KRS § 148.034 — KY Code / Title XII / Chapter 148 / Section 148.034
148.034 Kentucky Ohio River Regional Recreation Authority -- Purpose, powers, and duties -- Sunset -- Membership -- Meetings -- Executive director
Status: in_force

148.034 Kentucky Ohio River Regional Recreation Authority -- Purpose, powers,

and duties -- Sunset -- Membership -- Meetings -- Executive director.

(1) The Kentucky Ohio River Regional Recreation Authority is hereby created and

established as an independent, de jure municipal corporation and political

subdivision of the Commonwealth and shall exercise all of the powers that a

corporation may lawfully exercise under the laws of the Commonwealth. The

authority shall be a public body corporate and politic and an instrumentality of the

Commonwealth, established with all the general corporate powers incidental

thereto. The authority shall be attached to the Kentucky Department for Local

Government for administrative purposes only. The authority shall be authorized for

an initial period of five (5) years from July 15, 2024, and may be renewed by the

General Assembly. The authority may adopt bylaws and administrative regulations,

subject to KRS Chapter 13A, for the orderly conduct of its affairs.

(2) The purpose of the authority is to establish, maintain, and promote a recreational

trail system throughout the RA to increase economic development, tourism, and

outdoor recreation for residents and visitors. The recreational trail system shall be

located with significant portions of the system situated on private property made

available for use through lease, license, easement, or other appropriate legal form

by willing landowners.

(3) The authority shall be governed by a board of directors consisting of representatives

from participating counties and the Commonwealth as provided in this section.

(4) The authority and the board shall become operational when eleven (11) target

counties complete the requirements established by subsection (5)(a) of this section.

When at least eleven (11) target counties become participating counties, the

commissioner of the Department for Local Government shall notify the county

judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor of each of the

participating counties, as well as the board members described in subsection (6) of

this section, that the requirements have been met for the authority and board to

become operational. The commissioner shall also establish a date, time, and place

for an initial organizational meeting of the board, and shall serve as interim chair of

the initial organizational meeting until such time as a chair is elected. The chair

shall be a resident of a participating county.

(5) Any target county may become a participating county upon adoption of a resolution

or ordinance by the governing body of the county specifically approving the

county's participation in the KORRRA and submission of the adopted resolution or

ordinance to:

(a) The commissioner of the Department for Local Government if the resolution

or ordinance is adopted prior to the KORRRA becoming operational pursuant

to subsection (4) of this section; or

(b) The KORRRA if the resolution or ordinance is adopted after KORRRA

becomes operational.

(6) The KORRRA board shall consist of the following members:

(a) The secretary of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet or his or her

designee;

(b) The commissioner of the Department for Local Government or his or her

designee;

(c) The commissioner of the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources or his or

her designee;

(d) If an executive director of the authority has been employed under subsection

(10) of this section, he or she shall serve as a nonvoting member, except in the

event of a tie vote of the board;

(e) One (1) representative selected for each of the six (6) participating counties as

provided in subsection (8) of this section, who shall be either:

1. The county judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor; or

2. The county judge/executive's designee or consolidated local government

mayor's designee, who shall be an individual involved with economic

development, tourism, recreation, or a related area within the county;

(f) One (1) state Representative who is from the KORRRA region shall serve as a

nonvoting member, appointed to a two (2) year term by the Speaker of the

Kentucky House of Representatives, and shall not serve another term

consecutively with a prior term; and

(g) One (1) state Senator who is from the KORRRA region shall serve as a

nonvoting member, appointed to two (2) year term by the President of the

Kentucky Senate.

(7) A county judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor shall only serve

on the board while holding the office for which he or she was elected. If a county

judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor ceases to serve as the

county judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor prior to the end of

his or her term, he or she shall be removed from the board, and his or her

replacement as county judge/executive or consolidated local government mayor

shall serve on the board for the remainder of the term.

(8) (a) The nine (9) voting members of the board shall be:

1. The six (6) county judges/executive, consolidated local government

mayor, or their designees, from different KORRRA participating

counties as described in subsection (6)(e) of this section;

2. The secretary of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet or his or her

designee;

3. The commissioner of the Department for Local Government or his or

her designee; and

4. The commissioner of the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources or

his or her designee.

(b) The six (6) initial county representatives shall be the county judges/executive

or consolidated local government mayor of Boone, Campbell, Daviess,

Jefferson, Kenton, and Mason Counties or their designees in that order. The

first three (3) representatives listed shall serve a three (3) year term as voting

members, the next three (3) representatives shall serve a two (2) year term as

voting members, and the remaining three (3) representatives shall serve a one

(1) year term as voting members.

(c) After each term ends, the voting county representative shall be replaced by

one (1) of the county judges/executive, consolidated local government mayor,

or his or her designee from one (1) of the target counties whose representative

has not yet served as a voting member.

(d) After the third year of operation, each new voting member shall serve a term

of three (3) years, then step down and let a representative from a county

whose representative has not served as a voting member take his or her place.

(e) Once representatives from all participating counties within RA have each

served one (1) term, the rotation shall begin again.

(9) (a) The board shall meet at least once every quarter to elect officers, establish a

regular meeting schedule, and perform other duties as may be prescribed in

the authority's bylaws. The board chair may call special meetings at any time.

(b) Notice of each meeting shall be made in writing and delivered to board

members at least seven (7) days before the scheduled meeting date. Electronic

mail is an acceptable form of notice of special meetings, so long as it is sent to

directors at least seven (7) days before the scheduled meeting date.

(c) Accommodations shall be made for remote attendance for each board

meeting, whether regular or special, through means such as video

conferencing, conference call, or similar services.

(d) The presence of a majority of the total voting members of the KORRRA

board shall constitute a quorum. Vacant board positions shall be counted

against the quorum total necessary for board action.

(e) Board meetings shall be held exclusively within the KORRRA participating

counties, and each meeting shall be held in a different participating county

until every participating county has hosted a meeting, at which time the cycle

shall begin again.

(10) The KORRRA board:

(a) Shall elect a chair, vice chair, secretary, treasurer, and any other officers as

established in the bylaws of the board;

(b) May appoint temporary and standing committees to accomplish the purposes

of KRS 148.033 to 148.039 and shall clearly describe the role,

responsibilities, and tenure of each committee so created;

(c) Shall adopt bylaws for the management and regulation of its affairs and all

other matters necessary to effect proper management and accountability of the

board. The bylaws shall include, at a minimum, the following:

1. The powers and duties of the board's members and the manner and

number of officers to be elected from among the board members; and

2. The terms, conditions, and manner in which a board member will be

removed.

(d) Shall review and approve an annual budget;

(e) Shall ensure that all administrative costs for operating the authority are paid

from funds accruing to the authority. The authority, its board, and its staff

shall incur no liability or obligation beyond the extent to which revenues have

been provided under KRS 148.033 to 148.039;

(f) May seek administrative and management assistance through written

agreement with state agencies, local area development districts, or local

governing bodies until such time as the board has secured sufficient funding

through grants, loans, fee systems, or any other funding source to hire staff;

and

(g) Shall employ an executive director to act as its chief executive officer to serve

at its will and pleasure.

(11) The authority shall comply with the provisions of KRS Chapter 65A.

(12) The executive director:

(a) Shall be a person who is domiciled in a KORRRA participating county;

(b) May, with permission of the board and approval of the commissioner of the

Department for Local Government or his or her designee, employ any other

hourly personnel considered necessary and retain temporary services. Pay

raises for any personnel shall require approval of the board and the

commissioner of the Department for Local Government or his or her

designee;

(c) Shall carry out plans to implement KRS 148.033 to 148.039 and to exercise

those powers enumerated in the bylaws of the board;

(d) Shall, along with any staff with responsibilities so delegated by the executive

director, ensure that all minutes, records, and orders of the authority and its

board are complete and available for public inspection, if necessary;

(e) Shall prepare narrative and financial reports of the authority's fiscal

obligations and submit these reports to the board at regularly scheduled

meetings or as otherwise directed; and

(f) May cast a tiebreaking vote in board decisions, but shall not be permitted to

cast a vote under any other circumstances. Until such time as an executive

director is hired, the chairperson of the board shall make the final

determination in the event of a tie vote of the board.

(13) The executive director, all full-time or part-time personnel, all seasonal employees,

and all contractual employees, if any, shall be paid from funds accruing to the

authority and authorized in a budget approved by the board, unless the Department

for Local Government has temporarily taken on the responsibility of paying any of

those employees.

(14) Board members shall serve without compensation, but may be reimbursed for actual

and necessary travel expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, subject to

Finance and Administration Cabinet administrative regulations. Board members

may have their lodging reimbursed by KORRRA. Any reimbursement requests

exceeding five hundred dollars ($500) per person shall be submitted to the

Department for Local Government for approval.