Higdon: General Assembly convenes; budget, road plan top legislative priority
By JIMMY HIGDON
14th District State Senator
Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024 — As we convene the 2024 regular session, I would like first to wish you a happy new year. I hope your holidays were filled with joy and laughter while spending quality time with family and friends.
The Senate convened for day one of the 2024 Legislative Session on Tuesday, January 2, with incredible renditions of our national anthem and “My Old Kentucky Home” by the 100th Army Band, Fort Knox. I am happy to say Ms. Kaitlyn McCroskey of Lebanon, and junior at Marion County High School, will serve as a Constitutional Page with me in the Senate this year. She is a bright young lady with a great future ahead of her. She is a First Lieutenant with the MCHS JROTC.
Legislative sessions in even-numbered years are budget sessions, consisting of 60 legislative days, unlike the shorter 30-day session in odd-numbered years. Short session years are intended to evaluate previously enacted policies and address any necessary legislative clean-up. As the Constitution of Kentucky outlines, the General Assembly must gavel into session on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in January and requires lawmakers to conclude legislative business on April 15.
The primary focus in the Senate on Week 1 was to confirm committee assignments and introduce initial legislation. The only two items constitutionally required by the General Assembly in this year’s legislative session are to enact a new two-year state budget and road plan.
As Senate Transportation Chair, I am chair of the Senate’s efforts on the next two-year road plan, including allocating tax dollars to improve our roads, bridges highways and support needed infrastructure projects. My primary goals will be to respect the taxpayer funding entrusted to us in Frankfort and utilize those funds in a disciplined manner that prioritizes essential areas of improvement. In some cases, that includes repaving work nearly two decades overdue. I’ll also advocate for our 14th Senate District counties, including Marion, Nelson, Spencer and Washington Counties.
Throughout the legislative process, I’ll work closely with state Rep. Candy Massaroni, who represents Nelson County; Rep. Brandon Reed, who represents LaRue County; Rep. Michael ‘Sarge’ Pollock, who represents Marion County; Rep. James Allen Tipton, who represents Spencer County; and Rep. Kim King; who represents Washington County.
The Kentucky Constitution vests the exclusive power and duty to tax and spend the public’s money to the General Assembly. Our state constitution requires balanced spending with available financial resources, which is good. While the federal government can borrow and incur trillions of dollars in debt, this is not an option for our state government.
The total amount of taxpayer funding for the next two-year budget and road plan will be based on what was recently set by the Consensus Forecasting Group. According to this group of economic experts’ best estimates, total general fund revenues—which result from sales, income and other taxes—are approximately $31.6 billion over the 2025-2026 biennium, with road fund revenues resulting from gas and motor vehicle taxes being roughly $3.7 billion. The state budget provides for state government operations and essential government services, and the road plans provide for investments in our roads, bridges, and highways.
The state Senate will have the final crack at proposing a state budget and road plan. Our fingerprint will not be applied to the document until a proposal is passed out of the state House of Representatives. I will keep you updated throughout this critical process and will remain an advocate for our district.
On January 1, the second automatic reduction of our state income tax went into effect. House Bill (HB) 8 from the 2022 Legislative Session established the framework by which working Kentuckians’ income tax could be decreased responsibly. During the 2023 Legislative Session, the General Assembly passed HB 1 and codified the first two tax reductions after HB 8’s criteria were met. The January 1 income tax reduction lowers your income tax rate from 4.5 percent to 4 percent. By the end of 2024, HB 8 and the resulting individual income tax reductions will have resulted in approximately $1.8 billion left in the pockets of taxpayers and consumers, providing you more of your own money to spend as you wish.
While the state budget and road plan will be our primary responsibility this session, there are many vital policy items to take care of. Whether mundane or headline-worthy, each proposed measure will receive the debate and deliberation required by the legislative process.
In closing, I want to let you know a new specialty plate honoring prisoners of war (POW) or those missing in action (MIA) is now available at drive.ky.gov. The initial cost is $44; if you want it personalized, the additional cost is $25. Ten dollars of revenues from initial and renewal fees benefit the Kentucky Veteran’s Program Trust Fund, which directs funding to projects and programs that help our veterans when other funds are unavailable. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet requires 500 yearly registrations for a specialty plate to keep one in production, so consider the POW-MIA plate for your vehicle because it serves a great purpose.
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 or any other public policy issues, please call my office toll-free at 502-564-8100 or the legislative message line at 1-800-372-7181. You can also reach me at 270-692-6945 (home) or email Jimmy.Higdon@LRC.ky.gov.
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