FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky took a step toward closing its digital divide Monday, when Gov. Andy Beshear announced $203 million in broadband investments — with the promise of more to come — to connect areas with no internet access or chronically slow service.

The plan looks to combine a major infusion of federal funds backed by Democratic leaders in Congress with matching money to attain a long-running, bipartisan goal that has long eluded Kentucky's leaders.

Previous efforts have fallen short of bringing the internet to remote parts of the state, where leaders have long viewed it as a key to future economic viability. The persistent lack of access in some parts of the state was laid bare during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, where remote work and schooling were both hampered by significant gaps in connectivity.

The round of investments announced Monday will be split into 46 grant awards to 12 internet service providers and local governments spanning 35 counties. The grants will deliver reliable internet to more than 34,000 Kentucky families and businesses, the governor said.

“Everybody needs it," Beshear said. "Everybody deserves to have access to it.”

The investments include $89.1 million from the state's share of federal pandemic aid that state lawmakers earmarked for broadband expansion, Beshear said. Grant recipients pledged to match those contributions, raising total investments for this round to more than $203 million.

The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the crucial role high-speed internet plays in the state’s education and economic systems.

“High-speed, reliable internet is not just the infrastructure of the future, it’s the necessary infrastructure right now," the governor said at a news conference. "It’s just as important as roads, bridges. And today is a key part of our plan to build a better Kentucky. And it will be critical to the success of our state’s economy and to future job creation.”

The grants announced Monday are meant to lower construction costs to extend internet to harder-to-reach areas, with the focus on unserved areas of Kentucky.

State Budget Director John Hicks called it the “first chapter of many chapters” as the state distributes funding to expand broadband service.

In 2021, Kentucky lawmakers agreed to use $300 million of federal pandemic relief money to extend broadband service. It reflected a bipartisan agreement between the Republican-dominated legislature and Beshear, a Democrat.

The Bluegrass State still has about $210 million remaining in federal pandemic aid to allocate for broadband expansion. Combined with matching requirements, a minimum of $600 million will support the extension of high-speed internet, Beshear’s office said in a news release. The state also expects another infusion of broadband money from the federal infrastructure law.

“We’re going to have the best shot in the history of the commonwealth to provide internet access to every single Kentuckian,” Beshear said.

Asked how long it will take to achieve universal, reliable internet access statewide, the governor predicted “dramatic improvement” in the next four to five years.

Beshear also stressed that affordability is part of the broadband equation.

“We’re still going to have to continue to keep our eye on affordability,” he said. “Just getting it somewhere, if people can’t afford it, isn’t enough.”

The awards announced Monday stemmed from a competitive process managed by the state Finance and Administration Cabinet. An evaluation team spent six months evaluating nearly 100 proposals.

Fareed Saghir, general manager of Crystal Broadband Networks, among the recipients, said the awards will be a "giant leap toward bridging the digital divide between urban and rural communities.”

Pennyrile Rural Electric Cooperative President and CEO Alan Gates said the funding will “alleviate some of the significant financial burden associated with building a rural fiber-optic broadband network.” The Pennyrile cooperative also was among the grant recipients.

Beshear's administration also is setting up a state Office of Broadband Development to formulate a master plan to provide universal internet service across Kentucky.

Bridging the gaps in broadband service has been a long and tortuous process in Kentucky. A statewide broadband project known as Kentucky Wired was launched years ago with bipartisan support, stretching back to when Beshear's father, Steve Beshear, was governor. The program ultimately fell well behind schedule and went considerably over budget.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron directly solicited donations for his gubernatorial campaign from executives of a Kentucky drug treatment organization that his office began investigating last year, according to an attorney for the organization.

The request for contributions occurred during a call Cameron made early this year to a representative of Edgewater Recovery Centers, Edgewater attorney Michael Denbow told The Associated Press.

A Cameron campaign official made a follow-up call to the same representative, and there was an exchange regarding a possible fundraiser that ultimately never occurred, he said. Denbow declined to identify the Edgewater representative who received the calls.

Several Edgewater executives later donated $7,600 to Cameron's campaign. Those donations have since been refunded, the campaign said. But the solicitations and their timing, coming as Edgewater was under investigation, have led to demands for an investigation from the campaign of Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, Cameron's opponent in one of the nation's most closely watched elections this year. And it escalated a cross-volley of attacks over campaign finances.

Edgewater directed questions about the Cameron-related matter to Denbow.

“They were directly solicited by Daniel to give to his campaign," Denbow, speaking on behalf of the company, told the AP in a phone interview Friday. "And I think Edgewater thought it was probably very prudent to make sure that they preserve their ability to work with whomever was successful in November ... to help further Edgewater’s goals.”

In his response, Cameron told the AP in a statement issued Sunday that his “approach" to the Edgewater-related campaign donations has been to "review, recuse and refund.”

Cameron recused himself from the Edgewater investigation in May, immediately after learning of the contributions, according to his office. The donations were first reported by The Daily Beast. Cameron's office didn't comment on the status of the case. Edgewater denies any wrongdoing in the matter.

Cameron's campaign acknowledged it discussed a possible fundraiser with individuals representing Edgewater.

“There were preliminary conversations about hosting an event,” Cameron said in the statement. “Once we were made aware of a conflict, the event was canceled. When they later made online contributions, I recused myself and the contributions were refunded.”

Beshear's campaign called Monday for an investigation, saying the attorney general's office has “an obligation” to refer Cameron's actions to the FBI for review.

“The timing is clear -- Daniel Cameron personally called a business he was investigating and solicited campaign contributions," Beshear's campaign said. “His actions are unethical and must be investigated.”

This year's matchup between Cameron and Beshear in Republican-trending Kentucky could offer something of a preview of voter sentiment ahead of 2024 campaigns for president and control of Congress. Campaign fundraising allegations suddenly have surged to the forefront of the bare-knuckled contest in Kentucky.

Last week, Cameron’s office asked the FBI to investigate an infusion of campaign donations — linked to a single credit card — that flowed to the Kentucky Democratic Party and Beshear’s campaign. The governor’s campaign and the state party moved to refund more than $200,000 in donations that they determined to exceed limits set by law.

Cameron pounced on the Democratic-related matter to sharply criticize the governor. In his statement Sunday, Cameron accused Beshear of taking “illegal campaign contributions” and declared that political candidates “owe transparency and accountability to the people they represent.”

But Cameron's campaign also finds itself on the defensive regarding campaign finances.

Edgewater has been under investigation since 2022 by the Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse in the attorney general's office. A case number indicates that the investigation started last year, Denbow said. Edgewater received a subpoena for information in early March as part of the probe, he said.

Cameron's call to the Edgewater representative occurred before the subpoena was served, Denbow said. In that call and in the follow-up call by a Cameron campaign representative, there were “no promises or threats,” he said. “They reached out to solicit campaign funds.”

“The investigation was ongoing, but I certainly do not think there was any mention or acknowledgement by Daniel in his communications about that,” Denbow added.

There was "no quid pro quo” intended when Edgewater's executives donated to Cameron's campaign, the attorney said. And it was Cameron's campaign that decided to refund the donations, he said.

“It’s my understanding it was done after Daniel recused himself from the investigation and then they made that determination,” Denbow said. "We’re unaware of the basis for it.”

Edgewater Recovery Centers offer alcohol and drug abuse treatment for men and women, according to its website. Edgewater is a state-licensed behavioral health organization offering “multiple levels of care,” with facilities in a handful of Kentucky communities, the website says.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky lawmakers are considering a bill the sponsor said is about parental rights and free speech, while opponents of the bill said it could be dangerous for transgender kids.

Transgender advocates are calling Senate Bill 150 the "Erase Trans Kids Bill." That name comes from a specific part of the bill. It doesn't say teachers and students can't use a student's preferred pronouns, but it does allow them to use the pronouns assigned to a student at birth instead.

This portion of the bill is what many at a Senate Education Committee spoke about during the public comment portion of the bill hearing Thursday. It's one reason Democratic Sen. Karen Berg of Louisville was in the room, according to our sister station WLEX in Lexington.

She watched as her colleagues advanced the bill that transgender advocates believe is "anti-LGBTQ." This happened less than two months after she lost her transgender son, Henry, to suicide.

"I needed to be in the room for the vote," she told reporters. "I needed to know that they knew that I was standing there."

Others were also there in opposition to the bill, including Mason Chernosky who is a transgender man.

"I was one of those children whose mental health would've been harmed by this bill," he said.

When sharing his personal experience with the committee, he said when he was in school, he hadn't come out to his parents.

"They were very religious and they did not support the LGBTQ lifestyle as they put it," Chernosky said.

At school, he was out and things were different.

"It was so nice to have one place where I could just be myself," he said.

Under the bill, he said his mental health would've taken a hit.

Chris Hartman, the executive director of the Fairness Campaign, said the bill could be dangerous for trans kids, especially when considering the numbers.

"One in five transgender youth have not just seriously considered but have attempted suicide in the past year," Hartman said.

Another transgender man who also works with transgender kids spoke in opposition to the bill too.

"If my trans kids that I'm treating — who have already transitioned — go into the school and their teacher starts using the wrong name and pronouns for them, they will be suicidal," said Miles Joyner, who works with LGBTQ kids. "I have looked into their eyes. have seen their faces. I'm begging for their lives."

He also told lawmakers that using a person's preferred pronouns is easy and respectful.

"They deserve to be referred to by their name and their pronouns. It's not hurting you. It's not hurting you to call me Miles," he said. "Why would we hurt our children?"

The bill also bans education leaders from recommending how to approach pronouns. The sponsor of the bill, Republican Sen. Max Wise of Campbellsville said the issue is about the First Amendment.

"Protecting the freedom of speech rights of staff and students by not forcing them to use nonconforming pronouns requested by other students," he said. "The purpose of this bill is to ensure parental communication, inspection and authorization."

This is where another part of the bill comes in. It requires schools to notify parents about their child requesting mental or physical health services. There's an exception if parents have a history of or are suspected of abuse.

Chernosky said even without this bill, when he was in school, he felt like he couldn't ask for these services.

"I was terrified that someone at my school was going to tell my parents, especially the teachers," he said. "My LGBTQ friends who got those services, who got to talk to people, who got support, they're mental health got better, mine did not."

In Wise's opinion, parents should be involved in these things.

"These are all topics and discussions that parents need to be aware of — always in the upbringing of their children," he said.

The bill would also require schools to give advanced notice to parents about lessons on human sexuality. Parents would be able to see the curriculum and opt out if they want to.

After the vote, Berg told WLEX she doesn't believe the bill is about kids, parents or schools at all. She believes it's a way for Wise, who is Kelly Craft's running mate in the governor's race, is trying to score political points.

"This is a political social issue. What they are doing right now — they are intentionally placing themselves to the right of another potential gubernatorial candidate in the hope of winning that vote," said Berg.

"[The Craft-Wise ticket] needs to show that they are further right than the current Republican front runner on the ticket. That's what this whole thing — this whole shit show — is about," added Berg. "And they're putting our children smack dab in the middle of it, on purpose, without a care in the world."

The bill was passed in committee 11-1 and will be considered by the full senate next.

There are already a few amendments filed.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s Supreme Court on Thursday refused to allow abortions to resume in the state, rejecting a request to halt enforcement of a near-total ban on abortion that has largely been in place since Roe v. Wade was overturned.

The court, which was weighing challenges to the state’s near-total ban and a separate one that outlaws abortion after the sixth week of pregnancy, sent the case back to a lower court for further consideration of constitutional issues related to one of the bans.

The court weighed in on the issue after Kentucky voters last year rejected a ballot measure that would have denied any constitutional protections for abortion. The Republican-led Legislature passed both of those laws.

In July, a Louisville judge, Mitch Perry, halted enforcement of the new bans because he found that they likely violated the state constitution’s rights to privacy and self-determination. He said it wasn’t the court’s role to determine whether the state constitution guarantees the right to abortion, but it is its role to decide whether the new bans violate constitutionally guaranteed freedoms.

But the state Court of Appeals reinstated enforcement of the bans and the state Supreme Court opted in August to keep them in place while it reviewed the case.

Kentucky’s near-total trigger law ban was passed in 2019 and took effect when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. It bans abortions except when they're carried out to save the life of the mother or to prevent disabling injury. It does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

Two Louisville abortion clinics challenged the bans.

Thirteen states have current bans on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, including Wisconsin, where there’s a legal question over which law is in effect but where clinics have shut down. Bans and tight restrictions are currently on hold because of court action in at least six states.

CARROLLTON, Ky. — Carroll County will receive around $500,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to assess and clean up sites in the county — with two specific sites listed as a priority.

One of those priority sites is the Carrollton Furniture Factory, a five-acre property within Carrollton, Ky.'s historic district.

The other is a 58-acre site along Highway 227 that's been plagued with illegal dumping.

In all, the EPA is awarding over $7.9 million in grand funding to assess and clean up industrial and commercial properties "that are known or suspected to contain contaminants," according to a press release from Governor Andy Beshear's office.

Most other communities receiving funding are also receiving roughly $500,000 chunks of the grant money, with the exception of two: The EPA is awarding $999,821 to Somerset, Ky. to remediate the former Palm Beach factory originally built in 1946; Maysville, Ky. in Mason County will receive $1,999,900 for the remediation of the Hayswood Hospital building, which has sat vacant since the hospital closed in 1983.

According to the press release, Frontier Housing, a non-profit organization aimed at building affordable housing, plans to renovate the former hospital into residential spaces.

In all, 10 total communities received the EPA grants.

The Kentucky EPA and Louisville-Metro Jefferson County government were each awarded $1 million in supplemental loan funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, the press release said.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Proposed tax relief for Kentucky's bourbon makers was fast-tracked Monday in advancing in the state House, but local leaders living near some of the world's best-known distilleries were in no mood to toast the industry victory.

The measure aims to phase out a property tax on the value of stored bourbon barrels — a top industry priority. The phaseout would begin in 2026 and be completed by 2039.

House Bill 5 cleared the House on a 59-40 vote, soon after emerging from committee. With only a few days left in this year’s 30-day legislative session, the proposal advances to the Senate, where Republicans also have a supermajority.

The barrel tax — assessed only in Kentucky — hurts the state's competitiveness and threatens to chip away at the state's status as the bourbon industry epicenter, the bill's supporters said.

“No other manufacturer pays taxes on its goods during production,” said Eric Gregory, president of the the Kentucky Distillers’ Association. "Taxes aren’t levied on vehicles rolling down the assembly line, dishwashers as they are being built, or tobacco drying in the barn."

Leaders from some of the top bourbon-producing counties, however, worry that the inventory tax phaseout will take away an important revenue source for local governments.

“We need the money to survive or we’re going to have to cut services,” Nelson County Judge-Executive Timothy Hutchins told a House committee earlier Monday.

Kentucky produces 95% of the world’s bourbon and is home to nearly 10 million barrels of aging spirits, according to the Kentucky Distillers’ Association.

The bill's leading supporters include House Speaker David Osborne, who warned that “it is not our right to be home to the bourbon industry.” Several other states have surpassed Kentucky in total number of distilleries, though Kentucky is home to the largest production plants.

“Kentucky taxes alcohol more than any other state in the country,” Osborne said.

The barrel tax is a barrier to bourbon production startups in Kentucky, and it's a disincentive to store bourbon in the Bluegrass State, the speaker said. Gradually removing the tax will help “cement ourselves as the bourbon capital of the world,” he said.

If the revenue raised from barrel taxes gradually gets smaller, the side effects from distilling operations will remain — wear and tear on roads and the ,spread of whiskey fungus, local leaders told lawmakers. The fungus is a black mold-like growth that feeds off the “angel’s share” — the distilling industry term for the alcohol that evaporates from the wooden barrels.

In the past, when distillers asked local leaders for approval of their expansions, the producers touted the benefits to local governments from the barrel tax, they said.

“I’m here today asking you to honor our handshake with the bourbon industry,” said Josh Ballard, a city council member in Loretto, home of the Maker's Mark distillery.

The phaseout includes efforts to create revenue sources to offset losses for the affected local governments, the bill's supporters said. It includes “hold harmless” provisions for public school districts in bourbon-production counties. City and county governments could assess a license fee on distilleries to offset future revenue reductions.

Those protections weren't enough to satisfy some lawmakers from bourbon-production counties who worried about the potential revenue losses.

“I'm all for cutting taxes. But I'm not for cutting taxes on a booming industry that's going to place the burden on the backs of my constituents,” said Republican Rep. Candy Massaroni.

Boat owners in Kentucky can typically begin registration renewals for their watercrafts in March, but because of a delay in the delivery of registration decals, that won't be the case this year.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said motorboat registration requests cannot begin until April 3; typically, the registration window opens at the beginning of March.

The delay is because the decals for those boats simply aren't in yet, KYTC said.

"We want boat owners who opt to renew early aware of the temporary delay to honor their time and avoid an unnecessary trip," said Jim Gray, KYTC secretary, in a press release. "We expect to have new decals available at county clerk offices well ahead of the April 30 registration expiration for owners to update their tags and continue enjoying the open water."

Motorboats registered in Kentucky have to have a valid, unexpired tag displayed; those tags are stickers that are peeled and placed on each side of the boat.

KYTC said there was a label defect with these stickers, which necessitated a reprint so the tag will maintain its durability once exposed to water. Deliveries of the new tags will be made to each county clerk office.

In 2022, more than 187,000 motorboat decals were issued in Kentucky, KYTC said.

HOPKINS COUNTY, Ky. — A grandmother said two babies survived a Kentucky tornado last weekend that ripped the bathtub they were in out of the ground, tossing it with them inside.

Clara Lutz told WFIE-TV she put 15-month-old Kaden and 3-month-old Dallas in the bathtub last Friday with a blanket, a pillow and a Bible. She said the tornado lifted the tub up and out of her hands.

The tub was found in her yard, upside down, with the babies underneath. Sheriff’s office authorities reunited her with the babies.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear confirmed during a press conference on Monday that at least 76 people had died in the state from Friday's storms.

GALLATIN COUNTY, Ky. — Kentucky State Police are conducting a death investigation after a 43-year-old Sparta man was found dead Tuesday.

KSP said the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office contacted its Campbellsburg post requesting assistance following the discovery of a deceased body. Troopers and detectives located a decomposed dead male on Boone Road.

An autopsy Wednesday identified the deceased as Kenneth Beach of Sparta. KSP is conducting the ongoing investigation.

RELATED: Man dead in Gallatin County police shooting
RELATED: Family calls for more transparency, accountability in Kentucky State Police investigation

COVINGTON, Ky. — A former Kenton County coroner has been indicted on charges he illegally distributed opioids between 2018 and 2020.

Dr. David W. Suetholz is charged with 10 counts of knowingly and intentionally distributing controlled substances — oxycodone, oxycontin and fentanyl — to three patients during his time as Kenton County's coroner. The 73-year-old was a practicing physician in the Crescent Springs and Fort Wright areas, and served as coroner from 1991 to 2021.

The indictment says Suetholz distributed 450 oxycodone-acetaminophen pills, 270 oxycontin pills and 10 fentanyl patches from September 2018 to February 2020.

Data from the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy shows Kenton County saw 91 overdoses in 2018, 78 in 2019 and 85 in 2020. Suetholz retired in June 2021.

Suetholz's arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 27. If convicted, he could serve up to 20 years in prison for each count.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Gov. Andy Beshear Friday announced heightened security measures around the Kentucky State Capitol grounds in Frankfort -- including a full closure scheduled for Sunday -- in the wake of the Jan. 6 deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

"There have been domestic terror threats against state capitols all over the United States," Beshear said in a news release. "Our commitment is that what happened at the U.S. Capitol will not happen here."

The release indicated that the Kentucky National Guard will assist with providing increased security over the "next several days," a move Kentucky State Police's acting commissioner, Lt. Col. Phillip Burnett Jr. said was necessary.

"KSP has not received any requests or notifications of a rally," Burnett said in the release. "However, precautions have been put in place to ensure the safety of both the public and state buildings, and will be adjusted as needed."

Beshear's announcement came on the heels of a similar decision by Gov. Mike DeWine in Ohio, where he has activated more than 1,000 National Guard soldiers and ordered the statehouse in Columbus closed from Sunday through Wednesday.

Officials said they expect at least one protest near the Ohio Capitol on Sunday.

On Jan. 6, while Congress worked to certify Joe Biden's election as president, a large crowd of people attending a rally hosted by the outgoing incumbent, President Donald J. Trump, marched to Capitol Hill and violently forced their way into the congressional hall in an apparent attempt to stop the certification. Five people died as a direct result of the assault, Capitol authorities reported.

Earlier this week, FBI agents warned of the potential for armed protests outside all 50 state capitols and at the U.S. Capitol in the days leading up to Biden's Jan. 20 inauguration.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — State lawmakers slated part of their special session this week to discuss ways the commonwealth can attract more major manufacturers — and good-paying jobs — to Kentucky.

Committees in both General Assembly houses Wednesday readily approved two identical bills that would allocate $410 million in economic incentives to lure those companies to the Bluegrass State. The package would include forgivable loans and $20 million in job training grants, among other perks. In return, the state hopes, those companies would spur economic development and create job opportunities for workers in the Bluegrass State.

"Anytime you see a state taking on special incentive legislation like this, (that) there is a deal or deals that they are working on...they need to strike immediately so they can address the specific challenge that client may face," said Lee Crume, CEO of Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, a local company that works to attract businesses to the state's northernmost region.

Crume said that, even if these contracts land in other parts of the state, Northern Kentucky would still see some benefit.

"You know, we might be able to win one of those projects and see that activity land in Northern Kentucky," he said. "But if it lands in other parts of the state...we have a very strong presence in those industries, and certainly we're going to see the supply chain for that big deal grow in our community."

Crume expects the incentives to appeal mostly to the auto, technology or life sciences industries, and Gov. Andy Beshear's advisors said he introduced the bills with the hope of bringing emerging, evolving and growing manufacturing sectors like these to ensure the jobs created are here for the long haul.

"If you look at agri-tech, if you look at aerospace, if you look at automotive, if you look at all of the opportunities floating around out there, where the future has to be and where the future economy is going to be for that workforce," said Rocky Adkins, senior advisor to the governor.

"This puts us in the game," he said. "This puts us in the future workforce, the future economy."

Since no deal has been finalized, no one will say yet what companies are in talks with the commonwealth. Several lawmakers and state officials said they have signed non-disclosure agreements as part of the negotiation process, but they could say they expect stiff competition from several other states.

The legislature is expected to vote Thursday to approve the measure.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear asked a judge Friday to dissolve a temporary restraining order against his executive order compelling all school districts — both public and private — to mandate masks in their buildings, the latest chapter in an ongoing back-and-forth over whether students should be required to cover their faces in the classroom.

The restraining order came after a group of parents with children attending Diocese of Covington schools petitioned the court to issue an injunction.

"My son came home, and he was kind of beside himself," said Brandon Voelker, an attorney whose son attends Saint Joseph School in Cold Spring. "He had struggled during the day with his mask and a teacher getting on him."

Voelker said the governor's order created confusion among parents after the diocese had already established that masks would be recommended but not mandatory throughout its schools.

The decision to file for the injunction, he said, was born out of that confusion.

"It was more a parental choice, that the parents were told something, and we're hoping that would've been followed," he said.

After a judge granted the group the temporary restraining order, stating that Beshear could not apply the order to private school districts like the diocese, Beshear's administration quickly contested.

According to Beshear's office, the injunction "threatens the public health and safety in the face of the skyrocketing cases of COVID-19 and its highly contagious delta variant."

Jason Glass, commissioner of education for the commonwealth, said Beshear signed the order to protect students from getting sick.

"Right now, my values and priorities are around protecting the health of our students," he said.

Despite the judge's ruling, Glass said, the order still applies to the state's public school districts.

"Today is no different than earlier this week," he said, adding that — in addition to Beshear's executive order, which will expire in 30 days unless he signs an extension — the Kentucky Board of Education last week passed an emergency regulation mandating that all public school districts require masks indoors.

"No one wants to be doing this any longer than we have to," Glass said. "And the fastest way that we can get through this is to get our community transmission rates under control."

A hearing on the injunction is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 24.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear issued a stark warning Tuesday about the state's hospitals and intensive care units approaching capacity as COVID-19 cases continue their recent surge.

"The situation is serious, and it's alarming, and it's nearing critical," Beshear said during a news conference. "When the ICU fills up because of COVID...it means that there is not a bed when someone is in that car accident, has a heart attack, has a stroke.

"We're starting to see that more and more across Kentucky," he said.

Beshear's counterpart in Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine, scheduled a news conference for 3:30 p.m. to discuss the state's continued response to the pandemic.

ICUs filling up again

Beshear said state data indicate that COVID-related hospitalizations have been doubling every 14 days in recent weeks as the delta variant continues to bring more infections, roughly 87% of those cases being among Kentucky's unvaccinated population — including children under 12 years old who are not yet eligible to receive their shots.

"This isn't just hitting adults; with the delta variant, your kids are at greater risk than they have been," he said. "By the end of the week, we expect to have as many Kentuckians in the hospital with COVID as any time since the start of this pandemic."

Beshear last week signed an executive order mandating that all K-12 school districts require students and staff wear masks while indoors.

"The healthcare capacity is going to get really difficult here in the weeks ahead," said health commissioner, Dr. Steven Stack. He said hospitals in states to the south, which are seeing a swifter surge in ICU cases, are already calling on southern Kentucky hospitals to take on their overflow.

"This means non-COVID patients are going to start being impacted," Stack said.

Stack predicted in the coming days, Kentucky ICUs will see their highest number of COVID cases since the pandemic began.

"This is all preventable," Stack said. "People spreading false information about the utility and value of masks and the safety of these vaccines are killing people, plain and simple."

DeWine did not indicate if his remarks would discuss the state's hospital and ICU capacities, but data compiled by the New York Times indicated numerous southwest Ohio ICUs were nearing capacity as of last week:

• Jewish Hospital-Mercy Health: 91%
• Mercy Health-Anderson Township: 90%
• Christ Hospital (Cincinnati): 88%
• University of Cincinnati Medical Center: 84%
• Bethesda North: 74%
• Good Samaritan Hospital: 74%
• Mercy Health-Fairfield: 73%

It is important to note that not all ICU beds represented in this data are occupied by COVID-19 patients.

Third booster shots

Stack also said a third COVID-19 vaccine booster shot four weeks or more after their second shot will be available for all Kentucky nursing home residents as well as those with:

• Active or recent treatment for cancer/malignancy
• Solid-organ or hematopoietic stem cell transplants
• Moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency
• Advanced or untreated HIV infection
• Active treatment with immunosuppressive medications

Stack recommended those who think they are eligible for a third booster should ask their primary care provider.

"This is not a general option for the rest of us," Stack said but indicated his office was waiting on further guidance from federal health officials.

Watch the full news conference in the player below:

Gov. Andy Beshear gives COVID-19 update - Aug. 17, 2021

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky businesses, venues and events will be allowed to host more customers and guests, both indoors and outdoors, come Memorial Day weekend.

Beshear's biggest announcement was that by Friday, May 28, all indoor and outdoor businesses, venues and events catering to fewer than 1,000 people will be allowed to operate at 75% capacity. All those catering to more than 1,000 people can move up to 60% capacity, whether indoor or outdoor.

Watch Beshear's full address here:

Ky. Gov. Andy Beshear hints at Memorial Day easing of business, venue and event restrictions

"For seven straight press conferences I've been saying, 'Yes, we will be easing restrictions as we move toward that goal (of 2.5 million Kentuckians vaccinated)," Beshear said. "We're going to do it step by step like we've always done it."

As of Thursday, 1.8 million Kentuckians had gotten at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Beshear went on to explain that the Memorial Day target weekend also will allow public schools to finish out their spring terms while giving business owners time to prepare for the uptick in customers they might expect that holiday weekend.

"This allows our kids to finish up school but also gives notice to all those who might be hosting folks, opening up pools. It's a big restaurant or retail weekend," Beshear said.

Beshear said he expects all of the capacity limits to lift completely this summer, but he did not speculate on a specific date.

Late last month, Beshear relaxed his mask mandate, allowing any outdoor event catering to fewer than 1,000 people to be mask-free.

Beshear also touted April as setting a record for the most sales tax revenue collected in a single month in the history of the commonwealth at $486.5 million.

"This directly shows how people are out, spending," Beshear said. "More people were out everywhere you pay sales tax."

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Diagnosed with cancer seven years ago, Kentucky Republican state Sen. Dan Seum said doctors gave him a "nice bottle of Oxycontin," a legal opioid-based prescription painkiller that has led to a spike in overdose deaths throughout the state.

"I threw it in the garbage can and went home and smoked a joint," the 77-year-old lawmaker said. "And guess what? No nausea. I was able to function. I was going through the (chemo) treatment. It was during the legislative session, I did not miss a day due to nausea from the cancer."

Seum was one of a bipartisan group of Kentucky lawmakers on Wednesday who introduced a bill that would make marijuana legal in Kentucky for medical purposes only. The proposal comes weeks after the U.S. Congress, led by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, passed a farm bill that effectively legalized hemp, a crop that comes from the same plant that produces marijuana.

Medical marijuana is legal in 33 other states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The Kentucky House of Representatives flipped to Republican control in 2017, giving the GOP complete control of state government. Since then, support for the bill has been growing among the Republican majority. That includes GOP Rep. Jason Nemes, who said he was opposed to medical marijuana when he first ran for the legislature in 2016 but has since changed his mind.

"I am quite confident a majority of House members support it," Nemes said. "If we get a vote, the numbers will be above 60."

But the bill is unlikely to get a vote in the 100-member state House of Representatives this year. House Majority Floor Leader John "Bam" Carney, who controls which bills get called for a vote to the House floor, said he would not call the bill for a vote if the state Senate would not support it. Wednesday, Republican Senate President Robert Stivers called marijuana "a gateway drug" and said he had seen no credible studies showing marijuana had medicinal value other than "it makes you feel good."

"We're going to smoke marijuana and outlaw tobacco? That's a little inconsistent to me," Stivers said.

The 149-page bill includes regulations for growers, processers and dispensers. Michael Raus, founder of Kentucky Bluegrass Cannabis, said it has the potential to create a $100 million industry in the state.

The bill still would not let people could smoke marijuana in public, but the proposal is silent on what they could do with it in their own homes. Other restrictions would include a ban on advertising, requiring plants to be grown indoors under lock and key and a program to monitor inventory. Republican Rep. Diane St. One said the proposal would even let low-income people grow up to six marijuana plants in their homes, but only if doctors prescribe it and local law enforcement agencies know about it.

Seum he would provide studies on the medical benefits of marijuana to Republican Senate leaders, adding he felt no unease about admitting publicly to smoking marijuana. He also outed one of his 24 grandchildren, saying she "partakes" of marijuana to treat her epilepsy.

"Wouldn't it be nice if my granddaughter was no longer a criminal," he said.