Summary of recent Kentucky newspaper editorials:
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March 21
The State Journal criticizes Gov. Matt Bevin’s anecdote of exposing his nine children to chickenpox rather than vaccinating them:
Whether he was seeking his 15 minutes of fame or name recognition for May’s primary, Gov. Matt Bevin’s admission that he and his wife, Glenna, had their nine children purposefully contract chickenpox rather than vaccinating them against the highly contagious infectious disease is both irresponsible and reckless.
No sooner had the words come out of Bevin’s mouth and health experts across the country were weighing in about the dangerous, antiquated practice of so-called “chickenpox parties,” which some parents would set up to deliberately expose their children to the disease before the vaccination was made publicly available in the mid-1990s.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before the vaccine was available nearly 4 million Americans contracted the illness each year. Of those, more than 10,000 were hospitalized and roughly 100 people died annually. Since the introduction of the vaccine, more than 3.5 million cases are prevented each year, officials add.
Health experts also warn that those who have had chickenpox are at a higher risk for contracting shingles, pneumonia, secondary skin infections and encephalitis. The CDC regularly reminds parents that the chickenpox vaccine is safe and 90 percent effective.
Not only did Bevin’s remarks help strengthen the stereotype that Kentuckians are backwoods, uneducated Southerners, but it added fuel to the national debate about childhood vaccinations.
“This is America. The federal government should not be forcing this upon people. They just shouldn’t,” the governor told a Bowling Green radio station in an interview earlier this week.
We disagree. Numerous studies show immunizations protect both individuals and others from contracting preventable and potentially deadly diseases. Additionally, the CDC recommends infants and children be vaccinated against hepatitis B; hepatitis A; rotavirus; DTaP; haemophilus influenza (Hib); pneumococcal (PCV); polio; measles, mumps, rubella (MMR); meningococcal; and influenza (annually).
Advancements in public health have come a long way. For instance, the last naturally occurring documented case of smallpox was diagnosed in 1975. It has since been eradicated.
Before declining the chickenpox vaccination for their children, parents need to ask themselves what price they are willing to pay for their children’s immunity.
Online: https://www.state-journal.com/
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March 22
Courier Journal calls upon the Senate to reconsider blocking a vote on cutting Kentucky’s chief technology officer’s $375,000 salary:
Shame on you, Senate Republican leaders.
The Kentucky House of Representatives gave resounding support - in a 99-0 vote - to a bill that would cut Kentucky’s chief technology officer’s highly questionable $375,000 salary down to size. The Senate budget committee also passed the bill - unanimously.
House members said they had heard from constituents back in their districts who were appalled at Charles Grindle’s salary. And that shouldn’t be a surprise, considering the annual median household income in Kentucky is about $48,000.
But for some reason, Senate leaders blocked House Bill 499, refusing to even allow their colleagues to vote on the measure.
That’s not good government. It reeks of backdoor deals, political strong-arming and a lack of courage.
But there’s time to fix this. On Thursday, you must let the Senate vote on the bill.
Few can debate that Grindle’s salary is excessive. And that’s an understatement, especially in a state that can’t afford to buy schoolchildren new textbooks. Grindle is by far the highest-paid chief information officer in any state in the nation.
HB 499 would cut Grindle’s salary to $207,420 - equivalent to the highest-paid chief information officer in any neighboring state.
Senate leaders, you had every opportunity to call for a vote on this popular bill.
You even refused a request from House Republican leaders to add the provision reducing Grindle’s salary to a broader state budget bill, saying that you were still considering a floor vote on the original measure.
Senate Republican President Robert Stivers told reporters that the Senate GOP caucus had decided the bill was not a priority, given the short session.
Really?
Just two days prior, Senate Appropriations Chairman Chris McDaniel said the bill had “pretty broad support” in the Senate, and “if it gets called for a vote, it will pass.”
So why not allow a vote?
Either Senate leaders know something the vast majority of lawmakers don’t - or they are caving to a governor who has shown he doesn’t respect them.
Perhaps House Majority Leader John “Bam” Carney, a Republican from Campbellsville, hit the nail on the head when he pointed out that Republican Sen. Ralph Alvarado, Gov. Matt Bevin’s running mate in November’s election, may have something to do with the decision to block the vote.
Grindle and Bevin go way back. They are old Army buddies. Grindle’s private company even did some work for Bevin’s political committees. And when the state hired Grindle in late 2017, at a salary of $160,000, after leaving the job vacant for months and months, it didn’t even bother to advertise for applicants.
Last year, Bevin awarded Grindle a $215,000 raise, saying the taxpayers are getting “a steal” by paying him $375,000 a year. “I would defy any of you to find anybody in America, in any capacity in government IT that knows as much as this guy does,” Bevin told reporters at the time.
Well, you’d definitely be hard-pressed to find anyone in government IT making that type of money.
Grindle’s salary is about $163,000 more than any state pays its chief technology official, according to a survey by the Council of State Governments.
But this isn’t a priority, you know, given the short session and all. Right, Sen. Stivers? This isn’t a waste of taxpayer’s money. It isn’t politics at its worst.
Nothing to see here. Move on.
We send you to Frankfort to represent the people. And our representatives have spoken in a 99-0 vote. Our senators have spoken - in part - in a unanimous vote from the Senate budget committee.
Bevin may very well veto the bill, but that’s on him. Let democracy work the way it was intended.
When the legislature reconvenes for the last time this session, do the right thing and allow the Senate to vote on HB 499.
Shame on you if you don’t.
Online: https://www.courier-journal.com/
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March 22
Richmond Register asks the legislature to provide Kentucky’s universities and quasi-governmental agencies relief from pension costs:
“It would be an understatement to say that our (Kentucky Employees Retirement System) non-hazardous pension system is in a time of crisis.”
Those words came from Sen. Christian McDaniel, R-Taylor Mill, when speaking of House Bill 358. Its legislation that’s still under consideration this session to provide Kentucky’s regional universities and quasi-governmental agencies relief from skyrocketing pension costs.
The measure would make changes to the retirement plans for regional universities and quasi-governmental agencies in order to give them a financially viable mechanism to continue to operate while still paying for as much of the unfunded liability inside the pension as possible for their employees.
For regional universities, such as Eastern Kentucky University, the bill would help them control costs by freezing the KERS employer contribution rates one more year. The rate is set to increase to 84 percent on July 1.
At the current 49 percent employer contribution rate, the KERS requires a $13.2 million contribution from Eastern Kentucky University. With the increase on July 1, that contribution would soar to $22.8 million.
In 2003, the university paid a little more than $1.3 million to KERS, or 1 percent of the university’s entire operating budget. In 2018, the contribution was 5 percent of the operating budget.
David McFaddin, senior vice president of operations and strategic initiatives at Eastern, said, “The trend of increasing contribution rates is unsustainable”
He’s right. It’s not just a problem for universities, but other agencies such as health departments and mental health programs.
Health departments serving 64 of Kentucky’s 120 counties say they will run out of reserves and be forced to close within two years if they must pay the higher contributions beginning July 1.
That’s unacceptable.
While there’s no doubt making changes to the pension system to limit contributions for these agencies will cost the general fund a significant amount of money, closures and cutbacks at health departments and universities will also have a great impact on Kentuckians.
“There is no solution to this that doesn’t demand that we find a way to help these social services stay in business and help our universities reduce their burden so they can more affordably deliver a high-quality education to the young people of the commonwealth,” McDaniel said.
McDaniel’s right. Lawmakers must find a solution to help these organizations or there’s going to be a greater cost to Kentuckians than just paying more into the pension systems.
Online: https://www.richmondregister.com/
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