From Kentucky Public Radio's Tony McVeighFederal authorities have briefed Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear on their ongoing investigation of the state Transportation Cabinet.They’re trying to determine if a former cabinet engineer leaked highway project cost information to potential bidders, including Leonard Lawson of Lexington.Beshear believes the probe is limited to activities that allegedly occurred during the previous administration.“We’ve been cooperating fully and there’s no indication to us that they’re looking into anything that happened post-December 11th. Obviously, when we took over the Transportation Cabinet, the first thing I did was to put Joe Prather in charge of the Transportation Cabinet and tell him to clean it up. That’s what he’s been doing,” Beshear said Monday.Another name mentioned in probe-related documents filed in federal district court in London is that of former Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert. Nighbert was invited to appear before a federal grand jury weighing evidence in the case, but through his attorney, declined.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.