by Ryland Barton – At a committee hearing on Tuesday, state lawmakers discussed how 400 tons of low-level radioactive waste ended up in a landfill in Estill County. The waste is the result of backflow produced from the natural gas extraction method called horizontal hydraulic fracturing, or, “fracking.” Earlier this year, state officials acknowledged that the waste…
by Don Weber, @DonWeber_cn2 – FRANKFORT – After a 4 1/2 hour marathon hearing on Tuesday in Franklin Circuit Court, in the lawsuit intitiated by by Thommy Elliott and Mary Helen Peter, members of the former Kentucky Retirement Systems Board of Trustees, Judge Phillip Shepherd told attorneys that he will make a ruling soon on a number of executive…
by Joseph Gerth, @Joe_Gerth – Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration wants a judge to throw out a court settlement that is intended to ensure that church-run foster care programs don’t try to proselytize to children in their custody. The administration this week asked a judge to toss out the settlement with the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans…
by RYLAND BARTON – After a successful challenge to a Kentucky campaign finance law, corporations are now allowed to make contributions to political campaigns through political action committees. The change comes amid the ongoing fight over so-called “right-to-work” policies. Until last week, unions (usually anti-right-to-work) were allowed to make donations to candidates and political action committees, while…
The Associated Press – FRANKFORT, KY. — The former chairman of the beleaguered Kentucky Retirement Systems is heading to court to challenge his removal by Republican Gov. Matt Bevin. Thomas Elliott has sued Bevin for removing him as chairman of the Kentucky Retirement Systems board of trustees. Bevin’s attorneys say he has the authority to remove Elliott.…
by Tom Loftus, @TomLoftus_CJ – FRANKFORT, Ky. – June was another strong fundraising month for the Republican Party of Kentucky. The party took in $208,700 during the month, spent $104,900 and had $1.6 million in the bank as of June 30. Those figures are from a report the RPK filed late last week with the Federal Election…
by ALINA SELYUKH – When Julian Castro assumed the post of Housing and Urban Development secretary in 2014, the U.S. government already had a few programs aimed at expanding Americans’ access to the Internet. It’s the sort of thing that is paramount to success in the modern economy, long advocated by President Obama and other government officials.…
by JACK BRAMMER, jbrammer@herald-leader.com – FRANKFORT — Pikeville is gearing up for a public unveiling of a statue of its most famous resident, former Gov. Paul Patton. Minta Trimble, director of the Pikeville Main Street Program, said Friday that the unveiling of a 9-foot, bronze statue of Patton on a base will be unveiled at a July 26…
by Jackson French – Across Kentucky, people who have been denied permission to grow hemp have accused former Commissioner of Agriculture James Comer of refusing applications for political reasons – an allegation Comer has rejected. David Barhorst, owner of Kentucky Hemp Ventures Inc., who said he was denied a memorandum of understanding to grow hemp, claims the…
by Tom Loftus, @TomLoftus_CJ – FRANKFORT, Ky. – Republican Gov. Matt Bevin on Wednesday angrily denounced as “an absolute lie” the recently reported comments of Democratic state Rep. Kevin Sinnette who said Bevin tried to bully him into switching to the Republican Party last December. But later Wednesday Sinnette stood firmly behind his comments during a…