Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting (https://kycir.org/author/katehoward/)
Kate Howard is KyCIR's managing editor and a veteran investigative reporter. She worked at The Tennessean, the Florida Times-Union and the Omaha World-Herald before coming to Kentucky.
House Bill 468 would allow the Labor Cabinet to waive overpayment debt if the debt wasn’t the fault of the recipient or if collecting the debt would be “contrary to equity and good conscience.”
We reviewed more than 230 search warrants approved by Louisville judges. It’s unclear who signed nearly three-fourths of them.
Of 126 individuals charged as “youthful offenders” in Jefferson County, 117 of them — 93 percent — were black.
In 2019, the KyCIR team broke news on politics, horse racing, criminal justice and more. Take a look back with us at some of the year’s biggest and most impactful investigations.
The demolition of the R.E. Burger plant is symbolic of one of the most significant energy transitions in U.S. history.
Search our database of every racing-related horse death in Kentucky since 2010.
If Louisville’s detention center closes at the end of the year, Louisville youth will be sent to facilities throughout the state — an outcome that families and city officials have feared will make it harder for youth to see family and attorneys and get services.
If Louisville closes its juvenile jail, it’s still unclear whether the state would open a new facility or send Louisville youth to other regional detention centers.
A state senator who pre-filed a bill that would broadly restrict access to public records said the bill was authored by someone else, and he’s open to making changes based on transparency concerns. State Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Paducah, said in an interview with the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting on Monday evening that he’s listening to criticism about his proposed legislation. As written, it would exempt several state agencies and local officials from having to release personnel records, disciplinary records, financial information and other information to the public. If this bill were to become law, records custodians could be held personally liable and fined for releasing private information — and requesters seeking records for an “improper” purpose could be ordered to pay attorney’s fees in a subsequent lawsuit. The bill defines “improper” as a request that’s frivolous, or intended to cause someone to violate the provision.
We brought you groundbreaking stories about everything from infestations in public housing to workplace deaths and widespread sexual harassment complaints in state government. Take a look back at some of our most popular investigations, and see what’s happened since they published.