“What Do I Do With These Bills?”
AND…It’s not too late to register for KCC’s Legislative Summit! Don’t Wait! (Info below)
Part I of the 2025 General Assembly adjourned on January 10th, 2025.
Part II convenes on Tuesday, February 4, 2025.
We often get asked the question: “If lawmakers are not in session, should I wait till they are back to connect with them?”
The answer is: NO! Don’t wait! The break between Part I and II of the General Assembly is the perfect time to try and reach your lawmakers to talk about some of the early bills that have already been filed. While lawmakers are not in formal session, they ARE having some committee meetings and they ARE in their offices or working from home to prepare themselves for the next part of the session. And since this is a “short session” this year, it is important to get their attention early and often! And if your lawmaker is not at their office in Frankfort, you can also ask for a virtual meeting via zoom.
“What do I do with the KCC bill list then?” There were many bills already filed during Part I of the General Assembly that you can tell your lawmaker about. See the links above for the bills that KCC has reviewed to date, where you can find links to the bills, our summary of what the bill is about, where it currently resides in the process, and what position we recommend. (We may be adding a few more “holdover” bills before Part II begins).
And then, make those calls and send those emails!
Review our bill list regularly and decide which bills to comment on. You can send comments to any lawmaker you wish in either the House or Senate, but make sure you start with your own lawmaker first. If you don’t know who that is, you can use this map to find them.
And then make those calls and send emails. Use this link to send an email (firstname.lastname@kylegislature.gov) or call the Legislative Message Line at 1-800-372-7181 to comment on bills starting at 7AM to 9PM ET Monday through Thursday, and 7AM-6PM on Fridays (Check times since staffing capacities and hours can vary during the break period).
OR make an appointment to visit in person or virtual. You can call the Legislative Research Commission direct at 1-502-564-8100 to set an appointment. Legislators can be very busy during the session, but many will try to take the time to talk to a direct constituent. You can also visit your lawmaker in their home district.
Where do I start? You start with the bills that reflect issues that are most important to you. We at KCC will often provide additional talking points on some bills. This week, we are providing expanded talking points on the following:
House Bill 173 (Oppose) “An Act Relating to Rental Properties”
House Bill 137 (Oppose) “An Act Relating to Air Quality Monitoring”
House Bill 80 (Support) “An Act Relating to the Presession Filing of Bills”
So don’t wait! Use this time to get your opinions heard on the issues you care about!
An Important and Exciting Announcement on Decarbonizing Heavy Industry
We were VERY excited to learn the following news this week on a project that the Kentucky Conservation Committee has been heavily involved in, and we hope to soon hear future news on its prospects (or not) for Kentucky.
The Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations announced this week that the $500M grant awarded back in March to Century Aluminum (which has two existing smelters in Kentucky), is now “under contract” to build a new primary aluminum smelter meaning the contract is signed and the project can begin.
The first phase includes planning, permitting and other development activities, and is expected to take up to ten months. The location has not been announced yet. However the company has previously expressed a strong interest to have the project in Kentucky.
We believe this announcement is a significant milestone in advancing U.S. aluminum production and strengthening America’s supply chain resilience. But more importantly, this will be a new smelter with a much lower carbon footprint – the first aluminum smelter built in the U.S. since the Carter Administration – where the United States has been losing the production capacity for this metal over decades. Once complete, this project will have twice the production capacity of all four existing smelters for primary aluminum remaining in the U.S.
But most importantly— The project is expected to avoid 75% of the emissions compared to a traditional smelter due to its energy-efficient design. And depending on the news of the final site selection, could provide a cleaner economy in energy communities that previously relied on fossil fuels for their economic development. The project also will include an aggressive community benefit component.
KCC has been very proud to be a part of this project to date, through our alliance in the Sustainable Aluminum Network, and now we eagerly await (holding any reservations) to hear IF the project will land in Kentucky or not, AND more importantly, what the final fuel source for this demonstration project will be. Until then, we are glad to hear that it will at least be built SOMEwhere in the U.S. and will provide a cleaner alternative to a heavily polluting industry. Learn more about this work on our Sustainable Industry webpage.
Don’t Wait- Register NOW for the KCC Annual Meeting and Legislative Summit on Jan. 26
Our feature speaker for this year’s Summit is timely to today’s news.
We hope you will join us: Kentucky Conservation Committee’s 2025 Legislative Summit and Annual Meeting, where we will be updating you on the present and emerging environmental issues we will be working on this year, as well as a “deep dive” on the bills filed during the General Assembly for you to take action on.
Our special guest will be Alice Driver. Dr. Driver will focus on themes from her newly released book, Life and Death of the American Worker: The Immigrants Taking on America's Largest Meatpacking Company. We hope this guest will inspire you on this issue and how advocacy can drive change.
The conference will take place at Kentucky State University and will highlight pressing issues affecting the state, bringing together policymakers, advocates, and community leaders to discuss critical legislative priorities related to the environment and conservation.
We are still adjusting some parts of our final schedule, but check the website for updates.
The conference is open to the public and free to KCC members. We encourage all KCC members and supporters to attend. Link Here.