ALEC Policy Champions Pull Lawmaking Authority Back to Kentucky’s Legislature
Congratulations to Williams, Banta, Fleming, Huff, Roberts, and Moser for their success in restraining administrative authority and ensuring Kentucky is more accountable to its people.
ALEC is proud to recognize Kentucky Representatives Wade Williams, Kim Banta, Ken Fleming, Thomas Huff, T.J. Roberts, and Kim Moser for their successful implementation of HB 6. With the bill passed by a supermajority in both the House and Senate, these members have helped Kentucky accomplish great success in limiting executive agency power and returning lawmaking authority back to the elected body of Kentucky’s government—the legislature.
The new law drastically restricts the authority to promulgate administrative rules and regulations. Under the law, new rules and regulations can only take effect in the form of emergency administrative regulations whose immediate effect is necessary to protect the public health, safety, and welfare. Further, among the more notable provisions, such rules and regulations must certify that they cost less than $500,000 over any two-year period, are necessary to prevent the loss of federal or state funds and must already have explicit statutory authority to regulate the subject matter at issue.
The move is one of the more comprehensive restrictions on agency rulemaking authority seen throughout the country. Both federal and state government possess overwhelming bureaucratic regimes with immense rulemaking authority, governing the lives of citizens as a bill passed by legislature and signed by a governor does, all the same. States have been working diligently to restrict the power of their executive branch since the COVID pandemic, discovering more and more to tackle in pursuit of creating a better balance between the separations of powers. HB 6 is one of Kentucky more recent and impressive efforts in this very space.
The passage of this bill is a massive success to ensure agency bureaucrats cannot dictate what the law is, and that Kentucky has a government accountable to its electorate via the ballot box. Prioritizing elected officials as the only ones creating enforceable law is a critical component to ensure the promise of a democracy.
Congratulations to Reps. Williams, Banta, Fleming, Huff, Roberts, and Moser for their success in restraining administrative authority and ensuring Kentucky is more accountable to its people.