By Tony McVeigh
Frankfort, KY – Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo says the special session on Medicaid won't wrap up in one week. Kentucky Public Radio's Tony McVeigh is keeping tabs on the session, which began Monday.
Lawmakers couldn't finish their work in 30-days, so Gov. Beshear ordered them back for a special session. Now, House Speaker Greg Stumbo says it's going to take longer than one week to get the job done in special session. How much longer?
"I don't know the answer to that, Tony," said Stumbo. "We're here to do a job, but there's about $12 million that we're going to lose the benefit of if we don't capitalize on the increased federal match money that Gov. Beshear's talked about."
Stumbo says the House budget committee wants to hear testimony on the impact budget cuts recommended by Senate Republicans will have on state agencies. In the meantime, Stumbo says House leaders are working on a possible compromise on balancing the Medicaid budget.
BUDGET CUTS
Before a compromise plan can be crafted, Speaker Stumbo says the House Appropriations and Revenue committee wants to hear how budget cuts recommended by Senate Republicans will affect state agencies.
"And that's why we likely will not get through this week, is that there's been no testimony at all about what impact that will have on other agencies that have already been severely reduced over a billion dollars in spending to our state government's functions," said Stumbo.
DROP OUTS
Legislation raising Kentucky's drop out age to 18 by 2016 has cleared the House Education Committee. The committee voted 21-4 for the bill on the second day of the special session ordered by Gov. Beshear. All four opponents were Republicans, including Rep. Ben Waide of Madisonville.
"I've had broad-based opposition to this from the teachers in my district," said Waide. "They're contacting me and letting me know. And they're the ones that have a heart for the kids. They're the ones who care about the kids in their school. They're saying this won't work. This isn't the answer."
But Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says the compulsory attendance bill would send a message to educators that the state's serious about keeping kids in school.
"There's so many different ways that alternative education can meet the needs of children," said Holliday. "But again, to get people thinking outside of their traditional approach to alternative ed, I need just a little push. And this legislation would do that."
The measure won approval in the Democratic-controlled House in this year's regular session, but died in the Republican-controlled Senate.