Madison Flory

• SB 1 was signed by the Governor on April 4. This bill establishes an endowed research fund to fund up to five research consortiums between two or more public universities, including the Kentucky Spinal Cord and Head Injury Research Trust. 

• SJR 132, directing the Council on Postsecondary Education to study on the feasibility of transforming the Hazard Community and Technical College into a four-year residential university, was passed by the House 95-0 on April 12 and signed by the Governor on April 16.

• HB 162, the "Kentucky Numeracy Counts Act", was signed by the Governor on April 19. This bill helps to strengthen math instruction and intervention by universal screening and increased teacher training. 

• HB 169, which requires local boards of education to maintain portable automated external defibrillators in all school buildings, was signed by the Governor on April 18. 

• SB 191 was signed by the Governor on April 17. This bill changes the way postsecondary schools are funded in order to focus more on student success outcomes and nontraditional aged students.

• HB 377, a bill that establishes the Teacher Recruitment Student Loan Forgiveness Pilot Program and the Student Teacher Stipend Program, was signed by the Governor on April 9. 

• HB 378, the bill to correct the geological designations of Kentucky's state rock, mineral, and gemstone, was signed by the Governor on April 4. 

• HB 130, a bill that establishes the procedures for discontinuing inactive watershed conservancy district boards, was signed by the Governor on April 4. 

• The Governor's veto of HB 136 was overruled on April 12 by votes of 77-20 and 26-6 in the House and Senate, respectively. This bill prevents air pollution control facilities in Louisville from penalizing facilities that self-disclose violations of federal pollution regulations.

• SJR 140, a bill directing the Public Service Commission to review nuclear energy regulations, was signed by the Governor on April 4. 

• SJR 149 was signed by the Governor on April 5. This bill directs the Energy and Environment Cabinet to provide guidance on PFAS to groups that discharge into Kentucky's waterways. 

• The General Assembly overruled the Governor's veto of SB 198 on April 12 by votes of 30-7 and 80-16. This bill establishes the Kentucky Nuclear Energy Development Authority to work to develop nuclear technologies in the Commonwealth. The Governor, while supportive of nuclear energy development, opposed the bill due to its executive agency governing authority with no executive branch appointments on the board.

• The Governor's veto of SB 349 was overruled on April 12 via a Senate vote of 27-11 and a House vote of 61-36. This bill establishes the Energy Planning and Inventory Commission and tasks it with reviewing the decommissioning of existing coal, oil, and natural gas-powered electric generating plants. 

• HB 122 was signed by the Governor on April 17. This bill, although not one that KAS was originally following, received an amendment on April 15 that contained the substance of HB 398, a bill that KAS has been following. This amendment excludes electric vehicle charging stations with capacities of less than 50 kilowatts from the electric vehicle power tax.

• Similarly to HB 122, KAS had not been tracking SB 74. HB 10, the "Momnibus" bill, was added as an amendment to SB 74 on April 15. The bill was passed 91-1 by the House and 29-5-2 by the Senate before being signed by the Governor on April 18. 

• HB 155, a bill prohibiting cost-sharing for breast examinations, was signed by the Governor on April 5. 

• HB 166 was signed by the Governor on April 5. This bill encourages health care providers to provide information on sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. 

• HB 323, a bill establishing a reimbursement program for firefighters' cancer screenings, was signed by the Governor on April 9. 

• On April 12, the House and Senate overruled both of the Governor's line item vetoes in HB 1, the appropriations bill from the state's budget reserve. 

• The House and Senate overruled many of the Governor's veto items in HB 6, the state budget. The votes to override were 72-27 in the House and 31-6 in the Senate. All items were overruled with the exception of vetoes related to Coal Mine Reclamation Sites, due in part to a lack of funding for the initiative.