Committee adopts and retains measures after multi-hour executive session; key votes on parental-consent amendment, cannabis, search‑warrant bill

The Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee held an executive session that produced a series of formal actions on multiple bills, including adoption of an amendment to House Bill 191 requiring notarized written permission for an adult to take a minor for a surgical procedure and votes on several cannabis measures and public‑safety bills.

The committee's decisions: It adopted amendment 0756H to HB191 and then passed HB191 as amended (each vote 9‑7); it voted to pass SB/HP 190 (14‑0) and HB198 (9‑7) on cannabis-related measures; it rejected a motion to pass SB206 (8‑8 tie) and later retained that bill (9‑7); it approved an amendment and final passage for HB321 (amendment 17‑0; bill 16‑0 on consent); and it adopted an amendment and passed HB343 (16‑0). Several other bills were retained for further work.

Why it matters: The votes change what the committee will report to the full Legislature on several criminal‑justice topics. The HB191 amendment — added after lengthy debate — inserts a notarization requirement for written parental permission for surgical procedures on minors, a change lawmakers debated for hours over enforceability and access to notaries. The SB206 debate raised constitutional concerns about how a statutory warrant requirement would interact with existing search‑warrant exceptions and the "open fields" doctrine.

What the committee did on the most contested items

HB191 (amendment 0756H and final passage as amended)

Chairman Roy, chair of the committee, introduced amendment 0756H to House Bill 191 and said the impetus was a concern that "adults shouldn't be taking other people's children without their written permission for surgical procedures, any surgical procedure at all." After hours of testimony and back‑and‑forth among members, the committee adopted the amendment by roll call, 9‑7, and then voted to report HB191 out of committee as amended, also 9‑7.

Supporters argued the notarization requirement would make prosecution of forged consent easier and drew attention to available online notarization services; Chairman Roy said online notaries exist and cited a service as an example. Opponents raised access concerns. Representative Murray said getting something notarized "took me hours" during a recent experience and warned that the requirement could be a barrier for working parents and low‑income families.

Several members also debated…