EKB News

State Auditor Crit Luallen says she's appalled following a revelation that a provision in the insurance policy that the Kentucky Association of Counties has sold to 112 counties covers defense attorney fees for elected officials. The liability insurance plan has paid for more than $300,000 in criminal defense bills for five elected county officials accused of job-related crimes since 2001, and the total doesn't include pending cases. On Wednesday, Luallen announced her office wants to get to the bottom of excessive spending and inadequate oversight within KACo and the Kentucky League of Cities, and she sent letters to the organizations that spelled out her authority to conduct an investigation.

Nothing is final yet, but Manchester city officials say they've reached a mutual agreement with Waste Not Technologies, a waste conversion company that's considering a site in Clay County to construct a new plant. Officials say it's possible more than 1,000 jobs could come with it. Waste Not Technologies is looking at a few other possible sites, but, if the company decides to build in Manchester, they hope to break ground by fall and open late in 2010.

Police in Kentucky say they believe someone has stolen payroll checks and created fake banks and businesses, allowing them to cash bogus checks across eastern Kentucky. So far, the checks have been found in Letcher and Perry counties. Business owners say they're being scammed for hundreds of dollars. Police say a female suspect has cashed the checks, so far, at Jenkins IGA (Letcher County) and the Happy IGA (Perry County), but there could be more. The suspect is about 6 ft. tall and a white female with shoulder length blonde hair.

Four months after Cam Mining in Pike County laid off hundreds of miners in March, remaining miners were permanently laid off Wednesday. Officials declined to release details involved with the shutdown.

When Kentucky's elected county officials find themselves charged with abusing their public office, in most cases, their legal bills are paid by a taxpayer-bought insurance policy provided through the Kentucky Association of Counties. Prosecutors say they're surprised a taxpayer-bought policy pays fees for an elected official accused of crimes against taxpayers. Knott County Judge Executive Randy Thompson says it was a pleasant surprise to learn the county's insurance through KACo would cover his defense after being indicted on vote-buying charges stemming from the 2006 election, for which a U.S. District Court in Pikeville convicted him last year. KACo has covered legal fees for other elected officials in Kentucky, and, while some think it's o.k., others say it increases public mistrust of officials and is an epidemic in the state that has to stop.

You may think you don't count, but you could make a difference in future federal funding. As a formal commitment to assure that every citizen in Pike County is counted, Pike County Judge Executive Wayne Rutherford has signed a proclamation making the 2010 Census a top priority for all elected and appointed officials. The Census labels Pike County as a "hard-to-count" area. The Pike County Census Committee, which consists of representatives from numerous community partner agencies and organizations, applies localized knowledge to better inform the public about the Census. Any organization within an area, with experience in outreach programs, can become a Census partner. Upon submitting an application, the organization may become eligible for $2,499 towards products and $2,999 towards services to promote the Census, while the money cannot be used for food nor advertisements.

When newly elected members of the Williamson City Council were installed in office Tuesday afternoon, Third Ward Councilman Doffie Hall, who resigned two weeks ago, citing health problems, was missing. He tendered a resignation letter on June 14th., saying his deteriorating health problems, surgery, cancer and etc. had caused him to come to a conclusion he was unable to serve. He says the citizens deserve 100%, and his health will not allow him to do that.