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Three things to know about Kentucky special sessions

How much does a special session cost? And who gets to call them? Here are some facts and figures about special legislative sessions in the Commonwealth.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has called a special session to discuss COVID-19 policies in the state. Lawmakers will head to Frankfort Tuesday to begin the session at 10 a.m.

Special sessions are called outside of the regular legislative session and are specific to one topic. There's no set time limit, but these sessions are usually brief.

RELATED: What to expect from the special legislative session Tuesday

Here are three more things to know about special sessions in Kentucky.

Cost

There are 138 members of the Kentucky legislature, and those representatives and senators get paid to come to work.

According to Kentucky's non-partisan Legislative Research Committee (LRC), the daily cost of a special legislative session is around $65,000. 

During a special session, rank and file state representatives and senators make $188.22 per session day. Leadership will make more: the Senate President and House Speaker top the list, making around $233.57 per day.

Lawmakers will also be reimbursed for mileage from their home to Frankfort. If a special session lasts five days, it should cost Kentucky taxpayers a total of $327,523.15.

Who makes the call?

Right now, Kentucky is one of 14 states where only the governor can call a special session.

In the other 36 states, a special session may be called by either the governor or the legislature, and that process is different for each state.

How often can they happen?

Since 1940, the Kentucky legislature has been called into special session 52 times. 

The most recent special session was in 2019 when former Governor Matt Bevin called the legislature into special session for six days to talk about public pensions.

The most times a special session has been called in one year was in 1956, when the legislature was called four times.

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