The 2023 Legislative Session is in the home stretch, with only six more days before we enter the veto period. Next week we will be in session Monday through Thursday with two days built in for the House and Senate chambers to find agreement on any qualifying legislation. Friday, March 17, will begin the 10-day veto period until Tuesday, March 29 for the Governor to consider all legislation lawmakers have sent to his desk.

This week each chamber considered the other’s bills through legislative committees, giving several final passages and sending them to the Governor’s desk.

Bills sent to the Governor for consideration in week six included measures addressing:

  • Teacher workforce shortages (Senate Bill 49) and providing professional development opportunities to educators (Senate Bill 70).
  • Unemployment insurance (House Bill 146).
  • Educational opportunities and workforce challenges (Senate Bill 54).
  • Strengthening Kentucky’s rich spirits industry and helping small farm wineries (Senate Bill 28).

Bullitt East High School Football Team was recognized on the Senate floor acknowledging them winning the state 6A championship.

Bills and resolutions approved by the Senate in week six and are now with the state House of Representatives for consideration include:

 

Senate Bill 7 would prohibit taxpayer-funded and public-sector entities from facilitating employee contributions to political action committees without an employee's written consent.

 

Senate Bill 115 will protect children from exposure to sexually explicit performances in a public place. It defines "adult performance" as a sexually explicit performance. A person would be guilty of engaging in an adult performance when it’s held on publicly-owned property or where the person knows—or should know—the performance could be viewed by a child under 18. The bill outlines penalties for participants and business owners knowingly exposing minors to sexually explicit performances.

 

Senate Bill 138 establishes guidelines helping the Education and Professional Standards Board improve the certification of substitute teachers which addressed workforce challenges within school systems.

Senate Bill 145 removes the athletic eligibility language preventing non-resident students, such as home school students, from participating in interscholastic athletics for one calendar year from the transfer date. It returns the governance of all non-resident student participation in interscholastic athletics to the Kentucky High School Athletics Association.

 

Senate Bill 148 wouldestablish the Government Teleworking Task Force. We have an incredible increase in state employees working from home post- COVID-19 pandemic; some still have not returned to an office setting. The task force would investigate and make recommendations regarding:

  • How the on-site presence of state employees can be reduced and cost savings realized now that many workers have transitioned to different teleworking models;
  • How much in-person work hours have decreased since the pandemic and whether and to what extent has public service suffered because of the decrease; and
  • What in-person staffing levels are necessary for the state government to maintain a high level of in-person customer service for residents?

 

Senate Bill 162 is the start of a long-term reformation of the Department of Juvenile Justice and a commitment to finally address the needs of juveniles with serious mental illness.

Senate Bill 192 provides limited authority to the Public Services Commission (PSC) to authorize utilities in certain circumstances to use a financial mechanism known as "securitization" to recover costs associated with the retirement of power plants and other significant assets and costs incurred in severe weather events.

 

Senate Bill 202 is a measure to address the increasing challenges related to student behavior our teachers and school administrators deal with regularly. The billprovides local school boards more flexibility to place students into alternative learning programs if the student is considered a safety threat or is likely to cause a substantial disruption by allowing an expulsion to expand beyond one year. Students are to be placed—with review by the superintendent and due process for the parent—in an alternative education setting that may include, but is not limited to, a virtual program or academy and may include a performance-based program.

 

Senate Bill 203 places safeguards on medical records, including mental health records, when released in a divorce or custody proceeding, and strengthens patient-doctor relationships.

Senate Bill 241 provides the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources with autonomy in specific land procurement areas. There are approximately 54,000 acres of land in Knox, Bell, and Leslie counties aiming to become part of a three-state elk habitat. This bill enables an initiative between Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, in partnership with the Nature Conservancy and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, to move forward and would allow for hunting and other recreational activities.

Senate Bill 277 enhances dam safety by requiring emergency action plans for certain at-risk dams in the commonwealth. It aligns state laws with federal regulations about flood plain management, updates statutory language to reflect current federal and state program practices, and repeals outdated statutory language.

Senate Joint Resolution 98 looks to ensure our postsecondary education institutions are keeping up with the needs of students. It would require the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) to study public universities and community and technical colleges and require the CPE president to report findings to the Legislative Research Commission by December 1, 2023.

 

Senate Joint Resolution 101 seeks solutions to make it easier for residents in rural counties to get their instructional permits in light of the state’s transition to regional driver licensing services. The resolution would direct the Kentucky State Police to establish a pilot program of remote testing for instruction permits in counties that do not have a regional driver licensing office. Minimum requirements include regular testing intervals, coordination with local libraries and high schools to have a host location for testing, exploration of technological innovations that could allow someone to oversee remote testing and verify exam results, and coordinating testing schedules with pop-up remote drivers licensing services. KSP would be directed to collect data and pilot program results and report to the Interim Joint Committee on Transportation no later than November 30, 2023.

Additional Senate Bills passed included: 96, 101, 158, 156,190, 199, 226, 252, 263, 281, 282 and SJR 58. House Bills given final passage included: 13, 130, and 188.

 

You may find these and all bills at https://legislature.ky.gov.

Watch live legislative activity at KET.org/legislature. You can also track the status of other legislation by calling 866-840-2835, legislative meeting information at 800-633-9650, or leaving a message for lawmakers at 800-372-7181.