Photo caption: Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert delivers her first State of the Judiciary speech to a legislative committee today in Frankfort. She told lawmakers that a better approach was needed for funding and maintaining court operations to ensure long-term stability of the Judicial Branch. Photo by Jim Hoffmann, Administrative Office of the Courts
NEWS RELEASE
FRANKFORT, Ky., Nov. 6, 2025 – Kentucky’s chief justice urged lawmakers today to create a more stable funding model for the state’s unified court system.
Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Debra Hembree Lambert delivered the message during her first State of the Judiciary address before the Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary, setting the stage for a call to rethink how Kentucky funds its Judicial Branch.
“But great optimism does not mean that we can ignore a very harsh reality,” said Chief Justice Lambert, who serves as the administrative head of Kentucky’s court system. “The central theme of my remarks today is the need for a better approach to how we fund and maintain our operations, one that ensures long-term stability of our Judicial Branch.”
Budget challenges and pay gaps
The Judicial Branch faces a projected $14.3 million shortfall for Fiscal Year 2026 and will seek early approval to access its reserve account to prevent service disruptions, Chief Justice Lambert said. She emphasized that the request is not for new spending but to use funds already appropriated to the branch.
“Historically, as you might expect, the Kentucky Court of Justice has been careful and conservative in its funding requests,” she said. “We have consistently sought only what we felt was necessary to fulfill our constitutional and statutory responsibilities. That became our baseline for funding. And we do more with less than about any group I know!
“But today I have to be candid: The tools that allowed us to stretch resources as far as possible are no longer enough or even available to us to meet the demands of our courts.”
Chief Justice Lambert told legislators that Judicial Branch salaries lag significantly behind those in other branches of government. On average, employees earn 17 percent less than their Executive Branch counterparts, with similar disparities across positions. Kentucky judges rank 48th nationally in pay, earning about $30,000 less annually than the national average.
She said the Judicial Branch will request funding for a 15 percent across-the-board pay increase for all elected and non-elected employees, in addition to any raises approved for the other branches.
“These are not luxury requests,” Chief Justice Lambert said. “They are about fairness, stability and maintaining the quality of justice that Kentuckians expect and need. The people who devote their careers to public service in our courts deserve compensation that reflects their level of responsibility, their education and their skill.”
Maintaining courthouses across Kentucky
Kentucky’s court system occupies more than 5.5 million square feet of space, most of it in county-owned courthouses, Chief Justice Lambert said. She told lawmakers that the General Assembly has authorized 106 construction or renovation projects since 1996.
Chief Justice Lambert thanked legislators for creating a $47 million asset-preservation fund that helped pay for maintenance projects in 15 counties. She said the Judicial Branch will now seek an increase to the Local Facilities Fund to help counties cover operating costs such as utilities, insurance and maintenance.
In addition, the chief justice said she plans to request one-time funding to offset $8.5 million in flood-related damage in Franklin and Hardin counties and $3 million to begin upgrading courthouse security systems statewide.
Programs that change lives
Chief Justice Lambert said Kentucky courts operate programs that provide real-world solutions to real-world problems. In 2024, 720 volunteers on Citizen Foster Care Review Boards conducted 19,565 reviews involving 11,301 children in foster care due to dependency, neglect and abuse.
The Court Designated Worker program diverted 5,917 youth from formal court involvement into education and counseling programs, Chief Justice Lambert said. She emphasized that meant nearly 6,000 youth offenders completed educational, counseling and community-based programs and upheld their commitment to not re-offend.
Specialty Courts – including Drug, Mental Health and Veterans Treatment courts – serve nearly 3,000 Kentuckians each year. Ten new Mental Health Courts were created last year, and eight behavioral health liaisons were added to connect courts with treatment providers, she told the committee.
She praised the work of the Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health, which includes more than 500 partners statewide. The commission convened 14 forums over the past year focused on improving involuntary hospitalization procedures under KRS 202A. Chief Justice Lambert said the forums revealed gaps in transportation, communication and access to evaluators, which delay care for people in crisis. “Our system is strained, but it can be repaired and improved,” she said.
The commission’s 2026 recommendations to the legislature will focus on civil commitment reforms.
A shared responsibility
Chief Justice Lambert said the Judicial Branch remains committed to working with the General Assembly to build a stronger, more sustainable future for Kentucky’s courts.
“Every day in every courthouse, justice is being done, but the lights have to stay on, and the people inside have to have the resources and tools to adequately deliver justice,” she said. “With your support, I am resolved to build a stronger, more sustainable future for Kentucky’s courts.”
Recording of State of the Judiciary
For a recording of the meeting, visit KET’s online video archive at https://bit.ly/KETLegislatureArchive. (Recordings are typically posted within 24 hours of a meeting.)
Chief justice
The chief justice is responsible for overseeing the operations of the state court system and delivers the State of the Judiciary address each year. Chief Justice Lambert began serving as chief justice in January after being elected to the post for a four-year term by her colleagues. She was elected to the Supreme Court in 2018 from the 3rd Supreme Court District of Eastern Kentucky counties.
###