution, financial regulation, state commission, decentralized, nonprofit association, merger, conversion, liability, membership, governance, indemnification, banking regulation, special purpose depository institution, conversion process, Wyoming state laws, financial services

Bills: SF0021, SF0022, SF0054, SF0055

Keywords: stable token, liquidity, trust account, Wyoming, fund distribution, financial regulation, state commission, decentralized, nonprofit association, merger, conversion, liability, membership, governance, indemnification, banking regulation, special purpose depository institution, conversion process, Wyoming state laws, financial services

Transcript Highlights:

• It is a wholesale bank, so it does not compete with local banks or community banks.
• So to open a public bank, it requires a local agency to obtain DFPI authorization.
• seeking to establish a federally chartered infrastructure bank that reinforces a simple truth.
• And if so, the banking industry is going to undergo significant changes, since a Federal Reserve operating
• The only way we're going to get around that is a public bank that the federal government has no claim

Bills: SB5754

Keywords: public bank, state bank, finance, banking regulations, economic development, state investment, 904, all

Summary: The Senate Ways and Means Committee met on January 15 for two work sessions and a public hearing. The first work session featured the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee’s 2025 tax preference performance reviews, covering nine tax preferences. JLARC recommended legislative action on eight of the nine reviews. Topics included natural gas transportation fuel preferences, preferential B&O rates for travel agents and tour operators, a property tax exemption for nonprofit low-income housing developers, a property tax exemption for nonprofit multipurpose senior centers, a sales and use tax remittance for disabled veteran adapted housing, a trade convention attendance preference, a B&O exemption for wholesale sales of certain agricultural products, a hazardous substance tax exemption for pesticides stored for out-of-state shipment, and energy tax preferences for a silicon smelter. JLARC generally found that some preferences met their stated or inferred objectives while others did not, and recommended continuations, modifications, or expiration depending on the review. Committee members asked a few questions about industry consolidation in the travel sector and about the housing exemption’s performance measures and reporting issues. The second work session was an overview of public banking, with a presentation from California public banking advocates and testimony from the Bank of North Dakota’s president. Speakers described public banks as government-owned financial institutions that could keep public deposits working in-state, support local lending, and finance infrastructure, housing, disaster recovery, and other public priorities. They cited the Bank of North Dakota as a model and discussed California’s municipal public banking efforts. Committee questions focused on how deposits could be leveraged, how public banks would manage liquidity and risk, and how public banking would interact with existing state investment and pension systems. The committee then held a public hearing on Senate Bill 5754, which would create a Washington State public bank. Staff explained the bill’s activation process, governance structure, powers, and fiscal impacts, noting that startup costs and broader fiscal effects were largely indeterminate. Supporters included statewide elected officials, county and city officials, labor representatives, public banking advocates, and private citizens, who argued the bank could lower borrowing costs, keep public funds in Washington, expand financing for infrastructure and disaster resilience, and help address the state’s debt and capital needs. Opponents, including a community bankers representative and a county treasurer, argued the proposal posed risks to safety and liquidity, lacked a proven track record, and was unnecessary given existing state lending and investment programs. The hearing concluded without a vote, and the committee adjourned after public testimony.

Transcript Highlights:

• wasn't, because the Houston Independent School District is under the control of the Texas Education Agency
• Endeavors outside of those core functions, like running one or more public banks, siphon away finite
• duties, while it aggressively pursues all manner of social justice initiatives, including public banking
• , but I was just going to be curious as to what services and to what level of involvement a public bank
• What we all understand and basically know about what our banking system is all about.

Bills: SB414, SB621, SB2395

Keywords: bond election, ballot proposition, debt obligation, municipal bonds, local government finance, property tax, ad valorem tax, school district bonds, county bonds, special taxing district, voter information document, public debt, municipal finance, tax-supported debt, election ballot language, bond transparency, homestead tax impact, capital improvements, general obligation bonds, public bank

Transcript Highlights:

• We have federally chartered banks and state-chartered banks.
• Very commonly, state regulations will not apply to those federally chartered banks that operate here.
• Chairman, Senator Rogers, we make money banking whoever we're allowed to bank under the law. Mr.
• SB 1421 would turn banks into de facto immigration enforcement agencies, forcing financial institutions
• They still have protections that federal agencies and state agencies have to abide by.

Bills: SB1232, SB1421, SB1505, SB1511, SB1520, SB1803

Keywords: outdoor advertising, military compatibility, zoning, electronic signage, permitting, undocumented immigrants, financial services, identification requirements, loans, foreign remittances, transitional housing, military, veterans, grant program, supportive services, SB1511, commercial driver license, CDL, nondomiciled CDL, nondomiciled commercial driver license

Transcript Highlights:

• So agency X through X gets federal money.
• agencies and if there were any issues with a federal audit.
• Right now, many of the state agencies, maybe a majority of the state agencies, get federal dollars.
• But other state agencies that have federal funds below a million will not have a federal single audit
• And the financial statements of those agencies—let's just say there's an agency that has federal funds

Bills: SB145, SB143

Keywords: auditing, financial reporting, state auditor, public agencies, capital outlay, compliance, federal audits, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture, fee update, regulatory fees, egg inspection, egg grading, egg dealer, pesticide control, pesticide registration, pesticide applicator, pest management consultant, plant protection, nursery license

Transcript Highlights:

• Same thing with when I created the broadband officer, like 73 agencies trying to deliver broadband to
• Same thing with when I created the broadband officer, like 73 agencies trying to deliver broadband to
• And that applies not only to the state, but also all of the federal organizations that are looking at
• And so you're just running to the bank saying, you know, I need more money.
• I mean, I don't know if we need to put a legislative council together to run interference in agencies

Bills: SB145, SB143

Keywords: auditing, financial reporting, state auditor, public agencies, capital outlay, compliance, federal audits, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture, fee update, regulatory fees, egg inspection, egg grading, egg dealer, pesticide control, pesticide registration, pesticide applicator, pest management consultant, plant protection, nursery license

Transcript Highlights:

• So agency X through X gets federal money.
• Right now, many of the state agencies get federal dollars.
• But other state agencies that have federal funds below a million will not have a federal single audit
• So instead of currently having 43 agencies conduct federal single audits, we will have one agency conduct
• So instead of currently having 43 agencies conduct federal single audits, we will have one agency conduct

Bills: HB2, SB145, SB143

Keywords: general appropriation, budget, Medicaid, education funding, public safety, auditing, financial reporting, state auditor, public agencies, capital outlay, compliance, federal audits, agriculture, New Mexico Department of Agriculture, fee update, regulatory fees, egg inspection, egg grading, egg dealer, pesticide control

Summary: The committee first heard Senate Bill 143, which would raise caps on certain agriculture fees so they can keep pace with inflation. Senator Woods explained that the bill only adjusts fee ceilings, not automatic increases, and an amendment was adopted to tie the caps to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the U.S. Department of Labor. There was no public support or opposition testimony, and the bill was then passed on an 8-0 do-pass vote, with several members excused. The committee then took up Senate Bill 145, which would change the state audit system by raising thresholds for smaller local public bodies and creating a statewide federal single audit for state agencies. The State Auditor and DFA said the bill was intended to streamline audits, reduce delays, and align New Mexico with federal rules and other states, but multiple CPA and audit witnesses opposed the statewide single-audit concept, warning it could reduce transparency, weaken accountability, and increase the risk of fraud, waste, and abuse. Committee members pressed for clarification on how the audit structure would work, which agencies would be covered, and whether DFA or independent auditors would conduct the work; the sponsors said amendments were needed to clarify the bill and remove problematic language, including the appropriation and references to gifts and donations. The committee adopted an amendment striking the appropriation language and then continued questioning without taking final action in the excerpt. The final portion of the meeting shifted to the House Bill 2 budget presentation. Committee members reviewed the Senate Finance version of the budget, which included about a 2.7% increase in recurring spending, 30% reserves, and major investments in health care affordability, early childhood, public education, housing, clean energy, water, and agriculture-related priorities. Members asked about water testing needs, water settlement funding, career technical education funding, and the contingency fund/disaster reserve structure. The presenters said some items still needed technical work and that additional adjustments would be made before final passage.

Transcript Highlights:

• sometimes between stakeholders and agencies that I can bring that experience to the table and help make
• Chair, sorry, when do we set up the agency and its governing role versus the Constitution? So, Mr.
• Chairman, the agency was established in 1915.
• We have our federal partners; our main partner is NRCS out of the Department of Agriculture.
• agencies that have a footprint there.

Bills: SB1082, SB1200, SB1335, SB1336, SB1559, SB1761, SB1762, SB1785, SCM1007

Keywords: petting zoos, animal encounters, public health, handwashing, supervision, sanitization, safety regulations, civil penalties, water supply, groundwater, Phoenix, certificates, long-term storage credits, water conservation, municipal provider, replenishment obligation, water banking, annual report, Arizona Water Banking Authority, water supply management

Transcript Highlights:

• One question: what's to keep every agency from doing their own thing instead of going through you?
• Currently, you know, we're decentralized, and there are various agencies that go out and buy products
• And it, it, it, it, I am disgusted that we want these different agencies to talk to each other at times
• I think we need to reach out to the various agencies to let them know that this is an opportunity for
• I think we need to reach out to the various agencies to let them know that this is an opportunity for

Bills: SB193, SB132, SB35, SB145

Keywords: SB193, acequia, community ditch, irrigation works construction fund, water infrastructure, ditch infrastructure, irrigation, New Mexico water law, agricultural water, farmers, Rio Grande, acequia association, forest land protection revolving fund, state fund transfer, irrigation projects, SB132, DOIT, Department of Information Technology, software replacement, equipment replacement