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A RESOLUTION urging the Legislative Research Commission to direct the 1
Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee to investigate the misuse of state 2
resources of the executive branch. 3
WHEREAS, Section 81 of the Constitution of Kentucky establishes that it is the 4
duty of the Governor to take care that the laws of this Commonwealth are faithfully 5
executed; and 6
WHEREAS, the Governor is a public servant of the citizens of this Commonwealth; 7
and 8
WHEREAS, under the administration of Governor Any Beshear, the Office of 9
Unemployment Insurance overpaid millions of dollars in fraudulent unemployment 10
benefits claims; and 11
WHEREAS, under the administration of Governor Andy Beshear, the Cabinet for 12
Health and Family Services failed to prevent at least $836 million dollars of Medicaid 13
program waste; and 14
WHEREAS, the Governor, under this administration, weaponized the Kentucky 15
Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control as a means to engage in targeted enforcement 16
and retaliation against Kentuckians for their criticisms of the Governor, in violation of the 17
First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States and Section 8 of the 18
Constitution of Kentucky; and 19
WHEREAS, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit denied this 20
Governor qualified immunity for his retaliatory conduct against Kentuckians in violation 21
of the First Amendment in Cooperrider v. Woods, 127 F.4th 1019 (6th Cir. 2025); and 22
WHEREAS, qualified immun ity protects "all but the plainly incompetent or those 23
who knowingly violate the law," (Ashcroft v. Al-Kidd, 563 U.S. 731, 743 (2001) (quoting 24
Malley v. Briggs, 475 U.S. 335, 341 (1986)); and 25
WHEREAS, under the administration of Governor Andy Beshear, according to a 26
release from the United States Department of Justice, five Kentucky residents, including 27
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 1513
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at least two former employees of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, are facing federal 1
charges for mail fraud and unlawful production of identification documents, as well as 2
money laundering conspiracy, arising from a scheme by Kentucky Transportation 3
Cabinet employees that resulted in the issuance of invalid licenses to noncitizens of the 4
United States who are alleged to have paid up to $200 for each illegally obtained license 5
and without being required to demonstrate their qualifications to drive on the roads of this 6
Commonwealth, resulting in more than 1,500 driver's licenses being revoked; and 7
WHEREAS, a court ruled that the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet violated the 8
Commonwealth's open records laws by withholding documents tied to the investigation 9
into immigrants illegally obtaining Kentucky driver's licenses; and 10
WHEREAS, the Auditor of Public Accounts recently released findings following a 11
review of executive branch spending in fiscal year 2025 based upon eMars data that 12
revealed extravagant spending of tax dollars, including over $183,500 spent by the 13
Department of Kentucky State Police on out-of-state travel costs while providing security 14
to Governor Andy Beshear and other members of his staff, with a limousine charge in 15
Germany in excess of $7,500; and 16
WHEREAS, the findings of the Auditor also included advertising expenditures of 17
executive branch entities in excess of $39,000,000 and out -of-state travel in excess of 18
$7,000,000; and 19
WHEREAS, the Auditor further found expenditures by the Kentucky Tourism, Arts 20
and Heritage Cabinet and the Governor's office in excess of $338,000 to a nonp rofit 21
company for Kentucky Derby events, including a $17,000 dinner at a distillery; and 22
WHEREAS, other expenditures of the Beshear administration included over 23
$100,000 for Governor Andy Beshear to belong to the National Governors Association, 24
over $10,00 0,000 spent on "dues," and over $1,500,000 spent on promotional 25
entertainment; 26
NOW, THEREFORE, 27
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Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of the 1
Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. The Legislative Research Commission is urged to direct the staff of 3
the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee to investigate and review the 4
expenditures of the executive branch including but not limited to: 5
(1) Payment of fraudulent claims by the Office of Unemployment Insurance or 6
failure to pursue recovery of previously identified fraudulent claims paid; 7
(2) Medicaid program waste; 8
(3) Targeted enforcement by the Kentucky Department of Alcoholic Beverage 9
Control; 10
(4) Issuance of unlawful identification cards or operator's licenses; 11
(5) Unauthorized or wasteful spending on out -of-state travel, advertising, or 12
special events; and 13
(6) Violations of the Open Records Act. 14
Section 2. (1) It is requested that a report of the completed investigation 15
include: 16
(a) Misconduct engaged in by any individual and any action that was identified to 17
hold that individual accountable; 18
(b) Evidence of any failure to comply with existing statutory requirements or 19
administrative regulations; and 20
(c) Identification of the need and recommendations for changes to address greater 21
oversight of the expenditures of the executive branch, including potential statutory 22
changes. 23
(2) The report of any authorized investigation shall be submit ted to the 24
Legislative Research Commission for referral to the Interim Joint Committees on 25
Appropriations and Revenue, State and Local Government, and Judiciary no later than 26
December 1, 2026. 27