April 16, 2014 - The 2014 session of the Kentucky General Assembly came to an abrupt end at midnight last night, the constitutionally-mandated end of session. Lawmakers were literally left standing on the House floor in the middle of a debate on how to address Kentucky's heroin epidemic when the clock struck midnight.
Senators were also standing on the Senate floor waiting to see if any additional bills would make it before the deadline. Despite having 60 days every even-numbered year, lawmakers routinely find themselves debating issues until the last moment, and important measures fail as they are pushed later and later in session and eventually remain unaddressed as the clock strikes midnight.
Kentucky Chamber President and CEO Dave Adkisson appeared on a Kentucky Tonight panel Monday to discuss the results of the 2014 General Assembly.Click to watch. |
After a flurry of activity during the final two days of session, a handful of good bills passed and several bad ideas were thwarted, but many good bills fell victim to the legislative process. Click here for a brief summary.