House and Senate Republicans in Frankfurt today overrode Governor Andy Bashir's veto of a bill that blocks local governments from requiring landlords to rent to tenants who pay using federal housing vouchers like Section eight.

Louisville and Lexington passed ordinances requiring landlords to accept those tenants.

House Bill 18 blocks.

Those ordinances Republicans spoke after today's vote.

We have their comments as we begin tonight's legislative update.

I find it quite interesting that there's this narrative that we are doing something to hurt access to housing.

The reality is the city of Louisville and the city of Lexington have a homeless problem directly related to their bad policies that they've passed.

And if they want to look at what is one of the problems for lack of housing or bad housing, a lot of people in those two cities need to look in the mirror.

Nothing in this legislation preempts or goes against existing federal law as it pertains to discrimination.

Those are protected classes.

Those have been in the fair housing laws for years.

Okay.

This is different.

This bill is different.

This is attacking a landlord's real estate rights to their property.

That's a constitutionally protected right as well.

Now, earlier in the day, Democrats talked about why they backed the governor's veto hospital.

18 removes local control.

It hampers our ability to house our most vulnerable neighbors.

I think particularly of people with disabilities, people who are elderly, families who are low income, people who are escaping domestic violence, all of whom may benefit from programs such as Section eight locally chosen ordinances like those in Lexington and Louisville do not.

And I think it's important to repeat this.

They do not force anyone to enter into a contract with the government.

I'm concerned about us rolling back protections of affordable housing, particularly for our most vulnerable, the elderly and the disabled.

But I find it ironic in this body that we often speak about local control, and here we are wresting local control away from the city of Louisville, which I represent, which had passed this ordinance 25 to 0 just four years ago.

I have not heard a call from the people in Louisville saying that we need to override the will of the people locally and do so at the state level.

And I'm terribly concerned about the precedent we're going to set about rolling back other local ordinances that protect people and housing and employment discrimination.

And I am opposed to the veto override that.

The House voted 76 to 19 to override the Senate vote was 31 to 7.

It will now become law.