Latest Research
What the New Climate and Health Legislation Will Mean for Kentucky
The Senate passed new legislation Sunday that takes critical steps toward addressing the climate crisis, improves access to affordable health care, creates jobs in clean energy and puts downward pressure on the inflation burdening families.
Budget & Tax

Let’s learn from Braidy, and seek more answers from each other
News that a company called Steel Dynamics will take over what’s left of Braidy Industries and abandon the proposed Ashland aluminum plant is likely the end of this five-year debacle.
What the New Climate and Health Legislation Will Mean for Kentucky
The Senate passed new legislation Sunday that takes critical steps toward addressing the climate crisis,...
Temporary Surplus Should Not Trigger Permanent Tax Cuts that Threaten Future Budgets
Driven by a strong economic recovery and by high inflation, the state ended the year...
Corporate Tax Break Watch: 2022 General Assembly
Last year, the Kentucky General Assembly passed new business subsidies and tax breaks at a...
Criminal Justice

The 2022 General Assembly Passed More Bills Increasing Incarceration Than Decreasing It, and Failed to Make Other Badly Needed Justice Changes
Kentucky has one of the worst rates of incarceration in the country.
Pretrial Bills in the Kentucky General Assembly Are a Mixed Bag
Kentucky’s pretrial system — which determines whether a person charged with a crime waits for...
While Failing to Address Kentucky’s Overdose Crisis, HB 215 Would Keep People Incarcerated Longer
Kentucky is currently in the midst of an overdose crisis, particularly with fentanyl, a synthetic...
There’s Still Time for Kentucky to Reverse Course on Harmful Criminal Policies
The 2022 General Assembly has a big opportunity to build on positive changes in criminal...
Economic Security

The Economic Implications of an Abortion Ban in Kentucky
The Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision overturned Roe v.
For Kentuckians Facing Hunger, This Summer Brings a Triple Threat
If you’ve gone grocery shopping in Kentucky lately, you saw prices in every aisle that...
Tracking SNAP in Kentucky
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a vital source of assistance that helps put...
Lost SNAP Benefits Due to SJR 150 Likely Growing to at Least $350 Million
Recent news that the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services (HHS) will extend the...
Education
Public Resources Should Stay in Public Schools
All Kentucky children should receive a high-quality education that helps them thrive.
What Kentuckians Say About Student Loan Cancellation
Nearly one in five Kentucky adults has federal student loan debt. For these 616,000 Kentuckians...
Cancel Student Debt, and Recommit to Education as a Public Good
President Biden’s recent statements that he will cancel some student loan debt is hopeful news...
Charter School Funding Proposal Is Inefficient, Costly and Will Harm Public Education
Legislation introduced in the Kentucky House would create a duplicative, wasteful and unaccountable system for...
Health Care

Kentucky Will Start Providing 10,000 More New Mothers with a Year of Postpartum Medicaid Coverage
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) just approved a plan to allow Kentuckians who have recently given birth and are covered by Medicaid to keep their coverage for 12 months (up from the 60-day coverage window previously allowed).
Coalition Letter: Kentucky General Assembly Must Use Special Session to Protect the Health of Kentuckians, Our Workforce and Our Children’s Education
A coalition of Kentucky organizations sent this letter to the Kentucky General Assembly on September...
Medicaid Filled the COVID Coverage Gap
Last year when COVID-19 cases were escalating and the bottom fell out of the economy,...
The 2021 Legislative Session Health Care Wrap Up: Steps in the Right Direction
The 2021 General Assembly passed several measures that will improve the affordability and accessibility of...
Jobs & The Economy

State Workers Help Us All; It’s Past Time to Help Them Too
Everyone in the commonwealth relies on services provided by the state government, and the workers providing them are our friends, neighbors and family.
Personnel Cabinet Recommends Improving Compensation to Stave off State Workforce Crisis
Kentucky faces a crisis-level shortage of workers in state government. Past legislative actions resulting in...
Tracking the Economic Recovery from COVID-19 in Kentucky
As more Kentuckians are vaccinated, and as consumer demand remains strong, people are returning to...
Addressing Corporate Power Is Key to Tackling Inflation
Inflation is straining Americans’ budgets. While the immediate cause is the COVID-19 pandemic, the preexisting...