A few days ago, we listed “Twelve crappy bills that should be burned with fire and die.” (In other words, we thought they were really bad bills.)
At the time, we told you we would come back with two more lists from this year’s General Assembly:
- Some good bills that might actually pass, and
- Some more good bills that were surely dead on arrival, but shouldn’t be
When we mentioned “good bills,” I’m sure some of you used the biblical phrase “Can anything good come out of Frankfort?” And our answer is also biblical: “Come and see.”
Here, then, are some good pieces of legislation that look as if they might become law this year.
HB 25 — No felon prohibition on KEES scholarships
- Delete ban on KEES scholarships for students with felony convictions
HB 126 — Raise the felony threshold
- Increase the felony threshold for theft and fraud offenses to $1,000; amend Class A misdemeanor level to $500;
HB 148 — Mental illness exemption to capital punishment
- Capital punishment: add a diagnosis of serious mental illness to the disabilities which prevent execution for persons convicted of capital offenses
HB 191 — COVID monetary support
- COVID-19 response: provide $220 million in direct payments to businesses, $20 million to nonprofits, $100 million to pay federal UI loan
SB 10 — Commission on Race and Access to Opportunity
- Establish a Commission on Race and Access to Opportunity; include director of Human Rights Commission, legislators, members of public
SB 21 — Youth mental health treatment
- Permit voluntary transport to a hospital or psychiatric facility; allow mental health counseling to any child who is age 16 or older and is an unaccompanied youth
SB 84 — Treatment of pregnant inmates
- Pregnant inmates: prohibit solitary confinement, restrictive housing; require notice of community-based programs; more re sexual assault by police
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All of these bills are in our Key Legislation Bill Tracker, if you want to learn more about a bill.
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