♪ ♪ >> A minute who is really just a blank check for the Republicans in the General Assembly.

Do not let them convince you to write it.

>> Democrats say the future of public education is on the ballot.

If children are learning, then we have to have a conversation.

Supporters of amendment 2 on why they think it's good for Kentucky kids.

>> Learn >> about the legendary legacy of gospel singers in Louisville.

Coming up.

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

♪ ♪ >> Good Evening and welcome to Kentucky EDITION on this Wednesday, September, the 25th, I'm Kristine that filling in for Renee Shaw.

Thank you so much for joining us.

41 days to go before Election Day, you'll see amendment 2 on your Kentucky ballot.

>> That amendment, if passed, would add language to the Kentucky Constitution that could allow the Kentucky General Assembly to pass legislation that would mean public money for private schools.

The group Warren County Conservatives is working to rally support for the Amendment's passage.

They held a community forum last night in Bowling Green explaining how they believe it would benefit Kentucky students.

Our Laura Rodgers has a recap, including an interview with the young man who says school choice changed his life.

>> I was really in a educational environment that didn't work well for me.

Winter blends junior was raised in Columbus, Ohio.

He says the voucher program there helped him attend a small private school where he excelled in the classroom.

I was surrounded by poverty, crime and low expectation where I live.

>> And if it weren't for school choice, I don't know where I'd be, but it definitely wouldn't be here talking about this particular issue at a very high level.

>> And that issue is something Kentucky lawmakers could move forward on if amendment 2 passes in November.

All it does is free the hands of legislators and teachers, frankly, to formulate alternate past alternate schools that will serve our kids.

Former Republican Lieutenant Governor Janine hand.

It now serves on the board of directors of the Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy.

The definition of insanity is continuing to do what you're doing and expecting different results.

We need to do something a little different because our scores are read the reading scores the mat proficiency scores are far lower than they should be why a blank says he's also concerned by, quote, dismal and disappointing academic outcomes.

>> And calls a high-quality education.

The great equalizer, no matter where you come from.

>> No matter who you are, no matter what your family did beforehand, if you can be educated, there is no limit to what you can accomplish in the country.

>> Blanks who now lives in Nashville, Tennessee travels the country advocating for school choice policy.

One system cannot simply fit the needs of every single child.

I'm number 2 of 6 kids and each of us had a different educational journey.

Important you.

Kelly Paul is an author and wife to U.S..

Senator Rand Paul speaking in support of amendment 2 saying she believes it would help improve public schools, increasing competition to attract and retain students with competition.

That public schools, my spending millions of dollars on bloated administration budgets.

>> The E I making 58 years our E and it sent tech devices and get back to basics for subject.

>> Those who oppose amendment to express concerns it will drain funding from the current public school system.

Hampton was asked about administrators claims they'll be forced to do more with less these are all great arguments that we need to have where the money is coming from because now we know that nothing is free.

We know this.

However, there is a cost.

2 Kentucky to the kids to the parents, to the teachers of continually continually graduating kids who can't read at the proficiency levels that they should.

He has a blank says parents and students should be leading the conversations surrounding school choice.

It impacts them directly and then indirectly 2030, years from now, it will impact our entire society.

>> For Kentucky edition.

>> I'm Laura Rogers, stop makers and >> the campaign to defeat the school Choice Amendment is also ramping up as are June Leffler reports, education and political leaders say the future of public education is on the line.

>> Public educators and administrators are some of the most vocal critics of amendment 2.

>> This means that voters are being asked to change the Constitution of Kentucky.

To allow the politicians in front of her to the car runs from public schools.

2 private schools that currently have no accountability to the public.

>> Public school superintendents from Western Kentucky say a vote for amendment 2 is a vote against public schools, especially those in more rural counties.

>> The 3%.

Of Kamala and private schools are in 3 games.

If you will know they are Jefferson.

If and 2.

That's where the money is going to go.

Says the 3 counties in Kentucky.

I have no.

Certified K 12 schools.

It really is that.

>> Public schools.

>> We educate all.

We educate years to come to us.

Are we perfect?

You know?

Public schools, private schools are perfect.

We have to figure because there are 2 we do is the best for Billy will continue to do so.

>> Kentucky Democrats are standing alongside these public school leaders saying they are the party that backs public education.

>> A minute who is really just a blank check for the Republicans in the General Assembly.

Do not let them convince you to write it.

If we can find millions of dollars for private schools.

>> We can also give teachers and educators raises if we can find millions of dollars for private schools, we can fund Pre-K and if we can find millions of dollars for private schools, we can lower classroom sizes and fully fund people.

Transportation.

>> The state second in command says while public schools aren't perfect, they are accountable to the public.

That means everyone.

>> They don't sent kids out.

They don't leave families out.

They don't decide that you get to make it in the door.

Don't get to make it in in the door for whatever reason they deem necessary.

Our job is to serve the public.

And so what I would say is, you know, whatever the whatever the complaint, maybe about public education.

Blowing up an entire system.

And creating another system that is not accountable to you with your taxpayer dollars.

It doesn't have to tell you with the superintendent's salary us at the private school is not the answer to that.

>> Kentucky Democrats have united against amendment 2.

No Democratic state lawmaker voted to put the school choice measure on the ballot while Kentucky's Republican Party says it's not getting involved in this ballot measure for Kentucky Edition.

I'm Jen left.

>> Folks on both side of this debate say the ballot measure is not a partisan issue.

More than one in 10 Republican lawmakers voted not to put the school choice amendment on the ballot.

This past legislative session.

Former President Donald Trump says if elected he would raise the tariffs on goods imported from other countries.

This week he vowed to impose a 200% tariff on John Deere equipment made in Mexico.

Reporters asked U.S.

Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky for his reaction.

>> I'm not a fan of tariffs.

They raised prices for one American consumers.

When more of the free trade, the kind of Republican that remembers how many jobs are created by the next 4 years when we engage in.

And so I'm not interested in.

>> Governor Andy Beshear appeared on CNN last night to talk about the presidential race.

He says Vice President Kamala Harris talks about people while Donald Trump talks about himself.

>> Now Donald Trump will talk for an hour and a half or or or an hour and I'll talk mainly about his grievances.

She's out there talking about not just not going back, but how we move forward.

And sometimes it takes awhile to learn your plan over and over a middle class tax cuts of affordable housing.

She is the first presidential candidate that I can remember in my lifetime to address affordable housing.

And it's something that my state in every state is dealing with right now.

I think that's something that people are going to hear and respond to.

>> And Governor Beshear is calling for Sean Mickey Stines to resign as Letcher County sheriff.

According to the Courier Journal, the governor says Stein should resign by Friday or face removal under state law.

Stein's is accused of shooting and killing Judge Kevin Mullins in the Letcher County courthouse last Thursday.

Stein's pleaded not guilty at his arraignment today.

Tonight, there are new calls for a state lawmaker to resign in a statement, Kentucky's Senate Democratic leadership said Representative Daniel Grossberg should step down immediately.

Quote, the recent allegations involving Representative Grossberg are deeply troubling.

No one should be some subjected to harassment or intimidation in any setting.

The Legislative Ethics Commission has been investigating Grossberg since July when the Lexington Herald-Leader began a series of reports detailing alleged inappropriate behavior.

The Democrat from Louisville has denied any wrongdoing and recently said he was seeking treatment to reduce his impulsive behavior.

State Senator Johnny Turner remains in the ICU, but is making progress.

EST majority spokesperson says the Republican lawmaker is still in some pain but remains in good spirits.

Senator Turner crashed a riding lawnmower into an empty pool at his home in Harlan 10 days ago.

The 76 year-old was taken to University of Tennessee Medical Center.

The spokesman says there's they are optimistic turn will continue to make progress.

♪ >> I'm Laura Rogers and it is time for our midweek check-in with Reiland Barton, a senior editor for the nbr States team and Rylan.

Let's begin with state Representative Daniel Gross part.

This is one of those stories that we've been talking about for several weeks now.

There are new calls today, Senate Democratic leadership calling for him to resign to step down.

Joining several others who have voiced the same concern.

Tell us more about that statement that was released today.

>> Yeah, this continues to develop and it's a big step for Senate Democrats to call for him to step down.

Last week, House Democrats were, you know, he's a member of the House of Representatives representatives.

They actually kicked out of their caucus so you won't be able to vote on leadership or or caucus with them.

You know, where they're kind of planning on discussing what bills are coming up.

And last week, Governor Beshear to also call for him to resign so that Democrats really lined up for this and he continues to be defiant, says that he's done nothing wrong here.

He says that what what's been reported by the Lexington Herald-Leader and others is it has been misconstrued but accounts continue to comment.

Last week, their leader, a post, a story about how you've been kicked out of a struggle.

Strip club of how we legislate offered money for sex with somebody there.

So it's it continues to not look good for him and that he he says he's seeking treatment to help deal with his impulsive behavior.

But so far he's not saying that he's going to step down action.

>> And you think about how hard it would be to legislate with members of your own party urging you to step aside.

>> Yeah, it's such a small group of Democrats already.

There could be a different change for us after the election, but there's only 20 Democrats in the House are now out on the right.

>> An issue that's getting a lot of attention as we drop closer to Election Day is an amendment to that will be on the ballot concerning public dollars for private schools.

And we have seen this call it a tweet, but it was on X, I suppose a Republican State lawmaker Re tweeting this satirical video but saying, hey, this isn't sad time.

This is real and it appears to be a humorous attempt at drawing attention to amend that.

To tell us more about the situation a bit sticky there.

>> Yeah, it started out as a as a humorous tweet from somebody and in Pike County who is he was kind of a basing office story that come out, electric County, which county bought an SUV, which the county says that they're using to transport kids to various events and something to hold on.

9 passengers solutions mower money.

But this bill blogger, this person put out a video saying that it's more expensive SUVs and state Lindsay teacher actually retweeted it saying that this is such an example of ways and the system and how lawmakers need to Pass Amendment 2, which is this school Choice Amendment which would allow somebody to go to the non non traditional public education and think about the solution of it.

A little bit of Kentucky Public Radio's so they couldn't find a fact check this and kind of show that this is all a series of misunderstandings here, but also the that this is school choice news taking advantage of these of these tweets and claiming that they're true.

The tweets are still out there.

But this is just and there's that.

It's getting to a little bit of that silly season ahead of the election where one people are on a hair trigger to look for to look for that kind of news.

But also it's something that can confuse voters.

And, you know, this is a big voting could amend the state constitution to change how public dollars to be spent.

Not only well you just for public education, but for some of these public efforts as well, possibly like turns was possibly like that school vouchers.

So that's something all Kentucky INS can weigh in on a number.

>> Yes, so we are seeing that conversation heat up.

We've had several community forums and and all discussions and we're hearing all different kinds of reasons whether to vote yes or no on this amendment.

>> Yeah, this group of superintendents that are really worried about what this would do to the current state of public education in Kentucky because it ultimately leads to a law passing where more kids were currently in public schools will be going to some of these non-traditional schools.

They that lead to these precinct funding for a lot of these public school districts.

They were citing an analysis from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.

It's a progressive group that how does a lot of kind of budget and policy announced season that showed that we look at some other How about a program to work out there and what it would look like in Kentuckyian, you know, and some of the the decreases in funding and also in student enrollment in those areas is stark and if this is the superintendents are saying, well, I think the state needs to do, sir.

They acknowledge that public school system S policy just be that we need to put more funding into not less.

And you know that about your program, for example, the cost of hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

So, yeah, there's that.

But then also some high-profile hosts, a rally in support of the Amendment.

Kelly call White read also from the conservative commentator and all right.

He's rallying support along with a former Lieutenant Governor Jimmy and 2.3 yesterday.

Want to mention trying to get folks who do have those frustrations.

>> Public school system so there's a will see a lot more after this next where we got 5, 6, weeks until Election Day.

This is really the big thing about Kentucky this year.

>> Rylan great talking with you as always.

We really appreciate it.

The 2 are.

>> To Kentucky health care providers are getting millions of dollars from the federal government to combat substance use disorder.

More in tonight's Medical news, the dollars are going to Baptist health care system in Corbin and West Care.

Kentucky near Pikeville over the next 4 years.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says the money is part of a larger 75 million dollar investment in rural health care.

It's designed to create new or expand existing treatments and recovery services fatal drug overdoses have declined in Kentucky in recent years.

Still nearly 2000 Kentuckians died of an overdose last year.

In January.

Lexington received a grant of $850,000 to form a crisis response team made up of the LAX and fire department.

The Lex and Police Department and a full-time mental health professional yesterday.

Mayor Linda Gorton introduced the city of Lexington to the new mental health professional who arrived last month from California for this job.

>> We are taking an enormous step forward in our ability to respond to mental health emergencies.

Earlier this year.

Governor Andy Beshear announced but our city received an $850,000 Federal grant from the Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services to establish a crisis response team.

The application for the three-year grant was the collaborative effort of both the Lexington Police and Lexington Fire departments.

This grant allows our city to hire a full-time mental health professional to respond directly to mental health calls in conjunction with the Lexington Police Department responding with a full-time mental health professional directly to mental health calls.

>> With officers will help the focus of keeping people with mental health illnesses at the jail and treatment or on the road to recovery.

My role with the more so for like the acute mental health, stabilization.

>> So in the past, I've connected with UK adolescent inpatient, the rich behavior health.

So my main goal is to de-escalate and then encourage the residents to either sell present to hospitals and to provide them and connect them with resources to our community, paramedicine team and whatever way that may look like.

>> The crisis response team is slated to work weekdays.

>> When most mental health calls occur.

Our city receives approximately 3,000 mental health calls a year with fewer calls coming in at night and on the weekend, I hope that I'm able to provide people with a positive interaction.

I want everybody to be familiar with who I am, the services that we all provide as a collective and the hopes of lessening that negative stigma of mental health and substance use.

>> The grant also provides over time funding for currently 45 police officers who have taken specialized training in responding to mental health emergencies.

Soon you'll have to be 21 to buy tobacco products in the U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky helped pass a bill raising the age limit in 2019.

A final rule issued by the FDA was just approved and the new measure goes into effect at the end of the month.

The bill raises the minimum age to buy all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes from 18 to 21.

According to the American Lung Association, the number of adult and high school students smoking in Kentucky exceeds the national average.

♪ ♪ The Louisville story Project is a nonprofit organization that partners with underrepresented communities to tell their stories its latest project.

I'm glad about it brings Louisville's rich heritage of gospel music to the forefront through the digital restoration of dozens of records and a 200 page companion book, the city's Unsung Heroes of Gospel are getting the spotlight.

They deserve.

Learn more about the legacy of Louisville's gospel seen in this week's tapestry.

>> I know he's not going to be doing because we wish Crescent bad back in the 70's.

It has a broken gas.

So is not the going to be dragging.

♪ >> I'm glad about it.

He's a massive project documenting the legacy of gospel music and normal focusing between the years, 1958 1981.

It's sort of centered around the record and body of work.

The people who used a newly and vinyl records that era we partner with a bunch of folks in the local gospel the world choirs and and the world were tents and everything else who really know their history.

We'll build a legacy.

And today he's developed chapters in which kind of give context of a sort of social function of gospel music and all all that meant for our community.

And so this project as a result of the box set with the Twitter page book by cough holders.

Plus, 83 restored recordings from that mine where it's also and I did that a little R Kind this kind.

I heard songs and growing that will KET adding to overtime.

>> its doors in.

But the joke come to bat 3 at 3 years ago.

and explain to me what they were doing.

And I thought it was a good 10 test.

A contest.

So I jumped on bull more.

in and then it is in today's music.

>> What's what's remarkable is that was really an golden age of gospel music coming at that time in the community.

And you could go to an amazing gospel programs with incredible talent.

You know, on Sunday afternoon and Sunday night.

And then a late night Sunday told 1, 1, hate them.

And that was every week and was so much going on.

And the really big crowd to turn out for these things.

That was a really vibrant community.

And of course, overlaps of a lot of the real real civil rights movement of that era.

And it's a real story of just despite all that thing society stacked against them doing just amazing things and demonstrating for one another and for anyone else paying income pay attention.

>> And the strength of brilliant, the talent that resourcefulness this piece because it was was helping people through hard times and really, really meaningful >> I was brought up in change.

>> And I know that this this this type of cots and gots been using.

We give you peace.

It gives you a whole.

After either of them easy.

They don't do it like this music.

I've been here a long time.

And this really via it has some of the greatest talent.

There he is in it.

But we have not had the exposure.

Like I hear then we should have.

Hey, when you a look around at what is available.

>> Publicly available and and formally archives of Louisville's history.

It's alarming how little of that history that's that's black history is actually formally archived, preserve publicly accessible.

It's essential history.

We've got to know.

We got to celebrate.

We've we got to understand our community and a much fuller way that we possibly can with what's currently available in our cars.

♪ >> when >> you listen to these songs like guarantee you, you're going to be absolutely blown away by the propriety of music.

By the excellence of it is going to be where you live.

It's gonna be good for your soul.

I mean, it made me confused.

♪ ♪ >> The I'm glad about it released concert is this Saturday.

The event will feature performances from some of the city's premier hires as well as archival gospel performances.

Music of a different type tomorrow as the band Judas Priest's returns to Louisville's louder than Life Festival.

>> So to come back in, but the festival's resign or if it was like a bit of a bit of a triumph, really.

>> Guitarist Richie Faulkner hopes this trip to Louisville will be smoother than the last one.

Details Thursday on Kentucky Edition.

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

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

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

Send us a story idea at public affairs at KTNV Dot Org.

That's all we have for tonight.

Thank you so much for joining us.

♪