Children
Bill mandating detention, opening crime records of some juveniles has cleared both chambers
FRANKFORT — A Republican-backed bill that would reopen a juvenile detention center in Louisville and open some minors’ confidential records has now cleared both chambers of the Kentucky legislature. House Bill 3 passed the House in late February and the Senate on Tuesday along party lines, 29-7. Democrats argued unsuccessfully against the bill’s mandatory detention […]
Bill to ensure proper reporting of child abuse in Kentucky advances
FRANKFORT – A state Senate bill aimed at closing gaps in Kentucky’s child abuse reporting unanimously passed out of committee Tuesday morning.? Senate Bill 229 “ensures the reporting of child abuse or neglect is properly communicated to the appropriate external agencies,” the primary sponsor, Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, told her colleagues in the Senate Families […]
Bills opening way for freestanding birthing centers in Kentucky await votes in both chambers
FRANKFORT — Katelyn Foust delivered her first child in a Louisville hospital.? Though “nothing particularly went wrong, physically,” she said, “there definitely wasn’t that support aspect.”? So, when it was time to have her second child, she traveled past Kentucky hospitals into Indiana to give birth at a Jeffersonville freestanding birth center.? It was that […]
Food sanitation company fined $1.5 million for illegal child labor
A company responsible for cleaning meatpacking plants across the country has paid $1.5 million in civil penalties for making children as young as 13 work in dangerous conditions. The fine, announced Friday by the U.S. Department of Labor, followed an investigation by the agency into Packers Sanitation Services Inc., at 13 plants in eight states, […]
Lawmakers want to bring Louisville juveniles home
FRANKFORT — While there’s bipartisan support for returning Louisville kids in the juvenile justice system to Jefferson County, at least two Louisville Democratic lawmakers said they would invest in preventive services rather than detention. The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday advanced House Bill 3, which provides $8.9 million to renovate and reopen a 40-bed Jefferson […]
Kentucky juvenile justice reforms have multi-million dollar price tags, state budget director says
FRANKFORT — State Budget Director and Executive Cabinet Secretary John Hicks told lawmakers Tuesday that the price tags to support executive branch reforms in the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice are $20 million in the next fiscal year’s operating budget and $26 million in the current capital budget.? Amid discussions about Kentucky’s juvenile justice system, […]
Students could use KEES to pay for certificate programs under bill clearing House Education Committee
FRANKFORT — Four bills that clarify and expand existing programs in Kentucky schools moved forward in the legislative process.? The bills, which are all sponsored by Republicans, received favorable recommendations from the House Education Committee Tuesday. Topics they address are dual credit courses, higher education scholarships, qualifications for classified school employees and insured student loans.? […]
Federal report shows 11 children died from maltreatment in Kentucky in 2021
The number of Kentucky children who were victims of abuse or neglect improved in 2021, according to a new report, but the commonwealth’s is still worse than the national maltreatment rate. The Child Maltreatment 2021 report, from the United States Department of Health & Human Services, found that Kentucky had 14,963 child victims in 2021. […]
Sen. Berg says ‘parental rights’ bill is about scoring political points
This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988. FRANKFORT — The Senate Education Committee voted 11-1 Thursday to advance a bill sponsored by Sen. Max Wise, Republican candidate for governor Kelly Craft’s running mate, over the objections of Sen. […]
When gun violence ends young lives, these men prepare the graves
This article was republished from KHN (Kaiser Health News). MILLSTADT, Ill. — It was a late Friday afternoon when a team of men approached a tiny pink casket. One wiped his brow. Another stepped away to smoke a cigarette. Then, with calloused hands, they gently lowered the child’s body into the ground. Earlier that day, […]
Kentucky youth-led study shows mental health, social challenges of COVID-19
A new study on how Kentucky’s youth have coped with COVID-19 reports mental health challenges, negative views toward remote learning and more.? The report was published Wednesday by the Kentucky Student Voice Team, which is a youth-led nonprofit with a goal of creating “more just, democratic Kentucky schools and communities as research, policy & advocacy […]
Kentucky Youth Advocates outlines 2023 goals to help children and families
On the first day of the regular legislative session, Kentucky Youth Advocates outlined priorities to achieve its 2023 goal of making the state “the best place in America to be young.”? Kentucky ranks high for adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, which are traumas or stressors in a person’s life before their 18th birthday. They can […]