Kentucky House Bill 114, which is designed to bolster economic development efforts for 39 Kentucky counties that purchase power from the Tennessee Valley Authority or have TVA property, was signed into law by Gov. Matt Bevin.

As a publicly-owned utility created by the federal government, the TVA is exempt from taxation but instead makes payments to the state. HB 114 adjusts the TVA in-lieu-of tax payment formula to ensure more dollars from the payments stay in the 39-county region for economic development. The bill creates a framework for distribution and oversight to ensure funds are used for job-attracting activities like land preparation for industrial sites, infrastructure upgrades or for matching federal or state grants. Under the new law, $2 million is to be divided among the 39 counties in fiscal year 2018-19, then the figure jumps to $4 million in 2019-20 and $6 million beginning in 2020-21 and each fiscal year after.

The TVA region in Kentucky includes Adair, Allen, Ballard, Barren, Bell, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Clinton, Cumberland, Edmonson, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Harlan, Hart, Henderson, Hickman, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, McCreary, Metcalfe, Monroe, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Russell, Simpson, Todd, Trigg, Union, Warren, Wayne, Webster and Whitley counties.