Sen. Gerald Neal

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.

Honor the extraordinary service of Senator Damon Thayer to the Commonwealth of Kentucky upon his retirement from the General Assembly.

Amend KRS 600.020 to define "child-specific foster home"; amend KRS 620.140 to allow a child to submit to the District Court the names of possible relative or fictive kin caregivers whom the child could be placed with if the court removes the child from his or her home; amend KRS 620.142 to establish when a relative or fictive kin caregiver can apply to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to be certified as a child-specific foster home.

Create new sections of Subtitle 17A of KRS Chapter 304 to define terms for pharmacy-related insurance practices; require insurers, pharmacy benefit managers, and other pharmacy benefits administrators to establish reasonably adequate and accessible pharmacy networks; require the filing of an annual report; require the insurance commissioner to review pharmacy networks; provide that information and data acquired by the Department of Insurance shall be considered proprietary and not subject to disclosure under KRS 61.870 to 61.884 relating to open records; establish requirements for certain contracts between a pharmacy or pharmacist and an insurer, a pharmacy benefit manager, or any other pharmacy benefits administrator; establish prohibited conduct and requirements for certain pharmacy-related insurance practices; establish a complaint process for insureds, pharmacies, and pharmacists impacted by a violation of certain pharmacy-related insurance laws; create a new section of Subtitle 99 of KRS Chapter 304 to authorize the insurance commissioner to order reimbursement to persons who incurred a monetary loss as a result of a violation of certain pharmacy-related insurance laws; amend KRS 304.9-053 to require certain filings; amend KRS 304.9-054 to establish requirements for pharmacy benefit manager licensure; amend KRS 304.9-055 to permit the insurance commissioner to promulgate administrative regulations relating to pharmacy benefit managers; amend KRS 304.14-120 to require the insurance commissioner to review certain health plans; amend KRS 304.17A-712 to conform; amend KRS 304.17C-125 to apply certain pharmacy-related insurance laws to limited health service benefit plans, including limited health service contracts; amend KRS 304.38A-115 to apply certain pharmacy-related insurance laws to limited health service organizations; create a new section of KRS Chapter 18A to require the state employee health plan and state agencies to comply with certain pharmacy-related insurance laws; amend KRS 367.828 to establish certain requirements for health discount plans relating to prescription drugs; make technical corrections; repeal KRS 304.38A-120, relating to assignment of certain benefits under limited health service organization plans, to consolidate provisions; apply various sections to contracts issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025; require the insurance commissioner to promulgate administrative regulations to implement this Act on or before January 1, 2025; EFFECTIVE, in part, January 1, 2025.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 164 to define terms; establish the Kentucky Aerospace, Aviation, and Defense Investment Fund Advisory Committee; establish the membership of the committee; establish the Kentucky aerospace, aviation, and defense investment fund to be administered by the Council for Postsecondary Education for the purpose of funding public and private partnerships to provide aviation training scholarships and aviation and aerospace equipment grants; require that the portion of the fund expended towards the council's administrative costs shall not exceed 4% of all gross moneys in the fund or $1,500,000 annually, whichever is less; direct the council to promulgate administrative regulations to carry out this Act; require those administrative regulations to be submitted to the Legislative Research Commission for comment prior to filing; require advisory committee members to abstain from voting on a matter involving a conflict of interest; require that the council shall reserve at least 65% of all net moneys in the fund for partnership proposals between aviation programs and aviation industry partners to provide aviation training scholarships to Kentucky residents enrolled in aviation programs; direct the council to prioritize accepting partnerships to proposals targeted to reduce the workforce demand of a specific eligible aviation credential that is determined by the council to be among the highest in demand in the Commonwealth; direct that a partnership shall require a written partnership contract and establish the minimum contract requirements; direct that disbursements of moneys from the fund to support aviation training scholarships shall be made directly to an aviation program pursuant to the terms of the partnership contract; require that an aviation program that enters a partnership contract shall solicit, accept, and review aviation training scholarship applications submitted by students enrolled in the aviation program; direct that an aviation training scholarship issued by an aviation program pursuant to a partnership contract shall be made directly to a recipient pursuant to a written scholarship contract between the recipient and the aviation program; set minimum contract requirements; direct that a grantor may place restrictions upon a contribution to the fund requiring specific criteria for an aviation training scholarship or scholarships funded by the grantor's dedicated funds; direct that the aviation training scholarship contract shall grant the aviation program, the Commonwealth, or the aviation industry partner the authority to initiate recoupment proceedings for the recovery of the total amount of all aviation training scholarships awarded to an individual that fails to complete the terms of a scholarship contract; direct the council to reserve up to 35% of all net moneys in the fund for aviation equipment partnership contracts between public aviation training programs and aviation industry partners to provide aviation and aviation equipment grants; requrie that an aviation equipment partnership shall require a written partnership contract between a public aviation program, aviation industry partner, and the council; establish minimum contract requirements; direct the council to collaborate with the advisory committee to select proposals for partnership contracts; direct that the council may prioritize designated contracts; provide that the council shall require the public aviation program to submit proof that the entire amount of the aviation equipment grant is invested in the maintenance, acquisition, or lease of aviation or aviation training equipment utilized by students enrolled in a public aviation training program; require the council to submit a report to the Legislative Research Commission and establish minimum report requirements; sunset the bill on June 30, 2030; provide that this Act may be cited as the Aerospace Education Reinvestment Opportunity (A.E.R.O.) Act; APPROPRIATION; EMERGENCY.

Amend KRS 16.010 to define "missing adult"; create a new section of KRS Chapter 16 to require the Department of Kentucky State Police to create and operate the Kentucky Ashanti Alert System to provide public notification through the use of media providers and highway signs when an adult is missing and may have been abducted or kidnapped or may be in physical danger.

Amend KRS 335.158 to establish requirements and standards for the provision of social work services via telehealth.

Amend KRS 49.280 to expand definitions relating to crime victims compensation; amend KRS 49.300 to specify duties of the Crime Victims Compensation Board; amend KRS 49.310 to allow family members and caregivers of a victim to file claims; amend KRS 49.330 to increase access for victims to file claims; amend KRS 49.340 to limit the time for an investigation; amend KRS 49.350 to allow a claim in default to be revived; amend KRS 49.360 to increase the allowable amount of emergency awards; amend KRS 49.370 to raise award limits and expand the types of claims eligible for payment; amend KRS 49.390 to remove the requirement of financial hardship for the victim; amend KRS 49.400 to limit the penalty to the intentional filing of false information; amend KRS 216B.400 to increase the medical services eligible for reimbursement, amend KRS 216B.990 to require an online portal for reporting violations of KRS 216B.400 to aid in penalty enforcement; amend KRS 49.380 to conform; make technical corrections.

Amend KRS 317A.030 to add a licensed nail technician and one additional citizen at large member to the board; direct board to collect and retain statistical data on its applicants and licensees; amend KRS 317A.120 to require the board give written tests in an applicant's first or second fluent language and provide certified interpreter for oral exams; allow applicant to retake any failed portion of the exam one month from applicant's receipt of any failure notice and to retake any failed exam portion an unlimited number of times; cap the retesting fee at $35 per exam per applicant; amend KRS 317A.130 to require a warning notice be given for violation, except for a violation that presents immediate and present danger; directs notice to include description of violation and remediation required.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 216 to allow health facilities or health care providers enrolled in the Kentucky Medicaid program to submit a current or prospective employee to a check of the child abuse and neglect or adult abuse registries maintained by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services; require the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate administrative regulations.