General Assembly 2002 offers hope for family
Its slow-going for pro-family legislation, but severalgood bills are filed
From, The Kentucky Citizen Digest, March/April, 2002.

Although the 2002 General Assembly began with a high level of rancor between Democrats and Republicans over redistricting, by the first week of February, the issue had been settled.  Not everyone was happy, of course.  Senate Republicans seemed, at first, to have gotten the short end of the stick, but Senate President David Williams, aggravated from repeated verbal attacks by Democrats on the floor of the Senate, got the better end in the final redistricting plan.

In the end, it appeared that Senate Republicans had won a complete victory over the chamber’s 18 Democrats, creating a potential Republican Senate dynasty that could last for years.

Once the redistricting controversy had been settled, legislators were able to focus once again on the issues. 

Gambling

At press time, it was expected that a bill would be introduced to bring video lottery slot machines to Kentucky’s horseracing tracks. At a time when the state is facing a financial shortfall, out-of-state gambling interests and racetrack owners had hired numerous lobbyists to put the heat on state lawmakers while they were vulnerable to suggestion.  No one knows the outcome of the battle for expanded gambling, but at the mid-session mark the pro-gambling forces appear to have the advantage.

Public Decency

The problem that cities like Lexington have had with “adult-oriented” businesses has spawned concern over the Commonwealth’s lack of laws to deal with the problem.  In response, State Rep. Ruth Ann Palumbo (D-Lexington) has introduced HB 385, which would prohibit nudity and the performance of sexual acts at these establishments.  Other, more stringent, regulations would have to be pursued at the local level, but Palumbo says that this bill would set a minimal state standard for such businesses.  The bill is currently stalled in the House
Judiciary Committee.

Psychotropic Drugs in Schools

State Rep. Mike Cherry (D-Princeton) has introduced what has turned out to be controversial legislation to prohibit teachers and other school personnel from recommending to parents that their children be placed on drugs like Ritalin, HB 181.  The bill was heard in the education committee, but was passed over after it was revealed, five minutes after the meeting started, that the state’s powerful teacher’s union, the Kentucky Education Association, had taken a position against the bill.  It is expected to come back in another form later in the session.

Gay Rights

Two bills have been introduced from opposite poles of the gay rights issue.  State Rep. Kathy Stein (D-Lexington) has introduced HB 125, which would make homosexuality one of the protected classes in state law.  Along with traits like race, gender and disability, sexual orientation would receive legal antidiscrimination status in regard to jobs and housing.  On the other side is HB 392, introduced by Joe Fischer (R-Ft. Thomas). This bill would overturn local gay rights ordinances by making all civil rights standards state, rather than locally-determined.  Both of these bills are stuck in the House Judiciary Committee, where Chairman Gross Lindsey (D-Henderson) seems unlikely to call either bill for a vote before the full House.

Home Schooling

State Rep. Barbara Colter has once again introduced a bill, HB 54, which would regulate home schooling in the state.  The bill would require home-schooled students to be tested annually, and would require that local school districts visit the homes of home educators to verify that the family is actually home schooling rather than engaging in truancy.  Colter is trying to solve some problems in her own legislative district, where there are some truancy problems, but home educators argue that such a law would put too much power in the hands of some local school officials who could use it to further persecute legitimate home schools.

Video Voyeurism

State Rep. Jimmy Lee (D-Elizabethtown) has introduced HB 130 which creates the crime of video voyeurism when a person videotapes another person in sexual acts or state of undress without the person’s permission.  With the culture’s move toward greater sexual interest, HB 130 is designed to  protect privacy.  The bill has already passed the House and is in its Senate committee.

Internet Child Pornography

House Bill 337, filed by Joni Jenkins (D-Shively), prohibits using the Internet for child pornography.  Much like the previous bill, its goal is to provide a safeguard as the demand for sexual images increases in our culture.
Sanctity of Life

Although sanctity of life legislation has fared fairly well in the 2002 session (see article on page 3), many pro-family bills are moving slowly, if at all.  But with about one half of the session still to go, there is still reason for hope on such legislation. 

Key Family Foundation Contacts: Kent Ostrander , Executive Director Martin Cothran , Senior Associate Policy Analyst