Author Archive for Beth Musgrave

Beshear vetoes parts of two-year budget; road plan still not done

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Uncertainty reigned in the Capitol Wednesday night as lawmakers and Gov. Steve Beshear struggled to prepare themselves for what is expected to be the final day of the 2012 legislative session on Thursday.

Beshear waited until 7:20 p.m. Wednesday to veto more than three dozen line-items in the $19 billion, two-year state budget, even as leading lawmakers continued trying to hammer out an agreement on a road-building plan for the next biennium.

If an agreement on the transportation budget is not reached in time for a Thursday vote, the legislature could still move the 60th and final day of the legislative session to Friday or Saturday, although House Speaker Greg Stumbo and Senate President David Williams cast doubt on that scenario Wednesday evening.

The Kentucky Constitution requires the General Assembly to adjourn by the end of April 15, which is Sunday.

A super majority of legislators — 23 of 37 senators and 60 of 100 representatives — is needed to override Beshear’s vetoes in the budget bill, which both chambers approved on March 30.

NJ Gov. Chris Christie to headline GOP Lincoln Day Dinner

By Beth Musgrave

bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — The Republican Party of Kentucky announced Tuesday that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will speak at the annual GOP Lincoln Day Dinner in May.

Christie will be the featured speaker at the May 19 event in Lexington. The outspoken New Jersey native has been a darling of the cable talk show circuit since being elected in 2009. Christie briefly considered entering the crowded Republican primary for president in 2011 but ultimately decided not to run.

“We’re extremely excited to welcome a Republican powerhouse like Governor Christie to Kentucky,” said Steve Robertson, chairman of the Republican Party. “Governor Christie’s tough, no-nonsense leadership style makes him the perfect conservative messenger to inspire and energize Republicans to defeat Barack Obama in 2012.”

The dinner will be held at the Marriott Griffin Gate hotel in Lexington.

State revenues up 8.4 percent in March

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Kentucky state government brought in $57 million more in taxes and other fees in March than it did last year, according to numbers released Tuesday.

General Fund revenues were up 8.4 percent in March compared to March 2011. Kentucky collected $738 million in March, compared to $675.8 million in March 2011, according to the Office of the State Budget Director.

March receipts continue an upward trend in state revenues over the past nine months. The official revenue estimate calls for 2.8 percent growth in revenue for the entire fiscal year, which ends June 30th. Revenues can decline 1.1 percent over the remaining three months of this fiscal year and still meet the official revenue estimate. Legislators use that estimate to craft a two-year budget.

If revenues do not meet the projection, the state will have to cut. If revenues come in over the projection, the money will go into the state’s “Rainy Day” fund.

Individual and corporate income taxes are still strong. Corporate income taxes have increased 45 percent this year and 9.0 percent in March. Individual income taxes grew 10.9 percent in March and have grown about 2.5 percent through the first nine months of the fiscal year, according to the Office of State Budget Director.

Road Fund receipts – used to fund transportation projects — also rose 6.1 percent over March 2011

House, Senate approve compromise state budget

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — The Republican Senate gave its approval Friday to a compromise two-year state budget that provides little money for new projects and cuts funding by 8.4 percent for many state agencies and 6.4 percent for state universities.

House Bill 265 now heads to the House, where it is expected to be approved later Friday and sent to Gov. Steve Beshear.

Friday was the 59th day of the 60-workday legislative session. The General Assembly is set to return April 12 for the final day of the session, which will be used to consider overriding any potential vetoes by Beshear.

House and Senate leaders said early Friday that they did not expect an agreement on the two-year road plan on Friday. That means that the measure will likely be taken up on April 12.

General Assembly poised to approve state budget on Friday

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — The Kentucky General Assembly is poised to vote Friday on a $19 billion, two-year state budget that provides $3.5 million to help the Kentucky Horse Park and $2.5 million to start the redevelopment of Rupp Arena.

Leading lawmakers closed agreed on a compromise budget just minutes before a self-imposed deadline of 3 a.m. Thursday, giving legislative staffers enough time to make requested changes in the bill before rank-and-file members vote on it Friday.

Later Thursday, legislators were scrambling to get an agreement on a two-year road plan, which outlines funding for key road projects throughout the state, and House Bill 499, a revenue bill that contains a tax amnesty program designed to raise millions of dollars.

If there are no hiccups on Friday, this will be the first two-year budget the General Assembly has approved on time since 2006. Lawmakers plan to use April 12, the final day of this year’s 60-workday session, to override any line-item vetoes issued by Gov. Steve Beshear during the next two weeks.

“We have white smoke,” Senate President David Williams, R-Burkesville, said shortly after the deal was inked early Thursday morning. “They gave us until 3 o’clock in the morning and I want everyone to know that we finished five minutes early.”

Senate and House race to ink budget deal

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Late Wednesday, Democratic House leaders were considering a proposal by Republican Senate leaders that would resolve remaining issues involving a two-year $19 billion spending plan.

Senate leaders unveiled the proposal within the first minutes of the second round of budget negotiations on Wednesday evening. Wednesday was the third day of negotiations over the two-year budget. House leaders said they would return by 8:30 p.m. to tell Senate leaders if they were going to accept the deal or offer a counter proposal. But the House had not returned to the bargaining table by 10 p.m. Wednesday.

House passes compromise drop out bill

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — The House on Wednesday passed a compromise measure that would gradually increase the drop out age from 16 to 18.

Senate Bill 109 originally would allow school districts to increase the drop out age from 16 to 18 if the districts could show that they had programs for at-risk students. The House had passed a measure earlier this legislative session that would require all school districts to increase the drop out age from 16 to 18 by July 2017. That measure has never gained traction in the Senate over concerns that there were not enough alternative programs for kids who did not want to attend school.

Group raises questions about $2 million for road near Ark Encounter theme park

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — A nonprofit group that advocates for the separation of church and state raised questions Wednesday about the legislature’s plan to spend $2 million on road improvements near the proposed Ark Encounter theme park in Grant County.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a Washington D.C. nonprofit, is protesting the legislature’s decision to include $2 million for improvements to KY 36, a project included in road budgets proposed by Gov. Steve Beshear and approved by the House and Senate.

The $2 million would be used to purchase right-of-way and pre-construction work on an interchange with I-75.

Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United, said the Kentucky Constitution bans the use of taxpayer dollars to support religion. Section 5 of the Constitution says taxpayers may not be forced to “contribute to the erection or maintenance” of any place of worship.

House and Senate at odds over spending on government contracts

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — House and Senate budget negotiators agreed Tuesday on how to book savings from interest rates on bonds, a key hurdle in discussions on a $19 billion, two-year state budget.

The agreement — which would allow the state to book savings generated by lower-than-expected interest rates — was one of several agreements between the two chambers on the second day of budget negotiations.

The Democratic House and Republican Senate passed similar two-year budgets earlier this month. Both follow Gov. Steve Beshear’s recommendations in several key areas, such as an 8.4 percent cut to many state agencies, no change in the main funding formulas for k-12 schools and no raises for state employees. The House and Senate budgets also nix a 1.2 percent cost-of-living increase for state retirees, a move designed to shore up the state’s ailing pension fund.

But the two sides locked horns on some issues, such as requiring Beshear to cut an additional $98 million from the state’s contracts.

The Republican Senate believes the administration can make the cuts, but Democratic House leaders expressed reservations, citing the deep cuts some agencies have already made in recent years. Some agencies have cut more than 35 percent of their spending over the past four years.

Copper theft bill heads to Beshear

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Scrap metal recyclers will have to register with the state and pass background checks under a measure that passed both chambers and is now headed to Gov. Steve Beshear’s desk for his signature.

Backers of House Bill 390 say it will curb the growing number of copper thefts in Kentucky by ensuring that only registered scrap metal recyclers can process the metal. Rep. Tanya Pullin, D-South Shore, and sponsor of the bill, has said that the majority of the state’s metal recyclers are behind the bill. Most of the stolen copper is taken to less-than-reputable scrap recyclers. Those recyclers will not register with the state.