April 2019 – balancing the scales

Volume 38 Number 2

April 5, 2019

INSIDE …

2020 Census is a big deal............. 12

Benham and Lynch residents push back against strip mining.............. 6

Good effort, bad bills among General Assembly updates .................. 16-20

Members talk about Just Transition, Climate Justice here and there . 7, 8

Gearing up for the 2019 Annual Membership Meeting ............ 22-26

Apply a Racial Justice lens .......... 10

… and much more inside

Kentucky’s grassroots leaders

Strengthening community leaders at KFTC’s Organizing Academy… pg. 4

Change Service Requested

scales

Kentuckians For The Commonwealth P.O. Box 1450 London, Ky. 40743

balancing the

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

2 | Balancing the Scales

is a statewide grassroots social justice orga­­ni­ zation working for a new balance of power and a just society. KFTC uses direct-action organizing to accomplish the following goals: • foster democratic values • change unjust institutions • empower individuals • overcome racism and other discrimination • communicate a message of what’s possible • build the organization • help people participate • win issues that affect the common welfare • have fun KFTC membership dues are $15 to $50 per year, based on ability to pay. No one is denied membership because of inability to pay. Membership is open to anyone who is committed to equality, democracy and nonviolent change.

KFTC Steering Committee Meta Mendel-Reyes, chairperson Cassia Herron, vice chairperson Christian Torp, secretary-treasurer Amy Copelin, at-large member Mary Love, at-large member Chapter Representatives Mikaela Curry, Big Sandy Carly Muetterties, Central Kentucky David Miller, Cumberland Chase Gladson, Harlan County Chandra Cruz-Thomson, Jefferson County Rebecca Tucker, Madison County Melissa Roth, Northern Kentucky Chanda Campbell, Perry County Amelia Cloud, Rolling Bluegrass Fannie Madden-Grider, Rowan County Joy Fitzgerald, Shelby County Summer Bolton, Southern Kentucky Amanda Groves, Western Kentucky Shannon Scott, Wilderness Trace Alternates: Katricia Rogers, Big Sandy; Kaelyn Payton, Central Kentucky; Damien Hammons, Cumberland; Sheyanna Gladson, Harlan County; Connor Allen, Jefferson County; Adam Funck, Madison County; Lauren Gabbard, Northern Kentucky; Russell Oliver & Susan Hull, Perry County; Carol Hurn, Rolling Bluegrass; Ezra Dike, Rowan County; Cynthia Dare, Shelby County; Teresa Christmas, Southern Kentucky; Jim Gearhart, Western Kentucky; Margaret Gardiner, Wilderness Trace

Table of Contents KFTC News Executive Corner: What does it mean to be “All In” for the 2019-20 elections? ............ 3 Second KFTC Organizing Academy cohort underway ............................................................. 4 Annual chapter meetings in May and June ..................................................................................22 Nominations for statewide officers and leadership committees ................................. 23-26 ‘All in’ for 2019-20 elections shaped by steering committee ............................................... 27 KFTC Calendar of Events .................................................................................................................. 28 New Energy and Just Transition Benham$aves energy efficiency project receives $200,000................................................... 5 Benham and Lynch residents want strip mining off-limits........................................................ 6 Shoupes carry Just Transition conversation to Australia........................................................... 7 RECLAIM Act discussed in U.S. House committee....................................................................... 7 Mikaela Curry finds momentum for climate justice growing .................................................. 8 Environmental Justice Members and allies organize to stop new ORSANCO plan to remove protections ...... 9 Racial Justice Join with other KFTC members on the journey toward Racial Justice ............................ 10 Corbin Racial Justice Initiative hosts community conversation about racism ............... 10 Joyce Adkins reflects on the Facing Race Conference 2018 ................................................. 11 Economic Justice Bevin plan to dismantle Medicaid expansion again halted by courts ............................... 10 Why is the 2020 Census important? So many reasons .......................................................... 12 Decolonizing data helps us re-think what numbers reveal ................................................... 13 Local Updates – Building Grassroots Power New lobbyists emerge from the Southern Kentucky chapter . ............................................

“What is Democracy?” film and panel discussion in Louisville ............................................

The pies that bind: Madison pie auction a sweet success .....................................................

Solarize Lexington open .....................................................................................................................

NKY student voter work .....................................................................................................................

14 14 15 15 15

Kentucky General Assembly Letter from Chairperson Meta Mendel-Reyes ............................................................................ 16 Reflective tweets from Rep. Charles Booker ................................................................................16 Voting Rights work was a highlight during 2019 legislature....................................................17 Lobby days focus on justice for miners with black lung ..........................................................18 Grassroots power not enough to stop extreme anti-solar bill.................................................19 Despite budget shortfalls, legislators give away more revenue........................................... 20 Pension bill jeopardizes worker benefits, increases costs .................................................... 20 Michael Gramling reflects on ‘Hangin’ with the governor’ .................................................... 21 Balancing the Scales is published by Kentuckians For The Commonwealth and sent as third class mail from Louisville. Reader contri­butions and letters to the editor should be sent to P.O. Box 864, Prestonsburg, KY 41653 or jhardt@kftc.org. Subscriptions are $20/yr.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 3

executive committee corner

What does it mean to be “All In” for the 2019-20 elections?

By Amy Copelin As we move closer to the 2019 state gubernatorial primary elections and the April 22 voter registration deadline, one key question is: how can we move the needle toward maximum voter engagement in Kentucky?

At a recent Steering Committee meeting, the group strategized over the next few years leading into multiple rounds of elections.

We also confronted some alarming figures on voter engagement in Kentucky, like how 70 percent of registered voters did not vote in the 2015 gubernatorial election, with 52 percent of these registered nonvoters being Democrats, 38 percent Republicans, and 10 percent third parties or independents.

Toward the end of the meeting, we made a decision that in the next few years when we elect not only a governor, but also a replacement for Mitch McConnell, we will go “all in!”

Going “all in” sounds exciting and also overwhelming, right? You might wonder what does it really mean to go “all in?” What does it look like? How does it play out on a group or an individual member level?

In my mind, I think it starts with reflecting on our past and looking at where we have been successful so we can build on this success.

While we face dire statistics and, realistically, a huge battle, it’s important to look at the our work in

the 2018 elections, including how we leverage these strategies moving forward.

KFTC’s New Power PAC was formed to “lift up the voices of ordinary Kentuckians in critical elections” and “spotlight the positions and activities of candidates that are consistent with KFTC’s values and goals” (www.newpowerky.org). In the 2018 General Election the New Power PAC endorsed 70 candidates throughout the state at all levels of government, and succeeded in helping 26 of those candidates win!

Five of these were for local office. Twenty were elected to the state house and one for Congress. One of the big success stories for KFTC, of course, includes former chairperson Dana Beasley Brown. She won a city commission seat in Bowling Green, beating odds that were skewed much more in favor of conservative candidates. So, clearly one way to be “all in” is to concentrate our energy in pushing forward New Power PAC candidates.

Yet, looking at the final outcome of the 2018 elections, it can also seem like we didn’t capture enough momentum to succeed in moving the needle far enough statewide. It can be especially disheartening when reflecting on the hard work and efforts of members and staff reaching out in their communities, canvassing their neighborhoods, phone banking, handing out voter guides and more. But this is when it’s important to reframe our concept of success.

It may seem like these efforts failed because of the final numbers. But digging deeper it becomes appar-

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ent that we are in fact moving the needle forward. It might not be happening overnight, but it is happening.

We have to look at the trends of the past several years to see this. According to Forward Kentucky’s assessment of the 2018 elections (http://bit.ly/ForwardKY2018Numbers), there were major improvements in progressive leadership in Kentucky, with 23 percent more Democratic candidates running for office than in the past two election cycles. These new progressive candidates were more diverse than ever before, including more people of color, women and teachers.

And, while it might seem less significant, we also need to look at where member and staff work resulted in marked improvements in races that didn’t result in the election of a candidate aligned with KFTC values.

It’s significant to note that in traditionally conservative areas, such as mine in northern Kentucky, in the races where progressive candidates didn’t win, they consistently outperformed expectations.

For instance, in the 69th House district, KFTC member Col Owens secured 44.6 percent of the votes when he was only expected – based on party registration and results in previous House races – to get 38.3 percent.

Similarly in the 68th House district, Jason Kilmer, who lost to incumbent Joe Fischer, got 39.19 percent when it was estimated he would only capture 35.6 percent. Fischer had run unopposed in 2016 and his Democratic opponent only secured 26.5 percent of the votes in the 2014 race. While these numbers may seem small, they demonstrate that member work can move the needle.

Many chapters throughout the state made strategic decisions to support candidates who aligned with KFTC values even though they didn’t expect these candidates to win. This is strategic support because it’s a tactic that builds progressive support in communities over the long haul. And, while it doesn’t result in dramatic changes overnight, it represents success.

We need to keep building on these incremental gains moving into our upcoming elections. Success in a state that has swung red in recent years won’t happen overnight, but as a result of our steady and strategic efforts. It may sound a little counter-intuitive, but steady, incremental work is also a smart way for us to be “all in!”

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

4 | Balancing the Scales

KFTC News

Second KFTC Organizing Academy cohort underway KFTC’s second Organizing Academy cohort got underway in March with about 20 participants in the intense three-month organizer training.

The cohort consists of a variety of folks from all over the state and from a diversity of experiences and identities engaged in several cross-sections of KFTC’s work. They were selected with the lens of being intergenerational and diverse in race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and class, among other identities – an example of the organization KFTC strives to be, as well as all of the identities we hold as Kentuckians.

Also, the diversity of the group and the structure of the program allows for members to truly learn from one another.

“This training has given the people gathered the chance to teach each other organizing and community building from the separate things we've all already learned in our own work and life experiences,” Eric Simpson from Rowan County said.

Cohort members participated in two day-long trainings in March, and will continue twice monthly gatherings through May. There are conference calls, homework assignments, one-on-one coaching and required readings to supplement the in-person gatherings.

The first session focused on what is power, community organizing, the history of organizing in Kentucky and KFTC, learning and practicing sharing one’s story, and a bit on caring for oneself and each other in this work.

The second session in March focused on inclusive organizing.

Sessions in April and May will include basebuilding and leadership development, nonviolent direct action, creating agendas and meeting facilitation, grassroots fundraising and more. Skills and

tools for self-care, healing and communications are interwoven throughout the curriculum.

“Being a part of this year's Organizing Academy cohort has been a transformative experience.

I've learned more about myself and oppression in the past few weeks than I have in years,” said Tiffany Duncan, a Central Kentucky chapter member.

“Putting serious effort into developing action strategies, learning to work with others on important issues and receiving guidance from people who have been in the field for many years is fundamental to Cohort members interacted with a history of organizing, activism building people power!” Duncan and KFTC timeline to help ground them in the long struggle for added. “I'm so thankful and ex- social justice and understand the movements that led to KFTC’s cited about being a part of KFTC's formation. history of equipping ordinary folks with the skills to effect change in their communi- Cohort member Liz Sheehan is serving a dual role of facilitating the self-care portions of the trainties!”

KFTC Chairperson Meta Mendel-Reyes re- ing, leading the group in mindfulness, yoga and turned this year as co-facilitator. Mendel-Reyes gentle movement, stress reduction and concepts, goal helped create the structure, content and goals of the setting and support for the participants to practice self care in their lives and in their chapters and work.

Academy, and helped lead the first cohort last year.

Building Grassroots Power One of the most foundational concepts when learning about community organizing is to learn about power. Community Organizing is about building grassroots power. Community organizing is about challenging us to re-examine our definitions and experiences with power and to challenge us to become powerful by building collective power with those in our community.

Community Organizing is Building Power!

• • • • A rotating one-on-one exercise helps cohort members get to know and learn from one another.

•

Organizing is building collective power by bringing people together to act for social change.

While the elites (or oppressors) have power in the form of violence, money or status, the people (or the oppressed) have “people power” that comes from organizing.

Relationships are key. We build power by connecting and building strong relationships with others in our community or with whom we share a common interest or goal.

Organizing always involves leadership development. The goal of the organizer is to replace herself – that is, to empower people to act without dependence on the organizer.

Organizing is a craft, with best practices developed through struggle. Example: Helping people to tell their stories.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 5

New Energy and Transition

Benham$aves energy efficiency project receives $200,000 KFTC members took part in a special called meeting of the Benham Power Board on February 12 to share the good news that an anonymous donor pledged $200,000 to support the Benham$aves program.

“One hundred percent of these resources will be used by the Benham$aves program to pay the upfront costs of energy retrofits in this community,” said Chase Gladson, a local high school student who represents the Harlan County chapter on KFTC’s Steering Committee. “We estimate it will be enough to fix up 20-25 homes, close to 10 percent of all homes in Benham.

Eventually those funds will stretch even further as the investments are repaid and recycled.”

The Benham Power Board is Kentucky’s smallest municipally owned utility, serving about 280 customers. Most homes in the community were built nearly 100 years ago when the community was founded as a model coal camp, and many are poorly insulated.

A recent study showed that Benham’s homes have the highest average monthly electricity use of any utility in Kentucky.

Benham$aves pays the upfront costs of residential energy efficiency retrofits for qualifying homes. Residents repay that investment over 15 years, using a portion of projected savings on their monthly electricity bill.

As repayments are recycled back to the investment fund, they are available to serve additional households.

Eventually, the investment fund will be used to support additional types of renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in Benham.

The program was established by the Benham Power Board in 2015 thanks to the vision and hard work of many local community leaders and the efforts of other collaborating organizations, including KFTC, the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development; COAP (Christian Outreach with Appalachian People), the Harlan Community Foundation and Appalshop.

Gladson explained, “Ever since the Benham$aves program began, KFTC has worked with the Benham Power Board and other community partners to raise funds for this program. We raised enough to fix up the first 5-6 homes, but then funds ran dry.

“With more than 20 homes on the waiting list, KFTC helped the Power Board to submit grant applications to the U.S. EPA, SOAR and many local and national foundations. We got a lot of pats on the back.

And we heard a lot of nos,” Gladson continued. “Then Community leaders gathered at the announcement of a $200,000 donalate last fall, we were contact- tion to support the Benham$aves Program. Pictured are Chase Gladson ed by an anonymous donor (KFTC member), Tiffany Brock (Power Board clerk), Danny Quillen (Power who let us know they want Board chair), Hank Caudill (Power Board member), Carl Shoupe (Power to support the Benham$aves Board and KFTC member) and Andrea Massey (KFTC member). program. Tonight we are proud to announce that this generous donor has given Mountain that can be seen by people in communities everywhere across eastern Kentucky and our common$200,000 to support the Benham$aves program.”

Andrea Massey, a local resident and KFTC mem- wealth,” Shoupe said. “This is a powerful example of ber, said, “I also want to thank the Benham Power what’s possible when people come together to help our Board for expanding your efforts to help our residents communities survive and thrive.” save money and energy at a time when most utilities in Harlan County Magistrate Paul Browning attendKentucky are scaling back their energy efficiency pro- ed the announcement and took part in a working sesgrams. Benham is setting an important example. The sion about the program earlier in the day. He told the audience, “This is the most marvelous idea to come out rest of Kentucky should take notice.”

Her comments were echoed by Carl Shoupe, a of this area since they found coal. When I heard about disabled miner and KFTC member who serves on the it, it blew my mind. Good ideas should be promoted, and this is a good idea. These are new and revolutionBenham Power Board.

“We are blessed to live here in the mountains, near ary ideas that have grown out of care and concern.” the highest point in Kentucky. It’s my hope that this Gladson and Massey told the audience that the project can be a light shining from the top of Black anonymous donor also has challenged KFTC to raise an additional $50,000 in individual donations for Benham$aves. Tax-deductible donations to help meet The Solar United Neighbors Eastern Kentucky Solar Co-op is open for new participants that challenge may be made to kftc.org/kcdonation (be sure to put “Benham” in the referral box for your donaJoin with others in eastern Kentucky to save money though the power of bulk purchasing tion to count toward this challenge). with the help of the nonprofit Solar United Neighbors. There is no cost to join, and no As the Power Board meeting wrapped up, Gladobligation until you sign a contract with the community's selected installer. Nearly 200 son and Massey said in unison, “Congratulations to community solar co-ops have helped 3,600 families go solar though this program including the Benham Power Board and the whole community. half the installations in West Virginia.

KFTC looks forward to partnering with you on this Learn more and sign up at www.SolarUnitedNeighbors.org/EKY project and other efforts to shape a Just Transition.”

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

6 | Balancing the Scales

New Energy and transition

Benham and Lynch residents want strip mining off-limits pure.”

“The core elements of [our petition] is the protection of our viewshed, the preservation of the historic communities, protection of our fragile infrastructure, and the safeguarding of our renewable resources, particularly our water,” wrote Silver in an email.

“For those who have visited Lynch and Benham they can speak to how strip mining would be detrimental to tourism. Another point of emphasis is the protection of our raw water sources so Benham and Lynch don’t follow the path of Flint, Michigan, and Martin County, Kentucky.”

The Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition was initially rejected by state officials but recently revived, leading to the hearing.

A public comment period remains open until April 30.

The Benham and Lynch residents who filed the Lands Unsuitable Petition with their attorney, Tom FitzGerald, of the Kentucky Resources Council (left to right): Carl Shoupe, Stanley Sturgill, Fitzgerald, Bennie Massey and Roy Silver.

Take Action: Suggestions for submitting written comments (by April 30) You may email comments to Jeff Baird and say simply, “I support the residents of Benham and Lynch in their lands unsuitable petition.” That would be a big help.

If you’re able to write more detailed comments, and especially if you’ve had the opportunity to visit Benham or Lynch, here are some suggestions on what to emphasize.

Kentucky law says that petitions to declare lands as suitable for mining may be granted if the mining would: • • • •

© Tanya Stewart

Residents of Benham and Lynch in Harlan County were joined by supporters In Frankfort on March 29 to tell a state hearing officer why the mountains around and above their communities should be declared off-limits to strip mining.

“If you live here, or have visited our city, you’ve seen how our mountain ranges are being destroyed,” said Stanley Sturgill, a retired underground coal miner and mine inspector. “We don't want it destroyed.

We’re going to try everything we can."

For at least a couple of decades, community leaders in the towns of Benham and Lynch, working across racial and economic lines, have planned their future as the coal industry dwindles away. Preserving that coal heritage has been an important part of what they have accomplished – the Coal Mining Museum, Portal 31 (underground mine tour), the Schoolhouse Inn and the East Kentucky Social Club all draw visitors from across the country.

There is much more included in the aspirations of the community residents – creating new jobs, the Benham $aves energy project and preserving their rural quality of life. That also means protecting their drinking water and the beauty of the mountains that surround the towns.

But both of those are threatened with the prospect of new strip mining in their watershed.

“The way the permit [application] reads, they're going to come right through our water supply. It's just going to be a total mess,” pointed out Carl Shoupe.

“I know jobs are tight, but we as a people need to live there, and we need our water to live there.

“If this coal mining permit is granted, they're going to destroy everything in our future we can hope for.”

In 2010, Sturgill, Shoupe, Bennie Massey and Roy Silver filed a Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition with the support of Tom FitzGerald and the Kentucky Resources Council. That would allow the watersheds and viewsheds above the towns to permanently be declared off-limits to strip mining.

Without this declaration, not only future plans but what already has been achieved will be threatened.

They focused their comments on protecting their water supply.

“I'm here on behalf of Lynch, as a 30-year coal miner, and deacon of the Mt. Sinai Baptist Church,” said Massey. “I've been there my whole life, born there. What we're talking about is our water. It’s

Be incompatible with existing state and local land use plans; or Affect fragile or historic lands in which such operations could result in significant damage to important historic, cultural, scientific, and aesthetic values, and natural systems; or Affect renewable resource lands in which such operations could result in a substantial loss or reduction of long-range productivity of water supply or food or fiber products, and such lands to include aquifers and aquifer recharge areas Affect natural hazard lands in which such operations could substantially endanger life and property, such lands to include areas subject to frequent flooding and areas of unstable geology. (emphasis added)

Mining in the Gap Branch and Looney Creek watersheds above Benham and Lynch would pose a threat on all these grounds. The petition clearly should be granted.

State law further reads that, “Determinations of the unsuitability of land for surface coal mining shall be integrated as closely as possible with present and future land use planning …” Mining and the damage to the land, water and natural beauty are incompatible with the future residents are working to build.

If you’ve been to Benham or Lynch, you can mention what was important about those towns that drew you there, and how what you experienced is something worth protecting.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 7

New Energy and Transition

Shoupes carry Just Transition conversation to Australia

By Carl Shoupe Harlan County chapter

right at the mouth of the valley.

In the evenings, we stayed with some fabulous people in a little town.

Recently, I was blessed to make a trip to Austra- The lady there had been involved biglia with my son, Scott. The opportunity came about time in her community and with Lock through a relationship that KFTC staff made when The Gate. But they were going to have they attended meetings and conventions about coal to leave their home of 30 years because communities and economic transition a few years back. of mining nearby.

They met with a group called “Lock The Gate.”

We were blown away when we You could say that those folks are kind of a mirror of walked into the room where they held KFTC. We have a lot in common. They are trying to their Transition Summit. The place was shape a transition from coal. packed. When we spoke, Scott and I Scott and I got to Skyping with the people at told them that Kentucky got caught Lock the Gate. They were having a summit in their with our britches down. Our state and area, the Hunter Valley, about a Just Transition from communities didn’t prepare for our coal. They knew our situation and thought it would transition. We told them about how Carl (second from left) and Scott (second from right) Shoupe be great to learn about what we are doing. They in- things were in 2012 when suddenly met with Members of Parliament Pay Conroy (left) and Sharon vited us to join them for the summit, and for a lot of 3,800 miners in this area were laid off Claydon, who serve the Hunter Valley area and are involved with other conversations over 10 days or so. all at once. residents in planning a Just Transition to a non-coal economy.

So Scott and I went to Australia.

And we told them about some They had an itinerary you wouldn’t believe. We of the efforts happening now to pick up the pieces many different people: community people, local politistayed in homes with people who live in the coal and shape a transition. For example, my son Scott cians, members of Parliament, and others. mining area. The type of mining happening there is is involved in an apprenticeship through MACED The timing of our trip seemed really perfect for pit mining, not deep mining. The Hunter Valley is (Mountain Association for Community Economic De- us to share our story of transition from coal. While just totally beautiful. There are grape vineyards, olive velopment) to retrain coal miners in energy efficiency we were there the Glencore Coal Company came out groves, cattle, dairy farms and horses. And then there’s and renewable energy installation. His story really fit in with a big article saying they were not going to increase production because of climate change. all this mining. perfectly with the whole conversation.

The biggest coal export terminal in the world sits After the summit they took us to meet with so They also had national elections coming up, and everyone seemed tuned in to this conversation and what we had to say.

We were even interviewed by ABC (Australian The federal RECLAIM Act, legislation to boost economic transition efforts in the nation’s coal communities Broadcasting Corporation) News, a national television by accelerating the release of $1 billion for mine reclamation projects tied to local economic development efforts, news company. They produced a one-hour show on a is expected to be re-introduced in the new Congress in mid-April.

Sunday night about coal transition, and they put us in RECLAIM was included in a discussion of “Abandoned Mine Reclamation: Innovative Approaches and it (visit https://ab.co/2HSLXe1).

Economic Development Opportunities” before the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee heard What I noticed is that their politicians were testimony on March 28. Eric Dixon of the Appalachian Citizens Law Center in Letcher County explained to young. A lot of them are figuring things out and getcommittee members why RECLAIM is needed. ting on board with the reality of climate change. And

The RECLAIM Act has two main goals, Dixon said. “First, create thousands of jobs fixing damaged land and they believe that government has a role in shaping the water – jobs that many people in the local workforce including laid-off coal miners and others have the heavy transition. machinery skills to do well.

In the evenings, we met with coal miners. One “Second, to spur many more jobs through development on these sites once they’re cleaned up.” evening we attended a big gala in Sydney celebrating all The AML program, funded by a fee on coal mined, would pay for environmental remediation on the thou- the food and culture from the Hunter Valley. On our sands of unreclaimed mine sites in Kentucky. Through the RECLAIM Act, these sites would be “reclaimed with last day we did have a chance to take a harbor tour of economic development use in mind … making a meaningful contribution to building a new diverse economy,” Sydney on a ferry boat. We saw their beautiful beaches, Dixon explained. the Opera House and all the sites. It was wonderful.

He also emphasized that “RECLAIM is only part of that much, much larger task” and urged Congress to also I hope we can continue working with this group address the black lung epidemic. and keep learning from each other. They are truly great “I urge Congress to listen to the community-led movement for a brighter future in our nation’s coal com- people. I think we could benefit a lot from an ongoing munities and pass the RECLAIM Act as soon as possible.” relationship.

RECLAIM Act discussed in U.S. House committee

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

8 | Balancing the Scales

New Energy and transition

Mikaela Curry finds momentum for climate justice growing

By Mikaela Curry The Climate Reality Leadership Corps training I attended in mid-March – thanks to support from KFTC – was the 40th event of its kind. The Climate Reality Project was founded by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore in 2006, and the training educates people from all walks of life on the science and communications of climate change, with the intentions of making urgent action on climate change a reality and local priority in every community. Heading to Atlanta, I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect.

The first panel, “Stories From the Frontlines: The Climate Crisis, A Social Justice Crisis” firmly settled the course of the training as it directly connected the climate crisis to environmental injustice, environmental racism and voter suppression, highlighting voices and stories from affected communities.

Explanations of the way that people of color and the poor are disproportionately impacted by environmental harm and climate change was a central message for the entirety of the event, with panels like “Ensuring Climate Equity,” which featured leaders from the Indigenous Environmental Network and Highlander Research and Education Center, among others. The call to unite our struggles and work together for a Just Transition was clear.

Despite substantially diverse panels, the table I sat at comprised of folks from Kentucky and Ohio contained a homogeneity of faces. Certainly, there was a relatively wide demographic at the training as a whole, with people attending from all over the world.

However, as was emphasized during this event, we cannot solve a global problem in demographic silos.

As Kentuckians we must work diligently to strengthen coalitions, communication and collaboration between all communities, and find every possible intersection for this vital and critical work across all divides.

Predictably, Al Gore led a lengthy afternoon session on that first day which started by outlining the climate realities – flooding, temperatures, extreme weather – that most of us are familiar with. These realities were supported by alarming statistics like “the energy trapped by man-made global warming pollution is now equivalent to exploding 500,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs per day 365 days per year,” and “globally, floods and extreme rainfall events now occur four times more often than in 1980,” and “economic losses from extreme weather totaled $653 billion over the past two years alone.”

The presentation was less than halfway through the monopoly utilities, with increased barriers to solar when the image of a drinking glass filled with murky for Kentuckians all across the state. brown water flashed across the giant screen, along with That night, at an event at Ebenezer Baptist the words “Tap water from Martin County, Kentucky. Church on the national Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mining operations have polluted the wells that are the historic site, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, president of source of the residents’ drinking water.”

Repairers of the Breach and co-chair of The Poor Peo The slideshow continued moving from image to ple’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, image – hundreds of devastating images from commu- led the packed house in a powerful round of the clasnities all over the U.S., all over the world – building sic civil rights song, a chorus of voices echoing “Ain’t a specific and demonstrative narrative of the massive gonna let no policy turn me around, turn me around, harm faced worldwide by extractive, polluting indus- turn me around … I’m going to keep on walkin’, keep tries coupled with the increasingly serious impacts of on talkin’, marching into freedom land.” climate change.

It was in Dr. Barber’s presentation the following When the presentation began transitioning from day that I saw the larger than life image of Stanley harm to solution, seven rows of blue solar panels filled Sturgill from Lynch, Kentucky, flash across the screen, the screen – “the Kentucky Coal Mining Museum in as statistics on poverty, political representation and Benham, Kentucky, estimates they will save $8,000 voter suppression were laid out. Sturgill, a KFTC - $10,000 per year in energy costs.” This image was member as well as former underground coal miner directly followed by a critical question: “Is there any and federal coal mine inspector, has been vocal about precedent for such a rapid adaptation of a new tech- a central point of this training – a clean energy transinology?” tion is inevitable. This truth is backed by statistics: The analogy that followed compared the poten- over the last five years U.S. solar energy jobs have tial of solar with the 1980 predictions of cell phone grown six times faster than the overall economy. use – the projected use of 900,000 users by 2000 was Solar and other renewables are the future. Climate actually 120 times higher, at 109 million, by the time change is real, our current approach to energy and the the new century rolled around, and now there are 8.7 environment is not sustainable or ethical. The science billion cell-phone connections. There is a direct and is there. The reason is there. The political will is not, applicable lesson that may be extrapolated to the pros- and the call to action is clear – it starts with education pects of solar energy, as we can expect cost to drop, and communication, but ultimately what can we acquality to improve complish while we and low-income still have systemic places to leapfrog old voter suppression technology. and representation A few hours latby elected officials er, I’d learn that our who are beholden to Kentucky legislators the financial interests had just passed Senof the fossil fuel inate Bill 100, a piece dustry? of legislation that This is not new, discourages rooftop and there may be solar, without an many who may feel agreed upon comweary at the durapromise, an amendtion of this battle, ment that would but the momentum have somewhat prois building, the time tected residential is now and as Mr. customers. Instead, Kentuckians and work in Kentucky on climate justice issues Gore reminded us what Kentuckians were featured in presentations at the recent Climate Real- in Atlanta, the will got was a clear power ity Leadership Corps training in Atlanta, including KFTC to change itself is a and profit grab for member Stanley Sturgill pictured above. renewable resource.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 9

Environmental justice

Members and allies organize to stop new ORSANCO plan to remove protections For more than a year, KFTC has worked with allies to protect the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission’s mission to clean and protect the Ohio River through monitoring and enforcement.

ORSANCO was established in 1948 as a compact between eight states (New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois) and the federal government to control and abate pollution in the Ohio River basin.

A year ago the commissioners – political appointees from the eight states as well as federal representatives – proposed an industry-backed plan to do away with ORSANCO standards, abandoning its enforcement role. That set off alarms since ORSANCO maintains pollution control standards that are higher than those enforced by the U.S. EPA and state agencies.

While these standards have not solved the Ohio River’s pollution issues, the effort has resulted in considerable progress toward improving water quality in the river and its tributaries.

Working with the Poor People’s Campaign in Kentucky and Ohio and other allies, KFTC members took a number of actions to oppose the proposal.

Commissioners were expected to vote on the proposal when they met in February. Instead, they came up

with a new – and equally troubling – proposal.

They want to make these essential standards optional for states to enforce.

Giving states the ability to ignore dozens of water quality standards and the resulting damage to waterways, which often disproportionately impacts lower-income people and people of color, is not an acceptable alternative to doing away with standards altogether. This is especially true in states like Kentucky where current state officials are openly hostile to environmental protection efforts.

“Only a few years after the water crisis of Flint and Standing Rock, we are on the verge of another nightmare in which regulators are more interested in carrying out the wish list of polluting industry than protecting the health of the public,” said Eira Tansey, a member of Metro Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Democratic Socialists of America at a public hearing last July.

The Ohio River’s status as one of the dirtiest rivers in the country can be directly traced to companies that have requested the commission relax its standards, she added, including Alcoa, AK Steel, American Electric Power, ArcelorMittal, First Energy, Duke Energy and Jupiter, who all have had dozens of Clean Water Act violations in recent years.

10 of Kentucky's water utilities intake drinking water directly from the Ohio River. And 29 utilities purchase and use this water.

One of K e n t u c k y ’s ORSANCO representatives, for example, Energy and Environment Cabinet Secretary Charles Snavely, is retired from Excel Mining.

Kentucky’s other two commissioners are Lieutenant Governor Jenean Hampton and C. Ronald Lovan, president of the Northern Kentucky Water District.

KFTC helped organize groups to attend public hearings in Evansville and Erlanger in early April, and to generate public comments by the April 15 deadline.

The commission meets again in June and again in the fall. It is not yet known at which meeting they may take a final vote on the latest proposal, but KFTC and allies will have a strong presence there.

The Ohio River hosts 26 coal-burning plants along its banks, about one every 38 miles. Five million people from eight states rely on drinking water from the river.

At least 100 pollutants for which there are no federal or state standards are included in ORSANCO’s standards. Fifty-two of Kentucky’s water quality standards are weaker than ORSANCO’s.

KFTC Annual Membership Meeting August 2-4 Berea College

Program and registration information coming in May

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

10 | Balancing the Scales

Racial justice

Join with other KFTC members on the journey toward Racial Justice

By Nancy Reinhart KFTC Racial Justice Committee As the Racial Justice Committee, we invite all KFTC members to join us on the journey as we learn more insightfully, compellingly and compassionately how to do this work. In the coming months, we will develop a resource list of books, podcasts, websites and materials we think will help all of us – wherever we are on the spectrum of learning and personal work – become better racial justice advocates in Kentucky.

Use it – http://kftc.org/racial-justice.

One of the ways that we can be and must be proactive TODAY is to apply a lens of racial justice to the table regardless of the conversation topic at hand.

When we show up to talk about energy, listen and speak through the lens of racial justice. When we advocate for state pension reform and protection, listen and speak through the lens of racial justice. When we debate current news, stories framed by mass media outlets as injustice to white people, listen and speak through the lens of racial justice.

As a committee, we’ve also focused our work on the tools needed to raise racial justice consciousness in younger generations. We are deeply disturbed by the ways in which our public and private education systems have failed to teach our children fundamental lessons about our country’s history of racism and injustice, and the lineage of grassroots movements

aimed at stopping them. We plan to meet with school system leaders in Kentucky this year to promote racial justice education in our schools.

More than ever, youth need cultural humility and historical understanding to navigate the challenges of the current and coming years. More than ever, youth need to understand the national implications and costs of racism towards all people of color and the ways in which Native American communities have been systemically silenced and their struggles made invisible at all levels of our society. More than ever, white youth need to understand the role that white people must have in structural anti-racist change.

Actually, don’t we all? Let us know if you will help us with this or any of our efforts.

Are you white and don’t know where to start? You aren’t alone. Two resources we suggest you check out: • •

www.solidarityis.org – Awesome podcasts. Currently accepting applications to Solidarity School 2019 – apply! www.showingupforracialjustice.org – A national network of groups and individuals working to undermine white supremacy and to work toward racial justice. Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability.

Get involved!

Corbin Racial Justice Initiative hosts community conversation about racism The Corbin Racial Justice Initiative (CRJI) hosted a community conversation on March 23 as a followup to their last screening in February of the film Evelyn Williams.

The community conversation, facilitated by Angie Lewis-Bowling, covered the topic of tackling racism in everyday conversations and had more than 15 people in attendance. The group talked about a range of topics, including micro-aggressions, white privilege and tools to help with hard conversations.

In the future CRJI will be organizing more community conversations that will build upon each other.

The Corbin Racial Justice Initiative is a coalition that formed after KFTC Cumberland Chapter’s initial film screening of Anne Braden: Southern Patriot last fall. The coalition partners include the Laurel County African American Heritage Center, the UK Appalachian Center, KFTC and others. To learn more, visit www.corbinracialjustice.com.

Bevin plan to dismantle Medicaid expansion again halted by courts From Insure Kentucky Sixteen low-income Kentuckians last year challenged federal approval of Governor Bevin’s Medicaid waiver plan. In an opinion issued March 27, federal district Judge James Boasberg vacated the Health and Human Services’s approval of Kentucky’s 1115 Waiver known as Kentucky HEALTH. The judge blocked implementation of the waiver, which was set to go into effect on April 1.

The judge ruled that demonstration projects must uphold the core tenet of Medicaid, which is to furnish health assistance to low-income individuals. Kentucky HEALTH, he ruled, does not meet this requirement.

“Kentucky Voices for Health and our partners applaud the court’s decision to once again protect Kentuckians on Medicaid by refusing to create additional barriers to care,” said Emily Beauregard, executive director for Kentucky Voices for Health. “Medicaid works in Kentucky, and Medicaid expansion has saved lives.

“Judge Boasberg’s decision sends the message that 1115 waivers must uphold the purpose of Medicaid, which is to furnish health coverage to low-income people.”

Dr. Sheila Schuster of the Advocacy Action Network, said, "Given the terrible extent of the opioid epidemic, I am relieved that the court has halted the implementation of the waiver, as it placed a number of barriers and new requirements on recipients which would have made it very difficult for those with substance use disorders to access and keep appropriate treatment services to address their addiction."

“Once again, Judge Boasberg has acknowledged the critical role Medicaid plays in the commonwealth,” added Dustin Pugel, a policy analyst for the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy. “Thanks to this ruling, Medicaid can continue to provide the coverage, health and economic gains we’ve experienced in Kentucky over the last five years.”

InsureKY is a statewide coalition of nonprofits formed to promote more affordable health insurance, better care, and stronger consumer protections for all Kentuckians.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 11

Racial Justice

Joyce Adkins reflects on the Facing Race Conference 2018

By Joyce Adkins I was privileged to be one of the KFTC members chosen to go to the Facing Race Conference 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. This was an amazing experience that included a wide selection of workshops, dance, short films, and even a little comedy.

Participants were of all races from all over the country and made up a rich tapestry which showed what we can accomplish when we work together. I want to share a few of the things I took away from this experience from just a couple of the workshops I was able to attend.

The first of these workshops was entitled “Beyond the Bars, Exploring the Lived Experiences of Incarcerated Individuals,” and covered the school-to-prison pipeline as well as the issue of mass incarceration. Dr. Charles Bell made a brief but powerful presentation, explaining how school suspension correlates with imprisonment. Children of color are targeted for suspension, which in some school districts is as much as 30 days, and then are not allowed to make up their work.

These children disconnect from their school system, skipping classes, shutting down emotionally, not going to school. As they get older, they are considered threats. They don’t see education as a way out of poverty and end up on the streets where the only way to survive is crime.

Many of these kids wind up in prison. Ninety-five

percent of them come back home, but to what?

Decent housing? Jobs? Or a place where the streets are the only way to survive? Being tough on crime does not prevent crime or keep people from going back to prison. After Dr. Bell’s presentation, we heard from two men who had been in prison, one in state and one in federal prison. Their stories were emotional and heartbreaking.

Things we can do as citizens include questioning prosecutors as to why we are prosecuting the poor, the people of color, the traumatized. Our communities need to reinvest prison money into people, re-entry programs, schools, and job creation. We also need to hold the government accountable for repercussions to felons when they come home as far as availability of jobs, housing, etc.

The other workshop I want to cover was “Challenging White Supremacy in 21 Days,” facilitated by Dr. Debby Irving and Eddie Moore Jr. This workshop was about challenging white supremacy within yourself as a white person.

We live in a system designed by white supremacy which can and will change your behavior. An ideology came here with the Europeans: some people were less than human, and among humans, some were more valuable than others. So all but one of our presidents have been white, all white men are on our money, etc.

We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.

Whiteness is normalized to us, this is all we know, and it shapes our attitudes, beliefs, and values from our dolls to our art to our TV shows and beyond.

Our white culture has as taboo topics religion and

politics. If you don’t talk about those two, you never get around to race. We think of white Europeans as being civilized and black Africans as being savages. We can see a black man doing the same thing as a white man and see it differently.

For example, if you see a white man trying to cut the lock off of a bicycle, you think he has lost his key.

If you see a black man doing the same, you call the police. Whenever you have black excellence, you foster white rage. Trump is an Obama bounce-back, and was to be expected.

The 21-day challenge suggests many activities we can watch, listen to, read, notice, etc, and a chart to keep up with our activities and reflections. Say “white supremacy” every day for 21 days and then do something about it. Why 21 days? That is how long it takes to make or break a habit.

Finally, read books on Black history and issues.

The two I purchased at the conference were “Freedom In The Family,” by Patricia and Tananarive Due, and “This Nonviolent Stuff’ll Get You Killed,” by Charles E. Cobb Jr. The first is written by a mother and daughter from the perspective of the Civil Rights Movement in Tallahassee, Florida. The second covers the Civil Rights Movement in Alabama, specifically how African Americans used nonviolent direct action to change society, but armed themselves to protect their families.

I learned so much from this conference, and have continued my learning since then. I hope some of you will have the opportunity to attend the next Facing Race Conference in 2020.

Primary Voter Registration Deadline: April 22

17-year-old if they will be 18 on or before November 5 (Election Day).

The registration deadline to vote in the May 21 Primary Election is Monday, April 22. New or updated registrations need to be turned in to the local county clerk’s office by 4 p.m. or completed online at GoVoteKY.com.

People with felonies in their past have their right to vote taken from them in Kentucky, unless they have received a pardon from the governor or their record expunged. People with misdemeanors in their past or people who are pre-trial in jails do have the right to register and vote.

Voters also can check their registration status at GoVoteKY.com.

Students who are away from home going to school have the right to either use a permanent home address or temporary local address as their voting address. If you’re a student, consider being registered where you’ll actually be living on May 21.

Also, 17-year-olds can register and vote in the May primary as a

To get involved with registering voters, reach out to a local KFTC organizer to join tabling and canvassing events. Or visit www.kftc. org/action-democracy-toolkit to learn how to register voters.

KFTC has planned 36 door-to-door canvasses and 41 events leading up to the primary election to register, educate and mobilize voters.

All would be better with your help.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

12 | Balancing the Scales

Economic Justice

Why is the 2020 Census important? So many reasons Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a giant survey with an enormous goal: count every person in the country, count them in the right place and count them once. The Decennial Census occurs because the Constitution declares that decisions about taxes, representation and legislative districts should be determined by population, not land or wealth.

Undercounts: The 2010 Census miscounted a wide range of populations. Undercounts put at risk critical programs that depend on Census-informed funding.

•

White communities and people with more than one residence were overcounted in the 2010 Census.

Why the Census is important

•

Young children, racial and ethnic minorities, renters, non-English speakers, homeless populations and other communities were undercounted.

•

The Census calls the undercounted communities “Hard-to-Count Populations” because they are hard to locate (in housing units like prisons, group housing, soup kitchens), hard to interview (language barriers, lack of internet access, low literacy), hard to contact (homeless, gated communities, highly mobile persons), or hard to persuade (those with distrust in government, worried about risks of filling out survey).

•

Explore a map of Hard-To-Count populations at www.censushardtocountmaps2020.us. The Census is encouraging folks to use the map to learn about 2010 response rates and populations at risk of being undercounted in 2020 and to support local “Get Out the Count” campaigns.

The Census promises a collection of comprehensive and accurate data on race and ethnicity, gender, age, household composition, income and poverty, housing prices, and other socioeconomic and demographic data. Asian Americans Advancing Justice describes it powerfully as a “vital tool to address the nation’s legacy of slavery, racism and discrimination.”

Here are some of the ways Census data are used: • •

• • • • •

Informs the drawing of legislative districts and school districts Determines allocation of more than $800 billion annually in federal funding to states and families for housing, education, transportation, health care, rural access to broadband and other services Shapes emergency relief strategies Determines fair market rents and impacts fair lending practices Allocates funding to our public colleges and universities, including grant and loan programs Supports high quality and accurate social research Informs intentional and strategic outreach utilized by many nonprofits Sources: Advancing Justice, Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky

“As a data analyst working in Appalachia, I have become acutely aware of the importance of good data.

I have always counted on the Census to be the foundation for the rural populations I serve,” said Rebecca Tucker, a KFTC member in Madison County. “I do not have another data source for population estimates.”

Two main reasons for concern Ever since the 2010 Census, there has been a flood of concerns about the 2020 survey. Two of the largest concerns are miscounts of certain communities and the inclusion of a citizenship question.

•

In Kentucky, our 2010 Census response rate was 81 percent. The Census estimates that approximately 10% of Kentuckians (more than 430 million) live in hard-to-count communities and that, in 2017, 23.2 percent of Kentucky households didn’t have access to reliable internet (Census Bureau).

The citizenship question: The Trump administration is trying to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census. This would mean that, for the first time since 1950, 100 percent of households in the U.S. would be asked if they and/or persons in their households are citizens.

Analysts are predicting drastically lower response rates if the question is asked.

Non-citizens are considered to be people who aren’t citizens of the U.S. by birth or naturalization.

This includes legal permanent residents and folks in the U.S. on a work or student visa.

In January 2019, a federal judge in New York ruled that the administration can’t add this question, and the federal government appealed that decision.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in April and likely reach a decision in late June.

The citizenship question is already asked on the American Community Survey, which is sent to about continued on next page

Kentucky hard-to-count census areas In 2010, only 81% of Kentucky’s households mailed back their census questionnaire. Based on the latest estimates, 10% of Kentucky's current population (435,452 people) lives in hard-to-count areas (the shaded areas on the map).

Without higher response, more households in these and other neighborhoods are at risk of being missed in the 2020 Census.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 13

Economic Justice

Decolonizing data helps us re-think what numbers reveal Decolonizing data is a topic organizations, data scientists and activists across the country and the world are talking about. What does it mean, why is it important and how does it affect our daily intake, use and analysis of data?

Decolonizing data is about first recognizing how and why bias and oppression exist within our data structures and then improving our systems to be inclusive and accurately reflect the communities trusting us to hold their information.

Harold Moore, a data consultant who has worked with Color of Change, Blue State Digital, and numerous local and state elections, explains it this way: “As data engineers, it’s important for us to be mindful of ways we can erase, flatten, simplify or dishonor the complex humanity of our communities.”

Erasure of identities happens more often than we’d like to think. Here are some all too common ways when we’re collecting information on people: •

•

Names are often forced to meet Anglo-Saxon naming conventions, i.e first, middle and last name. In doing this, we’re building data with three-name entry fields, but not everyone’s name shares this convention.

Race and ethnicity are often flattened to broad

• •

categories that center whiteness and otherize nonEuropean cultures (ex: leaning on a non-white category to encompass all non-white races and ethnicities).

Sex and gender are often conflated, and it’s common that legal sex takes precedence over gender identity or pronouns.

Our databases, and the programs we use to hold all of our data, each use a certain type of character encoding that converts 1s and 0s (what computers read) into actual characters humans can read and use. Some character encodings, like simplified UTF-8, remove accents and hyphens.

This is problematic and threatens to erase, flatten and simplify names and other identities that utilize certain characters like accents and hyphens.

The bias and oppression in our data structures makes it difficult, if not impossible, for folks with non-Anglo-Saxon names, non-conforming genders, non-traditional addresses (the list goes on and on) to engage us and erases the identities of our constituencies, leading to weaker and less impactful strategies.

So, yes, decolonizing data is about looking at Google forms and databases with a critical eye. It’s about a lot more than that, too. There’s a whole realm

of research on intersectionality in data, analysis and algorithms.

Facial recognition software, for example, that is trained and tested on non-diverse datasets renders it totally inaccurate on entire populations. This carries dangerous consequences.

The Intersectional Data Manifesto is a summary of ideas and commitments stemming from research like this. It leaves us with some powerful challenges: • •

• • •

We cannot and should not separate the complexities of our identities.

It’s all messy processes and that’s okay. “We aren’t interested in ‘cleaning our data.’ Data that doesn’t reflect the realities of our identities erases those identities. It is also fundamentally inaccurate data, and when it’s used for any purpose, those effects are exponentially multiplied.”

It’s not just about one dataset; it’s about our collection, preservation, use, re-use, analysis, etc. in those processes.

Narrative (qualitative data) is just as critically important as the numbers (quantitative data).

Intersectional data may not fit into current methods for “crunching” or analyzing. If it doesn’t, then perhaps we need new methods.

Concern about the 2020 Census … continued from the previous page 3 percent of U.S. households and provides 1-, 3-, and 5-year estimates. Currently, results from this survey provide the information needed to litigate Voting Rights Act violations.

Questions on the Census are required to be field tested. In preparation for the 2020 Census, the Bureau conducted a 2018 Census Field Test. The citizenship question wasn’t on it.

It’s not just immigrant rights activists who are worried about the serious impacts this question could have. In January 2018, the Census Bureau’s chief scientists wrote that adding a citizenship question to the decennial census would be “very costly,” “harm the quality of the census count” and would result in “substantially less accurate citizenship status data than are available from administrative sources” (Population Reference Bureau, 2018).

Undercounts drastically reduce the amount of federal funding that gets appropriated to those communities. A Population Reference Bureau analysis

found that about “14 percent of the population counting in the Appalachian region, where limited (nearly 25 million people) lived in households with at internet access is the norm. Undercounting will cause already limited funding streams tied to population least one non-citizen.”

“Questions related to citizenship will only serve estimates to be further restricted.” to dissuade inTable 6 Kentucky Population Living in Hard-to-Count (HTC) Census Tracts* by Race** and Hispanic Origin dividuals from Population Living in Percent of Total Population in responding and Population Living in HTC Tracts* (in Group (in 1000s) HTC tracts* 1000s) cause the CenNon-Hispanic White Alone 3,762 307 8.2 sus to fail at its Hispanics 143 27 19.1 goal,” explained Black Alone or in Combination 401 90 22.5 71 11 15.5 Tucker. “In ad- Asian Alone or in Combination dition to an un- American Indian and Alaskan Natives Alone or in 33 4 12.5 Combination tested citizenship Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders Alone or in 5 1 20.3 question, this Combination State Totals 4,397 436 9.9 Census will also *In this table, Hard-to-Count Census Tracts are those in the bottom 20 percent of 2010 Census Mail Return Rates (i.e. Mail use more elec- Return Rates of 73 percent or less) or tracts for which a mail return rate is not applicable because they were enumerated in tronic data col- 2010 using the special Update/Enumerate method.” lection methods. ** Race groups are Alone or in Combination meaning anyone who selected this race is included even if they also marked another race as well. Anyone who marked Hispanic is included in the race groups as well.

I fear that this Source: Population totals in this table are from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2011-2015 American Community Survey estimates. will double the Note: the total population in this table may not match that shown in other tables because they come from different sources and impact of under- reflect different time periods

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

14 | Balancing the Scales

Building Grassroots Power

New lobbyists emerge from the Southern Kentucky chapter Members from all over southern Kentucky made their way to the state capitol to lobby for the first time around issues that matter. They asked their legislators to support a statewide fairness ordinance, to ban conversion therapy, to unconditionally support voting rights for all people who have a felony in their past, among other issues. In addition, they attended a Voting Rights Rally, Fairness Rally, several meetings with ally groups and even a wedding right in the Capitol Rotunda!

For Ayianna, the Fairness Lobby Day on February 26 was their first time talking with legislators, first time participating in a rally and first time attending a wedding. Ayianna travelled to Frankfort with their mother, Elizabeth, who also was a first time lobbyist.

They both recalled feeling very empowered by the entire experience. Elizabeth said she “felt like a constituent, you know what I mean, as opposed to just another person without a voice.”

They had both good and challenging experiences meeting their legislators that day. At one meeting they felt inspired and hopeful, but at another meeting they felt that they weren’t being heard or respected. But they both agreed that regardless of whether the legislators were supportive, it was not wasted time.

It meant a lot to Ayianna, especially, that their mother had asked them to go. Until this lobby day, they weren’t positively sure how their mom felt about LGBTQ issues. Although Elizabeth recalled having had the conversation in the past, and although Ayianna feels supported by their mom, they felt that the act of showing up spoke louder than words.

“I kind of needed something to be proven. I felt more accepted by her,” Ayianna said.

Elizabeth felt that Ayianna made her feel more at ease with being there, because she worried about feeling out of place. “I didn’t at all [feel out of place] because it was clear when we got there that my own stereotypes were wrong, that people from all walks of life here in Kentucky support the issue…not just young people, not just people in Louisville and Lexington,” Elizabeth said.

Timothy Mullin, also a first time lobbyist, became more involved in the issues he cares about this year.

“I couldn’t live if the pension system were dismantled and I was unaware that Bowling Green didn’t provide protections for many of its residents,” Mullins said. “I could be kicked out on the street at the drop of a hat. So I decided to get more involved and go to Frankfort.”

The Jefferson County chapter hosted a panel discussion at the Speed Art Museum following the film "What Is Democracy?" featuring members and community organizers. The discussion centered around themes from the film, such as who is included and who is left out of democratic processes. Pictured, left to right, are KFTC Vice Chairperson Cassia Herron, Jenny Bencomo Suarez, Aja Barber, Austin Nord and Rep. Josie Raymond.

Ayianna

Mullin also remembered having good conversations with legislators that left him feeling elated and also some challenging conversations that left him feeling a bit defeated.

“I believe that lobbying makes a big difference and I was glad it was the people of Kentucky there lobbying instead of paid professionals from big industries,” Mullin said at the end of the day. He became a KFTC member when he got home from Frankfort that day, and attended the Voting Rights Rally on March 13.

Elizabeth, Ayianna, and Timothy all reminisced on how powerful it was to be in such a large group of grassroots lobbyists in their state capitol. Elizabeth and Ayianna remembered being overcome with emotion when at the end of the rally, unexpectedly, a couple was married in the rotunda.

Elizabeth remembered the energy in the room was so positive and the sense of solidarity was strong. Everyone agreed that Ayianna’s first wedding was one for the books!

Ayianna told their boyfriend and his friends later about their experience in Frankfort.

“I told them about how I overcame some of my fears by going there and I want to get them involved so we have more people to help us.”

Altogether, there were eight first-time lobbyists from the Southern Kentucky chapter who made their way to Frankfort this legislative session.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 15

Building Grassroots Power

The pies that bind: Madison pie auction a sweet success

By Matthew Frederick This year’s Madison County KFTC pie auction on March 14 was an amazing success that brought together the community and built up grassroots energy.

People came out, baked pies, ate pies and joined each other in fellowship. I was home sick, but got to join the event through KFTC’s livestream.

The inimitable Kent Gilbert, pastor of Berea’s Union Church, used his auctioneering skills to great effect. He discussed his personal reasons for working with KFTC and his experiences as a member. Besides tending to his congregation in Madison County, Gilbert frequently is spotted in Frankfort, advocating for a diverse range of causes and tirelessly giving of himself

to the pressing issues of the day.

The most uplifting moment of the auction for me was when Gilbert mentioned the support he felt from KFTC. He noted that while he was found in many places, he wanted to be in so many other places. He could do many things, but he could not do everything.

For those places he could not be and those things he could not do, KFTC was there. In this way, the membership supports each other, advancing the causes and interests that promote a just and beloved community of people.

For me, watching the auction from a sick bed, his words were especially relevant. In a vain way, the livestream allowed me to feel a sense of personal participation in the event. However, it offered me more than that. I watched as friends, family and acquaintances brandished pies at each other. They discussed personal matters. I overheard idle talk of pies and parties, and they talked of politics and the latest developments in Frankfort as the 2019 Kentucky General Assembly was coming to an end.

It made me feel a certain sense of pride. As a member of KFTC, I was part of something larger than myself. I had been put out of commission, but my peers were still there. Of all the things I wanted to do, but could not, my fellow members were enthusiastically ready to engage. I could not attend the pie auction, but it could succeed without me because of the work of my fellow KFTC community.

There are strong connections between seemingly

unconnected issues because of the people who are affected and the people working on these issues. From energy workshops in Bowling Green, health care rallies in Lexington, Pride festivals, actions in Frankfort and pie auctions in little basements in Berea, we are all working for a better, just world for us all to live in.

Now when I march, I do so knowing there are many who are with me. While we may walk in different places, our goals and desires are united.

Rebecca Tucker paraded the pies around the room so folks could see what they were bidding on.

Solarize Lexington open

NKY student voter work

By Rachel Norton

In mid-March, northern Kentucky members helped support students in Fort Thomas to do voter registration as part of the March For Our Lives movement.

The students, most of whom attend Highlands High School in Fort Thomas, canvassed in various neighborhoods around Fort Thomas to make sure that people were registered to vote.

They also used the opportunity to talk about the issues they care about, including fighting gun violence in our country.

The dozen students that participated knocked on more than 200 doors, registered 10 new voters and left materials pointing people to KFTC's online voter guide for the May Primary (kftc.org/election).

Students are excited to continue this work leading up to the primary, including at the March 24 March For Our Lives in Fort Thomas. KFTC supported the event by doing voter registration and helping promote turnout.

The Solarize Lexington Initiative is open to homeowners, small business owners and nonprofits that want to learn how to go solar and what it would cost. This an exclusive opportunity for a streamlined solar installation process and a discount for signing up during the outreach program.

Fill out the form at www.solarkentucky.org to learn more or attend a Solarize event.

It’s completely free to register and there is no obligation to buy. The Solarize Lexington initiative has negotiated a 15 percent discount with Solar Energy Solutions, a local solar installer, to provide full installation. Solar net metering is still possible through the end of 2019 under current statute, and would come with being grandfathered into that program. Also, it’s the last year for the 30 percent tax incentive, so now is the best time to go solar!

Learn more by visiting the website.

16 | Balancing the Scales

2019 General Assembly Dear KFTC member, We are Kentuckians, and we believe that we all do better when we all do better.

We have everything we need to prosper in this state we love, but to get there we have to build united People Power across racial and class lines. And the only way I know how to do that is through grassroots organizing.

The 2019 General Assembly is over. Governor Bevin and the Kentucky legislature continued their vindictive assaults on our people, our democracy and our government.

•

• •

• •

On the very day that tornadoes were ripping through western Kentucky – part of the extreme weather patterns brought on by climate change – Kentucky legislators advanced a bill that will dramatically reduce the growth of rooftop solar and solar jobs in Kentucky.

On the anniversary of the Parkland shooting, Kentucky legislators passed a conceal carry law.

On the very day that 50 people were killed as they worshipped in their mosque – a crime targeting Muslims and fueled by President Trump’s platform of hate and intolerance – Kentucky lawmakers passed a bill to require schools to post In God We Trust.

Kentucky legislators jeopardized the pensions of thousands of public workers and will strain important local resources, but passed more big tax cuts for the wealthy, banks and corporations.

Kentucky lawmakers passed an abortion ban, already triggering lawsuits for its unconstitutionality.

This was not democracy. It was a sham. Secret meetings, closed meetings, no testimony, no hearings. Bills tacked onto unrelated legislation to avoid public scrutiny. Our allies joined us in consistently calling out injustice, day after day.

Together, we continued to organize throughout the chaos. We built grassroots power, and we made a difference: • • • • •

We helped successfully oppose the corrupt attempt to steal Jim Glenn’s election.

We helped defeat House Bill 3, which would have slashed the state’s support for the most vulnerable people.

We won access to the “People’s House,” and with our help the Poor People’s Campaign succeeded in holding a meeting with Governor Bevin.

We built new alliances – with teachers, miners, workers, parents and community members who are committed to change.

Most important, we set the stage for building new power in the 2019 and 2020 elections.

So much is at stake. Building grassroots electoral power has never been more important. We want to take some risks, experiment and make a decisive impact on the elections in 2019 and 2020.

We need you for this work. We know you’re up for it. Kentucky’s bright future requires it.

What you can do: Working together, we can build the Kentucky we envision. Volunteer to register, educate and turn out progressive voters in Kentucky, starting right now. Even just a couple of hours a month can make an impact. Get in touch with your local organizer (see list on page 28) or sign up at KentuckyElection.org.

Sincerely, Meta Mendel-Reyes, KFTC Chair

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 17

2019 General Assembly

Voting Rights work a highlight during 2019 legislature Focus turns to gubernatorial action to restore voting rights

Robert Stivers and Damon Thayer in the Senate.

HB 91 sponsors Reps.

Charles Booker and George A primary focus in the 2019 legislative session Brown expressed their inwas to lay the groundwork for the eventual passage of tent to come back next year a voting rights bill – one that does not have the exclu- with a “clean” version of sions included in the bills filed in recent years. the bill, restoring the right Since Republicans took over the House in 2017, to vote to everyone who those bills have not received a hearing or vote (though has served their debt to they had passed the House each of the 10 years prior society with no exclusions. to that). That changed this year with a February 25 KFTC supports that step as “discussion only” hearing on House Bill 91 before it makes a cleaner, simpler the House Elections & Constitutional Amendments bill.

Committee.

On March 13, the focus shifted to putting pressure The room was packed with on Gov. Bevin to take executive about 60 supporters including action to restore voting rights to many people who had lost the 312,000 Kentuckians who are right to vote, KFTC members denied their right to vote. and allies.

The Rally for Voting Rights Many legislators on the at the state capitol was a strong committee from both parties excollaboration of 30 organizapressed support for voting rights, tion cosponsors, 14 people with and while some raised concerns, felonies in their past telling their none voiced opposition. stories under the capitol dome, Rep. Kevin Bratcher, the six media outlets covering the Republican chair of the commitevent, and about 175 attendees. tee, noted that he supports the There were people there legislation and has voted in favor from Murray and Inez and many of it many times over the years. Seth Allen of Maysville shows the places in-between helping to It always passed the House by sample executive order restoring build momentum and awareness large margins, only to be blocked voting rights that was delivered to the for the fight for Voting Rights.

by Republican Senate leaders governor, asking him to also sign it.

Folks signed a poster-size

“This situation hurts us all. I implore Governor Bevin and the gubernatorial candidates to pledge to fix or streamline the restoration of voting. This is not a partisan issue.”

— Debra Graner

“We have to jump through a thousand hoops to get our voting rights back. It’s a process. It’s really hard. Everyone is worth more than their mistake.”

— Alaina Combs

“Our voices really do matter.

I sincerely believe that. The reason why we can’t vote is strategic. Some people want to keep us from having our voice. Our voices matter. Our votes matter.”

— Aubrey Clemons

executive order restoring the right to vote for 312,000 Kentuckians and left room for one more signature – Governor Matt Bevin’s – and delivered it to his office.

Just in case he needed one, about a hundred attendees also dropped off an ink pen.

Right now, only the governor has the authority to restore someone’s right to vote. Because Bevin doesn’t use that ability much, 9 percent of voting age Kentucky citizens can’t vote.

KFTC and allies are pushing for a constitutional amendment to automatically restore voting rights when people have served their time, and also pushing the governor to take executive action to help in the meantime.

That’s something Governor Bevin has refused to do. There’s a governor’s election this year, and voting rights advocates are paying close attention to candidates’ positions on this issue (see their responses at KentuckyElection.org).

“I’m a Kentuckian, I’m a citizen of the United States. How are you going to tell me that somebody who does all that doesn’t have the right to vote?”

— Michael Hiser

Here I stand 20 years later and I still do not have the right to vote. Members of the legislature, governor, how does this benefit you? How does this benefit anything?”

— James Sweasy

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

18 | Balancing the Scales

2019 General Assembly

Lobby days focus on justice for miners with black lung On the sixth week of the 2019 legislative session, members from four KFTC eastern Kentucky chapters joined 15 retired coal miners and their family members from various black lung associations for an Eastern Kentucky Lobby Day in Frankfort.

The members and miners worked specifically to draw attention to two bills: Senate Bill 100, the bad solar bill (detailed in another article of this issue), and House Bill 75, which would have made it easier for coal miners with black lung disease and their families to access the health benefits they earned and deserve.

KFTC members know that a Just Transition must include and center the well-being of the miners and communities that coal companies have systematically left behind. The Big Sandy and Harlan County KFTC chapters have been building relationships with the Black Lung Association of Southeastern Kentucky, the Pikeville Black Lung Association and the Black Lung Association of Harlan County.

Through these partnerships, last year KFTC and the black lung associations got 16 resolutions passed by local governments that supported the continued and strengthened funding of the federal Black Lung

Disability Trust Fund, the RECLAIM Act to reclaim abandoned mine lands in a way that promotes economic development, and the Miner’s Pensions Act to protect the pensions of retired UMWA miners.

These partnerships continued to grow as Kentucky’s 2019 legislative session began. House Bill 75, sponsored by Representative Angie Hatton of Letcher and Pike counties, was introduced to remedy a glaring injustice included in workers’ comp changes passed last year by legislators. That law drastically limits which doctors are allowed to perform evaluations in occupational disease claims like state black lung benefits claims, making it much harder for miners with black lung disease to qualify for compensation.

Despite many legislators’ constant assurances that they will always stand up for Kentucky’s coal miners, Rep. Russell Webber and Republican leadership prevented a hearing or vote on HB 75, and another bill that could fix last year’s mistake and help miners live a better quality of life.

With this in mind, the joint KFTC/Black Lung Association lobby teams made it a priority to meet with Webber and several other members of House leadership, as well as with all eastern Kentucky lawmakers.

KFTC and Black Lung Association members also

lobbied for HB 75 on February 21.

Some miners shared their stories of physical hardship in the mines. Linda Adams and others shared their experiences of losing a loved one to black lung.

The lobby teams outlined the difficulty of accessing black lung benefits under the new, unjust legislation HB 75 sought to repeal, and they delivered a unified message: eastern Kentuckians deserve fair and accessible health care, affordable clean energy and a state government that looks after them.

“This is me today. I’m dying. I know that. My family know that,” said Barry Johnson of Pike County.

“The law that’s on the books today is unfair. We’re not asking for anyone to give us anything more than what we’ve earned and we deserve. What we’re asking for is for this bill to be given a hearing in committee, give it a fair chance.”

At least a couple of representatives agreed to cosponsor HB 75 on the spot after meeting with one of the teams.

However, Republican House leaders did not allow a hearing or a vote on HB 75, and the bad solar bill, SB 100, ultimately did pass.

Still, members felt that even with these outcomes, their efforts helped spread awareness and build relationships. The connections between eastern Kentucky KFTC chapters and the black lung associations continue to grow.

There were numerous other bills that KFTC supported, opposed or watched in the 2019 session than those mentioned in this issue. View them on KFTC’s Bill Tracker: www.kftc.org/bill-tracker Eastern Kentucky lobbyists and friends in Frankfort on March 6.

Thanks

for being a member or supporter of KFTC. You make the work you read about in Balancing the Scales possible – 37 years of it!

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 19

2019 General Assembly

Grassroots power not enough to stop extreme anti-solar bill After failing in recent years to pass their anti-solar legislation, Kentucky’s monopoly utilities invested heavily – $327,050 in PAC contributions to 2018 legislative candidates, 90 percent to Republican candidates (as reported by Tom Loftus in The CourierJournal) – in getting the bill through the 2019 General Assembly.

They succeeded when the House finally voted, just before 11 p.m. on the second-to-last day of the session and after a broken promise by House Speaker David Osborne, to allow the bill to pass without muchneeded improvements.

KFTC with 10 other ally groups built a strong base of pro-solar advocates to fight the progress of Senate Bill 100, introduced by Sen. Brandon Smith, every step of the way.

The bill was fast-tracked in the Senate – introduced on a Monday and passed by the full Senate, 23-12, just two days later.

In the House it appeared the same was in store.

SB 100 was put on the fast track, after procedural rules were waived to allow a committee hearing the morning after Senate passage and a floor vote the following day (Friday).

In an attempt to secure enough votes, House Speaker Osborne agreed to two floor amendments that made substantial improvements to SB 100. However, only one of those passed before the amended bill was approved, 71-24.

The House amendment, filed by Rep. Jim DuPlessis, while imperfect, did make the bill fairer to both current and potential solar customers. For this reason utilities and the Senate refused to concur with the amendment and punted the bill back to the House.

SB 100 re-writes the rules to favor monopoly utilities and restrict Kentuckians’ ability to choose where they get their energy. It does so by gutting an existing law, known as net metering, that gives qualifying solar customers in Kentucky a one-for-one credit for energy their rooftop systems provide to the grid.

Net metering is the policy that makes rooftop so-

lar accessible for most Kentuckians. The effort to dismantle net metering constitutes an attack on rooftop solar and – by extension – Kentucky’s fledgling but fast-growing independent solar industry and the jobs it provides.

Utilities, which do offer their own solar programs (though not rooftop), think that by gutting net metering and eliminating rooftop solar in Kentucky, they can have a monopoly over the power of the sun.

SB 100 stalled in the House for nearly a month, during which solar advocates and constituents continued to call, email, meet with legislators, and write letters to the editor and op-eds. During this month-long window KFTC and others attended Solar Lobby Day in the capitol, and it was during this window that many KFTC members and allies chose to share their “solar stories” with the world.

The House finally voted, late at night on the last day before their veto recess, to back down from their amendment and pass SB 100 without improvements.

Several legislators spoke to how betrayed they felt by the broken promise made by Speaker Osborne to let the bill go forward only with improvements through the amendment or through conference committee.

Reps. Cherlynn Stevenson and Cluster Howard were among the House members who said SB 100 was one of the bills they most heard about from constituents, all in opposition to the bill.

“The only people that contacted me about voting yes were lobbyists and public utilities. I don’t really trust either one of the groups very much,” said Howard. “I got hundreds of emails against this from regular constituents.”

“I vote no because I support small business. I support new, clean jobs,” said Rep. Lisa Willner, who also mentioned the number of constituents she heard from.

“This is a bad bill and I am proud to have voted no.”

Reps. Marie Sorolis and Patti Minter referenced climate change in their remarks on the House floor, a topic current and former House leaders have tried to squelch.

“The thing I care most about in the world is ending Many of the 50+ solar advocates at the Solar Lobby Day on February 28

poverty,” said Sorolis. “Climate change most impacts the poor.”

“I believe in small business and solar is one of our future small businesses,” added Minter. “We got this one wrong tonight. We’re missing an opportunity to do our part.”

To have legislators talk about the impacts of climate change on the floor of the House marks a significant narrative shift for Kentucky politics.

The network of solar allies that fought SB 100 – nonprofits, solar installers and others – is determined to stay strong in promoting solar stories and reinforcing the narrative that solar works in Kentucky. They will host a solar celebration on April 28 at West Sixth Farm in Frankfort to lift up this narrative.

As part of KFTC’s electoral work, members will be registering and talking to voters who support clean energy jobs on front porches, at community events and candidate forums to educate and mobilize as many voters as it takes to get a legislature that will place their constituents’ interests over those of Kentucky’s monopoly utilities.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

20 | Balancing the Scales

2019 General Assembly

Despite budget shortfalls, legislators give away more revenue In the 2019 legislative session, it’s estimated that legislators cut revenue by $110 million, mostly through the major so-called ‘clean-up’ bill (HB 354) and also the last day tax bill surprise, HB 458.

By Pam Thomas Kentucky Center for Economic Policy House Bill 354 – the “tax clean-up” bill, the original purpose of which was specifically to address unintended consequences of 2018 legislation – went to free conference committee, where the conferees added several new, expensive tax breaks. The free conference committee report will be voted on by the House and Senate without the ability to amend the bill to clean up this assortment of tax breaks.

The fiscal context for the conferees’ agreement on changes to our tax system is serious: In this nonbudget year, revenues are already projected to be lower than the estimates on which the budget is based, even though the budget included many deep cuts including no resources at all to pay for textbooks, teacher professional development and other critical needs.

Yet despite this grim situation, the free conference committee agreed to several new tax breaks estimated to cost over $106 million annually when fully imple-

mented. Rather than preserving our already insufficient General Fund, HB 354 instead provides more tax breaks for: •

•

•

• • • •

Banks – which are the biggest winners of all with a cut of close to 50 percent of the amount currently paid under the bank franchise tax – at an estimated cost of $56 million; Corporations seeking to shift taxable income to tax havens in no- or low-tax jurisdictions through a weakening of the language from the 2018 tax bill that requires combined reporting, a model method used by states to prevent corporations from shifting income to avoid state taxes; Companies that lease heavy equipment, which will receive a substantially reduced rate, and eventually receive an income tax credit for every dollar paid in property taxes on the leased equipment; Companies that process raw materials owned by others; Companies that purchase materials and equipment through more generous income tax expensing provisions; People who borrow money for activities like flipping houses; People who place losing bets at the track; and

•

People who enter for-profit fishing tournaments or pay to dock boats at boat ramps.

Two bright spots in HB 354 are language that will require marketplace providers like Amazon to collect and remit sales tax for sales made using their platforms, and language that will include streaming services as multichannel video programming so that those services will be subject to the communications tax.

New revenue from these provisions is sorely needed to help shore up our General Fund and to support appropriations already made in the 2018-2020 budget.

But instead, what it generates is far less than the cost of the long list of new and unnecessary special interest tax breaks in the bill.

HB 354 should have focused on simply making the changes needed to correct mistakes from last year’s legislation and ensure proper administration of the tax code. Yet as it stands now, the “clean up” bill has become the latest vehicle to punch additional holes in our tax code, reducing future revenues we need for schools, health, pensions and other needs.

Research does not support the claim that tax breaks such as these help states’ economies, but they do make it harder for states to invest in the building blocks of growth.

Pension bill jeopardizes worker benefits, increases costs

By Jason Bailey Kentucky Center for Economic Policy

The pension bill that passed the General Assembly, House Bill 358, reduces retirement security for future employees and jeopardizes pensions for thousands of current workers and retirees at quasi-governmental organizations like regional universities and community mental health centers. It will also shift costs to the state at the same time the General Assembly weakened its own ability to make those contributions by passing expensive new tax cuts this session.

It is important to remember why the contribution rate for quasi-governmental organizations in the Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS) nonhazardous pension plan was set to rise from 49 percent of employees’ pay to 83 percent this summer. In 2016, the governor expanded the size of the Kentucky Retirement Systems board, adding members without the statutory authority to do so (which the General As-

sembly later changed the law to affirm). The new board then proceeded to make a sudden drop in the actuarial assumptions of the plan.

These changes were about 10 times greater than a responsible level of adjustment pension plans typically make in a single year. The long time horizon of pensions (benefits are owed in small increments over 50+ years) allows any changes to be made gradually.

That decision forced contribution requirements to spike, but the quasi-governmental organizations lacked the resources to make those payments. The General Assembly gave them a year of relief in the enacted 2018 budget, but that set up a crisis in 2019 with many quasis warning of insolvency if the relief was not extended.

Bill ends pensions for new employees and jeopardizes them for current workers and retirees As the price of extending that relief, the General Assembly cut retirement security for workers. First,

quasi-governmental organizations that cannot make the new, higher payments must leave the retirement system. Their future workers are required to receive 401k-style defined contribution (DC) plans rather than pensions. In addition, employees hired since 2014 – who currently receive a hybrid cash balance retirement plan – have their benefit under that system frozen and moved into DC plans. Approximately 2,269 employees fall into that category.

Receiving a DC plan rather than a definedbenefits plan will put these workers in a tiny minority among public employees; only 2 percent nationwide are in DC plans rather than a form of defined benefit pensions, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. These workers will receive a lower benefit for the same price; it costs 42 to 93 percent more to provide the same benefit through a DC plan due to inefficiencies.

Read more at kypolicy.org.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

Balancing the Scales | 21

2019 General Assembly

Michael Gramling reflects on ‘Hangin’ with the governor’ The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival conducted a sit-in in the governor’s office on February 5 and won a meeting with Gov. Matt Bevin.

Michael Gramling shares his reflection of the experience.

By Michael Gramling It turns out that occupying the governor’s office is not nearly as exciting and dangerous as it sounds.

No armed police, no media, no dogs, no one getting dragged off to the paddy wagons. Truth be told, if not for the fact that the suits were packing deadly weapons it would feel more like we had occupied the dentist’s office than the governor’s.

Only it’s worse. On the flatscreen TV the governor stars in his own mini-doc. He is a captain of industry, a pioneer of aerospace, an inspiration to law enforcement, a friend to the little guy. And despite his busy schedule, he still has time to win the Kentucky Derby and lead the Wildcats to the NCAA basketball championship.

It does not help that the movie never ends, but runs in a seamless loop over and over again. We can’t pause it. We can’t turn it off. After five consecutive views my outrage has been blunted into mere annoyance. By round ten I have achieved a state of indifference. By Round 20, I kind of agree with the guv that the Wildcats do sort of bring us all together. By round 40, I can begin to see why some people like the guy.

By the end of my 50th view, I am a Republican.

Like the repentant sinner who’s seen the light at a tent revival, I don’t want to waste another minute of my heretofore sorry life. I get out my phone and go straight to the secretary of state’s online voter registration page to change my party. Salvation is a just a few clicks away.

But we are in a state of emergency, and the page no longer belongs to the secretary of state. It’s the governor’s job to keep us all safe. He can’t allow dangerous people to vote, any more than he can allow random constituents to stroll around the capitol at will.

To register to vote during a state of emergency, one must now pass a background test of the guv’s own design. It’s a simple little questionnaire. His criteria are simple – national origin, race, gender, sexual preference and something he calls “affiliation.” Points are awarded in each category and everyone with a score of 100 or more will be allowed to vote. Every voter in the state will have to re-apply for that privilege before the gubernatorial election.

The guv doesn’t just want to know where I was born, but where my parents and grandparents were born as well. No first or second generation hyphenated American anchor babies are going to vote in his state.

Real Americans are awarded 25 points – everyone else zero. The exceptions are those born in California or New York. They actually have 25 points deducted from their score.

Race is simple enough. The choices are White or Other and are scored just as you might guess. The choice for gender is binary, as God intended. Men get 25 points and Women 15. Women are emotional creatures prone to errors in judgement, but they will have an opportunity to justify themselves and make up points in the affiliations section.

Being a man, I am also awarded 10 bonus points for my age bracket. Through the first three categories I have amassed 85 out of a hundred points just for being an old white guy.

Sexual preference is also binary. Neither L nor G, B nor T nor Q need apply, but for me, it’s a slam dunk.

I’m married with children. But I am disappointed that my impeccable hetero male credentials only earn me five points. It seems that the guv also wants to know if I’ve ever been charged with sexual harassment or sexual assault, either of which would earn me the 25 points I need. The guv firmly believes that in this fanatical politically correct era of me too any real man would certainly have committed one or another of those crimes.

All of his friends have.

Reluctantly, I tap the continue button and move on to affiliations, but the page is unresponsive. Even in our current state, the guv cannot ask us if we go to church, if we give to Greenpeace or if we attended the Women’s March. The guv has had to find a back door by which to ascertain my true stripes. And I have to admit, it’s brilliant. There is only one question on the new revised affiliations page.

The guv wants to access my Amazon video account.

I cringe, but there‘s no need to worry. There has not been nearly enough time to go through every film in the Amazon catalogue and assign points, plus or minus, so the guv’s people have had to resort to using a word identification algorithm much like the NSA uses to scan our private emails for words used commonly by terrorists.

Words like “border,” “refugee” and “drinking water,” for example.

But the program doesn’t work nearly as well for

movie titles. It awards my BlacKkKlansman rental 25 points in the mistaken belief that it is a dramatization that proves that white supremacists groups like the Klan and the Supreme Court are nevertheless inclusive in their membership. I get 25 more points for Fahrenheit 911, obviously a call to arms against Islamic extremists, and 25 more for Hey White People, a shout out to my Aryan brothers.

I tap “Submit” at the exact second that my phone dies, and in that moment I hear a commotion outside the door. There must be over a hundred people out there in support of our occupation! There are banners, songs, speeches and media interviews. I awake from my nightmare and remember why I am here.

Why we are all here. Our Democracy is at stake. Like Ebeneezer Scrooge on Christmas morning, like Jimmy Stewart in It’s a Wonderful Life, I am awakened just in time. Long months of showing up week in and week out at the governor’s doorstep have finally paid off. He has agreed to see us.

Triumphantly we crowd into the press room, poised to redress our grievances. And there he is. The guv himself. Without skipping a beat, he launches into the live and in-person version of his video loop. But this time we have a pause button, and her name Tayna.

Interrupting him in mid-sentence, she demands that he reinstate the right to vote to 312,000 Kentuckians, the right he took away with a stroke of his pen.

He tries to deflect her, but she will have none of it.

She pursues him relentlessly until he is on record for supporting her demand that voting rights for felons be restored.

Then Megan takes up the cry, shaming him for his malicious and willful sabotage of public education.

Serena delivers the final blow. The man who stole Tayna’s vote, the man who would steal the teachers’ pensions, has also denied Serena’s child’s mental health care. Now her child is desperately ill. “Do you remember me governor?” she demands. “Do you remember me?” The crowd picks up the cry. The governor is finally rescued by his handlers who hustle him out the door. The lead on the front page of the Courier Journal the next day will read, “Remember Us.” It’s a good feeling to score a win, but we all know that our Democracy is hanging by a thread, and that people everywhere are suffering from oppression and poverty. Like the guv’s propaganda film, we will never stop. We will be back at the capitol again in two weeks.

And again, and again and again.

Join us.

www.kftc.org | April 5, 2019

22 | Balancing the Scales

KFTC Annual Membership Meeting

Annual chapter meetings an important part of KFTC’s democratic process In preparation for the annual membership meeting, all KFTC chapters hold an annual chapter meeting in late May or June (see list to the right). Also called their annual business meeting, the event gives chapter members the chance to: • • • •

Elect chapter leadership.

Make suggestions for KFTC’s issue platform.

Nominate members to serve on KFTC’s statewide committees.

Decide whether to remain a KFTC chapter.

Chapter leadership positions: All chapters are expected to select a representative and an alternate to the KFTC Steering Committee, a chapter fundraising coordinator, membership coordinator and communications coordinator. These last three positions can be shared by a team of members.

Some chapters will have additional leadership positions, reflecting chapter committees or work teams, division of responsibilities and other positions agreed to by local members.

KFTC’s Platform (kftc.org/about-us/our-platform): This document is a statement of KFTC’s position on issues that guides the Steering Committee and local chapter decisions on allocating resources and staff time. Each year the document is reviewed at chapter meetings and recommenda-

tions can be made for clarifying, adding or revising the document.

At its July meeting, the Steering Committee reviews all the suggestions and drafts an updated platform based on these recommendations. This draft platform will be printed in the July issue of Balancing the Scales and online for further member review.

At the annual meeting, the members discuss, further amend if they choose to, and adopt the platform.

•

Big Sandy: Tuesday, June 11, 6 to 8 p.m.

Central Kentucky: Thursday, June 20, 7-9 p.m., Lexington Friends Meeting House, 649 Price Ave, Lexington Cumberland: Sunday, June 2, 2 to 4 p.m.

Laurel County Library, 120 College Park, London Harlan County: Thursday, June 6, 5 to 7 p.m.

Rebecca Caudill Public Library, 310 W. Main St., Cumberland Jefferson County: Monday, June 10, 6:30-8 p.m.

First Unitarian Church of Louisville 809 S. 4th Street, Louisville. Potluck.

Nominate statewide committee members: KFTC governance committees are: Finance, Personnel and Leadership Development. KFTC issue committees are: Racial Justice, Land Reform, Economic Justice, Voting Rights, Litigation and New Energy & Transition.

Any member may nominate themselves or others to serve on one or more of these committees. The nominations go to the Leadership Development Committee, which recommends committee memberships for adoption by the Steering Committee in September.

Madison County: Monday, June 24, 6:30 p.m.

Berea Friends Meeting House 300 Harrison Road, Berea. Potluck.

The chapter annual meetings are an important part of KFTC’s democratic process. All chapter members are encouraged to participate in these meetings.

Rolling Bluegrass: Thursday, June 6, 6:30 p.m.

Scott County Public Library, 104 S. Bradford Georgetown. Potluck.

In preparation for KFTC’s statewide annual meeting (which includes the annual business meeting on Sunday morning), members are asked to participate in a number of ways.

•

ANNUAL CHAPTER MEETINGS

Participate in a chapter annual meeting (see schedule at right). All chapters hold their annual meetings in late May or June, prior to the statewide annual meeting. At these meetings, chapter members make any suggested changes to the KFTC platform, set local priorities and goals, decide if they wish to continue as a chapter and, if so, select a Steering Committee representative and alternate and chapter coordinators for membership, fundraising and communications.

Nominate yourself or others to KFTC statewide leadership positions: KFTC Executive Committee (see page 23) Kentucky Coalition board (see page 24) A statewide issue or governance committee (see page 27)

Please consider accepting a position as a chapter officer for the coming year, starting this fall. Chapter officers are: Steering Committee representative, Steering Committee alternate, fundraising coordinator, membership coordinator and communications coordinator. All are important roles and you will receive training and support. The responsibilities often are shared.

Northern Kentucky: Tuesday, June 18 at 7 p.m. at the Center for Great Neighborhoods 321 W 12th Street, Covington. Potluck.

Perry County: Monday, June 24, 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky conference room, 420 Main St, Hazard

Rowan County: Thursday, June 20, 6 p.m.

St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, 145 5th Street, Morehead Shelby County: Thursday, June 20, 6:30-8 p.m.

Stratton Community Center 615 W Washington St., Shelbyville Southern Kentucky: Tuesday, June 25 6-7:30 p.m., The Foundry Community Center 531 W 11th Street, Bowling Green Western Kentucky: Sunday, May 19, 3:30-5 p.m.

McCracken Co. Public Library conference room 555 Washington St., Paducah Wilderness Trace: Monday, June 3, 7-8:30 p.m.

Inter-County Energy Office, 1009 Hustonville Rd., Danville

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Balancing the Scales | 23

Nominations Check List

KFTC 2019 Annual MEMBERSHIP Meeting Nominations for organization leaders

The process for recommending, nominating, and electing members to KFTC’s Executive Committee reflects KFTC’s commitment to being a grassroots, membership-led organization. It is an expression of KFTC’s core values, including our commitment to diversity; an open, deliberate and democratic process; a model of shared leadership; and a practice of developing grassroots leaders as a primary strategy for social change.

Anyone may nominate someone to serve in one of the four elected positions on KFTC’s Executive Committee or three seats on the Kentucky Coalition Board. KFTC’s Leadership Development Committee considers those suggestions and recommends a slate of candidates for each board that is balanced, diverse and qualified. In July the KFTC Steering Committee will review those recommendations and formally nominate individuals for election at KFTC’s Annual Membership Meeting in August.

Nominations for the 2019/2020 Executive Committee and Kentucky Coalition Board are open until May 31, 2019.

KFTC Executive Committee R description below R nominations form on page 25 Kentucky Coalition board R description on page 24 R nominations form on page 25 Statewide issue and governance committees R description on page 26 R nominations form on page 26 Nominations also can be made at: http://kftc.org/nominations

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE NOMINATIONS: Due May 31, 2019

KFTC’s Steering Committee is the statewide board that makes decisions about the organization’s strategy, policies, budget and long-term direction. The Steering Committee is made up of one representative from each chapter, plus five statewide officers.

These five officers make up the Executive Committee. This group makes necessary decisions between Steering Committee meetings and provides leadership for the organization. Four members of the Executive Committee are elected. The fifth position is the immediate past chairperson. The following is a description of the elected positions: Chairperson The chairperson is a voting member of the KFTC Steering Committee and Executive Committee, as well as the chairperson of the KFTC Steering Committee and the Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors. They preside at all annual meetings, Steering Committee meetings, Executive Committee meetings and Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors meetings.

Vice Chairperson The vice chairperson is a voting member of the KFTC Steering Committee and Executive Committee, as well as the vice chairperson of the KFTC Steering Committee and the Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors. They preside in the absence of the chairperson at all annual meetings, Steering Committee meetings, Executive Committee meetings and Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors meetings.

Secretary-Treasurer This officer serves as secretary-treasurer for KFTC and the Kentucky Coalition. They also serve as a voting member of the KFTC Steering Committee and Executive Committee, as well as the Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors. The secretary-treasurer serves as the chair of the Finance Committee.

At-Large Representative The at-large representative is a member elected from anywhere in the state. They serve as a voting member of the KFTC Steering Committee and Executive Committee, as well as the Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors.

This is KFTC’s current Executive Committee •

• • •

The chair is Meta Mendel-Reyes. She has served two years and is not eligible for another term in that position. She will become the immediate past chair.

The vice-chair is Cassia Herron. She has served one year in this position and is eligible for another term in that or another officer position.

The secretary-treasurer is Christian Torp. He has served two years as secretary-treasurer, and is not eligible for another term in that position.

The at-large representative is Amy Copelin. She has served one year, and is eligible for another term in that position.

The fifth position on the Executive Committee is the immediate past chair, currently filled (due to a resignation) by Mary Love. Meta Mendel-Reyes will fill this position when another chairperson is elected.

Requirements • A statewide officer must be a member of KFTC. • A statewide officer cannot be a paid employee or the immediate family member of a paid employee of Executive committee members may be nominated KFTC or the Kentucky Coalition. for positions other than the one in which they cur• A statewide officer cannot serve in the same position for more than two years. rently serve.

• The Leadership Development Committee will consider all nominees and recommend a diverse slate of qualified candidates, taking into account a diversity of characteristics including gender, age, race, income, educational background, place of residence, level of involvement in the local chapter and statewide organization, issue interests, and other desired qualities.

The Leadership Development Committee values your suggestions. You may nominate as many people as you like. You may nominate a person for a specific statewide office or “for any position” on the KFTC Executive Committee. Either way, the Leadership Development Committee considers all nominees to be eligible for any and all of the four positions.

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24 | Balancing the Scales

KFTC 2019 Annual MEMBERSHIP Meeting Nominations for organization leaders

Use the form on the next page to send in your nominations.

Nominations also can be made at: http://kftc.org/nominations

KENTUCKY COALITION BOARD NOMINATIONS: Due May 31, 2019

The Kentucky Coalition is the affiliate organization of Kentuckians For The Commonwealth. The Kentucky Coalition is a 501(c)(3) organization, meaning that donations it receives are tax-deductible for the donor, and it can access foundation grants that are not available to KFTC as a 501(c)(4).

The Kentucky Coalition’s purpose is to support grassroots community organizing, leadership development and public education around important public policy. The coalition’s reach stretches beyond KFTC and beyond Kentucky. The Kentucky Coalition provides support and acts as the fiscal agent for groups working in Appalachia and the South. Currently it is the fiscal agent for the Alliance for Appalachia, a group of 13 organizations from Central Appalachia working to stop mountaintop removal mining and create a sustainable, just Appalachia.

The Kentucky Coalition board provides general oversight and direction for the organization. It maintains a close working relationship with the KFTC Steering Committee, monitors finances, and conducts planning and evaluation. The board meets at least quarterly, often by conference call.

The Kentucky Coalition board is composed of the five members of the KFTC Executive Committee plus three additional members elected by the KFTC membership at the annual meeting.

Kentucky Coalition board members serve one-year terms. Board members who also are on the Executive Committee follow the term limits of the KFTC Executive Committee. The three additional board members may serve four consecutive one-year terms.

•

It is preferred that nominees to the Kentucky Coalition Board are people with prior experience on the KFTC Steering Committee or Finance Committee who do not currently serve as their chapter’s representative.

Requirements •

A Kentucky Coalition board member must be a member of KFTC.

Current Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors

•

A Kentucky Coalition board member cannot be a paid employee or the immediate family member of a paid employee of KFTC or the Kentucky Coalition.

The following members currently serve on the Kentucky Coalition Board, along with the five members of KFTC’s Executive Committee:

•

A Kentucky Coalition board member not on the KFTC Executive Committee cannot serve in the same position for more than four one-year consecutive terms.

•

The Leadership Development Committee will consider all nominees and recommend a diverse slate of qualified candidates, taking into account a diversity of characteristics including gender, age, race, income, educational background, place of residence, level of involvement in the local chapter and statewide organization, issue interests and other desired qualities.

Program and registration information for the Annual Meeting will be available in the May issue of Balancing the Scales and online by mid-May (kftc.org/annual-meeting).

We look forward to seeing you there!

Leslie McBride (Shelby County chapter) is in her second term.

She is eligible to serve additional terms.

Alan Smith (Southern Kentucky chapter) is in his second term. He is eligible to serve additional terms.

Serena Owen (Northern Kentucky chapter) is in her second term. She is eligible to serve additional terms.

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Balancing the Scales | 25

Call for Nominations: KFTC Executive Committee and Kentucky Coalition Board. Due May 31, 2019.

You may nominate yourself or any other member for KFTC’s Executive Committee and the Kentucky Coalition Board of Directors. All nominations must be received by 5 p.m. EDT on May 31, 2019. You may make your nominations by returning this form to KFTC at P.O. Box 1450, London, KY 40743. You also may email your nominations to nominations@kftc.org, or use an online form at www.kftc.org/nominations.

KFTC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Due May 31, 2019

Your Name: Phone: Email:

KENTUCKY COALITION BOARD: Due May 31, 2019

You may nominate as many people as you like for the KFTC Executive Committee. Use additional paper if needed, and a separate form for each nominee.

You may nominate as many people as you like for the Kentucky Coalition board. Use additional paper if needed, and a separate form for each nominee.

I would like to nominate: _____________________________

I would like to nominate _________________________ for a position on the Kentucky Coalition Board.

For the following position(s) on KFTC’s Executive Committee:

I believe this person is a good choice because: _____________

Chairperson Vice Chairperson

_________________________________________________

Secretary-Treasurer

_________________________________________________

Any of the positions

At-large Rep

I believe this person is a good choice because: _____________ _________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ I have spoken with this person about my nomination, and they are willing to be considered (it’s okay if you haven’t).

I have NOT yet spoken with this person about my nomination, and I do not know if they are willing to be considered.

I would like to nominate: _____________________________

I have spoken with this person about my nomination, and they are willing to be considered (It’s okay if you haven’t).

I have NOT yet spoken with this person about my nomination, and I do not know if they are willing to be considered.

I would like to nominate _________________________ for a position on the Kentucky Coalition Board.

I believe this person is a good choice because: _____________ _________________________________________________

For the following position(s) on KFTC’s Executive Committee:

_________________________________________________

Chairperson Vice Chairperson

I have spoken with this person about my nomination, and they are willing to be considered (It’s okay if you haven’t).

Secretary-Treasurer

Any of the positions

At-large Rep

I believe this person is a good choice because: _____________

I have NOT yet spoken with this person about my nomination, and I do not know if they are willing to be considered.

_________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ I have spoken with this person about my nomination, and they are willing to be considered (it’s okay if you haven’t).

I have NOT yet spoken with this person about my nomination, and I do not know if they are willing to be considered.

Return this form to: KFTC

P.O. Box 1450

London, KY 40743

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26 | Balancing the Scales

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: Due May 31, 2019 KFTC statewide committees KFTC ISSUE AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEES KFTC is accepting nominations for members to serve on statewide issue and governance committees (descriptions below). Any member may nominate themselves or another member to service on one or more of these committees. All committee nominations will be considered by the Leadership Development Committee. New committee assignments will be finalized in September by the Steering Committee.

ISSUE COMMITTEES Land Reform – Develops the strategy for KFTC’s campaigns on issues connected to natural resources, especially coal, energy and water issues. Meets 3-6 times as needed.

Economic Justice – Develops the strategy and priorities for KFTC’s economic justice campaigns, especially around tax reform, wages and housing. Meets as needed, in person or by conference call.

New Energy and Transition (NET) – Develops strategy and priorities for work promoting clean, sustainable energy and a just transition for Appalachia and beyond. Meets face-to-face at least once a year, and monthly by phone about NET campaigns and opportunities and to develop shared strategies.

Voter Rights Strategy – Develops strategy for KFTC’s work on restoring voting rights for people with a felony in their past and coordinating the five-year plan for winning at the ballot box on this issue.

Litigation – Helps KFTC engage in strategic litigation that supports organizing goals. The team evaluates requests to join litigation and makes recommendations to the Steering Committee about new litigation. The team has conference calls as needed. If there is no active litigation, this team does not meet.

Racial Justice – Helps ensure KFTC is incorporating racial justice and anti-oppression into our work and strategies; includes educating members on racial justice issues, coordinating education and skill-building opportunities and ensuring that racial justice principles are applied to all of KFTC’s program. Meets in-person quarterly with some conference calls. All committee members must attend an anti-oppression training day in September.

KFTC issue and governance committees meet by conference call or in person several times a year. The frequency will vary by committee. ****** KFTC members may nominate themselves or another KFTC member to serve on any committee.

Nominations will be accepted until May 31. ****** Terms are for one year, and members may serve an unlimited number of terms and serve on more than one committee at a time.

GOVERNANCE COMMITTEES Leadership Development – Develops, evaluates and helps implement KFTC’s leadership programs, including workshops and leadership schools. Nominates members to serve on statewide committees and offices.

Meets several times a year as needed.

Personnel – Participates on staff hiring teams, staff performance evaluations, and manages the annual evaluation of the executive director. Provides guidance and makes recommendations about personnel policies and issues. Meets as needed (primarily calls).

Finance – Recommends budget and quarterly financial reports, financial management policies and major financial decisions; reviews and reports on KFTC’s audit. Meets by conference call every other month.

STATEWIDE COMMITTEE NOMINATIONS: Due May 31, 2019 You may nominate yourself or other KFTC members for the committees described on this page. Nominations will be reviewed by the Leadership Development Committee and appointed by the new Steering Committee in September 2019.

Submit as many nominations as you like for consideration for KFTC’s committees. Please use additional space or paper as needed.

Make your nominations by returning this form to KFTC at P.O. Box 1450, London KY 40743. Or email suggestions to nominations@kftc.org or use an online form at www.kftc.org/nominations. Members attending chapter meetings in May and June also will have the opportunity to make nominations during those discussions.

Nominee: ____________________________________ Committee nominated for: _______________________ Nominee: ____________________________________ Committee nominated for: _______________________ Nominee: ____________________________________ Committee nominated for: _______________________ Your Name: __________________________________ Phone: ______________________________________

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Balancing the Scales | 27

KFTC News

‘All in’ for 2019-20 elections shaped by Steering Committee The KFTC Steering Committee met in Berea on March 30 to discuss building electoral power and what it means to be “all in.”

At the previous Steering Committee meeting in February, leaders had voted to go “all in” to impact the important elections in 2019 and 2020 and build grassroots electoral power beyond the elections. At the March 30 meeting, leaders continued to outline the scope and strategy of this work.

They began by assessing leadership qualities and what Kentucky needs from progressive leaders in this political moment. Here’s how committee members described a good leader.

“I think leaders need to be self-aware. A lot of time there are motivations inside of us we don’t even know about. Self-awareness in leadership is important.” — David Miller, Knox County

“A good quality in leaders is humility.”

— Tiffany Duncan, Fayette County “A great leadership quality is the ability to listen.”

— Amy Copelin, Boone County “One of the most basic things about a leader is having a basic sense of human empathy.” — Margaret Ricketts, Madison County “A leader is empowering, strategic, loving and accountable. You have to be invested in people and the cause.” — Chandra Cruz-Thomson, Jefferson County “I’d like to see leaders try to build some consensus.

There has to be a way to be willing to work with people.” — Amelia Cloud, Scott County

Save the Date!

KFTC 2019 Annual Membership Meeting August 2-4 at Berea College

“Leadership that has a variety of lived experience is helpful.” — Damien Hammons, Whitley County In exploring what it means to be all in, leaders discussed what it will take to grow KFTC to 25,000 members and 1,000 grassroots leaders, to engage 100,000 voters and make 250,000 voter contacts in the 2019-2020 election cycle.

These are ambitious goals, and committee members discussed major areas and expansion of KFTC’s work in the next two years to get there, including narrative and communications, leadership development, base building, voter engagement, fundraising, ongoing and new issue campaigns and more.

That effort will include working closely with allies in the state, learning from groups similar to KFTC in other states that have invested heavily in electoral work and engaging consultants.

Other items the Steering Committee discussed included the candidates running for governor and the involvement of the New Power PAC in the statewide elections this year.

They also heard a report about organizing in western Kentucky to expand a public library.

The Steering Committee meets next on June 7-8 and will further the conversation.

Support KFTC’s Action for Democracy year-round in Kentucky!

Name(s): ________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________ City, state & Zip: __________________________________________

Give online at kftc.org/support

I would rather make a one-time gift of: □$100 □$50 □$25 □$15 □$5 Other: $__________ Suggested dues are $15-$50 annually, based on ability to pay. Any amount is welcome.

Step Two: Payment Method:

Phone: ________________________________________________

□ Check or money order enclosed

Email: ________________________________________________

□ Electronic Funds Transfer (best option for Sustaining Givers). Please return this form with a voided check.

Select which organization you would like to donate to: □ KFTC: Donations to KFTC are not tax-deductible. We encourage you to give to KFTC this spring to support our democracy work.

□ Kentucky Coalition: Donations to Kentucky Coalition are tax-deductible.

Become A Sustaining Giver: Sustaining Givers provide steady income to support KFTC’s

work throughout the year. And being a Sustaining Giver allows you to make a bigger impact.

Make me a Sustaining Giver!

I will contribute $ _____ every:

□ Month □ Quarter □ Year

To update an existing Sustaining Gift, contact Ashley at 606-878-2161 or Ashley@kftc.org

□ Credit card: Complete information below.

□ Visa □ Mastercard □ Am. Express □ Discover

Card Number: __ __ __ __ -__ __ __ __ -__ __ __ __ -__ __ __ __ Expiration Date ___ ___ / ___ ___ Authorized Signature: ____________________________ Date: _________________ Mail this form with your check to: KFTC • P.O. Box 1450 • London, Ky. 40743

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28 | Balancing the Scales

calendar of events

KFTC OFFICES and STAFF MAIN OFFICE

April 9 U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources oversight hearing on the Ecological and Health Impacts of Mountaintop Mining in Central Appalachia – KFTC will testify

April 23 and May 28 Southern Kentucky chapter meetings 6 p.m. at The Foundry 531 W 11th Ave. in Bowling Green Info: Laura@kftc.org or 502-599-3989

Morgan Brown, Burt Lauderdale, Ashley Frasher and Angel Hill 131 North Mill Street P.O. Box 1450 London, KY 40743 606-878-2161 | Fax: 606-878-5714

April 16 and May 21 Northern Kentucky chapter meetings 7 p.m. at Center for Great Neighborhoods 321 ML King Boulevard, Covington Info: Joe@kftc.org or 859-380-6103

April 27 Power House Energy Efficiency workshop at the 2019 Earth Day Festival 12:30-2:30 p.m. at the Bluegrass Community and Technical College 100 Corporate Drive in Danville Info: Nikita@kftc.org or 502-488-3830

FIELD OFFICES

April 28 – Solar on the Rise: A Celebration of Solar Energy’s Bright Future in Kentucky Family-oriented event with music, workshops, food and more!

11 a.m. - 4 p.m., West 6th Farm 4495 Shadrick Ferry Rd., Frankfort

Bowling Green Laura Harper Knight and Alexa Hatcher 958 Collett Ave., Suite 500 Bowling Green, KY 42101 270-282-4553

April 18 and May 16 Rowan County chapter meetings 6 p.m. at St. Albans Church, 145 E. 5th Street, Morehead Info: Nikita@kftc.org or 502-488-3830 April 18 and May 16 Shelby County chapter meetings 6:30 p.m. at the Stratton Center 215 Washington Street, Shelbyville Info: Carissa@kftc.org or 502-741-8759 April 18 and May 16 Central Kentucky chapter meetings 7 p.m., Episcopal Mission House 203 E. 4th Street, Lexington Info: Meredith@kftc.org or 859-276-0563 April 21 and May 19 Western Kentucky chapter meetings 3:30 p.m., 208 Faculty Hall Murray State University Info: Laura@kftc.org or 502-599-3989 April 22 – Registration deadline to vote in the May 21 Primary Election; register or check your registration at GoVoteKY.com April 22 Perry County chapter meeting 6 p.m., Location TBA Info: Jacob@kftc.org or 606-497-9262

May 2 and June 6 Rolling Bluegrass chapter meetings 6:30 p.m., Scott County Public Library 104 S. Bradford, Georgetown Info: Joe@kftc.org or 859-380-6103 May 7 and June 11 Big Sandy chapter meetings, 6 p.m., KFTC Prestonsburg office (152 N Lake Drive) Info: Jacob@kftc.org or 606-497-9262 May 13 and June 10 Jefferson County chapter meeting 6:30 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church 809 S. 4th St., Louisville Info: Molly@kftc.org or 502-589-3188 May 21 – Primary Election Day; learn about the candidates at KentuckyElection.org June 7-8 KFTC Steering Committee retreat Friday at 7 p.m. to Saturday 4:30 p.m.

Location: TBD Info: Michael@kftc.org or 859-756-4027

Louisville E’Beth Adami, Alicia Hurle, Carissa Lenfert and Molly Kaviar 735 Lampton Street #202 Louisville, KY 40203 502-589-3188

Northern Kentucky Joe Gallenstein, Caitlin Sparks and Dave Newton 640 Main Street Covington, KY 41005 859-380-6103 Central Kentucky Jessica Hays Lucas, Beth Howard, Heather Mahoney, Laura Greenfield, Erik Hungerbuhler, Meredith Wadlington, Tyler Offerman, Tayna Fogle and Nikita Perumal 250 Plaza Drive, Suite 4 Lexington, KY 40503 859-276-0563 Floyd County Jessie Skaggs, Jerry Hardt, Jacob Mack-Boll and Taylor Adams 152 North Lake Drive P.O. Box 864 Prestonsburg, KY 41653 606-263-4982 Berea Lisa Abbott, Amy Hogg, Sasha Zaring and Michael Harrington 210 N. Broadway #3 Berea, KY 40403

859-756-4027

Email any staff member at firstname@kftc.org except for Beth Howard use bethhoward@kftc.org