Five Things to Know Today
— Publisher’s Note —
Good morning! Some important stories I want to point out:
- Helping eastern Kentucky with your wallet – As you know, the eastern part of our state has been hammered by very destructive flooding. This story has links to relief funds that you can donate to. Pull out the wallet and help.
- Bills that are moving – A list of 19 bills that are moving in the General Assembly, both good and bad. Use this to start your own list of bills to watch.
- The passage of massive voting rights bill in Washington – One of the most significant bills passed by the U.S. House. The story includes a list of all the important features in the bill. Will it pass the Senate? Let’s hope so.
As much as it’s easy to be depressed about some things politically, there are actually some good things happening as well. Let’s keep pushing.
Bruce Maples, publisher
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Today’s Five Things to Know
Important bills are moving – here’s a list
As we head into the home stretch of this year’s General Assembly, the pace of legislation has picked up dramatically. Of all the bills getting hearings and votes, here are some of the more important ones and where they stand. (Forward Kentucky)
3/4 update — 157 new vaccination sites to open, bringing total to 567; one-year memorial set Saturday
Also, a detailed update from Rocky Adkins about how the state is dealing with the weather impacts in eastern Kentucky, and what residents should do to help. (Forward Kentucky)
Kentucky bill would ban execution for severely mentally ill
Efforts to ban the application of the death penalty to some people with severe mental illnesses ran into resistance Thursday, but the bill mustered just enough votes to be sent to the Kentucky Senate. (Herald-Leader)
U.S. House Democrats just passed the most important democracy reforms since the 1965 Voting Rights Act
These reforms face a challenging path in the Senate, given Democrats’ narrow majority and the GOP filibuster. But, their adoption is critical for preserving American democracy amid unprecedented attack by Republican extremists both in and outside Congress. (Forward Kentucky)
Inspector general said Elaine Chao misused position, referred case for prosecution
The U.S. Transportation Department’s inspector general’s office investigated Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao for potential violations of ethics rules — and ultimately referred the case for criminal prosecution in late 2020. (Courier-Journal via Forward Kentucky)
Today’s KYGA update
What happened yesterday, what’s planned for today, and the complete published calendar (Forward Kentucky)
Recent Content on Forward Kentucky
[new] indicates item not in a Forward Five before
🔥 indicates high # of reads, social media shares, or both
[New] You can help Eastern Kentucky with your wallet – You can help the people in Eastern Kentucky by donating to one of these three relief funds, or by buying something on an Amazon wish list. (Action)
[New] Keeping guns from those in crisis is as important as protecting the right to ownership – Not everyone gets the chance to look death in the face and come out on the other side with an opportunity to make an impact and save lives. But on September 6, 2018, the opportunity found me when twelve bullets ripped through my body. (Commentary)
Franklin Circuit judge issues injunction blocking three new laws the legislature passed to limit the governor’s emergency powers – “Tthe court believes those decisions should be made based on medical and scientific evidence, not on arbitrary deadlines imposed by statutes irrespective of the spread of the virus.” (News)
Diverse coalition sends letter opposing gutting of open records law – A diverse coalition of forty-nine groups and individuals have sent a letter to the KY Senate asking them to vote no on a bill that would make significant changes to Kentucky’s open records law, which the coalition believes would cause significant damage to the law. (News)
‘Let the workers organize. Let all thoughtful citizens sustain them, for the future of Labor is the future of America.’ – Richard Trumka’s words this week echo those of John L. Lewis, after both their presidents expressed support for labor unions and union membership. (Commentary)
🔥 Credit where due — Repubs in Frankfort pass some GOOD bills – With Repubs controlling pretty much everything in this year’s General Assembly, we give them much grief for some of the horrible bills they sponsor and pass. So, it’s only fair that when they actually pass some GOOD bills, we call those out as well. (Commentary)
🔥 Guess what the minimum wage would be if it kept pace with inflation or productivity? – Lots of politicians like to talk about working for minimum wage and how it wasn’t so bad. So, how much were they actually working for, in TODAY’s dollars? (Policy)
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