Senate Labor Committee advances chair's omnibus Labor budget with construction fee changes, break-time rules and new mental-health funding

The Senate Labor Committee on April 10 advanced the committee's chair's omnibus Labor budget, Senate File 2373, approving technical and policy amendments that would adjust construction code fees, clarify meal and rest break requirements for workers, and fund construction‑industry mental‑health initiatives.

The chair moved and the committee adopted the A3 and A13 amendments to place the bill in its working form and to make technical and clarifying edits. Nonpartisan staff and the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) then walked members through the proposal's appropriation and policy provisions.

Why it matters: The package would provide the Department of Labor and Industry ongoing operating resources for plan review and inspections, adjust fee schedules in the construction codes and licensing division, and add a $1,000,000 one‑time general fund appropriation (split evenly across fiscal years 2026 and 2027) for construction‑industry mental‑health and suicide‑prevention initiatives. The bill also contains clarified statutory language on employee meal and rest breaks and adds a reporting requirement to the helmets‑to‑hard‑hats appropriation.

Key details - Budget totals: The A3 shows a general fund direct appropriation recommendation for DLI of $15,919,000 in the 2026-27 biennium (an increase of $1,476,000 over base) and $15,086,000 in 2028-29 (an increase over base). The committee's labor target was met by the A3. - Construction code fund: The amendment proposes statutory fee adjustments that the fiscal spreadsheet ties to a projected construction code fund revenue increase of about $25.25 million…