94th District Kentucky State Representative Mitch Whitaker will be attending a forum in Texas to discuss violent crime, particularly domestic violence.

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Frankfort, KY. — Kentucky Fish and Wildlife conservation officers would have the same statutory powers as other law enforcement officers in the state under a bill that has passed the state House. Current state law prohibits conservation officers from acting outside of the scope of the work of the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources unless called upon by the Kentucky State Police. Under HB 274, conservation officers would have the authority to enforce all state laws whenever necessary. Additionally, the bill would allow conservation officers to be compensated if they are required to pay damages or other costs as a result of a job-related lawsuit. HB 274 passed the House by a vote of 97-1. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.

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FRANKFORT, KY. — The state Senate has passed a measure that would allow someone to carry a concealed firearm without a license by a 29-8 vote. Senate Bill 150, dubbed the ‘permitless carry bill’, states that people 21 or older who lawfully possess a firearm may carry a concealed weapon without a license in the same locations as people with valid state-issued licenses. Another provision states no one would be allowed to carry or possess any deadly weapon where it is already prohibited by federal law. Sponsor Sen. Brandon Smith, R-Hazard, said he wanted to stop making criminals out of individuals who happen to slip a gun in their pocket. Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Paducah, said he opposed SB 150 because it doesn’t require gun training and safety classes. “Most people in this body know my career was in law enforcement,” he said. “For 24 years, I depended on firearms to protect me and to allow me to protect my community. However, as part of that responsibility, I had to receive training at least once a year.” He said that training not only included how to shoot a gun, but also how to clean it, store it and – most importantly – when it was legally justified to use it. Sen. Wil Schroder, R-Wilder, spoke in support of SB 150. He noted that the Kentucky Constitution already guarantees the right to open carry or carry a firearm that is not concealed. “You are going to have bad actors out there,” said Schroder, a former prosecutor. “You can walk up on someone today and not know if they have a concealed weapon on them.” SB 150 now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.

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A new Senate Bill would seeks to arm Kentucky’s teachers with non-lethal weapons.

According to the state Legislative Research Commission, Republican Senator Danny Carroll, who serves the 2nd Senate District in extreme Western Kentucky, filed Senate Bill 162 yesterday. SB162 seeks to implement a safety response program using less-than-lethal weapons and would require volunteering school employees to be trained by Kentucky State Police to use those weapons.

According to the LRC website, the less-than-lethal weapons would use “less-than-lethal ammunition,” and the weapons and ammo would be stored on school grounds. The ammunition would include, but not be limited to, rubber bullets, rubber buckshot and/or shotgun rounds, bean bag shotguns, pepper ball guns, stun guns, tranquilizer guns and flash bang devices. Additionally, the bill would require that at least one bulletproof vest be stored in the location with the non-lethal weapons.

The filing also creates language clearing the way for the possession of the weapons on school property. It also seeks to release the school district and school employees volunteering for the program from some liability associated with taking action under the safety response program.

The bill was sent to the education committee today. The filing comes after 17 people, including 14 students, were killed in a mass shooting at a Florida high school on Wednesday.

The filing can be found here.

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State lawmakers are hoping to rein in Kentucky Power on the cost the company is passing along to its customers in order to reach their guaranteed profit margin.

State Senator Ray S. Jones II filed Senate Bill 147 on Valentine’s Day. The bill is an act seeking to limit the guaranteed profit margin for utility companies from 10 percent to no more than 6 percent. Jones said his constituents have been inundated with extremely high power bills. He added that it is not fair to utility customers to pay bills to companies in amounts, in some cases, higher than their monthly incomes when those same companies are collecting billions of dollars in profits guaranteed by law.

Another local state legislator is on-board with Jones’ plan. 92nd District State Rep. John Blanton praised Jones for his filing, and said he planned to file a companion piece of legislation in the state house of representatives.

Senate Bill 147 is co-sponsored by 30th District Senator Brandon Smith.

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