balancing the scales - january 2012

balancing the scales Volume 31 Number 1 January 30, 2012

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2012 Legislative Session: KFTC members bring forward a vision for Kentucky’s future pg. 14

Legislative Updatepg. 5

Members achieve an unprec-edented year in fundraising pg.8

Boyle County members begin to organize and energize

pg. 12

Making Kentucky’s democracy a little better – voting rights

pg.13

Members tell legislators: now is the time for growing rev-enue

pg. 14

Study shows HB 167 could cre-ate 28,000 new jobs

pg. 15

I Love Mountains Day special guest speaker

pg. 16

Capitol sit-in gains momentumpg. 18

I Love Mountains Day February 14, 2012

balancing the scales, January 30 , 2012

Table of Contents Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

is a statewide grassroots social justice orga nization working for a new balance of power and a just society. KFTC uses directaction organizing to accomplish the following goals:

• fosterdemocraticvalues• changeunjustinstitutions• empowerindividuals•overcomeracismandotherdiscrimination• communicateamessageofwhatispossible• buildtheorganization•helppeopleparticipate• winissuesthataffectthecommonwelfare• havefun

KFTC membership dues are $15 to $50 per year, based on ability to pay. No one is denied membership because of inability to pay. Membership is open to anyone who is committed toequality,democracyandnonviolentchange.

KFTC Steering Committee

SteveBoyce,ChairpersonSue Tallichet, Vice-Chairperson

DanaBeasleyBrown,Secretary-TreasurerK.A. Owens, Immediate Past ChairRick Handshoe, At-Large Member

Chapter RepresentativesRosanne Fitts Klarer, Scott County

Erika Skaggs, Central KentuckyTed Withrow, Rowan CountyBenBaker,NorthernKentuckyMaryLove,JeffersonCounty

TravisLane,BowlingGreen&FriendsCarl Shoupe, Harlan CountyClevelandSmith,PerryCounty

Megan Naseman, Madison CountyElizabeth Sanders, Letcher County

Nathan Hall, Floyd County

Alternates: Vacant, Scott County; Christian Torp, Central Kentucky; Lisa Bryant, Rowan

County; Katie Meyer, Northern Kentucky; Chris-tine Farmer, Jefferson County; Vacant, Bowling Green & Friends; Roy Silver, Harlan County; Tif-fany Stiles, Perry County; Meta Mendel-Reyes, Madison County; Ada Smith, Letcher County;

Bev May, Floyd County

balancing the scales is published by Kentuckians For The Commonwealth and mailed third class from Lexington, Kentucky. Reader contri butions and letters to the editor should be sent to 250 Southland Drive Suite #4, Lexington, KY. 40503 or [email protected]. Subscriptions are $20 per year.

I want to help KFTC build power!

Name:

Address:

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Phone:

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I wish to make my donation to the following organization (check one):____ KFTC (not tax-deductible) ____ Kentucky Coalition (tax-deductible)

Bank Withdrawal/Credit Card Payment Authorization: I authorize KFTC/KY Coalition to debit my account or charge my credit card in accordance with the information provided. I understand that this authority will remain in effect until cancelled or changed by reasonable notification to KFTC/KY Coalition.

Who asked you to join KFTC?

Suggested membership dues are $15-$50 annually.____ One-time Gift: Amount $_________________ Pledger: I will contribute $___ every (check one): __ Month __ 3 Months __ Quarterly __ Annually

Authorized Signature: ________________________

Date: _____________

Circle one: Mastercard Visa American Express Discover

Card #:__ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __

Expiration date: ___ ___ / ___ ___

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_____________________________ Date: ____________

For bank drafts, return this form with a voided check from the account you wish to have the withdrawal made. Make checks payable to KFTC or the Kentucky Coalition and mail to: KFTC • P.O. Box 1450 • London, Ky. 40743-1450.

Executive Committee Corner page 2

Member CommentarySelf-proclaimed “Meter Geek” watches his investment save page 4

Grassroots FundraisingKFTC members achieve an unprecedented year in fundraising page 7

Local UpdatesRowan County members start 2012 with a slate of local issues page 8Citizen lobby training empowers central Kentucky members page 9Madison County at-home legislative meetings page 9Historic fundraisier rounds out the year in Jefferson County page 11NKY Chapter takes on many issues page 11Boyle County members begin to organize and energize community page 12

Voting Rights UpdateMaking Kentucky’s democracy a little better – voting rights page 13Redistricting bill passes House and Senate page 13

Economic Justice UpdateMembers tell legislators: now is the time for growing revenue page 14Citizen lobby training — tax focus page 14

New Energy and Transition UpdateNew Energy and Transition Team holds first statewide meeting page 15Study shows HB 167 could create 28,000 new jobs page 15On-farm renewable energy solutions, work to build local KFTC chapter page 16I Love Mountains Day special guest speaker page 16Tar Sands activist Melina Laboucan-Massimo to share story page 17Solar installation training has power to transform economy page 17

Canary Project UpdateEPA delay forces energy allies to submit notice of intent to sue; page 18Capitol sit-in gains momentum and expands to three days a week page 18

KFTC Calendar page 19Members say goodbye to two staff team members page 20Lexington Loves Mountains page 20

balancing the scales, January 30, 2012

Editor’s Note: Members of KFTC’s Executive Committee will be using this new “Executive Committee Corner” to share perspectives on such topics as how they became involved with KFTC, why they’ve stayed, or what aspects of particular issues hold special interest or signifi cance for them.

by Steve BoyceKFTC Chairperson

The saying “Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes” didn’t start with KFTC, but I think it fits us prettywell ifyouadd“butlearnfirst–learn

about the issue and its com-plexities,abouthowthingscame

to be the way they are, and how they couldchangethroughdemocraticprocess.” FormytimeinKFTCthelearningstartedwithtaxstructure. The year was 2003, my first annual meet-ing and the time when KFTC began the campaign for comprehensivetaxreform.WehaveworkedwithRep-resentativeJimWayneeveryyearsincetohelpshapeandsupportlegislation,currentlyHouseBill127,thatreachestowardsomebasicprinciples. OneofthoseprinciplesisthatanytaxstructureforKentuckyshouldbefairorequitable.Therehavebeensome significant partial victories along theway andmuchuseful education, butKentucky’s tax structureremainsmostlyunreformedandominouslyineffectivewhiletheneedforchangehasbecomemoreandmorepressing. So it may be promising that just a few days ago GovernorBeshearannouncedtheformationofa“BlueRibbon Commission on Tax Reform” and put “fair-ness” first among his “five elements for successfultaxreform.”“Thetaxsystem,”saidthepressrelease,“shouldtreatpeopleequitably.”Ofcourselastyear’sSenateBill1putforwardbyDavidWilliamssaid,“TomeettheneedsofthecitizensoftheCommonwealth,thestateandlocaltaxsystemsshould,”amongother On the cover: Bowling Green member Dana Beas-

ley Brown explained the impact of our current tax structure to a new member of the House Appro-priations and Revenue Committee, Rep. Steven Rudy during an Economic Justice Lobby Day on January 18.

Executive Committee Cornerthings, “be equitable.” Surely anything KFTC, Gov-ernorBeshear andDavidWilliams all agree onmustqualifyascommonground.Right? I think not. There seems to be no shared under-standingofwhatitmeanstosayataxsystemisfair.Butwecanrecognizeelementsofunfairnessinwhatcur-rentlyexistsandwecanenvisionwaysofmeasuringwhetherproposedchangeswouldmoveusinagoodorbaddirectionrelativetothoseelements. I want to bring attention to one such measurement tool forassessingakeyaspectof fairness, a tool thatseems toouseful and important to be excluded fromKentucky’slegislativeprocess.Sometimescalleddistri-butionalanalysis,ithasbeenprovidedinrecentyears,attherequestofKFTCanditsallies,bytheInstituteonTaxationandEconomicPolicy(ITEP),anonprofit,non-partisanresearchorganizationthatfocusesonfederalandstatetaxpolicy. Distributional analysis shows how Kentuckiansatdifferentincomelevelspaydifferingpercentagesoftheirincomesinstateandlocaltaxes.Thechartbelowshowsthesituationin2009.Incomecategoriesforindi-vidualsarerepresentedonthehorizontalaxis,startingwith the“Lowest20%”at the left (thoseearning lessthan $15,000) and ending with the “Top 1%” (thoseearning more than $346,000). The height of the barsshowsthepercentageofincomepeopleinthevariousincomecategoriespayinstateandlocaltaxes. When you look from left to right (ignoring the“Lowest 20%” bar – one of KFTC’s victories!), whatyouseeisasignificantlyregressivetaxstructure:asin-come rises, a decreasing portion of income goes to state and local taxes. Is that what we want in Kentucky?Doweconsiderthatfair?Manypeople,meincluded,wouldanswerno.Theregressivenatureofthetaxsys-temputsdisproportionateresponsibilityforpayingthetaxbillonlowandmiddle-incomepeople. When new tax legislation is proposed, it seemsimportant – as part of an apparently shared concernforfairness–toaskwhethertheproposedchangeim-proves the regressive character of the current system or

makesitworse.Forexample,Jason Bailey, director of theKentucky Center for Eco-nomic Policy, recently said,“Some want to eliminate orreduceKentucky’sindividualandcorporateincometaxandbecome more narrowly de-pendent on sales taxes.” Butdistributionalanalysisshowsthat“Suchplansshiftrespon-sibilityforpayingtaxesawayfromwealthyindividualsandcorporationstolowandmid-dle-income Kentuckians.”(Lexington Herald-Leader,12/13/11) Should this kindof shift – toward increasedinequality and poverty – bepartoftaxreformthatclaimstovaluefairnessorequity?

e-mail any staff member at fi [email protected] except for Jessica Hays Lucas use [email protected]

KFTC Offi ces and StaffMAIN OFFICE

MorganBrown,RobinDaugherty&BurtLauderdaleP.O.Box1450

London,Kentucky40743606-878-2161

Fax:[email protected]

FIELD OFFICESLouisville

JessicaGeorge,JerryHardt,

Colette Hendersonand Nancy Reinhart901 Franklin StreetLouisville,Ky40206

502-589-3188WhitesburgTanya Turner P.O.Box463

Whitesburg,Ky41858606-632-0051

BereaLisa Abbott, Amy Hogg,

Carissa Lenfert,SaraPenningtonandKevinPentz

140MiniMallDriveBerea,KY40403859-986-1277

Berea

TeriBlanton118BaughStreetBerea,Ky.40403859-986-1648

Central KentuckyTimBuckingham,

JessicaHaysLucas,Erik Hungerbuhler,

Heather Roe Mahoney, DaveNewtonand

Ondine Quinn250PlazaDriveSuite4Lexington,Ky40503

859-276-0563Northern KentuckyJoeGallenstein859-380-6103Floyd CountyKristi Kendall606-226-4159

A great majority would say no – legislators in-cluded–ifthequestionwereframedinthatway.That’swhyIbelievedistributionalanalysisperformedbytheLegislativeResourceCommission shouldbe required– justasLRCfiscalnotesarenowrequired– foranybill thatproposestaxchanges.Requiringthatkindofanalysis froma trusted source couldhelp establish aclearerframeforgoodtaxpolicyinKentucky.Itwouldbe a way of agreeing that what happens to ordinary peoplemattersandshouldbehighoneveryone’s list–legislatorsespecially–inthinkingthroughwhetheraproposedtaxstructurewouldresultingreaterfairness.


Maiden RadioNew Album:Lullabies

released on Ol Kentuck by Daniel Martin Moore

KFTC members Julia Purcell, cheyenne Marie Mize, & Joan Shelley

PurchaSe froM your local indePendent cd Store or froM olkentuck.coM

Member Commentary

Last Gift Date Printed On Front Cover! We’ve heard from a lot of members that they would love to stay current in their membership dues, but just don’t know when their renewal date is. So now we are printing your last gift date with your mailing label*.

Renew by mail: Send in a contribution and the form.Renew by phone: Call Morgan to pay by credit card: 606-878-2161.Renew online: It’s easy to make a donation online at www.kftc.org/donate.

* Let us know if the last gift date looks wrong. Databases can be imperfect. Keep in mind that it takes about two weeks for the paper to be printed and on your doorstep. If you’ve made a donation in that time, it won’t make it on the label.

Self-proclaimed “Meter Geek” watches his investment saveby Sam Avery

W h e n w a sthe last time youlooked at yourelectric meter? Ifyou’re like mostpeople, you don’t

even knowwhere it is. But if you’re a“MeterGeek,” you’re likely to answer,“thismorning.” Ibecamea“MeterGeek”thedayIhookedupthePV[photovoltaic]systemon my own house. I just stood therewatchingthenumbersbouncearound.Istillcheckiteverydayorso. But I’m not the only one. I got anemail fromDennis andWendy (recentcustomers): “Yesterday morning theelectric meter read one kilowatt hourlessthanthedayyouallhookedupthepanels. I doubt thatwewill ever haveto paymore than the basic rate again.Thanks.Itisagreatfeeling.” Then there’s Don (we installed hissystema couple of years ago).Hehadone of the old rotating wheel meters.He called me up one day to tell methat, with the sun shining and just the rightnumberoflightsonandthecoffeemaker brewing, he could run outsideandwatch thewheelcometoaperfectbalance.Ittriedtoedgeonewayortheother until the coffee was ready, andthenitresumeditsbackwardmarch.He

used to invite friends over just to stand outsideandwatchitwithhim. When you install solar, you get re-wired. You pay attention to things youdid not notice before. You watch whatthe clouds aredoing, how the shadowsplay, and wonder how many kilowatt-hours you’re likely to produce today.You think about the sun bringing lifeinto your home.More importantly, youthink about where the new energy is go-ing.It’syours–forfree–butthere’sonlysomuchandyoudon’twanttowasteit.Youwant to have enough for how youlivebutyouwanttolivebywhatisthere. The most important thing about be-inga“MeterGeek”isthatyoubegintoseeenergyasenergy–notjustasabillyouhavetopay.Youstopconvertingitinto dollars. It falls on your roof, yougather it up and turn it into lighting,music, vacuum cleaning, computingor coffee brewing. You’re not buyinganything – and notmining or burninganything,either.Andyou’repayingat-tention to how energy flows throughyourlife. If you don’t have a way to produce energy and you’re trying to conserve, it’s allyinandnoyang– it’s allgoingonewayandyou’re trying to slow itdownbut you can’t make it stop. But whenenergyflowsbothwaysyouseetheyinandtheyang.Youfeelthebalance. The reason I’m raising this topic

Saturday, April 149:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Jenny Wiley State ParkPrestonsburg, Kentucky

Join us for a day of workshops by local experts about ways to save and earn money through small-scale farming, forestry, and energy solutions!

All are welcome. There is no cost for the conference. Pre-registration is appreciated: register online at www.kftc.org/growing or call 606-878-2161

now is that I am about to have the con-summate“MeterGeek”experience.Theday I installedmy system – the day Ibecame a “MeterGeek”—my electricmeter read3,432kilowatt-hours (kwh).ThatwasNovember2007.ThePVsys-tem has been cranking out kwh ever since,morethanIhavebeenusing. Iwalkedpastthemeteronmywayto the utility room one sunny day lastmonth and noticed that it was reading 00,002.IfinishedwhatIwasdoingandthenactuallysetupalawnchairinfrontof themeter.Thiswas thebigmoment–00,001,then…00,000! It was bright midday, and the sun was really cranking out the kwh, butwhatwouldhappennext?Ihalfexpect-edaswirlofsmoketoseepoutaroundthemeterbase,andthenPOW!Butno,it

justsatthere.Acloudpassedoverhead.I thought, oh no, it’s just going to read 00,000fromnowonandI’llneverknowhow much juice I’m pumping back into thegrid.Imean,afterall,howoftendothesemetersgettoexperienceareverseflipover?Aretheydesignedtotakeit? And then the sun popped out from behind thecloud.Thedrumrollbeganand…BANG!Itwentto99,999(maybethe bang was in my head – you haveto be a meter geek to appreciate these things)!Butthatwasit, justlikeY2k.Ididn’t even get themillion-dollar elec-tricbillIwasexpecting.Mymeternowreads 99,743 – well onmyway to thenextreverseflipover,whichisdueintheyear2049. If it staysas sunnyas ithasbeenthisSeptember,I’llbe100,andsit-tingoutinmylawnchair,watching.


Issue Summary Status Action Needed

Saving Streams(and mountains)HouseBill231

KFTC position: Strongly Support

This legislation would prohibit the dumping of mine wastes into “an intermittent, perennial, or ephemeral stream or other water of the Commonwealth.”

These are mostly headwater streams that are essential to the quality of waterways upstream and downstream. Mine wastes could be placed back on the mine site as part of the reclamationprocessalreadyspecifiedinstateandfederallaw-ratherthandumpedoverthesideofthehillintothevalleysandstreamsbelow.

HB231wasintroducedonJanuary9with7cosponsorsandhasbeenassigned to the House Natural Resources andEnvironmentcommittee.

All members of the GeneralAssemblyandthegovernorareignoring their responsibility to protect the people and land of Kentucky. Let them know this. Contact Rep.JimGoochandaskthatHB231bebroughtupforavotein committee.

Voting RightsHouseBill70


HB70callsforaconstitutionalamendmenttoautomaticallyrestorevotingrightstoformerfelonsuponthecompletionoftheirsentence.

HB70haspassedoutofaHousecommitteeandisontheflooroftheHouseasofJan30.InyearspastHB70hashad bipartisan support in the Senate, but Sen. Damon Thayer refuses to allow ahearingorvoteintheSenateState&LocalGovernmentCommittee.

Contact Sen. Thayer to let him know you support democracy andHB70,andsoshould he.

Tax FairnessHouseBill127


HB127containsfourdifferenttaxreformstomakeourtaxsystemmorefairandtoraisemorerevenueinordertomakeprogressinkey areas like education, higher education, health care, housing and the justice system.

HB127isintheHouseAppropriationsandRevenueCommittee.

ContactA&RCommittee members in supportofHB127andtaxfairness.

Clean Energy Opportunity ActHouseBill167


PassaRenewableandEfficiencyPortfolioStandardrequiringutilities in Kentucky to get an increasing share of their energy fromclean,renewablesourcesandenergyefficiencyprograms.

Establish Feedin Tariffs that will set a guaranteed rate for renewable energy producers.

HB167hasbeenassignedtotheHouseTourism,Development,andEnergyCommittee

Call the LegislativeMessageLine(800-372-7181)andleaveamessagefor all members of the House Tourism, DevelopmentandEnergy Committee in support of the Clean Energy Opportunity Act,HB167.

2012 KFTC’s Legislative Issues at a glanceHere’s a quick look at the bills KFTC has a position on so far in the 2012 General Assembly. The

KFTC Executive Committee (which serves as the legislative strategy team) reviews bills and amendments weekly. For a current update, visit www.kftc.org/billtracker.

This information is current through Monday, January 30. Check the KFTC web site at www.kftc.org/billtracker for updates on these bills, or the Legislative Research Commission web site at http://lrc.ky.gov/record/10RS/record.htm

for updates on all bills. Let lawmakers know your opinions through the Legislative Message Line: 800-372-7181.

Webinar: “The Health Impacts of Mountaintop Removal”

Join us on February 6 at 7:00 p.m. eastern time for a webinar about the purpose and plans for this year’s I Love Mountains Day and the

health impacts of mountaintop removal mining. The purpose of this webinar is to provide an opportunity for the largest possible set of people to become familiar with current research and messaging about the health risks facing people living in mining communities – a key theme we will lift up on I Love Mountains Day 2012. The webinar will be open to all. Contact [email protected] to register.


Issue Summary Status Action Needed

Expanded Net MeteringHouseBill187


Net metering allows people who generate electricity with their own renewablesystemstoputitbackintotheelectricgridandreceiveacreditfromtheirutilityprovider.Thisbillexpandseligibilitybyallowingusers(notjustowners,asrequirednow)oftherenewableequipmenttoparticipate,andincreasingthemaximumcapacityfor eligible systems.

HB187hasbeenassignedtotheHouseTourism,Development,andEnergyCommittee

Call the LegislativeMessageLine(800-372-7181)andleaveamessagefor all members of the House Tourism, Development,andEnergy Committee insupportofHB187andHB167,theClean Energy Opportunity Act.

Green SchoolsHouseBill255

KFTC position: Support

HB255fundsaGreenSchoolsInitiativebymaking$50millioninloanmoneyavailabletoschoolsforprojectsthatwillsaveaminimumof25%inenergycosts.

HB255hasbeenassignedtoHouseEducation Committee.

Contact Rep. Rocky Adkins and tell him, “HB255isagoodstartbut,HB167isKentucky’s Future.”

Death PenaltySenateBill63KFTC position: Support

SB63wouldreplacethedeathpenaltywithalifewithoutparolesentence.

SB63hasbeenassignedtotheSenateJudiciaryCommittee.

Contact members of theSenateJudiciaryCommittee.

Death PenaltyHouseBill145KFTC position: Support

HB145wouldendtheuseofthedeathpenaltywhenthedefendantisseverelymentallyill.

HB145hasbeenassignedtotheHouseJudiciaryCommittee.

Contact members of theHouseJudiciaryCommittee.

2012 KFTC’s Legislative Issues at a glanceHere’s a quick look at the bills KFTC has a position on so far in the 2012 General Assembly. The

KFTC Executive Committee (which serves as the legislative strategy team) reviews bills and amendments weekly. For a current update, visit www.kftc.org/billtracker.

This information is current through Monday, January 30. Check the KFTC web site at www.kftc.org/billtracker for updates on these bills, or the Legislative Research Commission web site at http://lrc.ky.gov/record/10RS/record.htm

for updates on all bills. Let lawmakers know your opinions through the Legislative Message Line: 800-372-7181.

1)Callthetoll-freeLegislativeMessageLineat800-372-7181andasktoleaveamessagefor“allmembers”ofthecommitteelistedaboveforeachbill.Themessagelineisopenweekdays7a.m.–11p.m.(justto6p.m.onFridays).Message:PleasesupportHouseBill____andworkforitspassage.

2)Callyourlegislatordirectlyat502-564-8100andexpresssupportforthesebills.Thisisespeciallyimportantifyourrepresentativeisamemberofanyofthesecommittees.Ifyouarenotsurewhoyourlegislatoris,visitwww.lrc.ky.gov/Legislators.htm.Youcanalsoseewhat committees they are on.

3)Writeyourlegislatorsat:CapitolAnnex,700CapitolAve.,Frankfort,KY40601.Ifyouwanttoemailthem,findtheiremailaddressherewww.lrc.ky.gov/whoswho/email.htm.

4)SpendoneormoredayslobbyingwithotherKFTCmembersatthecapitol.Besidesthebigralliesandlobbydays,wehaveaKFTC presence at the capitol most Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Our lobby day usually starts by 9 a.m. and ends shortly afterlawmakersgointosessionat2p.m.Ifyouareinterestedinlobbying with KFTC, check with your chapter organizer or let Lisa Abbottknowyouarecomingsowecanexpectyou—[email protected].

It is time to remind legislators that there is strong grassroots support for each of these bills. Here’s how you can help do that:


Grassroots Fundraising

2011 was an incredible year forfundraising by KFTC members across Kentucky.Throughout theyear– fromBowlingGreentoWhitesburg,Coving-ton to Louisville, and Harlan to Lex-ington – members celebrated KFTC’s30th birthdayand raiseddollarswithacreative array of house parties, events, tablingandmore. The Steering Committee set our fundraising goal at $350,000 for theyear,andweblewthetopoffthatgoalby raising $382,958.That’sa27percentincreaseoverour2010grassrootsfund-raising.Herearesomehighlights:

January – March

•MembersgavetheirtimeandmoneytosupportlobbyingeffortsinFrank-fort.

•KentuckyRisingsit-ininFebruarygenerated support from across the country.

•1,200people–ourlargestcrowdever–attendedILoveMountainsDay.

•MultipleeventsaroundthestatecelebratedandsupportedILoveMountainsDay.

•HundredsattendedourVotingRights,EconomicJusticeandCleanEnergylobbydays.

•Grassrootsfundraisingandonlinedonationsspiked,includingmanyout-of-statecontributions.

•Wehit10percentofourannualfund-raisinggoal.

April – June

•Wefullylaunchedourmonthlyre-newalprogram,inwhichweremindfolkswhohaven’tgivensincethistimelastyeartorenew.

•Wegained46newmembersand20NewPowerLeadersinApril.

•LetcherandPikecountiesbothshowedsignificantincreasesincur-rentmemberrates.

•Inoneweek,weraised$12,528inchapterfundraising,duelargelytoabigLouisvilleLovesMountainseventinMay.

•We bumped past 20 percent towardourannualgoal.

July – September

•Wecelebratedour30th birthday with

abigfamily-reunion-stylepicnicinAugustandmanysmallereventsaroundthestatethroughoutthefall.

•Membersmadespecial30th birthday giftstoKFTC,resultinginmorethan$19,000indonations.

•Weraised$10,000throughour30th birthdayhistorybooklet,thankstoal-liesandfriendswhopurchasedads.

•Chaptersoutdidthemselvesinchapterfundraising,withMadisonCountyraisingmorethan$1,000.

•BytheendofSeptember,wehadraised more than we ever had by that pointinanypreviousyear.

October – December

•Ourfallfundraisingcampaignwasthe most ambitious, coordinated and energeticwe’deverattempted–withamailing,phonebanks,weeklyemailupdates, a thermometer to measure our progress, and numerous events aroundthestate.

•WeraisedthemostduringNovemberandDecemberthatwe’veeverraisedduringafallcampaign–morethan$180,000.

•Weeksofphonebanksinchaptersacross the state raised thousands of dollarsthroughmemberstalkingtomembers.

•TheArtyPiePartyinScottCountyraised$2,100.

•AhousepartyinNewYorkCityraised$2,000.

•AnelectionnightphonebankinLex-ingtonraised$400.

•Manymemberswhohadnotgiveninyearsrenewedtheirmembership.

•Out-of-statemembersfromVirginiatoCaliforniainvestedinKFTC.

•AbenefitconcertDecember29featur-ingYimYames,BenSolleeandDanielMartinMoore,DanDorffandau-thorsSilasHouseandJasonHowardraisedmorethan$40,000.

Some members will rememberwhen $180,000 – the amount KFTCraised in November and December –wasmorethanweraisedallyear. In2011,KFTCexceededthegoalbyraising thousands of gifts, both largeand small, all year long. This commit-ment was anchored by sustaining do-norswhogiveregularly.

KFTC members achieve an unprecedented year in fundraising

Photos L- R: Rick Handshoe showed his love and appreciation to the supporters outside the capitol during the four-day Kentucky Rising occupation of the governor’s office; Louisville Band Beady played at the 3rd Annual Louisville Loves Mountains Festival; Anna and John Harrod played fiddle tunes at KFTC’s 30th Birthday Party in August; Kentucky authors and KFTC members Silas House and Jason Howard participated in an interview before the Dear Companion concert on December 29 which featured Jim James, Ben Sollee, Daniel Martin Moore and Dan Dorff (Photo by Matthew Cardwell).

House Party Films: iF you would like to sHow one oF tHe Following Films, contact tim at 859-276-0563 or [email protected]

reel Power: Films Fueling tHe energy revolution

Cape Spin tackles the root causes of society’s inability to produce a large-scale solution to the global energy crisis it created, fram-ing the events of the cape wind project as a microcosm of america’s struggle toward sustainability and energy independence.

Deep down: deep in the appalachian moun-tains of eastern kentucky, beverly may and terry ratliff find themselves at the center of a contentious community battle over a proposed mountaintop removal coal mine.www.deepdownfilm.org

dirty business: “clean coal” and tHe battle For our energy Future is a 90-minute documentary produced by the center for investigative reporting that aims to give a full accounting of the true cost of our dependence on coal for electricity in the

age of climate change and highlights com-munities that are integrating renewable energy projects across the country. www.dirtybusinessthefilm.com

Gasland: when filmmaker josh fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he embarks on a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination.www.gaslandthemovie.com

Split Estate: split estate maps a tragedy in the making, as citizens in the path of a

new drilling boom in the rocky mountain west struggle against the erosion of their civil liberties, their communities and their health. www.splitestate.com

Sun Come Up: follows the relocation of some of the the carteret islanders, a peace-ful community living on a remote island chain in the south pacific ocean and now some of the world’s first environmental refugees. www.suncomeup.com


Local UpdatesAfter a busy fall of building grassroots power

Rowan County members start 2012 with a slate of local issues TheRowanCountyChapterstartedthe new year with a packed agenda after averybusyfall. At its October and November meet-ings, members discussed the recent KFTCannualmeeting,alocalpollutingtire processing plant, the undergroundpetroleumstoragetanksissue,fallfund-raisingandachapterFacebookpage. TherealsowereupdatesandreportsfromchaptermembersonKFTC litiga-tion,theKentuckyDeservesBetterrallyatU.S.Rep.HalRogers’office inSom-erset, and chapter voter registration on MoreheadStateUniversity’scampus. Chapter members participated in an October 27 public meeting on aproposed Improvement Project for KYRoute 32 held by the Kentucky Trans-portation Cabinet. The meeting, heldinSandyHook,waswellattendedwithmorethan100peopleinthegymnasiumofElliottCountyHighSchool. Rowanchaptermembershavebeeninvolvedwithlocaltransportationproj-ectsformorethan10yearsbeginningin2000withanill-conceivedthirdRowanInterchange Project. Like that project,chapter members have concluded thatthe Route 32 project is political pork,wouldwastehugeamountsof taxdol-lars, destroy environmentally sensitiveareasandisnotneeded. KY Route 32 between ElliottvilleandSandyHookisawindingmountainroadthatfollowstheridgelinebetweentwo pristine trout streams. Chaptermembersagreetheroad’s10or12mosttwisting sections should be upgraded,but believe the idea of spending $100milliontorebuildaruralroadthatcar-ries470carsperdayisabsurd. In an earlier round of planning

meetings, the Kentucky Transporta-tion Cabinet and Rep. Rocky Adkinspromisedlocalresidentsrepeatedlythatthe road design would be “culturallyand environmentally” friendly. Localresidentsoverwhelminglyvotedforthatoption. Then, at the October meeting, the cabinetunveiledanewalternative thatwas not included in the first phase ofplanning.This“new”alignmentissim-plyblastinganewroutenexttotheoldhighway, ineffect creating twoparallelroadsrightnexttoeachother. Chaptermembersarehighlysuspi-cious that this is a section of a proposed industrialcoalhaulroad(proposedKY645ProjectextensionfromUlyssesnearMartin County to Morehead) in dis-guise. Ausedtireshreddingplantthathasbeen creating problems for neighborsfor13yearsgottheattentionofchaptermembers when Jean Johnson of Carter County brought it to their attention in September.Sincethen,chaptermembersvisitedherhome toview theproblemsand supported her efforts to get some enforcement action from the Kentucky DivisionofWasteManagement(DWM),Division of Water and Division of AirQuality. ThoseeffortsfinallypaidoffinearlyDecemberwhentheDWMdirectorvis-ited Johnson’s home and met with chap-termembers.A fewdays later, inspec-tors fromall threedivisionsdescendedonthefacility.Threequartersofapick-up truck loadof shredded tiresand13wholetireswereremovedfromTygartsCreek, which flows next to the plant.Members hope thatwill lead to a full-scale investigation and various actions

tomakethefacilityagoodneighbor. During the fall, the chapter alsoheld aNovember Friend-raiser at theFuzzy Duck/Coffee Tree Bookstore.TheeventfeaturedKFTC30th anniver-saryfilmI Was There: The First 30 Years of Kentuckians For The Commonwealth.Chapter members were present to talk about their experiences over theyears and inform community members aboutthechapter’slocalwork. In October, a voter registration driveonthecampusofMoreheadStateUniversity resulted in more than 50newregistrations. Submitted by Doug Doerrfeld, Chapter Pub-licity Coordinator.

Rowan County Chapter members registered voters on Morehead Univer-sity’s campus prior to the 2011 general election.

Letcher County Chapter members chart new

waters for 2012

byElizabethSanders

Theyearisdefinitelykickingoff on a good note for the Letcher Countychapter.The10folkswhocame out to the firstmeeting of2012 realized they are enteringnew ground as the chapter moves forward without a staff organizer, buttheyareupforthechallenge.ChapterorganizerWillaJohnsonlefttheorganizationattheendofDecember, andwewish her thebestofluck. At the chapter meeting, mem-bers discussed all of the manyevents coming up and got a good overviewofbillsinthe2012Gen-eralAssembly. Additionally, members aregearingupfortheAnnualCrepesofWrathevent, amorningfilledwithbreakfastcrepesandletters-to-the-editor to legislators, host-edbytheChapman-Cranes. Membersdecidedtoteamupwith theHarlanCounty chaptertohostajointpotluckandmeet-inginMarch,whichwillbeexcit-ing coming off of a packed Febru-ary sure to be highlighted by ILove Mountains Day. Membersare excited about being part ofthe east Kentucky bus contingent travelingtoFrankfort.

Harlan County & Letcher County Joint PotluckTuesday, March 6, 6 p.m.

Oven Fork Senior Citizens Center 7181 HWY 119 S. Eolia, KY

Everyone is encouraged to invite a friend and bring a food dish to share.


Local Updates

Madison County at-home legislative meetings foster relationships, conversations and commitments

by Cory Lowery

OneofKFTC’smostsuccessfulad-vocacy strategies has come in the form of citizen lobbying and at-homemeet-ingswithlegislators.LocalKFTCchap-ters and citizens invite their legislatorsto visit their districts to discuss policywiththem,theconstituents. During the fall, members of theMadisonCountychapterinvitedMadi-son County’s two state representatives to discuss statewide public policy de-signed to address some of the most seri-ousproblemsfacingKentucky. Rep. Lonnie Napier (R) and Rep.RitaSmart(D)satdownwiththemem-bers in Berea College’s AppalachianCentertodiscussavarietyofissues. Rep.NapiervisitedinOctober,and

was asked by members to support KFTC proposed legislation ranging from taxreform to voting rights for former fel-ons.Napierwasnoncommittalformuchof the meeting, but promised to support voting rights for former felons duringthelegislativesession. Chapter members had more success withRep.Smart,whovisitedthechap-terinBereainNovember. Members asked Smart to supportKFTC’spolicyproposalsby signingonasacosponsortoKFTC’sproposedleg-islation.Smartinsistedthatshereadthebills inquestionbefore signingonasacosponsor. Chapter members persisted, how-ever,particularlywiththeCleanEnergyOpportunityAct(HB167),whichwouldencourage renewable energy produc-

tion by creating incentives for Kentucky utilitiestomakethetransitiontoacleanenergyinfrastructure. Rep.Smartdidagreethatshewouldreadthebillandreturntodiscussitfur-therwiththelocalKFTCmembers. Steve Wilkins, Madison Countychapter member, met with Smart at a local Berea coffee shop, and convincedhertosupporttheCleanEnergyOppor-tunityActbysigningonasaco-sponsor. The chapter’s success in getting its two representatives to commit to KFTC-supported legislation demonstratedthe importanceof lobbyingthroughat-homemeetings. It forcesKentucky leg-islators to face the needs and concernsof their constituents face-to-face, rather than in their Frankfort offices, wheretheseconcernsmayseemfaraway.

Citizen lobby training empowers central Kentucky membersbyJessicaBarnett

Central Kentucky KFTC membersandalliesgatheredinLexingtononJan-uary11foratrainingon“MakingOurVoices Heard—Demystifying CitizenLobbying.”Thetrainingwasgearedforparticipants to learnhowtoeffectivelyshare their stories and communicate withlegislators. The event began with a review of thelegislativeprocessandsomegeneraltipsforeffectivelobbying. Central Kentucky KFTC memberLindsayBondsstressedtheimportanceof putting a name and a face to every is-sue.Whileit’simportanttobeeducatedon thebills, personalperspectives andstoriescanbethemostmemorable.“Everyonedeserves to be heard,” saidBonds.“Legislatorsneedtoknowpeo-ple’sstruggles.” The group took a close look atKFTC’s priority legislation that mem-bers will focus on during the 2012General Assembly, which runs untilmid-April. Participantslearnedin-depthaboutbillsthatwilladdressrenewableenergy,votingrights,LGBTQrights,taxreformand ending the destructive process of mountaintopremovalcoalmining.Par-ticipantsleftwithawealthof informa-tiontosharewithlegislators.

Additionally, the group discussedwaystolobbyfromhomeforthosewhocannot make it to Frankfort during the workweek.Possibleoptionsareletters-to-the-editor, letters to legislators,calling and leaving a message for thelegislator. The bestway is to schedulea face-to-face at-home meeting with the legislator. The training ended with a mock lobbymeeting thatgaveparticipantsa

chancetopracticetheirnewcitizenlob-byistskills. Finally, thegroup took the time toreflectonthetraining.Acommonthemewas the empowerment that comes with havingavoiceinFrankfort. “It’ssolutions-based.Wedon’t justcomplain about problems. We learnhowtofixthembyworkingtogether,”saidRosanneFittsKlarer,aScottCoun-tyKFTCmember.

Central Kentucky members teamed up with folks from the Scott County chapter to host “Making Our Voices Heard — Demystifying Citizen Lobbying. Empower-ing a new crop of citizen lobbyists for the 2012 Kentucky Legislative Session.”

East Kentucky chapters organize around energy audits and clean water

Floyd County members endedthe year with fundraising phone banksandaHow$martpresentationattheDecemberchaptermeeting. Members Stephanie Tyree,BradleyOwensandConnieBrookscameoutandhelpedtocallKFTCmembersinFloyd,Knott,Johnsonand Magoffin counties. They re-ceived some great donations and evenbetterconversations. ChrisWoolery,anenergyauditspecialist fromMountainAssocia-tionforCommunityEconomicDe-velopment(MACED),cametothechapter meeting and gave a pre-sentation about theHow$martKYprogramandenergyefficiency. Since this meeting, chapter member Rick Handshoe had anenergy audit performed on his homeandwillmostlikelyqualifyforthisprogram. With I Love Mountains Dayupon us, members are busy getting readyforthisyearbycallingothermembers,makingpinwheels, andhostingMountainWitnessTourstoraiseawareness. Handshoe will lead a Moun-tain Witness Tour for FootprintsFor Peace before group membersbegin their two-week trek from Prestonsburg to Frankfort in sup-portofcleanair,cleanwater,andasustainablefuture. Floyd County members Bev-erlyMay,NathanHall,ToddHow-ard,ConnieBrooks,KathyCurtis,and Allyson Williams have alsobeen busy making preparations for this year’s Growing Appalachiaconference that is sure to be the biggestandbestyet.Updatesandonlineregistrationcomingsoon!

Knott County Besuretokeepyoureyesoutfor updates coming from Knott County members who are begin-ning to organize around water quality issues affecting many oftheresidentsinthecounty.


February 29: KFTC is the “Charity of the month” at Oakbrook Cafe.

10% of sales from the day will be donated to KFTC to support the work registering, informing, and mobilizing voters.

Open from 11 a.m. – 1 a.m.Oakbrook Cafe is located at

6072 Limaburg Road in Burlington

Members gathered in Boyle County to discuss important issues facing the community but also to take action steps to form an official Boyle County KFTC Chapter.

Bethany Baxter spoke with Ivy Brashear on Dec 29 af-ter the James, Sollee and Martin Moore Concert at the “after party” that was held at Land Of Tomorrow gallery.

Staff and members (left to right): Jessica Hays Lucas, Diane Shackleford, Jim Gorm-ley, Christian Torp, Joe Sonka, Kate Miller (ACLU), ACLU intern, and Jason Smith at-tended a hearing in the House Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee concerning HB 70, restoring voting rights to former felons.

Scott County “Artie Pie Party” was a big success in late 2011. Community members gathered to learn more about KFTC while enjoying good mu-sic, eye catching art, and tasty pies.


Local UpdatesHistoric fundraisier rounds out the year in Jefferson County as James, Sollee and Martin Moore sell out Brown Theatre

The Northern Kentucky chapter is working to build off of last year’s suc-cesses:tocontinuechaptergrowthandtopromote KFTC members’ work on state-wideissues. This includes working closely withalliestobothbuildskillsandraiseaware-ness about important issues in northern Kentucky. KFTCmembers are helping to leadthewayonpaydaylending,activelyen-couraging northern Kentucky state rep-resentatives on theHouse Banking andInsurance Committee to support Rep.Owens’ bill to cap predatory paydaylendinginterestratesat36percent.

On the heels of wrapping up the2011 Fall Grassroots Fundraising Cam-paign, Jefferson County KFTC members slammedthebooksshutonasuccessfulyear. Hosting historically the biggestsingle event fundraiser in KFTC’s 30-yearhistory,membersdonated,plannedandexecutedonalllevels,raisingmorethan$40,000inoneevening. December 29 was an unseasonablywarm evening. Generating even moreheatwerethe1,400peoplewhoswarmedto The Brown Theatre in downtownLouisville toenjoyaneveningofmusicand prose for a cause, to strengthen the downstream connection between Louis-

villeandeasternKentucky. The event featured Kentucky musi-cians Jim James ofMyMorning Jacket,Ben Sollee, Daniel Martin Moore andDanDorff.Also lending their talents totheeveningwereKentuckyauthorsSilasHouseandJasonHoward. “It is pure joy to be able to play ashowliketheonewedidattheBrown,”saidMartinMoore,musicianandKFTCmember. “Knowing that the moniesraised go to support good works around thecommonwealthmakesitallthebet-ter.” Although the crowd was full ofKFTC members, Ivy Brashear took the

opportunity to introduce KFTC to those whowerelessfamiliar.Anopeningvid-eofilmedbyKertisCreativeintroducedthe crowd to KFTC through the life ofIvyandherfamily.ItillustratedthetruegrassrootsnatureofKFTCandthelargerfocus of the organization, not on one is-suebutonmanythatdirectlyimpactthelivesofKentuckianseveryday. Brashear then took the stage to en-courage the crowd to learnmoreaboutKFTCandtoinvestinthework. Fourteen hundred was the selloutcapacity of the theater, and during the finalweekleadinguptotheevent,eagerconcert goers (and unfortunately some

non-goers) scoured Louisville for re-mainingtickets. LouisvillePublicMediapartnerWF-PK-FM built momentum for the eventthroughticketgiveawaysandaguestDJsegmentbySolleeandMartinMoore. The concert was the product of sev-eral yearsof quality relationshipbuild-ing and repeated connections with these artiststhroughouttheyears. Sollee, House, Martin Moore andHoward are no strangers to KFTC.Whiletheyhavehighprofileindividualcareers, they are very much part of the KFTCmembershipbase.

Responsible hill development, payday lending, and alliance building are keeping northern Kentucky members busy

Additionally, the chapter is plan-ningaletterandpostcard-writingeventatGrooveCoffeeHouseonFebruary12leading into I LoveMountainsDay onFebruary 14. Members plan to gatherfrom3-6p.m.,toshareinformationonthedestructioninAppalachia,andwriteto legislators about the importance ofprotecting clean water and promotingcleanenergy.

Awareness Event: Partner with Northern Kentucky Sierra Club

Membersof theNorthernKentuckychapter are working to raise awareness

about thepotentialdangers to the com-munity from the over-development onand around the Signature Hillsides innorthernKentucky. Flooding in neighborhoods, roadclosings and damages to homes andproperty are some of the problems thatpeople living inaffectedneighborhoodsface. Toraisethelevelofawarenessaboutthese issues surrounding development,the chapter is working closely with lo-cal Sierra Clubmembers to host a filmfestival.Additionally,speakerswillpres-entontopicsoflandmanagementissuesandsolutions.Speakerswillincludelocal

expertsonissuespertinenttolandman-agement,andthoseimpactedbyalackofregulation. Filmsandclipswilldetaillandman-agement usage and concerns in other communities. Members hope the film series andspeakerswill raise awareness about theissues,andlead localplanningcommis-sions and leaders to begin thinking oflong-termsolutionstotheissuesarounddevelopment. ThiseventisopentothepublicandwilltakeplaceonMarch4from2-4p.m.at the Erlanger Branch of the KentonCountyLibrary.

KFTC member Ivy Brashear introduced the sellout crowd of 1,400 people to Ken-tuckians For The Commonwealth, Jim James of My Morning Jacket performed a 45 minute solo set, and Dear Companion tour mates Ben Sollee and Daniel

Martin Moore played together and alone as they gave the crowd a variety of old and new tunes including some of their collaborative album, Dear Companion.

Photos provided by Jess Deis

(continued on next page)


Local Updates

The planning for the event startedwith a conversation and a realizationthat there is incredible talent in Ken-tucky and KFTC is very fortunate to host muchof that talent in themembership.Someofthattalentwasreadyandwill-ingtoverygenerouslydonatetheirtimeto raise some money for KFTC and the worktheystronglybelievein. The event connected with the com-munityonmanylevels.Itillustratedhowmuch KFTC has become a known name inJeffersonCountyandinKentucky. There were numerous volunteersfromthechapter thathelpedwithfind-ing the right venue, brainstorming the fundraising opportunities, and ap-proaching new sponsors and commu-nitypartners.Theyalsohelpedthedayoftheevent. LouisvillemembersAbbyMillerandChris Ryczek sold merchandise whileLindaStettenbenzandShekinahLavalletabledandtalkedtofolksaboutKFTC’swork. Kristah Lavalle and Jessie Whitewalkedaroundwithbaskets,encourag-ingfolkstoturnintheir“optin”mem-bershipforms. Notonlywere individualmembersparticipating but local partners alsostepped forward to promote the event, offer technical assistance, and raisefunds. Mike Mays of Heine Brothers’

Coffeesinglehandedlybroughtin$1,500in local sponsorships.GeorgeParkerofParkerLaneProductionssuggestedhav-ing multi-media displays in the lobbyand helped the chapter orchestrate thelogistics. Summer Auerbach, of RainbowBlossom Foods, provided food anddrinks for the artists during the perfor-mance. Allthesefolks,whilebusinesspart-ners,arealsoknownmembersofKFTCinthecommunity. Many new community partnersstepped up to assist in sponsoring and promoting the event. Dragon King’sDaughter and TheNach Bar promotedthe event by raffling off their sponsor-shiptickets. Hound Dog Press donated theirlabor to design the event poster. JimJames’steaminNewYorksentanemailblasttotheMyMorningJacketlistabouttheevent. To have so many people from dif-ferentwalksoflifepitchinonaprojectlike this helped create an evening thatwasmorethanjustaconcert.Itallowedmany to connect to a growing commu-nitythatbelievesthatcitizenscanworktogetherforabetterKentucky. “I’m certainwe’ll continue helpingto raise funds and awareness as best we can, and as members of KFTC, continue to ask our legislature to do the right

thing and represent the people of ourstate,notthespecialinterests,”saidMar-tinMoore. Everyone who took the stage hadthoughtful, insightful, astute things tosayaboutKFTC.

The sellout crowd packed the lobby before and after the show, picking up information about KFTC and purchas-ing merchandise from the musicians and a limited edition print created and hand-printed by Nick Butcher at Hound Dog Press.

(continued from previous page)

Musicians and members raise funds and awareness

Boyle County members begin to organize and energize communitybyJimPorter

TheBoyleCountyKFTCgroupmetmostrecentlyonJanuary9atthebeauti-fulDanvillePublicLibrary.Afterabriefdiscussion of the legislative redistrict-ingbeingproposedforthestate–HB1,whichhadpassedboth theHouse andSenatebutmaybetiedupbylitigation–membersproceededtoselectdatesinmid-to-late-April as prospective datesfor a mountain witness tour in eastern Kentucky. A related topic was the annual ILoveMountainsDaymarch tobeheldinFrankfortonFebruary14.Quiteafewmembers are committed to attending and hope to have a great showing from ourarea! Other topics included how to in-crease the size and awareness of our

local group’s efforts for economic jus-tice.Members talkedaboutdevelopinga survey to be distributed via emailand/ortablingatlocalstores. A follow-up topicwasHB167, theClean Energy Opportunity Act, in theGeneral Assembly. All were educatedabout the bill and asked to call theirlegislatorstoencouragethemtosupportandcosponsorthebill. Nextupwasabriefreportdetailingfindings pertaining to coal ash storageandtheinstallation(ornot)ofpollutioncontrolattheE.W.BrownpowerplantinnearbyHarrodsburg. Additionally one member securedsomeexcellentpicturesofthecoalstor-age slurry pond adjacent to the DixRiver,aswellasofthegeneratingplantitself.WealsoviewedGoogleEarthsat-elliteviewsofthefacility.

Members discussed possible KFTCtraining sessions on one or more of sev-eraldifferenttopicssuchaseffectivelet-terwriting, economic justice, lobbying,andvotingrights. WealsoplantogoovertoBereatoattendoneoftheMadisonCountyKFTCmeetingstopartnerwithandlearnfromtheirexperiences. Members thought it would be de-sirable to work with the local politicalinfrastructureandlaterthisspringplanto have Boyle County Judge-ExecutiveHarold McKinney attend one of ourmeetings. We also talked about the processof and desire for becoming an officialKFTC chapter sometime this year, as well asmadeplans for a couplemem-bers to attend the next Human RightsCommissionmeeting.Weareinterested

in seeing if we can work with the Com-missiononsomelocalissues. We briefly discussed a spring/sum-merfundraisingevent,andmemberEricMount challengedus all to bring anewpersontoournextmeetingonFebruary6. For more information on our nextmeeting, visit the KFTC calendar atwww.kftc.org/calendar or contactmember Lee Ann Paynter at [email protected].

Scott County Update: Members work to bolster

recycling program

Scott County KFTC members made a good start to the new year with a January chapter meeting, gearing up for the 2012 GeneralAssembly,aswellasakick-startforthe local curbside recycling cam-paign. Members walked in the Dr.Martin Luther King Jr. March,participated in a grassroots lobbytraining with the neighboring CentralKentucky chapter, andarealreadyplanningthe2012ArtyPiePartyforlaterthisyearasachapterfundraiser. Throughout much of 2011,members worked with city coun-cil members and others to find apath forward to provide curbside recycling. Officials have been lessenthusiastic in recent months and members have decided to go back toagrassrootsstrategyofbuildingpublic support and making surepeople contact their city councilmembers. The chapter is organizing a seriesofmailingsandphonebankstoreachouttothepeoplewhohavealready signed the recycling peti-tion, and are pairing that with more publiceventstocollectsignatures. The campaign surge will cul-minateinavisittothecitycouncilwhere many members will speakonthisissue. The Scott County chapter meets onthefirstThursdayofthemonthat7p.m.attheScottCountyPublicLibrary, 104 S. Bradford Lane inGeorgetown.Allarewelcome.


Voting Rights Update

Restoring voting rights to formerfelons who have served their debt tosocietyisalegislativepriorityforKFTCagain this year, and members across the stateareworkinghardtowinit. KFTCmembers ended 2011with apowerfulvictoryonelectionnight,withtheKFTCPACmakingabigimpactontheSecretaryofState’selection,protect-ing voting rights from a candidate who campaigned on allowing fewer peopletovote. KFTC’svotingrightslegislationalsoreceived some good media coverage on KentuckyTonight late in the year, andCentral Kentucky chapter membersand allies held a voting rights rally inLexingtonwith30participantstobuildmomentum. More recently, the issue receivedgood coverage in the Richmond Regis-ter,helda seriesof citizen lobby train-ings throughout the state, and took to the streets in three different communi-tiestotalktopeopleaboutvotingrightsonDr.MartinLutherKingJr.Day.

Making Kentucky’s democracy a little better – voting rights Sincethestartofthe2012legislativesession, members have hit the ground running – picking up cosponsors forHouse Bill 70 in the state legislature,which is quicklymoving towards pas-sageoutoftheHouse. In the past, Senators David Wil-liamsandDamonThayerhaverefusedtoallowthebilltoevenbediscussedincommittee in the Senate, so that’s where membersexpecttocontinuetoputpres-sure. “We try toget thisbill throughev-ery year,” explained Christian Torp atarecentVotingRightslobbytraininginLexington. “Sometimes it’s like we’rehittingourheadsupagainstawall.Butspeakingformyself,IhaveaprettyhardheadandIdon’tenvythatwall.” KFTCmemberswillbeinFrankfortalmost every Tuesday,Wednesday andThursdayfrom9a.m. to2p.m. talkingto legislators about voting rights andotherprioritylegislation.Pleasecontactyour local community organizer andplantojoin.

Action Needed

Action One As a standing action, call the toll-free Legislative Message Line at 1-800-372-7181 and leave a mes-sage for your Senator and Represen-tative, plus “Senate leadership” and “members of the Senate State and Local Government Committee,” and “House Leadership.” A simple message like “Please support HB 70” works fine. It only takes a couple of min-utes, and this message will be left for 20 key legislators all at once. The message line is open 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. Monday-Thursday and until 6 p.m. on Friday.

Action Two The Voting Rights Lobby Day & Rally is set for Thursday, March 8. It starts in Room 111 of the Capitol Annex at 9 a.m. with an orientation that will put participants into small lobby teams (mixed with veteran and first-time lobbyists) to talk to legislators throughout the day. No lobbying experience is needed. Plan to stay for the big rally in the Capitol Rotunda from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. – with former felon speakers, singing, and more.

Passage of HB 70 would give voice to voiceless Kentucky voters by restoring voting rights to former felons who have served their debt to society. Pictured above, Janet Tucker speaks at a rally for democracy in Lexington.

Redistricting bill passes House and Senate; lawsuit filed to challenge unconstitutionality of redistricting plan On Sunday, January 22, Lexingtonresidents including KFTC members,Occupy Lexington activists and manyothersgatheredindowntownLexingtonandspokeoutagainsttheirrationalandundemocraticredistrictingprocess. Despitehavingonlyabout48hoursafterGov.Beshearsignedthelegislationto organize the event, it was a success, with125enthusiasticpeopleattending. Directlyaffectedcitizens inLexing-ton who are disenfranchised by HB 1willbeleftwithoutadulyelectedsena-toruntil2014. Whereas the rally was focused onthis particular Senate district, partici-pantsbroadlyrecognizedthattheredis-trictingplansoutofboththeDemocrat-controlled House and the Republican-controlledSenatewereunjust,hopeless-lypartisanandagainsttheidealscitizensexpect legislators tohold themselves tointheredistrictingprocess. Sen.DorseyRidley,whoby this re-districting planwill replace Sen.KathySteinasthesenatorforLexington,drovemorethan200milestoattend.Hestatedthat the sameprocess thathas leftLex-ington citizens without a duly elected

senatorhas stolenhim fromhis formerconstituentsinwesternKentucky. Stein (a sponsor of KFTC’s StreamSaver Bill in the Senate), who has rep-resented Lexington since 1997, saw thedistrict she now represents moved to northern Kentucky. Since she does notlivethere,shecannotrunforre-election. Theredistrictingplansalsoarevin-dictiveagainstotherspecificlawmakersand create very oddly shaped districtsthatunnecessarilydividecoherentcom-munitiesandconstituencies. TheHouseredistrictingplansmovemany Republican representatives intodistricts with other incumbent Repub-licans, thus potentially reducing thenumber of Republicanmembers in theHouse. Additionally, some district linesare abstract at best, making the district boundariesdifficulttonavigate. Rep. Jeff Hoover has asked for aninjunction in Franklin Circuit CourtagainsttheHouseplan,challengingitasunconstitutional. Sen.Steinisexpectedtofileasimilaraction against the Senate redistricting plan. Rally against redistricting plans held in downtown Lexington on Sunday, January 22.

Follow the latest news at

www.KFTC.org/blog


Economic Justice UpdateMembers tell legislators: now is the time for growing revenue KFTC members and friends from Warren to Rowan counties came toKFTC’s Economic Justice Lobby DayonJanuary18totellthelegislatorsthatKentuckians deserve better than the nearly $300 million in additional cutsproposed by the governor. They saidthat now is the time to pass the Kentucky ForwardRevenuePlan,HouseBill127. The governor’s budget proposes almost$300millioninbudgetcuts,whichare on top of nine rounds of budget cuts overthelastfouryearsthattotaled$1.3billion. Most state agencies’ budgetswouldbecutby8.4percentin2013,withnoadditionalfundingin2014. Higher education would also becutby6.4percent,meaningthattuitionwouldcontinuetofaroutpacefamilies’and students’ incomes. Environmentalprotectioncouldbecutby11percent. KFTCmembersandalliesputforth

HB127asagood,commonsensesolutionthatwouldstaveoffthesecutsandbegintoaddressKentucky’sdeficitbyraisingtherevenueneededtobesustainable. A recent report from The Kentucky CenterforEconomicPolicysaid:“ifthetaxsystemwasabletoperformasitdidovermuchof the1990s,whenGeneralFund revenue was around seven percent ofstatepersonalincome,Kentuckywouldhave over $1.5 billion more a year toaddress shortfalls in education, healthand other critical areas.” That’s moremoney in one year than the cuts of the lastfourcombined. Intellinglegislatorswhattheywantto see for their communities and the commonwealth,somemembersusedatemplatesimilartotheonetotheright.FeelfreetouseittowritealettertotheeditorinsupportofHB127!

I live in _________ County and I’m _______. [Are you a parent? A student? A teacher? Someone who’s concerned about our water quality? Someone looking for a job?]

I want to see __________. [Name the good things you want to see in your life and your community…Things that we all want, right?]

But right now_______. [What’s standing in the way? What do you see instead?]

That’s why, this session, I’m asking ________[your legislator’s name] to support HB 127, the Kentucky Forward Revenue Plan sponsored by Rep. Wayne.

This bill would raise $330 million a year that we could invest in ______________ [How does this bill work toward your vision?], while making the tax structure fairer by lowering taxes for Kentucky’s low- and middle-income families.

I hope that Rep. _____ agrees that Kentuckians deserve a better quality of life, and works to support HB 127, the Kentucky Forward Revenue Plan.

ScottCountymemberRosanneKlarerusedthetemplatetoframeupherremarkstolegislators,andthenshetweakedthemtowritealettertotheeditor.Here’sherletter:

I live in Scott County and I’m a parent, a retired public school teacher, and an active community member. I want to see every Kentucky child, especially those with special needs, have a quality education, and access to an affordable college education. I also want to see clean water and air, and I want it to be monitored so that we know it is safe.

But right now our legislators are kicking the can down the road. They lack the courage to do their jobs to pay for these basic things. I’m asking Rep. Ryan Quarles to support HB 127, the Kentucky Forward Revenue Plan sponsored by Rep. Wayne. This bill would raise $330 million a year that we could invest in education and health services while making the tax structure fairer by lowering taxes for Kentucky’s low-and middle-income families.

I hope that Rep. Quarles agrees that Kentuckians deserve a better quality of life, and works to support HB 127, the Kentucky Forward Revenue Plan.

Feel free to do the same!

More than 20 folks fromLaGrangeto Hazard came to a lobby trainingsponsored by KFTC at the Capitol ontheopeningdayofthe2012GeneralAs-sembly. After the training, members headed out to kick off another year of citizen lobbying, or as Erika Skaggs from theCentralKentuckychapterputit,“oneofthethingsthatKFTCmembersdobest.” Memberswereabletocatchlegisla-

torsinthehallsforsomelobbyingvisits,rounding up cosponsors for KFTC’s pri-ority legislationbills insupportofvot-ingrights,cleanenergy,andtaxreform. Then,aftersomepizzafortification,a crew of east Kentucky members stayed fortheStateoftheCommonwealthAd-dressdeliveredbyGovernorBeshear. Members shared reflections abouttheaddressonthewayhome. Theywereexcitedthatthegovernor

seemedtobecommittingtotaxreformsthat are fair and that will grow alongwith the economy, although membersalso recognized that these can be slip-perywords. KFTCmemberssupporttaxreformsthat are fair, meaning that the responsi-bilityofpayingtaxesissharedequitably,and low- andmiddle-incomeKentuck-iansshouldn’tbeaskedtopaya largersharethanthewealthiestKentuckians. Tax reform,KFTC further believes,shouldalsogenerate revenueadequateto meet the state’s needs and priorities, and be sustainable (or elastic, able toadapttotheshiftingeconomy). Clearly,Gov.Beshearisusingsomelanguage that reflects the principles

of KFTC and the Partnership for Ken-tucky’sFuture(ataxjusticecoalition). Thegovernor,onecarloadreflectedon the way home, would do well tothink and talkmore about root causesof Kentucky’s challenges, and to thinkmore deeply about a vision that ad-dressesthoserootcauses. Forexample,prescriptiondrugpre-vention programs are very important, buttheyfallshortofaddressingavisionforwhat’sreallyneededtobuildamorediverse and dynamic economy in Ken-tucky.Memberswerelookingforleader-ship to invest in a vision of vibrant com-munities, access to quality educationandacommitmenttothegrowingcleanenergyeconomy.

Citizen lobby training — tax focus

Bowling Green member Dana Beasley Brown explained the impact of our cur-rent tax structure to a new member of the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee, Rep. Steven Rudy.


New Energy and Transition UpdateNew Energy and Transition Team holds first statewide meeting Good energy was the theme of the day–bothintheroomandinthegoals–atthefirstmeetingofKFTC’sstatewidestrategyteamforNewEnergyandTran-sition. Fifteen KFTC members from across KentuckygatheredinLexingtononDe-cember3tobeginprovidingleadershipforKFTC’sNewEnergyandTransitionwork,which includes rural electric co-op reform, sustainable energy and theAppalachianTransitioncampaigns. KFTC’s Steering Committee de-cidedin2011tomorecloselyalignthesethreeprojects,whichhavesimilargoalsof promoting energy efficiency and re-newable energy, passing clean energylegislation, transitioning away fromKentucky’s dependence on coal, creat-ingnewjobs,andsavingmoneyforlow-incomefamilies. Most of the folks in the room hadbeeninvolvedwithoneofthethreecam-paigns.Participantsgotanoverviewofall three and will have the chance tochooseaworkteamthatfocusesonone. “Itwasexcitingtoseethesedifferentareas of KFTC work for a better, more sustainable future brought together sothatwecouldlearnfromeachotherandunderstand how so much of our efforts areinterrelated,”saidMimiPickering,along-timeKFTCmember fromWhites-burg.“Ithinkthisisgoingtobeagreatway toorganize andbuildmomentumfora transitionaway fromcoalminingandburningtorenewableenergyandajustandsustainableeconomyineasternKentucky.” LeeAnnPaynter,anewKFTCmem-berfromBoyleCounty,alsowasexcitedaboutthepotentialofthisgroup. “My hope is that we can generatemore awareness and a higher visibilityfor the options people have to take ad-vantageofsustainableenergy,”shesaid.“Educationispower,soI’dliketoexpandtheopportunitiesforfolkstolearnaboutcleanenergy,boththethingsthatalreadyexisthere inKentuckysuchas thesolarpanel manufacturing plant in Danville,aswellashowtheycanmakechangesintheirownlivesandenergyusage.” Members discussed trends, oppor-tunities and challenges to achieving aclean energyvision.Among the trendswas the growing acceptance of energy efficiency,evenamongutilitiesandpoli-ticians who support the coal industry.Renewable energy, on the other hand,

won’t gain a foothold unless it’s con-nected with economic development,memberssaid. Among the opportunities discussed wastheCleanEnergyOpportunityAct,which does connect renewable energywitheconomicdevelopmentbypropos-ingarenewableandefficiencyportfoliostandardandafeed-intariffthatwouldcreatecleanenergyjobsandbusinessesby requiring the state to meet bench-marksbyacertaintime. Supported in theKentucky legisla-ture in 2010 and2011by theKentuckySustainable Energy Alliance, of whichKFTCisafoundingmember,thelegisla-tiondidnotpassbutdidgetafavorablehearingincommitteelastyear. This year, the legislation is HouseBill167andisintheHouseTourismDe-

velopment&EnergyCommittee. A lack of public understanding ofenergyissueswaslistedasachallenge,as were Kentucky’s legislature andcongressional delegation, which arereluctanttosupportanythingtheyper-ceivemight threaten the coal industry.Kentucky is behind surrounding states in passing legislation that encouragescleanenergydevelopmentandthe jobsitwouldbring. Members worked hard but alsohad fun getting to know each other andplayingagamewiththe“alphabetsoup”ofacronymsintheenergyworld– such as EE for energy efficiency andREforrenewableenergy. The strategy teamwill meet againin May to continue learning togetherand focus on a 2012 strategy. In the

Lee Ann Paynter from Boyle County and Mimi Pickering from Letcher County participated in small group discussion at the first NET Team meeting.

An important new study releasedJanuary 12 strengthens the case forpassingtheCleanEnergyOpportunityAct(HB167)inKentucky. Under legislation offered by Rep.MaryLouMarzian, electricutilities inKentucky would gradually increasetheshareoftheirelectricitythatcomesfrom energy efficiency programs andrenewable energy over the next tenyears. Thebillrequiresutilitiestoget12.5percentoftheirelectricityfromrenew-able energy and achieve 10.25percentcumulative savings from energy effi-ciencyeffortsby2022. This study by Synapse EnergyEconomics,Inc.estimatesthatthosere-quirementscouldcreate28,000netnewjobs and reduce average electric billsby8-10percentoverthenext10years,comparedtoa“do-nothing”scenario. The study was released by theMountainAssociation for CommunityEconomicDevelopment(MACED). “This study confirms that legisla-tiontodiversifyourelectricityportfoliowould be economically beneficial toKentucky,” said Justin Maxson, presi-dent of the Mountain Association forCommunity Economic Development.“Thebillwouldallowthestatetohedgeagainst increasing rates by making homesandbusinessesmoreenergyeffi-

cient.Anditwouldspurthecreationofclean energy jobs installing renewableenergy projects and making energy ef-ficiencyupgrades. “Efficiency and renewables arealready the emerging trend in con-structioninthecommonwealth,”saidKentucky solar entrepreneur MattPartymiller of Solar Energy SolutionsinLexington.“ThisreportbySynapsecaptures what Kentucky engineers and contractors already know and whatotherstateshavealreadyseen.Legisla-tionliketheCleanEnergyOpportuni-tyActwillprovidethetoolsnecessaryfor Kentucky builders to create jobswhileensuringKentuckyenergycosts

meantime, they’ll begin building thethree work teams and participate in a Facebook group for New Energy andTransitiontopics.

Study shows HB 167 could create 28,000 new jobs and provide cost savings to consumers

staylow.” The report predicts that electricityratesinKentuckywillriseandtheper-centage of electricity that comes fromburning coalwill declineunder eithera do-nothing scenario or passage of the CleanEnergyOpportunityAct.Naturalgasisexpectedtodisplacesomeoftheelectricitythatisnowproducedbycoalundereitherscenario. Synapse carried out the study for MACED, a Berea based economicdevelopment organization, and theKentuckySustainableEnergyAlliance,acoalitionofmorethan50businesses,affordable housing groups, non-profitorganizationsandfaith-basedgroups.

Clean Energy Lobby Day

Tuesday, February 28Kentucky State Capitol

Support HB 167!


I Love Mountains Day special guest speaker

Tar Sands activist Melina Laboucan-Massimo to share story I Love Mountains Day special guest speaker: Tar Sands Activist, Melina Laboucan-Massimo ‘What you do to the land you do to yourself.’ MelinaLaboucan-Massimostandsin solidarity with Kentucky’s moun-tain people. Her indigenous LubiconCree community in Alberta, Canadahas been devastated by tar sands ex-traction.InbothCanadaandtheUnit-edStates,shehasbeenakeyleaderinthe fight against the notorious Key-stoneXLpipeline.Laboucan-Massimo

willjoinKentuckiansatILoveMoun-tainsDayinFrankfort,whereshewillspeakabout the impactof fossil fuelson her community and the need to buildanew,cleanenergyeconomy. “We have seen the destructionof our lands happen right before oureyes.Ourwaterisbeingcontaminatedand we are seeing droughts through-out the region,” Laboucan-Massimosaid. “My family used to be able todrink from our watershed, and now withinmy lifetimewe can no longer

doso.” Get a sneak peek at Laboucan-Massimo’s story and her inspiringwork by reading more at www.kftc.org/love1.Youcanalsohearherpow-erful voice against damaging fossilfuel extraction, and learn about hervision fora cleanenergyeconomy, inthis video clip www.kftc.org/love2.And then join KFTC and Melina onTuesday,February14at12noononthefrontstepsoftheCapitolinFrankfortforILoveMountainsDay!

New Energy and Transition Update

Adam Strobel Barr first had theideaofputtingsolarpanelsonhisfarmwhenhe learned that hewouldneedtosupplypowertohisfarm’spondtopumpwatertohiscrops. “The first motivation for me get-ting this system is that it broke my heart to think about another power linerunningacrossthefarm.” Electriccostsarecontinuingtorise.MeadeCountyRuralElectricCoopera-tive, which serves the farm, just had a 30percentincreaseinratesthisyear. Withthehelpofgrantsfromboththe state and the county, Barr, his fa-ther and uncle installed a solar-pow-ered irrigation pump on their familyfarm—BarrFarms—earlierthisfall. Whilethesearethefirstsolarpan-els they have installed on the farm,Barrandhiswife,RaeStrobelBarr,areno strangers to sustainable practices.Theyworkhard to buildhealthy soiland reduce the farm’s carbon footprint by using small machinery and drafthorses when possible. And they usethese practices as a marketing ad-vantage when selling farm products,whichincludebeef,chicken,eggsandvegetables,toalargelyurban,environ-mentally-sensitiveconsumerbase. Barr was excited to show off thesolarpumptohisneighborsatahouseparty he hosted on November 13, tobenefit KFTC and the Community FarmAlliance. “I know that the sun is the greatest

sourceofenergywehaveavailabletous,”Barrtold20guestsastheypeekedinsidethepumptoseehowitworks.“Growing plants is themost efficientway to harness the sun’s energy and we just don’t yet know how to harness itwellforotheruses.Butwe’regettingthereandIwantedtotrythisout–toknow,doesitwork?Willitlast?” The pump should last for 20-30years with minimum repairs and pump 3,000gallonsperday evenwith somecloudydaysmixedin,Barrsaid.Itcost$7,000, $1,700 of which was suppliedfrommoneyavailableforon-farmcleanenergy projects through the Governor’s OfficeofAgriculturalPolicyand$2,500camefromtheMeadeCountyAgricul-tureInvestmentProgram. “WhenIwasinFinlandtraveling,Inoticedthateveryonehadsolarpanels— they were everywhere, poweringpartofalltheelectricityuseyoucouldsee,” said Brandenburg resident Bev-erlyFurnival. Shewonderedwhywedon’thavemoreoftheseinKentucky. Guests also learned about howthe geo-thermal heating and cool-ing system works at Barr’s father’shouse, which is located on the farm.Thesystem’sinstaller,ChuckDeverofDever Enterprises in Elizabethtown,told guests that geo-thermal systemsare both efficient and have a quickpayback.When replacing propane orheatingoilthepaybacktimeisaslittleas4-5years.

Dever installs the systems inhomes of all kinds, including homesas small as 1,000 sq. ft., noting thatthe average system costs about 1 to1.5centspersquarefoot.Hesaidthatthrough word of mouth Kentuckians are starting to catch on about what an economicbargainitistoheatandcoolthroughgeo-thermal. “I put in the first geo-thermalsystem in Hardin County. Thatwas more than 22 years ago. Andnow, business is booming. It hadbeen increasing and then the fed-

eraltaxcreditreallyhelpedittogrow.” At the end of the party, Adam and Rae asked guests to join KFTC andCFAand then facilitated adiscussionabout what issues people care aboutlocally. Folks mentioned interest ingarnering support for the MeadeCounty Farmers’ Market and gettingmorefarm-freshfoodinareaschools. The group also discussed how ad-vocating for state energy policies thatsupportthegrowthofrenewableenergy,such as theClean EnergyOpportunity

Meade County KFTC members show off on-farm renewable energy solutions, work to build local KFTC chapter

KFTC member Adam Strobel Barr discussed his solar-powered irrigation pump.

(continued on next page)


New Energy and Transition Update

Act(HB167),couldmakethecleanen-ergysystemsonBarrFarmsmorewide-spread. This bill is supported by bothKFTC and CFA through their partner-shipintheKentuckySustainableEnergyAlliance. “But what’s the grand vision?Whatcanwedotochangetheworld,tochangeoursituation?”askedguestRogerFurnival. “Wewanttousethisconversationas a starting point for talking aboutsustainable energy in ruralKentucky.I believe everyone changes througha conversation, just like the one weare having tonight. It’s about citizenpolitics – regular people using their

voices,”AdamStrobelBarrreplied. Rae StrobelBarr highlightedwhyshe and Adam wanted to host a friend-raiser for KFTC and CFA. She notedthattheyare interestedbothinbuild-ingcommunityinMeadeCountyandconnecting these local issues to thelarger movements effected by KFTCandCFA’swork. “Both organizations have beentransformative for us because through them, we can have a voice in changing thingswecareabout.” If you live in Meade or Breckenridge coun-ties and are interested in joining this local conversation, contact Nancy Reinhart at [email protected] or 502-589-3188.

Adam and Rae Strobel Barr sell their produce at a Louisville Farmers’ Market.

(continued from previous page)

Meade County solar-powered farm

Solar installation training has power to transform economy Carey Grace Henson has lived inBereaformuchofherlife.Sherecentlyjoined 31 other Kentuckians at a vo-cational training in solar photovoltaicsystem design and installation offeredbytheKentuckySolarPartnership. Hensonwasabletoaffordthetrain-ingthankstoagrantfromtheMountainAssociation for Community EconomicDevelopment (MACED).MACED sup-ports the development of small busi-nesses in eastern Kentucky and has a specialemphasisonsupportingsustain-ableenergyenterprises. “I have been interested in alterna-tive energy since Iwas in high school,

andIam40now,”saidHenson.“Ihadnever had the opportunity to get any training.Sowhenthegrantopportunitycameup,Ijumpedonit.” She plans to use her new skills tobolster a career in sustainablebuildingpractices. But she thinks more shouldbedoneatthestateleveltomakecleanenergy solutions more affordable andaccessibletopeoplelikeherthatwanttobuildacareerinthefield. Hensonsaidshe’d like toseemoregrantsandlow-interestrateloans,moretraining,andstateenergypolicy–ener-gypolicythatencouragesutilitiestouserenewableresources.“Therearepeople

allaroundthatwouldliketodothissortofthing,butmoneyandpolicies inthestatearetheprimarybarriers,”shesaid. Henson’s long-term goal is to buyland ineasternKentuckyandestablisha sustainable demonstration site thatwould include green buildings, solar,windandmicro-hydropower. “Iwouldreallyliketodemonstratehow alternative building techniquesand energy can be used and they are not thatweird,difficultorexpensive.Iamamotheroffive–threearestillinschool–soit’ssomethingthatIamworkingonslowlybutsurely,”shesaid.

New Energy Transition Briefs

Kentucky falls in national energy ef-ficiency ranking The American Council for anEnergy Efficient Economy (ACEEE)recently ranked Kentucky 37th out of 50 states.ACEEEapplied their annualstateenergyefficiencyscorecardasthemeasure. This represents a step downfrompreviousyears’rankings.In2010,Kentuckywas 36th and in 2009 itwas33rd. The rankings arebasedonanar-rayofmetrics includingstate levelsoffundingtowardsenergyefficiencyandbestpracticesinstateenergyefficiencypolicyandprogramimplementation.

Fort Knox Army base partners with EKPC’s Nolin Rural Electric Co-op to install clean energy systems Overthelasttwoyears,FortKnoxhas partnered with the co-op to create a plantoreduceenergyuse35percentby2012.Theplanincludesenergyefficien-cyupgrades,amajorsolarinstallation,andageo-thermalheatingandcoolingsystem placed in the base barracks.Annual savings from the energy planisestimatedtobe$2.8million.(Source:U.S.DepartmentofEnergy,EnergyEf-ficiency&RenewableEnergy) Around the world, the U.S. mili-tary has been a leader in employingrenewableenergyandalternativefuels,mostly as a matter of national secu-rity.A July 2011 story in TheAtlanticMonthlybyKFTCmemberLucyFlooddescribed some of the Navy’s efforts.You can read it here: http://bit.ly/ys06ye.

Industrial efficiency efforts in Richmond save money for Sherwin-Williams plant Sherwin-Williams is the largestproducer of paint in the United States today. The company owns more than3,000storesthroughoutNorthAmerica,with one of its largest plants locatedinRichmond,Ky.TheKentucky-basedSherwin-Williamsplantisdoingsome-thingunique–it’s leadingthewayonindustrialefficiency. In2008,viaapartnershipwiththeDivision of Energy’s Industrial Tech-nologyProgram,Sherwin-Williamsbe-gantheprocessoflaunchinganenergyreduction program. By 2010 the planthadreduceditstotalenergyconsump-tionbymorethan25percent—withapotential to reduceenergy intensity to50 percent asmore improvements arebrought online. (Source: interview byLauren McGrath of Sierra Club withplantengineer)

Energy improvements can save money and create jobs in Cincinnati area, study finds Energy efficiency upgrades to thearea’s homes and nonprofit buildingscan save area residentsup to $60mil-lion in lower energy bills and createmorethan300localjobs,accordingtoastudyreleasedlastmonthbytheGreat-er Cincinnati Energy Alliance. Thestudy looked at the economic impactofenergyefficiencyinvestmentstothemetropolitan area, which includes theKentuckycountiesofBoone,CampbellandKenton.

Carey Grace Henson recently attended a solar photovoltaic system design and installation training offered by the Kentucky Solar Partnership.


Canary Project UpdateEPA delay forces energy allies to submit notice of intent to sue; lack of protection a concern in coal ash communities The U.S. Environmental ProtectionAgencyhasdelayedfortoolongstepstoprotectcommunitiesfromtoxiccoalash,soagroupofstateandnationalgroups,includingKFTC, has threatened to suethefederalagency. The groups delivered to EPA of-ficialsaNoticeofIntenttoSueletteronJanuary18. Itgivestheagency60daysto respondbefore thegroupscanfilealawsuit. “Withmanycoalashdumpslocatedinpopulatedareas, thepublicdependson EPA to do everything possible toprotectourhealthandkeepourcommu-nities safe,” said KFTC member MaryLove.“Weneedstrongstandardssowecannotonlycleanupcommunitiesthathave already been poisoned but makesure these toxins never again leak intoourhomesandcommunities.” Coal ash contains a toxic mix ofarsenic, lead, hexavalent chromium,mercury,selenium,cadmiumandotherdangerous pollutants that results fromburningcoal.

“Imagine this toxic ash embeddedinyourchild’slungs,”saidKathyLittle,whoparticipatedinanationaltelephonepressconferenceannouncingtheaction.Little lives just a few hundred yardsfromtheCaneRuncoalashdisposalsiteinLouisville. “It’sahorriblefeeling.Thisashisev-erywhere,” she said, adding that she has touse a special cleanser to get the ashoff her home and furniture. “We haveno buffer zone. Homes are within 50yardsofthecoalashlandfillandpond.” Threeyearsago,EPAAdministratorLisaJacksonannouncedplanstosetfed-eralcoalashrulesbyyear’send.InMay2010,theEPAproposedahybridregula-tiontoclassifycoalasheitherashazard-ousornon-hazardouswaste.Aftereightpublichearingsacross the countryandmorethan450,000publiccomments,theagency decided to delay finalizing theruleamidintensepressurefromthecoalandpowerindustries. “Delayedcoalashregulationshaveputmyfamilyandmanyothersaround

the country needlessly at risk,” saidLittle. Numerous studies, including someby the EPA, show the inadequacy ofcurrent coal ash practices to protectpublichealthandtheenvironment.Thedocumentationshowscoalashpoisonedaquifersandsurfacewatersat150sitesin36states,includinginKentucky, Despite this, the EPA continues tofailtoupdatefederalcoalashstandards,eventhoughthelawrequiresthemtoatleastconductarevieweverythreeyears. The legal action would force theEPAtosetdeadlinesforreviewandre-vision of relevant solid and hazardouswaste regulations to address coal ash,aswell as themuchneeded,andover-due, changes to the test that determines whetherawasteishazardous. TheactionwasfiledbyEarthjusticeon behalf ofAppalachian Voices (NC),EnvironmentalIntegrityProject,Chesa-peakeClimateActionNetwork,FrenchBroad Riverkeeper, Moapa Tribe BandofPaiutes(NV),MontanaEnvironmen-

tal Information Center, Physicians forSocialResponsibility,PrairieRiversNet-work (IL), SouthernAlliance for CleanEnergy(TN)andKFTC.

Southeastern Louisville: LG&E Cane Run Road power plant and coal ash storage facility

Capitol sit-in gains momentum and expands to three days a weekbyRachelHarrod

InspiredbylastFebruary’sweekendoccupation of the governor’s office by14Kentuckiansdeterminedtohold theBeshear administration accountable forits complicity with the coal industry,long-timeKFTCmemberandKentuckyHeartwood founding member ChrisSchimmoellerwanted to do somethingtokeepthepressureonthegovernor. She began talking to friends aboutaweeklyprotestoutsidethegovernor’soffice. A number of Schimmoeller ’sfriends enthusiastically embraced theidea,andonEarthDay2011theykickedofftheSit-InfortheMountains. Since then, protestors have visited theCapitolonedayaweek tosit inorjust outside the governor’s office withsignsurgingGov.Besheartoprotectthemountains, streams and communities by ending mountaintop removal min-ing.More thanahundredpeoplehaveparticipated, including coalfield resi-dents, former miners, Kentuckians with strong ties to Appalachia, and othersconcernedaboutairandwaterquality.

While most have sat quietly withtheir signs, engaging passersby in con-versation when possible, some haveserenaded the governor’s staff with mournfulcoalsongsorlaidcorpse-likebeneath fake tombstones to symbolizethe death and destruction caused by mountaintopremovalmining. Other participants shared schoolprojectsaboutmercurypollution,madesculptures, conducted a survey, ordressedup likeSanta todeliver lumpsof coal to Gov. Beshear and legislatorson the“naughty” list for theirunques-tioning support of destructive mining practices. Jeri Howell of the Frankfort HighSchool Earth Club, who carried hermessage to the governor through song, explained why she got involved withthesit-in:“MyfriendinHindmancan’tdrink the water. He says it upsets hisstomach, gets him sick. My friend inWhitesburg can’t seem to quit writingsongsaboutthehardshipsofacoalmin-er and the devastating impacts it has on families…Callmecrazy,blamemeforwanting to ruin Kentucky’s economy,

bash me for being a ‘dirty tree hugger,’ but I won’t stand for the governor and legislatureofKentuckysupportingthisHellwearecreatinginAppalachia.” Caroline Taylor-Webb, a state gov-ernment retiree who now devotes most ofhertimetocivicpursuits,fellinlovewith the mountains at age 11 whilespending a summer with her father in theRedRiverGorge. “From thenon, Iconsidered myself an environmental-ist,” she said. In 1988 and 1989, sheteamedupwithfriendDr.LouiseChaw-la toconductanoralhistoryprojectonKentuckyconservationists. The project took them through Appalachia, where they interviewed,amongothers,authorHarryCaudillandMary Rogers of Pine Mountain Settle-ment School. While working for theDepartment of Natural Resources, shegottovisitsome“reclaimed”stripminesites, but theywere “a joke,” she said.Strip mining was bad enough, but with theexpansionofmountaintopremoval,surface mining became even more de-structive. Taylor-Webb knew she had to do

something.Shenowcoordinatessched-ulingalloftheshiftsforthesit-inandisexcitedaboutmaintainingan increasedpresenceattheCapitolthroughtheleg-islativesession.

JOIN THE ACTION!

Now that the Capitol is bustling with legislators,

lobbyists, citizens and the media, the Sit-In for the

Mountains organizers have increased their presence at the Capitol to three days a week, Tuesday through

Thursday. Anyone interested in participating may contact

Caroline Taylor-Webb at [email protected] or

502-229-8269 to schedule a shift. Shifts are two hours (or longer if you can manage it).


Calendar of EventsFeb. 2 Scott County chapter meeting, 7 p.m., at the Georgetown Public Library.

Email [email protected] or 859-420-8919 for more information or to volunteer.

Feb. 4 Land Reform Committee meeting, 10:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Contact Kevin Pentz at [email protected] or 606-335-0764 for location and more infor-mation.

Feb. 12 NKY Postcard making, letter writing, and pinwheel making party, 3 - 6:00 p.m. at Groove Coffee House (640 Main Street Covington, KY) in support and preparation for I Love Mountains Day! The chapter will be providing all needed materials. For more information contact [email protected] or call 859-380-6103.

Feb. 13 Jefferson County chapter meeting, 6:30 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church, 809 South 4th Street in Louisville.

Feb. 13 Floyd County chapter meeting, 7 - 8:30 p.m., St. Martha’s Catholic Church in Prestonburg. For more information contact [email protected] or call 859-986-1277.

Feb. 14 I Love Mountains Day Join hundreds of Kentuckians in standing up for our land, water and people.

Gather at noon on the Capitol steps for a march that will start at 12:30, fol-lowed by a rally on the steps at 1 pm. Wear red, bring a homemade sign and a pinwheel. Register online and find information at www.kftc.org/love.

Feb. 16 Central Kentucky chapter meeting, 7 p.m. at the Episcopal Diocese Mis-sion House (corner of Martin Luther King Blvd. and 4th Street) in Lex.

Feb. 16 Rowan County chapter meeting, 6 p.m. at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church on 5th Street in Morehead.

Feb. 21 Northern Kentucky chapter meeting, 7 p.m. at 25 W 7th Street in Coving-ton. Contact [email protected] or call 859-380-6103.

Feb. 27 Madison County chapter meeting, 7 p.m. at Berea College Appalachian Center (205 N. Main St., Berea).

Feb. 28 Bowling Green chapter meeting, 6:30 p.m. at The Foundry, 531 West 11th St. Contact [email protected] or call 859-276-0563.

Feb. 28 Clean Energy Lobby Day Join allies in the Kentucky Sustainable Energy Alliance for a day of conversa-

tions with legislators about the benefits of clean energy and the Clean Energy Opportunity Act of 2012. Meet in Room 113 of the Capitol Annex with a rolling orientation between 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Feb. 29 NKY Fundraisier at Oakbrook Cafe, All Day! Oakbrook Cafe 6072 Limaburg Road Burlington, KY. 10% of all sales that

day will benefit KFTC, and the restaurant will feature a team trivia event focused on Kentucky history and current events.

Mar. 6 Harlan County & Letcher County potluck, Tuesday, March 6, 6 p.m. Oven Fork Senior Citizens Center 7181 HWY 119 S. Eolia, KY. For more information contact [email protected] or call 606-632-0051.

Mar. 8 Voting Rights Lobby Day Join us as we speak out for voting rights for former felons who have served

their debt to society. Meet in Room 111 of the Capitol Annex starting at 8:30 am for lobbying throughout the day with a rally in the Capitol Rotunda from 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.

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Kentucky Needs Your Voice

I Love Mountains DayTuesday, February 14, Capitol Steps

Join with hundreds of other Kentuckians to call for an end to the destruc-tive practice of mountaintop removal coal mining and ask our leaders for the clean energy solutions that provide good, safe jobs and healthy com-munities for Kentucky.

12:00 pm.....................Gather (visit with friends and listen to live music).12:30 pm..........March (around the capitol and the Governor’s Mansion).

1:00 pm............Rally (speakers, music, and a true vision for Kentucky).

Wear red, bring a homemade sign and a pinwheel. Register online and find information at www.kftc.org/love.


At thecloseof2011andbegin-ningof 2012,KFTCmembers and staffhad to said goodbye to two outstanding staffmembers. Willa Johnson, theLetcher andPikeCountyOrganizer,saidgoodbyetothe staff team inDecember as she em-barksonhernextadventurecreatingahomemade cupcake business in eastern Kentucky. “I’m taking away with me the thought that KFTC has one of the best staff teams out there,” said Johnson.“Mytimebeingapartofitisveryspe-cialtome.” Johnson was a strong chapter member prior to joining the staff team in2010.ShewasadelegateontheWit-ness For Peace trip toColombia and aparticipantinAppalshop’sAppalachianMediaInstitute. Additionally, shehasbeenandwill continue to be active in the youthorganizing to keepAppalachian youthin the mountains and to help create amorevibranteconomy. The Steering Committee has chosen to not fill this position for thetimebeing. Additionally,theSteeringCom-mittee has chosen to not renew the contractfortheDevelopmentAssociateposition due to budget projections for 2012. JohnStollMalloy,whofilledthedevelopment associate position, left attheendofJanuary. “The last year and a half ofworking with KFTC has been a great experience.I’vegainedsomuchinspira-tion from the leaders, staff, and (mostespecially)membersofthisamazingor-ganization,”saidMalloy.“Iamsograte-ful for the opportunities that everyonehere has given me to grow, but most of all,I’llneverforgetthejoyandhonorithas been to be a part of the KFTC fam-ily.” Malloyistakingabreakbeforehe jumps back into independent po-litical consulting andworking towardsgreatercivicengagement.

Members say goodbye to two staff team members

balancing the scales - january 2012

Documents

boyle county members

jefferson county vacant

letcher county bev

rowan county katie meyer

scott county christian

madison county ada smith

harlan county tiffany

perry county meta mendelreyes