Three of the chief opponents to raising the dropout age in Kentucky will not return to Frankfort next year.

That doesn't mean a dropout bill is likely to pass in the 2013 legislative session.

State law allows 16-year-olds to drop out of school with parental permission. But education advocates want the law changed to eliminate all loopholes and require dropouts to be 18 or older.

With a new education chairman and new leadership in the Senate, those advocates are hopeful this will be their year.

Figuring out how to finance a plan to shore up Kentucky public employees' pensions will be the General Assembly's greatest task in 2013, two legislative leaders said.

A legislative task force has suggested several ways to brace  state employee pensions, but passing legislation and paying for it will be difficult. Lawmakers' proposals include relying on existing economic growth and raising taxes on Kentuckians with higher earnings.

House Speaker Greg Stumbo said he hasn't settled on a solution.

After ranking fourth in the nation for the number of Mixed Martial Arts or MMA events held statewide in 2011, Kentucky has seen a significant drop in the number of fight cards this past year.

Officials say the drop is likely due to economic factors but some say new regulations enacted by the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority--which has regulated the sport since 2007--are the cause.

Last year, Kentucky’s 81 events ranked only behind California, Ohio and Texas. In 2012, there were only 54 events.

A new book by southern Indiana historian Jane Sarles includes a collection of newspaper clips from southern Indiana over the last century. 

Sarles is chair of the Clarksville Historic Preservation Commission and president of the Clarksville Historical Society. She also writes a column in the News and Tribune called “Looking Back.” 

Louisville's Waterfront Development Corporation has revised its plans for an ice skating rink at Waterfront Park.

The seasonal rink was originally planned to go up last year at a location on the festival plaza, near the Christmas tree vendors. But funding fell through and complications with utilities in the original location nixed the plans.

Louisville looks to have a wet Christmas night -- and maybe snow on Wednesday.

Rain is expected to move into the Louisville area Tuesday evening, and the precipitation would stay until Wednesday evening, said Tom Reaugh, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service. The temperature will drop through Wednesday, which means the rain would transition to snowfall as the day goes on.

You might not expect "Santa's Helper" to be a career-altering gig, but for David Sedaris, it changed everything. The writer and humorist spent a season working at Macy's as a department store elf. He described his short tenure as Crumpet the Elf in "The Santaland Diaries," an essay that he read on Morning Edition in 1992.

Instantly, a classic was born. Sedaris' reading has become an NPR holiday tradition. Click the "Listen" link above to hear Sedaris read his tale.

The "money quote" from the weekend's Boston Globe account of the "Story Behind Mitt Romney's Loss":