by Morgan Watkins, @morganwatkins26 – The ex-chairman of the Kentucky Retirement Systems Board of Trustees said in court Wednesday that he skipped a recent meeting because he was concerned state troopers would try to remove him. Thomas Elliott, who served as chairman of the pension board until Gov. Matt Bevin replaced him earlier this year, said…
by JACK BRAMMER, jbrammer@herald-leader.com – FRANKFORT — Billy Joe Miles, a prominent farm businessman in Owensboro and a former chairman of the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees, was charged Tuesday with rape, sodomy and bribing a witness. He is 76. A grand jury indicted Miles in Daviess Circuit Court on one count of first-degree rape, one count of…
by Ryland Barton – Kentucky’s U.S. Senate race continues its sleepy pace past Labor Day as Democratic candidate Jim Gray fights to be competitive and the incumbent lays low, enjoying a Republican surge in the state. Gray and Republican incumbent Rand Paul have — mostly through their spokespeople — squared off on issues such as revitalizing the coal industry, gun…
by Ryland Barton – As Kentuckians continue to enjoy low gas prices, the state’s road fund continues to suffer because of lost revenue from the motor fuels tax. Officials say the fund, which finances state highway maintenance and construction projects, dipped to dangerously low levels last month ahead of scheduled debt payments the state was required to…
by Justin L. Mack, Chelsea Schneider and Stephanie Wang, stephanie.wang@indystar.com – ITT Educational Services is asking federal education officials for leniency as the for-profit college chain based in Carmel, Ind., tries to stave off creditors. (Dwight Adams/IndyStar) Wochit In the wake of devastating federal sanctions, officials from Carmel-based ITT Educational Services Inc. announced Tuesday that all ITT Technical Institute campuses will be…
By John Gregory, KET – With everything on his plate during his first year as Kentucky’s commissioner of education, Stephen Pruitt didn’t expect to be testifying before Congress. But there he was, giving his thoughts on the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to House and Senate committees earlier this summer. Pruitt praised lawmakers for passing…
by The Associated Press – FRANKFORT, KY. — Republicans in Kentucky’s 1st Congressional district are expected to nominate James Comer for a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield. Whitfield is resigning from Congress at 6 p.m. Tuesday. He announced his resignation last week, about one year after announcing he would not seek re-election this…
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) – Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky has reached a milestone by welcoming its 1 millionth visitor. The distillery in Frankfort says the unsuspecting visitor, from Lexington, was greeted with cheers, a balloon drop and a special prize pack at the Visitor Center on Wednesday. The celebration continued throughout the day with cupcakes and…
by LINDA BLACKFORD, lblackford@herald-leader.com – The University of Kentucky’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging has been awarded an $8.25 million, five-year grant to continue its work on Alzheimer’s disease. The grant will continue Sanders-Brown’s designation as an Alzheimer’s Disease Center, one of only 30 in the country. UK’s center was among the first 10 centers designated in 1985, and…
by GREG KOCHER, gkocher1@herald-leader.com – The timing of a family court judge’s announcement of his resignation — and the subsequent filing by his wife to succeed him — has raised questions in Clark and Madison counties about whether the retirement was orchestrated to prevent competition from other potential candidates. Jeffrey Walson, who retired effective Aug. 7, denies the…