{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-49.070","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 49.070","heading":"State institutions of higher education declared agencies of state government","body":"for purposes of KRS 49.060 -- Jurisdiction of Board of Claims -- Sovereign\nimmunity -- Exposure to asbestos claims.\n(1) For purposes of KRS 49.060, state institutions  of higher education under KRS\nChapter 164 are agencies of the state.\n(2) The Board of Claims shall have primary and exclusive jurisdiction over all\nnegligence claims for the negligent performance of ministerial acts against the\nCommonwealth, any of its ca binets, departments, bureaus, or agencies, or any\nofficers, agents, or employees thereof while acting within the scope of their\nemployment.\n(3) The board shall have primary and exclusive jurisdiction to make findings of fact,\nconclusions of law, and legal determinations with regard to whether the alleged\nnegligent act was on the part of the Commonwealth or any of its cabinets,\ndepartments, bureaus, or agencies or any officers, agents, or employees thereof.\n(4) The board shall have primary and exclusive juri sdiction to make findings of fact,\nconclusions of law, and legal determinations with regard to whether the alleged\nnegligent act was on the part of the Commonwealth or any of its cabinets,\ndepartments, bureaus, or agencies, or any of its officers, agents, or employees while\nacting within the scope of their employment by the Commonwealth or any of its\ncabinets, departments, bureaus, or agencies.\n(5) No action for negligence against the Commonwealth, any of its cabinets,\ndepartments, bureaus, or agencies, or any officers, agents, or employees thereof may\nbe brought in any other court or forum in the Commonwealth except the board\nunless the board makes a final determination that it does not have primary and\nexclusive jurisdiction over the claim.\n(6) The determination by the board becomes final only after all appellate rights have\nbeen finalized or waived.\n(7) Any applicable statute of limitations for bringing negligence actions in any court or\nforum other than the board shall be tolled pending the final determin ation that the\nboard does not have primary and exclusive jurisdiction of the negligence claim.\n(8) No action for negligence may be brought in any court or forum other than the board\nagainst the Commonwealth, any of its cabinets, departments, bureaus, or agencies or\nany of its officers, agents, or employees while acting within the scope of their\nemployment by the Commonwealth or any of its cabinets, departments, bureaus, or\nagencies.\n(9) Negligence as used herein includes negligence, gross negligence, or wan ton\nnegligence.\n(10) The defense of contributory negligence is not a complete bar to recovery of a\nplaintiff's claim in the board, and the doctrine of comparative negligence shall be\nutilized by the board.\n(11) Except as otherwise provided by KRS 49.040 to  49.180, nothing contained herein\nshall be construed to be a waiver of sovereign immunity or any other immunity or\nprivilege maintained by the Commonwealth, its cabinets, departments, bureaus, and\nagencies and its officers, agents, and employees.\n(12) Except as otherwise specifically set forth by statute and in reference to subsection\n(11) of this section, no action for damages may be maintained in any court or forum\nagainst the Commonwealth, any of its cabinets, departments, bureaus, or agencies or\nany of its officers, agents, or employees while acting within their official capacity\nand scope of their employment by the Commonwealth or any of its cabinets,\ndepartments, bureaus, or agencies.\n(13) The preservation of sovereign immunity referred to in subsectio ns (11) and (12) of\nthis section includes but is not limited to the following:\n(a) Discretionary acts or decisions;\n(b) Executive decisions;\n(c) Ministerial acts;\n(d) Actions in the performance of obligations running to the public as a whole;\n(e) Governmental performance of a self-imposed protective function to the public\nor citizens; and\n(f) Administrative acts.\n(14) The filing of an action in court or any other forum or the purchase of liability\ninsurance or the establishment of a fund for self -insurance by the Commonwealth,\nits cabinets, departments, bureaus, or agencies or its agents, officers, or employees\nthereof for a government-related purpose or duty shall not be construed as a waiver\nof sovereign immunity or any other immunity or privilege  thereby held. Except as\nspecifically set forth by statute, no counterclaim, set -off, recoupment, cross -claim,\nor other form of avoidance of the claim for damages may be asserted by any person\nwhen suit is brought against said person by the Commonwealth or  any of its\ncabinets, departments, bureaus, or agencies thereof.\n(15) Neither the Commonwealth nor any of its cabinets, departments, bureaus, or\nagencies or any officers, agents, or employees thereof shall be liable under a\nrespondeat superior theory or an y other similar theory for the acts of independent\ncontractors, contractors, or subcontractors thereof or anyone else doing work or\nproviding services for the state on a volunteer basis or pursuant to a contract\ntherewith.\n(16) Any claim against the Commonwealth or its departments, agencies, officers, agents,\nor employees, or a school district board of education or its members, officers,\nagents, or employees, for damages sustained as a result of exposure to asbestos\nbefore, during, or after its removal from  a facility owned, leased, occupied, or\noperated by the Commonwealth or a school district board of education shall be\nbrought before the Board of Claims.","path":["KRS Chapter 49"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=51456","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:49:09Z","sha256":"c0712b60e5be65a851dbd58fdc1df4321a318e29273793532a19aed61496c56b","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-49.060","next":"us-ky/krs-49.080"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}