Kentucky state lawmakers plan to spend their first day back in session Friday undoing some of the 27 vetoes issued so far by Gov. Andy Beshear, Senate leadership told LINK nky Thursday.
Senate President Robert Stivers said his chamber is expected to override—or reject—Beshear’s vetoes of six Senate bills, including an energy bill that would set new requirements for shutting down aging coal-fired power plants (Senate Bill 349) and another that would create a nuclear energy authority in Kentucky (SB 198).
Other Senate bills vetoed by the governor include a bill to replace the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission with an independent gaming corporation (SB 299) and SB 16 — Northern Kentucky Sen. John Schickel’s bill to ban drones, photography or recording devices on or above concentrated or commercial food processing or feeding operations without consent, with few exceptions.
“Of the Senate bills I’m aware of, I don’t know of any that will sustain his (Beshear’s) veto,” Stivers (R-Manchester) told LINK.
Only one bill passed this session has been overridden by lawmakers so far.
Overriding a veto allows a bill to pass into law over a governor’s rejection of the bill or veto. A majority of Senate and House members must vote to override a vetoed bill before that bill – or part of a bill, in case of a line-item veto to a budget bill, for example – can become law.
The governor had 10 days (excluding Sundays) to veto bills that state lawmakers passed before adjourning for the veto break on March 28. That break ended on April 9.
Any bills lawmakers pass in the final two days of session (Friday and Monday) can also be issued vetoes— although lawmakers will not be able to override those. That’s because the session will adjourn before the governor’s next ten veto days are up.
The current session is constitutionally required to conclude no later than Monday, April 15.
Besides his 27 vetoes, the governor has also signed 144 bills into law so far this session. Eighteen bills so far have become law without the governor’s signature.
Every bill vetoed is filed with a veto message. In his veto message on SB 16 issued April 9, Beshear credited SB 16’s ban on “not just drones” but any recording device or photography for his rejection of the legislation. As for SB 198, Beshear’s veto mostly centered on the proposed makeup of the authority’s governing board.
In his veto message on SB 198, Beshear said the proposed 30-member board would include no members appointed by the executive branch, even though it would oversee an executive branch agency. Supporters of the bill say the board — an unpaid advisory group — was designed to minimize politics in the authority’s decisions.
“This authority, a non-regulatory body within the University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research supported by an unpaid advisory board, aims to lead the way in developing Kentucky’s nuclear energy ecosystem. It does not encroach on the governor’s executive powers,” SB 349 sponsor Sen. Danny Carroll (R-Benton) said in response to the veto.
Then there’s SB 349, a bill that was strongly opposed by Duke Energy and the NKY Chamber of Commerce. Representatives from both groups told lawmakers in March that the bill would raise customer costs by delaying the retirement of aging power plants for the benefit of the coal industry. Tami Wilson, vice president of public affairs for the NKY Chamber, testified against the bill last month.
“While we empathize with Eastern Kentucky and the loss of jobs associated with the coal industry, we feel strongly that forcing our members, and potential members, to pay more for their energy simply to ensure we continue to support the coal industry is not a reasonable ask of the Northern Kentucky region,” Wilson told the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee before it advanced SB 349 in March.
House bills are also likely to be considered for veto overrides, Stivers told LINK, although he was quick to add that he doesn’t speak for the other chamber.
“More than likely most everything he’s vetoed we will probably override,” Stivers said of the Senate. ”We’re going to consult with the House, because he vetoed a lot more House bills, and actually the budget – that is part and parcel of a House bill. We’ll see what they say about that and more than likely a majority of those we’ll override.”
House Bill 6 is the biennial state budget bill lawmakers passed before the veto recess began March 29. Beshear issued dozens of line-item vetoes to that legislation, striking parts that would limit his ability to fund natural disaster response, delay funding for the state’s medical cannabis regulatory rollout in 2025 and more.
A few vetoes were also issued by the governor to HB 1, a bill to dole out $2.7 billion in state budget reserve trust funds for special projects across the state. Those projects include the Commonwealth Center for Biomedical Excellence at the former IRS site in Covington.
Funding for the center and all other NKY projects remain in the bill.
Once complete, the center is expected to be the new home of the NKU Chase College of Law and the University of Kentucky medical school satellite campus.
Only one vetoed bill has been passed into law over the governor’s veto so far this session. That bill, HB 18, bans local ordinances that prevent landlords from refusing tenants who rely on public housing assistance. Lawmakers voted March 6 to override the veto on that bill.
The law had an immediate impact on Louisville and Lexington, both which had source of income housing discrimination bans in place.
“This is the first of what we feel will be several in the process of veto overrides,” Stivers told reporters after the vote.
Stivers said he expects most of the General Assembly’s work to conclude on Friday, although lawmakers are scheduled to return for a final session day on Monday.