Rep. Jason Nemes

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 216B to define "freestanding birthing center"; require the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate updated administrative regulations to establish licensure standards for freestanding birthing centers, including requiring accreditation by the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers, compliance with the American Association of Birth Centers' Standards for Birth Centers, and consistent plans for transfer and safe transport to a hospital as needed, and to delineate medical malpractice insurance requirements for centers; exempt a center with no more than four beds from certificate-of-need requirements for establishing and licensing a freestanding birthing center; state intent not to limit or expand liability of a center or health care provider or facility; add requirement for medical malpractice insurance for freestanding birthing centers; prohibit abortions in freestanding birthing centers; amend KRS 216B.015 to include freestanding birthing centers in the definition of "health facility"; amend KRS 216B.020, 196.173, 211.122, 211.647, 211.660, 213.046, 214.155, 214.565, 214.567, 214.569, 216.2920, and 216.2970 to conform; provide that the Act may be cited as the Mary Carol Akers Birth Centers Act.

Create a new section of KRS 61.870 to 61.884, the Open Records Act, to require a public agency to furnish an officer, employee, board member, or commission member an agency email account; define terms; allow the governing body of a public agency or its appointing authority to identify, in writing, the names of specific personnel that do not require the use of an agency-furnished email account; allow a public agency to issue an email address through a third-party provider if a public is incapable of issuing an agency-furnished email account; prohibit an employee or a member of a board, commission, or public agency from using an email account other than an agency-furnished or agency-designated email account; provide that an employee or member of a board, commission, or public agency who uses an email account other than an agency-furnished or agency-designated email account is subject to discipline or removal, as appropriate; amend KRS 61.870 to amend the definition of "public record"; amend KRS 61.848 to specify that any formal action taken by a public agency that does not comply with KRS 61.840, relating to conditions placed on public attendance at meetings, are voidable by a court of competent jurisdiction; make technical corrections; amend various other sections to conform.

Recognize and commend the Louisville Fire Department rescue squad that executed a rescue on the Clark Memorial Bridge, and the Louisville Metro Police and emergency medical services personnel that responded to the scene.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 532 to define "violent felony" and enhance sentencing for a person convicted of a third violent felony; prohibit probation, parole, or other form of release for a person who commits a crime using a weapon that is stolen, defaced, loaded with restricted ammunition, or otherwise violates state law; amend KRS 610.070 to require a parent, legal guardian, or custodian to be present at court proceedings involving a child in the juvenile justice system; create a new section of KRS Chapter 610 to establish penalty; amend KRS 507.020 to expand offense of murder; amend KRS 507.030 to expand offense of manslaughter in the first degree; amend KRS 507.040 to expand offense of manslaughter in the second degree; amend KRS 218A.1412 to provide increased penalties for certain trafficking offenses; create a new section of KRS Chapter 515 to create a new offense of carjacking; amend KRS 512.020 and 512.030 to lower the threshold for criminal mischief in the first degree to $500; amend KRS 149.410, 506.160, and 525.220 to conform; amend KRS 520.050 to enhance promoting contraband to a Class B felony if the dangerous contraband is fentanyl, carfentanil, or a fentanyl derivative; amend KRS 16.220 to allow purchase of a confiscated firearm by a person who bids under the condition that they not take possession of the firearm, but instead leave it with the Department of Kentucky State Police for destruction; prohibit government agencies from purchasing the firearm; make technical corrections; create new sections of KRS Chapters 511, 198A, and 65 to establish the offense of criminal street camping and provide exceptions; amend KRS 503.080 to conform; amend KRS 202C.050 to reduce requirements to find a person subject to involuntary commitment pursuant to KRS Chapter 202C; amend KRS 186.417 to include felony offenders released from county jails and local correctional facilities among those who may be issued personal identification cards or operator's licenses under certain conditions; amend KRS 431.510 to define terms; prohibit any charitable bail organization from posting bail in excess of $5,000; prohibit any charitable bail organization from posting bail for any offense of domestic violence and abuse or dating violence and abuse, and for any offense under a civil court order or warrant under KRS 222.430 to 222.437; establish that any bond ordered forfeited following a new criminal offense shall be distributed to the victim of the new offense; require publication of records and annual reporting to the General Assembly; create new section of KRS Chapter 507 to create the offense of murder of a first responder and establish penalties; amend KRS 506.010 to conform; amend KRS 532.025 to include the murder of first responders as an aggravating circumstance for the death penalty; amend KRS 532.036 to allow restitution following a conviction for Murder of a first responder; amend KRS 439.320 to provide that members of the Parole Board shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor, that panels of the board shall consist of not less than three and not more than six members, and that all members of the panel must agree on a decision or the matter shall be referred to the full board; amend KRS 439.330 to require that parole be granted upon a two-thirds vote of the full board; amend KRS 433.236 to limit liability for shopkeepers; amend KRS 439.3401 to add a person who has been convicted of or entered a plea of guilty to a Class B felony violation of KRS 520.050 to the definition of "violent offender" and to include carjacking and attempted murder in the list of violent offenses; amend KRS 508.075 and 508.078, relating to terroristic threatening, to include any workplace or any gathering of 3 or more persons; amend KRS 524.040 to include harassing communications as conduct constituting intimidation of a participant in the legal process; amend KRS 439.340 to allow the Parole Board to order participation in a specific violence reduction program as a condition of parole; amend KRS 533.030 to allow a court to require participationin a specific violence reduction program as a condition of probation or conditional discharge; amend KRS 403.763 and 456.180 to enhance a second or subsequent violation of an order of protection within a five-year period to a Class D felony; amend KRS 500.080 to include family members, members of an unmarried couple, and persons in a dating relationship, in application of a particular definition of serious physical injury; amend KRS 514.020 to reduce the time required to establish prima facie evidence of theft by deception of rented or leased property that is not returned to the owner from 10 days to four days; amend KRS 196.031 to require the annual report to also include the percentage of offenders who commit new offenses within two years; amend KRS 520.095 to enhance fleeing or evading police in the first degree to a Class C felony; provide that the defendant shall not be released on probation, shock probation, conditional discharge, or parole until he or she has served at least 50 percent of the sentence imposed; amend KRS 520.100 to enhance fleeing or evading police in the second degree to a Class D felony; amend KRS 532.110 to provide sentences for two or more felony sex crimes shall run consecutively; provide that the defendant shall not be released on probation, shock probation, conditional discharge, or parole until he or she has served at least 50 percent of the sentence imposed; amend KRS 158.155 to require school employees to report certain enumerated crimes to law enforcement; repeal KRS 512.040, which establishes the crime of criminal mischief in the third degree and KRS 158.154, which deals with discipline in schools; EFFECTIVE, in part, August 1, 2025.

Amend KRS 30A.145 to require that each circuit clerk prepare, on the first Tuesday of each month, a list of all persons who were excused from jury duty for not being a United States citizen; create a new section of KRS Chapter 116 to require the Secretary of State, in cooperation with the State Board of Elections, to issue a comprehensive status report regarding voter registration records cleanup and maintenance on or before July 1 each year; establish information to be included in the report; require that the report be issued to the Legislative Research Commission and made available to the public on the Secretary of State's and State Board of Elections' official websites; require that persons only be contacted about their voter registrations by mail; provide that anomalies and discrepancies may be reported via a publicly available web link; amend KRS 116.113 to require that the Cabinet for Health and Family Services provide a lifetime copy of the Kentucky death records to the State Board of Elections on or before February 1 each year; require the State Board of Elections remove from voter registration records the name of a person who has been excused from jury duty for not being a United States citizen; amend KRS 116.0452 to conform.

Direct the Legislative Research Commission to establish the Efficient and Effective School District Governance Task Force; outline task force duties; require the task force to submit any recommendations and changes the task force may adopt by December 1, 2024; establish membership; require the task force to meet at least twice per month; require the Legislative Research Commission to provide needed staff and authorize the commission to enter into contracts for consultants to assist the task force in its duties.

Amend KRS 67C.147, relating to urban service taxing districts in consolidated local governments, to require the consolidated local government to reimburse fire districts operating under KRS Chapter 75 that made emergency medical runs within the area of the urban service tax district; require no more than 10 percent of funding of the services contracted with the consolidated local government by the urban service tax district come from taxes levied by the consolidated local government from areas outside the urban service tax district between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2030; provide that no such funding come from outside the urban service tax district on or after July 1, 2030; amend KRS 67C.111, regarding incorporation and annexation of cities in a county containing a consolidated local government, to adjust the number of signatures required in a petition for mandatory action; prohibit a city in a county containing a consolidated local government from annexing manufacturing areas, as defined, primarily for the purpose of obtaining occupational license tax revenue unless the annexation is consented to by each property owner in the area to be annexed; create a new section of KRS Chapter 65 to provide that members of local boards, commission, committees, and other bodies created by or appointed by local governments have geographic and political party affiliation diversity; amend KRS 67C.103 to require the election of council members in a consolidated local government to be nonpartisan; amend KRS 67C.105 to require the election of a mayor in a consolidated local government to be nonpartisan; amend KRS 117.125 to conform; amend KRS 177.360 to direct consolidated local governments to establish procedures to prioritize projects undertaken with county road aid funds; establish the Property Valuation Review Commission to review assessments in a county containing a consolidated local government; ensure that the assessments are consistent and uniform; provide for appointments by mayor from recommendations of various entities; require that the commission report to the Legislative Research Commission, the mayor and metro council of the consolidated local government, and the Finance and Administration Cabinet no later than December 31, 2024; Sections 4, 5, and 6 EFFECTIVE January 1, 2025; EMERGENCY, in part.

Amend KRS 15.243 to require that the Attorney General or his or her designee randomly select at least one ballot scanner and one race tabulated on that scanner for a hand-to-eye recount, which fulfills the requirement for a risk-limiting audit; require that the hand-to-eye recount be performed by each county clerk or his or her designee; establish the process for the hand-to-eye recount; amend KRS 117.383 and 117.295 to conform.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 31 to transfer employees of the Louisville and Jefferson County Public Defender Corporation (Louisville Metro Public Defender) to the Department of Public Advocacy (DPA) on July 1, 2024, and to provide employment and retirement benefits to the transferred employees based on their employment date with the Louisville Metro Public Defender; define "membership date" for Louisville Metro Public Defender employees transferring to the Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS); create past service purchase exceptions for transferred employees participating in a state-administered retirement system prior to January 1, 2014, or employed by the Louisville Metro Public Defender prior to January 1, 2014 (Tier 1 and Tier 2 only); create a one-year window between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, for transferred employees (Tier 1 and Tier 2) to purchase service with the Louisville Metro Public Defender without the requirement to be vested in KERS; require past years of service purchased by transferred employees to be used to determine eligibility for and the amount of retirement benefits, including disability and early retirement, and health benefits under KRS 61.702 or 78.5536, except the health insurance benefits for this service purchase will be subject to funding of the actuarial cost of the benefit in the executive branch budget; transfer leases and contracts in the name of the Louisville Metro Public Defender to DPA, and waive liability of DPA under any legal theory or for any act, omission, or negligence by or on behalf of the Louisville Metro Public Defender; amend KRS 15A.020 to add new divisions to the organization of DPA; amend KRS 18A.115 to transfer the employees of the Louisville Metro Public Defender to the state personnel system; amend KRS 61.510 to change the definition of "membership date" in KERS as applied to Louisville Metro Public Defender employees transferring to DPA; amend KRS 61.552 allow DPA to pay a portion of the cost for the purchase of service with the Louisville Public Defender by transferred employees (Tier 1 or Tier 2) who purchase the service credit before July 1, 2025, subject to funding in the executive branch budget, and make conforming changes; amend KRS 61.557 to conform; provide that the Act will be RETROACTIVE to employees of the Louisville Metro Public Defender hired to leadership or supervisory roles within DPA between October 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024; EMERGENCY.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 211 to define "SUDEP" and encourage a health care provider to provide information regarding sudden unexpected death in epilepsy; create a new section of KRS Chapter 72 to define "SUDEP" and update autopsy requirements; provide that the Act may be cited as Jami's Law.