The 2022 General Assembly has only 14 days left in session until its veto period begins. This means that bills are moving through the halls of the Kentucky capitol. This week, the most notable bill that moved through the chambers was the Senate budget amendments to House Bill 1.
This means $200 million for the Brent Spence Bridge and $15 million for a wet lab in Covington.
It’s still unclear how Kentucky and Ohio will fully fund the $2.8 billion project. With $2 billion potentially coming from the federal infrastructure bill and $200 million from Kentucky’s budget, that still leaves $600 million to be accounted for on the project.
“There is $200 million per the governor’s request that gets transferred to the road fund to provide matching funds for the federal grants for mega projects,” McDaniel said in his presentation. He clarified after the meeting that these funds are for the Brent Spence project.
This year and next year are heavy election years, and there are a lot of promises being thrown around for the project, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.
Medical Marijuana A Potential In Kentucky
Last month, Rep. Rachel Roberts (D-Newport) introduced cannabis legislation to make recreational marijuana legal in Kentucky.
“Our legislation is the comprehensive plan that Kentuckians deserve, and it builds on what has worked in other states while avoiding their mistakes,” Roberts said. “This would be a boon for our economy and our farmers alike.”
But, it’s unlikely to happen, and instead, it’s possible that House Bill 136, a medical marijuana bill, could move through the chambers after passing through committee Thursday.
The highly restrictive bill would be a potential first step for Kentucky, but it won’t allow card-carrying users to smoke marijuana.
Ending the COVID Emergency
Senate Joint Resolution 150 moved through the House and Senate and is now on the governor’s desk. The resolution would end the COVID State of Emergency in Kentucky.
The catch? It would’ve ended the emergency on March 7, and if the governor takes two or three weeks to sign or veto, it will be nearly April. The current state of emergency is scheduled to end on April 14.
The governor could also veto, and then the chambers would have to override the veto taking additional time, so by the time this resolution could pass, the Covid State of Emergency will already be near the end.
Vehicle Sales Tax Becomes Law
Gov. Andy Beshear issued an executive order to freeze the vehicle sales tax in February.
“A booming economy and the best state budget in 25 years means we can do more to help our working families and small businesses buy and sell the essential goods and services that are costing more and that are simply priced too high,” Beshear said at the time. “We have all had enough – and today, I am doing something about it by providing immediate vehicle property tax relief and proposing a cut in the sales tax.”
On Thursday, he signed it into law. House Bill 6, which is primarily sponsored by Rep. Sal Santoro (R-Union), will hold the vehicle tax rate at 2021 levels. For those that already paid their taxes, they will receive a refund.