FRANKFORT, Ky. — Call it a Cinderella story. Not because it’s in anyway glamorous, but because they have to pack up their things and go at midnight. Thursday, March 28 is the last day of the 2019 legislative session in Kentucky. They officially start at noon, so they have twelve hours to accomplish anything still on their to-do list for the year.
On this final day, the legislature can both pass bills and try to override vetoes from the governor. Governor Bevin’s veto on House Bill 4 is going to be one to watch for a possible override. The aim of HB 4 is to give legislators more oversight on the regulation-making process. Bevin called it a “solution for a problem that doesn’t exist.”
As far as bills go, all eyes are going to be on teachers, and retirement. This has been the source of a lot of debate in Frankfort and across the state. Governor Bevin told us he doesn’t know what’s going to happen, but there has been constructive conversation behind the scenes.
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“There's been a lot of dialogue,” Governor Bevin said. “A lot of meetings between house and senate leadership; between their offices and my office; between people up and down and around the whole spectrum as far as it relates to a variety of things. The pension not being least among those. Tax clean up not being least among those.”
If the legislators pass any new bills on the last day of session, Governor Bevin has the same decision to make: whether or not to give him his signature. If he does nothing, they automatically become law after 10 days.
And then, the Legislature says “see ya later” until next year. Unless, of course, Bevin calls another special session.
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Contact reporter Rob Harris at rjharris@whas11.com. Follow him on Twitter (@robharristv) and Facebook.