FRANKFORT – Kentucky General Assembly lawmakers convened Monday for brief floor sessions in both chambers, formally opening the legislative week with the introduction of dozens of new bills, committee referrals and a sharp Senate speech previewing an upcoming national fight over women’s sports.
The Kentucky House of Representatives and Kentucky Senate both adjourned without floor votes, but not before signaling where policy debates are headed as the 2026 session accelerates.
Senate spotlights women’s sports cases headed to U.S. Supreme Court
The most pointed floor moment came in the Senate, where a Republican senator used the “communications” portion of the agenda to highlight two cases set to be argued before the Supreme Court of the United States involving state laws that bar transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports.
The senator urged the court to uphold such laws, citing Kentucky’s own 2022 statute and arguing that allowing biological males to compete in female sports undermines fairness, safety and privacy. The remarks referenced student-athletes from multiple states and framed the issue as a defining national test of sex-based protections in athletics.
The comments drew no immediate rebuttal on the floor, but preview a likely flashpoint as culture-war issues return to the Capitol later in the session.
Senate introduces bills on evictions, student journalists, pensions
Later in the Senate session, lawmakers formally introduced several new measures, including bills dealing with:
- Evictions during extreme weather conditions
- Student journalist free-speech protections
- Oversight of public pensions
- Health care workforce recruitment
- Financial training requirements for local school boards
The Senate also adopted resolutions honoring former Gov. Martha Layne Collins and adjourning in memory of Robert E. “Bob” Purnell Sr.
House rolls out wide-ranging slate of new legislation
In the House, the day’s business centered on the introduction of more than two dozen bills touching nearly every major policy lane lawmakers are expected to debate this year.
New House bills addressed topics including firearms, criminal law, child care, landlord-tenant rules, human trafficking, property rights, railroad crossings, postsecondary education funding and local government authority. Several measures related to firearms regulation and local control, while others focused on housing, evictions and real-property disputes.
Lawmakers also introduced a proposed constitutional amendment related to property tax exemptions and a joint resolution directing the state to withdraw a federal Medicaid waiver application submitted in 2025.
Committees canceled, referrals made
Both chambers used the sessions to handle procedural business.
In the House, members announced the cancellation of numerous committee meetings for the week, while leadership referred several previously filed bills to the Banking and Insurance Committee.
The Senate recessed briefly for meetings of the Rules Committee and Committee on Committees before referring bills to standing committees, including Health Services, Transportation, Natural Resources and Energy, and State and Local Government.
What’s next
Neither chamber took votes on legislation Monday, but the volume and scope of newly introduced bills underscored the fast-approaching deadlines that will soon push measures into committee hearings and floor debates.
Lawmakers in both chambers adjourned until Tuesday afternoon, when committee work and early policy fights are expected to pick up pace as the session moves deeper into January.
Senate Bills (Bills mentioned)
25RS / 26RS (Some Senate bills carry over or are referenced)
- SB 40 — Student journalist freedom (introduced in 2025 but still active)
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/25rs/sb40.html - SB 138 — Relating to evictions during extreme weather conditions
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/25rs/sb138.html
House Bills (Active 2026 Regular Session)
Bills specifically mentioned or directly relevant to topics noted:
- HB 221 — Kentucky Severe Weather Alert System
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb221.html - HB 202 — Rights and obligations of landlords and tenants (landlord-tenant rules)
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb202.html - HB 220 — Pension spiking provisions administered by the Kentucky Public Pensions Authority
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb220.html - HB 229 — Relating to housing, appropriation, and emergency declaration
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb229.html - HB 230 — Health care price transparency
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb230.html - HB 216 — Voting rights: persons entitled to vote (constitutional amendment)
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb216.html - HB 166 — Disaster resiliency / Chief Resiliency Officer authorization
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb166.html - HB 83 — Relating to open meetings (procedural reform)
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/hb83.html
How to Locate Any Bill on the Legislature Website
If additional bill titles were mentioned in your transcripts and you want their numbers/links:
- Go to the Kentucky Legislature’s bill search page:
🔗 https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/record.html - Use the keyword search (e.g., “evictions”, “pensions”, “health workforce”) to find matching bills introduced in the 2026 session.
- Click on the bill number from the search results to open its official record page.
