FRANKFORT, Ky (LEX 18) Governor Matt Bevin has responded after Attorney General Andy Beshear filed a lawsuit and restraining order against him in response to Senate Bill 151.
When LEX 18 caught up with him. Bevin had finished signing an HB 64. HB 64 is a measure providing access to hyperbaric oxygen chambers for veterans suffering from traumatic brain injuries and PTSD.
Bevin stayed later to give LEX 18 a comment on everything from the budget, the teachers, and the lawsuit filed by Andy Beshear.
Tuesday night, Bevin told radio host Terry Meiners in an interview that he had signed the pension overhaul bill into law. Less than an hour after Meiners tweeted about the signing, Attorney General Andy Beshear tweeted that he would take action Wednesday morning.
On Wednesday, Attorney General Andy Beshear filed a lawsuit against Governor Bevin over the so-called Pension Reform Bill (SB 151). In his filing challenging the new law, Beshear said the pension law is illegal, claiming it violates several statutes by changing the terms of the pension contract. You can read more about the lawsuit here.
When asked for his response to the lawsuit, Bevin told LEX 18, "I don’t take anything he does seriously on things like that. It’s a political stunt. He’s wrong, he’ll lose in court, we are correct in what’s being done. The attorney general is just trying to get you all to cover him and it’s working."
.@GovMattBevin reaction to the lawsuit filed by @kyoag? Says he’s just doing it to get media coverage. Bevin says he believes he’ll come out on top @LEX18News
— Claire Crouch (@clairecrouch) April 12, 2018
LEX 18’s Claire Crouch asked Bevin about the number of school districts calling off Friday to rally in Frankfort.
"It’s a shame the flu is running around," he responded.
The public hearing on the injunction filed against SB151 is set for Wednesday at 9am in Franklin Co. Circuit Court per @kyoag‘s office. @LEX18News
— Claire Crouch (@clairecrouch) April 12, 2018
The interview quickly moved to the budget and tax bills, two measures Bevin vetoed earlier in the week. Lawmakers have two days to come up with something new, but Bevin said he feels confident they will.
"I hope we come up with a better version of a budget and a better version of a tax bill that will, that will fund that budget, and I am highly confident that we can do both," he said.
The public hearing on the injunction filed against SB 151 is set for Wednesday at 9 a.m. in Franklin County Circuit Court, according to the Office of Attorney General Andy Beshear.
