ELKINS LEADS LEGISLATION FORTIFYING ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE AND SAFEGUARDING KENTUCKIANS
Senate Bill 376 product of collaboration between Elkins, Coleman
FRANKFORT, KY (March 11, 2024)—Sen. Greg Elkins, R-Winchester, has spearheaded the legislative initiative to enhance the Kentucky Attorney General's Office. In collaboration with Attorney General Russell Coleman, Elkins' Senate Bill 376 (SB 376) seeks to advance Coleman's priorities.
"Kentucky families are facing grave threats from violent crime and deadly drugs, and our Office is fighting back," said Coleman. "I'm grateful to Sen. Elkins for his leadership so the Attorney General's Office and our Department of Criminal Investigations (DCI) can be zealous and effective collaborators with prosecutors, law enforcement, and community leaders across our commonwealth."
Provisions within Elkins' bill position Coleman's DCI as one of Kentucky's premier law enforcement agencies. The legislation addresses Coleman's priority to establish a new deputy commissioner for counter-exploitation, safeguarding Kentucky's children from predators.
SB 376 readies the Attorney General's Office to integrate the Office of Administrative Hearings and the commonwealth's child support services function. Transferring the state's child support enforcement program from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to the Office of the Attorney General aims to tackle the state's alarming $1.4 billion in outstanding child support arrearages.
The bill additionally establishes the Office of Regulatory Relief, a mission entrusted to the Attorney General's Office through 2023's House Bill 264. This team is tasked with shielding Kentuckians from excessively burdensome bureaucracy and out-of-touch government mandates.
"I am honored to work with Coleman and his office to ensure that he and his team possess the tools necessary to fulfill the critical responsibilities of our Department of Law," Elkins stated.
"Coleman has commendably championed the cause for Kentuckians against the Biden administration's misguided energy and border policies, among other initiatives. It is reassuring to know that there is an office within the state Capitol eager to communicate and collaborate with the legislature, fortify our commonwealth, protect our children and the elderly, and address the drug epidemic fueled by an unchecked southern border."
SB 376 has two of its three required readings and was recently approved unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee. It is posted for passage in Monday's consent orders.
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Senator Greg Elkins, R-Winchester, represents the 28th Senate District, including Bath, Clark, Menifee, and Montgomery Counties and an eastern portion of Fayette County. Elkins is a member of the Interim Joint Committees on Local Government, State Government, Families and Children, and Health Services. He is a liaison member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Human Services. Elkins is also an Administrative Regulation Review Subcommittee member.
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