The shrinking economic safety net and politics of the moment complicate an otherwise straightforward public health decision.
Government
Auditor: We Don’t Know How Much Kentucky Owes In Unemployment Benefits
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KyCIR has documented the unemployment office’s hurried steps to make payments quickly as the pandemic shut down businesses in the spring.
Top Story
Despite Millions In Public Money, Eastern Ky. Industrial Parks Still Largely Vacant
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Industrial parks sit nearly empty in counties spanning eastern Kentucky, the multi-million-dollar consequences of hollow promises to revive the region’s economy.
Coronavirus
How Kentucky Missed Out On A $90 Million Unemployment Upgrade
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The federal government set aside $7 billion in 2009 to modernize the nation’s unemployment systems. Kentucky left its portion on the table.
Substitute Teachers Given Unemployment Now Face Overpayment Debt
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Education professionals can’t claim unemployment during the summer break that started in Louisville on May 31, a caveat the state doesn’t appear to have made clear when it extended benefits to substitute teachers. Subs who continued to file for unemployment after summer break began are now expected to repay anything the state paid in error.
Government
Legislators To File Bill Preventing Unemployment ‘Overpayment Debt’
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“These people don’t have that money. They paid for groceries, they used the money,” Sen. Nemes said. “That’s what unemployment is for. When you are unemployed you get your unemployment insurance and you pay your bills so you can get back to work.”
Top Story
The Elk, The Tourists And The Missing Coal Country Jobs
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A proposed wildlife center got a $12 million federal grant after promising to bring millions of dollars and thousands of tourists to eastern Kentucky. Four years later, residents are still waiting for the jobs they were promised.
coronavirus
Gov. Beshear: Save Unemployment Money In Case Of Overpayment Debt
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Gov. Andy Beshear acknowledged that Kentucky mistakenly overpaid people who requested unemployment benefits — and advised recipients to save that money.
Government
Beshear Says Federal Changes Responsible For Unemployment Confusion
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It’s unclear if state officials ever communicated the change to out-of-work Kentuckians after the state received new guidance in April.
Top Story
Gov. Beshear Offered ‘Self-Quarantine’ Unemployment. Now State Is Backtracking — And Billing
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In a written decision, a state official said self-quarantining isn’t a legitimate reason to claim unemployment – and that the governor never told a private citizen to leave their job.
Government
In First Unitarian Standoff, Some Saw Religious Liberty Under Siege
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No law explicitly permits churches to harbor law-breakers or to protect individuals from the state. Instead, church sanctuaries are part of a long tradition that has typically been respected by the government.