Andy Beshear

A panel of lawmakers voted to dismiss petitions to impeach Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron on Tuesday, though the final decision lies with the full Kentucky House of Representatives.

The decision caps off nearly two months of closed-door meetings of the Kentucky House Impeachment Committee.

Rep. Jason Nemes, a Republican from Louisville and chair of the committee, announced they voted to dismiss the petitions late Tuesday night.

“The committee has found that none of the allegations made against the governor nor the attorney general rise to the level of impeachable offenses,” Nemes said.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear issued an executive order on Tuesday recommending that all school districts offer some type of in-person learning starting March 1 or within a week of vaccinations for school personnel. The order recommends that classes resume seven days after teachers and staff have received their second COVID-19 vaccinations, though the decision is being left to districts. 

The order also states that masks must be worn at all times in schools and during transportation to and from schools.  

“This is one of the number one ways that we can keep everybody in that school safe,” Beshear said. “And it’s going to be incredibly important, especially for districts that may go back for the first time, that this is strictly enforced as all of the studies that suggest there is low transmission are of districts that had and enforced a strong mask mandate.”

Gov. Andy Beshear announced that coronavirus restrictions will be loosened at some long-term care facilities in Kentucky this weekend.

The new guidance applies to assisted living, personal care homes and independent living communities. Indoor visitation, communal dining and group activities will continue for people who have completed the vaccination process starting Saturday. But it doesn’t apply to Medicare-certified facilities, such as skilled nursing facilities.

“What this means is once someone is better protected from this disease, we want them to be able to see their loved ones,” Beshear said. “Again, this doesn’t apply to the highest-level of care facilities yet.”

A Kentucky judge urged Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron and GOP leaders of the legislature to come to a compromise in the power struggle over the state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Beshear sued to block three new laws that passed out of the Republican-led legislature earlier this month, arguing they would hamstring his ability to issue executive orders aimed at slowing the spread of the virus.

During a virtual hearing on Thursday, Franklin Circuit Court Judge Phillip Shepherd said both parties have valid concerns that need to be resolved for the sake of Kentucky citizens.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced Monday that child care workers in Kentucky are now considered part of the 1B priority group for COVID-19 vaccinations.  The 1B group is currently the priority for getting the vaccine.

Beshear also reported 723 new cases of COVID-19 in his update. He said that’s the lowest number of new cases since Oct. 12, and further evidence that the state is seeing a positive downward trend in COVID-19 cases.

This is the fifth consecutive weeks the number of cases has declined.

The state is also seeing a decrease in the number of Kentuckians hospitalized, in the ICU, or on ventilators because of COVID-19.

Gov. Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency Thursday due to a complex winter weather system that doused the state with freezing rain and sleet overnight.

More than 70,000 Kentuckians lost power as icy conditions downed power lines and trees. Officials reported multiple crashes and temporary closures on highways and roads across the state. Transportation crews treated roads throughout the night and are working to remove downed trees. 

As the weather system moves out of the state, bitterly cold temperatures are expected to remain, meaning the icy conditions should persist throughout the weekend.

The Republican committee reviewing impeachment petitions against Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear has dismissed two of the cases but is still asking the governor to respond to one of them.

The committee is also still reviewing petitions filed against Attorney General Daniel Cameron and state Rep. Robert Goforth, both Republicans.

Three grand jurors from the Breonna Taylor case filed a petition to impeach Cameron last month, alleging he misled the public about the case and misrepresented the grand jury’s actions.Six of Goforth’s constituents called for him to be removed following his indictment for allegedly assaulting and threatening to kill his wife last year.

Republican Rep. Jason Nemes is the chair of the committee, which the state House of Representatives formed after receiving the initial citizen petition calling for Beshear to be removed because of his role responding to the coronavirus pandemic in Kentucky.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has announced four new regional vaccination sites, including one in Bowling Green and one in Glasgow.

The Bowling Green vaccination site is at Greenwood Mall at the former Sears building.  That site will be open weekly Thursday through Saturday.

The location is through a partnership with Kroger. Scheduling an appointment can be done online.

An appointment at the Greenwood Mall site can also be made by calling 866-211-5320.

The second site is in Glasgow at the T.J. Health Pavilion. The schedule for vaccinations has not yet been released. Information is available online, or by calling 270-659-1010.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced Thursday that COVID-19 cases are continuing to drop in Kentucky, though deaths remain high due to surges over the past several weeks.

Beshear reported 2,500 new cases on Thursday. Four weeks ago, the daily total was nearly 5,000.

The test positivity rate dropped to 8.37%, the lowest in over a month. Beshear said the steady decline shows the state is limiting spread.

“If we stay on this track, we’re going to have fewer cases this week than we did last week, which will give us four straight weeks, for the first time of this pandemic, with declining cases,” he said.

A judge has temporarily blocked a new Kentucky law that allows businesses and schools to stay open during the coronavirus pandemic as long as they follow CDC guidelines.

The ruling comes a day after Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear sued to block three laws passed by the Republican-led legislature curtailing his powers during the coronavirus pandemic.

The order from Franklin Circuit Court Judge Phillip Shepherd only blocks parts of House Bill 1 that affect business and school openings. Other parts of the bill, including easing restrictions on long-term care visits and unemployment insurance taxes, remain in effect.

Shepherd wrote that he was concerned portions of House Bill 1 “could likely wreak havoc with public health.”

“Under the provisions of House Bill 1, it is likely that hundreds, or even thousands, of individual operating plans could be adopted, with no meaningful oversight or review, and with great variations as to the rules that would apply throughout the state,” Shepherd wrote.

The Kentucky legislature is back in session after a three-week break, and Republican lawmakers have started overriding vetoes issued by Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.

Last month, Beshear vetoed several bills curtailing his powers during the coronavirus pandemic and boosting the legislature’s role in state government.

But it’s easy to override a governor’s vetoes in Kentucky, only taking a majority of members in the state House and Senate to do so. Republicans in the state House began the process Tuesday afternoon by rejecting four of them.

House Bill 1 would allow businesses and schools to stay open during the coronavirus pandemic as long as they follow Centers for Disease Control guidelines, superseding any orders issued by Beshear.

The impeachment petition filed against Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear continues to drag through the legislative process while petitions against Republican officials haven’t been heard yet.

After meeting for two and a half hours behind closed doors, the Kentucky House of Representatives Impeachment Committee emerged to say that one of the four citizens who filed the petition against Beshear earlier this month wanted to be removed from it.

Rep. Jason Nemes, a Repubilcan from Louisville and the committee’s chair, said the committee took no action except deciding to send Beshear a letter “seeking a little bit of additional information.”

The Kentucky legislative committee reviewing impeachment petitions against Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican State Rep. Robert Goforth will meet this afternoon.

The committee will also eventually review a petition filed by grand jurors from the Breonna Taylor case against Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Though, since the legislature is in the middle of a three-week break, the petition against Cameron won’t be officially filed until lawmakers return on Feb. 2.

Citizen impeachment petitions usually aren’t publicized and, in the past, the state House of Representatives has dismissed them after a quick review by the House Judiciary Committee.

Gov. Andy Beshear is asking a legislative committee to dismiss an impeachment petition against him. Petitioners say Beshear violated the Kentucky Constitution when he imposed restrictions during the pandemic, including mandatory closures of non-essential businesses.

In a 45-page response to the petition, Beshear notes that the courts have upheld many of his restrictions, and describes the petitioners as “political activists ostensibly unhappy with the Governor’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and their lack of success in court.”

“The Petition cites no facts and little law in a last-ditch effort to upend our constitutional separation of powers, hoping the General Assembly will ignore the judgments of the judicial branch as well as the will of the people in electing their chief executive,” the response reads.

Kentucky has again broken its record for daily COVID-19 deaths, exceeding 50 for just the third time during the pandemic.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced 58 deaths at Thursday’s coronavirus press briefing. He called the high number “staggering,” and said the state will place a memorial at the Capitol for those who have died.

“We’re going to end up placing an American flag on our grounds for every single individual that we’ve lost,” Beshear said. “As we move forward, we’re going to keep doing that. These are all children of God, loved by their families, needed by their community, and deeply, deeply missed.”

Kentucky’s COVID-19 mortality rate sits at about 1%, Beshear said. That’s less than the national and global averages, which are 1.7% and 2.2%, respectively.