SB 338 amends Kentucky’s planning and zoning law governing boards of adjustment. The bill clarifies how boards of adjustment are created and organized within planning units, including in counties with consolidated local governments and in certain cities of 20,000 or more population located within those counties. It provides that such cities may establish their own board of zoning adjustment by ordinance, and if they do, that board would have exclusive jurisdiction within the city’s boundaries.
The bill also restates and standardizes several governance rules for boards of adjustment statewide. It specifies board membership sizes, appointment authority, staggered terms, vacancy-filling procedures, oath requirements, compensation or expense reimbursement, removal standards, appeal rights, and annual officer elections. In addition, it preserves special term rules for boards operating under compacts between first-class cities and counties, and for consolidated local governments formed in those settings.
Impact
SB 338 would amend KRS 100.217 and affect the structure and jurisdiction of local boards of adjustment in Kentucky, especially in consolidated local government counties and larger cities within those counties. The practical effect is to authorize certain cities to create their own zoning adjustment boards with exclusive local jurisdiction, while also clarifying appointment, term, removal, and vacancy procedures for boards of adjustment across the state. Local governments, planning commissions, mayors, county judge/executives, and board members would be the primary parties affected.
Sentiment
No committee transcript or vote record was provided, so there is no direct evidence of support or opposition in the available materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears administrative and technical rather than controversial, focused on clarifying local zoning governance and jurisdictional lines. The absence of recorded debate or votes suggests the bill had not yet generated a documented public controversy in the materials provided.
Contention
The most likely point of contention is jurisdiction: SB 338 would allow a qualifying city within a consolidated local government county to create its own board of zoning adjustment with exclusive authority inside city limits, which could shift power away from countywide or consolidated boards. Another possible issue is local control over appointments and board structure, since the bill preserves mayoral and county judge/executive appointment authority while also allowing city-level boards in some circumstances. Any disagreement would likely center on whether this change improves local responsiveness or creates overlapping planning interests and administrative complexity.