Ann Jeannette Pierce is worried by the unexplained bruises and cuts that periodically pop up on her nonverbal adult daughter. So, the Owensboro woman is asking the Kentucky legislature to make it possible for her and others like her to have cameras in residential facilities such as the one where her daughter, Caroline, lives. Pierce’s […]
Author Archives: Kentucky Lantern
Posted inCulture
Donate used evergreen trees to send ‘holiday wishes to Kentucky fishes.’ Find out how, where.
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources is making its annual “Christmas for the Fishes” request. Natural Christmas trees can be donated to help improve underwater habitat for fish. “We want to ‘light up’ fishing opportunities by improving fish habitat in 19 public lakes across the commonwealth next year,” said Spencer Phillips, a fish […]
Posted inNews
Domestic violence is widespread in Kentucky. Here are some holiday safety tips.
If you or someone you know has experienced domestic violence, call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. You can also contact any of Kentucky’s 15 domestic violence programs. The holiday season can jeopardize safety plans among people living with intimate partner violence or the threat of […]
Posted inPolitics
Leaving KY Senate, Damon Thayer says he acted ‘based on what I thought was right’
Outgoing Republican Senate Floor Leader Damon Thayer said that when he moved to Kentucky more than three decades ago, he “never would have dreamt” he would be elected to the seat, nor serve as his party’s floor leader for 12 years. However, now is the right time to move forward with ot her pursuits, Thayer […]
Posted inNews
No NKY licenses awarded in final round of medical cannabis lottery
Kentucky awarded 12 additional medical cannabis dispensary licenses through a final drawing held Monday at the Kentucky Lottery Corporation in Louisville. No licenses were awarded in Northern Kentucky. Sam Flynn, executive director of the Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis, said there were 4,075 applications for dispensary licenses. In late November, the state awarded its first 36 medical cannabis dispensary licenses. Previous lottery […]
Posted inNews
Kentucky Youth Advocates: 2025 policy priorities can make state ‘the best place to be young’
Kentucky Youth Advocates is asking lawmakers to use dollars from a legal settlement reached with an e-cigarette company on nicotine use prevention, remove the certificate of need requirement for freestanding birth centers and more during the next legislative session. KYA released its policy priorities for the 2025 legislative session on Wednesday, which the organization’s executive director, Terry […]
Posted inPolitics
Ky. lawmakers, advocates talk maternal health, AI, gun violence and more at conference
A bipartisan panel of Kentucky lawmakers told dozens of health advocates Tuesday they plan to introduce a variety of bills in 2025 to collect gun violence data, restore abortion access, regulate artificial intelligence, reform prior authorization and more. They spoke at the Kentucky Voices for Health’s annual meeting at the Griffin Gate Marriott in Lexington, […]
Posted inNews
State revenue is forecast to decline as Kentucky lawmakers prepare another income tax cut
A projected dip in state tax collections appears not to have dimmed Republican leaders’ eagerness to again cut Kentucky’s income tax. Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers on Saturday said continuing to reduce the individual income tax rate — this time from 4% to 3.5% — remains the Republican supermajority’s No. 1 priority in the upcoming […]
Posted inPolitics
Democratic governors pick Beshear as 2026 chair-elect
Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear has been voted as chair-elect of the Democratic Governors Association for 2026. The governors voted Saturday to select Beshear chair-elect as well as vice chair for 2025. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly will remain as chair of the DGA in 2025. In a statement, Beshear said he looked forward to working […]
Posted inNews
Price of being homeless and mentally ill: Isolation in a Kentucky prison
At age 35, she still sucks her thumb. During a psychologist’s interview, Rachel Hurt — who has an IQ of 67 — asked for her “doll babies” and “Minnie Mouse” and began banging crayons on the table in response to questions about her mental capacity. She also suffers from serious mental illness, including bipolar disorder […]
