Sen. Higdon’s week 8 Legislative update

First, I want to share that the Mama Jo Nuckols 22nd Annual Prayer Breakfast will occur at 8 a.m. EST Saturday, March 16, at Lebanon Methodist Church, 236 N. Spalding Ave., Lebanon, KY. The prayer service will begin at 9 a.m. EST. Brother Bob Russell will be a guest speaker. Miss Josephine started the prayer breakfast in January 2003 to pray for all elected officials, our community, state, and country. I hope you can attend this years' service. Please help us know the number of attendees by RSVPing through this link: lnkiy.in/MamaJoPrayerBreakfast.

After a long weekend dedicated to observing Presidents' Day, the Kentucky General Assembly returned to Frankfort on Tuesday. The deadline for bill filings is approaching, so all proposals for consideration in Frankfort will be known by the close of next week.

Bills passed by the Senate then move to the House for further consideration. If approved, they are delivered to the Governor's desk to be signed, vetoed, or left to become law without a signature. Bills passed this week include:

Senate Bill (SB 91), which I was proud to sponsor and carry to passage, would streamline Kentucky driver's licensing services by mandating the establishment of at least one regional office in each senatorial district by July 1, 2025. The bill would allow county clerks to choose to provide operator's licenses or personal ID cards. It would also permit third-party entities to issue licenses, with associated costs and a potential convenience fee. Additionally, the bill would initiate a Kentucky State Police pilot project for skills testing in five counties without a regional office. The pilot program would operate from Sept. 1, 2024, to June 30, 2026.

I've heard from many constituents, especially here in the 14th Senate District, about how challenging it is to travel to wherever their nearest regional office is. Employees must miss time from work and students' time from school when they take their skills test. This bill is another effort to ease access to these services. I strongly fought to get features like mail-in license renewals and for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to host traveling services to counties without regional offices.

SB 107, which I also sponsored, would address various transportation issues, including restricting semi-trucks from the left lane except in certain conditions, streamlining commercial vehicle registration, enforcing towing regulations, adding organ donation information to driver education, and allowing for administrative regulations on over-wide and over-dimensional permits.

SB 14 would address Kentucky Cosmetology Board issues and remove barriers for nail technicians. The legislation would mandate a warning notice before an immediate salon shutdown unless there's an immediate public health threat. It would require detailed violation descriptions and specific remedies in the notice. SB 14 would also mandate administrative hearings post-emergency order for salons to resume operations. Additionally, the bill would add two new board members—an esthetician and a nail technician.

SB 45, if enacted, would establish the Kentucky Ashanti Alert System to promptly alert the public when a missing adult is believed to be in immediate danger of abduction or kidnapping. Developed by the Kentucky State Police (KSP), it would utilize existing resources like electronic highway signs and the Amber Alert System. The system would encourage law enforcement cooperation, operate within existing budgets, and activate based on KSP's assessment for public safety and secure recovery.

SB 48 would increase the time in which two separate offenses of theft by unlawful taking must occur for the offenses to be combined and the value of the property aggregated to determine the appropriate charge.

SB 65 would nullify administrative regulations found deficient by the Administrative Regulations Review Committee in 2023. It would prevent any administrative body from creating similar regulations until 2025.

SB 74 would establish a state maternal fatality review team to enhance the monitoring of child and maternal fatalities. It would define the team's jurisdiction and require cooperation with an external child fatality review panel. Additionally, it would direct the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to publish an annual report on hospital delivery procedures starting Dec. 1.

SB 89 would mandate the Department for Medicaid Services and any managed care organization contracted for Medicaid services to offer coverage provided by licensed certified professional midwives. The aim would be to ensure that certified professional midwifery services are included in the scope of Medicaid coverage and allow for the pursuit of federal approval when required. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services or the Department for Medicaid Services must seek federal approval if they determine it necessary to implement this coverage.

SB 126 would propose amending the Constitution of Kentucky to limit a governor's ability to issue pardons or sentence commutations before an election. The aim would be to enhance accountability and prevent potential misuse of executive power during sensitive political periods. If passed by the House with the approved three-fifths majority, it would move to a future general election ballot.

SB 131 addresses the tricky business of manipulated content through the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI). This includes altered videos or audio in political messages during elections. The measure aims to ensure more honest and fair elections. It would allow for a candidate whose appearance, action, or speech is distorted through altered media in an electioneering communication to seek legal action and damages, developers and owners of the software, and the individual or entity responsible for creating the content. The bill defines electioneering communication as any communication broadcast, mail piece, or telephone call that refers to any candidate for any state, county, city, district office, or ballot measure. It also defines synthetic media as an image, audio or video recording of an individual's appearance, action, or speech intentionally altered with AI software and bars its use in electioneering without disclosure.

SB 140, addressing COVID-19-related unemployment insurance benefit overpayments (Jan. 27, 2020 through Dec. 31, 2020), would require the Secretary of Education and Labor Cabinet to send new notices by July 1, giving recipients an additional chance to request a waiver. Recipients would have one year from the notice to request a waiver, ensuring a hearing. The bill would allow reimbursement if recipients prove entitlement to the waiver based on specified statute standards.

SB 162 would facilitate access to vehicle history and accident reports for consumers considering purchasing a vehicle. The bill would allow law enforcement agencies to retain and provide these reports to interested parties, enhancing transparency and consumer confidence in the used car market.

SB 163 would permit local authorities to opt for cremation as a cost-saving measure for unclaimed deceased individuals under their care. The bill would offer flexibility to manage such situations efficiently while potentially reducing financial burdens on local governments.

SB 191 would make minor adjustments to Kentucky's public postsecondary education system's performance-based funding model. The bill would redefine non-traditional age students as individuals aged 25 to 64. The aim would be to narrow achievement gaps by enhancing credential and degree attainment in this demographic. Proposed changes include revising funding percentages for public universities, introducing a weighted premium for credentials aligned with the state's economic needs in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) funding formula, and incorporating nontraditional-age students into outcomes credit. The Council on Postsecondary Education would be directed to implement these changes by April 1, with an emergency declaration for immediate enactment upon filing with the Kentucky Secretary of State's Office.