Government

Early last month, Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform held its first meeting to begin the process of addressing a long-discussed issue in the Commonwealth.  They’ll wrap up their workshops early next month and begin a series of public meetings around the state with a session in Paducah in late May.  Tax reform is a complex and contentious set of issues, and to get some perspective on how the commission will navigate those issues, I sat down with one of its members, CSI Chairman and former board chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Saint Louis, John Will

Republican Senate President David Williams says Democratic Governor Steve Beshear needs to tone down his rhetoric over the upcoming special session.

The two men butted heads yesterday when the Senate didn't pass two of the session's critical bills. The Senate adjourned, effectively killing a bill that funded the state's road plan and one that would place further limitations on prescription drugs.

In his call for the special session, Beshear personally blamed Williams for blocking the bills, and at other times called him greedy and selfish.

A blame game over important legislation is turning into a full-blown repeat of last year's gubernatorial election.

Democratic Governor Steve Beshear and Republican Senate President David Williams are arguing over who is to blame for lawmakers adjourning their regular session without passing key bills. A bill to crack down on Kentucky's prescription drug abuse died in the final minutes of the session, and even though lawmakers passed a road plan, they neglected to pass the bill that funds the projects.