A coalition of community and environmental groups say the incomes of LG&E/KU customers have not kept up with the increasing cost of electricity in Kentucky. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

Records show LMPD's chief ordered an investigation of whether an officer improperly used the city’s license plate reader data to aid federal immigration enforcement just 4 days after KyCIR alerted LMPD & requested comment, then expanded investigation after publication. From @morganwatkins.lpm.org

Louisville Metro Council members voted on a handful of high-profile ordinances Thursday night, including an attempt to prevent federal agents from wearing masks and an extension of property tax break for Churchill Downs until 2055.

After a UPS plane crashed in Louisville killing 14 people and injuring dozens more, AI-generated posts flooded social media with disinformation. @justinhicks.lpm.org of KPR looks at the growing phenomenon:

Families of victims who died in the UPS plane crash in Louisville filed the first wrongful death lawsuit on Wednesday.

Former state Rep. Charles Booker is making a third run for U.S. Senate in Kentucky. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social #kysen

Countering a House GOP leader, Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers said at a Republican supermajority caucus retreat that he will not push for an income tax cut in the coming #kyga26 session, advising lawmakers to adhere to budget trigger rules.

The University of Kentucky received a $150 million gift from the Gatton Foundation, the largest ever for UK, which will establish a university arts district. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

University of Kentucky 'hellbender' study uses new detection method to try to find salamanders’ current habitats. From @wkmsfm.bsky.social

Last year, the federal government issued a new rule requiring self-insured coal mines to prove they can cover 100% of future black lung disease costs. Two Democrats say they’ve heard the Trump administration isn’t following the rule. From @justinhicks.lpm.org

A judge heard lawyers’ arguments Monday in a years-long lawsuit brought by a Jewish woman against Kentucky’s near-total abortion ban, arguing it is a violation of her religious freedom. From @morganwatkins.lpm.org at KyCIR:

Murray State University is facing a lawsuit from the school’s former provost.

Heckbent, the 501(c)(4) run by Gov. Andy Beshear’s top political strategist, reported raising more than $1.3 million in 2024 — but not the identity of its donors.

Government contractors, health-related groups and the medical marijuana industry were among hundreds of organizations that spent $9.1 million lobbying Kentucky’s executive branch agencies on policy in the fiscal year ending this summer. #kyga26

Vice President J.D. Vance visited Fort Campbell the day before Thanksgiving, where he spoke to the troops with Kid Rock.

In a budget year some politicians are signaling could be a tricky one, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg says he’s hoping to secure more big-ticket investments from the state legislators in Frankfort. From @sylviaruthg.lpm.org #kyga26

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and 20 other governors and attorneys general are challenging the Trump administration’s new Department of Housing and Urban Development policies in court. From @sylviaruthg.lpm.org

East Kentucky Power will accept a lower rate increase under a settlement with Attorney General Russell Coleman’s office. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

Today, Gov. Andy Beshear and the AGs/governors of 19 other state and DC sued the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development over the Trump administration's changes to these long-term housing programs

Warren County Public Schools becomes first Kentucky school district to hire an SRO detective. From WKU:

As emergency crews clean up the wreckage of a fatal UPS plane crash in Louisville, nearly 100 businesses near the airport still aren’t allowed free access to their property. While they wait, government officials have activated some aid programs. From @justinhicks.lpm.org

The University of Pikeville proposed a regional disaster relief center to a Kentucky General Assembly task force, which would cost $11 million. From @weku.bsky.social

The longtime mayor of Martin resigned on Friday afternoon following a state investigation into allegations of misappropriated funds from the northwest Tennessee city that implicated him, his daughter and the city’s head of economic development.

Kentucky takes eSearch Warrant program online statewide after yearslong rollout. From @doperle.bsky.social at @wkmsfm.bsky.social #kyga26

Kentucky wetlands, streams, and drinking water at risk under proposed changes to Clean Water Act. From @derekparham.bsky.social at WKU: #kyga26

President Donald Trump's administration is capping funding for long-term housing programs, a move that worries homeless service providers in Louisville and throughout Kentucky. From @byrobertor.lpm.org #kyga26

A GOP state legislator has proposed a bill to force Kentucky police departments to work with an ICE task force program. From @hannahsaad.bsky.social at @wkmsfm.bsky.social

In case you missed it: WKMS News Director @doperle.bsky.social was on All Things Considered on Thursday highlighting the latest album from Grammy Award-winning musician Chris Thile, who has ties to the western Kentucky area.

Eastern Kentucky is full of isolated, rural towns that have experienced decline alongside the coal industry. But some who want to stick around are trying to reverse that by revitalizing the region’s downtown spaces. From @weku.bsky.social

Kentucky produced 24.3 million tons of coal last year, down 14% from 2023. Kentucky ranked first among states in coal production for much of the 1970s and 1980s, but is now ranked seventh. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

A newly released preliminary investigation has found cracks in hardware meant to hold the left engine to the UPS cargo plane that crashed, killing and injuring dozens of people in Louisville. From @justinhicks.lpm.org

The chair of the Kentucky Public Service Commission asked Kentucky Power executives to explain to electricity customers why they need to pay higher utility bills for a coal plant in West Virginia. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

Toyota make a nearly $1 billion investment in U.S. plants, including its Georgetown plant in Kentucky. From @weku.bsky.social

With a lawsuit brewing, UPS Airlines President Bill Moore joined Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg Tuesday to offer support for families and businesses impacted by the deadly plane crash two weeks ago. From @sylviaruthg.lpm.org

A coal miner was killed at a West Virginia mine earlier this month. The mine is owned by Alliance Resource Partners, which is led and owned by Joe and Kelly Craft of Kentucky. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

Kentucky refugees among those suffering from loss of SNAP food assistance now due to Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill.' From WKU:

Kentucky Power has reached a proposed settlement with the state’s industrial customers on the utility's proposal to preserve its half of a West Virginia coal plant beyond 2028. The Sierra Club wants the PSC to reject it, saying the old coal plant is expensive and will lead to higher utility bills.

After Kentucky school district officials spoke out against a constitutional amendment to allow public dollars to go toward private schools using an official account, GOP lawmakers are calling for criminal penalties for future use of public resources for advocacy. From @sylviaruthg.lpm.org #kyga26

Horse trainer and Democrat Dale Romans has announced his candidacy for Mitch McConnell’s open Senate seat, facing a crowded field of #kysen candidates ahead of the May primary. @sylviaruthg.lpm.org of KPR spoke with the self-described centrist and "independent Democrat” at his Churchill Downs barn:

The Kentucky General Assembly's artificial intelligence task force made recommendations heading into the 2026 legislative session that begins in January. From @doperle.bsky.social at @wkmsfm.bsky.social #kyga26

Gov. Beshear says Kentuckians should have full SNAP benefits restored by the end of November. From WKU:

Even as the longest shutdown in U.S. history has come to an end, food banks and other non-profits say they expect demand to continue in the coming weeks and throughout the holiday season as low-income Kentuckians get back on their feet. From WKU: #kyga26

Once rivals in their 2007 contest for the state's top office, former Kentucky Governors Steve Beshear and Ernie Fletcher exchange praises at a chamber conference event. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social at @weku.bsky.social

Kentucky GOP Congressman Thomas Massie has secured the petition signatures needed to force a House vote on releasing all Department of Justice files on Jeffrey Epstein, saying he won't go along with "protecting pedophiles."

President Donald Trump’s administration has promised financial relief for soybean farmers when the federal government reopens. The hardwood lumber industry, which has also been struggling with impacts from Trump’s tariffs, wants to be included. From @justinhicks.lpm.org

Kentucky GOP lawmakers appeared to disagree Monday on whether the state should further cut the income tax rate next year, despite failing to meet the budget trigger for tax cuts this past summer. From @sylviaruthg.lpm.org #kyga26

An energy analyst told the Kentucky Public Service Commission in a filing last week that it should reject Kentucky Power’s plan to keep its half of a West Virginia coal plant past 2028, saying it's too costly for customers. From @tatecurtis.bsky.social of @weku.bsky.social

Crews still cleaning up oil dumped into south Louisville waters by UPS plane crash. From @morganwatkins.lpm.org of KyCIR:

Twin brothers were indicted in Louisville this summer on more than 50 charges related to child sex abuse allegations, stretching back nearly two decades. The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting has a new podcast on their 19-month investigation of the abuse & the women who fought for justice.

Jim Higdon, an owner of Kentucky-based Cornbread Hemp, said McConnell's hemp provision in the CR “will eliminate every product made by Cornbread Hemp” and put his and every other CBD company/hemp farmer in America out of business.