Held virtually, legislators and committee chairs shared their priorities on a variety of topics including criminal justice reform, transportation, the state budget and unemployment insurance.
Senate President Robert Stivers and House Speaker David Osborne discussed the steps the General Assembly is taking to conduct a safe session for legislators and staff members while passing legislation to move Kentucky forward. Below is a summary of the topics discussed.
Criminal justice reform and substance use disorder recovery
Panelists included: Sen. Julie Raque Adams, Senate Majority Caucus Chair; Sen. Gerald Neal, Sen. Whitney Westerfield; Rep. Joni Jenkins, House Minority Leader; and Rep. Ed Massey
Newly appointed House Judiciary Chair Ed Massey said one of his priorities will be increasing the felony threshold from $500 to $1,000. Rep. Massey filed this bill last year and said its lack of progress was a “casualty due to COVID.” He has pre-filed BR9 for the upcoming session.
Senate Judiciary Chair Whitney Westerfield shared his priorities. Those include addressing disproportionate minority contact, which refers to the disproportionate representation of ethnic, racial and linguistic minority youth in the juvenile court system; and law enforcement measures such as no-knock warrants and increasing the use of body cameras.
“I’d like for body cameras to be used more broadly across the state,” Westerfield said. “I’d love for us to be able to provide funding to law enforcement agencies, particularly in smaller areas that can’t afford to acquire the equipment or pay for the storage and digital backend cost. There is significant cost associated with both equipment and storage that impedes broader application of the technology.”
The House Democrats formed a working group this summer around the issues of criminal justice and policing, according to Leader Jenkins. She also discussed how the advancements of telehealth during COVID-19 have helped many who are struggling with substance abuse disorders and isolation.
Budget and revenue
Panelists: Sen. Chris McDaniel and Rep. Brandon Reed
Senate Appropriations and Revenue Chairman Chris McDaniel provided an update on the state’s current fiscal position and the Consensus Forecasting Group’s (CFG) assumptions for FY22. The work of the CFG economists provides the working document for legislators to craft the state budget.
Both McDaniel and Reed agreed that the FY22 budget will look very similar to the one-year budget passed last session.
“I think a continuation budget is pretty much the outlook we are going to see with this one-year budget,” Reed said.
As political subdivisions of the state, counties are required to provide state-mandated services such as elections and incarceration, and as such are dependent on state funding to implement.
Both lawmakers said there will be some small changes made to the budget but legislators that will likely happen once the session starts.
McDaniel said that despite the Consensus Forecasting Group predicting a budget surplus for FY22, no additional spending should be expected, but rather saved to cover projected future revenue shortfalls resulting from COVID-19 and help address the significant cost drivers such as pension liabilities.
Infrastructure investment (transportation and broadband)
Sen. Jimmy Higdon, Rep. Sal Santoro, Rep. Phil Pratt and Rep. Samara Heavrin
Senate Transportation Chair Jimmy Higdon stressed the need for lawmakers to address increased infrastructure funding in the upcoming session. He shared how the loss of federal toll credits are going to dramatically alter the state’s 80/20 match for federal projects.
Higdon said that current state roads resurfacing schedules are now 12-15 years between maintenance, compared to eight to 10 years in the past.
“I think it would be a step in the right direction if we can restore the 6.5 cents (gas tax) we lost in 2014,” Higdon said.
That loss has resulted in almost $200 million less overall road fund revenue annually, impacting counties as well as the state’s road and bridge maintenance schedules
Higdon also said there’s a need for the General Assembly to reassess various allocations that are paid out of the road fund, such as $118 million to Kentucky State Police.
Rep. Sal Santoro, Budget Review Transportation Committee chair, provided an update on the repairs to the disabled Brent Spence Bridge that connects Kentucky to Ohio in Kenton County, and was shut down Nov. 11, 2020, due to a fiery crash involving two trucks. As anyone who relies on the bridge for travel knows, a quick turnaround on repairs is critical as the bridge is essential not only to Northern Kentucky but the entire flow of U.S. logistics both on the interstates and on the Ohio River at that crossing.
Santoro, who has championed the gas tax bill for many years and will file a bill during the 2021 session, also stressed the need for increased investment and including revenue from hybrid and electric vehicles.
Small Business and Information Technology Committee Chair Phillip Pratt discussed the need for broadband access and affordability throughout the state.
This is one of KACo’s top issues for 2021. Last session, Pratt sponsored HB362, which established the Broadband Deployment Fund. However, the legislature did not allocate resources for the fund. He also said he expects the state to receive funding from the Federal Communications Commission to address this issue.
Governor and legislative leadership
Gov. Andy Beshear, Senate President Stivers and House Speaker Osborne
Gov. Andy Beshear shared updates including the ongoing distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, the state budget and recent economic development projects across the state.
“We have to invest in infrastructure,” Beshear said. “It is time we address our transportation budget.”
He called on lawmakers to immediately invest in infrastructure.
Stivers and Osborne discussed logistical challenges due to COVID-19 for the upcoming session.
Limited access to the Capitol and Annex as well as tackling many issues during a short legislative session will be quite the challenge for lawmakers. Annex access will be by appointment only and limited in group size.
Stivers said he believes lawmakers should be able to call themselves into a special session under particular circumstances and emergencies. That would require a constitutional amendment. Speaker Osborne filed such a bill last year but like so many bills, it was tabled due to the need to respond to the pandemic and the shortening of the legislative session.
Both leaders shared their respective chamber’s priorities including limiting the governor’s executive orders power, COVID-19 liability relief, stabilizing the unemployment insurance trust fund, and criminal justice issues, such as addressing no-knock warrants.
“We have to be forward-thinking in our approach to infrastructure funding and ensure that whatever action we take is sustainable for the future,” said Stivers, who also stressed the need for public support of a gas tax from Beshear.
Click here to review KACo’s legislative priorities. Members will receive weekly updates again this session.
