Joe Arnold’s Frankfort Update

A few years ago, when I was a frequent panelist on KET’s Comment on Kentucky, on the year-end edition of the show, I would bemoan how difficult it was for television reporters to relay the awful condition of Kentucky’s public pension systems.

As a result, my self-critique was that I did not adequately cover that ticking time bomb of a story, despite the ever-increasing concerns of retirees, citizen watchdogs, and industry analysts.

One reason that the broadcast media gave the snowballing pension crisis relatively little attention is that news outlets have a limited amount of airtime and generally pay more attention to action than inaction.

The pension crisis was rarely on the front burner.

It is now.

In his joint State of the Commonwealth and Budget Address last week, Governor Matt Bevin (R) said paying down Kentucky’s underfunded pensions is “the heartbeat of this entire budget.”

It’s been 14 years since Kentucky’s pensions were fully funded. The Kentucky Employees Retirement System (KERS) has about 17 percent of the money needed to cover its liabilities. The Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System is about 42 percent funded.

“Everything else we care about, including things that I want, things I campaigned on, things I’d like to see, things that many of you in this room and in this body would like to see, we cannot afford until we get our financial house in order,” Bevin told lawmakers in the House chamber.

The Republican’s two-year budget proposal earmarks $1.1 billion for the pension systems, while imposing $650 million in cuts to state government “across the board.”

As he pledged during the gubernatorial campaign, Bevin’s budget begins the phasing out of Kynect, the state’s health benefit exchange.

Several areas were spared cuts, however. Bevin wants increased funding for K-12 education, public defenders, testing of backlogged rape kits, and better pay for social workers, state troopers, and corrections officers.

Bevin acknowledged the state has a long way to go to make the pension systems whole, about $35 billion.

Rejecting a House Democrat proposal to make pension payments by issuing bonds, Bevin said, “We cannot borrow our way out of debt, nor will we try.”

Bevin also called for an independent audit of the pension systems.

For an issue that has escaped the public spotlight for more than a decade, Matt Bevin has identified Kentucky’s pension crisis as the state’s priority.

Meanwhile, legislation on the move in Frankfort includes:

House Bill 172 would preserve pension benefits if spouses of deceased Kentucky public school teachers remarry. Sponsored by Rep. Rick Nelson (D-Middlesboro), the bill was approved by the House State Government Committee.

House Bill 97 is aimed at protecting the lives of infants. It would extend the amount of time parents have to surrender their baby at a state-approved safe place without facing criminal charges. Current law allows 72 hours after birth. HB 97 allows for a 30-day window. It passed the House 92-0.

Senate Joint Resolution 36 condemns Virginia’s recent decision to stop recognizing Kentucky concealed carry permits. By a 37-1 vote, Kentucky’s Senate urges the border state to restore the so-called reciprocal agreement that allowed Kentucky concealed carry permit holders to legally carry a concealed firearm in Virginia.

House Bill 50 was approved by the House Judiciary Committee.  It would allow “public benefit corporations” to operate in Kentucky.  Such corporations would then be required to balance the interests of their stockholders with a broader public interest. According to sponsor Kelly Flood (D-Lexington), 31 states have such a law.

House Bill 278, sponsored by House Speaker Greg Stumbo (D-Prestonsburg), would increase Kentucky’s minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 over the next two and half years.  The bill was approved by the House Labor and Industry Committee.

Senate Bill 33 would require public high school students to learn CPR. Sponsored by Sen. Max Wise (R-Campbellsville), the bill will now be considered by the House after a 32-6 vote in the Senate.

Senate Bill 4 dictates informed consent before a woman can have an abortion in Kentucky.  The bill, sponsored by Sen. Julie Raque Adams (R-Louisville), is moving back and forth between the Senate and the House.  After the Senate passed Adams’ original bill that requires in-person, face-to-face consultation, the House amended the legislation, allowing for video conferencing as well. The Senate will now consider the amended House bill.

House Bill 54 would give families of paramedics and other emergency service personnel killed in the line of duty the same $80,000 state death benefit now provided to families of fallen police and firefighters. It is sponsored by Rep. Dean Schamore (D-Hardinsburg) and was filed following last November’s death of Jessamine County paramedic John Mackey, who died after being hit by a car while on ambulance duty.

The next big thing in energy might be a battery installed outside or inside your home. Huge batteries like Tesla’s Powerwall can store electricity from on-site renewable energy sources or from the power grid, then release it later for household use. Photo: Tesla Mo

Improved technology for energy storage requires bigger, lighter, cheaper, more durable batteries—and around the clock power—to fuel renewable energy

Now, if saving the electricity generated by sunshine were as easy as catching rainwater in a barrel, then renewable energy production would be a lot more appealing for the masses. I think about this every time I take a tour of a high-tech, low-energy-consumption home.

As I walk through the rooms, I pretend what it would be like to actually live there. Where do you put the groceries? How much light is there over the kitchen sink? I wonder how I’d use the fancy stove to fix dinner, and where I’d put the ironing board in the laundry room. Where’s the switch for the bathroom exhaust fan?

I also look at the energy-efficiency labels on the heating and air-conditioning system and the water heater. Then I focus on the rooftop solar panels—and that’s when I go into full investigator mode. How much electricity do those panels produce during the day? What happens on cloudy days or at night when the sun isn’t shining?

Evolving battery technologies
On brilliantly sunny days, a solar array might produce more electricity than all the devices within the home need at the time. Being able to store that surplus quickly, safely, and simply, then withdrawing the electricity for use after sunset, would make sense. It’s easy enough to charge a cell phone’s tiny battery now and use it later—but developing a way to save larger quantities of electricity for a whole household has been a tough challenge.

A key problem involves the chemistry inside conventional lithium-ion batteries. Because of their internal construction and the chemical reactions taking place within them, this kind of battery can go into “thermal runaway.” That’s a fancy term for uncontrolled heating that can destroy the battery or, even worse, cause it to catch on fire. When enlarging a lithium-ion battery to the size needed for a whole house, one solution is to include a cooling and ventilation system.

That’s the route Tesla took when it announced its new Powerwall system early in 2015. Weighing 220 pounds, and about the size of a large television (roughly 51 inches tall, 34 inches wide, and 7 inches thick), the wall-mounted box includes a liquid thermal control system to prevent over-heating. The Powerwall device can store electricity from solar panels, then release it later to provide power to operate kitchen and laundry room appliances, heating and cooling systems, even TVs. The list price of $3,000 does not include professional installation by a trained electrician, nor does it include the cost of the required inverter for use with solar panels.

During the September 2015 Solar Power International showcase in Anaheim, California, another company, SimpliPhi Power Inc., introduced a different technology. According to their advertising materials, their home energy storage battery uses a different combination of chemicals (lithium-ion iron phosphate, no cobalt) that is nontoxic, lightweight, and does not require a costly and bulky heat reduction system.

Yet another company, Orison, is looking for investors to launch production of a third style of home energy storage system that it describes as a “plug and play” device that does not require professional installation.

And there are a host of other innovative companies trying to take their latest battery breakthroughs to the adoption stage.

Wind power and grid options
Tesla’s Powerwall system can be configured to function with or without the conventional power grid. With the proper disconnects for safety reasons, the Powerwall device can provide household electricity during a grid outage. In that situation, it becomes a backup device.

But the Powerwall can also store electricity coming from the grid. That can be important in two situations. In areas with time-of-day pricing structures for electricity, it might be smart to store electricity from the grid in the device when power is cheap, then use it later when power directly from the grid would be very expensive. It could also help when electricity from wind turbines is flowing into the grid in large quantities at times when there is not much demand for power. The device could store the surplus, then release it as needed after the wind stops blowing.

While all of this is possible on paper, and in demonstration homes, whether or not consumers will want to spend the money on this new technology remains to be seen. Jason Ballard, co-founder and president of a sustainable home improvement store that offers Tesla’s Powerwall, says, “I think in the near future, having a battery in your home will be as normal as having a water heater or a dishwasher.”

In September 2015, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC), Hawaii’s only member-owned electric utility, announced a plan to make use of the first utility-scale solar array and battery storage system designed to supply power to the grid in the evening, when demand is highest. The project is believed to be the first utility-scale system in the U.S. to provide dispatchable solar energy, meaning that the utility can count on electricity being available when it’s needed, even hours after the sun goes down.

KIUC President and CEO David Bissell says, “KIUC has been investigating energy storage options for more than two years and price has always been the biggest challenge. This is a breakthrough project on technology and on price that enables us to move solar energy to the peak demand hours in the evening and reduce the amount of fossil fuel we’re using.”

Intrigue over the balance of power in Kentucky’s House of Representatives took a back seat to actual legislation in the 2016 General Assembly’s first full week on the job.

That said, three dates are circled on everyone’s calendar in Frankfort:

January 26 – Governor Matt Bevin’s joint State of the Commonwealth and Budget address.

March 8 – special elections to fill four vacancies in the House, where Democrats hold a four seat advantage, 50-46.

April 12 – “Sine Die” – the date the General Assembly consumes its 60th and constitutionally mandated final day of the session.

Bevin’s speech will come on the legislature’s 15th day. In the mean time, lawmakers are moving ahead, especially with bills which were either resurrected from previous years, or piggyback on previous initiatives.

The first bill to clear either chamber is Senate Bill 11, which aims to modernize Kentucky’s 1930s-era alcohol laws.  Backed by the booming bourbon industry and craft beer makers, the bipartisan legislation sailed through the Senate by a 29-8 vote.

Bourbon tourism is at the heart of the comprehensive bill, which would increase the amount of packaged alcohol that can be sold at distilleries from three to nine liters. Sample sizes at distilleries would grow from 1 ounce to 1.5 ounces.

“You hear it said all the time: Government needs to just get out of the way and let industry work, let industry soar,” said Sen. John Schickel (R-Union), the bill’s sponsor. “Now, we really need to get out of the way of this bourbon industry and let it soar. If you go anywhere around the world someone will ask you about Kentucky bourbon.”

The bill, however, is not supported by all distilleries, including one in the Senate district of Sen. Joe Bowen of Owensboro.

“I’m very conflicted on this bill,” Bowen (R) said, while expressing support for alcohol-related business in Kentucky. “But at the end of the day, Mr. President, I simply feel that there are some inequities in this bill. There are some contradictions in this bill.”

The bill also:

• outlaws powdered alcohol;
• allows malt beverages to be sold at festivals;
• allows drinking on quadricycles, commonly called party bikes;
• specifies who pays for special elections to expand alcohol sales;
• allows bed and breakfasts to sell liquor by the drink;
• allows alcohol wholesalers to give discounts to retailers;
• allows brewers, distillers and vintners to taste their products for quality control;
• authorizes package liquor stores to give samples;
• and synchronizes all alcohol license renewal dates.

Joking that his Senate district also includes homegrown distilleries which are not legal, Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester) expressed hope that the booming bourbon businesses would spread the wealth in the distressed economy of Eastern Kentucky, where the coal industry has been decimated.

“We have one wonderful resource in the east that is not carbon related and that is timber, white oak,” Stivers said. “I ask these icons who have asked us to help their industry … to help Eastern Kentucky by investing in that region of the state.”

The Senate also approved another alcohol-related measure; Senate Bill 12 would allow liquor sales at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta before 1 p.m. on Sundays.

The first bill to pass the Kentucky House also received bipartisan support. By an 80-11 vote, the lower chamber approved House Bill 40, which allows felonies to be expunged from the records of non-violent criminals.

Approximately 94,000 Kentuckians would be eligible to wipe their slates clean.

The bill would remove from public view the criminal records of Class D felons and those who were never formally accused or convicted of a Class D felony. The legislation also prohibits expunged files from being used in judicial or administrative proceedings involving hiring and other matters.

“There is an overwhelming and growing army of support for expunging the records of people who committed Class D felonies and helping these individuals become successful, productive, employable citizens  of the commonwealth,” said House Judiciary Chair Rep. Darryl Owens (D-Louisville).  Owens and Rep. David Floyd, (R-Bardstown) are primary sponsors of the bill, which is also supported by Governor Matt Bevin (R).

The Senate President, however, is expressing reservations.

“Am I opposed in theory to what they’re trying to do? Give the individual a second chance who’s not had any problems for five, 10, 12, 15 years? Had some juvenile indiscretions not necessarily being under the age of 18, but in their youth in college? No, I’m not opposed to that,” Stivers said.  “I don’t think most people are. But it’s the method and manner of how you do it so you don’t open Pandora’s Box to more problems than you already have.”

Stivers said expungement of a felony conviction would not necessarily remove the conviction from court records, which could complicate employer background checks.

According to the Legislative Research Commission (LRC), convicted felons could ask the courts to expunge their records five years after completion of their sentence or probation; Those accused of a felony, but never indicted or convicted, could apply for expungement much sooner. Sex offenders, those who committed an offense against a child or vulnerable adult, those with a prior felony conviction, those who have recently been convicted of a misdemeanor or violation, or those against whom charges are pending would not be eligible for felony expungement under HB 40. The bill was amended by the House to also exclude those convicted of felonies involving abuse of public office, human trafficking and child pornography.

Since 1989, the Kentucky Chapter of Women in Rural Electrification (WIRE) has offered college scholarships to Kentucky college students to help them finish their degree. WIRE is now taking 2016 applications for three $1,000 scholarships.

Kelci Fulkerson is very grateful she was one of the 2015 scholarship recipients. “I’m attending graduate school now and it is more expensive. Receiving the WIRE scholarship helped relieve a little financial burden stress and I can focus more on school work.”

Kelci, who is studying speech language pathology, says she heard about the WIRE scholarship from her mother whose hometown is served by Warren RECC and it was her mother who encouraged her to apply.

WIRE scholarships are open to any eligible student whose family is served by a Kentucky electric cooperative and has at least 60 hours of credit at a Kentucky college or university by the start of the fall term. (Electric cooperative employees, directors, managers, and their relatives, and those of Big Rivers Electric Corporation, East Kentucky Power Cooperative, and the Kentucky Association of Electric Cooperatives, are not eligible.)

WIRE is an organization of women associated with Kentucky electric cooperatives. Members are wives of cooperative managers, board members, employees, employees themselves, and other women associated with electric co-ops in Kentucky. A yearly fundraising event is held in November with all proceeds going to the WIRE college scholarship program. Over the past 27 years, WIRE has given more than $91,000 in Kentucky college scholarships.

The deadline for submitting a WIRE college scholarship application is May 13, 2016.
DOWNLOAD THE 2016 WIRE APPLICATION.

Please return applications to Mary Beth Dennis, KAEC, P.O. Box 32170, Louisville, KY 40232.

The Kentucky Association of Electric Cooperatives (KAEC) and United Utility Supply (UUS) announced today that they are reorganizing their business to better serve their members in the Commonwealth and around the country. In a deal that is expected to bring UUS members transformer cost savings while ensuring the uninterrupted supply and availability of essential electrical products, KAEC has reached an agreement with Electric Research and Manufacturing Cooperative Inc. (ERMCO) for KAEC’s affiliate, UUS, to become a distributor of ERMCO transformers. The shift to a distribution-only model will result in KAEC no longer manufacturing transformers.

“Making this transition has been a difficult decision, but it comes after a careful analysis of KAEC’s position and a realistic assessment of the challenges we face in the marketplace,” said Chris Perry, KAEC president and CEO. “This distributorship brings greater value and stability for our members and puts the Kentucky Association of Electric Cooperatives and United Utility Supply in a strong position for the future,” Perry continued. “We are proud of KAEC’s 58 years of manufacturing excellence, but we recognize our responsibility to our members to adapt and adjust our business model to meet the challenges of today. We move forward committed to the same cooperative principles upon which we were founded: to serve and support members of KAEC and UUS.”

About KAEC
Kentucky Association of Electric Cooperatives is the statewide association that provides services for the 24 local, consumer-owned electric distribution utilities in the state, as well as two generation and transmission cooperatives that produce power. Electric co-ops in Kentucky serve 843,000 member-owners, providing power to one-third of Kentucky’s population. KAEC services include representation before the Legislature, Congress, and regulatory bodies; safety training; coordination of management training; and public relations support including publication of Kentucky Living magazine, the largest circulation publication in the state with nearly 480,000 copies mailed monthly, with a readership of 1.2 million.

Earns 11th Governor’s Safety and Health Award

Deputy Secretary Rocky Comito of the Kentucky Labor Cabinet today joined employees and officials in Robards to present the employees of Big Rivers Sebree Station with the Governor’s Safety and Health Award. The honor recognizes the employees for working 2,063,993 hours without a lost-time accident or illness. This is the facility’s 11th award, last earning the recognition in August 2014, when it had more than 1.5 million hours without an incident.

“To go two million hours without a lost-time incident shows an extreme dedication to safety,” said Labor Secretary Larry L. Roberts. “The Big Rivers Sebree Station continues to maintain an incredible focus on staying safe on the job, which is something every workplace in Kentucky should have as a goal.”

Incorporated in 1961, Big Rivers has earned 38 previous Governor’s Safety and Health Awards throughout the years. The corporation is a member-owned, not-for-profit, generation and transmission cooperative headquartered in Henderson. With nearly 530 employees, Big Rivers owns, operates and maintains a 1,285-mile transmission system, three generating plants and 22 substations.

“Safety builds the foundation for everything we do at Big Rivers,” said Bob Berry, president and CEO at Big Rivers. “Reaching two million hours without a lost-time incident at Sebree Station is a tremendous accomplishment, and once again highlights our commitment to make this a safe workplace. I want to congratulate IBEW’s leadership for continuing to promote our safety culture and each employee for doing his or her part to ensure health and wellness. It’s encouraging to see their teamwork and dedication recognized by the Commonwealth’s highest safety honor.”

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1701 represents the employees at Sebree Station. The national IBEW union traces its roots to the late 1800s, and is the oldest and largest electrical union in the world.

“I am so proud of our dedicated workforce in achieving the two million-hour milestone,” said Mike Pullen, vice president of production. “This award is earned by a continuous daily focus on safe work practices in our plants.”

With approximately 225 employees, Sebree Station is comprised of three generating stations: Robert A. Reid, Robert D. Green, and Henderson Municipal Power and Light Station II. The three power plants combined have a capacity to produce 896 megawatts of electricity.

Big Rivers is owned by three distribution cooperative members: Jackson Purchase Energy Corp., headquartered in Paducah; Kenergy Corp., headquartered in Henderson; and Meade County Rural Electric Cooperative Corp., headquartered in Brandenburg. These member cooperatives deliver retail electric power and energy to more than 113,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in portions of 22 western Kentucky counties.

The Kentucky Labor Cabinet presents the Governor’s Safety and Health Award in recognition of outstanding safety and health performance. An establishment may qualify for the award if its employees together achieve a required number of hours worked without experiencing a lost-time injury or illness. The required number of hours is dependent upon the number of employees. In the case of Sebree Station, the requirement is 500,000.

The Governor’s Safety and Health Award program is part of Gov. Steve Beshear’s efforts to improve the health of all Kentuckians. The Governor launched kyhealthnow last year as an aggressive and wide-ranging initiative to reduce incidents and deaths from Kentucky’s dismal health rankings and habits. It builds on Kentucky’s successful implementation of health care reform and uses multiple strategies over the next several years to improve the state’s collective health.

Every establishment within the geographical boundaries of Kentucky is eligible for the award, even if the establishment won the award the previous year. Eligibility is limited to one award during a 12-month period of time.

For more on the Governor’s Safety and Health Award, and for a list of past winners, click here.

For more on Big Rivers, visit www.bigrivers.com.

-a press release from the Kentucky Labor Cabinet