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Committee backs annual bill to mark deficient administrative regulations as void for a year
Summary
Senate Bill 65 passed out of committee. Sponsors said the bill flags deficient agency regulations and, if adopted by the legislature, would render such regulations null and void for up to one year to curb agency overreach. The committee discussed two behavioral health Medicaid regulations cited as deficient.
The Committee on Licensing, Occupations, and Administrative Regulations voted to pass Senate Bill 65, legislation sponsors described as a recurring vehicle to hold state cabinets accountable for regulations the committee deems deficient.
Senator Steve West and Representative Derek Lewis, co-chairs of the Administrative Regs Committee, told members SB 65 has been filed annually to create a legislative mechanism for marking regulations found deficient during administrative review as null and void for up to one year. Lewis said the bill is not a “power grab” but a tool to flag problem regulations for the legislature and to prevent the executive branch from reissuing substantially similar rules for a limited time.
Committee members asked for specifics. Sponsors cited two contested regulations—907 KAR 10:044 and 907 KAR 15:005—related to behavioral health Medicaid rules filed in November 2023 and amended after public comment in February 2024. Sponsors said the contested language would have required certain counselors to hold master’s degrees; committee members and affected providers told the committee that requirement would worsen access to behavioral health care in rural areas because providers could not find or afford staff who met the new educational threshold.
Representative West and Representative Lewis said they worked with agency staff for months but ultimately found the rules to “appear to impose an unreasonable burden on government or small business or both.” The bill’s effect, as explained by sponsors, is to prohibit an agency from reissuing substantially similar language for up to one year after the legislature marks a regulation null and void.
On a roll call the committee passed the bill. Representative Ault recorded a pass; several members said they planned to research the measure further before floor action. Sponsors said they maintain regular dialogue with cabinet leadership about these issues. The committee’s vote will send SB 65 to the next stage for consideration.
