March 23, 2018
JUDICIAL REDISTRICTING BILL GOES TO GOVERNOR
FRANKFORT—A judicial redistricting bill that would add court judgeships in a few areas of the state and remove judgeships from other areas has received final passage on a vote of 63-31 in the Kentucky House.
House Bill 348, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Hoover, R-Jamestown, and Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, would add family court judges to the judicial circuit serving Pulaski, Lincoln and Rockcastle counties and the judicial circuit serving Boone and Gallatin counties. A third family judge would be added in Bullitt County, where a district judgeship would be converted to a family court judgeship to accommodate the change.
Judgeships that would be eliminated as of 2023 to help pay for the new seats include a circuit judgeship in Floyd County and district judgeship in far West Kentucky. The West Kentucky position would be created by combining two districts – one in Fulton and Hickman counties and one in Carlisle and Ballard counties—into one district.
Nemes said HB 348 adjusts judgeships according to caseload when he spoke on the bill before the House Judiciary Committee in early March. He said the circuits in southern and northern Kentucky which are slated to receive new judges under the bill especially have “a tremendous need.”
“There’s a lot of places in Kentucky where judges are working extremely hard but in those two places – I don’t see how they’re even getting the job done, they’re so overworked,” said Nemes.
One House member voting against the bill was Rep. Larry Brown, R-Prestonsburg. The Floyd County judgeship that would be eliminated by the bill serves citizens in his district.
“I think the numbers were askew,” said Brown. “And I think we’re being unfairly punished in Floyd County by losing a circuit judge who has done nothing but his job, and done it above and beyond the call—having to go to different circuits and take care of business there as well.”
The legislation would also require the Kentucky Supreme Court to certify the need for any changes in the state’s judicial circuits or districts based on an eight-year review of the courts by the Administrative Office of the Courts. That review may be ordered by the state Supreme Court starting in 2020.
HB 348, which was approved by the Senate on a vote of 32-5 yesterday, now goes to the governor to be signed into law.
‘REVENGE PORN’ BILL GOES TO GOVERNOR
FRANKFORT—A bill that would make it a crime to post sexually explicit images of someone online without that person’s consent is on its way to the governor to be signed into law.
House Bill 71, sponsored by Rep. Diane St. Onge, R-Ft. Wright, aims to crack down on so-called “revenge porn” – sexually-explicit photos or videos often used to humiliate the person photographed or turn a profit for the person posting the photos online.
Penalties for posting such an image would be a misdemeanor for a first offense or a Class D felony for each subsequent offense. If the image was posted for profit, the penalties would be ramped up to a Class D felony for a first offense and a more serious Class C felony for subsequent offenses.
Those who post such material could also be liable in civil court, where $1,000 in damages could be assessed under HB 71 for each image each day it remains online after a request has been made to remove it. Additional language would prohibit an online entity from demanding payment to remove the image or images.
While penalties for violators would be serious in many cases, those convicted under the legislation would not have to register as a sex offender under Kentucky law.
HB 71, which passed the Senate on a 37-0 vote yesterday, received final passage in the House today on a vote of 90-2.
TAX REFORM BENEFITS COMING TO ‘OPPORTUNITY ZONES’ IN KENTUCKY
‘I know there is a lot of excitement in my state of Kentucky. From coal country to farming communities and everywhere in between, Obama-era overregulation was holding our economy short of its full potential. These opportunity zones offer a shot at real relief. According to our Cabinet for Economic Development, Kentucky may designate as many as 144 new zones, prioritizing growth in areas that need it most.’
–U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding the benefits Americans across the country continue to see from tax reform:
“…‘We’ve been talking for months about the ways tax reform is helping to jump-start the economy, bolster family budgets, and make life better for millions of Americans. Just a few months in, many such stories have already been front-page news: the tax reform bonuses, raises, and benefits for four million workers and counting; the new investments and new hiring from businesses large and small; the bigger paychecks for middle-class Americans as the IRS withholds less of their money.
“But other exciting parts of this once-in-a-generation reform aren’t receiving the attention they deserve. Today, for example, is an initial deadline for states to nominate areas they’d like to be designated as ‘opportunity zones.’ This is thanks to a provision incorporated into tax reform through the unflagging dedication of our colleague Senator Scott.
“The premise here is simple. The best way to breathe new life into struggling communities is not to invent some new federal program. It isn’t to throw government money into one more top-down, tax-and-spend scheme. No — the best way to help the rural areas, small cities, and suburbs left behind by Obama-era policies is to get the government’s foot off the brake and let free enterprise flourish. It’s to make those communities attractive places to do business, open new facilities, and create good-paying jobs.
“This is exactly what tax reform does, by deferring capital gains taxes on income that’s invested in distressed areas that receive this ‘opportunity zone’ designation. As one estimate has it, three quarters of all the new jobs created from 2010 to 2016 went to major metropolitan areas. Only three percent went to rural America. This provision could help change that.
“I know there is a lot of excitement in my state of Kentucky. From coal country to farming communities and everywhere in between, Obama-era overregulation was holding our economy short of its full potential. These opportunity zones offer a shot at real relief. According to our Cabinet for Economic Development, Kentucky may designate as many as 144 new zones, prioritizing growth in areas that need it most.
“Or take West Virginia. As my friend Senator Capito recently noted, her state understands the problem all too well. One recent study suggests that West Virginia has the third-highest proportion of its population living in economically distressed communities. Opportunity zones will make a difference to her state.
“Of course, so will the rest of tax reform. A few weeks back, Senator Capito reported that Worldwide Equipment in West Sulphur Springs plans to reinvest $8 million into its operations, including more than a thousand employee bonuses — all thanks to tax reform.
“I imagine West Virginians are quite glad that Senator Capito used her vote to make tax reform a reality. It’s a shame their senior senator didn’t follow suit. It’s a shame he, and every other Democrat, tried to block it from taking effect. Fortunately, this president and this Congress didn’t let that stop us. We accomplished tax reform anyway — because we’re committed to fighting for all Americans.”
Financial literacy bill on way to governor
FRANKFORT—Kentucky public school students would have to satisfy a financial literacy requirement before they could graduate high school under a bill now on its way to the governor’s desk.
The requirement under House Bill 132, sponsored by Rep. Jim DuPlessis, R-Elizabethtown, and Rep. James Tipton, R-Taylorsville, would be implemented beginning with students entering the 2020-2021 ninth-grade class.
DuPlessis said before a House floor vote on HB 132 in January that the bill would ensure that every Kentucky public high school graduate is taught how to budget, save, and invest.
“If we want to fix financial illiteracy, we must get away from the notion that it is a privilege to know how money works,” DuPlessis told his House colleagues.
Coursework or programs that would meet the requirement under HB 132 would be determined by the high school’s school-based decision making council or principal, according to the bill. Guidelines for the coursework or program would be developed at the state level with local programs aligned to the state standards.
HB 132 initially passed the House on a vote of 68-24. It was amended and approved by the Senate earlier this week on a 35-3 vote. Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, presented the bill for a vote on the Senate floor.
“The lack of financial literacy is costing our state money,” said Wise. “When people are deep in consumer debt, they tend to file for bankruptcy more often, they are more likely to need state assistance, and they certainly are not adding to the consumer economy when they send the majority of their spending capability in interest payments to out-of-state credit card companies.”
HB 132 passed on a final vote of 88-3 today in the House. It has been sent to the governor to be signed into law.
STANDARDS-FOR-TREATMENT DISORDERS BILL GOES TO GOVERNOR
FRANKFORT— A bill that would attack Kentucky’s opioid crisis through better state substance use disorder treatment and recovery program standards has received final passage in the Kentucky House.
House Bill 124, sponsored by House Health and Family Services Committee Chair Rep. Addia Wuchner, R-Florence, and Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser, R-Taylor Mill, would require enhanced licensure and quality standards for substance use disorder treatment and recovery after a state review of current statewide standards, subject to available funding. Enhanced standards would cover residential, outpatient and medication-assisted treatment (MAT) services, according to the bill.
Wuchner said she has traveled the state visiting treatment and recovery centers and found that some programs have “a lot of dynamics and a lot of differences.”
“That doesn’t mean that every program has to be the same, but there should be components of that program that are consistent with best practices,” said Wuchner.
HB 124 was amended in the Senate on a 36-0 vote late last week to include FDA-approved MAT treatment for inmates who are opioid-dependent or who have other substance abuse disorders.
“As some of those products that are used for medically-assisted treatment come to market and come to bear, there are more products now that could be used in the corrections environment that minimize diversion, and that’s why this piece was added,” said Wuchner.
HB 124 received final passage in the House today on a vote of 93-0. The bill was initially passed in the House on an 85-2 vote in January.
Senate Gives Final Passage to Legislation Eliminating Regulations on Home Baking
Heath’s Legislation Will Empower Free Market, Assist Home Bakers
FRANKFORT, Ky. – The Kentucky Senate has given final passage to Rep. Richard Heath’s legislation allowing home bakers to sell products to customers straight out of their kitchens, free from regulatory restraints.
House Bill 263 would put home bakers and other food processors on a level playing field with farmers, who are already exempt from these licensing requirements. Under the legislation, home baked goods could be sold at a variety of places, including roadside stands, community events and marketplaces, or online.
Removing outdated regulations on small businesses has been a key priority of Heath in his time in the General Assembly.
“If an individual wants to engage in free market activity, government should not be seeking to restrict that,” said Heath, who chairs the House Agriculture Committee. “This legislation will also empower the many individuals who would like to provide for their families while staying at home and raising their children. I commend the Senate for passing this legislation free of any red tape, and look forward to seeing it signed into law.”
While the original version was amended in the Senate to require individuals to be registered with the state and undergo a home inspection, that provision was dropped from the final bill after the urging of Heath and many home baking advocates.
Current statutes could lead to someone spending time in jail for selling goods from their home kitchen, a reality remedied in the legislation
Brooke Fallon, Assistant Director of Activism for the Institute of Justice, a group who fought in support of the legislation, commended the bill’s passage.
“With the passage of Representative Heath’s HB 263, hundreds of home bakers across Kentucky will finally have the opportunity to earn income for their families doing what they love,” said Fallon. “This is great news for homemakers, hobbyists, and everyone with a sweet tooth.”
The now heads to Governor Bevin’s desk for approval and is expected to be signed into law.
