Archive for December, 2011

Beshear expects University of Pikeville study by March 15

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

Gov. Steve Beshear wants an independent study of the proposal to add the University of Pikeville to the state’s university system in his hands by March 15.

The Beshear administration has issued a request for proposals to hire a consultant to conduct the study. The RFP contains the March 15 target date.

Former Democratic Gov. Paul Patton, who now is president of the University of Pikeville, is trying to get the school into the state university system.

Beshear rejects hospital merger

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – Gov. Steve Beshear has rejected a controversial merger of three hospital systems in the state, saying it is not in the public’s best interest.

The merger would have united University Hospital, which is run by the University of Louisville in Louisville,
with Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s HealthCare and St. Joseph Health System in Lexington. Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives, which owns St. Joseph’s, would have controlled the new system.

Concern about the merger primarily focused on the policy that CHI follows Catholic health directives. With the merger, University Hospital has agreed not to perform certain procedures the directives do not allow, such as sterilizations.

Beshear said “significant legal and policy concerns have been raised about this proposed merger, including constitutional and public policy questions about the influence of a religious entity on a publicly-owned institution, especially regarding reproductive issues.

“In addition, if for some reason in the future the merger partners were forced to separate, the potential costs of that unwinding could be significant and have a detrimental impact not only on UniversityHospital, but also on the taxpayers of this state.”

‘Comment’ will preview upcoming legislative session

Kentucky’s 2012 General Assembly that begins next week will be one of the top topics on this weekend’s “Comment on Kentucky” on the Kentucky Educational Television network.

Joining host Ferrell Wellman on the public-affairs show are Ryan Alessi, senior managing editor for news and public affairs and host of Pure Politics for CN/2; Joe Arnold, political reporter for WHAS-TV in Louisville; and Jack Brammer, political writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader’s Frankfort bureau.

The show airs at 8 p.m. ET Friday on KET.

–Jack Brammer

Kentucky and Indiana agree on plan to finance bridges project in Louisville

FRANKFORT — Gov. Steve Beshear announced Thursday that Kentucky and Indiana have reached consensus on a plan to finance and build the Ohio River Bridges Project in Louisville, keeping the project on target to begin construction in 2012.

Under an agreement in principle reached by Beshear, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and leaders of the Louisville and Southern Indiana Bridges Authority, each state would take the lead in financing and overseeing construction of one half of the project.

Kentucky would be responsible for financing and constructing the downtown portion of the project – a new I-65 bridge, a re-decked Kennedy Bridge, modernization of the Kennedy Interchang and expansion of the I-65 approach in Indiana.

Indiana would be responsible for financing and constructing the East End portion of the project – a new bridge near Utica, Ind., and Prospect, Ky.; a new highway linking the Lee Hamilton Expressway and Gene Snyder Freeway; and a tunnel in Eastern Jefferson County.

KET to partner with public radio stations

The Kentucky Educational Television network will begin a partnership next week with public radio stations in the state to air some of the network’s series and programs.

The partnership will begin with WEKU in Richmond and WKMS in Murray. KET said in a news release Thursday that it is in discussions with all public radio stations in the state and will be announcing more partnerships.

The first KET program involved in the partnership will be the “Kentucky Tonight” program Jan. 2 at 8 p.m. ET. On the program, host Bill Goodman and guests will discuss Kentucky’s 2012 General Assembly.

State GOP poll also shows most Kentuckians want to vote on expanded gambling

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – A poll conducted by the Kentucky Republican Party this month reflects a similar finding by a horse industry poll released this week that showed Kentuckians overwhelmingly think the issue of expanded gambling should be decided by a vote of the people.

But the GOP poll did not find support of expanded gambling in the state as strong as the poll conducted for racetracks and horse-racing interests.

State GOP Chairman Steve Robertson acknowledged Wednesday that his party asked about expanded gambling in a poll it conducted Dec. 18-20 of 1,050 Kentuckians about issues confronting the 2012 General Assembly.

Beshear releases his ‘Top 10 Accomplishments of 2011′

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Gov. Steve Beshear highlighted his handling of jobs in Kentucky and the state budget among his “Top 10 Accomplishments of 2011″ released Wednesday.

“I am honored and humbled that Kentuckians have given me another four years to press forward with the issues that matter most to them,” the Democratic governor said in a release. “We have worked hard to create new jobs and keep others in the state, to manage taxpayers’ money wisely and to champion initiatives to improve children’s health and combat abuse of prescription drugs.”

Farmers reach settlement in divorce case

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – State Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer and his wife, Rebecca Ann Farmer, have reached a settlement in their divorce case.

The two were to participate in a public trial Dec. 29.

The Franklin Circuit Clerk’s office said Tuesday the trial has been canceled and it is awaiting documents from the couple’s attorneys.

Richie Farmer’s attorney, Richard M. Guarnieri of Frankfort, said a divorce decree will be presented soon to the judge to sign.

Beshear orders review of University of Pikeville proposal to join state university system

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – Gov. Steve Beshear ordered a study Tuesday of the proposal to add the University of Pikeville to the state’s university system.

Beshear said in a news release that his office will issue a request for proposals this week to hire a consultant to conduct the study.

It is expected to take six to eight weeks, he said.

That timeframe means the 2012 General Assembly will still be in session if it wants to address the issue. The legislative session begins Jan. 3 and runs through mid-April.

Kentucky expected to have slightly more money over next 2 years

By Beth Musgrave
bmusgrave@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — State lawmakers will have slightly more money to appropriate over the next two years than originally expected, new revenue figures released Wednesday show.

But Kentucky’s expenses also continue to climb, which means more budget cuts are likely, state budget officials said earlier this week.

The Consensus Forecasting Group, a group of independent economists, released its final forecast for the state’s revenues over the next biennium on Wednesday after a more than three-hour meeting.

Wednesday’s official forecast was generally rosier than a preliminary forecast released in October.

The economists predicted a $136.5 million surplus for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. That forecast, which calls for total revenue of $9.007 billion this year, is down by $1.2 million from the October prediction.