Senate could have pension bill soon

The Kentucky General Assembly could have a pension reform bill to consider as soon as Wednesday or Thursday of this week.

State Senator Whitney Westerfield of Hopkinsville tells WHOP News that the Republican caucus discussed pension legislation Tuesday, but there was no talk of when the bill would be filed.

Senate President Robert Stivers gave the Richmond Register a Wednesday-Thursday timeline and House Speaker Pro Tem David Osborne told the paper that any bill filed in the Senate, “Would reflect negotiations and discussions between the Republican leaders of both chambers.”

Appearing on last weekend’s Legislative Update program, Representative Walker Thomas of Hopkinsville said he hadn’t viewed all of the specifics but believes from what he has learned that the new bill will be more popular than the one unveiled in the fall that never received a vote.

Pension reform and a biennial budget are the top two priorities for this year’s session.