Republican lawmakers have announced they issued subpoenas seeking information from Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s administration as part of their process of crafting a two-year state spending plan.
House Republicans said after months of requesting critical budget information from the Beshear administration, Kentucky lawmakers issued subpoenas Tuesday to gather the information necessary to continue crafting the two-year spending plan for state agencies and programs.
“As we continue to stress, HB 500 was filed as a starting point and was written the way it was because we lacked the necessary data and information to craft a responsible, informed spending plan for the commonwealth. We are still committed to using whatever information we have at our disposal to move the budget through the process, but the time has come to elevate our requests and take necessary corrective action,” said House Speaker David Osborne.
Subpoenas were issued by the co-chairs of the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee to the Kentucky State Budget Director; Secretary of the Personnel Cabinet; and Deputy Secretary of the Personnel Cabinet. Specifically, lawmakers are seeking Kentucky Employee Health Plan actuarial reports, studies, and recommendations pertaining to the development and implementation of the plan years 2023-2028, including without limitation benefits, enrollment rules and premium rates, as well as claim trends, enrollment data, and related consultant communications for 2026–2028 plan years.
Gov. Beshear’s Communications Director, Scottie Ellis, responded to the action in a statement saying:
“These subpoenas are a stunt with no merit. Legislators have had all necessary information for weeks. Tuesday of last week, for the first time, they requested new information that had to be compiled by actuaries, and it was delivered Tuesday at 3:22 p.m. by the State Budget director.
“The Beshear administration has provided every piece of information the General Assembly has requested, in addition to a nearly 390-page report delivered on Jan. 7. These political games distract from what should be an easy choice for the General Assembly, which is to not increase health insurance costs for 310,000 hardworking state employees.”
Lawmakers have until April 15 to approve a budget, which will cover the period from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2028.
