Register now for the 2025 KyPolicy Conference, a full-day exploration of the challenges and opportunities facing Kentucky in the 2025 legislative session and beyond.
Keynote
- Amendment 2 and the Future of Public Education in Kentucky
The defeat of Amendment 2 in November was a historic win for public schools, and it makes Kentucky a national model in successfully beating back efforts to privatize school funding. This session will look at what went into that victory and what it means for effective organizing and advocacy in our state. And it will look at priorities and plans to rededicate Kentucky to reinvestment in our public schools. Guest speakers include Kelsey Hayes Coots, campaign manager for Protect Our Schools KY and the Kentucky Student Voice Team.
Opening Plenary
- Where We Stand and Where We’re Going
This is a pivotal moment in our state and our country. What major policy decisions could Kentuckians face during a second Trump administration? What will the General Assembly prioritize in 2025 and beyond? We’ll look at some of the big issues in front of us, what we know about potential impacts, and ways Kentuckians can stay informed and get involved.
Breakout sessions
- Fighting Housing Instability in Kentucky
While the pandemic brought new attention to ever increasing rents and housing costs in Kentucky, the roots of housing instability run far deeper than 2020. In this session we will explore Kentucky’s housing gap, hear how Kentucky’s housing crisis fits into the national housing landscape, and learn how Kentucky renters are organizing and working for an affordable housing future for all.
- Progress and Possibilities in Kentucky’s Juvenile Justice System
The legislature passed Senate Bill 200 in 2014, overhauling Kentucky’s juvenile justice system by emphasizing early interventions and services in the community over detention. A decade later, the successes of that approach are clear even as there remains work to be done. This session will feature the architect of SB 200, along with state experts and youth justice advocates exploring the progress we’ve made along with necessary next steps.
- Safeguarding Kentucky’s Strongest Tool Against Hunger
Food is a basic human right, but year after year the Kentucky General Assembly has faced proposals to take food away from tens of thousands of Kentuckians who are already struggling to make ends meet. In this session, we will hear from advocates in Kentucky and neighboring states who have faced and defeated similar efforts to dismantle our strongest tool against hunger, SNAP.
- The True Cost of Fines & Fees in Kentucky
When an individual becomes involved with the criminal legal system in Kentucky there are fines and fees assessed at nearly every step of the process. Excessive fines and fees drive up incarceration and perpetuate poverty, and failure to pay carries steep consequences. However, little is known at both the state and local levels about the true cost of these fines and fees in Kentucky. This session will feature national experts as well as KyPolicy’s foundational state and local research on the scope and extent of criminal legal system fines and fees, and policies to address them.
Lunch session
- Legislature 101
KyPolicy Senior Fellow Pam Thomas will lead this session for college students and those new to advocacy during lunch. It will focus on how a bill becomes a law and other basic knowledge for those who wish to closely follow the legislature.