Education, hunting and marijuana among early topics as Kentucky legislature begins

FRANKFORT — The Kentucky legislature's back in session and with the first week in the books, the General Assembly is starting to take shape with bill filings and priorities being announced.

The action at the Kentucky Capitol should continue to heat up in the Republican-dominated legislature's second week, as committee meetings ramp up for the 60-day session. But here's a look at some of what's happened so far in case you missed it:

Transparency in legislation

Lawmakers in both the House and Senate spoke out amid votes to maintain rules used in previous years to approve laws, with some questioning whether the current system is transparent to the public.

The concerns followed a report by the Kentucky League of Women Voters that found lawmakers have "increasingly fast-tracked legislation in ways that make it difficult or impossible for citizens, journalists, and fellow legislators to review and comment on important and sometimes controversial bills."

Courier Journal columnist Joe Gerth also wrote a scathing column ahead of Day One about the legislative "tricks" often used to pass bills without scrutiny.

But in the end, the same rules were passed. House Speaker David Osborne, R-Prospect, said the study was flawed because of a narrow selection of sessions the League analyzed, while Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, said current rules existed decades ago while Democrats held the majority.

“For some reason, the League of Women Voters decided they want to start complaining about it now," Stivers said. "I haven’t figured out where they were 25 years ago.”

The League defended the report in a subsequent social media post Thursday.

Beshear's address and GOP priorities

Gov. Andy Beshear gave his State of the Commonwealth address Wednesday night, noting the difficulties and disasters the state faced over the last four years and saying "now we are getting to the good times together."

He ticked off his priorities, including various infrastructure projects. Of course, a big part of his budget is about education — including an 11% raise for public school employees and universal, free preschool for 4-year-olds. He called the raises a must.

But whether Republican leaders in the legislature go along is another question.

Earlier in the day, Osborne and Stivers outlined GOP priorities. While Osborne said education would be a "priority," he doubts universal preschool would be in the Republican budget plan, nor would "raises for particular classes of employees."

He said those "decisions are best made at the local level."

The public safety-focused "Safer Kentucky Act" also would be a priority, they indicated, though the bill from Rep. Jared Bauman, R-Louisville, has not yet been filed. But what the legislature will do on exceptions to the state's near-total abortion ban — a hot topic in last year's gubernatorial campaign — is uncertain. “This is one of the toughest issues you have to deal with as a legislator,” Stivers said.

Bills, bills, bills

Since legislation is no longer pre-filed, the bills started pouring in with the start of the session.

Rep. Nima Kulkarni, D-Louisville, filed one to exempt people 21 or older who are found to have a small amount of cannabis from civil or criminal penalty. It also would decriminalize having, trafficking and growing "a personal use quantity." She's filed such a bill before to no avail.

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle filed bills to eliminate the sales tax on period products like tampons and pads. Rep. Lisa Willner, D-Louisville, filed a similar bill last year that didn't make it out of committee.

One bill that's already been heard in committee this year is Senate Bill 5, which would revise the state's hunting and fishing license requirements for people who actually own the land.

Current law, which was changed just last year, states people can be cited if they are found to be fishing or hunting on their own property without the proper license. Before this change, people were exempt from a license requirement if the activity was done on their own land. Now, the current restriction says the landowner or resident must have a permit unless their property is five or more acres.

Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer, R-Georgetown, wants to eliminate that requirement. That bill will likely make its way back to the Senate floor Tuesday, Thayer said during Friday's session.

Notable resolutions filed this week included one in the Senate to honor Julian Carroll, a former state legislator and governor who spent decades in Frankfort. Several lawmakers spoke up to recognize his accomplishments, including Stivers and Sen. Gerald Neal, D-Louisville.

Resolution on Jan. 6 insurrection

A separate resolution filed Friday by Sen. Lindsey Tichenor, R-Smithfield, calls on the legislature to acknowledge the events of Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to prevent Congress from authorizing the election of President Joe Biden, and to "recognize those citizens who have been wrongfully held without due process.”

At least two dozen Kentuckians have been charged in connection with the failed insurrection.

During Friday's Senate session, Thayer said a "heavy schedule" is unlikely next week, the first five-day week of the session, with the House and Senate set to gavel back in at 4 p.m. Monday.

Reach The Courier Journal's politics team at lounews@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky legislature: Education, marijuana, hunting among early topics