‘Troy’s Law’ stalls in Kentucky Senate after House approval

FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — A bill designed to improve safety for tow truck drivers has stalled in the Kentucky Senate after passing the House earlier this year.

Lawmakers in the Senate have not taken up House Bill 282, known as “Troy’s Law,” since it cleared the House in early March.

The bill is named after Troy Caldwell, a 54-year-old tow truck driver who died on Interstate 64 in Bath County after being hit by a semi-truck.

Following Caldwell’s death, his friend and fellow tow truck driver, Bubba Johnson, has pushed for the legislation, working with lawmakers to advance it.

“It’s very sad that the Senate automatically wouldn’t take a bill like this that had full House support and so much support throughout Kentucky. I mean, the support that we’ve gained for Troy’s Law in the past two years is really astronomical,” Johnson said.

The proposal was initially introduced in 2025 but did not move forward. Lawmakers refiled it in 2026 as House Bill 282.

The measure would allow tow truck operators and roadside crews to install green warning lights on the front and rear of their vehicles to improve visibility while responding to incidents.

“Allowing us to put [green] lights on the rear of our tow trucks. They’d be rear-facing not only the only time you’d be using them, but when he was at a wreck or on the side of the highway loading the vehicle,” Johnson explained. “You wouldn’t be using them going up and down the highway or for any other reason in there, on the rear of the vehicle only.”

Johnson said near-misses on the road happen far more often than reported deaths.

“They hear about these deaths real regularly because it’s a big thing. People really are dying out here on the side of the highway,” he said. “But what they don’t hear about is how the almost or the ‘Oh man, that was a close call.’ Nobody hears about that stuff. If they had that number to piled in with the number of deaths, this wouldn’t even be on table.”

The bill was referred to a Senate committee in March but has not progressed further. Johnson said he plans to continue advocating for the change.

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