Budget Agreement Cuts and Freezes Funding for Most Services, Continues to Underfund Medicaid
The legislative chambers have agreed to a new two-year state budget (HB 500, later amended by SB 197) that includes...
Kentuckians Hit Hard by Rising Gas Prices
The United States war in Iran has caused a spike in gas prices that now costs Kentuckians $175 million a month, according to a new analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. That's an additional $46.69 each month for...
Senate Proposes to Ease Some House Reductions, but Austere Budget Reflects Recent Tax Cuts
The Senate’s version of the next two-year state budget eases some of the cuts included in the House budget, which passed in late February, by spending funds the House allocated...
Here’s How the House Budget Would Affect Seek Payments to Your School District
The House budget freezes school transportation funding and makes small increases in the guaranteed base funding level used to determine payments to school districts under the SEEK formula. Though the...
General Assembly Should Fix Underfunding of School Transportation This Session
School buses are essential to getting kids to and from school. In recognition, the General Assembly created a law as part of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) that...
House Proposes Still-Austere Budget That Freezes and Cuts Funding, Adds to Already Large Budget Reserves
The original HB 500, introduced late last month, was met with significant public criticism, including for its cap on employer health insurance contributions and cuts to Medicaid and education. The...
Understanding the Proposed Health Insurance Cut in HB 500, the Kentucky House Budget
As introduced, the House Budget (HB 500) inserts new and unprecedented language that caps the state’s contributions to employee health insurance, shifting costs to current and former state and school...
Who Is Hurt by the Health Insurance Cap in HB 500?
The House Budget bill (HB 500) as introduced caps state health insurance contributions, causing employee costs to spike by 78% on average for state and school employees and retirees. How many people would be harmed, where do they live and where do...
There Is a Choice Hidden in the Pages of the Next State Budget
Lawmakers in Frankfort have started the next two-year state budget process, and House leaders say this year will be different. Rather than introducing a plan and swiftly passing it through the Chamber, they filed what they call...
Legislature Wants to Take Power From the JCPS Board While Cutting Funding to Its Schools
Legislative leaders have been critical of Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) in recent years on issues ranging from student performance to transportation problems and budget shortfalls. In response to these...