News

A magazine says Kentucky is number one when it comes to whitetail deer hunting. The latest issue of Outdoor Life ranks the Bluegrass State as the top whitetail trophy state in the country. The publication says western Kentucky was especially noteworthy for producing a relatively high number of trophy bucks. In tallying the scores, Kentucky ranked second in the number of record-book bucks.

Compensation for the head of Kentucky’s Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources would be capped at $218,000 for the next year under a new contract.   The state Legislature's Government Contract Review Committee will take a look at the contract next month. The contract sets Wildlife Commissioner Jon Gassett’s salary at $134,000 and adds $53,000 in benefits, pushing the total compensation package to $187,000.

Kentucky’s Interstate 24 welcome center in Christian County near the Tennessee state line will reopen today and remain open until after the Memorial Day holiday. The welcome center is for westbound I-24 travelers near Fort Campbell. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says the facility will close May 28 for two more weeks to continue pavement work along the interstate between mile markers 85 and 93.

As part of the Murray-Calloway County Transit Authority’s continuing fight to keep vehicles on the roads, officials with the joint organization are now seeking funds from the Calloway County Fiscal Court.

MCTA Board member Darrel McFerron presented a $9,000 reimbursement proposal at Tuesday’s Fiscal Court meeting.

Johnson County has joined other counties in southern Illinois supporting a moratorium on horizontal hydraulic fracturing.

Vice Chairman Phil Stewart was the one Johnson County Commissioner who did not support the one-year moratorium. He says the area needs the jobs.

“Johnson County is, you know, a poor county, needs some revenue,” Stewart says. “And I think it would help.”

But, Stewart says most of the jobs would be temporary.

Both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate have passed legislation to prevent the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers from installing barriers in the tailwaters of Cumberland River dams.

The House passed the measure unanimously Tuesday.

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear has named a longtime tourism veteran to oversee the part of his cabinet dealing with travel and the arts. 

Bob Stewart is a familiar face in state government, having worked for 11 years as commissioner of travel from 1992 to 2003.

A national pharmaceutical company is helping train Kentucky law enforcement agencies this week on how to continue to address prescription pill abuse in the state.

Purdue Pharma helps produce some of the prescriptions often abused in Kentucky, including OxyContin.

Monday, an EF-4 tornado ripped through Moore, Oklahoma leaving many homes destroyed and families searching to find their loved ones. Within hours, organizations across the nation began efforts to help the victims and provide relief to disaster responders. Here’s how you can help in your area:

The Hopkins County Animal Shelter has reduced its euthanasia rate more than forty percent in the last four years. The shelter had faced scrutiny for rates exceeding 65%. The euthanasia rate now stands at 23%. Last week, the shelter board discussed plans to implement programs to keep healthy or treatable animal deaths to a minimum of 10%. Shelter Director Charles Gentry said the humane society's recent success stems from working with the community.