TABLING, CANVASSING, AND REGISTERING VOTERS! KFTC members have been talking to people all over Kentucky this fall. See more photos inside! BALANCINGSCALESVOLUMEthe40ISSUE 3 OCTOBER 21, 2021 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Meet the new Executive Committee Looking back on the first ten years of KFTC Local updates from Rowan County, Rolling Bluegrass, SOKY, NKY, and Shelby County Reflections from deep canvassing $100,000conversationsstipends awarded to Just Transition Fellows Victory for solar! Special session recap from KVH Where have KFTC members been lately?
In this issue, you’ll get to know KFTC’s new Executive Committee and help us celebrate longtime KFTC Executive Director, Burt Lauderdale, who retired in August. You’ll get recent updates from KFTC chapters, our Voting Rights campaign, and the Climate Justice canvassing crew. And you’ll read some “old news” by way of stories from the first ten years of KFTC. We’re excited to share the impacts of a recent victory for solar energy, as well as the potential benefits to Kentuckians from the Build Back Better Plan. And, as always, look for lots of photos of KFTC members and the folks we’re meeting in our communities.
Pictured on the front cover: Daisy Carter and Francisco Serrano registering voters at the International Festival in Bowling Green. Executive Committee Corner 3 Meet the new Executive Committee! 4 Celebrating Burt Lauderdale’s organizing legacy 5 #KFTC40: Broad Form Deeds, Water Monitoring, and a Name Change..................................................................................6 LOCAL AND ISSUE UPDATES Rowan County chapter reads StampedfromtheBeginning 8 Rolling Bluegrass plans 9th annual Arty Pie Party ...............................................................................................................8 Economic Justice committee creates a local budget toolkit 9 SOKY hosts Voter Empowerment Summit 9 NKY members fighting for stricter pollution standards 10 Shelby County updates 10 Voting rights campaign registers voters ............................................................................................................................11 You can run for public office! 11 Reflections from deep canvassing conversations 12 KY Just Transition Coalition awards $100,000 stipends 14 Victory for solar and net-metering! ....................................................................................................................................16 #ICYMI social media highlights 17 KY Voices for Health: special session recap 18 KyPolicy: How Kentuckians would benefit from the Build Back Better Act 20 Where have KFTC members been lately? 22
KFTC is turning 40 this year! We’re celebrating four decades of action for justice and making big plans for the work ahead. You can support this work at www.kftc.org/support or by filling out the form at the end of this newsletter. Interested in submitting to balancing the scales? Share your writing, photos, and more via email to bts@kftc.org or mail to P.O. Box 1450, London, KY, 40743. We can’t wait to hear from you!
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
THANK YOU FOR BEING A KFTC MEMBER AND READER OF BALANCING THE SCALES!
Subscriptions are
Kentuckians For The Commonwealth is a community of people, inspired by a vision, building grassroots power in Kentucky –with a more authentic democracy, a just and sustainable economy, and a clean energy future. At KFTC, we offer a pathway for Kentuckians to work with others who share their vision and values to impact issues at the local and state levels, develop leadership skills, build community and grassroots power, and win changes that make Kentucky a healthier and more just place to call home. 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. 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 1450, London, KY 40743 or bts@kftc.org. $20/yr.
Since then, KFTC staff – including eight new organizers – have been orienting the organization’s program of work to these goals. Management and staff agreed to our first staff union contract. And our new Steering Committee is using these goals as a North Star as they set priorities and direction for the year ahead. We’ve launched a statewide, climate justice deep canvassing project that is helping us reach more people in more places. And we’ve moved resources to twenty Just Transition Organizing Fellows leading self-directed organizing projects at the intersection of racial, economic, and climate justice in
Tiff & Alan KFTC’s executive leadership sits at the intersection of our member leaders and our staff team.
Last month, KFTC’s executive director, Burt Lauderdale, retired after 38 years of exceptional organizing and leadership. And in his farewell letter, he affirmed his belief that KFTC’s best days are ahead. If we’re successful in reaching the goals of our organizational change initiative, we will have a more equitable and stronger organization. And Kentucky will be a more equitable state. Thank you!
Finding executive leadership who will oversee and champion movement toward our 10-year goal is a critical component of our change initiative.
Ideal candidates have strong roots and relationships in Kentucky, 5+ years of experience in key areas such as community organizing, fundraising, and staff supervision, and the passion and skills to help KFTC evolve from a mostly white organization with 10 local chapters to one guided by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and other impacted communities with members and partners across all 120 counties. Read more about the job at kftc.org/exec-hiring!
Tiff Duncan Co-Chairperson Alan Smith Co-Chairperson
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leaders have been deepening our alignment and skilling up. And it will take all of us to create the KFTC – and Kentucky – of our vision. That’s why we’re inviting members and partners, who are ready and willing, to own and help advance these goals. Talk to your local organizer, or another KFTC leader or staff person, if you have questions or ideas. Ready to get to work building the next KFTC? Join the conversation about our vivid description and audacious goal in your local chapter or issue committee. Get involved in the work to build our skills and center racial justice in the 2022 General Assembly, primary elections, and beyond. Be on the lookout for upcoming opportunities, find the places where your talents meet this work, and invite others to do the same. We know we can do this because we are the leaders we are looking for.
OurKentucky.staffand
KFTC is looking for one or two Executive Directors who are passionate about member-led grassroots organizing and racial justice to lead the organization in building power in Kentucky.
2031 Vivid Description: Kentuckians for the Commonwealth is a collective light, leading the way to a thriving, joyful, intergenerational, multi-cultural society where people are free from oppression and where equity, health care, and racial, economic and environmental justice exist for everyone. We are a beloved community where all people are connected and affirmed through healthy relationships, dedicated to achieving mutual liberation.
2031 Audacious Goal: Guided by Black, Indigenous, People of Color and impacted communities, recruit, equip, and activate a network of 100,000 members and partners across all 120 counties to dismantle racism and all systems of oppression, to develop a robust democracy and transform the future of Kentucky.
As part of KFTC’s organizational change initiative, we’ve been asking our members: who do we want to be to manifest our vision? In the spring of this year, over one hundred members participated in a series of conversations to begin to answer that fundamental question. They created a vivid description of our future and an audacious goal to help guide us forward:
Who do we want to be to manifest our vision?
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What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? I found a bunch of CD’s recently and one was a compilation of social justice songs with Dear Mr President by Pink on it. It is stuck in my head. Ebony O’Rea, she/her At-large Representative Where do you call home? Heaven/Louisville How do you practice selfcare? Pedicures, massages, cooking, watching Wheel of Fortune, and drinking bourbon
What appetizer do you order for the table? Artichoke dip unless I’m at the Wrigley in Corbin then its Brussels sprouts all the way.
What are your three most recently used emojis?
What are your three most recently used emojis? What is the last show you binged? Squid Game What appetizer do you order for the table? Roasted Brussels sprouts What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? National Anthem: Arise! Arise! by Jean Rohe David Miller, Secretary-Treasurerhe/him Where do you call home? Barbourville. I didn’t grow up here, but I’ve lived here longer than anywhere else, even my “hometown.”
What is the last show you binged? Lucifer
What’s your astrological sign? Leo
Meet the new Executive Committee! At this year’s annual meeting, KFTC members elected a new, six-person Executive Committee who will lead us through our organizational transitions and racial equity work over the next twelve months and beyond. This Executive Committee consists of an additional at-large representative and a new (to us) co-chair model. Below are their responses to a short profile questionnaire. Tiff Duncan, she/her Co-Chair Where do you call home? Central Kentucky How do you practice selfcare? I go outside and look at nature or listen to music.
What are your three most recently used emojis?
What is the last show you binged? Call the Midwife What appetizer do you order for the table? Spinach Dip What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Mavis Staples’ We Shall Not Be Moved Alan Smith, he/him Co-Chair Where do you call home? Warren County
How do you practice selfcare? Working outside in the sun
How do you practice self-care? I engage in regular mindfulness practice, and I read lots of science fiction. What’s your astrological sign? Libra, which is appropriate for Balancing the Scales. What are your three most recently used emojis? What is the last show you binged? Archer What appetizer do you order for the table? Quesadillas What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Siyahamba/We Are Marching in the Light of Love Kathy Curtis, she/her At-large Representative Where do you call home? My body lives in eastern Kentucky and my heart visits the beach in Florida How do you practice self-care? Drinking coffee in the chapel in the dark, sitting in the sun especially in the winter, long aimless walks What’s your astrological sign? Libra What are your three most recently used emojis?
What appetizer do you order for the table? Combination platter – I like options! What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Inner City Blues by Marvin Gaye You can find a playlist of the songs in these profiles at linktr.ee/BalancingTheScales
Getting quality sleep time is also important to me. What’s your astrological sign? Virgo
What is the last show you binged? I don’t watch TV but I do binge on books, most recently Trisha O’Malley’s Wild Irish series
What are your three most recently used emojis? What is the last show you binged? I mostly stick to ballgames What appetizer do you order for the table? Something cheesy or fried! What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Yes We Can by Lee Dorsey Rebecca Ellen Tucker, Vice-Chairshe/her Where do you call home? Lexington, KY How do you practice selfcare? Walks and podcasts
What’s your astrological sign? Capricorn
What’s your astrological sign? Aquarius
KFTC has been organizing the heck out of Kentucky for forty years, and Executive Director Burt Lauderdale was instrumental to the last thirty-eight. In Burt’s own words, Unlike many long-time organizers I’ve met, I came to this work a little more by happy accident than strategic design. I was doing home repair work in eastern Kentucky when KFTC was being organized and it sparked my interest. Thirty-eight years ago, Gladys Maynard, Mary Jane Adams, and Betty May interviewed me at the Druther’s restaurant in Martin, Kentucky for KFTC’s first field organizer position, and decided to take a chance. I was assigned to organize with the Harlan County and Leslie County Chapters. I lived in a two-room log cabin, drove a pickup truck, wore work boots, plaid shirts, and a very full beard. I was a walking, talking, organizing cliché. On my first day, Joe brought me a stapler, an IBM Selectric typewriter, and a list of members from my two counties. On my second day I drove to the head of Bad Creek to meet Effie and Charlie Morgan. By the end of that visit I believed I had found my calling. Burt retired in August, and KFTC took the opportunity during this year’s virtual Annual Meeting to share stories of the work he’s helped shape, lead, and make possible. KFTC members, current and former staff, allies from across the country, friends, and family gathered via Zoom on July 31. There were stories, songs, laughter, and lots of appreciation for Burt.
Longtime KFTC member and former chairperson, K.A. Owens asked, “What can you say about a man who dedicated his life to building up an organization that would have an impact on the lives of real people in significant and positive ways?” K.A. continued, “Burt did all of this without being the frontman of the organization. Without sticking his face in front of a camera every five minutes; without trying to hog the spotlight. He was loyal to the grassroots philosophy that was built into the organization from the beginning. He played the true organizing role of providing ordinary, everyday people with the opportunity to develop themselves, so as to be the leaders their communities Ai-jenneeded.”Poo, the co-founder and Executive Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, shared, “As somebody who knows how hard it is to build things. How much heart, and grit, and patience, and determination, and soul it takes to build a true people’s organization. One that working class people can feel pride in, and feel powerful as a part of. It is so hard. And what you have done has been nothing short of extraordinary. And I have been so proud over the years to bear witness to the incredible impact of your work and the organization that you have built. I’m proud to call you a friend and a co-conspirator. I’m here, and the domestic workers are celebrating you and the incredible work of KFTC.”
Celebrating Burt Lauderdale’s organizing legacy
And Anthony Thigpenn, Chief Strategist of California Calls, reflected: “I’ve been thinking about how long we’ve known each other. But I’ve lost track of how many years it’s been, how many meetings and projects we’ve been in together. But what I haven’t lost track of, is how I always feel better when you’re in the room … KFTC has always been one of my favorite organizations, and one that I have great admiration for. And that is in large part because of your leadership. Your honesty, integrity, instincts, humility and sense of humor have been a guiding light for me and for the movement for racial and social justice. I know we’re celebrating your retirement from KFTC, but I hope this just means that you’re assuming another role in the movement. We know there’s still a lot of work to be done, but never doubt that the role you have played and the work you have done have made the world a better place.”
You can watch a video recording of the celebration at linktr.ee/BalancingTheScales
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THE BEGINNING In the late 1970s, residents in six Appalachian states conducted a land study. When it was released, the study documented what many people suspected – out of state companies owned most of the valuable coal property, but paid almost no taxes to the communities that provided them with land and labor. The study pointed to why one of the richest regions in natural resources was so poor in services for its people. People started meeting about the laws that allowed that to continue and ways to change them. In 1981, some of these folks formed the Kentucky Fair Tax Coalition. They vowed to reverse a recent law exempting coal companies from property tax on their coal holdings and to change other unfair tax laws. More importantly, they agreed their approach to change would be direct action organizing.
On August 17, KFTC turned 40. In the coming months and issues of Balancing the Scales, we’ll be sharing stories from our four decades of action for justice.
1984: KFTC legislation to end abuses of broad form deeds became law. The next year, members forced the state to comply, but the Kentucky Supreme Court struck down the law in 1987 – leaving no choice but to amend the state constitution.
1987: KFTC changed its name to Kentuckians For The Commonwealth to reflect a statewide, multiissue approach.
1983-1985: KFTC started a water monitoring project. Coal companies were forced to monitor groundwater quality. Residents in several counties won fights to protect water quality or replace polluted systems.
#KFTC40: Broad Form Deeds, Water Monitoring, and a Name Change
KFTC IN THE 1980s 1981-1982: Initial work focused on tax reform, with an eye toward involvement in the General Assembly. Members started work to stop strip mining without landowners’ permission under broad form deeds. KFTC held its first Annual Membership Meeting.
1986: Chapters started working for local control of waste disposal – fighting landfills and incinerators, particularly those bringing toxic waste from out of state. Several water protection measures passed the legislature.
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You can check out our new website at kftc.org. We’re building a site for beyond 2021 that provides the information and opportunities you need to get involved and build grassroots power with us. Stay tuned for more updates.
1988: 82 percent of Kentucky voters say “YES” to the Broad Form Deed constitutional amendment to protect landowners and residents from strip miners. KFTC members help pass a hazardous waste local control bill. After fighting the abuses of broad form deeds for more than 20 years, member Joe Begley said, “This victory showed that if people get together and stay together long enough, they can get the job done.”
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Looking for something from the old website? We’ve got you covered at archive.kftc.org.
KFTC celebrates 40 years with a special anniversary logo
1989: Louisville members won an incinerator fight and worked with People Outraged With Energy Rates (POWER) to stop utility rate hikes and shutoffs.
Decades later, the belief that people working together across our differences can make change in Kentucky is still at the heart of everything we do at KFTC.
Recognize anyone in KFTC’s 40th anniversary logo? To celebrate 40 years of action for justice, we worked with Seun Erinle and the talented team at GRID Principles to launch an anniversary logo and website. Learn more about how they use design to connect people at gridprinciples.com.
Leaders Katie Cornett will talk about our work on LGBTQ+ rights, planning a local Pride, and what’s at stake in the year ahead for LGBTQ+ folks; Tim Klarer will talk about voting rights for people with felonies in their past, and the path forward to make sure all voices are heard and valued in our democracy; and Rosanne and Katie will invite folks to join the chapter in other upcoming events. We’ll also hear from some of the artists. Mo Viviane will read some of their poetry, and there will be music from eclectic and multi-talented musician Jaret Ellis, and folk singer-songwriter Madeline Fitts. Our hosts will spotlight art donated from members across the Commonwealth and supporters around the country, and a mixologist will demonstrate how to make an Old Fashioned with Kentucky Rye Whiskey. We hope you join us for the live stream and conversation and visit our auction by 11/20 to make bids at bit.ly/ArtyPie21!
The Rowan county chapter has been involved in several local initiatives involving anti-racism. The current climate, along with the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, increased our groups’ wishes to continue growing our knowledge. We know we can no longer stand by and be passively “not racist.” We must actively do something, and be involved in anti-racism. We thought a study on racism and anti-racism would enhance future efforts. We chose Stamped from the Beginning because it was a historical look at racism and anti-racism. Our group wanted to grow in our knowledge of racism and anti-racism concepts, policies, and historical knowledge. I know I stretched my brain cells, hopefully creating new muscles to enhance my antiracism activities. We discussed two chapters at a time and it took a long time to finish. Our discussions were informative and lively. Discussions of how racist philosophers are still affecting policies today to how our views of the founding fathers changed. Stamped from the Beginning examines American history from a different viewpoint worthy of study. Kendi offered me a more critical eye on history with a lens focused on looking through racism and antiracism. Was Lincoln an anti-racist or did he sign the emancipation proclamation for political reasons? Was the eugenics movement created to justify the “inferior theory” Voltaire began? Kendi covered so many historical figures, policies, and ideas that I will definitely have to go back and read Stamped from the Beginning again. If I wanted to understand some of the concepts Kendi introduced quicker I would definitely choose Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You. This newer version is written for a high school audience and the chapters are ten pages long, with the whole book only being 275 pages. This version simplifies the philosophy in smaller chunks and allows for an easier understanding.
Rowan County chapter reads Stamped from the Beginning
Rolling Bluegrass chapter plans 9th Annual Arty Pie Party
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By: Annette Hines During the COVID-19 shutdown, the Rowan County chapter of KFTC decided to tackle Ibram X. Kendi’s historical research book Stamped from the Beginning – over 500 pages of a thoughtful look at the American justification of racism.
Celebrate with Rolling Bluegrass Chapter members and friends of Kentuckians For The Commonwealth at our Arty Pie Party online! We hope you join us for what is going to be a fun and exciting way to check out the work KFTC is doing! Like every year, there will be music, art, and desserts for auction at https://bit. ly/ArtyPie21. We’ll also share stories about our work to build a Kentucky where all our communities are housed, safe, and whole. The online auction of art, crafts, jewelry, homemade foods, services, and much much more will kick off with a livestream on November 6th from the chapter Facebook page (facebook.com/RBG.KFTC) at 7:00 p.m. ET! Hosts Rosanne Klarer and Katie Cornett will welcome members to share their stories and art, showcase some of the things available for auction, and what it means to find your organizing home with Kentuckians For The Commonwealth.
SOKY hosts The People’s Caucus: Voter Empowerment Summit
Considering the inpouring of federal COVID-19 relief dollars, and a super majority of conservative legislators that are working hard against using those dollars for relief, the Economic Justice committee decided to focus on working locally to ensure the large budget we have right now is spent fairly. We have spent lots of time talking with Kentuckians about how they’re holding up during this pandemic and where they think our money should be spent, and getting feedback about how to make this Local Budget Toolkit useful from Paducah to Pikeville, and everywhere in between.
Along with the recent Annual Meeting workshop titled “It’s our money and we need it now!”, the committee has presented the toolkit at local festivals and is preparing to present it at a chapter meeting near you!
Above: Amelia Cloud, Rosanne Klarer, and Jamie Doty Right: Steve Katz and Jamie Doty
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NotCoalition.onlydo we thank each organization representative in attendance, but we would also like to thank Ouida Meier of Fair Maps, Jack Thomas of the Local Board of Elections, and Dr. Patti Minter for her historical knowledge on voting and voting Therights.state of Kentucky will only be as great as what we create together.
Economic Justice Committee creates local budget toolkit
The event was successful at bringing together several diverse community organizations to learn about each other, as well as to brainstorm opportunities to support each other’s work. There have been a number of post-meeting suggestions made, and we are now in the process of creating a SOKY Voting Rights
Members of the Rolling Bluegrass chapter participated in the Georgetown Fourth of July festivities by marching in the parade and registering voters!
For the last year, the Economic Justice Committee has been working to produce a Local Budget Toolkit to break down barriers to critical budget information in our communities. Access to information regarding where our tax dollars are spent, who decides how they’re spent, and when they’re spent is vital to us being able to secure funding for our basic needs.
The NKY chapter hosted dozens of canvasses that led to the People’s Hearing over the summer. If you live in Kenton County and would like to make sure that all residents have cleaner air, you can take action and send a letter to the Fiscal Court at bit.ly/Interplastics.
The Northern Kentucky chapter has been canvassing in Latonia since the summer, having conversations with residents about their experiences with Interplastics and what they’d like to see happen. The chapter even hosted a People’s Hearing in July where several members of the community shared their vision and their concerns with their neighbors and elected officials, and where local elected officials were invited to come and listen. People are asking for the county to step in to create stricter pollution standards to protect people living near the Interplastics facility, similar to the way Louisville enacted their STAR program several years ago. This would help reduce the level of pollution that workers at the facility face, as well as what neighbors face.
NKY members are asking for stricter pollution standards to protect people living near Interplastics facility
KFTC and NAACP members collaborated to oppose this with a hailstorm of letters, phone calls, emails, and other outreach to elected leaders.
ACTION!TAKE
Many Kentuckians have dealt with the smell of pollution, and are concerned over what that smell could mean for their neighbors, their families, and themselves. The pollution of the air has touched most of us across the Commonwealth – from Rubbertown in Louisville to folks near Sadieville in Scott County fighting a landfill company that continues to disregard regulations and residents who live near factory farms in western Kentucky. In the Covington neighborhood of Latonia, residents have been filing complaints about the smell coming from the Interplastics Corporation for roughly half of a century. The smell – which forces many people indoors on bad days, and many also feel is a trigger for headaches and other health issues – was a part of the class-action lawsuit in which some residents won, and that many have sought help through additional lawsuits or government action. Unfortunately, the City of Covington is powerless to protect their residents. While it was Covington’s first responders that primarily responded to a leak from the plant in 2019 that forced much of the city to shelter in place, it actually is placed just over the city limits in the city of Fort Wright.
We learned in the spring that our beloved Stratton Community Center (where our chapter and our allies meet) was to remain closed forever! The city was considering a plan to use the space as expanded offices for the police, closing one of the only community meeting spaces in town.
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By Joyce Fitzgerald, Shelby County Chapter Publicity Coordinator Staying alive, alert, and involved amid the COVID-19 pandemic has kept our chapter on its toes.
Thanks to the investigative homework by local journalists & attorneys, we now know that there are deed restrictions from the family who originally gifted the land for the Community Center. However, proposed high rental fees may restrict community use of the Center. So the issue of community availability is unresolved, but we’ve won for now.
Another very emotional concern our chapter members acted on was school policy and COVID-19 CDC protocols. Several of our chapter members are retired or active educators. The Shelby County Board of Education asked for citizen input on COVID-19 protections. Again, networking with our Shelby County allies we called, texted, wrote letters, and appeared at a public hearing to support the adoption of CDC COVID-19 Protocols: vaccinations, testing, masking, and social distancing. The Board vote was unanimous to adopt the CDC protocols.
Fairness for LGBTQIA residents continues to be a chapter project. After attending a June Pride event in Shelbyville our chapter voted to provide financial support for a much larger fall event at our local Park with Shelby County Pride handling the event planning. However, due to high COVID-19 exposure rates, the Pride Family Gathering has been rescheduled for September 2022. Staying alive, alert, and involved, we as a chapter are deep in our resolve to persist in our quest for a responsible, representative democracy!
Shelby County chapter stays busy
This month, we also won a significant incremental legal victory. Our allies at the Fair Elections Center and Kentucky Equal Justice Center got a decision from the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals reversing Judge Caldwell’s dismissal of our case arguing that a Kentucky Governor should not have unlimited discretion to grant the right to vote to disenfranchised Kentuckians. Barring a decision from the Governor to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court or petition for review from all of the judges serving on the 6th Circuit, the case will now return to Judge Caldwell for a ruling on the merits of the claim. While continuing to focus on field voter registration work, we’re also preparing for next year’s General Assembly where we’ll push for a constitutional amendment restoring the right to vote to Kentuckians with felonies in their past.
• Spokesperson Training for People with Felonies in their Past: January 19, 7 p.m. ET
You’ll lean into issues, build a leaderful campaign, and incorporate racial justice into your efforts and Theoutcomes.training is appropriate for people interested in running for office or just working to help build someone else’s campaign to run. This training is two days:
• Part 2: December 4, 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET If you sign up, you’ll receive a survey closer to time asking some questions about you to help focus our training and inform breakout groups.
ACTION!TAKE
KFTC members and our allies have leaned into fieldwork to find and register Kentuckians with felonies in their past who got their right to vote back from Beshear’s executive order (but who were never notified of this) as well as hosting online trainings to advance our campaign. In all, we held twenty-two field events since the last issue of BTS in July, including a recovery rally in Louisville, multiple door-to-door canvasses, a texting campaign, a phone bank, and lots of voter registration tabling events in key communities all across the state. We also held nine virtual trainings about voter registration, grassroots lobbying, KFTC’s approach to voter engagement, a spokesperson training for people with felonies in their past, and more. Our trainings often focus on hearing stories from people with felonies in their past and why voting matters to them. Kenny Jenkins, CKY KFTC Member who voted for the first time in the last election shared, “When I finally got my right to vote, it changed a lot for me – just the way I look at things or feel. It’s a sense of empowerment, to be heard and listened to. I feel like I have a purpose. I feel like I’m part of something meaningful. If we can win the right for all of us, it’s going to be a big deal, I’ll tell you that much.”
• Redistricting Training hosted by the League of Women Voters: November 10, 6 p.m. ET
• Voter Registration Training Webinar: November 17, 7 p.m. ET
A constitutional amendment would be broader, clearer, and more permanent than Governor Beshear’s existing executive order and would make it far easier to register people with felonies in their past to vote and to invite them into the democracy. If the legislation is successful, the ballot issue on Voting Rights would appear on the November 2022 ballot.
The 2022 candidate filing deadline is coming up in January, but there’s still time to recruit and train good people – including yourself – to run for public office at the state, county, and city levels. Join us for this two-part training to learn the basics of running for office including honing your message, building your team, designing your campaign plan, asking for donations, and running a field campaign. Our approach focuses on leveraging skills you might have developed in grassroots issue-based organizing work and applies them to run for office.
Voting Rights campaign registers voters, prepares for General Assembly
You
• Part 1: November 6, 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET
Get involved and attend one of these upcoming events:
• Candidate and Campaign Manager Training Part 2: December 4, 12 – 4 p.m. ET
• Candidate and Campaign Manager Training Part 1: November 6, 12 – 4 p.m. ET
• Voting Rights Issue Introduction Webinar: December 7, 7 p.m. ET
• Virtual Lobby Day for a Healthy Democracy: January 25, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. ET You can sign up for these or other events at www.mobilize.us/kftc
You can reserve your spot in the training online at our events calendar at www.mobilize.us/kftc
The training series will continue into next year, helping to develop other skills related to your run for public office and we’ll let you know about other training allies are providing too. can run for public office! Or help someone else win!
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 11
• Voting Rights Lobbying Training: November 30, 7 p.m. ET
Have you ever thought about running for office? Or do you know someone you can encourage to run?
Jared Hamilton, Hazard: “I have found that in our eastern Kentucky community – and specifically in Hazard where we are canvassing – most people do carry a lot of empathy. As we talk to folks, I see people who haven’t really thought about climate change and how it affects us really turn around. People at their core do care. They may be influenced by local or national politics to be silent. But once you get their wheels turning, most people are deeply worried and want better for their community.”
Reflections from deep canvassing conversations
• After I explained why I was at the door, a guy in Bowling Green asked me to wait. I wasn’t sure he was actually going to come back. But then he did return with his girlfriend. They were both very concerned about climate change and were super interested in learning more about KFTC. They said they felt that no one in power was listening to them or their concerns.
What will it take to build a diverse grassroots movement in Kentucky strong enough to win bold climate solutions that do right by workers and communities most affected by structural racism, pollution, poverty, and job losses?
There are no shortcuts or easy answers. But this fall KFTC is investing in an organizing strategy known as deep canvassing, which relies on empathetic listening and non-judgmental conversations to build rapport with people and explore their views of important issues. As part of this project, teams of canvassers in Bowling Green, Louisville, and Hazard have been going door-to-door three days a week since mid-August, talking with hundreds of Kentuckians about the climate crisis. In each city, they’ve knocked every door in racially and economically diverse neighborhoods – listening to folks who often feel unheard or powerless. These conversations begin by asking people where they fall on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is very unconcerned and 10 is extremely concerned about climate change. The canvasser then asks, “Why does that number feel right to you?” Then canvassers ask “Have you or people you care about ever been harmed by extreme weather – things like floods, droughts, violent storms, or extreme heat?” They listen for the heart of a person’s story and empathize with their lived experience. Then canvassers share a bit of their own climate stories, and invite the person at the door to make meaning of the conversation. They ask questions like, “What solutions would you like to see for yourself and your community? What do you think it will take? Who or what do you think is responsible for the problem?” Many conversations can last 20 minutes, and some are twice that long. Toward the end, each person is asked once more to put themselves on the 1 to 10 scale. Canvassers also ask permission to follow-up, and share information about ways to get involved and take action. Each Monday, the canvassing team meets virtually to share meaningful conversations they had the week before, and process what this project is hearing and learning from folks at the doors. Below are a few snapshots of recent conversations: • I spoke with a woman who is an important matriarch in her community. Afterwards, I felt like I just got out of church. She marched with MLK, Jr, and got arrested during civil rights protests. She told me that persistence and staying focused is key to this work. It was refreshing, and such an important reminder.
• I spoke with a woman in Louisville who at first said she was a one on a scale of one to ten, where one means you are extremely unconcerned about climate change and ten means you are extremely concerned. But she added, “I really don’t know very much about it.” I asked if she wanted to talk. She said, “Yes, I’ve always wanted to know more.” We talked. I shared information. At the end, she said to put her at an eight on the scale. And she added, “I would normally be at work today. I believe we were meant to have this conversation.”
Deep canvassing relies on non-judgmental listening, exchanging emotionally significant stories, and inviting people to process out loud their experiences and perspectives. It’s meaningful, complex, and tiring work. Canvassers working with KFTC this fall have engaged with heart, courage, creativity, and skill. Below are some of their reflections: Brooklyn Lile, Bowling Green: “I am so excited to be doing this work because I come from a family of farmers that have been harmed by extreme temperatures, floods, and drought. Being able to share my personal story in order to connect with people in my community has been such a rewarding experience. I have been so surprised by the number of people who were either already concerned about climate change or were willing to have a genuine, honest conversation about their concerns. Many Kentuckians have felt ignored and left behind by the government, so being able to have these conversations has really changed their mindset on the power of collective action.”
12 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021
• We spoke with a guy who did not want to talk with us at first, but he then spent forty-five minutes talking with us. His family had helped establish that neighborhood in Hazard. He said he hated the harm that is happening to the climate. He felt bad about working as a strip-miner, and recognized its impact on water quality. He said he didn’t want to go to work as a deep miner due to safety concerns, but hated being involved with strip-mining. He expressed a deep distrust of coal companies that don’t do right by land or people.
• One guy in Bowling Green said at first that he had no connection to climate change. Then after we talked for a while, he said he used to work on the Mississippi River. After asking him a few more questions, it turned out he was displaced from that job because of Hurricane Katrina, and had to relocate to Kentucky. It turned out he had quite a climate story, he just hadn’t thought about it that way before.
This fall, KFTC members and allies are encouraged to learn and practice deep canvassing skills by volunteering with this project on Saturday November 13th. Sign up for a Climate Crisis Deep Canvassing event near you at mobilize.us/kftc. KFTC members and staff have been canvassing all over the commonwealth! Pictured clockwise from the middle: teams in Perry County, Jefferson County, Northern Kentucky, Central Kentucky, and Southern Kentucky. If you would like to get involved and talk with people in your community, sign up at mobilize.us/kftc!
Canvassers Olivia Harp and Jared Hamilton knocked on the door of Johnny Cox from Perry County. Cox played basketball for the University of Kentucky from 1956 to 1959 and won a NCAA Championship with UK in 1958. He went on to play one season in the NBA as a member of the Chicago Zephyrs as well as in the American Basketball League.
Jason Lowe, Bowling Green: “This work is extremely meaningful because the people we talk to are eager to discuss climate change and the way it intersects with issues like jobs and justice. People want to share their stories and talk about solutions. And the people we are talking to in Bowling Green aren’t being reached out to by other groups or campaigns. They feel left behind and unheard. Canvassing brings them into the political process and empowers them to find solutions and have their voice heard.”
Jillian Greene, Louisville: “We’ve talked to hundreds of people in Louisville and heard meaningful stories of how intersectional the climate crisis truly is. The people of Louisville are ready for our government to step up and implement solutions to prevent the worst of this crisis and create millions of jobs while doing Savannahit.”
Trebuna, Louisville: “In my experiences engaging with Louisvillians, I have talked to many people who see how much Louisville has changed in just fifty years. How the air quality has limited their foot travel, how the extreme heat and lack of tree coverage has affected their energy bills, and how our infrastructure and reliance on cars leaves job accessibility very limited. These concerns, juxtaposed with a government very slow to offer real solutions, has led to a lot of reasonable cynicism. It’s hard to feel like you are being heard by your leaders when not much can get done on even a local level. It seems as if legislators are trying to satiate the masses with performative bills that do little, if anything, to protect and represent our community. I think the biggest thing I’ve learned from this project is the power of collective action, and truly demanding more from the folks that hold the power. While we can’t draft the bills or vote in favor of them, we have the opportunity to hold our leaders accountable. Our strategy has to be loud, to be confrontational, and to remind our representatives that we will remember them on the ballot if our needs aren’t addressed.”
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 13
What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Make it home by Tobe Nwigwe Jeffery Compton, he/him. Louisville Project description: My goal of this project to get the disenfranchised and unengaged in the voter process as well as get three hundred new registered voters. Annette Hines, she/her. Sandy Hook Project description: I want to focus on socialchange.environment/climatetheIwanttousemedia,movies, and deep canvassing to influence local community environmental change and awareness. What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson, Bruno Mars Destiny Owen, she/her, Elsmere Project description: Art is Joy, Happiness, and Healing! My Environmental and Climate Justice Art Advocacy project is inclusive of all Kentuckians including BiPOC, young artists Ages 15-29, and artists with disabilities. Art Activists will have fun, be empowered, and share their Climate Change, Environmental Justice, or Power Building story while learning how they can help build New Power through a Just Transition and promote environmental justice, racial justice, happiness, and healing through art. What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Earth Song by Michael Jackson Serena Owen, she/her/we/ us, Louisville & Elsmere Project description: Our Empower Kentucky Plan inspired me to be “All-In” for a Just Transition! My calling in life is to help others and thanks to the Just Transition Fellowship, I am able to do more to help meet directly impacted members of our communities where they are while providing resources and supports that meet some of their basic needs so they can be actively engaged in personal and community power building. I am excited that my project helps build grassroots power by involving affected communities and workers in shaping strategies that protect their well-being, supports a bright future, and advances a Just Transition, Climate Justice, Racial Justice, and a Healthy Democracy for everyone. What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Powerful by Alicia Keys & Jussie Smollett, Ella’s Song by Sweet Honey in the Rock Roop Patel, she/her, Fort Wright Project description: My work has to do with creating a mentorship network for South Asian Women. Specifically, when I was a senior in undergrad, I conducted a project that looked at the political attitudes of the Indian electorate. From that project, I noticed that there were a lot of voices missing from our democracy – most notably South Asian women. Inspired (and as a South Asian women myself), I wanted to create a mentorship project for other South Asian women and to create a safe space where women can talk and ask whatever questions they want to other people who would have similar livedexperiences. Ashlee Phillips, she/her, Smoketown in Louisville Project description: My project is titled, “Creatives You Meet Along The Way: A West End Love Story in the Making”. I will be using photography, and conversations to create a mini-documentary that highlights Black West End creatives curating change through their art discipline(s). What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Blk Girl Soldier by Jamila Woods Melody Rae, she/her, Lexington Project description: My project is focused on the reduction of school police and reinvesting the money saved from the reduction to culturally competent counseling in Fayette County Public Schools. The campaign is called Counselors Over Cops, and we’ve been working for about a year now to get our campaign demands prioritized and reviewed. We’ll continue fighting until our demands are met, and enact other counties in Kentucky to organize for their own schools.
(Participating organizations in the Kentucky Just Transition Coalition include Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, Hood to the Holler, Rubbertown Environmental Action (REACT), Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition, Sunrise leaders in Kentucky, IUE-CWA, and NCFO-SEIU.)
KY Just Transition Coalition awards $100,000 in stipends
14 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021
This fall, the Kentucky Just Transition Coalition, a new formation of groups working to advance a Just Transition and a healthy democracy in Kentucky, awarded $100,000 to twenty fellows with stipends ranging between $3,200 and $6,400 to support fellows who are working at the intersection of racial, economic, and environmental/climate justice in Kentucky
These fellowship stipends were prioritized for Kentuckians who identify as Black, brown, or Indigenous; youth (ages 15 to 29); and others who are directly affected by injustice. Below are profiles of some of the organizers awarded fellowships.
Naze Afeni, she/they, Louisville Project description: My project is all about creating spaces for youth artists in the West End of Louisville, building community, while creating messages about dismantling systems of oppression. Through art, these youth are allowed to be revolutionary and resistant to the systems that in force institutionalized violence in marginalized communities.
On August 19, people in Lexington and Louisville rallied to push for a bold, transformative package of federal investments in climate, care, jobs, and justice as part of the THRIVE agenda and President Biden’s Build Back Better plan.
Find
Jessica Clark: I have had an awesome and productive summer tabling at events, businesses, and organizations in Lexington including Mimi’s, Grimes’s, Douglas Park, churches, the Chrysalis House and the Julietta Market. In my efforts to register people to vote and collect signatures on KFTC’s petition for voting rights restoration, I have made a connection with so many people in the community and people from other states. Many people are so thankful for what KFTC is doing in the community. A lot of people who have felonies in their past are so willing to share their stories and have no problem signing the restoration of voting rights petition. I love the way that our mission with KFTC builds relationships in the community.
Call your Rep and Senators in Congress and urge them to support and pass a Budget Reconciliation Bill that invests $3.5 Trillion in climate, care, jobs, and justice – and reject any cuts to climate and care. more information or take action at: www.greennewdealnetwork.org/calltosealthedeal
ACTION!TAKE
Marion Madry: I had a great experience when I tabled at the Chrysalis House, a residential program that addresses the needs of each woman to achieve and sustain sobriety. When I contacted Anthony Adkins, a counselor and instructor at Chrysalis House, he was so excited about me coming to register the ladies to vote. I would talk with them and have them complete a voter registration card if eligible and they would go to class. I was especially happy to see the adorable babies.
Project description: My project is focused on voting restoration, education and registration. We are focused on mobilizing counties throughout Kentucky with a focus on identifying and training individuals that are formerly incarcerated to lead the charge for #restoreKY!
What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Optimistic by Sounds of Blackness You can find a playlist of the songs in these profiles at linktr.ee/BalancingTheScales
Marion Madry and Jessica Clark are Just Transition Fellows living in Lexington. As part of their fellowships with the Kentucky Just Transition Coalition, they are both working to register people to vote and gather signatures on KFTC’s petition to restore the right to vote for people with felonies in their past. They have hosted voting rights tables at substance abuse treatment centers and other community events and businesses in Lexington. Below are some of their reflections on their work so far.
What is your favorite protest or organizing song? Or what song always puts you in a mood to organize? Take the Power Back by Rage Against the Machine or Ooh Child by the Five Stairsteps! Savvy Shabazz, he/him, Paducah, KY but reside in Louisville, KY (11 years)
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 15
I also found out that after the ladies have completed the program, they have housing on the grounds where they can stay and their rent is based on their income. The Chrysalis House is a great place for the ladies to get their lives back and have a brighter future for themselves and their children.
LONDON OFFICE SOLAR UPDATE
This Order established new net metering rates for all customers of LG&E or KU installing solar after September 24, 2021. For those net metering customers with solar PV systems already in operation prior to September 24th, they have the right to continue operating under the original net metering rules for the next 25 years. Under original net metering, all energy exported to the grid is credited to the customer at the retail rate, currently about 10 cents/kWh for residential and 12 cents/kWh for small commercial customers.
Although the new net metering rates are about 25 percent lower than current retail rates, this reduced value only applies to net exports at the end of each monthly billing cycle. All solar energy produced and consumed on-site, within a billing period, is still fully credited against usage. The end result is that the changes adopted by the Commission will only reduce the value of a solar PV system by about five percent for future net metering customers who install enough solar to meet 100% of their annual needs. For customers with smaller solar generators, the impact on their savings will be even less. “We commend the Commission for their diligence and performing a fair and comprehensive analysis of the net metering issue,” said Cathy Kuhn of the Metropolitan Housing Coalition. “While we believe greater value for avoided carbon emissions should be credited to net metering customers, overall, an honest, transparent, and reasoned process was used by the Commission and has produced fair, just and reasonable net metering rates.”
for Customers of LG&E and KU
“This decision means solar continues to be accessible and economically attractive for small businesses, non-profits, and residential customers of LG&E and KU,” said Joshua Bills, a commercial energy specialist at the Mountain Association. “By recognizing the value that locally-owned solar has to the utility, the Commission has enabled Kentucky’s local solar businesses to continue to grow and serve our Thiscommunities.”rulingbuilds on a previous decision issued in May 2021 in the Kentucky Power Co. rate case and reinforces the precedent set in that case. The Commission reaffirmed principles and best practices to be used by utilities for determining the value of distributed energy resources such as rooftop solar. The Commission identified multiple ways in which distributed solar resources help the utilities avoid costs and directed that these savings be credited to customers for the excess energy they supply to the Ingrid.astatement following the Order, the Commission stated, “LG&E/KU’s avoided cost calculations contain inconsistencies and in some instances are based on false or unreasonable assumptions. Their assumptions and process for estimating costs also failed to adhere to the guiding principles the Commission outlined in the Kentucky Power net metering Order.”
This is a joint press release from co-intervening groups Kentucky Solar Energy Society, Mountain Association, KFTC, and Metropolitan Housing Coalition. The groups were represented in this case by Tom FitzGerald of Kentucky Resources Council. In an Order issued September 24th setting new net metering rates for LG&E and Kentucky Utilities Co., the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) has again recognized the value of local, customerowned renewable energy in Kentucky. The Order rejected LG&E and KU’s proposal to drastically reduce the value of solar energy exported back to the utility, which would have ended net metering and slashed the value of fed-back solar power by 75 percent to 2.3 cents/kWh. Instead, the Commission set the new compensation rate for net exported energy at 6.9 cents/kWh for LG&E and 7.4 cents/ kWh for KU.
The Kentucky Solar Energy Industries Association also intervened in the case in support of fair net metering rates. The testimony by the expert witnesses for the Joint Intervenors and KYSEIA played a critical role in preserving net metering for the customers of LG&E and KU. “This case shows the importance of allowing community stakeholders to fully participate in utility rate cases,” said Catherine Clement of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. “The Joint Intervenors and KYSEIA’s witnesses provided substantive, detailed, well-researched testimony to the Commission, which helped produce an outcome which is fair, just, and reasonable for all ratepayers, and will help the local solar industry to grow in Kentucky. We appreciate the Commission’s acknowledgment that our perspective helps to forge a better outcome for all.”
16 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021 Solar Net Metering Preserved by Public Service Commission
In January 2020, KFTC’s London office had solar panels installed on its roof. This was the final step in a series of energy upgrades that the building had been undergoing in the last several months. Over last twelve months, solar generation has been 9,595 kWh while the building consumption over that same time period has only been 3,040 kWh. This means that the solar generator is not only offsetting the building’s carbon impact but offsetting other surrounding building’s carbon impacts as well!
The Commission rejected the utilities’ claim that net metering customers provide no savings to the utility in the areas of generation, transmission, and distribution capacity, or by reducing carbon Theemissions.Kentucky Solar Energy Society participated in this case as one of four Joint Intervenors along with Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, the Metropolitan Housing Coalition, and the Mountain Association. They are represented by Tom FitzGerald, staff attorney for the Kentucky Resources Council, and received technical support from expert witnesses James Owen of Renew Missouri and Karl Rábago.
#BuildBackBetter, #Striketober, #BansOffOurBodies! The past few weeks have been busy –full of trending hashtags and big actions.
The attack on abortion access spread throughout the country as legislators in Texas began to enforce SB 8. In Kentucky, Attorney General Daniel Cameron began attempts to relitigate the case for HB 454 – a state law banning the safe and medically proven abortion method called dilation and evacuation, or “D&E.” But folks in Louisville showed up to say that Kentuckians support access to abortion. We took to TikTok to encourage folks to tell Congress to #HoldTheLine during the negotiations for the Build Back Better agenda and NOT pass the bipartisan infrastructure deal unless it also included passing the full $3.5 trillion reconciliation package.We had the pleasure of celebrating the 90th birthday of KFTC co-founder, John Rosenburg. Read about his incredible life and impact on Kentucky at linktr.ee/BalancingTheScales.
In September, the General Assembly held a special session to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Not surprisingly, some members of the KY GOP used the moment to spread more misinformation. Representative Jim Gooch used bigoted lies on the floor, but Representative Nima Kulkarni shut him down. In October, nearly 100,000 Americans went on strike – demanding better pay and working conditions at multiple companies. 450 Kentuckians at the Heaven Hill Distillery were still on strike at the time of this printing.
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 17 #ICYMI: HIGHLIGHTS FROM KFTC SOCIAL MEDIA YOU MAY HAVE MISSED!
kyvoicesforhealth.org.
18 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021 KVH Recap: Special Session to Address COVID-19 Weakens
• Creates a flexibility for school districts by adjusting the requirement of instructional ‘day’ use to allow for instructional ‘hour’ use.
Thanks to Kentucky Voices For Health following. how KVH helps Kentuckians contribute to the their their work, at
• Require local health departments to develop a “test to stay” model for their school districts to use instead of requiring quarantining when school children test positive or become ill.
• SB1: Addresses schools/childcare facilities and future of mask mandates in schools/childcare facilities
• Enables local school districts and childcare facilities to set their mask policies.
By: Kelly LastSeptemberTaulbee14,2021week,thelegislature held a three-day long Special Session to address COVID-19 in response to the recent Supreme Court ruling on August 21st.
• Temporarily adjusts school funding provisions by associating funding to average daily attendance, Join our team! We are seeking a Communications and Development Manager to support and strengthen our organizing and our organization, in ways that reflect KFTC’s vision, values, and membership.
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• Extends the state’s public health emergency declaration until January 15, 2022
Ultimately, Kentucky’s public health state of emergency was extended until January 15, 2022 at which point another extension will need to be revisited, or, the public health emergency will then expire. The 2022 Regular Session will convene on January 4, 2022 so this January 15th deadline is well within the legislature’s regular business timeline to address once the deadline approaches. Here’s a quick recap for the bills that passed and are now law: HJR1: Addresses the state of emergency declaration and Governor’s executive orders
• Makes null and void all emergency regulations that mandated masks statewide for childcare facilities and schools.
• Temporarily revises the retired teacher/retired employee reemployment provisions until January 15, 2022 to assist in addressing teacher and school staff shortages.
If hired, you would be a part of our Communications and Development team, which supports the work of our grassroots organizers and member-leaders. We are open to a variety of skills, and will create a final job description based on the skills and experience of a successful candidate. Membership and fundraising experience is strongly preferred. Learn more and apply at bit.ly/KFTC-hiring!
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communities, and support
Following the Governor’s official call for the Special Session, Kentucky’s General Assembly convened at 10AM on September 7th, and the legislature completed their work and adjourned Sine Die just before midnight on Thursday, September 9th.
• Increases temporary remote instruction days from 10 days to 20 days. These days can be used by school districts for a single class, or for an entire grade, school or school district, depending on the local need.
• Extends most emergency executive orders issued by the Governor throughout the pandemic. Among the executive orders not extended include the statewide mask mandate, and capacity restrictions for businesses and event venues
health of
That Was Quick. What Passed? Because the Kentucky General Assembly adopted new procedural rules that enable them to waive official readings of legislation, the “old standard” of a 5-day minimum Special Session in order for bills to complete the legislative process has changed and new precedents were made last week. The state legislature ended up passing four bills and one joint resolution in just 3-days time. Two of the bills that were enacted were initially vetoed by the Governor on Thursday, but the vetoes were overridden in the same day — a first for Kentucky’s Special Session history.
• Requires CHFS to assist and support hospitals, licensed healthcare providers, jails, prisons, homeless shelters, and local health departments in acquiring COVID-19 test, developing a statewide distribution plan for COVID-19 test, and distributing for use all COVID-19 tests by October 1, 2021
SB5: Addresses a prospective economic development project
SB2: Addresses vaccines, statewide mask mandates, COVID-19 testing and treatment of COVID-19
• Makes local jurisdictions (e.g. city or county government) and businesses responsible for mask mandate decisions that affect their community/ place of business.
To stop the spread of COVID-19, local jurisdictions and school boards must now take action in order to adopt continued mask mandates for their respective districts. Also, due to the way Pandemic-EBT (P-EBT) is calculated (based on style of attendance), there are concerns for how the new forms of remote instruction days will impact the delivery of these benefits moving forward.
The Central Kentucky chapter has been busy registering voters all over the area, including at Julietta Market and brand new voters at Bryan Station High School!
• Requires CHFS to develop, distribute to and equip with supplies and necessary drugs COVID-19 Antibody Administration Centers (CAACs). There will be at least one qualified provider in each of the state’s Area Development Districts, and CAACs will operate until January 31, 2022 at which point the legislature can determine their continued operation during the Regular Session.
• Requires the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) to produce public service announcements with information about the severe symptoms and effects of contracting COVID-19. CHFS must also develop a public awareness campaign encouraging Kentuckians to talk with their doctor about the benefits of receiving a COVID-19 vaccination.
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 19 allowing a school district to submit a school calendar plan to receive a waiver of 170 required student attendance days if 1,062 hours are achieved for the 2021-2022 school year.
• Restricts additional administrative regulations related to statewide mask mandates until June 1, 2023.
• Redirects $69 million unused dollars in ARPA funding to CHFS that had been previously allocated by the General Assembly to the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and was not needed.
The state will begin to make the steps necessary in order to establish new monoclonal clinics (15 to be created statewide), as well as adjust regulatory oversight in order to accommodate the changes made by the legislature. First responders, such as EMTs and firefighters, now have additional flexibility to assist in the state’s COVID-19 response, which will likely be welcomed given the shortage of nurses Kentucky is currently experiencing.
• Appropriates $410 million dollars as an incentive for an unnamed economic development project that may potentially establish headquarters in Hardin County, KY.
• Establishes safety protocols for compassionate care visitors in long-term care facilities should there be a future lockdown or restricted visitation periods in any LTC facility.
SB3: Addresses the state’s use of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for COVID-19 mitigation
• The $69 million in ARPA funding is to now be used by CHFS for the implementation needs of SB1 and SB2 (testing, “test to stay” programs, CAAC establishment and operation, etc.) and will ultimately assist healthcare providers, jails, schools, homeless shelters, local health departments, etc.
• This was the only legislation passed not directly associated with COVID-19, however, it does potentially contribute to Kentucky’s economic recovery from COVID-19. What Happens Next? The 2021 Interim has resumed. Meetings that would have normally occurred last week and were interrupted by the Special Session have been rescheduled. Barring no unforeseen need for additional legislation, the Interim will run its course as we prepare for the 2022 Regular Session.
• Cancels any statewide mask mandate until January 15, 2022, meaning, even if the Governor issues a statewide mask mandate, it is null and void.
Protections for Kentuckians
Currently, Kentucky has no laws requiring employers to provide paid family and sick leave for its civilian workforce of 1.9 million, and nationally, only 17% of civilian workers worked for an employer that offered paid family leave in 2018.
20 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021
Thanks to Kentucky Center For Economic Policy for permission to reprint the following. Read more “research that works for Kentucky” and support their work at kypolicy.org.
The BBB would also make permanent the ARPA’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) expansion for adults who do not have children and who work in low-wage jobs. ARPA increased the maximum EITC amount from $540 to $1,500 and the income cap for eligibility from $16,000 to $21,000, and extended eligibility to include younger adults ages 19-24. Making these provisions permanent would benefit 256,000 working adults in Kentucky, 17% of whom are Black, Latino and Asian. Creates universal preschool and makes child care more affordable: BBB includes funding for universal preschool and expanded child care that would make quality care and education available and affordable for the 325,750 Kentucky kids ages 5 and below. For the 114,500 Kentucky children who are 3 and 4 years old, the plan creates a preschool program for all kids that is completely free to families. It can be implemented through public schools, licensed child care programs, Head Start grantees or a combination of those entities. BBB also includes funding for public schools to help repair, modernize or rebuild school buildings, an $82 billion investment that would create a million good-paying jobs across the country.
Kentuckians’ economic future and family well-being hinge on passage of the Build Back Better Act (BBB) now in front of Congress. The legislation contains landmark policies that will create millions of good jobs nationwide, filling crucial needs in the care economy and in the transition to clean energy. The act would lower family costs on necessities ranging from child care to higher education, from health care to housing. The plan also reduces inequality and raises revenue by closing tax loopholes and increasing rates for the very wealthy and profitable corporations, and investing those resources in communities. Here are highlights of what the BBB would mean for Kentuckians: Continues historic expansions of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC): The BBB plan would extend, and in some cases make permanent, critical recent improvements in the poverty-reducing Child Tax Credit (CTC) in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The transformative changes to the CTC are lifting a phenomenal 44% of Kentucky children above the poverty line and helping 929,000, or 92% of, Kentucky kids. Through 2025, the BBB would extend ARPA’s increased annual CTC amount ($3,000 to $3,600 per child) and its availability for children up to age 17, and it would continue to make half the credit available to families up front through monthly checks or direct deposits. Crucially, BBB would make permanent the ARPA provision that allows for children in families with very low incomes to be eligible for the full credit amount. Before ARPA, the CTC partially or entirely excluded 422,000 Kentucky children in families with low incomes, including 59,000 Black children and 38,000 Latino children.
| September 30, 2021
Ashley Spalding, Jason Bailey, Dustin Pugel, Jessica Klein, Valerie Frost, and Pam Thomas
Establishes a paid family and medical leave program: The BBB would provide 12 weeks of paid family and sick leave for workers who have had a new child, are sick or have caregiving responsibilities for a family member who is sick. This benefit would replace lost wages on a sliding scale with low-wage workers ($15,080 or less) receiving the highest replacement (85% of wages) and high-wage workers (over $250,000) receiving the lowest replacement (5%). Workers claiming this leave would need work history in the three to six months prior to using the leave.
The expansion of child care assistance would occur in two phases. The first phase would occur during the initial three years of the program, which would expand the state’s existing Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) to cap child care costs at a sliding scale that reaches no more than 7% of income for low and middle-wage Kentuckians. The second stage, beginning in federal fiscal year 2025, would create a shared state-federal entitlement to all families regardless of income, keeping the sliding scale of up to 7% and making child care no-cost for Kentuckians earning under 75% of the state median income (or SMI, which was $52,295 in 2019 in Kentucky). As a result, child care would be free for families making less than approximately $39,221. For a Kentucky family with income of approximately $70,000, this plan would cut child care costs by 32%.
How Kentuckians Would Benefit from the Build Back Better Act
Makes community college tuition free: The proposal provides two years of tuition-free community college, with tuition and fees set at $0 for all students for states that opt in to the federal-state partnership. Currently more than 70,000 students are enrolled in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS). Despite relatively low tuition and fees compared to other higher education institutions in the state, a large share of KCTCS students take out loans and have high rates of student loan default.
BBB also increases Pell Grant (the federal need-based financial aid program) amounts by $500, bringing the maximum Pell Grant amount to nearly $7,000. In 2020, more than 92,000 Kentuckians received a federal Pell Grant. In addition, the bill includes funds to provide tuition assistance for students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) like Kentucky State University, as well as aid to support the institutions themselves.
Expands home and community-based services: There are 29,600 Kentuckians receiving long-term services and supports in their homes or in the community rather than in a nursing home. At the same time, there are over 10,000 Kentuckians waiting to receive those services, but cannot because Kentucky pays for only a limited number of people to use those services. The Build Back Better plan provides $190 billion nationally to help with this need by increasing the share the federal government pays for Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) by 7 percentage points over the next 10 years. That extra money would be spent on providing services to more people, broadening the services offered, improving worker pay and benefits, and otherwise improving HCBS provision. Makes health care more affordable: The BBB extends recent enhancements to the health insurance marketplace in ARPA that allow very low-wage individuals to purchase premium-free plans on the marketplace and expand eligibility for premium tax credits to more people. The BBB extends those improvements through 2025. It also extends a lower cap on premium payments at no more than 8.5% of income. The combined effect of boosted marketplace subsidies is that an estimated 61,000 additional
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 21
Fights hunger among children: To build on the success of the P-EBT program that has helped provide food to over 600,000 Kentucky kids while schools and child care centers have been closed or providing virtual instruction, policymakers implemented nationwide Summer EBT in 2021 to reach children when child hunger spikes after the end of the school year. In Kentucky, the Summer EBT program helped provide food to 7 in 10 kids. While this was the first time Kentucky operated Summer EBT, the program has existed as a USDA pilot program for over 10 years. In these pilots, just $30 a month in Summer EBT benefits was found to reduce childhood food insecurity by 30%. Despite its success, until now Summer EBT has only been provided limited funding as a demonstration project with only a few states to participate each year. The BBB would take significant strides toward eliminating summer food hardship by making Summer EBT available nationwide, providing families with low incomes $75 a month in grocery money for the next seven summers. Makes housing more affordable: BBB would reduce homelessness and housing instability by making a historic investment in Housing Choice Vouchers. The Housing Choice Vouchers program is a federally funded program in the Department of Housing and Urban Development that provides rental assistance to families with low incomes and successfully supports stable housing for people with extremely low incomes, including households with children, people with disabilities and seniors. The voucher expansion would reduce long-standing racial disparities in housing caused by our history of discrimination in housing policy. In Kentucky, the expansion means over 24,000 Kentuckians, including 10,000 kids, would get muchneeded help in paying rent. BBB also works to increase the supply of quality affordable housing to those with the highest needs by providing funding to preserve existing public housing and investing in the Housing Trust Fund to build more affordable rental homes for people with the lowest incomes. Tackles the climate crisis through clean energy investments: Climate change provisions in the bill would significantly cut carbon emissions through a range of investments and incentives to support a transition to clean energy. A key provision is a $150 billion investment in the Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP), which pays utility companies to switch to non-emitting sources of electricity such as wind and solar and levies fines for those that do not reach clean energy targets. The legislation also includes a wide range of additional investments including monies for electric vehicle charging stations and for trucks to be converted to electric; clean energy investment and production tax credits; a Civilian Climate Corps putting people in places like eastern Kentucky back to work in land restoration; and tax incentives for purchases of electric vehicles and bikes. The policies would also promote manufacturing in the United States, prevailing wages, unionization and workforce development. These investments are critical to the success of two new electric vehicle battery plants with 5,000 jobs being built in Hardin County, and future development of that industry in Kentucky.
Kentuckians will have health insurance, cutting our uninsured rate by 21%. BBB also provides critical new Medicare benefits for older Kentuckians. The 939,651 Kentuckians with Medicare would begin receiving vision, hearing and dental benefits starting in 2022, 2023 and 2028, respectively. These benefits have never been included in Medicare coverage before.
Modernizes our transportation, communications and climate-related infrastructure: The bipartisan infrastructure bill, which will pass if the BBB is enacted, provides over $1.2 trillion in funding over 10 years for roads, bridges, broadband, public transit, airports, ports, updates to the electric grid, electric vehicle charging stations, Amtrak, cybersecurity, addressing climate change, removal of lead pipes and more. Kentucky is expected to receive around $5.5 billion, including $4.6 billion for road improvements and $438 million for bridge replacement and repair — funds that will help address the 1,033 bridges and 1,322 miles of highway in Kentucky that are in poor condition. In addition, Kentucky will receive $391 million for public transportation, $100 million to improve broadband access and $69 million to expand the EV charging network. The legislation also includes a competitive $12.5 billion Bridge Investment Program, which Kentucky can apply for to assist with replacement of the Brent Spence Bridge that connects Kentucky and Ohio and construction of the I-69 bridge. Other important competitive grant programs Kentucky could apply for include $1.4 billion to address abandoned oil and gas wells (Kentucky has the 4th most in the U.S.), $1.5 billion for brownfields reclamation (Kentucky has 8,000 brownfield sites), and $11.2 billion to address abandoned mine reclamation (Kentucky ranks 3rd among all states in the number of abandoned mine sites that need to be reclaimed).
Cleans up the tax code by requiring those at the top and corporations to chip in: To offset the cost of the programs and benefits included in the BBB, the plan closes loopholes and raises rates for very high-income people and corporations to raise over $2.1 trillion in revenues over 10 years, making the overall system more progressive and helping to address rising income inequality. The plan cuts taxes for most people. An analysis of the proposal prepared by the Institution on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) notes that just 1.6% of individuals will pay more in income taxes, with 97% of the increases being paid by the wealthiest 1% of Americans. Corporate tax increases will primarily be borne by the wealthiest 5% of Americans along with foreign investors.
As illustrated in the graph below, which includes individual, corporate, and tobacco tax increases, along with the CTC and EITC expansions, a large majority of Kentuckians will pay less in taxes under the plan. Looking only at individual income tax changes, 99.1% of all Kentuckians will see a reduction in federal taxes paid.
22 | BALANCING THE SCALES | October 21, 2021 WHERE HAVE KFTC MEMBERS BEEN LATELY?
October 21, 2021 | BALANCING THE SCALES | 23 MAIN OFFICE Morgan Brown, Ashley Frasher, and Carl Weaver P.O. Box 1450 London, KY 606-878-216140743|Fax: 606-878-5714 info@kftc.org FIELD JeffersonOFFICESCounty E’Beth Adami, Corey Dutton, Alexa Hatcher, Nyeila Jones, Shauntrice Martin, and Jessie Skaggs 735 Lampton Street #202 Louisville, KY 502-589-318840203 Southern Kentucky Megan Bailey, Laura Harper Knight,and Whitney Kuklinski 958 Collett Ave., Suite 500 Bowling Green, KY 42101 270-282-4553 Northern Kentucky Joe Gallenstein, Brittany McCubbin, and Dave Newton 306 Greenup Street Covington, KY 859-380-610341011 Central Kentucky Joan Brannon, Tayna Fogle, Jessica Hays Lucas, Erik Hungerbuhler, Heather Mahoney, and Quinn Mulholland 250 Plaza Drive, Suite 4 Lexington, KY 859-276-056340503 Big Sandy Jerry Hardt, Jacob Mack-Boll, and Beverly Tadlock 152 North Lake Drive P.O. Box Prestonsburg,864 KY 41653 606-263-4982 Madison County Lisa Abbott and Shana Goggins 210 N. Broadway #3 Berea, KY Email859-868-117940403anystaffmember at firstname@kftc.org. KFTC OFFICES AND STAFF As part of a nationwide Moral Monday action at Senate offices across the country, KFTC members joined the Kentucky Poor People’s Campaign outside Rand Paul’s office in Bowling Green and made four demands: 1. End the filibuster; 2. Support a $15 minimum wage; 3. Support the restoration of the Voting Rights Act; and 4. Support the For the People Act. Senator Paul did not support any of these demands, even after speaking with his staff for over two hours. Residents of City Heights and KFTC members spoke at both Kenton County Fiscal Court and Covington City Commission about affordable housing issues – especially with the planned displacement of 244 families over the next three years from the public housing at City Heights. Members are asking to end discrimination based on source of income, create a housing coordinator across northern Kentucky to fight for both temporary and permanent housing, and to set aside a percentage of units in future developments for affordable housing.
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