Transcript Highlights:

• </c> have gone into effect or prohibitions. have gone into effect or prohibitions.
• </c> prohibited. um there have been prohibit prohibited. um there have been prohibit prohibitions<00:
• 48:00.480><c> on</c> prohibitions on prohibitions on uh<00:48:02.560><c> placer</c><00:48:03.119><c>
• Um, you know, I'm very clearly on the same side as the charitable gambling.
• I would go back to charitable gambling.

Bills: HF4912, HF4664

Keywords: electronic pull-tabs, pull-tabs, tipboards, gambling tax, Minnesota Racing Commission, Thoroughbred, horse racing, Minnesota-bred horses, breeders, owners, racing purses, industry subsidy, gambling revenue dedication, problem gambling, compulsive gambling treatment, general fund appropriation, state affiliate National Council on Problem Gambling, racing incentives, equine industry, public officers

Transcript Highlights:

• It adds additional... alcohol and gambling enforcement um alcohol and gambling enforcement um folks<01
• </c> efforts to deal with problem gambling. efforts to deal with problem gambling.
• ,</c><01:09:14.319><c> which</c> to a trend of teenage gambling, which to a trend of teenage gambling
• problem. online gambling and sports betting. online gambling and sports betting.
• </c> gambling. So, thank you. gambling. So, thank you.

Bills: HF1758, HF4437, HF4353

Keywords: infertility, health insurance, fertility preservation, medical assistance, MinnesotaCare, prediction markets, sports betting, online wagering, event contracts, election betting, political betting, sportsbook, gambling regulation, lawful gambling license, Gambling Control Board, unauthorized gaming, esports betting, financial technology, payment processor, advertising restrictions

Summary: The Commerce, Finance, and Policy Committee met on April 9, approved the April 7 minutes, and then took up House File 1758, the Minnesota Building Families Act, with the intent to lay the bill over. The committee adopted two author’s amendments: the A2 amendment, which updated dates in the bill, and the A4 amendment, which added religious freedom exemption language to align the bill with a companion measure heard in the Health Committee. The bill was then presented as amended by Rep. Cherisa Watun, who said it would require insurance coverage for infertility diagnosis and treatment, lower cost sharing, and help families avoid severe financial strain. She emphasized that the bill would not change current surrogacy law and said the third-party language was needed so coverage would apply when assisted reproduction involves donated embryos or other genetic material. Supporters testified that infertility is common and costly, describing personal experiences with miscarriages, IVF, second mortgages, retirement savings, and other financial sacrifices to have children. Mariah Gran of the Minnesota Families Association said fertility coverage improves outcomes and can reduce costs, citing studies and employer experience. Anna Marie McDonald described losing fertility coverage after infertility was added to her medical record and said her family took out a second mortgage to afford IVF. Dr. April Bachelor, a reproductive endocrinologist, testified that lack of coverage pushes patients toward delayed care or riskier, less effective options and can lead to higher-risk pregnancies and higher long-term costs. Opponents argued the bill could be interpreted to cover surrogacy and objected to using insurance for IVF and related services. Dan Andre of the Minnesota Council of Health Plans said the mandate would create state defrayal costs in the individual and small group markets, with no cap on the state’s exposure, and noted a prior estimate of about $18 million annually. Rebecca Delahunt of the Minnesota Family Council said the bill’s language could be read to include surrogacy and raised ethical objections. Maggie Heny of the Minnesota Catholic Conference said couples should instead be helped through restorative reproductive medicine, not IVF, and warned of premium and taxpayer costs. Renee Oaks, a fertility care practitioner, also opposed the bill, saying infertility is often a symptom of treatable conditions and that restorative reproductive medicine can address underlying causes more effectively than IVF. The committee did not take final action on the bill beyond adopting the amendments and laying it over.

Transcript Highlights:

• Next on the list we have Senate Bill 6084, and this clarifies the prohibition on repeat voting.
• This amendment prohibits sports wagering on an in-game decision made by a coach who's employed by an
• It also prohibits a person who's been convicted of this prohibition from placing any sports wagers.

Bills: SB5000, SB5325, SB6044, SB6313, SB6084, SB6137

Keywords: state nickname, evergreen state, identity, cultural heritage, tourism, state cactus, symbolic designation, ecological significance, state symbols, SB 6044, Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Washington state holidays, RCW 1.16.050, state holiday recognition, religious observance, Hindu holiday, Sikh holiday, cultural recognition, paid holiday

Summary: The committee first met in executive session and considered six bills. On Second Substitute Senate Bill 6035, members debated amendments affecting voting services for military, overseas, Native American, and disabled voters. Amendment 386, which changed tribal meeting requirements, was not adopted, while Amendment 385, which replaced authorization for an electronic ballot portal with a feasibility study, was adopted. The bill then passed out of committee with a due pass as amended recommendation. Substitute Senate Bill 6081, concerning nondisclosure of sex designation records, was amended unsuccessfully by a proposal to limit protections to survivors of domestic violence or sexual assault; the bill passed with a due pass recommendation. Substitute Senate Bill 6034, codifying the Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs, was amended to require Senate confirmation of the executive director and passed as amended. Senate Bill 6084 on repeat voting passed without amendment. Second Substitute Senate Bill 5968, implementing Executive Order 25-03 on agency credentials, adopted an amendment making annual ORIA reporting more explicit, rejected another reporting amendment, and passed as amended. Senate Bill 6137 on sports wagering adopted amendments restricting certain prop bets and making threats against sports officials, coaches, or participants a gross misdemeanor, then passed as amended. The committee then opened public hearings on several bills. Gross Substitute Senate Joint Memorial 8014 called for a U.S. investigation into the death of Aishinur Ezgi Eygi, and testimony was overwhelmingly in support from family members, friends, University of Washington students, faculty, and advocacy groups, with one opponent arguing the matter belonged to Congress. Substitute Senate Bill 5840 on campaign finance reporting drew support from the Public Disclosure Commission, which said it would align reporting with mail voting and improve transparency, while campaign treasurers and compliance officers opposed the bill’s added reporting frequency and burden. Substitute Senate Bill 6049, expanding Public Records Act exemptions for certain survivors, anonymized demographic data, and individual Healthy Youth Survey responses, received support from OFM and opposition from a public records advocate who argued it added another exemption to an already lengthy list. Substitute Senate Bill 6160, which eliminates or modifies agency reports, was supported as a way to right-size reporting requirements. Senate Bill 5000, naming the Evergreen State as Washington’s official nickname, drew a brief supportive testimony and one opposing witness who objected to the state’s growing number of public records exemptions. Senate Bill 5325, designating Pediocactus nigrispinus as the state cactus, received supportive testimony. Senate Bill 6044, recognizing Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as a legislatively recognized day, was supported by Sikh community testimony. Substitute Senate Bill 5827, expanding veterans’ preference documentation to include pre-discharge certification, was briefly introduced but had no testimony. The committee adjourned after closing the hearings.

Bills: SF0024

Keywords: lottery, debit card payments, gambling regulations, state revenue, financial transactions, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And um I've been in states where I've seen gambling explode beyond what it maybe should have, and it
• And um I've been in states where I've seen gambling explode beyond what it maybe should have, and it
• And um I've been in states where I've seen gambling explode beyond what it maybe should have, and it

Bills: SF0024

Keywords: lottery, debit card payments, gambling regulations, state revenue, financial transactions, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There's also a federal rule that prohibits duplicate discounts.
• All right, Jeff, so this one would prohibit covered entities from requesting a discount under the 340B
• This just prohibits covered entities expanding under the 340B program from contracting with pharmacy
• So what this amendment would do is prohibit a health insurance carrier, pharmacy benefits manager, or
• What this amendment would do is prohibit a health insurance carrier, pharmacy benefits manager, or other

Bills: HB2720, HB2073, HB2487, SB5816, SB5919, SB5831, SB6137, SB6244, SB6044, SB6132, SB5109, SB5877, SB6258

Keywords: behavioral health, emergency services, health insurance, provider access, mental health funding, premium assistance, funding, healthcare, subsidies, insurance tax, state regulation, insurers, taxation, budget impact, juice grapes, agriculture, commerce, market access, fire safety, insurance incentives

Summary: The House took up and passed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5292, which modifies the paid family and medical leave program. Supporters said the bill uses an actuarial model to set rates and maintains a four-month reserve to improve program stability. It passed final passage 95-1. The House then considered Substitute Senate Bill 5841, dealing with completion of course and financial aid-related requirements. An amendment was adopted to add a financial aid calculator and require outreach to students who indicate they have completed a financial aid form, with supporters saying it would help students understand aid eligibility and access college opportunities. The bill then passed as amended, 92-4. The most extensive debate was on Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5981, concerning the 340B drug pricing program and contract pharmacy relationships. Members offered many amendments seeking to limit the bill’s scope, add transparency, or direct 340B savings toward patient care, low-income patients, rural areas, or charity care; most were rejected. Supporters argued the bill would help safety-net providers, hospitals, and FQHCs, while opponents warned it would mainly benefit large hospital systems, create administrative burdens, and likely face litigation. After the House adopted the committee amendment and rejected the floor amendments, the bill passed 67-30. The transcript then moved on to other business, including Senate messages and the start of debate on House Bill 2487 on taxes, with one technical amendment to clarify taxpayer definitions.

Transcript Highlights:

• like there’s some written notification that’s going to go between um the wholesaler and alcohol gambling
• </c> the wholesaler and alcohol gambling the wholesaler and alcohol gambling enforcement<00:26:38.600
• </c><01:04:21.840><c> in</c> classifications of gambling in classifications of gambling in Minnesota.
• </c><01:05:13.600><c> and</c><01:05:13.720><c> other</c> the regulation within gambling and other the
• regulation within gambling and other fields fields fields uh<01:05:15.920><c> to</c><01:05:16.040><c

Bills: HF4145, HF4009, HF4304, SF2511, HF4090, HF357, HF901

Keywords: alcohol consumption, nursing homes, assisted living, resident activities, Minnesota Statutes, seasonal liquor licenses, resorts, intoxicating liquor, county board, Brainerd, Northern Pacific Center, event center, liquor license, on-sale license, alcohol sales, special law, local option, Minnesota liquor law, chapter 340A, Sunday sales

Transcript Highlights:

• prohibited by our constitution.
• And that's not gambling. >> Mr.
• </c><00:19:28.320><c> It's</c> at all, then it's not gambling. It's at all, then it's not gambling.
• And that's not gambling. trying to do. And that's not gambling.
• </c> to be a gambling state, but we're not. to be a gambling state, but we're not.

Bills: SF0044, SF0046

Keywords: gambling, lotteries, raffles, social relationships, charitable gaming, gaming, liquor establishments, skill based amusement games, regulations, age restrictions, 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• There was nothing that would prohibit you, as you said, from doing that. Correct. Doing that. Okay.
• districts, the fire protection districts who are not tied to municipality, we didn't want it to be prohibitive

Bills: HB3045

Keywords: accident response, motor vehicle, law enforcement, fire department, fee prohibition

Summary: The Public Safety Committee first considered several gubernatorial nominations. Brent Black of Bixby was renominated to the Forensic Review Board, with Senator Guthrie noting the board’s seven-member makeup and the need for mental health professionals; the nomination was advanced 8-0. Lou Ann Moody of Henrietta was then presented for the Forensic Review Board. Moody described her long legal career, her work as city attorney and in juvenile/dependency matters, and her decision to avoid criminal defense work to avoid ethical conflicts. Members asked about the board’s caseload and meeting schedule, and the nomination was advanced 8-0. The committee also heard the nomination of a retired Oklahoma Highway Patrol officer, Mr. McCoy, to the OSBI Commission. He emphasized his decades of law enforcement and emergency-management experience, and the nomination was advanced 8-0. The committee then took up House Bill 3045, with an amendment offered by Senator Reinhart. The amendment would allow certain fire departments, rural fire districts, and fire protection districts in municipalities under 200,000 population to recover accident response fees, while preventing those fees from going into general revenue or funding non-fire services. Reinhart explained the bill was intended to address fire departments’ ability to recover costs while limiting the impact on the state’s two largest cities. Senator Brooks questioned why the exemption would apply only to the largest municipalities, and Reinhart responded that Tulsa and Oklahoma City would see the greatest fiscal impact and that rural departments lacked comparable revenue sources. Senator Murdoch raised a point that the bill had an unescorted fiscal impact on municipalities and asked for a ruling under the Municipal Fiscal Impact Act. The chair took the matter under advisement and, at the sponsor’s request, laid the bill over rather than proceeding further. The meeting concluded with members offering extended personal remarks thanking the chair and vice chair for their leadership and service, and the chair adjourned the committee.

Bills: HB6, HB120, HB210

Keywords: higher education, LGBTQ studies, DEI studies, program prohibition, educational policy

Bills: HB537, HB474, HB527, HB449, HB380, HB449, HB380

Keywords: preliminary hearing, criminal procedure, Aniah's Law, pretrial detention, defendant rights, property rights, law enforcement, removal procedures, unauthorized occupancy, trespassing, liability, off-roading, parks, participant safety, risk management, DNA, genetic testing, privacy, consent, criminal penalties

Transcript Highlights:

• For 26 years, we've proposed gambling expansion in Alabama.
• If a game does not have a dominant amount of skill in it, then it's gambling, a game of chance that is
• That is a totally computerized gambling game.
• It tries to amend the parimutuel statute or law in Green County to allow computerized gambling.
• And that violates Article 27, Section 65 of the constitution, which prohibits gambling in Alabama.

Bills: SB268, SB262

Keywords: mixed spirit beverages, alcohol regulation, licensing, excise tax, distribution agreements, retail sales, wholesalers, SB262, White Hall, Lowndes County, pari-mutuel wagering, simulcast, historical racing, historical horse racing, dog racing, horse racing, charitable bingo, off-track betting, OTB, gambling

Transcript Highlights:

• The underlying bill prohibits information sharing. It uses the term information.
• The underlying bill prohibits information sharing. It uses the term information.
• The underlying bill prohibits information sharing. It uses the term information.
• Speaker, those are long, long, prohibitive odds. Mr.
• Speaker, those are long, long, prohibitive odds.

Bills: HB2720, HB2073, HB2487, SB5816, SB5919, SB5831, SB6137, SB6244, SB5420, SB5868, SB6044, SB6132, SJM8002

Keywords: behavioral health, emergency services, health insurance, provider access, mental health funding, premium assistance, funding, healthcare, subsidies, insurance tax, state regulation, insurers, taxation, budget impact, juice grapes, agriculture, commerce, market access, fire safety, insurance incentives

Summary: The House took up Second Substitute Senate Bill 5974, a bill modernizing and strengthening laws concerning sheriffs, police chiefs, volunteers, youth cadets, and related law enforcement roles. Members first considered a striking amendment and then a series of floor amendments, with debate repeatedly focusing on sheriffs as elected constitutional officers, the scope of state authority over local law enforcement, and whether the bill would create unfunded mandates or practical problems for counties. Supporters of the bill and many amendments argued for clarifying language, local flexibility, and state payment for new requirements; opponents generally warned the bill would weaken elected sheriffs, impose costs on counties, or overreach into local control. Amendment 2343, which would have added intent language emphasizing that sheriffs are directly accountable to the electorate, was debated at length and defeated on a roll call vote, 41 yeas to 56 nays. Amendment 2373, shifting background-check costs to the state through the Washington State Patrol, was also defeated, 44 yeas to 53 nays. Amendment 2374, narrowing provisions affecting private security and specially commissioned officers, failed 41 to 56. Amendment 2369, clarifying rules for volunteers and youth cadets, failed 41 to 56. Amendment 2371, limiting surveillance-related provisions to situations requiring a warrant, failed 42 to 55. Amendment 2372, clarifying that only non-public information would be restricted from disclosure, also failed 41 to 56. Later, Amendment 2370, which would have aligned the bill’s definition of volunteer law enforcement officers with existing statute, was defeated 42 to 55. Finally, Amendment 2352, which would have exempted current sheriffs from the bill’s new decertification rules, was debated as a protection against changing the rules midstream but was opposed on the grounds that the bill already grandfathered in the one sheriff who did not meet the new experience requirement; the amendment’s vote was not completed in the excerpt provided. The transcript also begins with the Speaker signing several bills, including Substitute House Bill 1570 and Substitute Senate Bill 6248.

Transcript Highlights:

• There was nothing that would prohibit you, as you said, from correctly doing that Senator Goodwin waves
• districts, the fire protection districts who are not tied to a municipality, we didn't want it to be prohibitive

Bills: HB3045

Keywords: accident response, motor vehicle, law enforcement, fire department, fee prohibition, 914, all

Bills: HF1016, HF2800, HF156, HF3051, HF526, HF2658, HF2062, HF2801

Keywords: local government aid, Baldwin, taxation, base year formula, municipal funding, population aid, aid penalty forgiveness, Minnesota, city funding, appropriations, HF156, lawful gambling, veterans organizations, licensed veterans organization, Minnesota gambling law, gross profits, lawful purpose, real property repair, facility maintenance, capital assets

Transcript Highlights:

• that was helpful for me to get on board with this was that we're really not encouraging anyone to gamble
• ><00:31:53.360><c> to</c> really not encouraging anyone to to really not encouraging anyone to to gamble
• </c><00:31:55.440><c> I</c> gamble that doesn't already want to.
• I gamble that doesn't already want to.
• great change and good for Wyoming, but we should go really slow when it comes to, uh, you know, gambling

Bills: SF0052, SF0024

Keywords: wildlife management, environmental restoration, funding, invasive species, aquatic ecosystems, native fish, habitat conservation, lottery, debit card payments, gambling regulations, state revenue, financial transactions, 916, all

Bills: SF0052, SF0024

Keywords: wildlife management, environmental restoration, funding, invasive species, aquatic ecosystems, native fish, habitat conservation, lottery, debit card payments, gambling regulations, state revenue, financial transactions, 916, all

Bills: SB171

Keywords: navigable waters, non-navigable waters, motor vehicle prohibition, criminal penalties, land use, 1136, house, all

Bills: SB268, SB262, HB237, SB90

Keywords: mixed spirit beverages, alcohol regulation, licensing, excise tax, distribution agreements, retail sales, wholesalers, SB262, White Hall, Lowndes County, pari-mutuel wagering, simulcast, historical racing, historical horse racing, dog racing, horse racing, charitable bingo, off-track betting, OTB, gambling

Transcript Highlights:

• There's also a federal rule that prohibits duplicate discounts.
• All right, Jeff, so this one would prohibit covered entities from requesting a discount under the 340B
• This just prohibits covered entities expanding under the 340B program from contracting with pharmacy
• So what this amendment would do is prohibit a health insurance carrier, pharmacy benefits manager, or
• What this amendment would do is prohibit a health insurance carrier, pharmacy benefits manager, or other

Bills: HB2720, HB2073, HB2487, SB5816, SB5919, SB5831, SB6137, SB6244, SB6044, SB6132, SB5109, SB5877, SB6258, HB2720, HB2073, HB2487, SB5816, SB5919, SB5831, SB6137, SB6244, SB5420, SB5868, SB6044, SB6132, SJM8002

Keywords: behavioral health, emergency services, health insurance, provider access, mental health funding, premium assistance, funding, healthcare, subsidies, insurance tax, state regulation, insurers, taxation, budget impact, juice grapes, agriculture, commerce, market access, fire safety, insurance incentives