Several times over the past few weeks I have had constituents ask about the two constitutional amendments on the ballot in this November’s General Election. I thought I might use this space to explain what they would mean for our commonwealth if voters choose to approve them.
But first, why amend the Kentucky constitution in the first place? Well, the document itself was adopted in 1891. While it certainly includes provisions that are timeless, there are sections that need to be updated. In fact, Kentucky voters have approved 42 constitutional amendments over the past 133 years. For example, it was amended in 1975 to restructure the court system; in 1992 to reform the executive branch and change the succession order; and in 2002 to create family courts.
You may remember that voters approved an amendment in 2000 that allows the legislature to conduct regular business in odd-years. Prior to that, the constitution limited odd-year sessions to administrative business like electing leadership and assigning committees. Well, experience provides the best education and among the many things we learned from the Covid pandemic and the state’s response to it is that the legislature must have more scheduling flexibility.
Proposed constitutional amendment number one (CA #1) would amend the Kentucky Constitution to provide the legislative branch more flexibility to address emergencies. The first thing it accomplishes is removing a requirement that the General Assembly adjourn by March 30 in odd years and April 15 in even years.
If approved by voters, it would allow the legislature to use the same number of days currently allowed, but move them around to provide time to give proper attention and receive adequate input. If necessary, the session calendar could be extended to finish business if 3/5 of all legislators agree to do so. Also, the amendment would allow the Speaker of the House and the Senate President to convene the General Assembly for up to 12 additional days to deal with emergencies and other timely matters.
The legislature was two thirds into the 2020 Regular Session when the first case of Covid was diagnosed in Kentucky. Immediately the body recessed to begin gathering the information necessary to help Kentuckians and the state prepare for the virus.
After several days, the House and Senate reconvened and passed an updated budget, as well as legislation aimed at helping businesses, medical providers, and individuals. However, the state constitution requires the legislature to adjourn by April 15, so that left one person to determine the state’s response. This is clearly not what our founders intended and the result was an entire branch of state government that could not act while another adopted inconsistent, ineffective policies that shut down churches, small business, schools, and medical care.
Since the legislature was not in session, lawmakers were limited in what they could do to ensure these policies were necessary and that the state’s resources were being used appropriately.
Of course an emergency like the pandemic is rare and the administration’s response was the worst case scenario to date. However, in the past year alone our state has faced two major disasters and the nation faces a major recession, threats to our energy supply, and other challenges that require legislative leadership.
I also thought it might be helpful to share some answers to the questions I am asked about this proposed amendment.
Q – Will this allow legislators to call themselves into special session indefinitely?
A – No. The ability to call the legislature into unlimited Extraordinary Sessions would remain with the Governor. This amendment would allow lawmakers to extend session or convene for an additional 12 legislative days in times of emergency.
Q – Will this make it too easy to extend session?
A – The legislature will have the authority to set the end date of a session, much as it does the legislative calendar now. However, 3/5s of the House and Senate must agree to extend that session if it is necessary.
The amendment will appear on the ballot as this question: “Are you in favor of amending the present Constitution of Kentucky to repeal sections 36, 42, and 55 and replace those sections with new sections of the Constitution of Kentucky to allow the General Assembly to meet in regular session for thirty legislative days in odd-numbered years, for sixty legislative days in even-numbered years, and for no more than twelve additional days during any calendar year if convened by a Joint Proclamation of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, with no session of the General Assembly to extend beyond December 31; and to provide that any act passed by the General Assembly shall become law on July 1 of the year in which it was passed, or ninety days after passage and signature of the Governor, whichever occurs later, or in cases of emergency when approved by the Governor or when it otherwise becomes law under Section 88 of the Constitution?”
You can see that the exact wording of the amendment is long and legalese, but it can all be distilled into one question – do you believe that each branch of government should be independent of the others? Should the three branches strive to hold each other accountable? Do you think the only part of state government constitutionally-authorized to allocate state resources is important to helping deal with emergencies like the pandemic or flooding in Eastern Kentucky? If you do, then you vote yes.
As always, I hope you will feel free to contact me with any questions or issues. I can be reached here at home anytime or through the toll-free message line in Frankfort at 1-800-372-7181. Please feel free to email me at Samara.Heavrin@lrc.ky.gov. If you would like more information about interim committees or legislative actions, you can visit the Legislative Research Commission website at legislature.ky.gov.
State Rep. Samara Heavrin, R- Leitchfield
