News

Why Kentucky is dead last for wind and solar production

BY: and - April 3, 2023

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here.? LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Andy McDonald recalls a decade-old Kentucky legislative hearing on an energy diversification bill with the same sense of frustration that he felt back […]

Craft’s GOP rivals have little to say about her absenteeism as U.S. ambassador to Canada

BY: - April 3, 2023

Kelly Craft’s four major rivals for governor in the May 16 Republican primary were mostly mum when asked about reports that she had a high absenteeism rate as U.S. ambassador to Canada. In 2019, the Democratic staff of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee issued a critical minority report on Craft’s nomination by then-President Donald […]

Downtown Hopkinsville takes the brunt of destructive winds in Friday storm

BY: - April 1, 2023

A severe thunderstorm with destructive winds — and possibly a tornado — struck late Friday night in downtown Hopkinsville, where it leveled the third floor of The Mixer restaurant on Sixth Street and tore out a brick wall below the historic clock tower on Ninth Street.? Numerous trees were blown down across the city, blocking […]

Students in Lexington lead protest of new anti-trans law

BY: - April 1, 2023

LEXINGTON?— Hundreds of Kentuckians on Friday gathered for a LGBTQ+ youth visibility march in downtown Lexington. The event, led by local high school students, was organized in response to Senate Bill 150, a sweeping anti-trans measure that the Republican-controlled Kentucky legislature enacted into law this week over Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto.? On Wednesday, protests against […]

Republicans say they lost committee seats for bucking House leadership

BY: - March 31, 2023

FRANKFORT — Shortly after House members finished their business for this year’s regular session, six Republicans were removed from committee assignments, an action that some in the GOP are calling punishment for bucking leadership.? Some of those who lost committee assignments say they were not given a reason. The changes were announced Thursday night before […]

Bipartisanship abounds as Beshear signs bills legalizing medical marijuana and sports betting

BY: - March 31, 2023

FRANKFORT — Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear called Friday an “amazing” day as he signed two pieces of legislation — legalizing medical marijuana and sports betting — that were passed by the Republican-controlled General Assembly.? With legislative sponsors and advocates gathered around him in the Capitol Rotunda, Beshear signed Senate Bill 47 and House Bill 551. […]

Beshear signs phase out of tax on aging bourbon, despite local officials’ pleas

BY: - March 30, 2023

FRANKFORT — Without fanfare, Gov. Andy Beshear on Friday signed a bill giving ?Kentucky’s bourbon industry a property tax break on barrels of aging whiskey. Unlike bills legalizing sports gambling and medical marijuana, Beshear held no signing ceremony for House Bill 5. Distillers had been asking for the tax’s repeal for some time, while local […]

Kentucky governor signs bill decriminalizing fentanyl test strips

BY: - March 30, 2023

FRANKFORT – Fentanyl test strips will no longer be considered drug paraphernalia in Kentucky.? Gov. Andy Beshear on Friday signed a bipartisan bill?decriminalizing fentanyl test strips in Kentucky after it easily passed both chambers.? The Kentucky Senate passed House Bill 353 Thursday night. The House concurred unanimously in the final hours of the 2023 legislative […]

3 Republicans running for Kentucky governor decry Trump indictment as politically motivated

BY: - March 30, 2023

Editor’s note: This story was updated with a comment from Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles. FRANKFORT — Kentucky Republicans running for governor are decrying the indictment of former President Donald Trump as politics. Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who was?endorsed by Trump?in June 2022, called the indictment “politically motivated,” in a statement shared on social media.? “Like […]

Sports gambling makes it across the finish line

BY: - March 30, 2023

FRANKFORT — A bill to legalize sports betting in Kentucky overcame a hurdle that’s stopped it in the past with the Kentucky Senate approving the measurel in the final hours of this year’s legislative session.? The bill has full passage from the GOP-controlled Kentucky legislature and would just need to be signed by Democratic Gov. […]

Medical marijuana will be legal in Kentucky, but not until 2025

BY: - March 30, 2023

FRANKFORT — On the last day of the legislative session, the Kentucky General Assembly has passed a bill that legalizes medical marijuana for some Kentuckians who suffer from chronic illnesses.? The House voted 66-33 to approve Senate Bill 47. Representatives have passed similar measures in previous years, but this year marked the first time legislation […]

Trump indicted by Manhattan grand jury, according to reports

BY: - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — A New York criminal grand jury has indicted former President Donald Trump, according to multiple news reports Thursday night citing persons familiar with the case. A former president has never been indicted before. Trump is also a Republican candidate in the 2024 race for the presidency. The New York Times and Washington Post […]