Bill > HB319

This bill proposes an amendment to Section 25 of the Kentucky Constitution to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude in all circumstances, including as a punishment for crime, while preserving the ability of prisoners to work while imprisoned. Specifically, the bill would remove the existing language that allowed slavery and involuntary servitude as a punishment for crime and replace it with a new provision that explicitly forbids slavery and involuntary servitude, but clarifies that prisoners can still be employed while serving their sentences. The proposed amendment would be submitted to Kentucky voters for ratification or rejection at the next regular election, with the Secretary of State required to publish the full text of the proposed amendment in a newspaper of general circulation and ensure that county clerks include the amendment question on ballots. The bill aims to eliminate the constitutional loophole that previously allowed forced labor as a criminal punishment, while maintaining the existing provisions for prisoner work programs as outlined in Section 253 of the Kentucky Constitution.

Government Affairs

https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/25RS/hb319.html