ZeroV 2026 Legislative Updates: April 1

April 01, 2026

Today is day 57 of what has become a 59-day legislative session. With almost two weeks left on our legislative calendar, here's what to expect as the 2026 session comes to a close:

Concurrence: March 31st & April 1st

Concurrence, which began yesterday and concludes today, is the next-to-last period in the legislative session wherein a legislative chamber votes to align differences and agree with changes, or amendments, made to a bill/bills by the other chamber, with the overall goal of both chambers passing the exact same bill before it moves to the governor's desk. 

Veto Period: April 2nd - April 12

After concurrence days, we will enter the ten-day veto period, during which the Governor may sign bills into law or veto them to halt or deter their passage.

Wrap-up: April 14th & 15th

During the last two days of the session, the legislature can continue to pass any outstanding bills or vote to override any veto issued by the governor. If the legislature overturns a veto, the bill becomes law.

Bill Updates

With less than two weeks left of the 2026 legislative session, bill statuses are continuing to change in hopes of being heard on the House and/or Senate floors. Read on for the status changes of ZeroV's bills of interest below:  

  • HB 521, known as the anti-stalking bill, has been posted for passage in the Consent Orders of the Day for Friday, March 27, 2026.
    • HB 521 strengthens protections for survivors by acknowledging real-world patterns that often intersect with domestic violence.
    • HB 521 was amended to include the content of HB 306 and to expand the elements of criminal trespass in the second degree.
  • HB 418, which focuses on ensuring the safety and well-being of children in custody cases, has been adopted as a floor amendment to SB 122, the Family Preservation and Accountability Act. SB 122 has passed out of concurrence and now goes to the Governor's desk for signature.
    • SB 122 allows survivor-parents who are facing incarceration to ask the court for an alternative sentence so they can continue parenting their child.
    • The language adopted from HB 418 into SB 122 establishes guardrails to ensure that the safety and welfare of children are prioritized in all custody orders.
  • HB 611, KY's domestic violence data bill, has passed the full Senate and now goes to the Governor's desk for signature.
    • HB 611 enhances data quality to illustrate the effects of intimate partner violence throughout Kentucky. This improvement benefits the state's Annual Domestic Violence Data Report, ultimately aiming to inspire future policy solutions that support survivors.
    • Additionally, it creates a 10-year IPO upon conviction for domestic and dating violence felony assaults, which offers additional legal protections for survivors. 

Still to come are updates to the state's highly anticipated biennial budget, HB 500, which is still undergoing review in conference committee.

You can see all the bills we're monitoring this session, along with brief descriptions of how they affect survivors, in ZeroV’s Bill Tracker. We will update our bill tracker weekly as new bills of interest are filed and relevant amendments are proposed.

About ZeroV’s Policy Advocacy 

The well-being of survivors is our top policy priority.  

Throughout the legislative session, ZeroV will advocate for adequate funding for domestic violence services. We will also advocate for policies that support the safety, healing, and well-being of survivors, enabling them to thrive. As a service to our community, we will provide weekly updates throughout the 2026 Legislative Session on the status of proposed legislation impacting survivors of domestic violence.

Thank you for staying informed and getting involved!