Thursday, January 30, 2014

Day Seventeen of KY's 2014 Session In Review

HB1, a bill that would raise the state’s minimum hourly wage of $7.25 to $10.10 by July 2016 cleared the House Labor and Industry Committee on Thursday. The wage would be increased incrementally to $8.10 an hour this July, $9.15 per hour in July 2015, and $10.10 an hour the following July under House Bill 1, sponsored by House Speaker Greg Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg. The legislation also proposes a prohibition on wage discrimination, specifying that Kentucky workers be paid equal wages for equal work, regardless of sex, race, or national origin, with a few exceptions based on seniority, merit pay, or productivity measures. Stumbo said approximately 391,000 working Kentuckians earn less than $10.10 an hour—including parents of one in five Kentucky children. He added that the current state minimum wage rate translates roughly to $15,080 in gross annual pay for many full-time Kentucky workers. HB 1, he explained, would raise that to $16,209 a year for those workers.
SB8, a measure that would change the informed consent process for the abortion procedure in Kentucky was approved by the Senate Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Protection Committee today. SB8, sponsored by Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Hopkinsville, would require an ultrasound prior to informed consent being given for an abortion. Under provisions of the bill, the physician would be required to display the ultrasound images and provide a medical description of the images. A woman would not be required to look at the images if she prefers not to, according to the legislation.

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    LINKS TO SOME OF TODAY's HEADLINES:

     UPCOMING MEETINGS:

    Friday, January 24, 2014
    9:00am, House Chambers
    House Convenes (Orders of the Day)
    9:00am, Senate Chambers
    Senate Convenes (Orders of the Day)

    SOME OF THE LATEST POLITICAL STORIES:


    By Sam Youngman syoungman@herald-leader.com Actress and Kentucky native Ashely Judd said Thursday she had no second thoughts about her decision against challenging Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky's U.S. Senate race this year. "At this time, absolutely not," Judd told Politico Thursday. "And I'm grateful for that because life is not always so tidy. I didn't understand why at first because it was a very below-the-neck experience, it was very guttural. I didn't have an explanation at first but then my life became very clear in terms of my need and desire right now to spend a lot of time with family." Judd [...]
    Fri, Jan 31, 2014 1:20:00 AM, Continue reading at the source

    The Senate Education committee on Thursday approved a bill that addressed when high school students can use Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship money. .Click to Continue » [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 11:22:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    WASHINGTON – So we know a lot of people watch the Super Bowl for the ads more than the football. Well, okay, among sports fans, they like the ads and the football. Anyway, we already know that this year’s Super Bowl broadcast is featuring commercials for yogurt, cars (well, duh), beer (double-duh), candy, cereal and soda. Well, we are here to tell you that there will also be ads for – yes indeed! – Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who is seeking his sixth term. McConnell has purchased ads in Kentucky to air on Fox stations in Louisville and Lexington during [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 10:26:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    A bill that would require more training to help Kentucky doctors recognize and prevent abusive head trauma in children won approval Thursday from a legislative committee.Click to Continue » [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 9:34:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    By Jack Brammer jbrammer@herald-leader.com FRANKFORT -- The state House signed off Thursday on a bill that would require state and local government agencies to notify citizens if their personal information on government computers is exposed or hijacked. House Bill 5, backed by Auditor Adam Edelen, got unanimous approval in the House on the chamber's consent calendar. The legislation, co-sponsored by Democratic Rep. Denny Butler of Louisville and Republican Sal Santoro of Florence, requires state and local government agencies to notify individuals affected by a data breach within 35 days of the incident. Notification must be provided on the agency's website and to the media. [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 8:51:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    Nearly half of Kentuckians have a poor view of the Affordable Care Act, and 57 percent say they don't have enough information to know whether the sweeping health care reform…Click to Continue » [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 7:23:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    Calling it a war on free speech, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is urging the head of the Internal Revenue Service to resist rule changes regarding politically active groups that are tax-exempt.The Obama administration is tightening the tax code for non-profits under section 501(c)4 to curb the influence of "social welfare" groups, which are often involved in political campaigns and activities. [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 5:35:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    WASHINGTON – New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s “bridgegate” troubles are costing him in the polls in the 2016 presidential race, but that appears to be helping other Republicans more than Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. Paul had the support of 11 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents surveyed in the latest Washington Post-ABC News Poll, about the same level of backing the Kentuckian has seen in other polls. But that now puts him in fifth place in the GOP field, compared to second or third place in some earlier national polls. The Post-ABC survey of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents found that Wisconsin Rep. Paul [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 4:44:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    A large majority of insured and uninsured Kentuckians say they still lack the necessary information about the Affordable Care Act to determine its impact on them.And a declining number of residents view the federal overhaul favorably compared to two years ago. [...]
    Thu, Jan 30, 2014 1:00:00 PM, Continue reading at the source

    They say it could save millions of dollars by eliminating the office of Kentucky State Treasurer. [...]
    Fri, Jan 31, 2014 4:20:07 AM, Continue reading at the source

    Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer says industrial hemp will make a comeback in Kentucky after decades of being banned if Congress finishes work on a farm bill that includes hemp language. [...]
    Fri, Jan 31, 2014 4:20:07 AM, Continue reading at the source

    After more than two years of partisan squabbles over food and farm policy, the House passed and sent to the Senate Wednesday an almost $100 billion-a-year, compromise farm bill containing a small cut in food stamps and preserving most crop subsidies. [...]
    Fri, Jan 31, 2014 4:20:07 AM, Continue reading at the source

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