Kentucky Bills

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 10, 2026

HB 456: AN ACT relating to the State Treasurer and unclaimed property.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 2 establishing the fourth week of September of each year to be Unclaimed Property Week; amend KRS 41.020 to remove Treasurer's requirement to maintain his or her residency at the seat of government; amend KRS 393A.020 to remove mineral proceeds from the KRS list of property to which the chapter does not apply; amend KRS 393A.740 to include deficient reports as punishable by civil penalty.

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 10, 2026

SB 137: AN ACT relating to a provisional license to practice medicine.

Amend KRS 311.571 to allow and specify requirements for a physician licensed to practice medicine in another country to obtain a provisional license to practice medicine in the Commonwealth; specify requirements for a provisional license to convert to a regular license; add conditions for the Board of Medical Licensure to revoke a provisional license; make technical changes.

Topics ✓ Healthcare

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 10, 2026

HB 290: AN ACT relating to the provision of legal research resources.

Amend KRS 172.100 and 172.200, relating to county law libraries, to ensure that law library funds can be expended for subscriptions to computer-assisted legal research, internet access, and computers and related equipment.

Topics ✓ Technology

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 10, 2026

HB 470: AN ACT relating to behavioral health services and declaring an emergency.

Amend KRS 222.233 to require behavioral health multi-specialty groups or any entity that bills for peer support services to only employ specifically qualified alcohol and drug peer support specialists until January 1, 2028; extend the time period in which other alcohol and other drug treatment entities and behavioral health service organizations may only employ specifically qualified alcohol and drug peer support specialists to January 1, 2028; remove references to temporary alcohol and drug peer support specialists; amend KRS 309.0805 and 309.0813 to remove references to temporary alcohol and drug peer support specialists; repeal KRS 309.0836, relating to temporary alcohol and drug peer support specialists; establish the Peer Support Professionals Work Group to submit recommendations to the Interim Joint Committee on Health Services regarding the creation of a board of peer support professionals to develop statewide requirements for licensed peer support professionals; EMERGENCY.

Topics ✓ Healthcare

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 10, 2026

HB 213: AN ACT relating to reemployment of retired police officers.

Amend KRS 70.292, 70.293, and 95.022, regarding city and county programs to reemploy retired police officers without incurring employer retirement contributions, to reduce the required service of the officer or sheriff before retirement from 20 years to 15 years and to allow retired officers to take health insurance coverage through the employing city or county; amend KRS 61.702 and 78.5536 to conform.

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 10, 2026

SB 20: AN ACT relating to local entities and declaring an emergency.

Amend KRS 64.5277 to define "excess credit hours"; amend KRS 64.5278 to allow a city to establish different base incentive amounts for different types of city officers by ordinance; remove minimum and maximum payment amounts.

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 9, 2026

SB 343: AN ACT relating to the Department of Workers' Claims and declaring an emergency.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 342 to establish the Department of Workers' Claims to be administratively attached to the Office of the Governor; amend KRS 342.122 to provide that the combined budgets of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, Workers' Compensation Nominating Committee, Department of Workplace Standards, and the proportional support for general administration and approved indirect cost allocation to the Education and Labor Cabinet, shall not exceed 75% of the total combined budget submitted by the Workersâ Compensation Funding Commission and that the Workersâ Compensation Funding Commission, the Department of Workersâ Claims, the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, the Workersâ Compensation Nominating Committee, the Department of Workplace Standards, excluding the Division of Wages and Hours contained within the Department of Workplace Standards, and the Education and Labor Cabinet, shall each submit a budget which shall be combined by the Workersâ Compensation Funding Commission and reflected in the enacted budget of the Commonwealth; amend KRS 342.228 to require the commissioner of the Department of Workers' Claims to have specified knowledge and experience in the areas of public administration, administrative law, and workers' compensation by having a minimum of 8 years of legal practice experience in the area of workers' compensation; amend KRS 342.230 to authorize the commissioner to fill all positions in the Department for Workers' Claims with KRS Chapter 18A employees; amend KRS 151B.015 to remove the Department of Workers' Claims from the Education and Labor Cabinet; amend various other sections to conform; provide that all records, equipment, staff, budgets, and unexpended funds associated with the Department of Workers' Claims shall be transferred as part of the reorganization; provide that all administrative regulations, decisions, and actions of the department that have not been repealed or rescinded shall continue in effect after the effective date of the Act, unless and until they are amended, repealed, or rescinded by the department after the effective date of this Act; EMERGENCY.

Topics ✓ Labor & Employment

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 9, 2026

HB 5: AN ACT relating to prison educational programs.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 197 to establish the Kentucky Community and Technical College System Prison Education Program within the Department of Corrections in partnership with the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) to provide inmates with job training; require KCTCS to construct a facility to house the program at Northpoint Training Center; establish convictions that preclude participation in the program; require the parties to enter into a memorandum of agreement establishing the responsibilities of each party; amend KRS 196.281 to establish entitlement to a certificate of employability upon successful completion of the program and require reporting by the department; amend KRS 335B.020 to establish that a person shall not be disqualified from public employment or obtaining an occupational license solely because of previous criminal conviction and obtaining a certificate of employment from the department shall constitute rebuttable evidence of rehabilitation and fitness for the occupation; amend KRS 355B.030 to remove a conviction of a Class A felony, Class B felony, or any other felony offense other than a conviction that would qualify the individual as a registrant as defined in KRS 17.500 as supportive of a rebuttable presumption of a connection between that conviction and a license issuance request.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice ✓ Education

signed · Kentucky · House Apr 9, 2026

HB 7: AN ACT relating to school bus safety.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 158 to define terms; allow the use of camera monitoring systems on school buses operated by a school district and allow the enforcement of a civil penalty for stop arm camera violations recorded by a camera monitoring system; establish the amount of the civil penalty; require that the revenue generated from a civil penalty be retained by the school district; allow a law enforcement agency to charge a fee of $25 from every civil penalty enforced by the law enforcement agency; require specific notice for a stop arm camera violation; establish defenses to a violation; establish procedures for a contest to a violation; allow for suspension of motor vehicle registration for failure to timely pay a penalty; require a school district or law enforcement agency to notify the Transportation Cabinet of the need to release a motor vehicle registration suspension within 1 business day of payment; amend KRS 189.370 to require traffic in the opposite direction of a school or church bus to stop for the bus on a highway that is not divided by an elevated barrier or unpaved median;amend KRS 189.990 to increase the maximum fines for failing to stop for a school or church bus that is receiving or discharging passengers.

Topics ✓ Transportation

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 9, 2026

SB 19: AN ACT relating to mushrooms.

SB 19 designates the indigo milk cap mushroom as Kentucky's official state mushroom. The bill creates a new section in Kentucky law to formally name and recognize this specific mushroom species. It does not impose any new regulations, taxes, or requirements on residents, businesses, or state agencies. This is a symbolic designation affecting only Kentucky's official state symbols, with no direct impact on policy or daily life. The bill was introduced to the Senate in January 2026 and referred to the Committee on Committees.

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 8, 2026

SB 153: AN ACT relating to the prevention of harmful and fraudulent practices.

Amend KRS 367.620 to exclude certain activity from the definition of "goods or services relating to real estate"; amend KRS 367.624 to require contractors to furnish a notice relating to assignment of benefits prior to entering into a real estate goods or services contract; amend KRS 367.626 to prohibit requiring a person to pay a cancellation fee or any other fee contained in a contract that is not enforceable against the person; amend KRS 367.628 to prohibit certain representations and marketing by a contractor or person representing a contractor; provide that certain contracts between a contractor or person representing a contractor and an insured are not enforceable; modify provision prohibiting causing, or encouraging another person to cause, damage to real estate; prohibit contractors from having a financial connection with certain persons; prohibit contractors from soliciting or providing contracts on behalf of certain persons; provide that certain violations constitute a fraudulent insurance act under KRS 304.47-020 and criminal mischief in the first degree under KRS 512.020; amend KRS 367.627 to make technical amendments; require the Attorney General to enforce the contractor requirements; create a new section of KRS Chapter 15 to provide the Attorney General with concurrent jurisdiction in the investigation and prosecution of offenses under KRS 304.47-020; amend KRS 304.47-020 and 512.020 to conform; create a new section of KRS Chapter 367 to authorize the Attorney General to issue an order during certain states of emergency to require persons engaging in business as a contractor in the designated area to obtain a certificate of registration; establish registration application requirements; authorize peace officers in the designated area to enforce an order issued by the Attorney General; require contractors to post a copy of the contractor's certificate of registration at each job site within the designated area; require contractors to provide a copy of the certificate of registration or proof of registration to specified persons; prohibit contractors from soliciting business in person within the designated area for 90 days after a state of emergency is declared; prohibit local governments from imposing emergency registration or licensure for contractors under certain circumstances; exempt contractors from the registration and related requirements if the Attorney General determines that the local government imposes greater emergency registration or licensing requirements; permit a local government to submit a declaration to the Attorney General stating that the local government's emergency registration or licensure requirements are greater than those imposed under the section; require the Attorney General to affirm or reject a local government's declaration; authorize the Attorney General to promulgate administrative regulations; amend KRS 411.230 to conform; direct that certain provisions apply to contracts entered into on or after the effective date of the Act.

signed · Kentucky · Senate Apr 8, 2026

SB 222: AN ACT relating to environmental covenants and declaring an emergency.

Amend KRS 224.80-190 to allow for the amendment of an environmental covenant without the approval of some of the previously required signatories if the sole effect of the amendment is to remove or reduce a land use restriction in the environmental covenant that the Energy and Environment Cabinet has determined is no longer necessary and certain new procedural requirements have been satisfied; provide that when the cabinet determines that a land use restriction in an environmental covenant can be reduced or eliminated, it shall provide notice to the affected parties and opportunity for them to object to the determination; allow for affected parties to seek judicial review of a cabinet determination; amend KRS 224.80-180 to conform; RETROACTIVE; EMERGENCY.

Bill results