Written by Mark Payne, LINK nky politics and government reporter
While a long Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend brought a reprieve from politics in the capitol, the four-day week made up for time lost.
The General Assembly is working on a two-year budget for the first time since 2018, after passing single-year budgets the past two years due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. (Typically, in even-numbered years like 2022 or 2020, the legislature meets for a longer sixty-day session to include the adoption of a two-year budget, while in odd-numbered years like 2021 or 2019, it meets for thirty days.)
After taking Friday through Monday off for the weekend, House Republicans wasted no time getting down to the details of their budget bills. While House Speaker David Osborne (R-Prospect) filed the governor’s budget proposals as House Bill 285, it is likely to fester in the legislative chambers.
House Bill 1 and House Bill 241 were introduced in tandem. The former is the overall budget, and the latter is the transportation budget. Among the highlights include state government spending of $65 billion, with both bills totaling about $110 billion.
In the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee meeting for the bills, 68th District Rep. Joseph Fischer highlighted the funding for law enforcement across Kentucky, with a $15,000 pay increase to every state trooper and motor vehicle enforcement officer. That’s a 37.5 percent salary boost for new recruits. It also gives an $8,000 a year raise to all telecommunication personnel.
Republicans are also looking to save money for taxpayers in the bill.
“There is not one penny of taxpayer money that has come into the purview of the General Assembly that the General Assembly has any ownership of,” said Rep. Jason Petrie (R-Elkton). “We are being lent that money in trust by the taxpayers of Kentucky to render needed services that benefit them.”
The House debated into the evening on Thursday before passing both bills, which now head to the Senate.
Governor Vetoes House and Senate Congressional Redistricting Plans – GA Quickly Overrides
On Wednesday, Gov. Andy Beshear vetoed House Bill 2, the House redistricting plan, and Senate Bill 3, the Congressional redistricting plan. He still hasn’t responded to Senate Bill 2, the Senate redistricting plans. He had a deadline of Thursday at midnight. With the lack of response from the Governor, SB2 becomes law.
However, legal challenges will follow.
“The redistricting plan appears designed to deprive certain communities of representation,” Beshear said in a release. “In particular, it excessively splits counties, including Fayette, Boone, Hardin, and Campbell, and carves up other counties, such as Jefferson and Warren for partisan reasons, contrary to the Kentucky Constitution.”
The House and Senate quickly took up override votes on both bills on Thursday, and they swiftly passed. Both bills have now become law.
But, as soon as they passed them, the Kentucky Democratic Party filed a lawsuit in Franklin County, citing Franklin County residents whom the maps would disenfranchise. The lawsuit includes the state senate maps.
“The process and the districts are deeply flawed. There were no public meetings, no hearings, no feedback, the new maps were rolled out at the last minute and passed immediately,” said Jill Robinson, a former Franklin County Magistrate. “That’s not good for democracy. We should take this process of redistricting as an opportunity for civil engagement rather than as a power grab.”
The suit also cites excessive splitting in several counties, including a couple of Northern Kentucky counties.
“The counties which are excessively split by HB 2 are … Boone (5 splits instead of 3) … and Campbell (2 splits instead of 1 required)…” the lawsuit stated.
Next Week
As part of the continued budget debate, expect some talk about the pension, as the Public Pension Oversight Board meets at 1 p.m. on Monday.
The House budget has money set aside for the Brent Spence project, which will most likely continue to move forward whether the House or Governor’s budget is approved, though it is yet to be seen how. The part of this budget addressing the project will be in a future budget bill, according to House Republicans.
The House and Senate reconvene at 4 p.m. Monday.
Mark Payne is in Frankfort covering the 2022 General Assembly session for LINK nky