Tonight Lexington joined the national movement of Take Back the Night with a march and rally downtown. Thirty four years ago, women started to stand up and speak out against sexual violence under the banner of Take Back the Night. During those years, Take Back the Night became known internationally as a visible way for men and women to take a stand against sexual violence as well as domestic violence in their community.

The central Kentucky chapter showed our support by tabling at the event. CKY members Greg Capillo, LaTanya Torp and Sharon Hays worked the KFTC table.

From Jack Brammar's Bluegrass Politics blog entry:

FRANKFORT — People seeking public office this year as an independent or political group candidate in a partisan race must file their candidacy form with the secretary of state’s office in the Capitol by 4 p.m. Friday.

There is no fee for filing a statement-of-candidacy form.

Failure of candidates required to file the form will mean rejection of any nominating petition submitted by the Aug. 9 deadline for being on the ballot in the Nov. 8 general election.

Offices up for election this year that require the forms are governor and lieutenant governor (slate required), secretary of state, attorney general, state auditor, treasurer and agriculture commissioner.

Citizens interested in running for an office that files with the secretary of state are able to obtain the proper filing papers online at www.sos.ky.gov/elections/.

In order to help candidates seeking political office, the office of secretary of state has a ballot access procedural manual titled “Declaring Your Candidacy.” This publication provides Kentuckians with a quick guide to filing for political office. It can be found online at www.sos.ky.gov/elections/procedures.htm.

For more information about filing to run for elected office in Kentucky, visit www.sos.ky.gov/elections.

Photo by Cincinnati Enquirer

This week the Cincinnati Zoo is unveiling a huge solar energy project that shows us yet another example of the types of economic development opportunities available for Kentucky if our state legislators would pass laws to incentivize green energy production.  Installing and maintaining projects like this one could provide many jobs and funnel money back into Kentucky communities.  Passing legislation like the Clean Energy Opportunity Act can help make this happen.

Billed as one of the largest public urban solar displays in the country, the $11 million solar canopy will do more than help control the zoo's $700,000 annual electric bill when it's turned on by the middle of next month.

Developers see the project as a model for clean energy use in big public spaces. Already, a dozen zoos from as far away as California and Oregon have called to learn more. Locally, advocates say the project's sheer size and visibility may inspire increased interest in solar.

The Special Legislative Session appears, essentially, to be over, with Governor Beshear vetoing a set of budget cuts that the Senate wanted to most of our necessary functions of state government.

So, no budget cuts this year.  But no increased investments, either, during this time of increased need, and after eight damaging rounds of cuts in recent years. And now we have lots of questions left on the table about next year's budget.

The passed budget relies on savings in the state's Medicaid program through more managed care, and on the prospect that state revenue's will increase over the next year.  If either of these don't happen, then what?

The Kentucky Center for Economic Policy has just released a great policy brief about the passed budget, and the questions about Kentucky's future. KCEP asks, even if managed care saves Kentucky money, what are the implications of using it more?  How can the public hold managed care contractors accountable?  Further, how can legislators craft a budget for the *next* two years that finally moves Kentucky forward, when they'll also be dealing with a deficit passed forward from this year? Even if the state makes enough revenue to cover the Medicaid budget, how will we be impacted from a starting line that's been moved back? 

And ultimately, the question that KCEP poses is, "When will state leaders begin to discuss necessary reforms to Kentucky’s tax system?"

Looking down the pipe, seems like a pretty big question.  What do you think it's going to take?

 Members from the central Kentucky chapter got together last night for a pie bake-off to raise money for KFTC. As you can see from the photo, there were many delicious submissions including, but not limited to, derby pie, cheesecake, pie on a stick, apple-bacon-cheddar pie, chocolate pie, shaker lemon pie and pumpkin pie.

 In addition to celebrating everyone's superb baking skills we talked about KFTC's work to transition to a cleaner and more sustainable energy economy. Most of the members at the party have been a part of that effort, in one way or another whether they've lobbied with us in Frankfort, attended I love mountains day or written letters to their legislators. Four of the members at the party, Erika Skaggs, Jerry Moody, Abigail Dority and Christian Torp will be traveling to Washington D.C. next week to meet with members of Congress and their staff about ending mountaintop removal.

 Letcher county KFTC member and artist Chapman-Crane donated this beautiful print as a prize for the winner of the pie bake-off.

The judges were sequestered off to a "secret" location to make their decision. After much deliberation they chose their top six contestants. The winner of the pie bake-off was Brittany Hunsaker with her world famous derby pie.

It was a great night of food, friends and discussion. The chapter also manages to raise $120 and gain

a new member.

A great step toward new power will take place at the end of March with the first meeting of the Demand-side Management / Renewable Energy Collaborative--an effort called for in the agreement between the East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC), and KFTC and our allies that canceled the $900 million proposed coal-burning Smith plant. The Collaborative will conduct its initial meeting Tuesday, March 29, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at the Marriott Griffin Gate Resort Hotel on Newtown Pike in Lexington. Collaborative meetings are open to the public, and KFTC members are invited to attend. 

The Collaborative is a joint project of EKPC, its 16 member cooperatives, the Sierra Club, the Kentucky Environmental Foundation and KFTC. Additional groups with expertise in energy efficiency, low-income housing, and renewable energy in Kentucky have been invited to become members of the Collaborative and will participate as well.

The group will meet quarterly for the next two years to evaluate and recommend actions for EKPC to expand deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency. The Collaborative will also look to find ways members of the group can work together to implement energy efficiency and renewable energy in the co-op areas.

David Mitchell, EKPC's vice-president for construction and engineering, will chair the Collaborative. Owen Electric co-op member and KFTC member Tona Barkley will serve as Vice Chair. KFTC and each of our allies have a representative on the Collaborative, as does EKPC and all 16 of the distribution co-ops. KFTC's representative to the Collaborative is Madison County chapter member Steve Wilkins; and Ted Withrow, a member of the Rowan County chapter, will serve as an alternate.

In addition to supporting KFTC members who are serving as part of the Collaborative, KFTC will organize throughout the co-op service area, working to ensure the overall success of this group. Additionally, we will be increasing our work to promote existing and new programs that save co-op members energy and money--especially those most vulnerable to rising rates. Both of these areas of work are key strategies of KFTC's new Renew East Kentucky Project--an effort to kickstart the Appalachian Transition to create a more sustainable and strong economy for eastern Kentucky.

15 Madison County KFTC chapter members traveled to Floyd County over the weekend to visit with members of the Floyd County KFTC chapter.  They met at KFTC member Rick Handshoe's home in Hueysville.  Rick took them on a tour of his home, showing first-hand the destruction that has been caused by the mountaintop removal mining happening in his holler.  He then led them on a hike of his land where he pointed the changes to the land and community he has seen since the mining began. Madison County chapter members asked lots of questions, trying to gain a better understanding of the extent of the impact.  The tour and chapter exchange was a great way to build connections among KFTC's statewide membership -- crossing county borders.  They were reminded that we are all connected to the land and in this together!

For the first time ever, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed national standards for mercury, arsenic and other toxic air pollution from power plants this week.  The new standards would require many power plants to install pollution control technologies on their stacks to cut emissions of mercury, arsenic, chromium, nickel and acid gases.

When enacted, these standards will prevent as many as 17,000 premature deaths and 11,000 heart attacks a year and will particularly benefit children, preventing 120,000 cases of childhood asthma symptoms and about 11,000 cases of acute bronchitis among children each year.

Kentucky has 21 power plants located in the state and 22 within 30 miles of our borders. Our in-state plants are, on average, about 40 years old and many lack even basic air quality protections. This means Kentuckians are exposed to - through breathing, eating and drinking - potentially high amounts of these air toxins, especially mercury. Every river and lake in Kentucky is under advisory for mercury contamination. Kentuckians also face one of the highest risks in the country of dying from exposure to coal-burning power plant air pollution.

EPA estimates that instituting these new rules will provide employment for thousands, by supporting 31,000 short-term construction jobs and 9,000 long-term utility jobs. Check KFTC's blog for additional information about how to comment on this rule and where public hearings will be held.

To read the press release about the standards from the EPA in full, click here.

Northern Kentucky member Jeff Hampton recently submitted to the Kentucky Enquirer, and had published today, a letter to the editor about the current shortfall in the medicaid budget.

The solution to the Kentucky budget deficit is presented as a stark choice between either Governor Beshear’s plan to borrow money from next year’s budget to offset the $140 million deficit in the State’s Medicaid budget or the Senate’s plan of draconian across the board cuts that hurt our kids through education cuts and our seniors through cuts in medical care funding.

There are other possible solutions that can and should be considered. One of them is an overhaul of Kentucky’s antiquated tax structure in which those most able to pay taxes actually pay the least (about 6%) while middle and lower income earners pay the most (from between 9 and 11%). Why are all of the solutions offered, both Democratic and Republican, sacrifices from those least able to afford them while those most able to help escape from their civic responsibility to pay their fair share?

If it is class warfare to say this, I would only respond that the rich have been waging it for the past 40 years and have been winning hands down.

Jeffrey Hampton

Morningview

You can also read the letter here, and can also post on the story.