by The Associated Press – FRANKFORT, KY. — Kentucky lawmakers have finished work to close a legal loophole blamed for shielding sexual predators whose young victims can’t say exactly when and where they were abused. The bill won final passage Tuesday in the Senate and goes to Gov. Matt Bevin. The measure stems from a court ruling…
by Scott Wartman, [email protected] – A rift in the GOP appears to have grown wider as Kentucky Republicans choose delegates who will pick their presidential nominee. Nowhere is that more apparent than in Northern Kentucky. Last week, in meetings described by many as tense, Republicans in Kenton and Campbell counties voted down two delegate slates proposed by the party…
BY JACK BRAMMER, [email protected] – FRANKFORT — The state Senate was minutes away from adjourning Tuesday night when Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer announced that a special visitor wanted to address the chamber — Gov. Matt Bevin. In a move old-timers said was unprecedented and surprising, the Republican governor in his first year of office entered the…
by The Associated Press – FRANKFORT, KY. — Kentucky lawmakers have completed work on a bill aimed at requiring that public school students receive basic CPR training. The measure was passed by the House without debate on Monday, two months after passing the Senate. The bill now moves on to Gov. Matt Bevin’s desk. Republican Sen.…
by STU JOHNSON, WEKU NEWS – Republican Governor Matt Bevin and GOP legislative leaders held a news conference Tuesday morning to address the state budget standoff. Bevin said House democrats are unwilling to compromise on the spending plan. He maintained that all parts of the budget are up for negotiating. “We are here, we are in…
by JOHN CHEVES AND JACK BRAMMER, [email protected] – FRANKFORT — House and Senate budget negotiators tossed new state government spending proposals on the table Tuesday, but neither side seemed ready to yield to the other. In a nutshell, the Democratic House wants to shield higher education from Gov. Matt Bevin’s proposed budget cuts, which means several hundred million…
by James Bruggers, @jbruggers – A former lawmaker from Pike County was sentenced Thursday to seven years in prison after a bribery conviction involving a state inspector at his coal mines, according to news reports. The Herald-Leader reports that U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell ordered Keith Hall, 56, to report to prison by May 18: “This is a…
by Phillip M. Bailey, @phillipmbailey – If local voters are allowed to raise additional revenue through a temporary 1 percent sales tax hike, a good chunk of it will have go toward funding pensions for the area’s government workers under proposed changes set up by Kentucky Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer. The local option sales tax was assigned to the Senate’s appropriations and…
by Tom Loftus, @TomLoftus_CJ – Here is the status of several major bills before the 2016 Kentucky General Assembly as of Monday morning, with the session drawing to a close. SIGNED INTO LAW: Abortion: Informed Consent, Senate Bill 4: Would require certain information about the abortion procedure now given to a woman on the day before the abortion be done…
by JOSH JAMES – A Kentucky senator says Lexington was the real loser in the two-year spending plan passed by the Republican-led Senate Wednesday. In addition to reinstated cuts to the state appropriation for the University of Kentucky and other public education institutions, the upper chamber also stripped out a provision issuing $60 million in bonds for…
