Senate President Robert Stivers

Kentucky General Assembly Nears End. What Passed, What's Left and What's Left for Dead.

Kenny Colston — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 19:10:18 +0000

Kentucky legislators have returned home for the next 12 days after passing a flurry of bills in the recent days of the 2013 General Assembly session.

But many big issues still remain on the table and lawmakers will have two days left—March 25 and 26—to hammer out any remaining issues, including pensions and military voting bills.

Kentucky Legislators to Keep Working on Military Voting, Pension Reform After Adjourning Tuesday

Kenny Colston — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 03:16:40 +0000

FRANKFORT — Two priorities of Kentucky lawmakers will spill over to the so-called veto period of the 2013 legislative sessions after the issues could not be resolved by the end of Tuesday.

Legislators were unable to compromise on pension reform and the military electronic voting bill before both legislative chambers adjourned until March 25.

Kentucky Lawmakers Change Schedule in Hopes of Avoiding Special Session

Kenny Colston — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 05:21:00 +0000

Kentucky House and Senate leaders have changed the schedule of this year's legislative session to avoid a special session.

A potential—and costly—special session has loomed over the General Assembly in recent days, as lawmakers continued work on pension reform. Instead of convening Friday, lawmakers will work on Tuesday, with hopes that talks started Thursday night could lead to an agreement on pension reform by then.

House Speaker Greg Stumbo says those talks have included the Governor and Senate leaders.

Beshear Signs Pill Mill Fix Legislation

Kenny Colston — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:18:04 +0000

Gov. Steve Beshear signed on Tuesday legislation aimed at "fixing" 2012's crackdown on pill mills.

The so-called pill mill fix bill, House Bill 217, exempts hospitals and long term care facilities from constantly running prescribing reports on patients in their care.

Kentucky Pension Bills in 'Legislative Purgatory' as Both Chambers Argue Over Procedure

Kenny Colston — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 16:25:22 +0000

FRANKFORT — Arguments over how to reform and pay for Kentucky's underfunded pension systems have devolved into legislative chaos.

Both the Kentucky House and the Senate are refusing bills addressing pensions, citing legal or procedural reasons. And leading legislators are blaming each other.

The 2013 session has eight working days remaining, but doesn't officially close until March 26 to allow time for vetoes and overrides.

House Speaker Greg Stumbo says the Senate's actions are killing the issue.

Pension Fixes in Limbo As Leaders Argue Over Approaches

Kenny Colston and Rae Hodge — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 23:00:54 +0000

A House bill aiming to help generate revenues for the underfunded pension system is in legal limbo as the Senate refused to accept the bill.

House Bill 416 takes revenues from expansion of Instant Racing and online lottery sales and the start of a Keno game to generate close to $100 million a year to pay into state's currently underfunded pensions for state employees.

Senate Passes Bill To Shut Down Legislative Pension System

Rae Hodge — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 23:39:04 +0000

Legislative pension reform is moving forward in the Kentucky General Assembly.

The Kentucky state Senate passed Senate Bill 7 today, which would prevent future members of the General Assembly from participating in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System unless they participated in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System as a member of the General Assembly prior to July 1, 2013.

House Passes Two Pension Bills But Controversy Over Vote Looms

Kenny Colston — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 23:16:30 +0000

The House has narrowly passed two bills dealing with the state's underfunded pension system, but not without controversy.

The House passed an amended version of Senate Bill 2, which keeps the pension systems as a defined benefit and creates a new oversight panel for Kentucky's many pension plans. It passed on party lines 55-45, with Democrats favoring.

Kentucky Senate Approves Electronic Voting Bill That Requires Snail Mail Returns

Rae Hodge — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 23:26:15 +0000

The state Senate has passed a bill that allows Kentucky military personnel to register to vote and receive ballots electronically—but they'll have to use snail mail to send the ballots back.

Senate President Robert Stivers would allow deployed citizens to register to vote and receive their ballots electronically.

United Kentucky Tea Party Accuses Mitch McConnell of Delaying Military Voting Bill

Phillip M. Bailey — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 13:30:00 +0000

United Kentucky Tea Party is blaming Republican U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell for stalling a bill in the General Assembly that would have allowed Kentucky's military service members to vote electronically while overseas.

The legislation was spearheaded by Democratic Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes and backed by Republican state Senate President Robert Stivers.

In January, Stivers told WFPL Frankfort Bureau Chief Kenny Colston he wanted the bill to pass quickly. But at a committee meeting this week, Stivers urged an amendment that weakened the measure.

From The Lexington Herald-Leader:

After the committee unanimously approved the amended version of Senate Bill 1, Stivers acknowledged that he had consulted with U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell about the measure. McConnell, a Republican, is seeking re-election next year. Many Democrats are urging Grimes to run against him.