Long nights, intense debate, and media attention from across the globe wrapped up
what started as a quiet final week of the 2017 Session of the Kentucky General
Assembly. Minutes before the Senate gaveled out for good, Governor Matt Bevin called
this session the most productive in history. It was truly an honor to work
alongside the governor with the new House Majority to pass many great initiatives
for our commonwealth.
Critics and supporters alike have noted the session was among the busiest our state
has ever seen. We added to the session’s major accomplishments in recent days with
the final passage of Senate Bill 1<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/SB1.htm>. This
bill, known as the “Teachers Can Teach” bill, is a wide-ranging measure that will
deliver sweeping education reform and effectively repeal Common Core standards.
The measure will change how Kentucky public schools are held accountable for student
progress as well as how teachers are evaluated. It will place more control and
accountability in the hands of local school districts, giving them a stronger voice
in improving performance by both students and teachers.
The legislation also requires vigorous regular reviews of academic standards in
Kentucky schools and holds schools accountable for success indicators such as
graduation rates and college admissions exam scores. It offers state-funded
opportunities to assess students’ academic progress through taking early college
admissions tests, returns responsibility for teacher evaluation back to local school
boards, and reduces the amount of paperwork that now takes time from teachers and
administrators. The measure passed by wide margins and with nearly unanimous support
in both the Senate and House. It has been delivered to the governor’s office to be
signed into law.
In addition to passing major bills this week, we overrode four vetoes issued by the
governor shortly before we returned to the Capitol on March 29 after a two-week
recess. The governor’s four vetoes focused on measures dealing with the regulation
of drones, court-ordered treatment for certain mentally ill people with a history of
involuntary hospitalization, the manner of disbursing funds from a multimillion
dollar legal settlement with Volkswagen, and the naming of roads in certain parts of
the state. All four of these vetoes were overridden in the Senate and House with
bipartisan support.
In other business this week, the Senate approved a number of bills that will become
law when signed by the governor, including:
· Senate Bill 120<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/SB120.htm> is a criminal
justice reform bill that will help people leaving prison successfully rejoin
society. The measure includes provisions to remove licensing restrictions that make
it harder for felons to find jobs. It also makes improvements in reentry substance
abuse supervision. I initially opposed this legislation, but after my request to
remove Class C felons from work release or day reporting programs was granted I gave
this piece of legislation my support.
· House Bill 13<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB13.htm> lays out the
foundations for a new veterans’ nursing home in Western Kentucky.
· House Bill 128<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB128.htm> will ensure
that public schools are allowed to offer elective Bible literacy classes to
students. I was proud to support this bill and I believe courses such as these will
allow students to gain valuable insight into the influence the Bible has had on our
society.
· House Bill 206<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB206.htm> establishes
the Dual Credit Scholarship Program, allowing high school students to use education
credits for both their current high school class and future postsecondary
institutions.
· House Bill 253<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB253.htm> will help
protect abused children through unannounced visits by state social services workers
to the residences where child abuse or neglect has occurred. The unannounced visits
will continue until the welfare of a child has been safeguarded. Child abuse is a
growing problem in our commonwealth and although this piece of legislation will
help, additional measures will be needed to protect our children.
· House Bill 375<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB375.htm> prohibits
disqualification for unemployment benefits for a worker who leaves a job to follow a
military spouse who has been reassigned to another military base or duty location
that is 100 miles or more from the worker’s home.
· House Bill 522<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB522.htm> is another
bill aimed at helping state agency minors by allowing children who are at least 17
years old to seek a high school equivalency diploma.
· House Bill 524<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/HB524.htm> will help
fight human trafficking by requiring public schools to display the National Human
Trafficking Reporting Hotline information and will require the hotline number of the
National Human Trafficking Resource Center to be posted at rest areas. The measure
will also make promoting human trafficking involving commercial sexual activity a
criminal offense against a minor if the victim is under 18.
My next piece will be a big-picture summary of the highly successful 2017 Session of
the Kentucky General Assembly. In the months to come, I will continue studying and
discussing the issues we are likely to take up in next year’s session. If you would
like to offer input on the work we have completed in this year’s session or the
issues we have yet to tackle, I hope you will take the time to share your thoughts.
As always, I appreciate your support! If you have any questions or comments about
these issues or any other public policy issue, please call me toll-free at
1-800-372-7181 or email me at
danny.carroll@lrc.ky.gov<mailto:danny.carroll@lrc.ky.gov>. You can also review the
Legislature’s work online at www.lrc.ky.gov<http://www.lrc.ky.gov/>.
