[[{“value”:”
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Lawmakers in both Kentucky and Indiana have a lot of hot button issues being considered in 2025.
Below are the bills to watch:
Recreational marijuana in Indiana?
As Kentucky begins its medical marijuana journey, one Indiana Republican lawmaker wants to skip medical marijuana all together, and go straight to recreational.
It would be the first state in the country to bypass a medical marijuana program.
State Rep. Heath VanNatter, R-38, introduced the legislation. It would legalize marijuana for Hoosiers over the age of 21.
Another republican from South Bend told Fox59 in Indianapolis, he thinks it would pass in the House. The Senate could be the stalling point.
Church housing
Housing, or the lack thereof, is a big issue for Kentuckians, so what if a religious organization was allowed to develop places to live?
The bill would remove barriers and let religious organizations across the commonwealth develop housing on their properties.
The bill allows those groups to create affordable housing in commercial and residential zones.
State lawmakers said the bill was drafted after a recommendation from the Kentucky Housing Task Force.
Kentucky’s minimum wage
A Kentucky Democrat wants to bump up minimum wage to at least $15 an hour, but, with a Republican supermajority, it’s unlikely to go anywhere.
Right now, in Kentuck,y it’s $7.25 an hour.
Sen. Reggie Thomas, D-Lexington, filed the bill and said no one can live off $7.25 an hour.
Senate Bill 11 would raise the wage to $15 an hour in increments. Minimum wage is increasing in half the states in this country this year. If states don’t want to increase the wage, it’s federally set at $7.25.
Here’s the minimum wage for Kentucky’s neighboring states:
Indiana and Tennessee: $7.25West Virginia: $8.75Ohio: $10.70Illinois: $15
Top Stories:
Copyright 2025 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
”}]] Lawmakers in both Kentucky and Indiana have a lot of hot button issues being considered in 2025. Read More
