Just a little over a month from now, the 2021 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly will convene to begin to address pressing Kentucky business.
With a one-year budget passed in 2020 because of the unknown of the Covid-19 pandemic, the number one issue facing the legislators and Governor Andy Beshear is the budget.
Through December, we will pose questions to the two legislators that represent Pendleton County: Senator Wil Schroder and Representative Mark Hart.
Generally, the budget is passed on a two-year stance in the even number of years. This year, you passed a one-year budget because of the unknown of Covid-19. Will it be a two-year budget and take the state off the even number year rotation or a one-year budget to get you to 2022 and back on the normal rotation. To stay with the budget, what are the biggest areas that MUST be addressed in this budget?
District 24 Senator Wil Schroder:
“We are doing a one-year budget and will resume the two year budget in 2022 assuming that revenue is more predictable.
Thankfully due to some of the Federal funds with unemployment insurance the state’s income tax hasn’t taken as big of a hit as would be expected. The gas tax has been impacted from less people on the road but the sale of vehicles, which also contributes to the road fund, has been up. We will be receiving a briefing on the state’s revenue streams the second week in December and will have a better idea of what impact Covid has had.”
78th District Representative Mark Hart:
“Yes, we will have to address the budget this session. The budget will only be a one-year budget. It will be the second year to the budget passed last year because of the unknowns associated with COVID response. This will put us back on our normal budget rotation cycle and get us to 2022.
The biggest impact on the budget will be the shortfall we are facing because of the Covid response. We are over a billion dollars in the hole;, this includes the $864 million borrowed for unemployment without legislative input, that the legislature now has to find a way to pay back.
It’s going to be a very hard budget to figure out, and I predict there will be cuts to everyone across the board to meet our financial obligations.”
The 2021 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly is scheduled to begin on Jan. 5 and will last 30 legislative days.
As usual, during an odd-numbered year, the session will have two parts. The first four days of the session – Jan. 5 to Jan. 8 – will focus on organizational work such as electing legislative leaders, adopting rules of procedure and organizing committees. The introduction and consideration of legislation can also begin during this time.
The second part of the session begins on Feb. 2, with final adjournment scheduled for March 30.
The veto recess – the period of time when lawmakers commonly return to their home districts while the governor considers the possibility of issuing vetoes – begins on March 17. Lawmakers will return to the Capitol on March 30 for the final day of the session.
The 2021 session calendar is online at: https://legislature.ky.gov/Documents/21RS_Calendar.pdf.
This is the first in a series of articles for December that will focus on posing questions to the two legislators representing Pendleton County about the 2021 General Assembly Regular Session.
General Assembly will have to address the budget in midst of pandemic
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