When did ordinary bills passed in Kentucky's 2013 legislative session take effect?

Plain-English summary

Kentucky's Attorney General calculated that ordinary legislation passed during the 2013 Regular Session took effect at the first moment of Tuesday, June 25, 2013. The session finally adjourned on March 26. The AG excluded that adjournment day, counted March 27 as day one, and counted June 24 as day 90. The acts became effective only after 90 full days had expired.

The opinion expressly excluded general appropriation measures and acts with emergency or delayed effective-date provisions. It addressed one session's effective-date calculation under Section 55 of Kentucky's Constitution; its June 25 date was not a standing date for legislation from other sessions.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2013. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

What effective date did the AG give ordinary Kentucky 2013 session bills?

The AG gave the first moment of June 25, 2013. It reached that date by counting 90 full days after the March 26 final adjournment.

Was March 26 included in the 90-day count?

No. The opinion excluded the final adjournment day, counted March 27 as day one, and treated June 24 as day 90.

Did the June 25 date apply to emergency bills?

No. The opinion excluded general appropriation measures and acts containing emergency or delayed effective-date provisions from its calculation.

Background and statutory framework

The Legislative Research Commission's director asked for the effective date of acts passed during the 2013 Regular Session. The opinion quoted Ky. Const. § 55, which generally delayed an act until 90 days after adjournment and addressed exceptions for general appropriation bills and emergencies. The AG applied that provision to the March 26, 2013 final adjournment and cited earlier OAG 07-002 for its counting method.

Citations and references

Constitution: Ky. Const. § 55.

Earlier opinion: OAG 07-002.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.ky.gov/Resources/Opinions/Pages/Opinions.aspx
• Original Word document: https://www.ag.ky.gov/Resources/Opinions/Opinions/OAG13-005.doc

Original opinion text

OAG 13-005

April 5, 2013

Subject: Effective date of certain legislation passed during the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly

Requested by: Robert S. Sherman, Director

Legislative Research Commission

Written by: James M. Herrick

Assistant Attorney General

Syllabus: In accordance with Section 55 of the Constitution of Kentucky, the effective date of legislation passed by the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly, except for general appropriation measures and those containing emergency or delayed effective date provisions, is the first moment of Tuesday, June 25, 2013, since 90 full days will then have passed after final adjournment on March 26, 2013.

Constitutional

provision construed: Ky. Const. § 55

OAG cited: OAG 07-002

Opinion of the Attorney General

The following question, in substance, has been presented: What is the effective date of legislation, other than general appropriation bills and acts containing emergency or delayed effective date provisions, passed during the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly, the Assembly having finally adjourned on Tuesday, March 26, 2013?

As discussed below, the effective date of legislation, other than general appropriation bills and acts containing emergency or delayed effective date provisions, passed during the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly, is the first moment of Tuesday, June 25, 2013.

Section 55 of the Constitution of Kentucky provides:

No act, except general appropriation bills, shall become a law until ninety days after the adjournment of the session at which it was passed, except in cases of emergency, when, by the concurrence of a majority of the members elected to each House of the General Assembly, by a yea and nay vote entered upon their journals, an act may become a law when approved by the Governor, but the reasons for the emergency that justifies this action must be set out at length in the journal of each House.

(Emphasis added.)

"[U]ntil ninety days after the adjournment" (emphasis added), as used in Section 55 of Kentucky's Constitution (above), indicates that the day of adjournment (meaning the day of final adjournment for the session, termed "adjournment sine die") is to be excluded in computing the 90-day period. It follows that the 90th day shall be included in the period, in order that 90 full days shall expire after final adjournment, before certain legislation passed during the session becomes effective. See OAG 07-002.

Applying the analysis described above to the 2013 Regular Session, the General Assembly having adjourned sine die on March 26, 2013, we find the following, regarding legislation other than general appropriation bills or acts containing emergency or delayed effective date provisions: The first day of the 90-day period after the session is Wednesday, March 27, 2013, and the 90th day of that period is Monday, June 24, 2013. When the last moment of that 90th day has expired, ninety full days will have passed after the adjournment "sine die" of the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly. It follows that legislation (except for general appropriation measures and those containing emergency or delayed effective date provisions) passed during the 2013 Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly will be effective on the first moment of Tuesday, June 25, 2013.

Jack Conway

Attorney General

James M. Herrick

Assistant Attorney General