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Senate rejects conference committee report on Attorney General budget after dispute over staffing and vape registry language

3169583 · May 1, 2025
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Summary

The Senate voted 25–21 to reject the conference committee report on House Bill 1003, the Attorney General’s appropriation bill, after floor debate about a public information officer, a proposed vape product registry, and a tobacco compliance officer FTE funding shift.

The Senate rejected the conference committee report on House Bill 1003, the appropriation for the Office of the Attorney General, after a procedural verification vote returned 21 ayes and 25 nays.

Senator Sickler, conference committee chair, summarized changes: the Senate agreed to restore a House‑added public information officer position after reviewing open records workload; the conference committee removed a vaping product registry that the House had included after pushback from retailers; and funding originally tied to vape registration fees for a tobacco compliance FTE was moved into the Community Health Trust Fund.

Senator Davison asked why a tobacco compliance officer remained necessary given ongoing compliance and receipt of settlement dollars; Sickler said the office identified additional needs to ensure continued compliance with the tobacco settlement and to support enforcement and public transparency.

Senator Cory raised a separate objection about section 12, which relates to the 24/7 sobriety program and the inability to waive fees for indigent participants; Cory said he was not a fan of that limitation. After the verification vote the secretary announced the conference committee report was rejected (21 ayes, 25 nays, 1 absent). The rejection sends the bill back to conference committee or the originating chambers for further action.