Week 2 of the 2023 Legislative Session
Lawmakers returned to Frankfort on Tuesday to reconvene following a constitutionally required break in the 2023 30-day legislative session.
An issue that dominated the media and lawmakers’ attention through the session’s break involved the state Department of Juvenile Justice. I’m confident you have heard about and followed recent disturbing reports from within the DJJ system, including the sexual abuse of a 16-year-old girl in Adair County and the brutal assault of employees in Bowling Green. Much work is left to be done, but I’m happy to report legislative efforts have prompted the executive branch to take action to better protect our detained youth and staff in state facilities.
First, in the 2022 interim, the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Statutory Committee, which I served as co-chair at the time, and the Interim Judiciary Committee, recommended DJJ separate those inside facilities based on the severity of the offense and by gender. I am concerned those recommendations were only taken following the terrible story of Adair County’s incident.
Nevertheless, the Senate initiated a DJJ working group. I was tasked and feel honored to have served as Senate co-chair of the working group. We met extensively over the session’s break and communicated our findings and recommendations to Governor Andy Beshear.
Recommendations that have been met as of this legislative update include:
• Provide 24/7 Kentucky State Police presence at facilities housing the most violent offenders.
• Identify specific immediate, intermediate, and long-term resources needed to address the crisis and gaps in the law that can aid in the department’s efforts.
• Make trauma care available to staff and youth victims in DJJ facilities.
• Develop and maintain a tracking notification system concerning the transportation and status of youth offenders so that parents, legal guardians, and law enforcement entities can be aware.
Still, there are additional vital recommendations we have made to the Governor that remain unmet. They are:
• Consider replacing department leaders who have failed to create a culture within DJJ where employees and youth can feel safe and begin a nationwide search for qualified replacements. The DJJ working group has concluded a toxic culture exists within the department that money alone could never repair.
• Provide unfettered access to cabinet and department officials but, most importantly, the rank and file employees who have indicated fear of retaliation from those above them.
• Allow for an independent inspection of DJJ facilities to determine if health and safety measures are up to expectation and if policies and procedures are being met.
• Explain failures to implement past recommendations.
My colleagues and I in the working group outlined these met and unmet recommendations during a press conference on February 2. We also formally requested the state auditor of public accounts to contract with an independent organization for a full audit of DJJ. I’ll keep you informed on developments on this front, but I expect legislation to be filed soon to help address some of the immediate needs. I believe forming a task force to monitor this issue is necessary as well.
On the legislative front, we immediately got back to work upon returning to Frankfort on February 7. On Wednesday, we passed House Bill 1, which codifies the income tax reduction from 5 percent to 4.5 percent that went into effect on January 1. The bill lowers the income tax to 4 percent beginning on January 1, 2024. Additional tax reform, moving away from taxing production and more emphasis on consumption, not only keeps more money in wage earners’ pockets but it builds on the record years of economic success in the commonwealth, primarily because of conservative, pro-business policies enacted by the Kentucky General Assembly.
Along with House Bill 1, the Senate passed House Bill 2 on Wednesday, which provides over $16 million to support the construction of a new veterans center in Bowling Green. The center is the fifth in the state and will provide services to veterans in the south-central region. The need for this funding support is, unfortunately, partly because of high inflation, which has greatly increased the cost of construction.
I understand we all still bear the weight of high inflation and gas prices, but I am always happy to support our veterans and the Republican supermajorities’ commitment is to leave more money in your pocket because you know best how to spend your hard-earned income, not the government.
The final bill passing the Senate this week was Senate Bill 20, which would prohibit the application known as TikTok on all state government devices. This bill ensures Kentucky is doing its part to prevent the communist Chinese government from accessing state government information. The bill will now head to the state House of Representatives for consideration.
In closing, several legislative measures were introduced in week two, including an education-centric bill focused on strengthening parent voices in the school system and another addressing concerns with the state’s power grid.
Rest assured, your elected officials remain engaged in light of the rolling blackouts some Kentuckians have experienced this winter. I will be bringing greater attention to the promising possibility of nuclear energy in the weeks ahead.
I filed a joint resolution on Friday in efforts to establish a nuclear energy development working group. With the passage of 2017’s Senate Bill 11, which lifted a moratorium on the construction of new nuclear power facilities, and given the fact we have no current nuclear generating facilities in the state despite promising new technologies, I feel it is time we take a step forward on this issue.
The working group would be attached to the Energy and Environment Cabinet for administrative purposes and staff support. The resolution, which you can find by visiting legislature.ky.gov, outlines what the membership would look like. Members would be tasked to start meeting no later than September 1 and submitting a report to the Legislative Research Commission on or before December 1. Its report should detail the working group’s activity and provide recommendations for the creation of a permanent nuclear energy commission, along with information such as staffing needs for the commission, creating a mission statement, and a list of short and long-term goals.
Feel free to share your thoughts throughout the session. Find the status of legislation by calling 866-840-2835, legislative meeting information at 800-633-9650, or leaving a message for lawmakers at 800-372-7181. You can watch and follow legislative activity at KET/org/legislature and Legislature.ky.gov.
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.