Latest news with #HouseBill775
Business Journals
25-04-2025
- Business
- Business Journals
Mayor Greenberg backs massive downtown Louisville hotel project
Greenberg was once part of a group that tried to build a 62-story skyscraper at the site. Story Highlights Poe Cos. plans 1,000-room hotel on former Museum Plaza site. Mayor Greenberg supports new hotel development for downtown Louisville. State legislation allows development incentives for the project site. In 2011, arts patrons Steve Wilson and Laura Lee Brown, commercial real estate developer Steve Poe and then-attorney Craig Greenberg called it quits on a $465 million dream that would have forever altered Louisville's horizon. Museum Plaza was to be a 62-story mixed-use tower with 300,000 square feet of Class A commercial space, two hotels with more than 300 rooms and 160 luxury lofts and condominiums. But after breaking ground in 2007, construction was halted a year later amid the Great Recession and construction problems, leaving a gap on Main Street and on the city's skyline. Nearly 15 years after walking away from the site, Poe and now-Mayor Greenberg are once again looking to build on the prime Downtown lot. Business First broke the news Wednesday that Louisville-based Poe Cos. is working on plans to build a 1,000-room hotel at the vacant site next to the Muhammad Ali Center, according to several sources with knowledge of the plan, which was later confirmed by Poe Cos. expand The Main Street site currently features pickleball courts provided by the Louisville Downtown Partnership. Joel Stinnett While details of the massive hotel — which would be located between River Road, Main Street, Seventh Street, and Washington Street — are in the 'predevelopment' phases, Poe Cos. does have drawings for the project that are in an 'initial stage for budget pricing,' Hank Hillebrand, Poe Cos. president, told Louisville Business First in an email. The current plans call for a 1,000-room hotel featuring more than 100,000 square feet of meeting space and new bourbon tourism experiences. Poe Cos. has spoken to 'various' hotel brands about the project. Poe Cos. was selected to develop the site last year following a request for proposals from Louisville Metro Government. The news follows the advancement of a bill by state lawmakers that allowed development incentives in the area of Downtown Louisville around the former Museum Plaza site — which were previously off limits because of a deal struck nearly two decades ago. The measure opened up areas inside the arena's tax increment financing (TIF) district to other projects — such as the new planned hotel — seeking the same types of state tax rebates that help the KFC Yum Center pay off its construction debt. House Bill 775 was sponsored by State Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, and supported by Greenberg. expand Louisville-based Poe Cos. is working on plans to build a 1,000-room hotel at a site next to the Muhammad Ali Center. Joel Stinnett During the Louisville Downtown Partnership's State of Downtown lunch March 27, Mayor Craig Greenberg said that he asked the Kentucky General Assembly 'to help us try again to develop the vacant land of the former Museum Plaza site.' Referencing that site later in his speech he also said 'a new tower will rise above the recently flooded land next to the Muhammad Ali Center.' In a phone interview Wednesday with Business First, Greenberg talked about his support for the new hotel, why the city needs its rooms and how he would like it to connect to the community. This interview has been edited for clarity and space. How is the mayor's office assisting Poe Cos. in getting this project built? We are incredibly supportive of building a new 1,000-room convention hotel on this site. I think it would be a tremendous benefit for Downtown and our entire city and state. Louisville Tourism has made clear that our city needs more convention center hotels and the quality and size of this proposed project would be a wonderful addition. I supported legislation in the recent Kentucky General Assembly session that amended the Tax Increment Financing law to support a project like this on this site. You were involved in the original Museum Plaza project. What did you learn from that experience that can be used to get this new project across the finish line? It's a very challenging site to develop. Therefore, a strong public-private partnership is the only path forward. At the same time it's an incredibly important location for Downtown. Activating that site that exists in a flood plane but at a really important part of our city will have benefits for our entire community. Having been in the hotel business [with 21C Museum Hotel] and having developed hotels, what amenities or attractions would you like to see be a part of the planned convention center hotel site? I think the quality and the size are incredibly important. I also think connecting it to our city is important, whether it is ultimately connected to our bourbon industry or other authentically Louisville industries and will be incredibly helpful for its ultimate success. I want to encourage its design to provide strong connections to Main Street as well as our skyline.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gov. Beshear vetoes 9 bills on education, healthcare, and more on Wednesday
FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — The General Assembly is set to reconvene for the final days of the regular legislative session. In the final moments of the veto period, Gov. Andy Beshear took action on 15 bills on March 26 by signing three, vetoing nine, and returning three without signature. These 17 bills received Gov. Beshear's signature, 4 vetoed for worker's rights and constitutional violations Here are all the bills Gov. Andy Beshear signed, vetoed, and returned without his signature on Tuesday 'I'm proud to support two bills that will help our students get the very best education,' said Gov. Beshear. 'And I am excited to see Kentucky's film industry grow and bring new jobs and opportunities to families across the commonwealth.' Beshear said his vetoes would protect public education and Kentuckians' access to health care. Here's a look at the three bills signed into law on Wednesday: House Bill 208 requires school districts to implement a policy limiting cellphone use in schools during instructional time. House Bill 298 helps low-performing schools seek assistance to improve student outcomes. Senate Bill 1 creates the Kentucky Film Office, promoting the growth of the Kentucky film industry. These three bills will also go into effect without the governor's signature. Here's which and why they weren't signed: Beshear called House Bill 775 a 'bait-and-switch' bill, where, at the beginning of the session, lawmakers told committee members that the guardrails for income tax reductions would stay in place, and many pushed for and voted for a tax reduction (House Bill 1) based on that information. Beshear stated that later in the session, lawmakers passed this bill and reportedly violated their statements and testimony. Senate Bill 2, Beshear said, he does not believe that the state should pay for gender reassignment surgeries for convicted felons, as this would mean those in prison would receive better access to medical care than a law-abiding citizen. However, courts have ruled that federal law may require some nonsurgical care. House Bill 520 aims to protect certain law enforcement documents from being distributed through open records requests. Gov. Beshear said he supports transparency but understands the need to protect ongoing criminal investigations. In a sudden shakeup, the University of Louisville's president resigns and her successor is chosen Gov. Beshear vetoes 9 bills on education, healthcare, and more on Wednesday US Marshals in Detroit charge man in connection with deadly Ohio Street shooting Beshear said he vetoed the following bills in an effort to protect public education and protect tax dollars: House Bill 240 would require kindergarten students to be given a universal screening to determine their readiness to move on to primary school. Beshear said that this wouldn't solve the issue of children not being prepared for kindergarten or first grade and instead urged for universal pre-K. House Bill 346 would reportedly allow at least one entity to sidestep the majority of the emission fees it owes to the commonwealth. House Bill 552 reportedly violates the Kentucky Constitution by creating a legislative board to carry out an executive function by advancing bilateral trade and investment between Kentucky and Ireland. House Bill 695, Beshear said, would create barriers and delays for more than 1,600,000 Kentucky adults and children who access health care through Medicaid and the Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program, or KCHIP. House Joint Resolution 46 received line-item vetoes to correct the names of roads. Senate Bill 19 would violate when kindergarteners cannot stay silent in their seats and reportedly would not allow students whose religious practices include standing prayer to do so. Senate Bill 25 received line-item vetoes because Beshear noted the bill contradicts what lawmakers said last year when they moved to make the Office of the Ombudsman independent. Senate Bill 183 prevents the Kentucky Public Pensions Authority from having discretion over monitoring companies. Senate Bill 207 could create unequal educational standards between local school districts. Beginning Thursday, the General Assembly could override any of the governor's 25 vetoed bills by reaching a majority vote. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Red River Gorge resort tax break survives in bill that also changes KY's tax cut formula
A significant tax incentive designed to apply to a resort in the Red River Gorge area made it through both chambers of the General Assembly on Friday, paving the way for a long-planned project there to come to fruition. House Bill 775, sponsored by Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, was expanded greatly this week via a committee substitute to include several revenue-related measures. Revenue bills like this one are often referred to as 'Christmas tree bills' due to the various separate measures representing the 'ornaments' on a tree. A larger sales tax-based incentive for a potential resort at Red River Gorge — doubling both the timeline and potential percentage of costs recouped — was one of the more notable additions. The incentive is written with specific criteria that match a previously proposed 800-plus acre project located near Slade in Powell County. Legislative leadership has acknowledged it could apply to that project, which has been promoted by a nonprofit group of local leaders and business executives but received major pushback a few years ago. Beyond the incentive, the bill also makes significant changes to how the legislature can cut the state's income tax rate. Currently, the legislature can lower the income tax rate only in 0.5% increments, and only if certain budgetary 'triggers' are activated with the balance of the Budget Reserve Trust Fund and General Fund revenues. Under the new bill, the legislature could drop the rate by either 0.25% or 0.5%, with the General Fund trigger threshold dropping by 50% for the next two years. After that, the legislature could opt to cut the rate by increments of 0.1% to 0.5% based on how much General Fund revenue is coming in. Little discussion from lawmakers was had about the Red River Gorge-targeted tax incentive. However, Andrew McNeill, executive director of the Kentucky Forum for Rights Economics and Education, a free market think tank, had harsh words. 'I'm sure these investors consider themselves capitalists, and if asked will tell you they support free enterprise and free markets,' he said. 'Investors assume risk and therefore should benefit from taking that entrepreneurial step, but time and again we see they want to have the taxpayers support the risk without sharing in the profits of the whole enterprise. 'They're making taxpayers equity partners in this project, but you ask them do the taxpayers get any profit share out of this, the answer is no.' Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong, D-Louisville, said she wished she could vote yes on the bill because she liked many of its provisions. But she worried the ability to more regularly cut the income tax rate, and therefore shrink a state revenue source, wasn't the right move. 'I'll be honest, the previous triggers that were in place made me feel as though… we were (lowering taxes) in a fiscally responsible manner, and I don't see why we need to change that now. I worry about doing that at this moment in time, in particular, given the federal uncertainty and given questions about what's going to happen to our Medicaid program at the federal level,' Armstrong said. Senate Appropriations & Revenue Chair Chris McDaniel, R–Ryland Heights, said in the long run, the change puts the state on the same path it would have been on otherwise. 'It's just a change in the nature of the increments. You're not necessarily going to be going any faster… You're taking smaller steps, but conceivably more of them. So, I'm really not that worried about the change,' McDaniel said.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Surprise 107-page bill wins House OK, would make it easier to lower Kentucky income tax
House budget committee chairman Jason Petrie, R-Elkton, said the new version of House Bill 775 would 'begin a conversation' but he doubts 'it survives the General Assembly's full process in its current iteration.' (LRC Public Information) FRANKFORT — Kentucky's Republican-controlled House voted Tuesday to make sprawling changes to the state's tax laws and also to make it easier for lawmakers to incrementally lower the state's income tax rate in the future The 107-page measure that emerged for the first time in the final days of this year's session was inserted into a 'shell' bill by the House budget committee Tuesday morning and approved by the full House Tuesday afternoon, despite protests by Democrats that the changes were moving too fast and without public notice. Rep. Anne Donworth, D-Lexington, on the House floor questioned how the bill's widely ranging provisions — from making a statement in support of 'alternative jet fuels' to levying a tax on hemp-derived beverages — relate to each other. The vehicle for making the changes, House Bill 775, sponsored by House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, was originally a four-page bill making small changes in laws governing tax increment financing districts. The bill would change a law enacted by the legislature in 2022 that created guardrails for gradually lowering the individual income tax by half a percentage point only when several metrics predict that state finances could sustain the loss of revenue. If approved by the Senate, the new law could potentially allow the GOP-controlled legislature to reduce the tax rate from 0.1% to 0.5% each year depending on how much General Fund revenues exceeded General Fund expenditures. The 2022 law only allows the legislature to approve a half-percent reduction each legislative session if specific fiscal triggers in the state budget are met; if the triggers aren't met, then the legislature keeps the income tax rate as is. All 16 Republicans present on the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee voted to advance the expanded piece of legislation. The minority of Democrats on the committee voted against or passed on the bill, concerned about the numerous changes to state law and the lack of notice to the public. Rep. Ken Fleming, R-Louisville, explaining his support for the bill, said lawmakers previously looked at potentially lowering the income tax by smaller increments, calling the newly unveiled framework a 'good process.' He said the framework would give 'more flexibility' to 'make sure we attract workforce and help businesses as well as put more money in people's pockets.' Committee chair Jason Petrie, R-Elkton, told the committee the new version of HB 775 would 'begin a conversation' but he doubted 'it survives the General Assembly's full process in its current iteration.' It's long been a Republican goal to completely eliminate the income tax. Economic analysts with the progressive think tank Kentucky Center for Economic Policy (KCEP) have warned further cuts in the state's income tax revenue could threaten adequately funding government services including education. Jason Bailey, the executive director for KCEP, in a statement said HB 775 'moves the goalposts once again on the legislature's income tax cut triggers, allowing additional cuts even as the costs of those already in place grow.' He said the proposed framework for reducing income tax cuts could allow for tax revenues to be cut by over $100 million if General Fund revenues exceed spending by 'just one penny in one year.' 'Continuing down this path will require more and more cuts to the state budget, sacrificing investments in education, Medicaid and infrastructure in order to provide more tax breaks that go overwhelmingly to the wealthy,' Bailey said in his statement. Democrats expressed concern in the committee and on the House floor that the public, let alone lawmakers, didn't have enough time to understand the numerous changes being put forward in the legislation. Republicans voted down an effort by Rep. Adam Moore, D-Lexington, to lay the bill on the clerk's desk to provide more time for lawmakers to go through the bill's changes. Rep. Tina Bojanowski, D-Louisville, who voted against the bill in the committee, said she didn't believe there was transparency in the process of advancing the bill because the substitute language wasn't available to the public when the committee voted on the bill. The substitute language is available publicly on the Legislative Research Commission's website as of Tuesday afternoon. 'If you are not talking to the Republicans and you're just trying to get your information from the media, how would they know?' Bojanowski told reporters after the committee meeting. 'Transparency I think is the most important thing we can do here, and if they're going to make the change … I can't prevent that from happening. But hopefully the public could chime in and give their perspectives.' The practice of rewriting insignificant bills, known as 'shell bills,' with short notice to enact major changes to state law has been criticized by the Kentucky League of Women Voters, along with other legislative maneuvers that the League says exclude the public from participation in the legislative process. Lawmakers have argued 'shell' bills give them more time to work on legislation and advance it beyond the deadline to file bills each legislative session. Nemes, the bill's sponsor, dismissed Democratic concerns about the public not having notice, saying Republicans have been talking about the idea of adding further incremental reductions to the income tax rate for years. 'We started talking about this as soon as Republicans started taking over in 2017,' Nemes said. 'This isn't coming out of the blue.' Andrew McNeill, president of the think tank Kentucky Forum for Rights, Economics and Education focused on free-market policies, supports the premise of adding more flexibility to how much the legislature can reduce the state's income tax rate. He said his understanding of the push toward reducing the state's income tax rate is that spending on state corrections and Medicaid could make it harder to further reduce income taxes under the current framework that only allows half-percent reductions. He said adding more flexibility in reducing the income tax rate is 'a perfectly reasonable thing to do.' But he also criticized the last-minute process the legislature was taking to advance the changes to the income tax reduction framework through a 'shell' bill. McNeill hadn't had the chance to review the substituted language when it passed the committee Tuesday morning. 'It would just seem to me that, from our point of view, more time and transparency is always better because more input into how exactly to accomplish the goals or warn against the consequences is beneficial to the taxpayer and Kentucky's public,' McNeill said. 'It doesn't have to be this way.' This story may be updated.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bill would change how Kentucky can lower income tax. Here's how
An amended bill moving forward in the Kentucky legislature would drastically change the state's approach to reducing its income tax. House Bill 775, sponsored by Republican Rep. Jason Nemes, includes a provision adding new conditions that would let the state reduce its individual income tax in increments from 0.1% to 0.5%. Under current law, the General Assembly is only authorized to decrease the tax rate by 0.5% annually if certain triggers are met, based on the state's revenue and rainy day fund balance. The Republican-controlled legislature's goal is to eventually eliminate the tax. Last year, Republican leaders announced the state budget hit its triggers to lower the tax rate from 4% to 3.5%. Lawmakers approved House Bill 1 to implement that cut earlier this session, and Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear signed it into law. HB 775 bill passed out of the House Appropriations & Revenue Committee on Tuesday on a 16-3-1 vote. During the meeting, Minority Floor Leader Pamela Stevenson, D-Louisville, asked why a change was needed to the system the legislature previously put in place. Republican Rep. Jason Petrie, chair of the committee, said as conditions and viewpoints change, programs get modified to accommodate that. "This continues with the same policy of reduction and continues with the same policy of conditions, and it should be of some satisfaction to some that we may not hit a half a point, but we may hit something smaller so more state revenue continues to come in," Petrie said. Meanwhile, Republican Rep. Ken Fleming said the revised approach will help the state attract workers and "put more money in people's pockets." "We went through a methodical systematic approach to look at how we can reduce the income tax, and at the time we talked about looking at smaller increments ... but I think this is going to be a good process and good way to look at smaller increments given the market conditions, given the economic situations and giving us more flexibility to achieve our goals," Fleming said. Reach reporter Hannah Pinski at hpinski@ or follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @hannahpinski. This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky legislature: Bill would make changes for income tax cuts
