Archive for December, 2009

Paul officially files paperwork for Senate run

By ROGER ALFORD – Associated Press Writer

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The son of former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul officially entered the race for U.S. Senate in Kentucky on Wednesday, blasting career politicians who he blames for out-of-control spending and an ever-growing federal deficit.

“We’ve come to take our government back,” said eye surgeon Rand Paul, cheers erupting in a crowded room at the state Republican Party headquarters. “Career politicians of all stripes and all persuasions have sold us down the river.”

Paul, who was once ignored as a long-shot in the Senate race, drew protesters on Wednesday, the latest indication that political opponents see him as a serious threat in next year’s election.

The soft-spoken political newcomer has raised $1.7 million in campaign contributions. His chief Republican rival, Secretary of State Trey Grayson, had banked $1.2 million as of October, according to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission.

State Auditor to probe Pikeville utility’s finances

By John Cheves – jcheves@herald-leader.com

State Auditor Crit Luallen says she will examine the finances of the Mountain Water District in Pikeville, which has been tied to several controversies, including a federal corruption prosecution.

In letters sent Monday, Luallen notified Pike County Judge-Executive Wayne Rutherford and water district Chairwoman Rhonda James that her auditors will start to gather records and conduct interviews in early January.

Rutherford and James did not return calls Tuesday. The Pike County Fiscal Court requested the audit last month, with one magistrate citing “red flags” raised by news stories about the water district.

“We will cooperate fully with anything that they request of us,” said Dan Stratton, an attorney for the water district.

Beshear warns deficit could top $1.5 billion

FRANKFORT — Gov. Steve Beshear warned Tuesday that state lawmakers will face a more than $1.5 billion deficit as they craft a two-year state budget, despite better-than-expected revenue estimates released last week.

Beshear said ballooning costs for Medicaid and debt payments will add at least $600 million in new spending to the state’s next budget. Already, lawmakers must find an extra $890 million over the next two years just to continue spending $9.1 billion a year from the General Fund.

Speaking at a Capitol news conference, Beshear said it will take an additional $601 million to pay for the state’s Medicaid health insurance program for the poor and disabled and an extra $481 million to pay down the state’s debts over the next two years. Some of those additional costs will be paid for with federal stimulus funds, but that money runs dry in the first year of the two-year budget, Beshear said Tuesday.

Last week, a group of independent economists known as the Consensus Forecasting Group predicted that revenues would grow slightly over the next two fiscal years, but still wouldn’t sustain current suspending.

Beshear cautioned that his $1.5 billion deficit projection may be conservative. Other big-ticket spending items could include raises for teachers and state employees, increased payments for the state’s retirement system, increases in health care insurance costs and operating newly-opened courthouses.

An 8-step primer on Kentucky’s budget woes

Although the economic recession, which has brought double-digit unemployment to Kentucky, is the major factor behind Kentucky’s budget woes, their roots run much deeper. Here’s an eight-step primer in advance of the 2010 General Assembly, which begins Jan. 5.

1. Kentucky has a longstanding cash crisis. Since 2000, the General Assembly has spent about $3.6 billion more from the General Fund than the state collected in revenues.

2. Lawmakers have used a series of short-term fixes to balance the budget over the years. Sometimes, they raid other pots of money that are set aside for specific purposes, such as cleaning up leaky underground storage tanks. More recently, they’ve relied on federal stimulus money.

3. Meanwhile, lawmakers have been borrowing big. As of June 30, Kentucky had $6.875 billion in outstanding debt. It takes 6.43 percent of the state’s revenue to pay interest on those bonds.

4. These long-term budget issues were already in place before the current decline in state revenues. General Fund revenues peaked at $8.664 billion in fiscal year 2008, but that number is expected to dip below $8.2 billion this year.

5. Lawmakers responded to the budget crunch in the first half of the year by increasing taxes on alcohol and cigarettes, cutting expenses and spending federal stimulus funds. When the fiscal year ended June 30, the state had decreased overall spending for the first time since 1993.

6. They didn’t cut enough. Now, lawmakers face another projected shortfall in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, of $100 million. Gov. Steve Beshear has warned most state agencies to plan for a 6 percent spending cut.

7. The outlook for the next two years is not good. To continue spending $9.09 billion a year in the next biennium, Beshear and lawmakers must come up with $890 million more than is projected to flow into the General Fund over that time.

8. The governor, who says he opposes broad-based tax increases, will lay out his budget plan to lawmakers by Jan. 19. The House and Senate, whose leaders have signaled they might consider “tax reform,” each get a chance to rework the budget. Leaders from both chambers must smooth out their differences by April 15.

Beshear sets election date for open House seat

FRANKFORT — A special election for an open House seat that includes Marion, Casey and Pulaski counties will be Feb. 2, Gov. Steve Beshear announced this week.

Rep. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, resigned from the House after he won a special election in December for the Senate 14th District seat vacated by Dan Kelly. Kelly was appointed by Beshear to an open circuit court judgeship.

State to consider adopting new education standards

By Jim Warren – jwarren@herald-leader.com

State officials are poised to take what arguably could be one of the most important steps in Kentucky education since the passage of KERA.

Early next year, state education officials will consider adopting new “common core content standards” for math and English language arts that have been developed by a national group of educational experts.

The new common standards — which would describe content deemed essential for children to learn — would ensure that the content taught to Kentucky students in preschool through 12th grade is consistent with what children are taught in as many as 47 other states. Kentucky would not start testing students on the new standards until the 2011-12 school year.

It might sound simple, but educators say the long-term implications would be huge.

More uniform content would make it easier to compare Kentucky students’ progress with how well their counterparts are doing nationally and allow for more accurate testing, experts say.

Kentucky’s budget maestro prefers working behind the scenes

By ROGER ALFORD – Associated Press Writer

FRANKFORT — In her trademark pantsuit, a folder of papers tucked under her arm, Mary Lassiter dashes down a marbled corridor in the state Capitol, a rare sighting this time of year when she spends most of her time pouring over data she’ll use to develop the governor’s next budget proposal.

Lassiter has risen through the ranks of state government during the past 27 years from number cruncher to the governor’s chief adviser at a tumultuous time of sharp budget cuts totaling some $800 million this year alone. And she’s winning praise from Gov. Steve Beshear for her “clear-eyed leadership and guidance” at a time of financial crisis.

With a projected shortfall of some $900 million over the next two years, Beshear said he’s counting on Lassiter to help get Kentucky back to financial stability.

“Because of her efforts, we are in a stronger position than many other states despite the terrible economy,” Beshear said.

Conway appeals to U.S. Supreme Court

By John Cheves – jcheves@herald-leader.com

Attorney General Jack Conway on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Kentucky Supreme Court on a ruling that would allow some registered sex offenders to live where they choose, without restrictions.

“Allowing convicted sex offenders to live near schools or daycares is a serious public safety concern,” Conway said in a statement. “As a father and as Kentucky’s attorney general, I will do everything I can to ensure the safety of children and families across the Commonwealth.”

In 2006, the General Assembly prohibited sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school, preschool, public playground or licensed daycare. In the cities, this essentially put most downtown areas off-limits. The state previously restricted where sex offenders could live, but that was limited to sex offenders currently on probation or parole.

The legislature applied the new law retroactively to sex offenders convicted before 2006.

But the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled Oct. 1 that the retroactive application of the law is unconstitutional because it creates a new punishment for people who already have been convicted and sentenced. A month later, the court denied Conway’s request to stay its decision while he appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Steve Henry accepts plea deal on campaign funds

By John Cheves – jcheves@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Former Lt. Gov. Steve Henry accepted a plea deal Tuesday to three misdemeanors related to misusing campaign resources during his failed 2007 run in the Democratic primary for governor.

Franklin Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate sentenced Henry, 56, to a $500 fine and $156 in court costs, plus 12 months in jail, with the jail time discharged on the condition that Henry avoid further criminal problems for two years.

Henry entered an Alford plea, which means he did not admit guilt but did acknowledge that prosecutors could have convicted him on the evidence they had.

But moments after the plea hearing, Henry told reporters that he was the victim of “a political witch-hunt” pushed by his opponents. While his 2007 campaign did accidentally mix up money and other resources between his gubernatorial bid and a U.S. Senate race he was pondering, there were no knowing violations, Henry said.

“We did make a mistake,” Henry said. “There’s no question we’re not perfect.”

Bill would allow prosecution of mothers with addicted newborns

By Beth Musgrave – bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Mothers of drug- and alcohol-addicted newborns could face criminal prosecution under a controversial measure proposed last week by an Eastern Kentucky lawmaker.

Rep. Richard Henderson, D-Jeffersonville, pre-filed the bill at the urging of several prosecutors in his district who are frustrated with the growing number of women who give birth to babies with alcohol or drugs in their system.

“There should be some kind of deterrent,” Henderson said. “A child being born with a debilitating injury — that’s not fair to anyone, least of all the child.”

Under the proposal, a woman could be charged with substance endangerment of a child — a felony — if the child is born with alcohol or an un-prescribed controlled substance in its system . The mother could also be charged if the child has a health problem caused by the mother’s ingestion of drugs or alcohol.

The proposal will likely have an uphill battle in the state legislature, said one key lawmaker.

“As far as I am concerned, this is just another attack on women,” said Rep. Tom Burch, D-Louisville and chairman of the House Health and Welfare Committee.