SENATOR DANNY CARROLL’S LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Not only did Friday mark the end of another busy week in the Kentucky Senate, it was also Day 46 of our 60-day legislative session. We are now in the proverbial “fourth quarter,” when the House and Senate must come together to win a victory for the state of Kentucky by passing a responsible budget. After ten weeks, we are still awaiting a key “assist” from our colleagues in the House in the form of a budget bill that has yet to pass the lower chamber. While awaiting the budget bill, the Senate continued to pass significant legislation addressing a wide array of issues facing our state.

I was honored to sponsor Senate Bill (SB) 228, which passed the Senate with overwhelming support. This bill will standardize the definition of bullying to provide public schools with more guidance as to what bullying is so they can help stop it. It will be worked into schools’ codes of conduct and allow schools to accurately report the number of incidents. Paducah’s own Morgan Guess, a seventh grader at Lone Oak Middle School, was the primary driving force behind this legislation

Below is a brief summary of additional bills that passed the Senate last week and await the House:

Judicial Redistricting – A proposed constitutional amendment would bring the most significant change to the state judiciary since 1976 reforms created a unified state court system that was a model for the nation. The constitutional amendment, known as SB 8, would ensure that judges are assigned to courthouses with the highest volume of cases in the most populous areas. This bill would require the Kentucky Supreme Court to conduct judicial redistricting, based on population and caseloads, the same years that legislative redistricting occurs.

Delayed School Year – SB 50 would allow for a later start to the school year, a move that would help tourism, according to sponsors. Schools that start later would not have to adhere to the current 170-day academic year, allowing them to instead slightly extend the school day to reach the required 1,062 instructional hours per year.

Marinas and Boat Liens – SB 186 would establish rules pertaining to marinas and boat liens.

High School Civics Requirement – SB 192 would require all high school students to pass a civics test in order to graduate. The 100 questions from said test would be drawn from the test administered by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to persons seeking to become naturalized citizens. As simple as it sounds, this bill would ensure that students learn basic facts about important figures and events in our country’s history.

Books for Brains Program – SB 196 would promote the development of a comprehensive statewide program for encouraging preschool children to develop an appreciation of books.

Kentucky Retirement System – SB 209 would allow agencies that discontinue participation in Kentucky Retirement Systems to pick up the employee contributions in an alternative retirement plan so that the contributions will be made on a tax-deferred basis.

Abortion – SB 212, a pro-life bill I was proud to support, would remove new abortion facilities from the exemptions for certificate of need and require them to have full operating suites with oxygen, crash carts, and other medical supplies in addition to having a physician on staff with admitting privileges at a hospital within 50 miles

Notaries – SB 214 would remove fee limitations for certain acts which notaries perform.

Homelessness Prevention Project – SB 225 would expand eligibility, subject to sufficient funding, for the homelessness prevention project to individuals based on certain criteria.

Kentucky State Police – SB 246, a bill which is long overdue, would update salary schedules and provisions for Kentucky State Police troopers.

Kentucky Workforce Oversight Task Force – Senate Concurrent Resolution 75 would direct the Legislative Research Commission to establish the Kentucky Workforce Oversight Task Force to study and develop recommendations concerning the benefits, investments, and funding of workforce education in our state.

Kentucky Educational Television – Senate Concurrent Resolution 135 would recognize KET and encourage all cable and satellite providers to offer this programming to their customers.

Some other notable measures moving in committees include:

Rape Kit Testing – SB 63, another bill I co-sponsored, advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. It would require the state’s 300-plus police departments and 120 sheriff’s departments to retrieve sexual assault kits from hospitals within five days’ notice from a hospital that the evidence is available. This bill would also require law enforcement to submit kit samples to the state crime lab within 30 days, prohibit the destruction of any kits, and notify victims of the progress and results of the tests.

Tanning Beds – The Senate Health and Welfare Committee passed a bill, which I sponsored, that would make tanning salons off limits for youngsters. SB 108 would prohibit anyone under 18 from using a tanning bed in a commercial location, except for medically necessary treatment. Currently, state law requires teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 to have a signed parental consent form to use commercial tanning beds. Skin cancer is a significant health concern in our state, and the use of tanning beds before the age of 35 increases the risk of melanoma by 59 percent.

We are hoping to get our hands on the budget this week, and we know there is still much work to be done. Once the budget comes to the Senate chambers, our main focus will be moving it forward before the end of the 2016 Session. The citizens of Kentucky have been promised a working, fiscally responsible, and balanced budget, and we in the Senate hope to deliver on that promise soon.

Finally, I was fortunate last week to host several constituents from the 2nd Senate District, including the Ballard County 4-H Group during their tour of the historic Capitol building. If you have not had an opportunity to visit our beautiful grounds, I would encourage you to reach out to my office to make arrangements. Tours are available daily throughout the year.

If you have any questions or comments about these or any other public policy issue, please call me toll-free at 1-800-372-7181 or e-mail me at danny.carroll@lrc.ky.gov. You can also review the legislature’s work online at www.lrc.ky.gov.