♪ ♪ >> We trust the voters of Kentucky to make a decision.

>> How the future of Kentucky's education system could be changing.

>> What happens in the states to follow his lead?

>> What we know about Governor Beshear's trip to Washington, D.C., to discuss marijuana reform.

They're spending a lot this session.

Lawmakers are proposing to spend billions of dollars on one time projects where some of the money could be going.

>> It's such a confidence builder, no matter what level they find themselves to be a.

>> And these kids are ready to rock.

>> Production of Kentucky Edition is made possible in part by the KU Team Millennium Fund.

♪ ♪ Good evening and welcome to Kentucky EDITION on this Monday.

March 18th, I'm Laura Rogers filling in for Renee Shaw.

Thank you for joining us.

>> The debate over the future of Kentucky's education system is moving from the statehouse to the ballot box.

Both chambers of the General Assembly passed House Bill 2 last week as Kentucky additions.

June Leffler reports the ballot measure.

We'll ask voters if they want future lawmakers to explore school choice or put the whole idea to rest.

That begins tonight's legislative update.

>> Come November, Kentucky INS will answer this question.

Should the state be able to give public dollars to nonpublic schools?

If voters say yes, then lawmakers could decide what they'll pay for.

That could be voucher programs that subsidize private tuition for the opening of charter schools.

>> Certainly we're you know, we're continuing to see a growth in in those that are choosing a private schools.

Both religious and nonreligious, private schools.

You know, there's been an explosion in, you know, homeschool co-op.

There's just a lot of educational opportunities that are out there.

>> Kentuckians have options, but not nearly enough.

Proponents say, but with more funding, more private schools could open up and more students could go there.

>> If your income is not high enough or depending on what part of the state you might live in, your choices are very limited.

And our hope would be after passing this amendment to the Kentucky Constitution, we would be able to increase the opportunities for all Kentucky INS across income levels and across the state.

>> The what would that mean for the public schools?

We already have.

>> This is not about school, a choice.

It's about schools.

Cheese because schools choose who they admit to private schools.

Public schools don't have that option.

Public schools have to take all students and should take all students.

So our issue is why would you fund a system?

It's Duke.

Look at it for one thing to have 2 different systems.

Why would you fund system?

That doesn't have the same accountability, the same responsibility that our public schools too.

>> The General Assembly has signed off on school choice legislation before, but those have been overturned in state courts.

>> They tried House bill 5.63, which was, you know, private school tax credits, which is another name for vouchers.

We want unanimously Supreme Court level.

You know, it says very clearly unconstitutional.

They filed House Bill 9, which was funding private charter schools.

We see them.

We want to Franklin Circuit court.

>> That's why voters would have to sign off on a ballot measure that would change the state's constitution.

The Kentucky House passed House Bill 2 Wednesday in a 65 to 32 vote.

But ultimately the decision we're asking today is do we have faith?

Do we trust the voters of Kentucky to make a decision?

Are we here for?

But they may not agree with us.

They may not agree for our particular position is.

>> My vote today is going to be the put my faith and trust in the voters.

The Commonwealth, Kentucky, to make this decision.

>> 12 Republicans joined Democrats to oppose the measure.

Many of those Republicans come from rural counties where they might not have a private school.

>> In my district.

Those options are not available.

Will I lose a lot of students in my district?

I don't think I lose.

I don't think I lose it.

But I do think I will lose funding.

>> The Senate passed the bill in a 27 to 8 vote Friday for Kentucky edition of John Leffler.

>> Governor Andy Beshear said last week that he does not want to see public dollars go to private schools and that he will campaign for Kentuckians to vote no on the ballot measure in November.

The Kentucky Board of Education is meeting today to interview finalists for the state's next education commissioner.

The 3 candidates are buddy Barry current superintendent of immense immense independent schools in Henry County.

Robby Fletcher, who leads Lawrence County Schools and Jim Flynn, the executive director of the Kentucky Association of Schools, the Board of Education hopes to name a new commissioner before the 2024 General Assembly session wraps up the next education commissioner will be the first to require Senate confirmation following the passage of a new law last year.

Members from the Kentucky House and Senate met today to begin reconciling their versions of the state's two-year budget.

One of the budget Bills, House Bill, one exclusively funds, one-time projects using money from Kentucky's rainy day fund on Friday.

Our panelists on comment on Kentucky help break down the bill.

How much is it and where is it going?

>> They're spending a lot the session.

I mean, it's it's or at least their proposed.

They're proposing to spend a lot of money it's 1.7 additional funds but total from the Budget Reserve Trust fund.

It's more than 3.5 billion.

I mean, that is a lot of that was not in the House plan.

Rather slapped a record in the house was one So we'll see.

We'll see maybe a move that back a little But it's a lot of money spent and a lot of it is on these kind of like.

>> You can come like material projects, something of a like infrastructure and transportation and >> and buildings and and sort of.

I kind of goodies for universities.

Just a lot of Stephen, there was talk about some of those about 100 million dollars over 2 years to revitalize downtown Louisville.

>> The different types of projects, though, really interesting.

And this, yes, you're going to see your ter tourism avenues.

The Belvedere updates to that.

But an interesting one that caught my eye was the community care center that's actually going towards the homeless population.

So that's not necessarily revitalization of downtown buildings or infrastructure that's addressing the homeless problem to 150 million dollars to relocate.

>> Nku Chase Law and UK College of Medicine's Northern Kentucky campus to downtown Covington and all of the virus building.

It kind of.

>> Not take sot negatively, but checks off a lot of boxes constituencies like Nku UK downtown Covington.

It's also and Senate and our chair Chris McDaniel's district.

So we'll see if you know he has to get over.

Get over the hump.

>> Austin, the Senate budget did pick up on a proposal from Governor Andy Beshear dad, a 13th monthly check.

2 retired state workers who have not gotten the cost of living adjustment in a long time.

>> Yeah, I think it's been more than a decade for these people.

They've really been clamoring for something.

It's not a permanent adjustment, but it is 75 million dollars and its tiered.

So the less you make of the more you get and the longer that you've been retired, the more you get as well.

>> Although no decisions have been finalized.

Conversations about the budget are ongoing.

There are only a few legislative days left in the 2024.

General Assembly.

A bill that failed to pass out of committee last week was given another Chance House Bill 2.55.

Seeks to repeal Kentucky's labor protections for 16 17 year-olds backers of the bill say doing away with those requirements which are more strict than federal standards means teenagers would have a chance to make more money.

Critics say without those protections their bosses could exploit them.

A Senate committee voted not to move the bill forward on Thursday.

A day later in a specially called committee meeting.

The bill was back on the agenda with no changes to the text.

One senator who wasn't present on Thursday voted for the bill and Senator Mike Wilson who had voted no change his mind and voted yes.

The bill passed committee by a vote of 7 to 5 having already passed the full House.

The bill now heads to the full Senate for final consideration.

A lawmaker says she wants state employees to use their sick days for illness not to care for a new baby.

That's why state and amaze Bledsoe, a Republican from Lexington says she's proposing legislation that would give state government workers up to 4 weeks of paid leave after birth or adoption.

And 2 weeks for foster care or kinship care placement supporters call Senate Bill one.

42 pro family Pro employee and pro taxpayer and say it will help attract and retain workers, which has been a challenge for the state.

>> During my time on City Counil Council work with a number of incredible young professionals.

I watched him get married again their families and saw firsthand how many of them struggled to say that patients time work while they were sick trying to figure out how they could forgo vacations or the other hours.

To find out how that compares those first few weeks at home with their cuts.

I didn't think it was ideal for them for the employees, for us, for their families.

I don't have to tell you how pro family it is.

You should know that the policy shows that we are firm in our commitment to families and we support them in the early months.

The policy is pro employee too.

But providing for weeks we ensure that employees actually use their sick time for when they're sick.

They don't bring workplace.

That's a better environment for everybody.

>> Kentucky has done an excellent job in recent years.

In a passing laws defending the unborn and protecting unborn life.

And we support and applaud all of those efforts.

The other side of that coin when it comes to truly building a culture of life, the values life requires us to support families and vulnerable circumstances and to stand with them through the challenges they face.

The absolute least we can do is to do right by those who work directly for the Commonwealth.

>> I watched many great law enforcement officers.

Least a government take roles with cities and counties and other positions within the private sector for a variety of reasons, nothing less important than benefits like paid family leave.

As time has gone on.

We know that state government is somewhat struggle to recruit, retain quality law enforcement for a variety of reasons.

If we want good, strong mental health with our law enforcement and a strong workforce, I think we can all agree.

We want to see our families who have members that you serve our commonwealth grow and put roots down here.

Paid family leave is just another tool the state can use and recruiting and retaining law enforcement.

>> Some panel members say they hope the bill will lead to paid parental leave for other family situations like giving foster care families time to bond.

The bill was for discussion only no vote was taken.

More than 300,000.

Kentuckians have been charged with a cannabis related crime.

And the last 2 decades, according to Kentucky's administrative Office of the Courts in Twenty-twenty to President Joe Biden encouraged governors to pardon those with marijuana charges.

Governor Andy Beshear began allowing anyone convicted of a simple marijuana possession charge with an otherwise clean record to apply for a pardon.

On Friday, the governor was invited to Washington, D.C., to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris for a roundtable discussion on marijuana reform.

>> We have issued a call to action for states to pardon.

>> These types of offenses, that particular possession.

That is why we have asked the governor of Kentucky to be here.

The 2 governments here who has basically parted to has addressed the convictions of people in Kentucky with simple marijuana possession convictions and they can now on par.

And so he's going to talk with us about that as a model for the state can and should do.

And I'm challenging the state's 2 bombs.

Lee has said many times.

I believe I think we've all been disabled believed nobody should have to go to do this, too.

And what we need to do is recognize that far too many people have been sent to jail for simple marijuana possession.

And the impact this has been in particular black Americas and that he knows are 4 times 4 times more likely to be arrested, arrested for marijuana possession and the disparity is even larger.

When you talk about this as a black man team.

So this is an issue that must be addressed is work that I've done over the years.

It is work that we are also doing is in the station.

I'm going to be here.

Thank I said earlier to the table and you have been an extraordinary leader in many ways not only to people who time and on this issue, I would like to just publicly on and thank you for being so >> forward leaning.

And having the courage to challenge certain traditions and critically evaluate whether what we've been doing this smart.

And when we do the smarter and your leadership, I think is inspirational to a lot of others that make you for that.

Thank you.

>> Friday's discussion was moderated by Grammy-nominated rapper Fat Joe and included individuals who had been pardoned from marijuana convictions.

♪ Humana and several other Louisville based businesses have announced plans to downsize and relocate leaving some major holes in downtown office spaces.

Kelsey Starks discusses what's next for downtown Louisville with leaders at Greater Louisville Inc. >> So many businesses, it seems to be leaving and it seems a change in the trajectory of downtown where where do you all see it going from your?

Yeah.

Yeah.

That.

>> It's a good question.

And it's not a question that you need to Louisville.

So when we look across the country, downtowns in general are having to rethink and get creative about what the next chapter looks like.

I will say as it relates to some of the recent announcements pertaining to Humana and 5th 3005th, I think that more of a reallocation of existing assets.

Then it is a total departure from the market.

And I think those are 2 very different things.

So any man is case the same number of people will be coming downtown.

So the water side building, it's just that those people will be consolidated in a different physical footprint.

The same is arguably true for 5th 3005th, which is moving just adjacent to downtown in the new area.

So I think from unemployment standpoint, it's it's sort of a encouraging that that base remains in the downtown General area.

But your question about how we rethink and and look at downtown generally, it's going to it's going to result and a lot of conversations and a lot of creative thinking about what to do with existing office space and had a creative we re adapt that to make it relevant for the, you know, foreseeable future.

>> Yeah.

And you know, that is the conversation that's going on.

And as you mentioned, it's not just unique to Louisville.

A lot of places dealing with this, particularly after COVID and work from home.

But there are a lot of vacant spaces in downtown.

What are you all hearing from corporations about where they want to locate?

Is it and it's not in the downtown area right?

>> Well, it just sort of depends on the industry and the company you're engaging I think in some cases a fat physical office president is important but in many cases in particular because of like ongoing tight labor market that we have companies are having to get creative about how they retain employees.

And one of the ways that they're doing that is through the offering of hybrid work.

I think as more time goes goes along, we'll see a fluctuation.

What that looks like and the cases I think out there and in future years that, you know, the fit, the physical interaction that you have with co-workers watercooler discussions, brainstorming, that all happens much more organically when you're in the same physical space together, the downtown or in any office.

>> Kelsey Starks spoke with Gli and other city leaders about their plans to re.

Imagine downtown, including a new marketing strategy to recruit businesses.

You can see the full interview on K E T Dot Org and look for new episodes of End Side.

Louisville on Sundays at noon 11 Central.

>> Right here on KET.

♪ >> It's March Madness and more people than ever can legally bet on basketball games.

>> Since the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for expansion in 2018 legal sports betting on college games has spread to 38 states, but it only became legal in Kentucky last year, according to the American Gaming Association, nearly 900 million dollars has been wagered on sports in Kentucky that's generated 16 million dollars in tax revenue.

The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments are one of the most bet on events of the year.

Wagers are expected to near 3 billion dollars this year alone.

Some UK fans are betting their team will be cutting down the Nets.

Kentucky is a 3 seed in the South region and will take on 14 seed Oakland on Friday night coach John Calipari's says he hopes a few tweaks will help his young team improve on defense.

The cats had an early exit from the SEC tournament after losing to Texas A&M and the quarter-finals.

And congratulations to another team from the Commonwealth, Western Kentucky University defeated UTEP 78 to 71 to win the conference USA Tournament.

The game help secure the Hilltoppers a spot in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2013.

The 15 see WKU will take on 2 seed Marquette Friday afternoon at 2 o'clock Eastern.

One central go tops, go.

♪ In Southern Kentucky, a real-life school of rock professional musicians nurturing the talents of musically inclined youth giving them the confidence to take the stage and to the spotlight.

We spent some time at Bowling Green Rock Band Academy.

I asked law is still in elementary school but already a rock star in the making.

I love to listen to one that I Love Led Just call her a kid before her time on the hit, the heart.

>> I love like the 70's, the 80's.

She also loves music and performing on stage other than the keyboard.

I was messing around with day one.

I was and I decided, hey, I want to take a lesson.

That was the beginning of a rapid progression of talent law now performing and the advanced Paisley Band at Bowling Green Rock Band Academy.

>> It's the most fun you can have and still call it work.

It's pretty great to see them be able to grab what instrument that is.

That gets them excited about music in such an early age match.

>> De Boer in Jordan, Weiss created the Academy in 2019.

Both of them lifelong musician.

>> My mom has pictures of me sitting on the kitchen floor with spoons in my hand, banging on pots and pans.

It's the only thing I ever wanted to do.

Why studied at Berkeley College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, before taking his musical talent to major cities around the country.

>> I lived in Detroit in New York and Boston, Chicago and Nashville.

And then population 2000, Auburn, Kentucky.

I met my wife in Nashville.

She's from Auburn.

So I'm here.

>> Fateful decision that would impact the lives of young musicians in Southcentral, Kentucky, including that of his son.

Solomon, now 15 and a high school sophomore.

>> It's just exciting doing it with my friends and bandmates and really, really talented musicians just means a lot to a lot.

>> What began as a summer camp through into a yearlong for semester programs where kids learn how to jam together.

>> The semester, 90 of Learning together in a group and then by the end of each of these semesters, all of these groups that we've been working with are primed and ready to go to take the stage.

♪ >> Energetic guy.

My whole life, though.

>> And Parker is a budding rock star at 16.

I love being around the music scene and just people that enjoy the same thing.

I do.

I stay up all day and all night plans.

>> And it's what he's playing that inspired the name of the band.

>> And tickets are set up for one line said same clipper 100 and the Big Red Dog is getting a taste of the spotlight at the winter showcase.

We've got some that are.

>> When ready to get on that stage because they cannot wait to show off what they can do to just Warren performers.

>> And then you've got the other side that are just super nervous.

Approvals are.

>> It's open.

What comes after the performance that brings the most satisfaction.

>> They just feel a little prouder.

They feel stronger.

They walk a little taller sometimes it doesn't go as perfectly as they would want to go.

But honestly, that's part of learning experience, too.

>> If you're going to be a musician, you're going to have to learn what it's like to play a wrong note in front of a roomful of people.

>> And academy aims to recognize nurture and polish.

These musical talent.

>> A lot of them are prodigy level talent, sunny overachievers and planning to go on with their music heard from him.

That me also strives to promote good communication commitment to a gold and a supportive community of creative.

>> Was in my opinion, the best way for them to discover themselves.

Discover who they are also maybe find their tribe or 5 people like them.

So they realize they're not alone in this world.

>> Just the feeling the lights on I don't know how to describe it is also and as they say, you're never too young to homes.

You're on.

♪ >> Bowling Green Rock Band Academy has also joined forces with other arts organizations to create the BG Amplified Foundation.

The nonprofit offers scholarships and financial aid to help children participate in theater music.

And Dan.

The final game for a legendary coach.

Plus historic severe weather.

Toby Gibbs has a look at this week and Kentucky history.

♪ >> Civil war, destruction and violence continued in Kentucky as could veteran forces part the Raleigh County Courthouse on March 20st 18.

64 on the same day union troops.

But the Bath County Courthouse as Confederates invaded.

Tornadoes swept through Kentucky on March 18, 1920.

>> One beginning in Gallatin, Tennessee traveled into Kentuckyian killed 39 people in Allan Baron in a row and Metcalf counties and destroyed 150 homes.

On March.

21st 19, 0, 6, Governor, J CW backup signed legislation creating the eastern Kentucky State normal school.

The school would later change its name to eastern Kentucky University.

University of Kentucky basketball coach Adolph Rupp coach in his last NCAA Tournament championship game on March 1919, 66 as Kentucky lost to Texas Western and Rupp coached his last game for Kentucky on 3/18/1972 as Kentucky fell the Florida state in the NCAA Tournament.

>> The Kentucky General Assembly officially OK, my old Kentucky home by Steven Foster as Kentucky State saw on March 1919, 28.

And that's a look back at this week in Kentucky history.

I'm Cole Higgins.

>> We will be hearing that song before too long as Derby Day approaches the first Saturday in May.

Access to health care can be a challenging Kentuckyian not just in rule areas of the state.

Coming up tomorrow on Kentucky Edition, we will show how a new multi-million dollar hospital expansion is filling the health care gap and one of the states most populated cities.

We do hope that you'll join us again tomorrow, Tuesday night at 6.30, Eastern 5.30, central for Kentucky Edition where we inform connect and inspire.

>> Subscribe to our Kentucky Edition email newsletters and watch full episodes and clips set KET Dot Org.

You can also find Kentucky Edition on the PBS video app on your mobile device and smart TV and send us your story ideas.

We love to hear from you.

Public affairs at Aetn Dot Org and also give us a follow on Facebook X, formerly known as Twitter and on Instagram to stay in the loop again.

We appreciate you so much for joining us this evening.

We hope to see you back here tomorrow.

Have a good night.

♪