Kenny Colston

A Kentucky legislative leader says progress on reforming the state’s liquor laws  is slow going.  Last year, a federal judge threw out the state law that blocks grocery stores and gas stations from selling wine and spirits.

That same judge later stayed his ruling to prevent a sudden surge in liquor retailers and to allow Kentucky lawmakers to re-write the regulations.  But House Speaker Greg Stumbo says so far, no one has put forward a proposal to properly address the issue.

“Everyone hopes that there will be some sort of reasonable proposal from the entire industry that takes in consideration the court’s ruling. To date I haven’t seen that.”

Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo is joining calls for a nation debate about gun issues in the wake of the Newtown, Conn., elementary school shootings, and also said that violent video games are a cause of such violence.

Stumbo says he’s a lifelong National Rifle Association member and an avid outdoorsman — and he has helped many NRA-friendly bills pass in Kentucky. But he’s joining other rural Democrats in their call for a discussion on gun control.

“But I join Sen. Joe Manchin in saying that it’s time for America to have an adult discussion about what happened and what needs to happen to keep those events from happening in the future,” Stumbo said.

Gov. Steve Beshear expressed similar sentiments after the Newtown shooting, which left 27 people dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School, including the shooter.

Stumbo did not go into details about what proposals he would favor.

A Kentucky legislative leader says progress on reforming the state’s liquor laws  is slow going.

In 2012, a federal judge threw out the state law that blocks grocery stores and gas stations from selling wine and spirits. That same judge later stayed his ruling to prevent a sudden surge in liquor retailers and to allow Kentucky lawmakers to re-write the regulations.

But House Speaker Greg Stumbo says so far, no one has put forward a proposal to properly address the issue. “Everyone hopes that there will be some sort of reasonable proposal from the entire industry that takes in consideration the court’s ruling. To date I haven’t seen that," said the House Speaker.

Stumbo interprets the court’s ruling as a call for a uniform law for selling alcohol in groceries and pharmacies.

A decline in coal mining tax revenue has many of Kentucky’s top officials concerned. House Speaker Greg Stumbo and Governor Steve Beshear say they are worried about the declining revenues form the coal severance tax.

The tax is used for a variety of state, county and local infrastructure projects, mostly in Eastern Kentucky. Beshear says the drop in revenue reflects the tough market for Kentucky coal.

“I am concerned about the coal severance receipts, they are down, they’re down significantly. And that because coal mining is down significantly, the tons of coal mined has dropped.”

Beshear says exports, mainly to India and China, could help the revenues rebound. However, the first shipment of coal in a celebrated trade deal with an Indian company is months behind schedule.

A decline in coal mining tax revenue has many of Kentucky’s top officials concerned.  House Speaker Greg Stumbo and Governor Steve Beshear say they are concerned about the declining revenues from the coal severance tax. 

The tax is used for a variety of state, county and local infrastructure projects, mostly in Eastern Kentucky. Beshear says the drop in revenue reflects the tough market for Kentucky coal.