News of KFTC and our issues
Legislature wrong to roll back mine-safety protections without study or public notice
April 9, 2014
Lawmakers are trying to do away with an important requirement to protect coal miners — without the usual process of holding public hearings and engaging in public discussion. Instead, the Senate quietly proposed a state budget that would significantly reduce funding for the Office of Mine Safety and Licensing.
A Town Called Malnourished
April 3, 2014
Five years ago, Todd Howard did something to change things in Hippo. Just made redundant from his coal industry job, Howard became an entrepreneur-farmer in need of a market for the three acres of corn he planted. Along with a handful of other local growers, he resuscitated the defunct Floyd County Farmer's Market in nearby Prestonsburg, Ky.
AT&T accused of misleading lawmakers about bill allowing carriers to drop land-line service
March 14, 2014
AT&T executives gave misleading testimony to a House committee about the impact of a phone deregulation bill that would allow major carriers to drop many land-line phone customers.
Breathless and Burdened
February 24, 2014
This year-long investigation examines how doctors and lawyers, working at the behest of the coal industry, have helped defeat the benefits claims of miners sick and dying of black lung, even as disease rates are on the rise and an increasing number of miners are turning to a system that was supposed to help alleviate their suffering.
Thayer's wrecking ball takes out bill
February 21, 2014
Under the guise of hearing a bill to restore voting rights to some offenders, the Kentucky Senate gutted it and replaced it with a harshly restrictive measure that Raoul Cunningham, president of the Louisville NAACP, said can only be described as a voter suppression bill.
Telecom giants benefit but Kentucky could lose
February 21, 2014
Senate Bill 99, the AT&T-drafted legislation, is a great deal for the telecommunications giants AT&T, Windstream and Cincinnati Bell. It will allow them to abandon their least profitable customers and service areas as well as public protection obligations. But it is a risky and potentially dangerous bet for Kentuckians. Kentucky House members should turn it down.
Gov. Steve Beshear's Budget Cuts Deep for Some Kentucky Energy and Environment Programs
January 23, 2014
Some departments of the Kentucky’s Energy and Environment Cabinet will see deep cuts over the next two years, if the General Assembly approves Gov. Steve Beshear’s proposed budget.
3 key principles must guide tax code changes
January 19, 2014
Changes to the tax code can make our state and economy better or worse, depending on the goals and particulars of a proposal.To move Kentucky forward, a tax package must be built on three core principles.
Ex-felons join Frankfort rally seeking to restore their voting rights
January 13, 2014
Teddi Robillard-Smith and hundreds of people will show legislators how important it is to pass House Bill 70, which has been sponsored by Rep. Jesse Crenshaw for many years, and Senate Bill 15, both of which would allow former felons convicted of non-violent crimes to automatically regain their right to vote.
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