Kentucky News Now – March 5th 2014

GAY MARRIAGE-KENTUCKY

Ky. to use outside counsel in gay-marriage case

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear says the state will hire outside attorneys to appeal a judge's decision granting legal recognition to same-sex couples married in other states and countries.

Beshear's announcement on Tuesday came moments after Attorney General Jack Conway said he would not ask a higher court to review the decision.

Both are Democrats.

Their moves come four days after a federal judge in Louisville gave the state 21 days to implement a ruling overturning a voter-imposed ban on recognizing same-sex unions.

U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn issued a Feb. 12 opinion that Kentucky's ban on recognizing same-sex marriages violated the Constitution's equal-protection clause in the 14th Amendment because it treated "gay and lesbian persons differently in a way that demeans them."

ARMY CUTS-SCHOOLS

4 schools at Fort Knox to close

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Four schools at the Fort Knox military post in central Kentucky will be shut down as the post loses its lone combat brigade as part of military base realignment.

The four schools — Kingsolver Elementary, Mudge Elementary, Pierce Elementary and Walker Intermediate — account for 877 students.

The shutdown will take place at the end of the current school year. Fort Knox's lone combat unit, the 3rd Combat Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, is being deactivated.

Department of Defense spokeswoman Cindy Gibson says it is unclear if schools at other posts will be shut down as the military tries to shrink to about 450,000 active-duty soldiers over the next five years.

The Defense Department spends about $375 million annually to operate its schools.

HIGHWAY RESTRICTIONS

Out-of-state utility vehicles receive exemptions

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Out-of-state utility vehicles traveling to areas with widespread power outages will be able to travel until Saturday without some highway restrictions.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has waived the restrictions in the aftermath of this week's winter storm. Transportation Secretary Mike Hancock says the emergency declaration he issued Monday gives crews the ability to work more quickly to restore power in affected areas.

The order exempts a driver's hours of service limitation, suspends registration requirements and waives permit fees for overweight and oversized vehicles. Drivers also won't be required to stop at weigh stations. All other safety requirements remain in effect.

EMPLOYER MISCLASSIFICATION

Contractor bill clears Kentucky Senate

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A bill that would allow a greater number of employees to be legally classified as independent contractors has passed the Kentucky Senate.

The bill would also shield primary contractors from liability for illegal activity conducted by the subcontractors they hire.

All workers' compensation decisions regarding contractors and subcontractors would be handled by the Labor Cabinet.

Sen. John Schickel, a Republican from Union, is the bill sponsor. He says the measure has the support of Kentucky's business sector and would be beneficial for business interests in the state.

Sen. Ray Jones, a Democrat from Pikeville, cautioned the Senate that the bill doesn't provide funding to the Labor Cabinet to handle disputes.

The measure passed 24-14, and now moves to the House for consideration.

CORVETTE MUSEUM-SINKHOLE

3rd Corvette plucked from Ky. museum's sinkhole

Workers have plucked a third Corvette from a giant sinkhole that swallowed eight classic cars at a Kentucky museum.

More painstaking work lies ahead to retrieve the five cars still buried deep in the hole beneath the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green.

Progress continued Tuesday when a 1962 black Corvette was extracted by a crane.

John Spencer, a manager at the GM Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green, says the car has body damage but can be repaired.

Museum spokeswoman Katie Frassinelli says four cars are still buried under dirt, rubble, rock and concrete, while another is wedged in the hole.

She says those cars will remain trapped until workers further stabilize the sinkhole. That work could take two or three weeks.

The first two Corvettes were recovered Monday.

JUVENILE JUSTICE

N. Ky. reducing number of teens incarcerated

(Information in the following story is from: The Kentucky Enquirer, http://www.nky.com )

COVINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Northern Kentucky is meeting its goal of locking up fewer juveniles for non-criminal offenses such as smoking or skipping school.

Educators, prosecutors, child advocates and judges in Kenton County have worked together since 2011 toward the goal.

The Kentucky Enquirer cited data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation in reporting that the number of juveniles incarcerated for so-called status offenses went from 301 in 2009 to 101 in 2012. Statistics weren't yet available for 2013, but a judge said he expects the tally to decline even more.

Kenton County Family Court Judge Chris Mehling said the number of status offenders on his docket has been reduced to about 5 from around 30.

He said one major change was finding other ways to deal with habitual truants.

KENTUCKY GOVERNOR

Heiner enters 2015 Kentucky governor's race

Republican Hal Heiner says he wants to use his business experience to improve Kentucky's economy as the state's next governor.

The former Louisville councilman entered next year's governor's race at a campaign kickoff event Tuesday in Lexington.

Heiner, an engineer and developer, has recruited former Lexington-Fayette County councilwoman KC Crosbie as his running mate.

Heiner says Kentucky needs leadership and innovation. He says his "Kentucky First" campaign theme stresses his goal of improving the state's performance in job and personal income growth.

The 2015 Republican primary is about 14 months away.

Another potential Republican candidate is state Agriculture Commissioner James Comer.

Comer says he's in a strong position should he enter the race. For now, he says he's focused on helping Republicans running for office this year.