Legislature passes constitutional amendment declaring no right to abortion in KY
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The Kentucky General Assembly scrambled to pass a series of last-minute bills in the waning hours of Tuesday, the final day of the 2021 legislative session, including a constitutional amendment dealing with abortion.
With the minute hand on the clock inching toward midnight, the House filed a flurry of floor amendments, none of which the public had the opportunity to read, to pass last-minute items from their legislative wish-list.
One, attached to a bill that dealt with reorganization of the adjutant general’s office, would require someone who filed a failed impeachment petition to pay the legal fees of the Legislative Research Commission if they sue in an effort to avoid paying the cost of the impeachment proceeding.
The people who filed petitions to impeach Gov. Andy Beshear and Attorney General Daniel Cameron are currently challenging the committee’s decision to make them pay more than $60,000 in legal fees.
While the House was filing floor amendments, the Senate was voting on a constitutional amendment that would make clear there is no legal right to an abortion in Kentucky if the voters approve it in 2022 and the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
Here’s some of what they passed between 6 p.m. and when they adjourned for the year just after 11:45 p.m.
Abortion
The Senate gave final passage to a constitutional amendment that declares there is no right to an abortion in Kentucky.
House Bill 91 would add this phrase to the Kentucky Constitution: “To protect human life, nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.” The constitution would then pre-empt any court ruling that could legalize abortion in the state, should the federal Supreme Court reverse its ruling that guarantees a right to an abortion.
Rep. Joseph Fischer, R-Ft. Thomas, told a Senate committee earlier this month that the bill was an attempt to prevent Kentucky courts from saying abortion is legal in Kentucky, but would not block the legislature from allowing abortion rights.
Senate Minority Leader Morgan McGarvey, D-Louisville, voiced concern that the amendment provides no exceptions for abortion, such as in the case of rape, incest or if the mother’s life is in danger.
Abortion is usually a hot-button election issue and now Kentuckians will have to vote on the constitutional amendment in November 2022, when U.S. Sen. Rand Paul is up for reelection and members of the House and Senate will likely be running in newly drawn congressional districts for the first time.
Gov. Andy Beshear does not have the authority to veto proposed constitutional amendments.
Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana and Kentucky condemned passage of the amendment
“This constitutional amendment is a blatant effort to take away Kentuckians’ fundamental rights and prevent individuals from making the health care decisions best for them and their families,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund. “As Kentuckians continue to grapple with the deadly impacts of the pandemic and systemic racism, restricting access to abortion is the last thing politicians should be focusing on right now.”
ACLU-Kentucky policy strategist Jackie McGranahan said “passing such extreme legislation shows Kentucky lawmakers want to force their constituents to remain pregnant against their will, even if they are victims and survivors of rape or incest.”
Unemployment offices
The General Assembly passed Senate Bill 146, which along with requiring background checks for employees in the Labor Cabinet, will require the cabinet to open 12 regional unemployment offices by April 15.
Kentucky’s unemployment system has been overwhelmed during the COVID-19 pandemic and many people have struggled for months to get help resolving problems with their unemployment claims. The addition of regional offices, which would be located in counties where unemployment is higher than 5 percent, would potentially help alleviate some of those struggles.
In a committee meeting earlier this week, Rep. Scott Sharp, R-Ashland, said he had spoken to Beshear senior adviser Rocky Adkins and that the administration had already identified where they would be able to open offices.
Anti-doxxing bill
The General Assembly gave final approval to Senate Bill 267, which would make it a crime to publish publicly identifying information about someone on the internet with the intent to “intimidate, abuse, threaten, harass, or frighten a person who resides in the commonwealth.”
The bill had stalled in previous legislative sessions. It was originally filed after a former Covington Catholic student was harassed online when a video of him at the March for Life in Washington D.C. went viral.
Horse racing commission
A bill to make the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission accountable to the Executive Branch Ethics Commission gained final passage. Originally, House Bill 226 contained language that would create a task force to study increasing taxes on historical racing machines.
This story was originally published March 30, 2021 at 7:49 PM.
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