House GOP leader: 'Political fear'dominated 2014 General Assembly

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While I’m not sure that having a “lackluster” legislative session is the worst thing that could happen to taxpayers, House Minority Leader Jeff Hoover, R-Jamestown, is right in noting that “political fear” dominated this year’s Kentucky General Assembly.

Many important issues, including several mentioned by Hoover – telecom reform, right-to-work, prevailing wage, tax reform, the public-partnership bill and the state’s role in Obamacare, became victims of most politicians’ number-one priority: holding on to their seat at all costs. (We noticed he forgot to mention charter schools -- probably just an oversight, so we'll include it here for him.)

“With nearly every major piece of legislation, it became obvious that it would not pass because of concerns of how it might affect some legislators in their upcoming elections,” Hoover wrote.

He also mentions that while Kentucky refuses even to debate tough issues, much less give them an up-or-down vote, other states – including neighboring ones – have been willing to tackle the tough issues and enjoy the economic, political and social benefits.

Does Hoover also make the case for moving the deadline for filing for political office in Kentucky to make it harder for lawmakers to avoid even a debate of an issue? He doesn’t mention it, but he should have.