Cheers and jeers erupt over Kentucky pension ruling. See the reaction.

Reaction to the 7-0 ruling by the Kentucky Supreme Court that struck down the public pension law backed by Republican Gov. Matt Bevin and the Republican-led legislature.

Mac Brown, chairman of the Republican Party of Kentucky

“The chaos the Supreme Court’s overreach into the legislative branch has brought upon the legislative process will have ramifications far beyond Senate Bill 151, imperiling hundreds of bills passed using the same process and bringing a grinding halt to the ability of the General Assembly to pass compromise legislation late in session.

“That said, at no point in this court challenge have the contents of the bill been called into question. Republicans in the General Assembly took on a difficult issue and did what’s right for taxpayers and state employees to save our pension system. We look forward to continuing to work to handle the crippling pension crisis 90 years of Democrat rule left behind.”

Ben Self, chairman of the Democratic Party of Kentucky

“A unanimous decision from the Kentucky Supreme Court that Senate Bill 151 is unconstitutional sends a clear message to Matt Bevin and Republican lawmakers: you can’t change a sewer bill in the middle of the night and use it to flush the retirement benefits of our teachers, police, firefighters and other state workers at the last minute with no public input.

“But make no mistake, Matt Bevin and the Republicans will continue the attacks on hardworking Kentuckians and try to pass even more benefit cuts in this coming legislative session. The Kentucky Democratic Party intends to hold him accountable in 2019 and make him a one-term governor.”

Kentucky House Republican Leadership

“The process deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court has been utilized for at least a half-century by both parties to pass critical legislation, and has never been challenged until now. The consequences of today’s unwise decision will be far-reaching — particularly for the separation of powers that lie at the heart of our system of government.

“While the legislature would never presume to judge the manner in which the Court conducts judicial business, we are nonetheless bound by its decision, no matter how ill-advised. This unfortunate decision now subjects decades of good legislation to potential legal challenges, while revealing a complete and total lack of understanding for the separation of powers. It disrespects the hard work done by the people’s elected representatives and ignores the constitutional foundations of the three branches of government.

“Because of this disappointing ruling, state employee retirement will continue to be the most insolvent pension system in America, and will serve as a drag on Kentucky’s entire economy ... Today’s decision puts retirement checks for hardworking public employees at risk, and is a major setback to the difficult work undertaken to reverse the indecision and inaction of the past two decades.”

House Minority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins

“This ruling is a huge victory, and it reaffirms what I and other caucus members said in committee and on the floor when we called the House Republicans out of order and said they were breaking the law for the way they handled Senate Bill 151, the ‘sewer’ pension bill.

“We said that the legislative rules and processes should not be ignored, because that shuts out the very public we serve. This ruling also protects our teachers, public employees and their retirees throughout the Commonwealth. Going forward, our caucus remains firm in believing two things: That we should maintain the bipartisan pension reforms passed in 2013 and fund them.”

Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers

“The ruling places in jeopardy years of excellent legislation that could now fall under potential legal challenge. The Court’s decision opens up a ‘Pandora’s box’ of problems for the commonwealth.

“The legislature will revisit this issue in the future, because the problem is not going away and is only getting worse. Funding alone cannot fix the problems that face our pension system; structural changes are necessary unless Kentuckians are to face massive tax increases. The people of the commonwealth deserve a solution to the pension crisis, which sustains current pension promises and makes the systems for future hires affordable and fiscally responsible.”

Sen. Morgan McGarvey, incoming Senate Democratic leader

“Bottom line, the Kentucky Supreme Court today upheld that you cannot turn an 11-page sewer bill into a 290-page overhaul of the pension system without giving anyone notice or the chance to read it. Good. Now it is the time to get back to work, fund our obligation to our public employees and do better with legislation in the future.”

Jim Carroll, president of Kentucky Government Retirees

“Kentucky Retirement Systems stakeholders have been vindicated. We are gratified that the Kentucky Supreme Court has upheld the circuit court’s commonsense ruling that Senate Bill 151 was adopted contrary to law.

“During the upcoming session, we will urge legislators to think long and hard before reintroducing a bill that attacks our contract rights while producing no significant actuarial savings.”

Larry P. Toten, president of Kentucky Public Retirees

“Kentucky Public Retirees applauds today’s Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of Senate Bill 151. Whatever the purpose or content of a piece of legislation, the Courts have ruled that the process by which a bill is passed is important for an open and public evaluation of that legislation.

“Neither of the Courts involved ruled on whether any of its provisions violated the inviolable contract, a disappointment to be sure but understandable as this was not the issue before the Supreme Court.

“The provisions contained in SB 151 (and Senate Bill 1) will no doubt reappear, in whole or in part, through legislation filed in the upcoming 2019 General Assembly. We hope that any bills put forth are done so in a truly bipartisan manner so as to avoid the acrimony created earlier this year.”

Stephanie Winkler, president of Kentucky Education Association

“We are very pleased about this positive decision from the Supreme Court. We’re excited for our educators, public safety employees and all public employees across the state who will not see the promise of their retirement benefits broken by a law passed in the dark of night. This was the right decision by the court.

“This 7-0 decision is a complete rebuke of the deceitful and dishonest methods from those in the majority to undermine our legislative process.”

Dave Adkisson, president of Kentucky Chamber of Commerce

“Today’s decision by the Kentucky Supreme Court is very unsettling for the business community ... We urge the General Assembly to not be dissuaded from reforming the pension systems and to again pass meaningful reforms that will put our pension systems on a sustainable track through the process deemed constitutional by the Supreme Court.”

This story was originally published December 13, 2018 at 11:27 AM.