January 15, 2018
Legislation on the move…
Kentucky General Assembly
House District 96
Rep. Jill York
Capitol Avenue, Annex Room 367 C, Frankfort, KY 40601 | 502-564-8100, Ext. 602
Questions and Answers as General Assembly convenes for Biennial budget
Rep. Jill York breaks from narrative format to address citizen questions about issues in Frankfort
Frankfort, Ky., January 11, 2018 – The Kentucky General Assembly has convened in the Capitol city to address an ever-growing list of budgetary concerns during its 60-day “long session.” Lackluster revenue projections, budget shortfalls, pension system worries and more than a healthy dose of political drama have the rumor mill working overtime.
That’s wonderful for those who turn the rumor mill, but it’s really not helpful for the Commonwealth. It makes serious situations feel even more frightening. It plants seeds of distrust in a time when we really need our clearest appraisals of what lies before us.
So, this week, let’s dispense with formality and get right into the gist of things with a question-and-answer session.
Will the General Assembly pass the Governor’s pension proposal that came out last year?
No, the votes to make that happen do not exist. While I do not support the Governor’s pension proposal, I believe we must take action to ensure that none of our citizens in the plans need worry that their retirements will be lost if the plans go bankrupt.
Since that original proposal rolled out, there have been others in the works that offer less severe changes and still turn the systems toward solvency. The “Shared Responsibility Plan,” which was formulated by affected groups within the pension system, and the “House Alternative Plan,” which reflects the concerns of citizens and input we representatives received over the summer.
Why doesn’t the public know more about these alternative plans?
A couple of reasons. First, lots of negotiations go in to the policy side of the proposal and that takes time to reach agreement on what changes should happen. Next, once all that is agreed upon the plan must be scored and undergo an actuarial analysis. For that all the policy ideas are put to the test to determine their actual dollar impacts on retirees, on the system, on the unfunded parts of the system and ALL of that over time. Kentucky has multiple pension systems so each new set of parameters has to be figured across each system, To check those computations with new variables and to do it carefully and thoroughly takes weeks. This analysis will reveal if the proposed changes will actually help the system toward solvency. The scoring of the House plan was expected to be complete by Jan. 5.
On to budget, we’ve been hearing for years that the state budget was dwindling — why should this year be any worse?
Long story short: Reality has arrived. For too long the Frankfort-mindset was promise much and don’t look too closely at the bottom line and those poor priorities created a great deal of the money issues we face today.
I recall a former state budget official telling the members of the House Appropriations and Revenue committee that the teetering state budget was the result of Kentucky’s standard operating procedure of “spending everything it takes in.”
That’s not a pro-active way to look after the people’s business. It leaves our citizens and services vulnerable should unexpected expenses arise.
Today, the financial situations before us can’t be buried, denied or promised away. That puts the budget, the pensions and potential tax reforms squarely on the forefront for the general assembly.
Each of those items is intricately intertwined. For example, the 2016 Biennial Budget was the first in decades to make progress on addressing the pension deficit as Governor Bevin’s ARC Plus initiative paid not only the Actuarial Required Contribution to the pension plans but budgeted more dollars to keep things from going broke sooner. Finding that money within the shrinking state budget meant prioritizing the pensions for funding and that left fewer dollars to appropriate in other parts of government.
We should expect the preparation of the budget to be difficult as we legislators wrestle with priorities and the resources we have to fund them.
How can the House even conduct business since the Speaker of the House resigned?
The great news is that the Kentucky Constitution provides for leadership should the Speaker’s role be vacant. Last year, the whole House elected a Speaker and a Speaker Pro-Tempore to lead the activity in the chamber. Rep. David Osborne was selected as Speaker Pro-Tempore at that time and has ably assumed the duties required of the Speaker’s chair.
What bills will you personally be working on during this session?
I do have several in the works, the first of which passed unanimously in the House Local Government committee this past Wednesday. House Bill 92 would allow jail canteen profits to be used for the enhancement of jail safety and security. The bill results from Carter County Jailer RW Boggs efforts to bring clarity to the statute that governs use of those monies. Items such as body scanners that screen for contraband would be justifiable expenses should the bill become law. Jailer Boggs and I have worked with Auditor Mike Harmon’s office on the initiative which has gained support from several agencies due to potential for enhanced safety and savings to local communities. House Bill 92 is expected to come before the full House for consideration next week.
As we make our way through the coming weeks, you may wish to contact me with questions or concerns about issues that are close to you. Please contact me by e-mail at jill.york@lrc.ky.gov, or call our toll free number at 1-800-372-7181 to share your thoughts about what is important to you. If you are following a particular piece of legislation, you can use the Bill Status Line 1-866-840-2835 to track its progress or dial 1-800-633-9650 to check meeting schedules if you want to come and sit in on testimony.
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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Rep. Jill York at email repyork@gmail.com.
