Rep. Chris Freeland

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 136 to establish the Kentucky Rural Jobs Act of 2022, allowing the Department of Revenue to begin accepting applications from entities seeking approval as a growth fund and allowing no more than $15 million dollars of insurance premiums tax credit to be awarded; amend KRS 131.190 to allow reporting of the tax credit to the Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue; provide that Sections 1 to 10 of this Act may be cited as the Kentucky Rural Jobs Act of 2022.

Propose to amend Section 181 of the Constitution of Kentucky to permit the General Assembly to authorize a county, city, town, or municipal corporation to assess and collect local taxes and fees that are not otherwise in conflict with the Constitution; provide ballot question with proposed amendment; submit to voters for ratification or rejection.

Recognize Kentucky's native daughter, United States Navy Commander Billie J. Farrell, for her extensive service and congratulate her on becoming the 77th Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. Constitution.

Amend KRS 403.720 to include violence against an animal when used as coercive conduct in the definition of "domestic violence and abuse"; amend KRS 403.740 to allow a judge to award possession of a shared domestic animal to the petitioner; amend KRS 456.010 to include violence against an animal when used as coercive conduct in the definition of "dating violence and abuse"; amend KRS 456.060 to allow a judge to award possession of a shared domestic animal to the petitioner.

Amend KRS 16.052 to increase state trooper salaries.

Create a new sections of KRS Chapter 199 to create the Employee Child-Care Assistance Partnership program; define terms; obligate the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to administer the program; establish reporting requirements; establish a fund for the program; authorize the cabinet to administer the fund; direct the cabinet to promulgate administrative regulations to effectuate the program; establish program requirements for employers and employees; establish requirements for both permissive and mandatory termination of the program contract; permit the Cabinet for Economic Development to condition program requirements on participation in this program; amend KRS 199.990 to include a penalty; cite as the Employee Child-Care Assistance Partnership; APPROPRIATION; EMERGENCY.

Amend KRS 218A.1410, 218A.1412, and 218A.142 to enhance the penalty for importing or trafficking carfentanil, fentanyl, or fentanyl derivatives from a minimum of 50 percent of the sentence served to a minimum of 85 percent of the sentence served and establish prohibition against the use of pretrial diversion for those criminal offenses.

Amend KRS 158.4414 to require the assignment of school resource officers to schools by August 1, 2022.

Amend KRS 39A.100 to exclude houses of worship from emergency condemnation authority; prohibit a governmental entity from prohibiting religious services during an emergency to a greater extent than imposed on other organizations or businesses that provide essential services; require a compelling governmental interest to place a burden on a religious organization; prohibit a governmental entity from taking any discriminatory action against a religious organization on the basis that the organization is religious; define "discriminatory action," "governmental entity," "religious organization," and "religious services"; allow a religious organization to assert a violation of this section as a claim against a governmental entity or as a defense and waive sovereign, governmental, and qualified immunity to the extent of liability under the section; set out remedies available to a religious organization; require construciton in favor of protecting free exercise of religion; require a religious organization to bring an action no later than two years from the date the person should have known of the discriminatory action.

Waive up to 15 student attendance days for days school districts were closed due to the western Kentucky tornado disaster; consider days waived under this Act as completed employment contract days for school personnel; EMERGENCY.