Another week of the 2026 Legislative session has passed. At close on Friday, the General Assembly wrapped day thirteen of the 60-day session. The bill count has risen to XXX. We have seen some priority legislation filed in recent days including Medicaid reform and the reintroduction of Senate Bill 1, the legislation recently reheard by the Kentucky Supreme Court that would shift the authority of the JCPS school board and superintendent. Here’s an overview of the highlights from last week:

Large School District Reform

Senate Bill 1*, filed by President Pro Tempore David Givens and Senate Education Chair Steve West addresses governance within Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS). This legislation comes in response to the recent Kentucky Supreme Court decision overturning 2022’s SB 1, which aimed to shift substantial operation authority from the school board to the superintendent. The basis of the Court’s rehearing and overturning of the case was based on the Kentucky Constitutional prohibition on “special” and “local” legislation and found that the legislation was “special legislation” without a sufficient need to treat the district differently. The 2026 iteration addresses these concerns expressed by the Court about the sufficient need to treat JCPS differently.

In the 2026 language key duties and executive functions, such as personnel management, financial operations, and strategic plan implementation, are assigned to the superintendent, subject to board oversight. Notably, the superintendent can approve certain financial transactions up to $250,000 without explicit board consent. The board’s role is redefined to focus on strategic planning and performance oversight, meeting no more than once every four weeks for administrative approvals.

GLI actively supported the 2022 version SB 1 in its passage and by submitting an amicus brief in favor of the law at the Supreme Court. This legislation includes important governance reforms that will allow the Superintendent to lead the district in addressing its current issues and allowing more direct leadership in operating the district.

Medicaid Reorganization

House Bill 2* filed by Rep. Ken Fleming, Co-Chair of the Medicaid Oversight Advisory Board (MOAB), outlines a comprehensive overhaul of Medicaid policy in Kentucky. The bill focuses on eligibility, engagement, and administrative structures aimed at efficiency and accountability.   The bill also prohibits seeking federal exemptions and delays for these requirements without legislative authorization as well as stricter oversight and monitoring. This includes eligibility redetermination every six months. This legislation comes after sweeping changes to cost sharing between state and federal governments in the One Big Beautiful Bill passed in the summer.

Foreign Transactions in the Commonwealth

House Bill 283 filed by Rep. Scott Sharp would prohibit a resident of the Commonwealth from engaging in a transaction with a foreign enterprise if the transaction would result in foreign control of intellectual property, infrastructure, technology, or assets critical to the economic security of the Commonwealth, obstruction of counter-intelligence efforts, or would compromise the economic security of the Commonwealth. GLI will be meeting with the sponsor and expressing our concerns with this bill.

*= Priority bills for each chamber are usually denoted by bill numbers under 10.

Other Legislative Priorities

All priority bills filed to date are:

Senate

SB 1 – Sen. Givens: Re-enactment of 2022 legislation to strengthen oversight of Jefferson County Public Schools invalidated by Supreme Court. Filed 1/21.

SB 3 – Sen. Tichenor: Transparency of public school district budgets. Filed 1/21.

SB 7– Sen. Reed: Allow the issuance of drivers’ licenses by local county officials. Passed Senate 1/16.

SB 10 – Sen. McDaniel: Constitutional amendment limiting gubernatorial pardons.  Passed Senate 1/20.

House

HB 2 – Rep. Fleming: Omnibus reform of the Medicaid program. Filed 1/21.

HB 3 – Rep. Neighbors: Require Medicaid to comply with statutory pharmacy reimbursement. To Banking & Insurance 1/21.

HB 4 – Rep. Proctor: Create the felony offense of grooming of a minor. To Judiciary 1/21. 

HB 7 – Rep. Hale: School bus safety measures. To Transportation 1/23.

HB 10 – Rep. Hodgson: Restrictions on gubernatorial transitions. Filed 1/16.

Budget Bills 

All eyes remain on the House as we await introduction of their biennial budget and Road Plan. It’s expected that the early versions of the budget in both chambers will be starting points with the intent to include additional spending later in the process. Budgets for the Legislative Branch (HB 427) and Judicial Branch (HB 428) were filed last week and are awaiting committee assignment. Governor Beshear’s Transportation Cabinet budget HB 303 and Executive Branch Budget HB 304 remain in the House A&R Committee.