Research

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...

Analysis

State Budget Cuts to Medicaid Are Unnecessary and Would Leave Kentucky Worse Off

As introduced, the upcoming biennial budget includes major cuts to large, state-funded programs as lawmakers contend with falling revenues from recent income tax cuts. Medicaid, as the second single largest...

Analysis

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...

Analysis

Here’s How Much the House Budget Would Cut SEEK Payments to Your School District

This analysis is based on the initial version of House Bill 500. See here for an updated analysis on the how the House budget would affect SEEK payments. As introduced,...

Analysis

Amid Mounting Harms, Kentucky Is Ramping Up Anti-Immigrant Enforcement

More than a year in to the Trump presidency, the administration’s mass deportation effort has resulted in a historic high of 70,766 immigrants locked up in detention, and Immigration and...

Presentation

How the Kentucky State Budget Works

The Kentucky state legislature has no more important job than passing a state budget. The budget allows us to come together to pay for schools, roads, state parks and many other programs and services that benefit us...

Analysis

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...

Analysis

Property Tax Is Vital to Funding Schools, Public Safety and Other Local Services

Kentucky’s property tax is a cornerstone of how we fund public services that keep our communities safe, educated and healthy — especially at the local level. Approximately $5 billion is collected in Kentucky annually from property taxes, which apply to real...

Analysis

Governor Proposes Tight Budget for Ongoing Services, Using Reserve Funds to Help Household Affordability Needs

Governor Beshear's budget proposes using nearly $1 billion from the state’s $3.7 billion Budget Reserve Trust Fund (BRTF) to fill gaps in household affordability needs, address some of the fallout of H. R. 1, and for other infrastructure and education projects. The remainder of the budget contains a combination...

Report

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...

Who Is Hurt by the Health Insurance Cap in HB 500?

State Budget Cuts to Medicaid Are Unnecessary and Would Leave Kentucky Worse Off

Legislature Wants to Take Power From the JCPS Board While Cutting Funding to Its Schools

Here’s How Much the House Budget Would Cut SEEK Payments to Your School District

Amid Mounting Harms, Kentucky Is Ramping Up Anti-Immigrant Enforcement

How the Kentucky State Budget Works

Initial House Budget Slashes Funding for Many Services, Prioritizes More Tax Cuts

Property Tax Is Vital to Funding Schools, Public Safety and Other Local Services

Governor Proposes Tight Budget for Ongoing Services, Using Reserve Funds to Help Household Affordability Needs

A State Budget for an Affordable Kentucky: Preview of the 2026–2028 Budget of the Commonwealth

Research that works for Kentucky

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