John Hodgson

State Representative

District 36 Newsletter

May 2024

Hello John ,

I hope everyone had a great Derby Festival! What a beautiful and fun couple of weeks showcasing KY! I asked my horse advisor to whisper some insider tips to me before the big race ==>

The long session is over now, and we wrapped up by overriding the governor's vetoes on 23 of 24 bills.

The Budget bills and the Road Plan were extremely good for District 36 and the Louisville area in general; it is the best I have seen in decades. Here is a summary listing of all the budget items.

I was able to get 4 bills across the finish line, and they are now law:

• Safer Kentucky Act HB5 - I am a primary co-sponsor along with 6 others
• HB43 passed 93-0: requires Fire Districts to notify homeowners and local elected officials before downgrading fire protection services in a way that impacts insurance rates.
• Voter roll cleanup Bill HB44 passed 75-17watch video here.
• Post-election "eyeball" audits HB53 passed 87-8 watch video here.

One of my best bills did not make it out of the Senate, unfortunately, and I think we will regret it!! KY did not pass any of the 3 bills limiting the use of Artificial Intelligence, including mine. Watch for the DeepFakes that will proliferate in the 2024 election.

• Electronic Privacy Bill HB45, passed the House 96-0, watch video here.
• Watch the WDRB news coverage of the bill

I will bring it back up this summer at interim Joint Committee time.

Got ideas for what laws we need to address over the Interim Session? Contact me!

District 36 Road & Traffic Plans

Billtown Road Project starting!

Once work is fully underway, daily lane closures are possible from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. as construction progresses. Flynn Brothers Contracting, Inc., was awarded a $5.1 million contract for the work. The project is anticipated to be complete by the summer of 2025.

Project Information can be found online at https://transportation.ky.gov/DistrictFive/Pages/KY-1819-Billtown-Road-Reconstruction---Project-05-8203.aspx.

• Add a two-way, left-turn lane from Easum Road through Mary Dell Lane, transitioning into dedicated left-turn lanes approaching intersections.
• Add left-turn lane from southbound Billtown Road to Easum Road.
• Add left-turn lane from northbound Billtown Road to Lovers Lane.
• Add right-turn lane from southbound Billtown Road to Lovers Lane.
• Add right-turn lane from Lovers Lane to Billtown Road.
• Add left-turn lane from northbound Billtown Road to Michael Edward Drive.
• Add left-turn lane from northbound Billtown Road to Fairground Road.
• Add right-turn lane from southbound Billtown Road to Fairground Road.
• Add right-turn lane from Fairground Road to southbound Billtown Road.
• Add traffic signal at Billtown Road and Fairground Road intersection.
• Add left-turn lane from southbound Billtown Road to Vintage Creek Drive.
• Add left-turn lane from northbound Billtown Road to Colonnades Place.
• Add right-turn lane from southbound Billtown Road to Colonnades Place.
• Plus sidewalk work, lane widening, signs, etc.

KY Constitution Section 88 Signature of bills by Governor -- Veto -- Passage over veto -- Partial veto.

"Every bill which shall have passed the two Houses shall be presented to the Governor. If he approve, he shall sign it; but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to the House in which it originated, which shall enter the objections in full upon its journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, a majority of all the members elected to that House shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, with the objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be considered, and if approved by a majority of all the members elected to that House, it shall be a law; but in such case the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the members voting for and against the bill shall be entered upon the journal of each House respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the Governor within ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, it shall be a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the General Assembly, by their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall be a law, unless disapproved by him within ten days after the adjournment, in which case his veto message shall be spread upon the register kept by the Secretary of State. The Governor shall have the power to disapprove any part or parts of appropriation bills embracing distinct items, and the part or parts disapproved shall not become a law unless reconsidered and passed, as in case of a bill." - 1891

Summary: KY Governors have 10 work days to veto and return a bill, or it becomes law. Unlike the US President, the KY governor has a "line item veto" on budget items. Overrides take a simple majority (not 2/3rds) vote of both House and Senate.

Here are some highlighted bills regarding Public Safety that have now become law: Look any of them up here, all details, bill language, amendments, and vote history are available for your review. A great resource.

House Bill 7 – This bill regulates autonomous vehicles in the commonwealth. There was some controversy on this, but after 2 years of legislative study and discussion, I think it gives a safe framework for KY to start allowing limited use of commercial autonomous vehicles. I expect they will be used on very defined, repetitive routes, like warehouse to factory, where the lack of human CDL drivers is stifling our economy now, and the shortage is getting worse every year.

House Bill 11 – This legislation brings Kentucky in-line with the FDA’s regulation on vapor nicotine products by prohibiting the sale of certain products and keeping all vapor nicotine products out of the hands of minors. This was an imperfect bill and a hard vote for me, because I don't like government interfering with private business, but I also want to see minors protected from harm. Lawsuits by affected businesses are going to stack up on this bill, so I expect we will have to revisit it next year.

House Bill 100 – This is a bipartisan bill that allows homeless youth who were born in Kentucky to obtain a copy of their birth certificate for free. Seems like a small thing, but lack of birth certificate means no driver's license or ID later, which leads to no job! Kids born in tough circumstances frequently need a hand up to become productive citizens.

House Bill 142 – This bill bans all tobacco, alternative nicotine and vapor products in Kentucky public schools and requires school districts to adopt disciplinary procedures for violators. This is critical, as there are there are many THC enhanced vape products with no detectable "weed smell".

House Bill 194 – This bill makes assaulting any health care worker third-degree assault, which is a class D felony. We heard testimony from health care workers that get terrorized both on the job and in the parking lots coming on and off shift at night. We MUST regain safety in our communities, and these workers are on the front lines of dealing with those who have drug abuse and mental illness problems.

House Bill 258 – Also known as Ethan’s Law, HB 258 makes torture of a cat or dog a Class D felony on the first offense. This bill was very carefully worded to ensure that only those intentionally restraining an animal to torture or abuse it could be charged.

House Bill 278 – Penalties against individuals who sexually abuse, assault or exploit children are strengthened under this bill. This bill also requires age verification for access to websites that distribute or publish pornographic materials. Kids these days are under increased threat of attack from pedophiles, traffickers and abusers, and we must protect them.

House Bill 611 – Chronic absenteeism in public schools is addressed with this bill. School officials are required to file a complaint with the county attorney once a student misses more than 15 days of school unexcused. In Jefferson County the truancy rate has gone through the roof since Covid to 37% - thousands of kids regularly skipping school. We created a Commission to review JCPS in detail, and seek solutions for this and other problems.

Senate Bill 2 – This comprehensive school safety bill allows school districts to employ guardians with basic SRO training. This bill also directs schools to form trauma-informed teams to support students impacted by trauma. Suicide prevention training for students and teachers is also expanded under this bill.

Senate Bill 11 – This bill sets up a process for schools to be notified in a timely manner if a student has been charged with a felony offense or certain misdemeanor offenses.

Senate Bill 20 – This bill seeks to address youth gun violence in the commonwealth. Juveniles charged with A, B and C felonies involving the use of a gun will have their cases transferred to circuit court under this bill. The circuit court could use a reverse waiver to send cases back to district court if the case meets certain criteria.

 I will cover more of the 215 enacted bills in future newsletters. There were nearly 1000 bills that were introduced and not passed - some good, some bad, some will be re-filed.

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.

Last Notes and Resources

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

Archived Recent Newsletters:

April 2024 - Session, budget, road bills

March 2024 - mid-session update, Senate Vacancy bill

Feb 2024 - Session update, road budget, City of Eastwood?

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

Sept 2023 - privacy bill, I64 interchange, Family & Children legislation passed

August 2023 - Road budget process, interim committees, Licensing and Admin Regulation bills

July 2023 - Energy & Environment bills, I64/Gene Snyder project, November election lineup

June 2023 - Primary election, crime legislation update, Billtown Road project

May 2023 - 2023 Education bills, Taylorsville road project, 2024 priorities

April 2023 - 2023 Session recap, 2050 road plan

March 2023 - legislative session, N English Station road project, Taiwan ambassador

February 2023 - Part 2 of Session, Eastwood cutoff project, election law

January 2023 - How to track the Session and bills, new legislation, Eastwood Cutoff project

December 2022 - Election recap, legislative preview, how a bill becomes law

November 2022 - KY highway Plan, election preview

October 2022 - I64 Interchange, Judicial races

September '22 – Eastwood Cutoff project, Constitutional Privacy protection

August '22 – KY 155 / Pope Lick project, Limitations on Government Power

July '22 – First newsletter – our God-given Rights

Hodgson For Kentucky

Address: PO Box 74

Fisherville, KY 40023

Phone: (502) 276-5213

https://hodgson4ky.com/

Social Media:

@Hodgson4KY on X (Twitter)