Amanda Mays Bledsoe and I represent Senate District 12.

I've always had a passion for public service and I love helping people.

And so I have loved my time on city Hall and I view this simply as an extension of that service.

And it's just an opportunity to continue to engage and serve people at a different level on different issues.

And that's really why I decided to run.

I'm very fortunate to serve as vice chair of Appropriations and Revenue, which I look at as just being an extension of my work on the city budget in Lexington.

And so I think that will be a great opportunity to continue to use some of that background and experience.

I'm serving on families and children.

And as a mom, I really care about making sure our families are supported.

So that will be interesting.

I'm serving on licensing occupations, which has quite a lot of bourbon and horse racing involved, and my district reflects that.

So that'll be good.

And then the last one is state and local government, which again I think will be a good opportunity to kind of maybe shed some light on some of the issues and framework and how they apply.

Your legislation that's passed in Frankfurt will obviously impact Lexington.

Other communities.

And so having that perspective, I think will add a lot of value at the table.

I didn't come in with a long list of passionate issues.

I really came in to listen and there's obviously things that I care about tax reform, how we do and pay for government, the local level, state level, how we think about appropriating funds to initiatives and project.

I care about education here, about health care, all those things.

And the policy to me cares about everything.

So policing in Fayette County is big, a big issue.

Making sure our public safety is an important has good representation.

And so there's some legislation I've been working on and several things I've filed.

But I've also recognized in the Senate that if you haven't been working on it for about a year, it's real hard to get something moved.

So I'm planning on filing some things, doing a lot of listening and then really engaging this year and going for next year, being a budget year with a little more.

I think tax cleanup is a big issue.

They passed a lot of legislation last year.

Often things have unintended consequences.

And so looking at how making sure those things are cleaned up in a way that makes sense before next year, I think will be critical.

So there's been a lot of that conversation and the conversation about the personnel compensation study, how we place state employees.

That's still a conversation piece for the session.

The juvenile justice reform is massive and important, making sure those who are in those environments are safe.

Making for those who are protecting them also are safe.

That will be a big piece.

You've heard lots of conversation about great machines and sports betting and medical marijuana.

And I'm still, I think, waiting to see what the caucus thinks about those legislative priorities.

And I think we'll probably take a stab at a couple of them.

I am very fortunate in the sense that I think they've looked at my background for the last eight years on city council and my body of work and thought that being vice chair radar would be a good asset for the Senate.

I just I think I'm the first freshman to have that role and it has not gone unnoticed.

And so I am a little bit nervous, not going to lie about the level of maybe expectation they have for me and making sure I live up to that role and responsibility.

But I'm excited.

I think I do bring a value to knowing how to appropriate funds and look at unintended consequences and putting a budget together.

And I hope I can be an asset to help it move more smoothly next year.

But at the end of the day, if people don't step up and say, I'm willing to try and I'm willing to give my time and education service, then we won't have people who represent the people.

We'll have just entities that are been bought or paid for, and that's not helpful.

You know, we all have our role to play and I think public service is an important one and it's something that I take great pride in and I've taken the time to really get to know my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and develop relationships, because that's what keeps it from becoming a political circus is when you respect the person you're talking to and you can say I value you.

Even though we see it differently, we all want what's best for the Commonwealth.

We may disagree on how to get there.

We may disagree on the politics to get there.

And not all good politics makes good policy.

Not always good policy makes good politics.

But there are people who are making that effort and trying to do the right thing.