Wrapping Up
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With no way to overturn vetoes by the governor after Friday, GOP majority lawmakers can't count on getting any controversial new laws on the books, But Day 30 does offer a chance for legislators to score political points if they choose.
"Sometimes the party in power can pass legislation they're not 100% behind knowing that the governor will veto it. And then they can say to their constituents, yeah, we passed this bill and that governor, he vetoed it," Laura Cullen Glasscock with the Kentucky Gazette explains.
But the final day also leaves time for approval of bills more likely to receive the blessing of Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.
Take one item that was on the Senate's to do list today — House Bill 664, initiating a pilot program for automated speed enforcement cameras in highway work zones. Civil citations would be issued to drivers traveling more than 10 miles per hour over the posted speed limit when a road worker is present.
Thursday, lawmakers overrode virtually all of Beshear's vetoes, lifting a ban on so called conversion therapy, preventing transgender Kentuckians from receiving gender transition treatment through Medicaid, reinstituting proposed Medicaid work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents, and reinstating language eliminating DEI programs at public colleges and universities.
The legislature must wrap up its business by midnight tonight.
Reacting to Washington
At the start of this year's session in January, Senate President Robert Stivers said the legislature may have to be reactive when it comes to rapid changes coming down from Washington. At the time, he said Trump administration moves could affect any number of areas from state transportation dollars to education to Medicaid.
Friday, Stivers told reporters he's hearing that policies that could necessitate state-level responses won't likely go into effect until next year.
"What we have been told is that they probably won't do anything that would have immediate implementation. So if (they) do that, it would be next year and we would be able to react to it," Stivers said. "So if you're thinking about some of the policies — and I don't know what they are — they probably wouldn't seek implementation until 2026, so states could be aware of them and know what they needed to do."
It's a far cry from the drumbeat of dire warnings from Democrats who worry the impact of mass federal firings, threatened cuts to Medicaid, and tariffs could hit Kentucky hard — in areas ranging from bourbon exports to potential disease outbreaks.
"If bird flu suddenly starts, transmitting from person to person, we are going to have a major problem in the United States that we're going to have to address," Beshear gave an example. "And laying off significant health care officials during this or during the measles is a really bad idea."
Barring a special legislative session, Kentucky lawmakers won't be able to send any new bills to the governor until January of 2026.