Priority bills move through the House as Senate takes hold of the budget

As we make our way into March, the Kentucky General Assembly is in full swing, with the Senate now in possession of a rough draft of the state budget and priority bills moving through the House.

When it comes to the budget, Representative Walker Thomas says it’s still has a long way to go, but it eliminated the employer cap on health insurance coverage and added money for employee raises and seek funding for schools.

The budget is now in the hands of the Senate, which includes Senator Craig Richardson, and he says he’ll be pretty focused on that for a while. But he was excited about the passage of House Bill 1, which passed the Senate and now heads to the governor for a signature.

He says this makes it so Kentucky has opted into a federal tax credit program where individuals can choose to grant dollars to a non-profit that will distribute those funds to schools and students.

Richardson reiterated that this money can be used for both private and public schools, without using state dollars—which he calls a win-win.

Representative Myron Dossett spoke on House Bill 2, which changes some of the language regarding Medicaid in the Commonwealth. He says it’s not about targeting those who use Medicaid—their hope is find any fraud at any level, including administrative, and make sure the state is getting their bang for their buck.

Legislators return to Frankfort today, with plenty to work on, including a Transportation Budget.