The bargaining power of Kentucky's governor is once again up for debate.

As our June Lefler reports, a Northern Kentucky senator has not forgotten former Republican governor Matt Bevin's string of pardons, including for violent offenders.

But Alex Taylor, a chef at the University of Kentucky, was driven around the town of Lexington, beaten and choked to death with his last gurgling breaths coming in the back seat of a car before his lifeless body was stuffed into a barrel and rolled into the Kentucky River.

The man convicted for this murder was pardoned by Bevin.

Now our system of justice is built on the idea that we do not grovel to kings for our freedom.

We do not purchase indulgences from a church.

We are judged instead by a jury of our peers.

Bevin issued hundreds of pardons and commutations in his final weeks in office.

Senate Bill ten would limit that power if passed by the General Assembly and by Kentucky voters.

The bill that sits in front of you today is a constitutional amendment that will be taken to the people of the Commonwealth.

That constitutional amendment merely says that for 60 days leading up to the gubernatorial election, and then from the time of the election until the swearing in of either a successive governor or a new governor, the pardon power is not in place.

This is a reasonable attempt to ensure that if the power to pardon is executed by a governor, that either that governor or his party must stand in front of an informed electorate, who can then decide whether they think that those pardons rise to the level of changing their vote.

The Senate State Government Committee approved the bill unanimously and now heads to the Senate floor, where it has had success in past years but not in the House.

Another senator proposes Senate Bill 51 to ease property taxes for seniors.

It will freeze the increased assessment after they turned 65, so they will still pay property tax.

For instance, if your home is $200,000 when you turn 65 and it goes up to 300,000, you will still pay the tax on the 200,000.

And whatever rate it is, you just won't pay on that 100,000 that went up.

This is probably the number one thing that I get calls and emails about in my district.

They say I've done my job.

I've done everything the right way.

Please stop raising my taxes on my property.

I too get emails constantly from people that say, I'm going to have to sell my home or move out of my home because I can't afford the taxes.

And we know that for those low income seniors, homeownership is how they build and transfer wealth to the next generation.

The committee approved the bill unanimously, sending it to the full Senate.

If the General Assembly signs off, it too will go to Kentucky voters as a ballot measure for Kentucky edition.

I'm John Lefler.

Thank you John.

Now back to Senator Chris McDaniels.

Bill.

He first introduced his pardon limits bill back in the year 2020.