CHAPTER 170
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1
CHAPTER 170
( SB 259 )
AN ACT relating to the board of the West End Opportunity Partnership.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:
ď˘Section 1. KRS 65.503 is amended to read as follows:
(1) The West End Opportunity Partnership shall be governed by a board. The board shall initially consist of the
following members:
(a) One (1) member appointed by the Governor for a term of two (2) years;
(b) One (1) member appointed by the mayor of a consolidated local government for a term of two (2) years;
(c) One (1) member of the legislative council of the consolidated local government appointed by its
members for a term of three (3) years;
(d) A representative of the University of Louisville appointed by its board of trustees for a term of three (3)
years;
(e) A representative of Simmons College of Kentucky appointed by its board of trustees for a term of three
(3) years; and
(f) 1. The following shall be appointed by the Governor:
a. One (1) member from the NAACP of Louisville;
b. One (1) member from OneWest in Louisville;
c. One (1) member from Louisville Urban League;
d. One (1) member from the Federal Reserve Bank in Louisville;
e. One (1) member from the Volunteers of America Mid States in Louisville;
f. One (1) member from a locally based foundation with assets over one hundred million
dollars ($100,000,000); and
g. One (1) member from a bank with local assets greater than one billion dollars
($1,000,000,000).
2. The initial appointments of the members described in subparagraph 1. of this paragraph shall be
for terms as follows:
a. Two (2) members for a term of one (1) year;
b. Two (2) members for a term of two (2) years;
c. Two (2) members for a term of three (3) years; and
d. One (1) member for a term of four (4) years.
(2) The board shall include in its bylaws a process for appointing one (1) member from each of the nine (9)
neighborhoods in the development area as additional members. The process shall:
(a) Ensure the nine (9) members are each from a different neighborhood;
(b) Require that, at all times, at least one (1) of the nine (9) members representing the neighborhoods shall
be between the ages of eighteen (18) and thirty (30) at the time of appointment or reappointment; and
(c) Provide that the initial appointment of the members be for terms as follows:
1. Four (4) members for a term of two (2) years; and
2. Five (5) members for a term of three (3) years.
(3) If a member appointed under subsection (1) of this section is unable or unwilling to serve on the board, the
board may substitute an appointed member by majority vote to serve on the board for the remainder of the ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2
appointee's term. The board shall identify an entity that is located in or has a history of service to the West End
Opportunity Partnership area from which a potential substitute appointee can be selected.
(4) After expiration of the term limits provided in subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the board shall self-
perpetuate. The board shall have the authority to set its own procedures to determine successors, and may
require more than one (1) nominee from each of the institutions described in paragraph (f) of subsection
(1) of this section. The overall makeup of the board shall remain the same unless an institution ceases to exist,
[or ]changes corporate form, or refuses to comply with the procedures adopted by the board to determine its
successors, in which event the institution shall be deemed to have forfeited its membership, and a successor
member may be appointed pursuant to subsection (3) of this section. All successors of the representatives
described in subsection (1) of this section shall serve four (4) year terms and all successors of the
representatives described in subsection (2) of this section shall serve three (3) year terms. No individual shall
serve more than two (2) consecutive terms.
(5) The head of economic development for the consolidated local government, or his or her designee, and the
secretary of the Cabinet for Economic Development, or his or her designee, shall be nonvoting, ex officio
members of the West End Opportunity Partnership.
(6) The membership of the board shall not exceed twenty-one (21) voting members.
(7) The majority of the board's membership shall reflect the racial majority of the residents living in the
development area.
(8) A chair of the board shall be selected annually from its members and shall have responsibility for board
meeting agendas and presiding at board meetings.
(9) Members of the board shall be entitled only to reimbursement from the West End Opportunity Partnership for
actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as board members.
(10) A majority of the entire voting members of the board shall constitute a quorum, and all actions of the board
shall be by vote of a majority of its entire voting membership.
(11) A member of the board shall abstain from action on an official decision in which he or she has or may have a
personal or private interest, or if the member is affiliated with any party conducting business with the West
End Opportunity Partnership, shall disclose the existence of that personal or private interest or affiliation in
writing to the other members of the board on the same day on which the member becomes aware that the
interest or affiliation exists or that an official decision may be under consideration by the board. The member
which has or may have a personal or private interest or affiliation shall be absent from all meetings and votes
in relation to the matter.
(12) As a prerequisite to service, each appointee to the board and each member of the West End Louisville
Advisory Council established in KRS 65.506 shall participate in a board-sanctioned training program on the
topics of community and economic development, finance, equity and community engagement, gentrification,
and the implications of these concepts.
Veto Overridden April 12, 2024.