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AN ACT relating to local taxation. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 67.083 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) It is the purpose of this section to provide counties as units of general purpose local 4
government with the necessary latitude and flexibility to provide and finance 5
various governmental services within those functional areas specified in subsection 6
(3) of this section, while the General Assembly retains full authority to prescribe 7
and limit by statute local governmental activities when it deems such action 8
necessary. 9
(2) (a) The fiscal court of any county is hereby authorized to levy all taxes, license 10
fees, and franchise fees not in conflict with the Constitution of the 11
Commonwealth of Kentucky, provided that the fee or tax is allowed by 12
the[and] statutes of this state[ now or hereafter enacted]. 13
(b) No fiscal court of any county is authorized to levy a sales or use tax on: 14
1. Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 15
2. The furnishing of any service. 16
(3) The fiscal court shall have the power to carry out governmental functions necessary 17
for the operation of the county. Except as otherwise provided by statute or the 18
Kentucky Constitution, the fiscal court of any county may enact ordinances, issue 19
regulations, levy taxes, issue bonds, appropriate funds, and employ personnel in 20
performance of the following public functions: 21
(a) Control of animals, and abatement of public nuisances; 22
(b) Regulation of public gatherings; 23
(c) Public sanitation and vector control; 24
(d) Provision of hospitals, ambulance service, programs for the health and welfare 25
of the aging and juveniles, and other public health facilities and services; 26
(e) Provision of corrections facilities and services, and programs for the 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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confinement, care, and rehabilitation of juvenile law offenders; 1
(f) Provision of parks, nature preserves, swimming pools, recreation areas, 2
libraries, museums, and other recreational and cultural facilities and programs; 3
(g) Provision of cemeteries and memorials; 4
(h) Conservation, preservation and enhancement of natural resources including 5
soils, water, air, vegetation, and wildlife; 6
(i) Control of floods; 7
(j) Facilitating the construction and purchase of new and existing housing; 8
causing the repair or demolition of structures which present a hazard to public 9
health, safety, or morals or are otherwise inimical to the welfare of residents 10
of the county; causing the redevelopment of housing and related commercial, 11
industrial, and service facilities in urban or rural areas; providing education 12
and counseling services and technical assistance to present and future 13
residents of publicly assisted housing; 14
(k) Planning, zoning, and subdivision control according to the provisions of KRS 15
Chapter 100; 16
(l) Adoption, by reference or in full, of technical codes governing new 17
construction, renovation, or maintenance of structures intended for human 18
occupancy; 19
(m) Regulation of commerce for the protection and convenience of the public; 20
(n) Regulation of the sale of alcoholic beverages according to the provisions of 21
KRS Chapters 241 to 244; 22
(o) Exclusive management of solid wastes by ordinance or contract or by both and 23
disposition of abandoned vehicles; 24
(p) Provision of public buildings, including armories, necessary for the effective 25
delivery of public services; 26
(q) Cooperation with other units of government and private agencies for the 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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provision of public services, including, but not limited to, training, 1
educational services, and cooperative extension service programs; 2
(r) Provision of water and sewage and garbage disposal service but not gas or 3
electricity; including management of onsite sewage disposal systems; 4
(s) Licensing or franchising of cable television; 5
(t) Provision of streets and roads, bridges, tunnels and related facilities, 6
elimination of grade crossings, provision of parking facilities, and 7
enforcement of traffic and parking regulations; 8
(u) Provision of police and fire protection; 9
(v) Regulation of taxis, buses, and other passenger vehicles for hire; 10
(w) Provision and operation of air, rail and bus terminals, port facilities, and 11
public transportation systems; 12
(x) Promotion of economic development of the county, directly or in cooperation 13
with public or private agencies, including the provision of access roads, land 14
and buildings, and promotion of tourism and conventions; 15
(y) Preservation of historic structures; and 16
(z) Regulation of establishments or commercial enterprises offering adult 17
entertainment and adult entertainment activities. 18
(4) The county judge/executive is hereby authorized and empowered to exercise all of 19
the executive powers pursuant to this section. 20
(5) A county acting under authority of this section may assume, own, possess and 21
control assets, rights, and liabilities related to the functions and services of the 22
county. 23
(6) If a county is authorized to regulate an area which the state also regulates, the 24
county government may regulate the area only by enacting ordinances which are 25
consistent with state law or administrative regulation: 26
(a) If the state statute or administrative regulation prescribes a single standard of 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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conduct, a county ordinance is consistent if it is identical to the state statute or 1
administrative regulation; 2
(b) If the state statute or administrative regulation prescribes a minimal standard 3
of conduct, a county ordinance is consistent if it establishes a standard which 4
is the same as or more stringent than the state standard; 5
(c) A county government may adopt ordinances which incorporate by reference 6
state statutes and administrative regulations in areas in which a county 7
government is authorized to act. 8
(7) County ordinances which prescribe penalties for their violation shall be enforced 9
throughout the entire area of the county unless: 10
(a) Otherwise provided by statute; or 11
(b) The legislative body of any city within the county has adopted an ordinance 12
pertaining to the same subject matter which is the same as or more stringent 13
than the standards that are set forth in the county ordinance. The fiscal court 14
shall forward a copy of each ordinance which is to be enforced throughout the 15
entire area of the county to the mayor of each city in the county. 16
(8) (a) The powers granted to counties by this section shall be in addition to all other 17
powers granted to counties by other provisions of law. These powers, other 18
than the power to tax, may be exercised cooperatively by two (2) or more 19
counties, or by a county and a city, or by a county and a special district, or by 20
a county and the state through, but not limited to, joint contracts, joint 21
ownership of property, or the exchange of services, including personnel and 22
equipment. When counties cooperate in the provision of public services, 23
contracts shall be drawn to document the benefits and relative cost for each of 24
the participating governments. One (1) government may pay one hundred 25
percent (100%), or a lesser percentage, of all or any part of the cost of the joint 26
undertaking, based upon the written contract required by this subsection. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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(b) A permissive procedure authorized by this section shall not be deemed to be 1
exclusive or to prohibit the exercise of other existing laws and laws which 2
may hereafter be enacted but shall be an alternative or supplement thereto. 3
(9) Any agency of county government exercising authority pursuant to subsection (3)(y) 4
of this section shall, prior to exercising such authority, obtain the voluntary written 5
consent of the owner of the structure. Consent may be obtained only after advising 6
the owner in writing of any advantages and disadvantages to the owner which are 7
likely to result from the exercise of such authority. 8
Section 2. KRS 92.281 is amended to read as follows: 9
(1) (a) Cities of all classes are authorized to levy and collect any and all taxes, license 10
fees, and franchise fees not in conflict with[ provided for in Section 181 of] 11
the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, provided that the fee or 12
tax is allowed by the statutes of this state, and to use the revenue therefrom 13
for the[ such] purposes [as may be ]provided by the legislative body of the 14
city. 15
(b) No city of any class is authorized to levy a sales and use tax on: 16
1. Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 17
2. The furnishing of any service. 18
(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to repeal, amend, or affect in any way the 19
provisions of KRS 243.070. 20
(3) This section shall not in any wise repeal, amend, affect, or apply to any existing 21
statute exempting property from local taxation or fixing a special rate on proper 22
classification or imposing a state tax which is declared to be in lieu of all local 23
taxation, nor shall it be construed to authorize a city to require any company that 24
pays both an ad valorem tax and a franchise tax to pay a license tax. 25
(4) This section shall also be subject to the provisions of KRS 91.200 in cities of the 26
first class having a sinking fund and commissioners of a sinking fund. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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(5) License fees or occupational taxes may not be imposed against or collected on 1
income received by precinct workers for election training or work at election booths 2
in state, county, and local primary, regular, or special elections. 3
(6) License fees or occupational taxes may not be imposed against or collected on any 4
profits, earnings, or distributions of an investment fund which would qualify under 5
KRS 154.20-250 to 154.20-284 to the extent any profits, earnings, or distributions 6
would not be taxable to an individual investor. 7
(7) (a) It is the intent of the General Assembly to continue the exemption from local 8
license fees and occupational taxes that existed on January 1, 2006, for 9
providers of multichannel video programming services or communications 10
services as defined in KRS 136.602 that were taxed under KRS 136.120 prior 11
to January 1, 2006. 12
(b) To further this intent, license fees or occupational taxes may not be imposed 13
against any company providing multichannel video programming services or 14
communications services as defined in KRS 136.602. If only a portion of an 15
entity's business is providing multichannel video programming services or 16
communications services including products or services that are related to and 17
provided in support of the multichannel video programming services or 18
communications services, this exclusion applies only to that portion of the 19
business that provides multichannel video programming services or 20
communications services including products or services that are related to and 21
provided in support of the multichannel video programming services or 22
communications services. 23
Section 3. KRS 610.350 is amended to read as follows: 24
(1) In proceedings in the juvenile session of the District Court, no court fees shall be 25
charged against, and no witness fees shall be allowed to, any party to a petition. No 26
public officer shall be entitled to receive any fee from the service of process or for 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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attendance in court in any such proceedings. All other persons acting under orders 1
of the court may be paid for service of process and attendance as witnesses. The 2
payments for fees provided by law for like services in civil cases in the Circuit 3
Court are to be made out of the county treasury. The county or state may 4
compensate any officer or person in the amount prescribed by law for the 5
transportation of a child to a place where he will be detained or placed or the return 6
of any child to the jurisdiction of the court, and funds for this purpose may be 7
appropriated and paid by the fiscal court. 8
(2) (a) For the purpose of paying salaries and expenses necessary to carry out the 9
purposes of KRS Chapters 600 to 645, the fiscal court of any county, or 10
urban-county council of an urban-county government, may levy taxes, license 11
fees, and franchise fees and make appropriations within constitutional 12
limitations, provided that the fee or tax is allowed by the statutes of this 13
state. 14
(b) No fiscal court of any county, or urban-county council of any urban-county 15
government, is authorized to levy a sales or use tax on: 16
1. Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 17
2. The furnishing of any service. 18
(c) The legislative body of any city also is authorized to appropriate funds to 19
assist the county in carrying out the purposes of KRS Chapters 600 to 645, 20
including providing facilities for custody and care of children coming within 21
the purview of KRS Chapters 600 to 645. 22
Section 4. KRS 83.520 is amended to read as follows: 23
(1) The legislative body of a city of the first class shall have the power to exercise all of 24
the rights, privileges, powers, franchises, including the power to levy all taxes, 25
license fees, and franchise fees, not in conflict with the Constitution, provided that 26
the fees or taxes are allowed by the statutes of this state. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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(2) No legislative body of a city of the first class is authorized to levy a sales or use 1
tax on: 2
(a) Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 3
(b) The furnishing of any service.[ and so as ] 4
(3) The powers granted under subsection (1) of this section are to provide for the 5
health, education, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of the city, to the same 6
extent and with the same force and effect as if the General Assembly had granted 7
and delegated to the legislative body of the city all of the authority and powers that 8
are within its powers to grant to a municipal corporation as if expressly enumerated 9
herein. 10
(4) Nothing therein contained to the contrary, the provisions of KRS Chapters 65, 66, 11
76, 77, 79, 80, 91, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 103, 104, 106, 107, 108 and 109 shall be 12
considered permissive rather than mandatory and the powers, rights and duties 13
therein delineated may be modified or delegated by the legislative body to different 14
departments and agencies of city government and any restrictions therein set forth 15
shall not be considered abridging in any manner the complete grant of home rule set 16
forth in this grant of power except no right heretofore vested by operation of statute 17
shall in any way be affected. 18
Section 5. KRS 65.760 is amended to read as follows: 19
(1) Any local government may establish 911 emergency service upon approval of the 20
governing body of the city, county, or urban-county government and may adopt 21
regulations concerning the provision of this service by ordinance. 22
(2) Any local government, or any combination thereof, may with the approval of their 23
governing bodies enter into an interlocal cooperation agreement creating a joint 911 24
emergency service. 25
(3) (a) The funds required by a local government to establish and operate 911 26
emergency service, or to participate in joint service with other local 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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governments, may be obtained through the levy of any special tax, license, or 1
fee not in conflict with the Constitution and statutes of this state, provided 2
that the special tax, license, or fee is allowed by the statutes of this state. 3
(b) No local government, or any combination thereof, is authorized to levy a 4
sales or use tax on: 5
1. Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 6
2. The furnishing of any service. 7
(c) The special tax, license, or fee may include a subscriber charge for 911 8
emergency service that shall be levied on an individual exchange-line basis, 9
limited to a maximum of twenty-five (25) exchange lines per account per 10
government entity. 11
(d)[(b)] Any private commercial telephone service or owner of a dispersed 12
private telephone system (DPTS) that provides local and 911 emergency 13
service to subscribers for compensation shall collect and remit the subscriber 14
charge to the local government on the same basis as the primary local 15
exchange carrier, except that this requirement shall not apply to a state agency 16
that currently maintains an independent 911 system with its own public safety 17
answering point. 18
(e)[(c)] Any provider of interconnected VoIP local and 911 emergency services 19
to subscribers for compensation shall collect and remit any special tax, 20
license, or fee levied under paragraph (a) of this subsection to the local 21
government, except that the special tax, license, or fee levied under paragraph 22
(a) of this subsection shall not apply to a commercial mobile radio service 23
subject to a fee imposed under KRS 65.7629 or 65.7634. 24
(4) All revenues raised from any special tax, license, or fee levied under subsection (3) 25
of this section shall be expended only as provided in this subsection and only to the 26
extent that the expenditure is directly attributable to the establishment, operation, or 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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maintenance of a PSAP, the delivery of 911 emergency services, or the provision of 1
wireless enhanced 911 services, as follows: 2
(a) The hiring of personnel; 3
(b) The following costs for employees: 4
1. Salaries; 5
2. Fringe benefits; 6
3. MSAG coordination; 7
4. Uniforms; and 8
5. Addressing and database development and management; 9
(c) Facility costs for the following expenses: 10
1. Capital improvements for construction, remodeling, or expansion; 11
2. Lease or rental payments; 12
3. Utilities; 13
4. Heating and air conditioning; 14
5. Fire suppression systems; 15
6. Security systems; 16
7. Cleaning and maintenance; 17
8. Emergency power and uninterruptable power equipment; 18
9. Insurance; 19
10. Office supplies; 20
11. Printing and copying services; and 21
12. Furniture; 22
(d) Training and memberships in professional associations, including: 23
1. Vendor-provided training; 24
2. Conferences; 25
3. Necessary travel and lodging; 26
4. On-the-job training; and 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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5. Memberships in 911-related associations; 1
(e) Costs for the following equipment shall be allowed to the extent its function is 2
directly attributable to the provision of 911 emergency services, whether on 3
the premises or remotely located: 4
1. 911 controllers, equipment, or software; 5
2. 911 trunks or administrative lines for the 911 center; 6
3. Remote 911 hardware or modems; 7
4. ACD systems or other call management facilities and software; 8
5. Call-time stamping or other clock functions; 9
6. Computer workstations; 10
7. Telephone and related services to support the receipt of 911 contact 11
from the deaf and hard of hearing community; 12
8. Voice and data recording systems; 13
9. Radio systems, including consoles and any fixed radio asset that is not 14
mobile or portable and that is used for 911 and emergency response; 15
10. CAD, GIS mapping, paging, mobile data, LINK/NCIC, or AVL systems 16
and associated databases; 17
11. Network connectivity; 18
12. Software licenses; and 19
13. Maintenance or service agreements for equipment or software listed in 20
this subsection; 21
(f) Vehicle costs for the following, either as reimbursement to an employee for 22
the use of a private vehicle or direct costs for a vehicle assigned to the agency: 23
1. MSAG development and maintenance; 24
2. GIS data development, verification, and testing; and 25
3. Public education; 26
(g) Costs for the following professional services: 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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1. Legal; 1
2. Architectural; 2
3. Auditing; and 3
4. Consultation; and 4
(h) Costs for public education regarding the proper use of 911 emergency 5
services. 6
(5) A local government shall not use revenues from any special tax, license, or fee 7
levied under subsection (3) of this section for personnel costs, facility costs, training 8
and membership costs, equipment costs, vehicle costs, professional services costs, 9
public education costs, nor any of the following costs, unless the expense is directly 10
attributable to the delivery of 911 emergency services: 11
(a) Personnel costs for the following personnel, unless directly functioning as 12
PSAP staff: 13
1. Law enforcement; 14
2. Emergency medical services personnel; 15
3. Fire protection personnel; 16
4. Emergency management staff; and 17
5. Shared support or technical staff; 18
(b) Facility costs for the following purposes and facilities, except for that portion 19
used for the delivery of 911 emergency services: 20
1. Capital and furnishing costs for facilities whose primary purpose is not 21
the delivery of 911 emergency services; 22
2. Facilities primarily intended for use by police, fire, emergency medical 23
services, or other emergency management personnel; and 24
3. Facilities providing general offices for local government operations; 25
(c) Training and membership costs for the following purposes: 26
1. Costs for training for staff not directly involved in the delivery of 911 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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emergency services or courses whose content is not intended to increase 1
the knowledge, skills, and abilities of 911 personnel with regard to 2
delivery of 911 emergency services; and 3
2. Costs for memberships in organizations or associations whose primary 4
purpose is not public safety communications or the delivery of 911 5
emergency services; 6
(d) The following hardware, software, or peripheral costs: 7
1. Law enforcement, fire protection, emergency medical services, or jail 8
record management systems; 9
2. Word processing and other general computer applications; 10
3. GIS applications providing data layers not needed for the location of 11
emergency calls or other general mapping and locations services for 12
government operations; 13
4. Court information systems; 14
5. Field equipment used outside of the PSAP by emergency responders or 15
other government personnel for radio, paging, mobile data, LINK/NCIC, 16
ACD, or AVL systems; 17
6. Internet connectivity for an application listed in this subsection; 18
7. A maintenance or service agreement for an application listed in this 19
subsection; and 20
8. A software license for an application listed in this subsection; 21
(e) The cost of an emergency response or other government vehicle; 22
(f) Costs for professional services; and 23
(g) Costs for public education. 24
(6) The governing body may apply for and accept federal moneys and may accept 25
contributions and donations from any source for the purpose of funding 911 26
emergency service. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 1669
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(7) Nothing in this section shall preclude other means of establishing or funding a 911 1
emergency service within any local area or exchange, nor require the operation of 2
such service by any local government. 3
SECTION 6. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 92 IS CREATED TO 4
READ AS FOLLOWS: 5
(1) No municipal corporation that is authorized to levy and collect taxes, license fees, 6
or franchise fees shall levy the tax or fee unless the tax, license fee, or franchise 7
fee is allowed by the statutes of this state. 8
(2) Municipal corporations are not authorized to levy a sales or use tax on: 9
(a) Retail sales of tangible personal property or digital property; or 10
(b) The furnishing of any service. 11
Section 7. This Act shall become effective only upon the ratification, in the 12
regular election of November 8, 2022, of an amendment to Section 181 of the Kentucky 13
Constitution permitting the General Assembly to confer upon counties, cities, towns, and 14
other municipal corporations the power to collect taxes, license fees, and franchise fees 15
that are not in conflict with the Constitution. If such an amendment is not ratified, this 16
Act is void. 17