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<p>Large “hyperscale” data centers are spreading nationwide, and questions have grown about their true costs and benefits. These projects often move quickly and with limited transparency, leaving state and local leaders and affected residents little time to assess their full economic, social and environmental impacts. Among the many uncertainties is the basic question: Who will […]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://kypolicy.org/who-will-pay-for-kentucky-data-centers/">Questions Grow About Who Will Pay the Cost for Big Data Centers in Kentucky</a> appeared first on <a href="https://kypolicy.org">Kentucky Center for Economic Policy</a>.</p>
<p>This model ordinance, developed collaboratively with Vital Strategies, is intended as a tool for Kentucky counties to establish a county opioid abatement advisory council to advise and make recommendations on the allocation and use of local opioid abatement funds. The comprehensive model is aligned with identified best practices, including The Principles for the Use of Funds […]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://kypolicy.org/opioid-abatement-advisory-council-model-ordinance/">Model Kentucky Ordinance Establishing a County Opioid Abatement Advisory Council</a> appeared first on <a href="https://kypolicy.org">Kentucky Center for Economic Policy</a>.</p>
<p>School districts across Kentucky face challenges as they craft their budgets for the 2026-2027 year, and falling state funding is a primary reason why. Recent projections from the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) show that two-thirds of Kentucky school districts expect to receive less from the state to support the core funding formula (known as […]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://kypolicy.org/seek-payments-decline-in-2027/">Most Kentucky School Districts Will Receive Less in State SEEK Payments Next Year</a> appeared first on <a href="https://kypolicy.org">Kentucky Center for Economic Policy</a>.</p>
Nearly half of Kentucky's unemployed claimants are exhausting their unemployment benefits before landing new jobs, with a 46 percent exhaustion rate approaching 2013 recession levels — a crisis caused by 2022 legislation that reduced maximum benefits from 26 weeks to 16 weeks.
A Kentucky Center for Economic Policy report warns mass deportations could shrink the state's workforce by over 112,000 workers, causing severe labor shortages and higher consumer costs, particularly affecting restaurants and agriculture.
FCPS Superintendent Demetrus Liggins announced a 10% pay cut amid the district's financial crisis stemming from accounting errors dating back to 2008. The district is implementing $1.9 million in staff reductions and hours cuts across administrative departments.
Kentucky's population grew 2.2% between 2020 and 2025, but deaths now outnumber births while international immigration drives most growth. However, escalating ICE enforcement threatens this demographic trend.
Fayette County Public Schools faces a financial crisis rooted in 25 years of declining state education funding, inflation pressures and the loss of federal COVID relief money. The latest state budget worsens the situation while restricting the district's ability to raise local revenue.
Rural Kentuckians are being hit hardest by a spike in gas prices now exceeding $4 per gallon, with the state experiencing the nation's steepest price increases at 42.5% year-over-year, according to a Kentucky Center for Economic Policy analysis.
Central Kentucky's regional economy added over 20,000 jobs between 2019 and 2024, driven by manufacturing and pharmaceutical gains, while Kentucky's broader economy faces stalled job growth according to a Kentucky Center for Economic Policy analysis.
Researchers say new federal work requirements for SNAP food assistance won't increase employment as intended, with findings showing Kentucky could lose coverage for up to 114,000 residents.
Kentucky's 2026 legislative session ended Wednesday with Republicans overriding nearly all of Gov. Beshear's vetoes and passing over 170 bills, including a $1.7 billion rainy day fund spending plan and controversial impeachment measures against state judges.
A new report from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy warns that mass deportations would shrink Kentucky's workforce by 112,700 workers, driving up costs for food, housing and other essentials while threatening restaurants, construction and agriculture.
The Kentucky General Assembly secured funding to maintain SNAP but failed to expand food assistance programs or fully fund senior meals during its 2026 session, despite worsening hunger affecting more than 753,000 Kentuckians.
Kentucky has experienced no net job growth over the past two years as the pandemic recovery has ended and economic headwinds including tariffs and policy uncertainty have mounted, while labor force participation continues to decline.
The Kentucky General Assembly passed HB 869 on the final day of the 2026 session, approving new tax breaks for real estate developers and fuel producers without public input or full committee review, drawing criticism for opaque decision-making that reduces state revenues by $74 million annually.
The Kentucky legislature's Republican supermajority overrode nearly all of Gov. Andy Beshear's 32 vetoes Tuesday, clearing the way for bills including a Mitch McConnell statue in the Capitol and controversial budget measures.
Kentucky's chief justice warned that a newly passed state budget will force significant court layoffs despite overall funding increases, threatening specialty courts for drug and mental health treatment.
Kentucky lawmakers passed nearly 80 bills Wednesday before the deadline for veto-proof legislation, including major Medicaid and gambling reforms and a bill to transform Kentucky State University into a polytechnic institution.
Kentucky's GOP-controlled legislature passed a $31 billion executive branch budget with a 73-21 House vote and unanimous Senate approval, but the spending plan sparked partisan conflict over education and Medicaid funding levels.
Kentucky's Supreme Court Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert warned that the General Assembly's judicial branch budget will force significant layoffs and threaten specialty courts, as funding falls $10.3 million short of the amount needed to maintain current operations.
Kentucky's General Assembly passed a $31 billion two-year state budget that increases school funding 2 percent but rejects Gov. Beshear's calls for educator raises and universal pre-K, prompting criticism from Democratic lawmakers.
Kentucky drivers are paying $175 million monthly in additional costs from Iran war-driven gas price increases, with the state experiencing the fourth-worst price surge nationally at $46.69 extra per driver monthly.
Kentucky's finalized state budget includes a 9.1% cut to the Department for Community Based Services, the deepest reduction in over a decade, threatening foster care and child welfare services amid a crisis that has forced hundreds of children into unsafe emergency placements.
Kentucky lawmakers approved millions in sales tax subsidies for Churchill Downs and Keeneland in a last-minute legislative maneuver, allowing the racetracks to retain state sales taxes during race meets while state agencies face significant budget cuts.
Kentucky lawmakers approved a two-year state budget cutting most agencies by 7% while leaving Medicaid underfunded by $691 million and providing minimal increases to K-12 school funding. The agreement freezes funding for higher education at reduced levels and includes no cost-of-living adjustments for retirees.
The Bowling Green Independent School District is sharing updates on Kentucky's budget bill and expressing priorities for district funding as the state legislature works through budget negotiations.
Democratic speakers have cited concerning health statistics for Kentucky women and girls, calling on state officials to take action to improve health outcomes and address healthcare disparities.
Kentucky Democrats are seeking to repeal the state's right-to-work laws, a move that would strengthen union protections and collective bargaining power in the state.
A Kentucky bill that would restrict food assistance eligibility stalled in a Senate committee after opponents warned it would remove thousands from the program amid existing federal benefit cuts.
Kentucky lawmakers debated Senate Bill 257, which would tighten SNAP eligibility requirements by eliminating broad-based categorical eligibility, affecting an estimated 40,000 Kentuckians at a time when federal changes have already reduced participation by 81,000.
The Kentucky Senate unanimously passed a $31 billion two-year budget that spends $400 million more than the House version while including a cost-of-living "13th check" for retirees and 2% raises for state employees.
The Kentucky Senate unanimously passed a $31 billion state budget Wednesday that includes cuts to most state agencies while protecting K-12 schools, pensions and law enforcement, and provides a one-time payment to state retirees.
House Bill 732 would allow Kentucky employers to provide limited benefits to workers classified as independent contractors, creating a two-tiered workforce and worsening the state's existing worker misclassification problem.