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Special Session May Not Be Over This Week

By Tony McVeigh

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wuky/local-wuky-957697.mp3

Frankfort, KY – Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo says the special session on Medicaid won't wrap up in one week. Kentucky Public Radio's Tony McVeigh is keeping tabs on the session, which began yesterday.

Lawmakers couldn't finish their work in 30-days, so Gov. Beshear ordered them back for a special session. Now, House Speaker Greg Stumbo says it's going to take longer than one week to get the job done in special session. How much longer?

"I don't know the answer to that, Tony. We're here to do a job, but there's about $12 million that we're going to lose the benefit of if we don't capitalize on the increased federal match money that Gov. Beshear's talked about."

Stumbo says the House budget committee wants to hear testimony on the impact budget cuts recommended by Senate Republicans will have on state agencies. In the meantime, Stumbo says House leaders are working on a possible compromise on balancing the Medicaid budget.

Meanwhile, the Kentucky House Education Committee has approved legislation raising Kentucky's drop out age to 18 by 2016.

Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says the drop out bill would send a message to educators that the state's serious about keeping kids in school.

"There's so many different ways that alternative education can meet the needs of children. But again, to get people thinking outside of their traditional approach to alternative ed, I need just a little push. And this legislation would do that."

The committee vote was 21-4, and all of the opponents were Republicans. The measure won approval in the Democratic-controlled House in this year's regular session, but died in the Republican-controlled Senate.