FRANKFORT, Ky. – Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear announced Saturday that he would convene the Kentucky Republican-led legislature in a special session to shape pandemic policies as the state struggles with a historic increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.
“Now, that burden will fall largely on the General Assembly,” Beshear said Saturday. “It will have to carry much of that weight to face unpopular decisions and make decisions that balance many things, including the lives and possible deaths. Of our citizens.”
Beshear had the sole authority to convene a special session and set the agenda. On Saturday, at a press conference, he outlined pandemic issues he wants lawmakers to consider, including mask protection policies and school schedules amid growing school closures due to virus outbreaks. But the vast majorities in the Senate and Senate chambers will decide what measures will eventually be passed.
Beshear told reporters on Saturday that he had had good conversations with top Republican lawmakers and that the draft legislation was exchanged.
Republican House Speaker David Osborne said the proposals offered by lawmakers were the “culmination of 18 months of research, discussion and input from groups and individuals directly involved in the response to this pandemic.”
“While we still do not agree on the specific language of the legislation we will consider, we continue the discussions and have agreed that it is in the best interest of our commonwealth to move forward with the call,” Osborne said in a statement. .
Lawmakers will be asked to extend the pandemic-related state of emergency until mid-January, when the legislature would be in regular session again, Beshear said. He will ask them to review their executive orders related to the virus and other actions of his administration, the governor said.
On the issue of masks, the governor said his call “will ask them to determine my ability to require masking in certain situations, depending on where the pandemic goes and how bad any area is.”
Beshear ordered mask warrants across the state to deal with previous virus hikes and said Saturday he believes that authority is “absolutely necessary” to tackle the delta variant. Recognizing that the problem will be controversial, he suggested a more specific approach.
“If they don’t consider providing that authority in general, my hope is that they consider a threshold to which they will provide me with that authority,” the governor said.
Beshear also called on lawmakers to provide more flexibility in school programming, as many districts have had to pause face-to-face learning due to virus outbreaks. Several ideas were raised, including the possibility of allowing local school leaders to use a more tailored approach to moving to remote learning, allowing them to apply it to a single school or even a classroom instead of the whole district. This idea was discussed at a recent hearing of the legislative committee.
Key Republican lawmakers have noted their preference for policies that favor local decision-making over statewide mandates to combat COVID-19.
Lawmakers will also be asked to appropriate the remnants of federal pandemic aid to “encourage the fight” against the coronavirus, the governor said. Funding would support pandemic mitigation and prevention efforts, including testing and distribution of vaccines.
More than 7,840 Kentuckians have died from COVID-19, including 69 deaths announced Thursday and Friday. The delta variant has recorded a record number of virus patients in Kentucky hospitals, including intensive care units and ventilators. The state reported Friday that nearly 90 percent of ICU beds were occupied statewide.
“The delta variant is spreading at a rate never seen before, affecting businesses, closing schools and, worse, causing serious illness and death,” Beshear said Saturday.
“We need as many tools as possible to fight this deadly wave to save lives, keep our children in school and keep our economy on hold,” he added.
Several emergency measures issued by Beshear are due to expire as a result of the court ruling handed down two weeks ago. Legislators will decide whether to extend, alter or interrupt each emergency order, while putting their own stamp on the state’s response to COVID-19.
Throughout the pandemic, Republican lawmakers watched from the sidelines as Beshear delivered an aggressive response that included state-wide mask warrants and strict limits on meetings. Republicans criticized the governor for what they considered excessively broad and strict restrictions, most of which were lifted in June.
Recently, the state Supreme Court moved these virus-related decisions to the legislature. The court paved the way for new laws to limit the governor’s emergency powers, which he used to impose virus restrictions. The judges said a lower court erroneously blocked Republican-backed measures.