KY General Assembly Week 9: Nearly 1,300 bills. Could these add new state symbols?

Kentuckians know our symbols and traditions well.

Our flag declares “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.” Racegoers sing “My Old Kentucky Home” before the Kentucky Derby every first Saturday in May. We love to remind people that, actually, Kentucky is a commonwealth, not a state, thank you very much.

And if we’ve retained anything from fourth grade social studies, it’s that the state bird is the cardinal, the tree is the tulip poplar and the flower is the goldenrod.

As I am someone who appreciates both a bit of whimsy and a commitment to accuracy, one of the more memorable pieces of legislation for me from 2024 came from Rep. Al Gentry, a Louisville Democrat and trained geologist. That year’s House Bill 378 went about setting the record scientifically straight on two of Kentucky’s official emblems.

Decades prior, coal was named the state mineral, and Kentucky agate was made the state rock. The problem was coal is a rock, and agate is a mineral. Thanks to Gentry’s bill and unanimous final passage in the legislature, coal is now the official rock, calcite is the official mineral and Kentucky agate is the official gemstone, replacing the freshwater pearl for that distinction.

Thanks to two Senate bills on the move, Kentucky could pick up a couple more official symbols. Senate Bill 19 from Sen. Scott Madon, R-Pineville, would designate the indigo milk cap as the official mushroom, and Senate Bill 37 from Sen. Robin Webb, R-Grayson, would name the Treeing Walker Coonhound as the state dog. The former has cleared a committee vote, and the latter has passed the full Senate.

In writing this bit, I fell down a rabbit hole on Kentucky’s lesser-known symbols, which are found in Chapter 2 of the Kentucky Revised Statutes. Our state drink, for example, is not bourbon; it’s milk. But there’s only one original Kentucky soft drink in our hearts, and per KRS 2.086, it’s Ale-8-One.

State dance? Clogging. Silverware pattern? The Georgetown Pattern. Saddle? Kentucky Springseat Saddle (Minihan).

The bill-filing deadline for 2026 is behind us, so I’d like to submit the following for legislative consideration in 2027:

• Nerds Gummy Clusters, but only in the pink bag, as the state candy. I’m not aware of a Kentucky connection; I just really like them. (I don’t foresee this one making much progress, should a lawmaker take up my cause. My backup options are bourbon balls and modjeskas.)
• The eastern hellbender, a rare, giant salamander found in 15 states, including Kentucky, should be our official amphibian. In addition to bearing a passing resemblance to a baked potato, these big fellas are an indicator of stream health, and they face significant threats due to pollution and habitat loss.
• There are a number of states with official grasses. Believe it or not, Kentucky — The Bluegrass State — is not among them. This one seems like a gimme.

Confronting a ‘xenophobic virus’

Senate Bill 137, which passed the Senate Thursday, would provide a clear pathway for physicians who graduated from foreign medical schools to practice in Kentucky under employer sponsorship.

Sponsor Sen. Stephen Meredith, R-Leitchfield, a former hospital executive, said that foreign medical graduates were key to the success of his hospital. He was critical in a floor speech of what he called “xenophobic virus.”

“I wasn’t really anxious about running this bill, because all the current rhetoric are about immigration,” Meredith said.

He later listed the doctors and their countries of origin he once oversaw, such as an orthopedic surgeon from South Korea and a pediatrician from Lebanon.

The bill passed 30-7, with a small number of Republicans voting against the bill.

-Reported by Austin Horn

Addressing repeat DUIs

The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday approved House Bill 563, sponsored by Rep. Patrick Flannery, R-Olive Hill. It would prohibit Kentuckians from buying alcohol if they are convicted of the felony of driving under the influence for the fourth or subsequent offense.

The booze ban — indicated by a prominent sticker placed on the defendant’s driver’s license or other photo ID — would last for the five years of their mandatory license suspension, plus two more years.

State courts data indicate that several hundred people are convicted of DUI 4th offense in a typical year.

State Rep. Mary Lou Marzian, D-Louisville, told Flannery she supports his bill but asked how effective it would be if chronic drunk drivers aren’t carded when they buy alcohol. That could happen, Flannery acknowledged, because Kentucky does not require retailers or servers to check photo ID unless they have reason to believe the customer is underage.

“They card me at Kroger every time I buy beer, and I’m 100 years old,” Marzian responded.

-Reported by John Cheves

More headlines from Week 9 of the 2026 General Assembly

• The University of Kentucky could see budget cuts over the next two years if the proposed state budget passes as written, UK President Eli Capilouto said. -Reported by Monica Kast
• The Senate passed a bill Friday significantly reshaping the state’s utility regulator, while axing language that would’ve shut out consumer advocacy groups acting on behalf of Kentuckians in rate cases. -Reported by Austin R. Ramsey and Hannah Pinski
• A Republican lawmaker wants to ban people from using bathrooms in public buildings that don’t align with their sex assigned at birth. -Hannah Pinski
• The House advanced a bill that would make sweeping changes to the state’s law election law, including voter citizenship verification, rules for judicial candidates and letting federal officeholders run for multiple offices. -Reported by Hannah Pinski and Austin Horn
• Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand Paul and other federal officeholders would, by law, be able to run for reelection and president in 2028 under a bill advancing in the legislature. -Reported by Austin Horn and Hannah Pinski
• Thieves continue to strip their communities of valuable metal they sell to scrap dealers despite the Kentucky legislature’s efforts to hit the criminals with stronger penalties. Now, a bill is trying a new tactic: It’s targeting the people who buy the metal. -John Cheves
• A Republican lawmaker filed a bill that would require Kentucky public schools to allow off-campus Bible classes during the school day. -Reported by Valarie Honeycutt Spears
• A Central Kentucky circuit judge facing impeachment says the petition against her should be dismissed for several reasons, including that it would violate Kentucky’s separation of powers and the filing is incomplete. -Reported by Taylor Six
• The age limit for legally wagering on sports in Kentucky would be raised from 18 to 21 under a new bill in the General Assembly. -Reported by Janet Patton and Cameron Drummond

What we’re looking for in Week 10 of the 2026 General Assembly

The 2026 General Assembly is now more than two-thirds of the way done, and the filing deadline for new bills is behind us. Lawmakers filed just short of 1,300 bills, with more than 70% coming from the House.

With 19 legislative days left, only four bills have cleared both chambers. As of Friday, Gov. Andy Beshear had signed one into law, vetoed another and has yet to act on two.

I keep thinking it feels like things are moving a little slow, but I took a peek at the 2024 legislative record for a frame of reference. By March 9, 2024, just four bills had been delivered to the governor. He’d signed two, vetoed the third and hadn’t yet acted on the fourth.

So I guess we’re right on schedule.

The executive branch budget bill remains in the Senate’s hands for further action. For comparison’s sake, the 2024 budget bill cleared the House on Feb. 1 and the Senate on March 13. The inevitable free conference committee version — where the chambers hash out their differences — had cleared both bodies and was delivered to the governor by March 28.

As the calendar stands now — remember, there’s still a snow day to make up for — April 1 is the deadline lawmakers need to meet if they want to override any Beshear vetoes, including budget line items, before session adjourns sine die April 15.

Thank you for following the Herald-Leader’s coverage of the Kentucky General Assembly. If you haven’t already, consider signing up for our (twice-weekly during session!) Bluegrass Politics newsletter.

Give me a shout at tduvall@herald-leader.com with any feedback, tips or ideas for state symbols.

Tessa Duvall

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-334-0430

Tessa has been the Herald-Leader’s Politics and Public Affairs Editor since March 2024, after acting as Frankfort Bureau Chief since joining the paper in August 2022. A native of Bowling Green and a graduate of Western Kentucky University, Tessa has also reported in Texas, Florida and Louisville, where she covered education, criminal justice and policing.