LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For the first time in decades, Jefferson County could be able to form new cities or expand the territory of existing ones, if a bill being considered by the Kentucky General Assembly becomes law.
Those supporting House Bill 314 said they feel Louisville's Metro government doesn't provide services equally across the city.
"22 years ago, the merger came along and it was good for some places and some things," Douglass Hills Mayor Bonnie Jung said.
Jung said as the merge worked itself out, communities began to realize there were areas of Louisville that weren't receiving the services they felt like they paid for, like public safety.
"Not only has Louisville been an engine for growth, which I will agree it has been to an extent," Sen. Phillip Wheeler, R-Pikeville, said. "It's also been an engine for crime in the Commonwealth of Kentucky due, in my opinion, to a lot of poor leadership and poor decisions which essentially let criminals run wild."
In Louisville, crime has been steadily rising in the past few years. According to Louisville Metro Police data, the department has investigated more than 4,000 homicides and assaults since 2009.
With the shortage of police officers, some said they feel LMPD doesn't have the manpower to respond to calls throughout the entire county.
"Why should Fern Creek or Valley Station have to beg Metro Council to do something that they should already be doing?" Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, said to a Senate committee Wednesday.
"They are not policing our areas," Nemes said. "If you see an LMPD officer in my neck of the woods, you have seen a unicorn"
Though Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said passing HB314 would unwind the progress Metro government has allowed Louisville to make and could seriously impact the Metro's tax revenue.
"Beyond the confusion and frustration for businesses looking to locate or grow in Louisville, it potentially could leave a $50 million hole in revenue to cover all the services that every resident of Louisville relies on," Fischer said before a Senate committee on Wednesday.
The mayor said current law already allows for areas within the Metro to apply to create service districts. Metro Councilmember Bill Hollander said Wednesday those districts would allow areas to contract for police services.
"Service districts can provide the services that people want without taking insurance premium taxes and other revenue from Louisville Metro, revenue we use for a variety of countywide services," Fischer said. "Services like corrections and the health department and our free Louisville Public Library and many more."
According to Metro Council, service districts can "include any service that may be provided by Metro Government, including more than one type of service."
HB314 passed out of a senate committee on a party-line vote. It now heads to the full Senate for consideration.
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