SENATOR BRANDON STORM’S LEGISLATIVE UPDATE (Week 5)

Week 5 of the 2022 Legislative Session

The fifth week of the 2022 Legislative Session concluded with inclement weather moving across the commonwealth on Thursday and Friday. I hope that you and your loved ones were not adversely impacted and remained safe and warm.

The Senate has officially begun the thorough process of reviewing the Governor’s and State House of Representatives’ budget proposals. I will keep you apprised in the weeks ahead on significant budget developments from the Senate. Please know that we are thoroughly going through both documents to develop one that is fiscally responsible and takes care of the residents across the commonwealth.

This week I testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee about Senate Bill 31. This bill pertains only to individuals who are unconvicted and presumed innocent, but are unable to make a cash bond. This is a conservative bill; it’s about liberty, and it’s about our constitutional rights awarded to us. This bill also awards discretion to judges and prosecutors to take into account public safety measures.

Some of the other notable legislative matters that passed in the Senate last week include:

Senate Bill (SB) 8 is one of the most consequential bills passed during the 2022 Regular Session. It was initially filed during Child Advocacy Week, was discussed in committee, and then made its way to the Senate floor this past week.

Unfortunately, Kentucky has led the nation three years in a row in rates of child abuse and neglect, and passage of SB 8 in the Senate comes after the Kentucky Center for Investigative Journalism shone light on the backlog of cases regarding suspicious child deaths.

This bill expands the opportunity for family preservation services in order to keep children safe and families united and provide additional resources and support for Kentucky’s child advocacy centers. It expands the scope and membership of the Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention Board to include all forms of child abuse and neglect. One of the most important facets of the bill is that it specifically distinguishes the difference between poverty and neglect. Lastly, it updates the Foster Youth Bill of Rights by enabling those aging out of foster care to maintain access to resources while transitioning into adult life.

SB 23 updates Kentucky’s mail theft statute, which currently only covers mail packages delivered by the United States Postal Service. If enacted, the bill will put packages delivered by common carriers such as UPS and FedEx under that same legal umbrella, making ‘porch pirates’ susceptible to greater criminal charges. SB 23 was Senator Yates’s first sponsored bill to successfully pass, and as a show of bipartisan camaraderie, both Republicans and Democrats alike subjected his bill to a “hazing” ritual, in which the entire chamber voted “no” on the bill and then switched their votes to “yea.”

SB 64 allows public safety agencies to establish a peer support counseling program. This enables those within the same field to use personal experiences to help colleagues deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. The bill will include emergency dispatchers, often the first line of communication for individuals in crisis, distress, or trauma, as well as other first responders.

SB 64 was filed following heart-wrenching testimony heard in the Interim Joint Committee on Health, Welfare, and Family Services last summer. Emergency dispatchers spoke of the mental anguish they suffer from supporting others during times of high stress and trauma, and detailed the lack of mental health support for those in their profession.

SB 66, also known as ‘Nathan’s Law,’ takes the necessary step to give greater consideration to the grieving process of families by implementing requirements on how the news of a loved one’s death must be delivered. It requires coroners and deputy coroners, within three years of assuming office, to complete a minimum four-hour course that includes instruction of the grieving process and best practices for providing death notice to a spouse or next of kin. The bill also stipulates that news of the death must be delivered verbally and respectfully and requires a follow up with the family member within 48 hours. Additionally, the bill would require emergency responders to be on standby.

SB 33 continues Kentucky’s efforts to address workforce needs by allowing people convicted of misdemeanors who have paid their debt to society, to re-enter the job market. The primary focus of the bill is to clarify when a misdemeanor offense may qualify for expungement. Existing law does not allow for expungement of a crime that qualifies for additional penalties on an indefinite basis. Currently, a person convicted of a misdemeanor, violation, or a series of convictions arising from a single incident, can petition the court for expungement of their record. I believe in second chances, and I do not think that mistakes made in years past should define us as an individual. The safety of the commonwealth’s residents are always one of my top priorities, and this bill will not allow for sex crimes, child-related offenses, and violent crimes to qualify for expungement.

Most would agree that people who have committed a crime should be entitled to a second chance after paying their debt to society, and as a Christian, I believe in redemption. I do not believe that a careless mistake that an individual made in a moment of weakness should define them. This bill helps provide people with dignity and allows them to achieve their potential as contributing members of our community.

As always, if you have any questions or comments about these issues or any other public policy issue, please contact me toll-free at 1-800-372-7181 or email me at Brandon.Storm@lrc.ky.gov . You can also review the legislature’s work online at www.legislature.ky.gov.

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Note: Senator Brandon J. Storm (R-London) represents the 21st District, which encompasses Bath, Estill, Jackson, Laurel, Menifee, and Powell Counties. Senator Storm is the vice-chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Transportation and serves as chair of the Senate Enrollment Committee. He also serves as a member of the Senate Standing Committees on Economic Development, Tourism, and Labor; State and Local Government; Banking and Insurance; and is a liaison member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Human Resources. Additionally, Senator Storm is a member of the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee; and the Child Welfare Oversight and Advisory Committee.