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OP-ED: Budget moves forward, Governor presents requests, members have chance to review

OP-ED: Budget moves forward, Governor presents requests, members have chance to review
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By Rep. Chris Freeland
Jan. 18, 2022 | MARSHALL COUNTY
By Rep. Chris Freeland Jan. 18, 2022 | 09:24 AM | MARSHALL COUNTY
It was a busy week in Frankfort as lawmakers continue their work during the 2022 regular session. On day nine, we convened in joint session with the Senate to hear the Governor share his priorities for state spending over the next two years.

Some of the Governor’s recommendations are similar to the House plan, including increased funding for education, raises for Kentucky State Police Troopers, crime lab workers, and other state employees, investments in our roads and bridges, and additional money for our budget reserve trust fund. However, his spending plan amounts to hundreds of millions, if not an entire billion, more than that introduced by the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee Chair last week. All this spending might sound good, but remember that what the government gives, it must first take away. I am hopeful that instead of leaving future generations with no choice but to “take more away” from taxpayers, we use this opportunity to reform our tax code.

Just as I used the past week to dig deeper into the House version of the budget, I will spend the next few days reviewing the details of the Governor’s budget requests. In the meantime, I hope you find this breakdown of HB 1, the House Budget Bill, valuable. To be honest, I am impressed with the investments it makes as well as the restraint it showed with money that belongs to you as a taxpayer.

K-12 Education Funding

•  Increases the Base SEEK guarantee to a record high dollar amount of $4,100 in the first fiscal year and $4,200 in the second fiscal year. Every dollar SEEK is increased translates into an additional investment of $800,000 in public school districts.

•  Doubles state funding for full-day kindergarten in both fiscal years to cover the entire cost

•  Increases transportation funding from approximately 51% to a minimum of 70%, with some districts at 100%

•  Increases funding to eligible Family Resource and Youth Services Centers (FRYSCS) from approximately $184 to $220, totaling $12 million additional in each year

•  Fully funds Kentucky Teachers Retirement System at the actuarially required contribution rather than that required by law. The statutorily required contribution would be $438 million, this plan allocates an estimated $1.067 billion in the first year and $1.084 billion in the second year.

•  Pays off all past teacher cost of living adjustments and sick leave payouts to KTRS, totaling $479 million

•  Fully funds the state portion of health insurance for retired teachers under the age of 65

•  Fully funds vocational education transportation at an additional $5.4 million

•  Provides certified speech pathologists and audiologists the same pay subsidy as certified teachers


Postsecondary Education

•  Provides $50 million additional in each year to the performance based funding model available to the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Western Kentucky University, Murray State University, Northern Kentucky University, Morehead State University, and Kentucky Community and Technical Colleges.

•  Funds a new health care workforce initiative at $20 million in each year of the budget

•  Fully funds the subsidy necessary to pay portion of retirement benefits owed under HB 8/2021RS

•  Provides a total of $350 million in each year of the budget to create asset preservation funds at each public postsecondary institution and KCTCS to maintain buildings and facilities. Funds will be available to these institutions based on the square footage of facilities model established in the performance-based model.

•  Fully funds a Workforce Participation Trust Fund at every KCTCS institution

•  Funds endowment matches at the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville at $15 million in each year to incentivize research (Bucks for Brains)

•  Provides an additional $42 million in each year for anticipated growth in each year for the College Access Program (CAP), Kentucky Tuition Grant Program, and Work Ready Scholarship Program


Health and Family Services

•  Provides necessary funding to implement the Public Health Transformation Act (HB 129/2020) to ensure public health departments are financially able to continue serving communities

•  Allocates $2.5 million to Area Health Educational Centers

•  Raises the salary and institutes a retention payment for social workers totaling approximately, this is a $25.6 million increase in the first year and a $61.7 million increase in the second year

•  Funds 100 additional social worker positions in each year of the budget for a total of 200 and provides a method of tracking the implementation of increased staffing

•  Raises the reimbursement rate of 1915c (Michelle P, Home and Community Based Services) waiver services by 10% in each year of the budget

•  Fully funds the increase in the nursing home reimbursement rate

•  Provides for a pilot program to offer mental health services to rural communities through a mobile crisis service expansion

•  Ensures funding for Medicaid growth and a reduction in the federal reimbursement, totaling approximately $1.024 billion in FY 23-24


Justice

•  Provides a $15,000 pay increase to Kentucky State Police (KSP) Troopers and Motor Vehicle Inspectors

•  Provides an $8,000 pay increase to telecommunicators

•  Provides more than a $1 million in increased funding to the Office of the Medical Examiner

•  Allocates funding for a pay increase for forensic lab personnel and replacement equipment

•  Provides funding for additional personnel in the Office of the Attorney General, Commonwealth, and County Attorneys offices

•  Provides a 6% raise to deputy circuit court clerks

•  Allocates $215 million to the KSP retirement fund to reduce the employer contribution rate from 141% per employee to 100%

•  Funds the purchase of integrated body camera systems for the KSP

•  Provides for the third phase of a radio purchase for KSP

•  Allocates $28.5 million for a training center at the Department of Criminal Justice Training at Eastern Kentucky University

•  Increases the county jail per diem by $4 to $35.34

•  Provides $38 million from the General Fund to finish the implementation of electronic filing in courts


Transportation/Infrastructure

•  Provides $200 million for the required state match for the federal infrastructure package

•  Includes $50 million in each year for a special grant to help local governments with road maintenance

•  Provides $10 million in each year for a grant pool available to the state’s 52 general aviation airports

•  Replaces over $180 million in allocations formerly charged to the road fund with general fund dollars and moves that amount to the Maintenance Account


General Government

•  Provides a 6% raise for public employees in the FY 22-23 and requires the Secretary of Personnel to develop a plan to revise the classification and compensation for funding in the second year

•  Allocates $350 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding towards clean water and wastewater projects to be allocated to each county by population

•  Returns the unemployment insurance fund to pre-pandemic levels by allocating $312 million in ARPA funds

•  Eliminates the practice of bonding to pay for maintenance and repair projects through agency maintenance pools

•  Provides cash, not bonds, for capital projects that are less than $3 million

•  Allocates a total of $10 million towards a population-based grant pool under the Department of Local Government that would allow each Representative and Senator to award grants to local governments, educational units, and quasi-governmental agencies

•  Funds the operation of the Bowling Green Veterans Nursing Home

•  Provides $500,000 in each year of the budget for the Raising Hope Initiative, a farmer suicide prevention program that will be moved to the Department of Agriculture


Economic Development

•  Provides additional funding for Bluegrass State Skills Program

•  Allocates $10 million in each year for a Rural Product Development Initiative for business site development


Pensions

•  Fully funds the actuarially required contribution for the Kentucky Retirement System at $1.2 billion per year

•  Fully funds the actuarially required contribution for the Kentucky Teachers Retirement System at an estimated $1.067 billion in the first year and $1.084 billion in the second year. ($629 million in the first year and $646 million more in the second year)

•  Provides $215 million to the Kentucky State Police Retirement Fund to reduce the employer contribution rate from 141% to 100%

•  Funds the HB 8 subsidy for regional postsecondary institutions at $2.2 million to ensure universities to pay their actual share of pension debt

Remember, this is the House spending plan and it will undoubtably change as it moves to the Senate and through the legislative process. I hope you will feel free to contact me over the next few weeks. You can reach me by calling 502-564-8100, through the toll-free message line in Frankfort at 1-800-372-7181, or by e-mail Chris.Freeland@lrc.ky.gov.


Views, opinions, positions, or strategies expressed by the authors are theirs alone. They do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, positions, or strategies of West Kentucky Star.com, Bristol Broadcasting, or any employee. Bristol Broadcasting makes no representations of accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use.
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