February District 36 Newsletter: First bills pass, state budget, priority bills, road budget.

District 36 Newsletter

February 2024

Hello John ,

Happy Groundhog Day!

After 9 months of work with 6 other Jefferson County legislators and dozens of others, the Safer Kentucky Act HB5 passed the House with a bipartisan 74-22 vote, after vigorous debate and a lot of news coverage. This is probably the most significant KY anti-crime bill in decades, and will have a major impact if the Senate passes what we passed in the House.

Short version: we are going to get violent criminals off our streets.

Longer version: read a summary of the many provisions here.

I was glad to get HB43 passed 93-0, which requires Fire Districts to notify homeowners and local elected officials before downgrading fire protection services in a way that impact insurance rates. This is in response to the unpleasant surprise some of us got last year when insurance companies discovered the Fisherville fire truck had been removed. (The problem was corrected in July). This will also have to pass the Senate.

Up for Committee Hearings this month are:

Electronic Privacy Bill HB45, watch the WDRB news coverage
Voter roll cleanup HB44
Post-election "eyeball" audits HB53
I also co- sponsored a number of other measures to shrink government, reduce regulation, safeguard our liberty, and protect us from intrusive leftist ideology. See the list
This is a Budget year, so I will be representing District 36 in that negotiation. We passed a preliminary Budget bill in the house, but there are many more weeks of negotiation ahead with the Senate.
Good news: KY Constitution requires a Balanced Budget, (unlike the US Congress), so our revenues will equal or exceed expenses.
We will keep about 60 days worth of State expenses in the bank as a budget reserve, because "stuff happens" - floods, tornadoes, market downturns, etc.
Pension funds are getting massive infusions of cash, but we are only 6 years into catching up from 30 years of fiscal mismanagement. Long way to go!
Click here for a Budget 101 explanation.
Other priority House bills will include a School Choice Constitutional Amendment HB2, and a HB9 to end discriminatory "DEI" policies at public colleges.

District 36 Road & Traffic Plans

Major projects are underway at KY155, I265 and I64, and Old Henry road, with detours often.

It is Pothole Season! Help Louisville Metro find them all by reporting online! NOTE: Hot asphalt plants do not open until April, so the "cold patches" you see being applied to potholes now will all have to be replaced in 2 months with more permanent repairs. If asphalt is applied at less than about 185 degrees it does not stick.

Road Budget Planning Time! As shown above, I just got the first proposed draft of the Road Plan, which is 4" thick. Much negotiation required before we vote on a final version!

Every 2 years, the Legislature updates the Road budget for the state.

All of our local projects that are "moving dirt" now will be completed in the current budget -

I265/64 interchange
KY155 bridge widening
Old Henry extension and widening
Billtown Road improvements

The priority for District 36 projects in the next budget cycle:
Gilliland Rd intersection at US 60
KY 155 widening from I265 to Fisherville
Johnson Road plan for reconstruction
US 60 widening to 6 lanes in Middletown
KY 155 widening from Fisherville to Spencer Co
KY 1819/Billtown Rd reconstruction
Eastwood-Fisherville I64 exit & Connector road study
I 265 pavement improvements
KY 1819 pavement improvements
Plantside Dr/Rehl Rd Extension to Taylorsville Rd
KY1819/Watterson Trail reconstruction

Updating the Road Plan is a complicated and competitive process, as there are 99 other Legislators like me who are seeking the limited project funds for the next 2 years. Click here for an explanation of the process.

Bottom Line: I will be making sure that District 36 competes effectively for scarce road funds in the Budget Planning process over the next few months. Community involvement is important. I welcome any feedback or information you have on road needs. It is a slow and painful process, usually taking 8+ years from identification of a need to final completion.

Constitutional Minute

Constitution Guarantees States Secure Borders, but...

US Constitution, Article 4, Section 4:

"The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion"

Article 1 Section 10:

"No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.;"

The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, trumping all federal statutes and executive orders. There is a bit of a Constitutional crisis brewing in Texas, where the US Government has failed to live up to Article 4, Section 4, and the Texas Governor has invoked Article 1, Section 10. Read the Texas Governor's statement here. More than half of the States are supporting Texas' right to defend itself from invasion, including a resolution by the KY Legislature HR57. This potentially puts US troops and Texas troops in direct opposition to each other, which has not happened since the 1860s. Buckle up, this may be a bumpy ride!

Legislative Update

Notable Bills that have passed the House so far (all must still go to the Senate):

HB 18 - Gives landlords the right to decide whether or not they want to accept a tenant with Federal Section 8 funds for rent, vs city ordinances requiring them to do so. Passed 74-20

House Bill 96 – This bill would require a moment of silence of at least 30 seconds at the beginning of the school day at public K-12 public schools. It passed by a 79-17 vote. I co-sponsored.

House Bill 87 – This legislation would allow the child, grandchild or sibling the right to inspect adoption papers and records upon the death or the adoptee or both birth parents. The bill passed by a 92-1 vote.

House Bill 19 – Also known as the “slow down and move over law,” would require drivers on Kentucky highways to slow down and change lanes when passing a vehicle in distress or emergency vehicle that is stopped. The House approved the legislation unanimously.

House Bill 30 – This bill would establish the Kentucky Service Members, Veterans and their Families Suicide Prevention Program. The bill passed unanimously.

House Bill 179 – This legislation would allow – not mandate – Kentucky employers to offer paid family leave insurance to employees. The bill advanced from the House floor by a 92-1 vote.

As bills get voted on, I will update you here monthly. Look to my social media pages for frequent updates on new bills I am involved with.

My 4 Committee assignments are:

Elections & Constitutional Amendments
State Government
Transportation
Information Technology Oversight Committee (House Co-Chair)

Watch live internet video of the session and committees on this KET link.

I welcome your input and perspective on legislative issues (online form here).

My office number is 351D in the Capitol Annex.

Office phone is 502-564-8100.

State email is John.Hodgson@lrc.ky.gov

I will do my best to answer your questions and consider your input on District 36 issues if you would like to contact me.

Let's protect faith, family, and freedom in KY - Liberty is a team sport!

Political Happenings in Dist 36

New Cities in Jefferson County?

House Bill 314 from 2022 gave groups of over 6000 people the right to petition to establish new cities inside Jefferson County, if a supermajority of voting residents will agree and sign a petition.

County residents outside the "Urban Services District" (2/3rds of the population) got a poor deal with the Metro Merger 20 years ago, and they currently pay 80% of the taxes to support Metro, while receiving less than half the tax expenditures in their neighborhoods.

Several groups have formed in east and south Jefferson to look at incorporating new cities. The new cities would have the ability to hire their own police, manage planning and zoning, and provide citizens services they lack currently like garbage pickup and snow plowing. Nothing is free, so these cities would have to tax residents just like Jtown and Middletown do now. Organizers say that the financial tradeoff is cost effective for most people, who have to pay for those extra services privately now.

In our District, "City of Eastwood" is the proposal, and Bob Federico is leading the effort.

It will be 100% up to the voters inside the proposed area. I personally do not live in the proposed area, but I am very supportive of people being able to govern themselves in a new city if they so choose.

Boundaries are being finalized, but basically the area from the Gene Snyder east to the County Line, excluding Lake Forest, and south to Taylorsville road. More details on website below.

Learn more at the website: https://cityofeastwood.com/

Watch the documentary on WHAS about the plan.

Read a CJ article on the subject.

Be informed! Get involved in self governance! You may get a neighbor at your door with a petition soon.

Last Notes and Resources

Too busy to read? Listen to my legislative preview here.

School Group Touring the Capitol? See my intro video here.

Archived Recent Newsletters:

Jan 2024 - Priority bills, road budget, 2024 preview

Dec 2023 - Road budget priorities, 2024 Session preview, election recap

Nov 2023 - I64 project,, State Gov Committee bills, election preview

Oct 2023 - Crime bill, Billtown Road project, VMAP Committee bills passed