Government
Runway project at Bluegrass Station loses key support after local outcry
FRANKFORT — Key supporters of a proposed airport expansion at Bluegrass Station, a state-owned industrial park at Avon in Fayette County, have changed their tunes after strong local pushback. Sen. Steve West, who represents Bourbon County, on Tuesday became the latest to abandon his earlier support for including the project in the next state budget. […]
Louisville Democrat files bill to protect assisted reproduction, IVF in Kentucky
FRANKFORT — A Louisville Democrat filed a bill Tuesday aimed at “safeguarding” access to in vitro fertilization in Kentucky. Senate Bill 301, sponsored by Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong, D-Louisville, would protect from criminal liability medical providers who “engaged in assisted reproduction who meet the professional standard of care,” according to a copy provided to the […]
Kentucky lawmakers hope school ‘van’ drivers will be easier to find
FRANKFORT —?Republican-backed bills aimed at relieving issues around transporting Kentucky kids to schools were heard in legislative committees Tuesday.? Rep. Emily Callaway, R-Louisville, presented House Bill 447 to the House Education Committee Tuesday morning. If passed, her bill would allow school districts to use passenger vehicles, such as vans, to transport kids to and from […]
Kentuckians could collect child support for months of pregnancy under advancing bill
FRANKFORT — A bill paving the way for Kentuckians to collect child support for fetuses as long as there is an order in place within a year of a child’s birth passed unanimously out of a Senate committee Tuesday.? Senate Bill 110 would not apply if a child support order was filed when a child […]
Early detection may help Kentucky tamp down its lung cancer crisis
Anthony Stumbo’s heart sank after the doctor shared his mother’s chest X-ray. “I remember that drive home, bringing her back home, and we basically cried,” said the internal medicine physician, who had started practicing in eastern Kentucky near his childhood home shortly before his mother began feeling ill. “Nobody wants to get told they’ve got […]
GOP lawmaker files bill to add rape, incest exceptions to Kentucky abortion ban?
Citing his affection for his daughters, a Louisville Republican has filed a bill that would expand exceptions to Kentucky’s abortion ban, including for rape and incest. Rep. Ken Fleming’s House Bill 711 would leave it up to the physician to determine if rape or incest had occurred, allowing an abortion “if, in the physician’s best […]
Boone County using opioid settlement funds to create social worker role under the sheriff’s department
Boone County is set to hire three new workers aimed at addressing the multifaceted challenges posed by the opioid crisis. On Tuesday, the Boone County Fiscal Court approved a resolution allowing the use of opioid abatement funds to hire up to three police navigators/social workers — a newly created position. “This is one of the […]
Distrust of fluoride ‘mind-boggling’; mineral is ‘time-tested’ and a ‘good thing,’ dentists say
As a dental hygienist working with low-income schoolchildren in Louisville, Jennifer Hasch said the untreated tooth disease she saw was shocking. Some teens had decay so severe they had to have all their teeth pulled and be fitted with dentures. Middle school kids reported being unable to sleep because of pain from infected and abscessed […]
Kentucky’s Republican-controlled Senate passes three Democratic bills
FRANKFORT — Three Democratic-sponsored bills passed out of Kentucky’s Republican-controlled Senate Friday morning.? Two of the bills, Senate Bills 48 and 14, received unanimous approval and the third, Senate Bill 45, gained 32 votes from Republicans and Democrats, with three GOP senators voting no. With 23 days left for lawmakers to meet, these were the […]
Kentucky Senate president’s bill for public university research wins committee approval
FRANKFORT — Republican Senate President Robert Stivers’ bill to set up endowed research funding for research consortiums between two or more public universities is heading to the Senate floor.? Senate Bill 1, which Stivers previously introduced alongside a Senate Joint Resolution to further explore how higher education opportunities can be expanded in Southeastern Kentucky, received […]
Kentucky senator wants to expand school safety law with ‘guardians’ and mental health reports
FRANKFORT — A Kentucky Republican is once again seeking to strengthen security and mental health measures in schools to prevent school shootings in the commonwealth. This time, the legislation includes having certified guardians fill in for law enforcement officers in schools that do not currently have officers and compiling data on mental health initiatives and […]
Kentucky House advances SNAP bill some worry will cause food insecurity
After an hour-long debate on the Kentucky House floor, lawmakers advanced a bill that is aimed at upping workforce participation but which some worry will cause food insecurity.? House Bill 367 would give the General Assembly power over decisions about work requirements for Kentucky’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP.? It passed 61-33 […]