Legislators returned to Frankfort yesterday to kick off the 2022 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly.
Both chambers immediately filed bills addressing this week’s high priority issues, including House, Senate and Congressional redistricting and an extension of the candidate filing deadline.
Legislative Redistricting
House
Last week, GOP House Leadership released their plan for redrawing House districts and yesterday, Rep. Jerry Miller filed the redistricting bill (House Bill 2). View both the current map and the proposed changes here.
Senate
Senate State and Local Government Committee Chair Robby Mills introduced the Senate redistricting bill (Senate Bill 2) yesterday. View the Senate map here.
Both the House and Senate plans will be heard in committees today. The General Assembly is expected to meet through Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022 to pass the redistricting bills.
Congressional Redistricting
The Senate released their proposed plan for Congressional redistricting yesterday, which you can view here.
Candidate Filing Deadline Extension
Majority Floor Leader Rep. Steven Rudy introduced House Bill 172, which will extend the candidate filing deadline from the current deadline of Jan. 7 to Jan. 25, 2022.
The filing deadline extension applies to all offices – including county officials. KACo communicated with legislative leadership our concerns regarding the inclusion of county officials in the deadline extension.
Supreme Court Redistricting
House Bill 179 was introduced, which will modify Supreme Court districts in the state. View the redistricting map here.
House and Senate Rules
Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer announced changes to the rules that guide the work of the Senate during the session. Members will be limited to speaking no more than 15 minutes on any question or measure on the floor of the Senate. (Rule 24)
Read the full list of Senate rules here.
One change in House Rules will move bills more quickly through the committee process, reducing the number of steps needed to move a bill out of committee. This will reduce the amount of time KACo has to provide feedback on legislation before it moves ahead in the process. House Rules can be found here.
New Members
Two new members joined the House of Representatives after November’s special election to fill vacated seats: Rep. Timmy Truett represents the 89th District (Jackson and a portion of Laurel and Madison counties), and Rep. Michael Sarge Pollock now represents the 51st District (Adair and Taylor counties). These seats were vacated upon the resignation of former Representative Robert Goforth and the passing of former House Majority Leader John “Bam” Carney.
The newest member of the Senate is Sen. Donald Douglas, representing the 22nd senatorial district (Garrard, Jessamine, Mercer, Washington and a portion of Fayette counties). The seat was vacated upon the passing of Senator Tom Buford.
Both chambers will gavel in again today at 2 p.m. EST. You can click here to watch live and archived coverage of the House and Senate, as well as committee meetings, throughout the session.
The full calendar can be viewed here, though it is subject to change.
