For social justice advocates like Kentucky Jobs With Justice Executive Director Bonafacio 'Flaco' Aleman, raising wages and other protections for American workers is just as important as job creation.
"I think that historically poor people have always gotten the short end of the stick," he says.
Though the national unemployment rate is down to 7.6 percent and has dropped in most states, those once middle-class occupations are being replaced with low-wage jobs.
Jefferson County Public Schools is set to be the subject of a what observers are calling a "Herculean" state audit to review Kentucky's largest school district.
It's unclear what the JCPS audit will turn up, but most agree a review of the city's $1 billion budget with over 100,000 students is long overdue. Some school board members object to the examination by saying JCPS has been probed enough, but critics argue paying $125,000 to learn more about the district's finances and administration is important.
The review will focus on contracts, travel expenses and ethics policies, and especially the financial and administrative operations of the central office.
"This is the result of properly focused policy makers organically having conversations about how important public education is," Audit Adam Edelen has said.
At this point Republican Mitch McConnell does have one official opponent—Owensboro Democrat Ed Marksberry—who is a little known contender in the 2014 U.S. Senate race.
But new poll numbers indicate Kentuckians are still overwhelmingly against same-sex couples getting hitched with 65 percent opposed. The opposition isn't based on political party either because the PPP survey shows 54 percent of Democratic voters are against the idea.
Since that shooting spree onlookers have awaited to see if the work group's plan will be more than just another study.
Smith is a Louisville native who acknowledges residents are impatient when it comes to previous promises to help improve dangerous areas.
"There's always going to be this idea around are we doing enough as a city and are we moving fast enough," he says. "And I think we've got to understand this is a long-term situation—we didn't get here overnight so it's not something you can just put some programs in place and it's all gone."
The 38-page exposé tells the community's history, and also outlined the current disparities in income, property values and education levels. Many know anecdotally about the so-called Ninth Street Divide, but the stark realities when compared to the East End is eye-opening.
Statistics show residents in east Louisville make three times more and seven times as many have a bachelor's degree or higher than their West End counterparts.
It's a bleak picture of the predominately African-American part of the city, which is increasingly isolated.
The 2013 Kentucky General Assembly is nearing its end, but there are plenty of important issues still haven't been addressed.
At the beginning of the legislative session much was said about the improved personal relationships between Gov. Steve Beshear and state lawmakers—particularly the GOP-controlled Senate. But if Frankfort is more collegial it hasn't improved productivity.
With two days left for veto days, thorny matters such as pension reform and redistricting haven’t been resolved. No deals are in sight, and there is talk of a special session to sort those priorities out.
Leaders with the group have apologized—twice, but just about every Democrat has denounced them or kept their distance, and McConnell has pounced on the comments since returning home.
Even the senator's harshest critics have cried foul.
