On Session’s Final Day, Lawmakers Pass New Tax Breaks for Already-Subsidized Industries
In the final hours of the 2026 legislative session, the General Assembly passed HB 869. This is the second voluminous...
Last-Minute Tax Breaks Allow Racetracks to Keep Sales Taxes
Update: Key parts of the bill highlighted in this analysis were changed in subsequent legislation explained here. As has become routine in recent budget cycles, the General Assembly added lucrative...
Initial House Budget Slashes Funding for Many Services, Prioritizes More Tax Cuts
As introduced, the House budget (HB 500) severely cuts or freezes many parts of the state budget and underfunds essential public services, with the apparent goal of triggering more income tax cuts under the legislature’s formula. The filing of the budget...
A State Budget for an Affordable Kentucky: Preview of the 2026–2028 Budget of the Commonwealth
In the 2026 legislative session, the Kentucky General Assembly will perform its most important job — crafting a two-year state budget that funds education, health, social services and other critical...
Kentucky Is Now a Casino State: Slot Machine Gambling Surpasses $10 Billion Annually, But at What Cost?
Kentucky has rapidly become a casino state as legalized slot machine gambling has proliferated across the bluegrass in recent years. With 13 facilities now operating thousands of slot machines, the...
The Hidden Web of Criminal Legal System Fines and Fees in Kentucky
Thousands of provisions in Kentucky state law, and untold local ordinances, make up a vast, hidden web of criminal legal system fines and fees that trap many people in a...
Children in the Balance: Kentucky Reforms Successfully Diverted More Kids from Detention, but Now Those Gains Are at Risk
Executive Summary In 2014, the Kentucky General Assembly passed Senate Bill (SB) 200 with the goal of reforming the state’s juvenile justice system. The bill accomplished many of its primary...
Broad Language of Amendment 2 Would Have Far-Reaching and Unpredictable Consequences
Kentucky has one of the nation’s strongest constitutions when it comes to public education. But Amendment 2, on the ballot next month, threatens to upend that. Currently, the state constitution...
New FBI Data Shows No Evidence of a Violent Crime Wave in Kentucky
Recently-released FBI crime data for 2023 shows a slight increase in total violent crime in Kentucky compared to 2022, but a closer look shows that while some crimes went up...
Legislature Moved Goalposts to Meet Conditions for Tax Cuts Whose Bill Is Now Coming Due
The conditions have been met for the General Assembly to potentially cut the individual income tax rate from 4% to 3.5% beginning Jan. 1, 2026, the State Budget Director announced...