Latest news with #SenateBill28
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Legislative lawyers clear state Sen. Lisa Reynolds over conflict of interest
Newly appointed Oregon Sen. Lisa Reynolds at her pediatrics clinic in Portland on Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. (Photo by Rian Dundon/Oregon Capital Chronicle) A Portland-area lawmaker facing scrutiny over a bill she wrote that could benefit her medical practice has been cleared by legislative lawyers of any potential conflict of interest. Oregon Sen. Lisa Reynolds, D-Portland, told the Capital Chronicle in an email Tuesday that a May 16 opinion from the Office of the Legislative Counsel 'clarifies that I am a member of an exempted class, and as such, have no legal conflict of interest, nor a need to declare one' when it comes to Senate Bill 28. Reynolds is co-sponsoring the bill, which would require commercial insurers to reimburse independent primary care clinics at similar rates to hospital-owned clinics. Reynolds' position as a doctor in a Portland-based primary care clinic raised questions about whether she would improperly benefit from the legislation. A May 30 Capital Chronicle article reported that the Oregon Government Ethics Commission referred Reynolds to Legislative Counsel for further clarity on whether she was exempt from declaring a conflict of interest. Reynolds had previously told the Capital Chronicle the advice was 'reassuring,' and that she would consider seeking further counsel. But in fact, she already had. In its May 16 opinion, Legislative Counsel found Reynolds qualifies for a 'class exemption,' a rule that allows public officials to take official action that would equally impact all members of a 'class,' such as business owners or members of a particular industry. The opinion, which Reynolds shared with the Capital Chronicle on Tuesday, is signed by the Legislative Counsel Dexter Johnson and staff attorney Wenzel Cummings. 'Because you are a member of the smaller class of primary care providers who would be permitted the reimbursement rate under the terms of SB 28, you are excluded from the obligations to announce a conflict of interest, whether actual or potential, prior to voting on the measure in committee or on the floor of the Senate,' the opinion reads. Reynolds apologized for 'not having this clarification ahead of your article of May 30' in her email to the Capital Chronicle. 'I have still been very open about the impacts this bill could have, and I strive to always be very open and honest with the public and with my constituents,' she wrote. 'The legislature's rules around conflicts of interest are complicated and I am learning as I go, as well, and trying my best to follow the advice I'm receiving.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
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Oregon Sen. Lisa Reynolds mulls conflict of interest declaration after ethics report
Sen. Lisa Reynolds sought clarity from the state's top ethics watchdog over whether a health care bill she authored would pose a substantial conflict of interest. (Rian Dundon/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Oregon's statewide ethics watchdog on Thursday referred a Portland-area lawmaker to the Legislature for clarity over whether a bill she authored that could benefit her medical practice raises a substantial conflict of interest. The Oregon Government Ethics Commission said Sen. Lisa Reynolds' decisions regarding votes and bill introductions were within the purview of the Legislature and its legal counsel, according to a Thursday letter written by Susan Myers, the commission's executive director. Introduced in January, Senate Bill 28 would mandate commercial insurers reimburse independent primary care clinics at rates equal to those of clinics owned by hospital systems. In the letter, Myers said that Reynolds, D-Portland, 'would be met with a conflict of interest' unless she is able to receive a class exception. The rule is traditionally adjudicated by the commission, determining whether an official action by a public official would impact all members of a 'class,' such as business owners or members of a particular industry, equally. But it's up to the Legislature, not the Commission, to decide whether the exception applies because the matter 'relates to the performance of legislative functions,' Myers wrote. Lawmakers are allowed to cast votes and perform legislative tasks under Oregon's 'speech and debate' rules for public officials even when they do declare conflicts of interest. Reynolds told the Capital Chronicle she hasn't decided whether she will seek further advice. She said that she will consult with her staff and tends 'to err on the side of caution.' 'I'll see going forward,' she said. 'It would be interesting to note the votes I've taken. For example, the provider tax which funds Medicaid — do I have to say that's a conflict of interest because my clinic takes Medicaid? I don't think so.' The advice follows a request from the commission in a May 6 letter written by her chief of staff, Christopher McMorran, a day before the Oregon Journalism Project ran a story in which Reynolds said she was open to seeking the ethics' commissions advice and declaring a conflict of interest. McMorran sought information about potential conflicts of interest because of Reynolds' job as a primary care provider at The Children's Clinic, an independent clinic in the Portland region. 'SB 28 would likely result in a financial gain for her clinic, along with all other independent primary care clinics in the state,' he wrote to the commission. 'We are curious if her introducing, sponsoring and supporting this bill qualifies as a conflict of interest or if she would be considered a member of a class and be exempt from conflict of interest laws.' Reynolds said the advice was 'reassuring' and that she believes she would likely qualify for a class exemption. 'I'm a citizen legislator. My day job is that of a pediatrician. In fact, I was in the clinic all last weekend,' she said. 'I still see patients and I actually ran as Dr. Lisa Reynolds. I ran for office leaning into the fact that I am a physician and it informs all that I do in the Legislature.' Her legislation is currently sitting in the Joint Ways and Means Committee. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
House clears the way for Texas Lottery to continue under a different state agency
The Texas House on Sunday preliminarily voted to abolish the Texas Lottery Commission and transfer the state's game to another agency after a last-ditch effort to kill the game entirely failed. The fate of the 32-year-old lottery commission had been in limbo, as a routine state review requiring legislation to extend the game's existence had come concurrently with some lawmakers' calls to shut down the lottery entirely over allegations of wrongdoing. An alternative was presented earlier this month in an unusual late-session filing of Senate Bill 3070: let the Texas Lottery Commission die, and transfer game operations, including charitable bingo operations, to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. The bill is now likely the lottery's only way forward, as neither of the two 'sunset' bills continuing the commission have been touched by lawmakers for months. Beyond the agency move, SB 3070 contains several other lottery regulations also proposed in other bills this session. Those new restrictions include a new ban on online lottery ticket sales with language almost identical to one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's legislative priorities, Senate Bill 28. It also sidesteps the lottery's final hurdle, its loss of funding after the House removed it from its next biennial budget proposal in April. That money would have needed to be returned to allow the agency to continue. Rep. Charlie Geren proposed a new 60-page version of the bill from the House floor, fine-tuning some of the proposed investigative tools the new lottery department would have to root out illegal sales. SB 3070 also contains a provision requiring the Sunset Advisory Commission to review the lottery's operations under its new agency before 2029 to determine whether it should continue. That deadline was originally in 2027 when the bill passed through the Senate unanimously on May 15, which Patrick described as a 'two-year lease on life' for the game. Before ultimately OK'ing the bill 110-29, House members struck down a proposal to end the lottery altogether, as Rep. Brent Money, R-Greenville, introduced an amendment to Geren's bill that would have abolished the game entirely in September. That amendment failed 71-58. Money called the lottery the 'most regressive tax' in Texas, and his supporters claimed the game unfairly preys on the poor and could not be run fairly in any capacity. 'The problem is, as a legislature, if we know an agency is corrupt, shouldn't we just abolish it?' Rep. Nate Schatzline, R-Fort Worth said during floor discussion on Sunday. The lottery has received significant criticism from lawmakers over two jackpots won under circumstances they say epitomize the commission's failure to oversee the game safely. In the first, a single group in April 2023 printed 99% of the 25.8 million possible ticket combinations — called a 'bulk purchase' — winning a $95 million jackpot. In another February win, a Texas woman bought the winning ticket, worth $83.5 million, through an online app known as a lottery courier. First reported by the Houston Chronicle, the 'bulk purchase' received national coverage after it was revealed that millions of tickets were printed at four different locations on dozens of lottery terminals provided specifically for the mass-ticket effort. A lottery courier was also involved in the bulk purchase, which comprised 99% of the 26 million possible ticket combinations for the jackpot, but did not sell the tickets through its online service. Couriers, who had been operating in Texas by printing physical tickets at retail stores they owned before scanning and sending digital copies to customers, would be banned under SB 3070's online ticket sale restrictions. The online services' operations became another point of contention between the lottery commission and lawmakers after the agency passed its own ban on couriers after it maintained for years it could not regulate them. That rule is currently being contested in court by a national courier company, The lottery commission's likely dissolution is just one part of the fallout from the controversial jackpots and concerns over couriers. A commissioner with the lottery resigned in February, followed by its executive director in April. The $83.5 million win has yet to be paid out, as Attorney General Ken Paxton and the Texas Rangers, a division of the Department of Public Safety, are still investigating both jackpots for potential illegal activity. The anonymous woman filed a lawsuit last week seeking to force the lottery commission to release her winnings. SB 3070 requires a final vote in the House and the Senate's approval of the House's changes before heading to Gov. Greg Abbott. The governor has largely remained silent on the lottery's fate outside of ordering the Texas Rangers to launch an investigation in February. The bill would take effect immediately if signed, as it received more than two-thirds majority vote in the House and a unanimous vote in the Senate. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bill that would give the Texas Lottery 'a two-year lease on life' gets Senate approval
The Texas Senate unanimously approved a bill that would abolish the Texas Lottery Commission, move the state's game to a different agency and add several new restrictions on how lottery tickets can be purchased. Senate Bill 3070 would move the Texas Lottery and the state's charitable bingo operation to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and create new criminal offenses for people who buy lottery tickets online or en masse. The bill also mandates a review in two years by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission that will determine if the game should continue in any capacity. 'They have a two-year lease on life — we'll see what happens under the new agency,' Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said as the bill was passed on Thursday. SB 3070 provides one of only two paths forward for the lottery past September, as the lottery and its agency were already on the chopping block without the added action by lawmakers. The department is currently undergoing a routine review by the Sunset Commission, and requires legislation for it to continue. Senate Bill 2402 is the 'sunset bill' that would maintain the lottery commission but it has an additional hurdle: legislators removed all of the lottery commission's funding in its next budget proposal, and it would have to be placed back into the budget for the commission to continue operating. Either bill must still pass out of a House committee by May 23 for the lower chamber to weigh in on the game's fate. The House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee recently heard Senate Bill 28, which would ban couriers, and left it pending in committee. For months, legislators have placed the lottery commission under scrutiny that has sparked investigations, resignations and calls to abolish the game completely. That criticism has largely stemmed from lawmakers concerned about a $95 million jackpot won in April 2023 by a single group that printed 99% of the 26 million possible ticket combinations in a 72-hour period, a process known as a 'bulk purchase.' Under SB 3070, buying more than 100 tickets in a single purchase would be a class B misdemeanor. To pull off the bulk purchase, the group partnered with four commission-licensed lottery retailers, who ordered dozens of ticket-printing lottery terminals that ran for days to print millions of tickets. That jackpot, as well as the proliferation of online ticket sellers known as lottery couriers, was only possible because the lottery commission willingly assisted them, Sen. Bob Hall said during his layout of the bill. 'The problems we've had are not a result of some very smart people from outside the government figuring out how to beat the system. What we had here was the criminal activities taking place came from within the commission itself,' Hall said, alleging the administrative rules the commission created and the subsequent bulk purchase were in violation of state law. The Edgewood Republican filed SB 3070 on Monday, and the bill is an amalgamation of several other bills filed throughout the session. The bill would ban online ticket sales and courier services, making digital sales a class A misdemeanor. It also mandates tickets only be bought within licensed retail stores and create an advisory committee for the game. Patrick lauded Hall as the bill was passed, crediting him for heading the legislative effort to rein in the lottery. Patrick has also been one of the loudest critics of the state game, posting two videos on social media during the session about the lottery and suggesting it may be abolished. 'Almost all the credit goes to you. You've been on this from the beginning,' Patrick said to Hall during floor discussion. Hall also presented a bill earlier in the session that would abolish the lottery, and described SB 3070 as the 'next best thing.' SB 2402 nor its House counterpart have been heard in committee, and the House bill missed a key deadline to move it out of committee. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tax credit might be in store for Louisiana homeowners who add fortified roofs
The Louisiana Senate has approved a nonrefundable income tax credit for homeowners to help cover up to $10,000 in expenses for installing a fortified roof. (Getty Images) The Louisiana Senate advanced a bill Monday that would create an individual income tax credit for homeowners who install a fortified roof. Senate Bill 28, sponsored by Sen. Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge, cleared the chamber in a unanimous vote. The measure would give homeowners a nonrefundable income tax credit for up to $10,000 for out-of-pocket expenses used to pay for a fortified roof. Fortified roofs are built with improved techniques and materials designed to prevent leaks and withstand hurricane-force winds, lowering the risk of storm damage and typically lowering homeowner insurance rates. The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) set standards for the products and materials used, The Louisiana Department of Insurance began its Fortify Homes Program about two years ago, offering grants of up to $10,000 to homeowners who want to upgrade their roofs and can cover any costs in excess of that amount. A homeowner who receives a fortified roof grant from the insurance department would also be able to claim the tax credit but only for amounts the grant does not cover. The median cost of a fortified roof in Louisiana is about $16,229. Combined, the grant and the tax credit could allow more Louisiana homeowners to invest in fortified roofs, which could reduce the cost of property insurance. Louisiana Legislative Auditor Mike Waguespack reviewed the Fortify Homes Program recently and found that roofs built through the grant program directly reduced homeowners' insurance costs at a median rate of 22%. The state's Fortify Homes program is in its third year of existence and has awarded more than 1,800 grants since its first round of funding in October 2023. Many more homeowners have opted to upgrade their roofs without grant money. As of Feb. 1, the IBHS had issued 5,413 fortified certificates to property owners in Louisiana, according to the auditor's report. Talbot's proposal limits the total amount of credits the state may issue in a single fiscal year to $10 million, and they are to be issued on a first-come, first-served basis. The bill next heads to the House for consideration. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
