Interim Session 2025
The Legislative Interim Session begins on June 2, 2025 and runs through the end of the year. You may find the full committee schedules here. And be on the watch for a Special Session: We are anticipating a special session based on recent comments from the Governor, to address funding support for counties impacted by the recent tornadoes.
“Climate Change is Real…”
We were glad to see that the Governor, in his recent statement to the Lexington Herald-Leader said that “…climate change is real, and it’s certainly causing more natural disasters and stronger natural disasters.” This is a statement that is long overdue, and why KCC, along with eleven allied groups, had been working on advocating for stronger building and residential codes for Kentucky. Modernizing our building codes was one of the many side projects that had been keeping us busy through, and also after, the General Assembly. (Our thanks to KCC Past President Sarah Lynn Cunningham for her assistance in helping us to keep this work moving through the more hectic days of the General Assembly). We hope that as storm-impacted communities re-build, this will be one way that could make communities more resilient in the future.
Did You Get Your KCC Conservation Brief?
Members and allies should have received KCC’s recap of the General Assembly, along with our Conservation Brief for 2025 in the mail last week. If you did not, that may mean that we do not have a physical address for you. SO: we urge you to fill out this form in order for us to keep your contact information up to date. We will be glad to mail you a copy of our brief if you did not receive one. And in the meantime, you can also view it online.
Energy Investments…Billions Still Unspent
The Louisville Courier-Journal recently reported that a significant majority of the clean energy investments that stand to benefit from the embattled IRA tax credits are in Republican congressional districts. Kentucky's five Republican-represented districts have seen nearly $16 billion in planned investment tied to these projects; more than $9 billion has been spent so far, the MIT and Rhodium Group analysis estimates.
"These districts have been awarded billions for economic development projects that provide exactly the energy transition investments needed to advance renewables and storage at a pace that is more in line with national trends," Lane Boldman, executive director of the Kentucky Conservation Committee, said in an email. "These outstanding investment dollars would not only diversify and modernize our energy portfolio, but have the added benefit of bringing on cleaner energy technologies that are proven and available right now."
And while we do want to see this funding continue for the projects that were designated, we do have concerns over one specific project, on the continuing reports of safety and environmental problems related to the Blue Oval SK Battery Park. If we are to succeed in our energy transition, then these emerging companies also need to be held accountable for good business practices.
In the meantime, we also wanted to express our thanks to all of you who sent in comments to the Public Service Commission on LG&E/KU’s latest Integrated Resource Plan. We are working with coalition allies to continue to build momentum around a movement to make energy more affordable, resilient, and community centered, as part of the Kentuckians for Energy Democracy coalition, (K4ED) where they are gathering input to share how energy issues impact your life and help shape Kentucky’s energy future. Click here to take the K4ED survey. As a bonus, you’ll be entered into a raffle to win cash prizes!
Nuclear Updates
While KCC continues to monitor the state activity on nuclear energy development, President Trump signed four executive orders on May 23, aimed at accelerating the construction of nuclear power plants in the United States, including a new generation of small, advanced reactors that make claims of faster deployment but have yet to be proven. KCC has representatives monitoring the state’s work on this issue, where Senator Danny Carroll has been one of the strongest champions. See WFPL’s summary here. Meanwhile, we are planning a webinar in June with our friends at the Nuclear Information and Resource Service to answer your questions about this technology. Watch our Facebook page for upcoming details.
Crypto Mines Here, Data Centers There…
Followers of KCC know that we have been tracking Crypto mining and similar digital asset activity since 2019, when a “Blockchain Working Group” was formed after the passage of H.R. 171 . Blockchain is a decentralized, distributed, and immutable ledger technology that records transactions across a network of computers. It's known for its security and transparency, making it suitable for applications like cryptocurrencies, supply chain management, and digital identity. Since that time, several more bills have been introduced and passed in subsequent sessions that provided tax breaks to support emerging digital industries such as cryptomining and artificial intelligence that require various types of energy-hungry data centers. In one of his first acts in office, President Trump declared a “national energy emergency,” saying the country did not have enough electricity to meet its growing needs, particularly for data centers that run artificial intelligence. And John Bevington, Senior Director of Business & Economic Development at PPL Corp., (the parent company of LG&E and KU), anticipates a substantial increase in the number of data centers nationwide.
So while this has not been a new topic for KCC, these digital industries are increasingly garnering the attention of the environmental and business communities, with the recent announcement of a “hyperscale” data center in Oldham County that has local citizens up in arms.
Meanwhile, the problems associated with crypto mining data operations, while not at the same scale as a “hyperscale” operation proposed for Oldham County, are no less impactful on the smaller rural communities — and raise similar questions about how these operations will ultimately impact Kentucky’s utilities and your power bill. Recently KCC was host to investigative reporters Zach Hirsch and Dina Temple-Raston who came to Kentucky to explore the current state of impact from the wave of crypto mines that came into the state, once lawmakers began passing incentives and tax breaks for these operations. And shortly after this podcast (also below) was posted, Kentucky became the spotlight of another high-profile crypto story. Read more here.
The investigative crew met with us in Clay City and spent four days driving across the state where they said it became clear that things like crypto mining and AI data centers may not offer a break with history — just a continuation of it. We hope you will check out their podcast about their trip to Kentucky to learn more about these operations. You can also find a summary of their trip in a recent WIRED Magazine article. And if you still want to learn more about these kinds of operations, you can visit KCC’s website under “Issues,” where we have more information on Crypto mines, Data Centers, and Artificial Intelligence.
Upcoming Events
Visit with KCC in Covington, June 19th! We hope you will come visit us in Northern Kentucky (Covington) at the West 6th Covington Haus! We’d love to have the opportunity to see our members and allies in the region! This will be a relaxed social time, running from 6PM-8PM. We hope to see you there! Details here.
Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Lexington, August 29th: We are hosting this festival for our 11th year, where we will be returning to the Farish Theater in Lexington. Come join us for an evening of fun and inspiring outdoor recreation films, giveaways and a silent auction. The Farish is located in the Lexington Central Library and the facility offers free parking for film attendees. We will also be offering a “virtual at home” option once again as well. Tickets on sale now!
Louisville Earth Walk, October 18th: KCC is one of the participating organizations in this family-friendly 2k walk at Shawnee Park, Louisville. We will have entertainment and earth-friendly exhibits as well! More info here!
The Last Word
Recently one of our allies brought our attention to a “banned words” list of phrases allegedly being scrubbed from government websites, as compiled by Pen America. While we can’t comment on the accuracy of the information, we found the identified list fascinating and in some cases quite puzzling (banning words such as “community,” or “woman”) with other examples tied to recent state legislation (“fluoride”). Kentucky lawmakers have increasingly been advancing legislation to make fluoride optional in water systems, most recently through 2025’s House Bill 16, which passed the House but stalled in the Senate. Currently The ADA, the American Medical Association, the World Health Organization and many others support fluoridation of community water supplies. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has cited community water fluoridation as one of 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century (along with vaccinations, infectious disease control and motor vehicle safety).