FRANKFORT, Ky. — Lawmakers spent the last two days of the legislative session passing proposals that tackle issues like gangs and taxes, but now Gov. Matt Bevin has sole control over the fate of those final bills. If he vetoes any of those bills, the legislature has no recourse to override him because they have adjourned. What’s safe…
A lawmaking session that started with a sexual harassment scandal and featured a monthslong fight over pension reform ended Saturday, leaving behind raw feelings after a public showdown between Kentucky teachers and their elected officials. Here’s what happened with the key issues and controversial proposals the legislature debated during the 2018 session. Pension reform Republican…
FRANKFORT– Attorney General Andy Beshear released his 2017 income tax returns Monday and urged every office holder, including Gov. Matt Bevin, “to embrace transparency and release their returns.” Beshear, a Democrat, also said he filed his annual financial disclosure statement with the Executive Branch Ethics Commission on April 9. Beshear’s chief political opponent, Bevin, has declined…
Gov. Matt Bevin’s one-time political rival Hal Heiner, resigned Monday as the cabinet Secretary of Education and Workforce Development, and has accepted the governor’s appointment to the Kentucky Board of Education. “I am grateful for Sec. Heiner’s skilled and selfless leadership of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet over these past two and a half…
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) – The long-awaited state audit of Jefferson County Public Schools will be released soon, Kentucky Education Commissioner Stephen Pruitt said Wednesday. But exactly when the Kentucky Department of Education’s extensive examination of the state’s largestschool district will be made public remains unclear. “We are very close to release,” Pruitt said in response…
An auditor in the Kentucky Attorney General’s office is accused of smoking marijuana in a McDonald’s drive-thru lane. The State Journal reports that 51-year-old Elizabeth Anna Justus was arrested Tuesday and charged with two misdemeanors, following a traffic stop for allegedly failing to use a turn signal. Frankfort police Lt. Dustin Bowman says the arresting officer…
Local groups are coming together to oppose a pending “anti-gang” bill and they are urging state lawmakers to kill the measure before the legislative session ends Saturday. The bill, introduced Jan. 10, stiffens penalties for those engaging in gang activity or for committing a crime as part of a gang. The measure has passed the House and could…
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WKYT) – Republican leaders in the Kentucky House and Senate are critical of Gov. Matt Bevin’s plan to veto the revenue and budget bills passed one week ago. Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, and House Speaker Pro Tempore David Osborne, R-Prospect, issued a joint statement hours after Bevin’s announcement responding to the vetos,…
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WSAZ) — A group of state attorneys general is joining together to protect the nation’s health care system by combating a lawsuit aimed at dismantling the Affordable Care Act. It was announced by Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear Monday. The original lawsuit was filed in a Texas federal court in February by 18 state…
FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 9, 2018) – Gov. Bevin announced today the U.S. Department of the Treasury certified 144 Opportunity Zones in 84 Kentucky counties under a program in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that aims to encourage long-term investments in low-income urban and rural communities nationwide. The designation offers significant federal tax breaks and…