IN THE GAZETTE

Furlough plan submitted
State workers will work six fewer days

    FRANKFORT, Ky. (July 9, 2010) - Kentucky Personnel Cabinet Secretary Nikki Jackson presented on July 9 a regulation to the State Personnel Board as the state prepares to furlough state government workers a total of six days in Fiscal Year 2011, as authorized by the 2010-12 biennial budget passed by the General Assembly, the Personnel Cabinet has reported in a press statement.
    “In order to achieve the savings required by the budget passed by the General Assembly, legislators authorized the administration to implement a furlough plan for state employees,” said Jackson in a press release. “Today we are presenting an outline of the plan to the State Personnel Board – a plan that has been developed with an eye toward minimizing impact to state employees and the disruption of delivery of state services to Kentucky citizens.”

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COLUMN

 

Buyer Beware of Labels

By Laura Cullen Glasscock
The Kentucky Gazette

    Rand Paul has been making it easy on Jack Conway so far.
    Within days of the May primary election, Paul, the GOP’s U.S. Senate candidate, made public statements that caught the attention of national media and subsequently sparked a protest by mostly African-Americans at the Kentucky Republicans’ unity day a few days later.
    More libertarian than Republican, Dr. Paul said private entities should be able to decide with whom they conduct business, meaning they conceivably could discriminate. Dr. Paul also said President Obama was “un-American” for wanting to hold British Petroleum accountable for the oil hemorrhage in the Gulf of Mexico. And Dr. Paul said about a mining accident that killed two Kentucky miners that “accidents happen.”

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CURRENT ISSUE

Hot
Tip

     Preston and Anita Madden, of Derby Party fame, recently held a fundraiser for Attorney General Jack Conway’s U.S. Senate bid at their Hamburg home in Lexington.
    People from “all over Kentucky” attended the event, said campaign spokeswoman Allison Haley. “We certainly appreciate their support and think it is indicative of the support Jack is getting from across the state.”
    Haley said the campaign has a policy of not disclosing the amounts raised at such gatherings.
    Conway is the Democratic nominee for the Senate seat being vacated by Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, who has decided to retire. Conway will face Republican Dr. Rand Paul, of Bowling Green, in November.

EDITORIAL

Can black America
afford Obama?

By Walter Williams
National columnist

    My March 2008 column “Is Obama Ready for America?” started out: “Some pundits ask whether America is ready for Obama. The much more important question is whether Obama is ready for America and even more important is whether black people can afford Obama.” Let's look at this.

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KENTUCKY HISTORY

The politics
of Kentucky roads

By Ron Bryant
For The Kentucky Gazette

  During a time of budget difficulties, state and national improvements are difficult to finance. The formula for expenditures is relatively simple – revenues equal or surpass the amounts spent. When taxes are less than the budget requires for maintaining or improving the infrastructures of the state and nation, then maintenance and improvements suffer.

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