New Nonprofit Launches to Educate Public About Impact of Land Use Policies
A nonprofit group has launched in Lexington to educate and advocate for balanced, common-sense land policies. Lexington for Everyone is concerned that future land use policies will be enacted without the public’s complete understanding of the impact. It will work to educate Lexington residents about how policies impact three key issues – jobs, homes and equity.
For example, most people probably don’t realize that in Lexington, 70 percent of the land is designated rural. That means only 30 percent can be used for most homes and job creation opportunities.
Existing and proposed regulations have an impact on all aspects of residents’ lives and the community’s future. Here are just some of the consequences:
“You may have felt the impact on you or your family and wondered about the causes and what can be done,” said Ray Daniels, a board member of Lexington for Everyone, which is registering as a 501(c)4 nonprofit. “For too long, Lexington has been told that we must choose between protecting iconic horse farms or creating jobs and building homes at a variety of prices. As a business owner and horse owner, I believe we can do both. We can – and must – work together to create common-sense, balanced local land policies that provide access and opportunity to lift up our neighbors at every stage of life and every segment of our community.”
Lexington for Everyone board members represent a diverse group of residents:
Daniels said the group will advocate for several goals:
Find out more about this initiative and how you can get engaged at www.lexingtonforeveryone.com.
A nonprofit group has launched in Lexington to educate and advocate for balanced, common-sense land policies. Lexington for Everyone is concerned that future land use policies will be enacted without the public’s complete understanding of the impact. It will work to educate Lexington residents about how policies impact three key issues – jobs, homes and equity.
For example, most people probably don’t realize that in Lexington, 70 percent of the land is designated rural. That means only 30 percent can be used for most homes and job creation opportunities.
Existing and proposed regulations have an impact on all aspects of residents’ lives and the community’s future. Here are just some of the consequences:
- Only five new homes were built and sold in 2020 for under $200,000 in the entire county.
- Local companies are being forced to relocate to other counties because there is almost no suitable land to expand jobs.
- The city could be facing a budget deficit of as much as $17 million by 2024 as projections show revenues are not keeping pace with expenses and may need to increase taxes.
- Proposed plans could triple the density in established neighborhoods.
- Countless longtime East End residents are being displaced by gentrification.
“You may have felt the impact on you or your family and wondered about the causes and what can be done,” said Ray Daniels, a board member of Lexington for Everyone, which is registering as a 501(c)4 nonprofit. “For too long, Lexington has been told that we must choose between protecting iconic horse farms or creating jobs and building homes at a variety of prices. As a business owner and horse owner, I believe we can do both. We can – and must – work together to create common-sense, balanced local land policies that provide access and opportunity to lift up our neighbors at every stage of life and every segment of our community.”
Lexington for Everyone board members represent a diverse group of residents:
- Ray Daniels owns Equity Solutions Group (ESG), a strategic sourcing company with an emphasis on reducing expenses while ensuring competitive participation from qualified diverse businesses. He also is a horse owner, serves as chairman of Commerce Lexington and is a former member of the Fayette County Public School Board.
- Raquel Carter owns Guide Realty and is currently active on the Kentucky Real Estate Commission and many equity initiatives as well as supporting community efforts such as the Lyric Theatre, Black Soil and various public schools.
- Rob Shear is general manager of SRC of Lexington, an employee-owned manufacturing company with 140 employees.
- Reverend L. Clark Williams is director of ministry at Shiloh Baptist Church, owns a consulting firm and is chairman of the People’s Campaign.
- Carla Blanton owns Carla Blanton Consulting, serves as chair of Commerce Lexington’s Public Policy Council and previously served on the Lexington Planning Commission.
- Rachel Smith Childress is the CEO of Lexington Habitat for Humanity.
Daniels said the group will advocate for several goals:
- Creating housing opportunities in all price ranges for all citizens in all phases of life.
- Maintaining a diverse and vibrant economy.
- Ensuring the creation of balanced, common-sense, practical local policies and regulations that do not pit one segment of our community against another.
- Keeping Lexington competitive for jobs and talent across all economic sectors.
- Advancing all of Lexington’s unique characteristics and cultural diversity.
Find out more about this initiative and how you can get engaged at www.lexingtonforeveryone.com.
Commerce Lexington Recognized Among Top Economic Development Groups by Site Selection
[Lexington, Kentucky] – For the third time in the last four years, Commerce Lexington Inc. is among the top economic development agencies in the nation, according to Site Selection magazine, which recently announced the Top Economic Development Groups in its May 2021 issue. Organizations named to the list are presented with the Mac Conway Award for Excellence in Economic Development, which recognizes national/regional economic development offices that were the most successful in attracting capital investment projects in 2020.
Kenny McDonald (One Columbus), who served as 2020 Chairman of the Board of the International Economic Development Council, said, “In some ways this has been the finest hour for the economic development community. Companies needed an extraordinary amount of help. It was a test of trust, and a test of whether you had built your collaborative networks. Economic development professionals have responded to meet this demand of our time, everything from the shutdown to the flurry of capital investment that’s now happening under a different environment.”
Named in honor of Site Selection founding publisher H. McKinley "Mac" Conway, this year’s award winners have been evaluated by an index that examines 2020 corporate facility investment as tracked by Site Selection’s proprietary Conway Projects database. Scores are awarded based on six criteria: total projects, total investment associated with those projects and jobs associated with those projects. The remaining three criteria represent a per capita calculation of those same metrics.
Commerce Lexington Inc. President and CEO, Bob Quick, said, “There’s no doubt that 2020 was one of the most difficult years on record for business and industry, but despite the barriers, Kentucky economic development professionals adapted quickly to a new way of recruiting companies. Gina Greathouse and her economic development team at Commerce Lexington, as well as many volunteers across our community, continued to reach out to companies and consultants locally and nationally to provide assistance and resources to better position them for growth and expansion. It took a strong team effort over the last year to maintain some of the momentum from the previous few years.”
Find out more about the awards on-line here: https://siteselection.com/issues/2021/may/2021-mac-conway-awards.cfm.
[Lexington, Kentucky] – For the third time in the last four years, Commerce Lexington Inc. is among the top economic development agencies in the nation, according to Site Selection magazine, which recently announced the Top Economic Development Groups in its May 2021 issue. Organizations named to the list are presented with the Mac Conway Award for Excellence in Economic Development, which recognizes national/regional economic development offices that were the most successful in attracting capital investment projects in 2020.
Kenny McDonald (One Columbus), who served as 2020 Chairman of the Board of the International Economic Development Council, said, “In some ways this has been the finest hour for the economic development community. Companies needed an extraordinary amount of help. It was a test of trust, and a test of whether you had built your collaborative networks. Economic development professionals have responded to meet this demand of our time, everything from the shutdown to the flurry of capital investment that’s now happening under a different environment.”
Named in honor of Site Selection founding publisher H. McKinley "Mac" Conway, this year’s award winners have been evaluated by an index that examines 2020 corporate facility investment as tracked by Site Selection’s proprietary Conway Projects database. Scores are awarded based on six criteria: total projects, total investment associated with those projects and jobs associated with those projects. The remaining three criteria represent a per capita calculation of those same metrics.
Commerce Lexington Inc. President and CEO, Bob Quick, said, “There’s no doubt that 2020 was one of the most difficult years on record for business and industry, but despite the barriers, Kentucky economic development professionals adapted quickly to a new way of recruiting companies. Gina Greathouse and her economic development team at Commerce Lexington, as well as many volunteers across our community, continued to reach out to companies and consultants locally and nationally to provide assistance and resources to better position them for growth and expansion. It took a strong team effort over the last year to maintain some of the momentum from the previous few years.”
Find out more about the awards on-line here: https://siteselection.com/issues/2021/may/2021-mac-conway-awards.cfm.
2021 Legislative Session Provided Several Big Takeaways for Business-Related Issues
The 2021 30-Day Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly has concluded. The General Assembly adjourned March 30 and the Governor’s second veto recess period ended on April 10. Although advocacy efforts looked different this year because of COVID-19 restrictions, nearly 200 of the more than 900 bills filed became law. The House and Senate Republican Caucuses hold super majorities in both chambers and overrode 34 of Governor Beshear’s vetoes. Commerce Lexington’s top priorities focused on COVID-19 business relief and pandemic related liability protection for business, funding for the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and investments in transportation and broadband infrastructure.
Here are the top 10 business takeaways from the 2021 legislative session:
State Budget:
The General Assembly passed a one-year Executive Branch budget (HB 192) for FY 21-22. It is basically a continuation budget from the previous year. It includes a healthy budget reserve, continued commitments to the state’s Medicare system and public employee pensions, no cuts to education and limited new one-time spending. An additional $17M is allocated to the performance-based funding model that supports higher education. This is the first General Fund increase for higher education in several budget cycles.
HB 382 provides $140M in General Funds for full-day kindergarten. The General Assembly also passed HB 249, a revenue bill that includes several modifications to state revenues such as allowing for a refundable tax credit program for film industry projects and a tax credit for one major rehabilitation for a certified historic structure (Seelbach Hotel in Louisville).
HB 372, providing tax credits for data centers and remote workers, did not become law.
The General Assembly returns in January 2022 for the 60-day budget session.
University of Kentucky:
The budget includes $14M in General Fund Bonds to match the University of Kentucky’s $14M to fund a facility for the Sanders Brown Center on Aging. Also included is state authorization for a federally funded Agriculture Research Center.
Business Reopening:
HB 1 allows businesses to operate without restriction if they follow CDC or Healthy at Work guidelines (whichever is less restrictive). SB 1 limits the Governor’s ability to extend emergency executive orders beyond 30 days without General Assembly approval, and SB 2 allows for more legislative oversight before emergency administrative regulations become law. The Governor filed a lawsuit in Franklin Circuit Court challenging these bills. Judge Phillip Shepherd issued a temporary stay on HB 1 going into effect. As a result, employers are encouraged to continue to follow both the CDC and Healthy-at-Work guidelines.
COVID-19 Liability Protection:
Kentucky joins 30 other states in passing legislation (SB 5) providing targeted liability protection related to the COVID-19 emergency to businesses, hospitals, schools and local governments following a COVID-19 safety plan. SB 5 does not provide blanket immunity to all businesses. It does not protect bad actors acting in a malicious or grossly negligent way. There were amendments to the bill to make it clear liability protections are extended to services arising from COVID-19, which is defined in the bill. The bill does not protect an owner from liability unrelated to the emergency. For example, during the COVID-19 emergency, Section 1 of the bill would apply to COVID-19 exposure liability but not slips, falls or other accidents. Having this protection in place is critical to reducing frivolous lawsuits.
Unemployment Insurance:
As part of HB 382, the General Assembly allocated $575M in federal stimulus funding to the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. The additional funding helps repay the $800M+ federal loan and bring the fund back to pre-pandemic levels. This helps avoid steep increases in business assessments in the years ahead.
HB 413 also provides immediate unemployment insurance relief to employers. The legislation provides a one-year suspension of interest surcharge and a one-year freeze on the wage base and unemployment assessment schedule, returning employer contribution rates to “Schedule A.” The Kentucky Labor Cabinet said it will be mailing an “Amended 2021 Contribution Rate Notice” to employers to reflect the change in contribution rates. Without the freeze, the increase is expected to be on average $100 per employee per year.
SB 7 provides a waiver to stop the state from clawing back UI payments mistakenly sent to individuals during the pandemic.
PPP Tax Conformity:
The General Assembly made a critical tax fix confirming Kentucky with federal rules allowing a business receiving a forgivable PPP loan to deduct expenses paid using the loan dollars (HB 278).
Historical Horse Racing:
One of the big winners this session is the equine industry. With the passage of SB 120, the General Assembly amended current statutes to define pari-mutuel wagering to include historical horse wagering within a regulatory framework consistent with how Kentucky’s Horse Racing Commission has regulated live racing and historical horse racing for the past ten years. A recent Supreme Court decision related to historical horse racing put the industry and facilities like The Red Mile in Lexington in jeopardy of closing. The clarity in statute helped save jobs directly associated with historical horse racing and more than $52 million to the state’s General Fund. Historical horse racing also contributes to higher purses and a more competitive racing circuit in Kentucky.
Infrastructure:
As part of HB 320, the General Assembly allocated $250M in federal relief funds to a broadband redeployment fund with an emphasis on projects in rural or underserved areas. No more than $50M can be awarded before April 1, 2022. HB 382 also provides an additional $50M in federal relief funds for broadband projects including those supporting economic development activities. HB 561, an infrastructure modernization package to increase funding for the state’s transportation system, did not advance this session.
Pension Reform:
The General Assembly took an important step in addressing Kentucky’s $40 billion public employee pension system liability by creating a new tier for the Kentucky Teachers Retirement System. HB 258 creates a hybrid benefit plan (defined benefit/defined contribution) for newly hired teachers only. It did not make changes to benefits for current or retired teachers.
Voting Changes:
With bipartisan support, the General Assembly passed HB 574 to make changes to Kentucky’s election process. The bill was spearheaded by Secretary of State Mike Adams. The legislation makes it easier to vote and improve ballot security. Some of the changes include allowing for three days of early in-person voting, including a Saturday, before Election Day; maintaining an online portal for Kentuckians to request a mail-in absentee ballot and ensure balloting is fully transparent; and allowing County Clerks to establish vote centers where any voter can vote regardless of precinct.
To read more policy highlights from the session including criminal justice and recovery reforms and more, DOWNLOAD A SUMMARY DOCUMENT HERE.
The 2021 30-Day Regular Session of the Kentucky General Assembly has concluded. The General Assembly adjourned March 30 and the Governor’s second veto recess period ended on April 10. Although advocacy efforts looked different this year because of COVID-19 restrictions, nearly 200 of the more than 900 bills filed became law. The House and Senate Republican Caucuses hold super majorities in both chambers and overrode 34 of Governor Beshear’s vetoes. Commerce Lexington’s top priorities focused on COVID-19 business relief and pandemic related liability protection for business, funding for the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and investments in transportation and broadband infrastructure.
Here are the top 10 business takeaways from the 2021 legislative session:
State Budget:
The General Assembly passed a one-year Executive Branch budget (HB 192) for FY 21-22. It is basically a continuation budget from the previous year. It includes a healthy budget reserve, continued commitments to the state’s Medicare system and public employee pensions, no cuts to education and limited new one-time spending. An additional $17M is allocated to the performance-based funding model that supports higher education. This is the first General Fund increase for higher education in several budget cycles.
HB 382 provides $140M in General Funds for full-day kindergarten. The General Assembly also passed HB 249, a revenue bill that includes several modifications to state revenues such as allowing for a refundable tax credit program for film industry projects and a tax credit for one major rehabilitation for a certified historic structure (Seelbach Hotel in Louisville).
HB 372, providing tax credits for data centers and remote workers, did not become law.
The General Assembly returns in January 2022 for the 60-day budget session.
University of Kentucky:
The budget includes $14M in General Fund Bonds to match the University of Kentucky’s $14M to fund a facility for the Sanders Brown Center on Aging. Also included is state authorization for a federally funded Agriculture Research Center.
Business Reopening:
HB 1 allows businesses to operate without restriction if they follow CDC or Healthy at Work guidelines (whichever is less restrictive). SB 1 limits the Governor’s ability to extend emergency executive orders beyond 30 days without General Assembly approval, and SB 2 allows for more legislative oversight before emergency administrative regulations become law. The Governor filed a lawsuit in Franklin Circuit Court challenging these bills. Judge Phillip Shepherd issued a temporary stay on HB 1 going into effect. As a result, employers are encouraged to continue to follow both the CDC and Healthy-at-Work guidelines.
COVID-19 Liability Protection:
Kentucky joins 30 other states in passing legislation (SB 5) providing targeted liability protection related to the COVID-19 emergency to businesses, hospitals, schools and local governments following a COVID-19 safety plan. SB 5 does not provide blanket immunity to all businesses. It does not protect bad actors acting in a malicious or grossly negligent way. There were amendments to the bill to make it clear liability protections are extended to services arising from COVID-19, which is defined in the bill. The bill does not protect an owner from liability unrelated to the emergency. For example, during the COVID-19 emergency, Section 1 of the bill would apply to COVID-19 exposure liability but not slips, falls or other accidents. Having this protection in place is critical to reducing frivolous lawsuits.
Unemployment Insurance:
As part of HB 382, the General Assembly allocated $575M in federal stimulus funding to the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. The additional funding helps repay the $800M+ federal loan and bring the fund back to pre-pandemic levels. This helps avoid steep increases in business assessments in the years ahead.
HB 413 also provides immediate unemployment insurance relief to employers. The legislation provides a one-year suspension of interest surcharge and a one-year freeze on the wage base and unemployment assessment schedule, returning employer contribution rates to “Schedule A.” The Kentucky Labor Cabinet said it will be mailing an “Amended 2021 Contribution Rate Notice” to employers to reflect the change in contribution rates. Without the freeze, the increase is expected to be on average $100 per employee per year.
SB 7 provides a waiver to stop the state from clawing back UI payments mistakenly sent to individuals during the pandemic.
PPP Tax Conformity:
The General Assembly made a critical tax fix confirming Kentucky with federal rules allowing a business receiving a forgivable PPP loan to deduct expenses paid using the loan dollars (HB 278).
Historical Horse Racing:
One of the big winners this session is the equine industry. With the passage of SB 120, the General Assembly amended current statutes to define pari-mutuel wagering to include historical horse wagering within a regulatory framework consistent with how Kentucky’s Horse Racing Commission has regulated live racing and historical horse racing for the past ten years. A recent Supreme Court decision related to historical horse racing put the industry and facilities like The Red Mile in Lexington in jeopardy of closing. The clarity in statute helped save jobs directly associated with historical horse racing and more than $52 million to the state’s General Fund. Historical horse racing also contributes to higher purses and a more competitive racing circuit in Kentucky.
Infrastructure:
As part of HB 320, the General Assembly allocated $250M in federal relief funds to a broadband redeployment fund with an emphasis on projects in rural or underserved areas. No more than $50M can be awarded before April 1, 2022. HB 382 also provides an additional $50M in federal relief funds for broadband projects including those supporting economic development activities. HB 561, an infrastructure modernization package to increase funding for the state’s transportation system, did not advance this session.
Pension Reform:
The General Assembly took an important step in addressing Kentucky’s $40 billion public employee pension system liability by creating a new tier for the Kentucky Teachers Retirement System. HB 258 creates a hybrid benefit plan (defined benefit/defined contribution) for newly hired teachers only. It did not make changes to benefits for current or retired teachers.
Voting Changes:
With bipartisan support, the General Assembly passed HB 574 to make changes to Kentucky’s election process. The bill was spearheaded by Secretary of State Mike Adams. The legislation makes it easier to vote and improve ballot security. Some of the changes include allowing for three days of early in-person voting, including a Saturday, before Election Day; maintaining an online portal for Kentuckians to request a mail-in absentee ballot and ensure balloting is fully transparent; and allowing County Clerks to establish vote centers where any voter can vote regardless of precinct.
To read more policy highlights from the session including criminal justice and recovery reforms and more, DOWNLOAD A SUMMARY DOCUMENT HERE.