Since the primary election in May, Madison County KFTC members have been busy meeting with all the candidates running in the 2010 general election for state house and senate seats in the county.  The chapter organized “candidate issue briefings” with the candidates.  The issue briefings were designed to be an educational opportunity for candidates to learn more about KFTC’s state legislative agenda.

The issue briefings covered fair and comprehensive tax reform, voting rights, clean energy solutions, and protecting Kentucky’s rivers and streams from mountain-top removal valley fills.  So far, the chapter has held five candidate issue briefings and are in the process of scheduling the last one.

These issue briefings have been especially important in Madison County this election cycle because two state legislative seats are “open” seats (there is no incumbent running for re-election). 

Berea KFTC member Carey Hanson agreed. “These issue briefings let us put our platforms out there with the candidates running for the first time.  It also lets us continue our dialogue with sitting legislators running for re-election.”

On Saturday, more than 70 KFTC members and friends came together in rural Madison County to enjoy some friendship, food, and fun.  We have locally-raised pork BBQ, a delicious potluck, music from a popular local band, corn-hole and other yard games, a silent auction to raise money for KFTC, and much more!  The Friend-Raiser is becoming an annual event in Madison County -- with the main purpose of the event focused on coming together with other KFTC members to celebrate the work we do over the year and encourage new faces to come out and get to know KFTC in an informal setting.  A secondary goal is to raise financial support for KFTC's work.  A big thanks to Nathan and Jessa Turner for donating the use of their wonderful farm for the Friend-Raiser. 

The event was so successful, that even a little hail-storm couldn't slow us down.  Or, okay, maybe it slowed us down for a little bit -- but after we paused for the hail and lightning storm -- we picked ourselves back up, dried ourselves off, and continued onward with our merrymaking!

On Tuesday night there was a free screening of the new documentary "Deep-Down" at Eastern Kentucky University followed by a wonderful panel presentation with Bev May, Teri Blanton, and Jason Howard.  More than 25 students, faculty, and community members attended the screening and discussion. 

The Madison County chapter is having another screening of the documentary tonight in Berea at the Berea Appalachian Center Gallery (205 North Main Street, Berea) at 7 p.m.  The screening will be followed with a discussion by Bev May (who is featured in the film) and Appalachian author Silas House.  Please join us if you are able.

We have an exciting announcement to make in our work to encourage sustainable and affordable energy choices for Kentuckians. Berea KFTC member Steve Wilkins is running for his Rural Electric Co-op's Board of Directors -- Blue Grass Energy Cooperative.

Steve’s belief in affordable and sustainable energy, good local jobs, and transparent co-op governance is right in-line with KFTC’s positions and work. Read more about his positions by downloading his flyer here.

In order for Steve to get nominated for the ballot, he must gather more than 300 petition signatures from Blue Grass Energy Cooperative customers. Any Blue Grass member can sign (but only one person can sign per-household) the petition.

Will you help us promote clean energy and democracy by helping to get Steve on the ballot so that Blue Grass Energy customers will have a choice this year when it comes to selecting their board members?

Here is how you can help:

1.) Sign and circulate the petition:   Are you a Blue Grass Energy customer? Do you know friends, family, or coworkers who are? Please download and print off the petition here. Blue Grass energy serves households in Jessamine, Madison, Mercer, Anderson, Woodford, Franklin, Harrison, Nicholas, Bourbon, Bracken, Pendleton, Henry, Spencer, and Shelby County.  Please sign the petition and get other Blue Grass customers to sign it as well. With your help, we can show broad support for Steve's nomination! You can return the petition with any signatures to KFTC, 435-R Chestnut St., Suite 2, Berea, KY, 40403.  All petition signatures are due by April 13th (please get them in to KFTC early).  Any support you can give would be appreciated!

To correspond with KFTC’s statewide “Bake Sale for the budget” in Frankfort, the Madison County Chapter of KFTC held a “Berea Bake Sale for the Budget” last Wednesday. The event was held on Berea College’s campus.

In just two hours of selling baked goods, almost twenty dollars was raised, and over 55 action cards were signed and ready to be sent to the Governor’s office. One might think that twenty dollars does not a good bake sale make, but the awareness that KFTC generated around tax reform was worth more than any pennies to go into the states depleting coffer.

By definition Berea College students come from families who live at the end of the regressive tax system, they make less money and pay a high percentage of that money back into their taxes. An average Berea student makes $200 a month- so to collect nearly twenty dollars from those at the end of the state’s food chain was heartwarming. The students were given recipe cards that described House Bill 13, and some were shocked to find that the state was 1,500,000,000.00 dollars in debt.

Maren Hudson, a senior at Berea College stated, “How can a state be $1.5 billion dollars in debt when I am feeling the pinch of student loans breathing down my neck in a few months. Soon I am going to be graduating and going off into the “real world” so I guess I should start paying attention because maybe Kentucky really is not the place I want to settle my family.”

Mrs. Hudson is originally from Tennessee and lives off campus with her husband, a Kentucky native and fellow Berean. By signing individual cards that acted as a personal letter to the governor, Berea students were able to get their voices heard while they got their stomachs filled. The money, as well as the action cards will be personally delivered to the Governor’s office while KFTC continues its lobbying efforts in Frankfort.

Remember I Love Mountains Day is Feb 11th

On Monday night more than 20 Madison County chapter members gathered to meet with State Representative Lonnie Napier.  Chapter members discussed with him KFTC's 2010 legislative agenda -- everything from fair tax reform, voting rights, clean energy policies, the stream-saver bill, and even our campaign to stop the construction of a a proposed coal-burning power plant.  Representative Napier agreed to support our tax reform and voting rights legislation.  He also agreed to meet with us further to discuss our policy proposals related to increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy options in the state. 

"I thought it was a good meeting.  Rep. Napier agreed on a lot of our issues and was also realistic with us about what the session may hold," said Madison County member Megan Naseman.

The chapter's meeting with Rep. Napier was part of a series of at-home lobby meetings the chapter was having leading up to the legislative session.  Rep. Harry Moberly met with the chapter in August.  Senator Worley declined to meet with the chapter in the district.

Madison County Premier of Coal Country 

This film by Mari-Lynn Evans and Phylis Geller is a dramatic look at modern coal mining. We get to know working miners along with activists who are battling coal companies in Appalachia. Both sides in this conflict claim that history is on their side. Come and find out for yourself!  This film has been drawing sell-out crowds inother cities.

The Madison County Chapter is screening the film at the Madison County Public Library of Berea (319 Chestnut St.) at 6:30 p.m. on November 19th and also in Room 108 of EKU's library in Richmond at 6 p.m. on November 9th.  The event is open to the public.  Admission is free but donations to KFTC are appreciated.  We hope you can join us!

The 4th Annual Berea Solar Tour will be held Saturday October 3 in conjunction with the National Solar Tour. Thirteen Berea homes and other buildings that use solar energy will be open for public viewing and conversation with the owners. A guided bus tour of some of the sites, a car caravan to a Garrard County off-the-grid home, and three public presentations on home solar energy use and energy conservation round out the day.

The Madison County Chapter of KFTC will be hosting a workshop as part of the event called "Clean Energy, Green Jobs."  The workshop will focus on KFTC's campaign to stop a coal-burning power plant and describe how an equivalent investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy could generate more jobs and great economic development to meet the area's energy needs.  The workshop will be from 4 to 5 p.m. at 302 Center Street.  Please join us if you can!

The Solar Tour provides an opportunity to learn from homeowners who are already using solar, and to consider whether some type of solar energy makes sense for your house.

Click here for more information and a copy of the Tour Guide with times and locations of the solar presentations and guided tours, and locations and descriptions of the solar open houses.

Members of the Madison County Chapter held their chapter annual meeting last night in Berea.  “The annual chapter meeting is a great opportunity to reflect on the previous years work and gear up to move the Commonwealth’s democracy forward,” said Madison County KFTC Chapter co-chair Jeff From.

The first hour of the meeting focused on business that all KFTC chapters handle once a year:  electing new chapter officers, setting issue priorities for the upcoming year, and more.  The second hour featured a conversation and questions with State Representative Harry Moberly (D-Richmond). 

The group talked to Rep. Moberly about everything from clean energy to voting rights.  Rep. Moberly had positive comments to make about KFTC’s work in interjecting our social and economic justice issues into the public dialogue.  He was also positive about many of the issues we raised and agreed to meet with us again before the session to dig even deeper into our issues.

“I always look forward to meetings when our local elected officials are speaking.  Not only does it give us a chance to talk about issues that are important to us, it also helps us develop a good rapport with our representatives in Frankfort,” said Berea KFTC member Toby Wilcher.  “During the legislative session, when KFTC members spend a great amount of time lobbying legislators from all over Kentucky, we have a built-in, cordial working relationship with our own legislators, which often proves to be very beneficial,” she added.