COVID-19 Downturn Is Hitting Certain Industries and Regions of the State Especially Hard
Kentucky lost 15.5% of its jobs in April due to the COVID-19 pandemic with industries like hotels, restaurants and manufacturing...
State Tax and Budget
Kentucky’s Budget Faces Trouble Without More Federal Aid
The severe economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic spells trouble for Kentucky's budget. The state’s resources were already tight before the virus, but the resulting economic collapse will be...
What’s in the CARES Act for Kentucky
Congress has passed and the President has signed a new COVID-19 economic relief bill, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Security (CARES) Act. Here are some of its major provisions and...
Understanding the Quasi Pension Funding Issue
Over the last few days, attention has turned to whether Governor Beshear's budget underfunds the main state worker pension system, the Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS) non-hazardous plan, in the...
What the Finally-Released Actuarial Analysis Tells Us About So-Called Pension Reform
Today Governor Beshear released the actuarial analysis of the 2017 "Keeping the Promise" pension proposal that had been suppressed for the last two years. As expected and as we noted...
Three Ways the New Quasi Alternative Is Better than the Governor’s Proposal
A pension alternative sponsored by Rep. Joe Graviss protects employees, quasi-governmental organizations and the underfunded pension system in ways the governor's proposed legislation does not. Here's why the proposal, introduced...
Kentucky Public Universities and Community Colleges Serving More Low-Income Students and Students of Color Receive No Performance Funds in 2020
New information about the distribution of performance funds for Kentucky’s public postsecondary education institutions again raises concerns about the model, particularly given its implementation in the context of continued state...
Pension Proposal Steers Quasi-Governmental Organizations Toward Breaking Promise to Current Employees
A new pension proposal from the governor’s office pushes quasi-governmental organizations to leave the retirement system in ways that are still very expensive to them, and even less affordable if...
Pension Bill for Quasis Jeopardizes Workers and Retirees, Increases State Costs Without Way to Pay
The pension bill that passed the General Assembly last week, House Bill 358, reduces retirement security for future employees and jeopardizes pensions for thousands of current workers and retirees at...
Tax “Clean-Up” Bill Includes More Giveaways
Although House Bill 354 (HB 354) has been described as the “clean-up bill” that fixes the unintended consequences that occurred because of the rush in which the 2018 tax bills...