Archive for January, 2010

‘Comment’ will discuss this week candidates’ filings

Comment on Kentucky,” a public affairs show of the Kentucky Educational Television network, will discuss on this weekend’s show the large filing of candidates for Congess and the state legislature and a controversial state report on a riot last August at Northpoint Training Center.

Joining host Ferrell Wellman will be Ryan Alessi of the Lexington Herald-Leader, Al Cross of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky and Deborah Yetter of The Courier-Journal.

The show will begin at 8 p.m. Friday on KET 1.

It also will be broadcast at 6:30 a.m. Saturday on KET KY, 7:30 a.m. Saturday on KET KY, 12:30 p.m. Sunday on KET 1, 8 a.m. Monday on KET KY and 7:30 p.m. Monday on KET KY.

Two former Fletcher officials pay fines to settle ethics charges

FRANKFORT – Two former state officials in Gov. Ernie Fletcher’s administration have agreed to pay fines to settle ethics charges against them related to a 2005 investigation of state hiring practices.

The Executive Branch Ethics Commission approved settlements Friday with Basil Turbyfill, who was director of Fletcher’s Office of Personnel and Efficiency, and Richard L. Murgatroyd, who was Fletcher’s deputy transportation secretary and deputy chief of staff.

Under the settlement agreements, Turbyfill must pay $1,500 and Murgatroyd $2,000.

House members raise $12,000 for Haiti

FRANKFORT — Members and staffers of the House dug deep into their own pockets to raise $12,000 for the University of Kentucky’s Hoops for Haiti program.

The program — which won praise from President Barack Obama earlier this week — has raised more than $1 million for relief efforts in Haiti following a devastating Jan. 12 earthquake that left the poverty-stricken nation in shambles. Spearheaded by UK Coach John Calipari with an assist from his team and local business leaders, the fundraiser raised the the bulk of its cash during a Jan. 17 telethon and an online auction. But more money keeps trickling in.

House approves bill for Bluegrass Station hangar

The state House overwhelmingly approved funding for construction of a $4 million airplane hangar at Bluegrass Station at Avon, where several military contractors have operations.

The U.S. Department of Defense has requested construction of hangar to begin by March 1 and would be responsible for making lease payments to cover the construction costs, said Rep. Don Pasley, D-Winchester.

Legislature won’t meet Friday because of potential snow

Leaders of both chambers of the General Assembly decided to call off meeting Friday because of reports of snow that could hit Kentucky overnight and early in the morning.

“That way members can get on the road tonight,” said House Speaker Greg Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg. “We decided it was better not to have session.”

House panel gives assist to former UK coach Hall

FRANKFORT – It was a slam dunk for two state lawmakers Thursday who got a legislative committee to approve unanimously their measure to get former University of Kentucky coach Joe B. Hall into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

House Concurrent Resolution 21, sponsored by Reps. Rick Nelson, D-Middlesboro, and Ruth Ann Palumbo, D-Lexington, urges the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., to enshrine Hall.

Hall, 81, coached 13 seasons at UK, compiling a record of 297 wins and 100 losses. He never suffered a losing record at UK and led his Kentucky teams to 10 NCAA tournaments, including three Final Fours and a national championship in 1978.

The House State Government Committee signed off on the measure with no debate.

Bill would spend $4 million for more social workers

FRANKFORT — A bill filed in the state House Wednesday would appropriate $4 million to hire additional social workers and improve security for front-line social service employees.

House Bill 328, filed by Louisville Democrats Tom Burch and Joni Jenkins, would also establish an oversight committee to ensure that money appropriated by the General Assembly is used for the benefit of social workers.

In 2007, the Legislature passed the “Boni Bill,” which called for spending $6 million to help increase security and hire more social workers. The bill was named after a social service aide, Boni Frederick, who was killed while taking an infant child from a home visit with her mother.

However, the legislature only appropriated $2million of the $6 million. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services was supposed to come up with the remaining $4 million to implement the bill. However, it’s not clear what happened to the $4 million.

The bill would provide $3 million to fill front-line social worker positions and an additional $1 million for security improvements at social workers’ offices. Cabinet officials would report their progress to a group of lawmakers, the bill says.

– Beth Musgrave

Proposal would require a review of some tax break programs

FRANKFORT — Lawmakers would have to routinely study the effectiveness of Kentucky’s economic development programs or allow them to expire under a proposal before the House.

Rep. Jim Wayne, D-Louisville, filed two bills this week that would cause most of the state’s economic development tax incentive programs to expire unless lawmakers renew them after a thorough review of their effectiveness.

Wayne said his proposals “would create a systematic and comprehensive review” of the state’s tax incentive programs. If a certain tax break is not working, then the provision would sunset without the legislature having to take any action, Wayne said.

House Bill 335 and House Bill 336 would require that the Program Review and Investigations Committee of the Legislative Research Commission review tax increment financing, tourism development and economic development programs. The review would show whether the state is losing more money than it gains with the exemption.

House panel votes to end prison food contract after reviewing report on riot

Track the progress of key legislation on Kentucky.com’s new legislature page.

By Valarie Honeycutt Spears – vhoneycutt@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — The warden at Northpoint Training Center did not want to implement the prison yard restrictions that contributed to an August riot, but he was overruled by Department of Corrections officials, according to an investigative report released Wednesday.

The investigation also revealed numerous other problems at Northpoint that occurred before, during and after the riot, including inmate anger over food on the day of the riot and a considerable delay in the formal investigation of how the fiery melee occurred.

After reviewing the report, the House Judiciary Committee voted 9-4 to approve a bill that would cancel the state’s $12 million annual contract with Aramark Correctional Services to provide meals at 13 prisons.

The investigative report showed that anger over food contributed to the August 21 riot at the Mercer County prison. The report, which was withheld from the public by state officials until Wednesday, puts more emphasis on food as a contributing cause of the riot than the state Corrections Department’s “review” of the investigative report, which was released to the public on November 20.

Senate committee approves accountability bill for KACo, KLC

FRANKFORT — A measure that would require the troubled Kentucky Association of Counties and Kentucky League of Cities to open their meetings and books to the public was approved by a Senate committee on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 87 would make the League and KACo subject to the state’s Open Records and Open Meetings laws. The measure would also require both groups to adopt ethics and anti-nepotism rules, follow the state’s model procurement code and post their expenditures online.

Republican Sen. Damon Thayer of Georgetown, who sponsored the bill, said his constituents and some members of KLC and KACo are frustrated that more hasn’t been done to increase oversight of the agencies since a series of Herald-Leader articles and state audits exposed spending problems at the organizations.

“I think there is a feeling right now that neither of the executive boards are doing enough,” Thayer said.