Legislative update: House introduces priority measures as session resumes
By CANDY MASSARONI
50th District State Representative
Saturday, Feb. 10, 2023 — As we wrap up day 8 of the 2023 Regular Session, my colleagues and I have been hard at work crafting sound, responsible policy that covers a range of issues. From reformulated gasoline, to restructuring our local elections, the House alone has over 250 bills in circulation.
I always like to remind constituents that you do not have to travel to Frankfort to keep an eye on the legislature. If you would like to view committee hearings or watch the House deliberate legislation, you can visit our website at legislature.ky.gov. You can also watch both live and recorded meetings on YouTube at KY LRC Committee Meetings or on Kentucky Educational Television at ket.org/legislature.
Here is a look at what we have addressed this week:
Filling vacancies in local office: Members of the House joined together to craft HB 191, which creates procedures for filling unexpired terms on consolidated local government councils. Consolidated local governments are jurisdictions within county governments that have been merged into one governing body. An example of this would be the Lexington Urban-County government, and this legislation sets guidelines on how to fill seats that have been vacated.
EDUCATION. With reports of a teacher shortage of 11,000, the House Committee on Education heard from the Department of Education, the Teacher Retirement System, and the Kentucky Association of School Administrators. According to the Department of Education, the reported 11,000 teacher openings is not an accurate measure of the shortage. Instead, the actual number tends to vary, with early January reporting roughly 1,500 openings. Despite the average age for retirement increasing by five years for teachers and more education pathways for university students, Kentucky is still experiencing a 20% teacher turnover rate. In response, school districts are having to hire more unqualified teachers and issue emergency certifications. In the meeting, the root of the teacher shortage issue has been narrowed to disputes over teacher salary, growing misbehavior among students, and woke ideology, such as pronoun usage, entering the classroom
PROTECTING STUDENT ATHLETES. After hearing mixed reports on the protocol for who can use which locker room in our public schools, representatives from several districts across the state worked to file HB 30. HB 30 would mandate that students born male use only those facilities designated to be used by males and students born female to use only those facilities designated to be used by females. This measure also establishes guidelines for schools to provide accommodation for students who are persistent in the idea that their gender is different from what they were born as.
PRESERVING PRIVATE PROPERTY. HB 144 was filed this week, which mandates law enforcement utilize body-worn cameras as well as audio recording devices while they are on private open land. This will prevent any harm to land or property and will enforce transparency in law enforcement.
The impeachment of a commonwealth’s attorney: As you have probably heard by now, there was a petition for impeachment filed against a commonwealth’s attorney from the central-east portion of the state. The legislature has a duty outlined by section 66 and 68 of the Kentucky Constitution to maintain the integrity of the offices our elected officials hold; this includes the responsibility of removing bad actors from office.
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY. Celebrating Black history in the commonwealth: Across the nation, February is recognized as Black History month. To celebrate this, we take a moment each day on the House floor to hear an oral history about one of many famous Black Kentuckians who made a difference in the commonwealth. From Garret Morgan to Muhammad Ali, the commonwealth is rich with African American citizens who have made Kentucky a better place.
As always, I can be reached here at home anytime, or through the toll-free message line in Frankfort at 1-800-372-7181. Feel free to contact me via email at Candy.Massaroni@lrc.ky.gov. If you would like more information, please visit the LRC website www.legislature.ky.gov.
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