Family Preservation and Accountability Act advances

Family Preservation and Accountability Act advances February 20, 2025

Rep. Nick Wilson, R-Williamsburg, testifies on House Bill 291 during Thursday’s House Families and Children Committee meeting. The bill would ask judges to consider a defendant’s status as a caretaker before imposing a sentence for a felony offense. A high-resolution photo can be found here.

FRANKFORT — A bill currently on the move in the Kentucky House of Representatives seeks to reduce incarceration rates and keep families together.

Rep. Nick Wilson, R-Williamsburg, and other stakeholders testified on House Bill 291 before the House Families and Children Committee on Thursday. Wilson is the primary sponsor of the legislation and the committee’s vice-chair.

HB 291, also known as the Family Preservation and Accountability Act, would ask judges to consider a defendant’s status as a caretaker of a dependent child before imposing a sentence for a felony offense.

“The Family Preservation and Accountability Act addresses challenges by expanding sentencing alternatives for primary caregivers convicted of nonviolent offenses,” Wilson said.

The legislation would not apply to defendants convicted of a violent offense or defendants who used or attempted to use physical force while committing the crime. If the victim is a child or statute prohibits alternative sentencing, HB 291 would also not apply.

“The intent of the bill is to prioritize family unity, reduce harm from the separation of parents and children, and offer a rehabilitative approach that preserves that parent-child relationship while safeguarding child safety, safety of the community, while taking all of those things into consideration,” Wilson said.

Wilson said the bill would allow defendants at the time of conviction to file a motion asking the judge to consider their status as a primary caregiver. The judge would then determine whether the defendant is a primary caregiver. If true, then the judge can use that information during sentencing.

The bill would allow the court to require a defendant participate in a substance use disorder treatment program, parenting classes, anger management, job training, literacy classes and more in addition to the imposed sentence, Wilson said.

Sarah Durand, vice president of government affairs for Kentucky Free, testified alongside Wilson. She said HB 291 would save the state $74 million in direct incarceration costs.

“That is just savings of housing incarcerating primary caregivers,” Durand said. “However, national research indicates that for every dollar spent on incarceration, society loses an additional $10 in indirect costs. As we looked at this and looked at those indirect costs, this bill has the ability to add $740 million annually to the state’s economy.”

Cortney Downs with Kentucky Youth Advocates said parental incarceration is an adverse childhood experience, which is a traumatic event occurring in childhood that is often associated with negative long-term outcomes.

Nearly 102,000 children in Kentucky will experience parental incarceration, she added.

“The persistently high rates of kids who are affected by parental incarcerations creates an urgency for us to minimize the impact,” Downs said, adding HB 291 will help children.

Kenton County Circuit Court Judge Patricia Summe said there are “a lot of good things” about HB 291, but she has concerns about some of the language in the bill and how a ruling may impact a family court case.

“Our biggest concern is about the overlap and the crossing of making decisions about whether or not somebody is a caregiver, not a parent, but a caregiver, and how much that involves.”

Wilson said the judges have a valid point about not wanting to “step on family court’s toes.”

“We added a section that the determination that’s being made under this bill is not admissible as evidence in family court,” he said, adding he’s willing to continue working on the legislation’s language.

Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser, R-Taylor Mill, said she supports the legislation, but would support more changes.

“I’m in support of this. I just want to find a way that really helps streamline the information that the judges need to make these determinations,” Moser said.

The House Families and Children Committee unanimously approved HB 291. It will now go before the full House for consideration.

---

https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/publicservices/pio/release.html#HB291022025