Bill
HJR 47
Designate a segment of KY-80 in Leslie County as the Venita Caldwell Memorial Highway and install signage within 30 days of enactment.
Status: Introduced Nov 12, 2024 — referred to House Transportation (H)
Type: House Joint Resolution (honorary highway designation)
Purpose and intent
- To honor the life and service of Venita Carol Morgan Caldwell (Aug 29, 1953 – June 10, 2024) by designating a portion of Kentucky Route 80 in Leslie County as the “Venita Caldwell Memorial Highway.”
- The resolution recognizes Caldwell’s long career in education and her contributions to the local community.
Key provisions
- Designation: The Transportation Cabinet is directed to designate the portion of Kentucky Route 80 in Leslie County, from its intersection with Daisy Lane to its intersection with Pool Drive, as the “Venita Caldwell Memorial Highway.”
- Signage: The Transportation Cabinet must erect appropriate signage that denotes this designation within 30 days of the resolution’s effective date.
- Text includes a short biography of Venita Caldwell: born in Hyden, KY; educated at Eastern Kentucky University and earned a master’s degree from Cumberland College; taught at W.B. Muncy and Hayes Lewis Elementary Schools (17 years) and was a faculty member at Hazard Community College for 40 years; survived by husband Doug Caldwell and son Ben Caldwell.
Who is affected
- Transportation Cabinet: responsible for implementing the designation and installing signage.
- Motorists and residents of Leslie County: the local stretch of KY-80 will carry the honorary name and will display signage.
- Caldwell’s family, former students, colleagues, and the local community: primary beneficiaries of the formal recognition and commemoration.
Procedural and timeline notes
- The measure is a joint resolution introduced in the Kentucky General Assembly and must be adopted by the legislature to take effect.
- If enacted, the Transportation Cabinet must install signs within 30 days of the resolution’s effective date.
- There is no appropriation or operational change to the highway itself; the action is honorary and ceremonial.
Fiscal and legal impact
- Minimal fiscal impact expected: costs are limited to manufacture and installation of signs. No changes to road ownership, maintenance, traffic rules, or route numbering are proposed.
- The designation is honorary and does not alter legal descriptions of the highway.
Overall effect
- HJR 47 provides an official, ceremonial recognition of Venita Caldwell’s contributions to education and the Leslie County community by naming a defined segment of KY-80 in her memory and requiring timely erection of marker signage.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
Sign in to ask a question.
