A bill exempting cigar bars from local smoking bans in Kentucky passed the House Tuesday 69-24 with bipartisan support and opposition. House Bill 194 would carve out an exemption in local smoke-free laws for businesses to operate as cigar bars if they meet certain requirements: Businesses would have to hold a valid alcoholic beverage license and make at […]
Author Archives: Kentucky Lantern
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Beshear’s ‘Pre-K for All’ meets concerns from some key GOP budget-writers
Some key Republican House lawmakers voiced concerns about Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s proposed “Pre-K for All,” citing potential costs to taxpayers and the effects of the competition on private child care providers. Sam Flynn, executive director of the Team Kentucky Pre-K for All Program, told state lawmakers Tuesday that expanding preschool access would provide parents […]
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Beshear super PAC gets $450K from Pennsylvania donor
The super PAC serving as a forerunner to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s anticipated presidential campaign stepped up its fundraising in the second half of 2025, thanks in large part to a Pennsylvania donor who gave a whopping $450,000. The super PAC is called In This Together, and the top donor over the six-month period is […]
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Kentucky Black lawmakers’ program reflects on Black history and the need to still teach it
Speakers reflected on the past, looked to the future and urged courage in the present during the annual Black History Celebration presented by the Kentucky Black Legislative Caucus. Keynote speaker, educator and researcher Roger Cleveland encouraged the crowd at the Kentucky History Center Tuesday to commit to building a future that is inclusive to all […]
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Two GOP priorities for public education advance from Kentucky Senate
The Republican-controlled state Senate passed bills Monday aimed at shining more light on school districts’ spending and shifting the balance of power in Kentucky’s largest school district. The bills, considered top priorities by Senate Republicans, now head to the House, which also has a GOP supermajority, for further consideration. Senate Bill 1, sponsored by Senate […]
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Kentucky Democrat Andy Beshear’s super PAC steps up fundraising in its second year
Gov. Andy Beshear’s super PAC, In This Together, raised almost $1.4 million in the second half of 2025, according to its latest filing with the Federal Election Commission. As a super PAC, In This Together can accept contributions of unlimited amounts, and it got some big ones: $100,000 from Churchill Downs, $100,000 from Lexington Trots […]
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Ky. lawmakers renew push to establish statewide residential utility disconnection protections
Last month, on a frigid day in front of the state capitol building in Frankfort, advocates called on Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear to halt residential utility disconnections through the winter via executive order. These groups, including the environmental advocacy nonprofit Kentucky Conservation Committee and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, which supports policies and action for […]
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Ky. GOP senators make public education a cornerstone of their priority bills
Kentucky Republican senators have introduced a slate of bills they say show their commitment to bettering public education in the commonwealth. Some of the proposals are getting support from Democrats and educators, but others are more contentious. Two of the priority bills passed out of the Senate Education Committee Thursday. Senate Bill 1, sponsored by Senate […]
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Advancing bill would remake leadership overseeing broadband network KentuckyWired
A committee-approved bill would remove the executive director for the state’s broadband network KentuckyWired, and remake the board overseeing the network that’s been entangled in litigation over contract disputes and facing scrutiny in previous months from state lawmakers. Rep. Matt Lockett, R-Nicholasville, the primary sponsor of House Bill 314 and a co-chair of the Information Technology Oversight […]
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Kentucky lawmakers again try to make water fluoridation optional
A bill that would make water fluoridation optional in Kentucky, which supporters praise as a way to ensure local control, passed out of the House Local Government Committee Wednesday despite opposition from several health organizations. House Bill 103 would leave the decision on whether to add fluoride to water up to the local water systems’ governing […]