The office of Gov. Andy Beshear has ordered flags at state buildings to be lowered to half-staff in honor of Pope Francis until sunset on the day of the Pope’s interment. When the internment will occur has yet to be determined. “Pope Francis earned the title ‘The People’s Pope’ by showing kindness and mercy, standing […]
Category: Frankfort
Posted inPolitics
First Black woman elected to Kentucky Supreme Court takes oath
Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Pamela Goodwine — the first Black woman elected to the high court — was officially sworn into office on April 18 to cheering and clapping in the packed Frankfort chamber and the two overflow rooms. Goodwine reflected on her life of overcoming obstacles when speaking on April 18, and promised to […]
Posted inPolitics
NKY congressional seat to be challenged in 2026
A challenger has stepped into the ring for the Northern Kentucky congressional seat. Niki Lee Ethington has officially launched her campaign for U.S. Congress in Kentucky’s 4th District, entering the May 2026 Republican primary. She is challenging Thomas Massie, who has held his seat since 2012. Ethington, described in a press release from her campaign […]
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Beshear sues to block new state law pushed by Americans for Prosperity
Written by the Kentucky Lantern’s Liam Niemeyer Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has gone to court to block what the lawsuit calls the “latest power grab” by the GOP-controlled legislature. At issue is a new law that curbs the executive branch’s authority to make regulations. The bill was a priority for the conservative group Americans for Prosperity which […]
Posted inEducation
KY education commissioner sounds alarm about sudden halt in federal COVID payments to schools
Written by the Kentucky Lantern’s McKenna Horsley Kentucky Education Commissioner Robbie Fletcher on Tuesday urged school superintendents to contact their lawmakers in Congress about a sudden halt in payments from federal pandemic relief funds. His call to action comes after U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon notified state education departments on March 28 that they no longer […]
Posted inFrankfort
Kentucky AG spearheads effort to close fentanyl ‘loophole’
By WCPO’s Marlena Lang Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman is spearheading an effort to stop fentanyl from getting into the U.S. A letter from Coleman’s office addressed to the Trump administration, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security hopes to stop fentanyl from getting into the country. The letter is […]
Posted inPolitics
Kentucky lawmakers overturn executive order banning conversion therapy
According to Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, the state legislature has overridden his veto of House Bill 495, a bill that includes a measure that would overturn a previous executive order banning conversion therapy. Beshear previously called conversion therapy “torture.” “The Republican-led legislature just overrode my veto on House Bill 495, which will allow conversion therapy […]
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Beshear vetoes bill Ky professors say erodes academic tenure at public universities
Saying it “threatens academic freedom,” Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear has issued a veto to a Republican-backed bill that some Kentucky professors warned would erode academic tenure at the state’s public universities and colleges. Rep. James Tipton, R-Taylorsville, argued House Bill 424, was not about tenure in higher education but instead “employment contracts” between universities and academic employees. If […]
Posted inPolitics
Beshear vetoes bills he says would make KY workplaces less safe, violate state Constitution
Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday vetoed Republican legislation that he said would make workplaces in Kentucky more dangerous and several bills that he said were unconstitutional. The General Assembly’s Republican supermajority is expected to easily override the vetoes when lawmakers return Thursday and Friday to wrap up the 2025 regular session. Beshear in his veto […]
Posted inPolitics
Beshear signs licensing of nicotine retailers, other bills that ‘put our Kentucky families first’
Kentucky will begin licensing retailers who sell nicotine, which advocates have said will help regulate an industry and protect minors from addictive chemicals. Gov. Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 100 into law on Monday, which is aimed at curbing minors’ access to tobacco and e-cigarettes. Smoking is a leading cause of preventable death. Beshear also signed into law SB 120, which would […]