The 2023 Interim Session is poised to officially begin Tuesday morning with a host of interim joint committee meetings in Frankfort.
Interim meetings and special committees approved by the Legislative Research Commission (LRC), headed by House Speaker David Osborne, R-Prospect, and Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, will serve as a primer for the 2024 Regular Session scheduled to convene Tuesday, Jan. 2.
The interim is designated for a more in-depth look at policy matters to determine what legislation may be considered in the next legislative session and receive updates on enacted legislation. Like regular session committee meetings, stakeholders will participate in the committee process, providing testimony and present updates to lawmakers.
Interim joint committees meet when the regular session is adjourned. Interim committees are formed from the House and Senate standing committees. For example, the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Judiciary Committee become the Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary after the regular session. These committees discuss policy issues within their committee subjects and forward policy recommendations to the General Assembly and LRC.
Over the interim period, focus topics will include infant mortality, workforce innovation, military occupational experience, updates on the implementation of 2023 legislation, and much more.
LRC established special committees, also known as task forces, and function primarily during the interim, typically studying a specific topic. Visit legislature.ky.gov for details on 2023 special committees.
The first task force meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 5.
The Health and Human Services Delivery System Task Force will meet at 3 p.m. in Capitol Annex Room 171.
The tentative agenda will include an overview of the task force and a review of the 2022 Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) Reorganization Task Force’s final report resulting from the 2023 Legislative Session’s Senate Bill 48. The agenda will also include various updates from CHFS.
Task force co-chair Senator Steve Meredith, R-Leitchfield, was the primary sponsor of Senate Bill 48. The bill adopted many recommendations from the 2022 task force and, among other provisions, removed the Department for Income Support—which administers the Child Support Enforcement Program within CHFS—and placed it within the Office of the Attorney General. Outstanding child support arrears in Kentucky total over $1.4 billion.
Start of the Interim Session
The first day of the interim is Tuesday, June 6. The week’s schedule is as follows:
Tuesday, June 6
• 11 a.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Education – Capitol Annex Room 154
The tentative agenda includes a presentation on the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act by Dr. Jim Flynn and an overview of the state’s assessment and accountability system by the Kentucky Department of Education.
• 1 p.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Transportation – Capitol Annex Room 149
The tentative agenda includes an update on the State’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Plan, preparedness for vision testing on driver’s license renewal set to take effect Jan. 1, 2024, the fee structure for overweight/over-dimensional permits, and an update from Secretary Jim Gray on major projects and major issues facing the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.
Wednesday, June 7
• 9 a.m. – Budget Review Subcommittees on:
• Economic Development, Tourism, and Environmental Protection – Capitol Annex Room 154
• General Government, Finance, Personnel, and Public Retirement – Capitol Annex Room 131
• Justice and Judiciary – Capitol Annex Room 129
• 10:30 a.m. – Budget Review Subcommittees on:
• Education – Capitol Annex Room 154
• Health and Family Services – Capitol Annex Room 129
• Transportation – Capitol Annex Room 131
• 1 p.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue – Capitol Annex Room 149
• An agenda will be available at legislature.ky.gov once finalized.
Thursday, June 8
• 9 a.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Agriculture – Capitol Annex Room 154
• The tentative agenda will include a discussion on Kentucky’s Watershed Dams.
• 11 a.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary – Capitol Annex Room 149
• An agenda will be available at legislature.ky.gov once finalized.
• 1 p.m. – Interim Joint Committee on Natural Resources and Energy – Capitol Annex Room 154
• Representatives from Kentucky Power will testify about the canceled proposal to sell Kentucky Power from American Electric Power to Liberty Utilities.
• 3 p.m. – The Lottery Fund Task Force will meet in Capitol Annex Room 171.
• An agenda will be available at legislature.ky.gov once finalized.
All meetings are open to the public and the media.
Legislative coverage
Interim meetings will be live-streamed via the LRC YouTube Channel and at ket.org. Archived footage of meetings can be accessed at KET.org/archives and on the LRC YouTube Channel.
Legislative Research Commission
