This year, the Republican-led General Assembly passed laws creating a statewide child abuse reporting system and bolstering kinship care families. But neither have been implemented because the Cabinet for Health and Family Services has determined it needs the legislature to put dollars behind the efforts.
“This is a specific program. That has a cost. It needs to be funded,” Cabinet Secretary Eric Friedlander said.
The Kentucky Lantern reports one of the bills is estimated at 20 million and another at 43,000,000.
But Republican lawmakers are challenging the funding argument, saying the cabinet pays for other programs that are not required under state law, and not all programs receive a specific line item in the budget.
Representative David Meade put it more bluntly in a committee hearing this week.
“This is just another example of the executive branch picking and choosing what they want to do, and I’m not laying that on you because I think this actually goes above you, secretary,” he said, addressing Friedlander.
The Beshear administration is partly relying on a Supreme Court decision it argues backs up its position, while Republicans say the circumstances in that case differ from the current funding question and are a “red herring.”