Author Archive for Jack Brammer

Legislative leaders decide to appeal judge’s ruling on state legislative boundaries

By Jack Brammer and Janet Patton
jbrammer@herald-leader.com
jpatton1@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – The Legislative Research Commission, made up of House and Senate leaders, decided Thursday to appeal Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd’s ruling that Kentucky’s newly drawn legislative districts are unconstitutional.

In a release, the LRC said it plans “to take the defense of the constitutionality of House Bill 1” directly to the Kentucky Supreme Court, bypassing the Kentucky Court of Appeals, to get a quicker resolution.

It said it will ask the state’s highest court to dissolve the injunction Shepherd issued and to order that legislative districts created this year under HB 1 and signed into law by Gov. Steve Beshear be used for 2012 elections.

House panel calls for registration of agents who lobby state pension systems

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Middlemen known as “placement agents” who do business with the Kentucky Retirement Systems would have to register as lobbyists and follow state ethics laws under a bill a House panel unanimously approved Thursday.

House Bill 300, sponsored by Rep. Mike Cherry, D-Princeton, also would limit trustees of the KRS to three four-year terms, place the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System board under the state ethics code, and require the state auditor to audit the Judicial Form Retirement System for judges and legislators at least once every five years.

Cherry said the bill is designed to address concerns raised in an audit of the state pension system last year by former state Auditor Crit Luallen.

Luallen told the committee last year that she identified no misuse of KRS money related to placement agents, who help private investment companies sell their products. But Luallen said one agent in particular, Glen Sergeon of New York, enjoyed close access to KRS and made nearly $6 million in fees through his relationship with Adam Tosh, then chief investment officer for KRS.

Senate panel approves bill to cap state debt

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – A proposal that would set a debt limit on state spending cleared the Senate State and Local Government Committee Wednesday.

Senate Bill 56, sponsored by Sen. Joe Bowen, R-Owensboro, imposes a 6 percent cap on General Fund debt.

Bowen initially presented the measure in a constitutional amendment but changed it to a statute or state law.

The committee approved the bill on a 7-1 vote. In casting the sole “no” vote, Sen. Walter Blevins, D-Morehead, said the measure could hamper creating jobs by limiting debt.

Beshear: ‘Plenty of time’ left to consider expanded gambling

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT — Gov. Steve Beshear said Wednesday he will wait “a few more days” to unveil his long-anticipated constitutional amendment to expand gambling because of the uncertainty of legislative redistricting.

“I think we still have plenty of time to address that issue after redistricting is settled,” Beshear said to reporters after a ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda to honor Black History Month.

Beshear said last December that he will present in the 2012 General Assembly a constitutional amendment to expand gambling. Wednesday is the 24th day of the 60-day session that must end by April 15.

Redistricting, or the redrawing of boundaries for legislative and congressional districts, has largely paralyzed the law-making session. Lawmakers generally don’t like to act on controversial issues until they know who their opponents will be.

Republican wins special House election in south-central Kentucky

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – Republican Bart Rowland of Monroe County won a special election Tuesday to fill the unexpired term of former state Rep. James Comer, who was elected state agriculture commissioner last November.

Kentucky Republican Party Chairman Steve Robertson said Rowland unofficially captured more than 62 percent of the vote in the 53rd House District. It includes Cumberland, Green, Metcalfe and Monroe counties.

The Democratic candidate in the race was Barry Dean Steele of Metcalfe County.

Rowland will serve the remainder of Comer’s term, which runs to the end of this year.

Moffett resigns as head of Bluegrass Institute to run for state House

Phil Moffett resigned Tuesday as president and chief executive officer of the Bluegrass Institute, a free market think tank, to run for the state House of Representatives.

Moffett, a Louisville businessman who ran unsuccessfully last year for the Republican gubernatorial primary, said redistricting developments in Frankfort offered him an opportunity to run for the 32nd House District.

Judge tosses new boundaries for state legislative districts

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

PDF: Read the injunction

FRANKFORT — A judge has declared Kentucky’s newly-drawn legislative districts unconstitutional and has ordered election officials to use previous district lines in this year’s state legislative elections.

Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd on Tuesday tossed out boundaries that lawmakers approved and Gov. Steve Beshear signed into law last month. The ruling was a victory for House Republicans and Democratic state Sen. Kathy Stein of Lexington, who challenged the constitutionality of House Bill 1.

Shepherd also extended the filing deadline for legislative candidates to 4 p.m. Friday, which gives legislative leaders time to decide whether to appeal to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Miller resigns as state health and family services secretary

FRANKFORT — The chief of Kentucky’s embattled Cabinet for Health and Family Services will step down on Feb. 29 to seek other opportunities, Gov. Steve Beshear announced Tuesday.

The resignation of Janie Miller comes at a difficult time for the agency that oversees Medicaid, child-protection, public health, programs for the elderly and other social services.

The cabinet has been under fire from health care providers, many of whom say they have not been paid or are receiving minimun payments since the state transitioned 560,000 Medicaid recipients to managed care on Nov. 1.

Under Miller’s leadership, the cabinet also has lost legal battles with Kentucky’s two largest newspapers over disclosure of state records regarding child abuse deaths.

One key lawmaker called on Miller to resign in December, saying the cabinet operates in a “shroud of secrecy,” but other leading lawmakers have praised Miller and called her resignation on Tuesday a “travesty.”

‘I Love Mountains Day’ scheduled for Feb. 14

HERALD-LEADER FRANKFORT BUREAU

FRANKKFORT — More than 1,000 people are expected to attend this year’s “I Love Mountains Day” on the front steps at the state Capitol at 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 14.

This year’s rally, sponsored by Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, is to focus on the health impact of strip mining.

The rally also will push for clean energy legislation.

Melina Laboucan-Massimo will be a featured speaker. She is an indigenous Lubicon Cree from Alberta, Canada, and activist battling tar sands extraction and the XL Pipeline.

KFTC said in a release that it invited Laboucan-Massimo to speak at the rally to show the ties of the clean energy movement in Kentucky and Appalachia to related efforts elsewhere.

Judge says he will rule in a day or two on legislative redistricting

By Jack Brammer
jbrammer@herald-leader.com

FRANKFORT – After a nearly three-hour hearing Monday on a legal challenge of Kentucky’s new legislative district boundaries, Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd said he hopes to rule within a day or two so an appeal can be made as quickly as possible.

Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd said if he does not rule by late Tuesday he will extend a restraining order he issued last week that moved the filing deadline for legislative candidates from Jan. 31 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.

At issue is a request by House Republicans’ for a temporary injunction to extend the filing deadline for state legislative candidates.