%20-%201%20(1)_edited_edi.jpg)
Focus Issues
COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS FOR STATE AND TEACHER RETIREES
The Kentucky State Legislature last provided for a cost of living adjustment for state retirees in 2011. As for those participants in Kentucky Teachers' Retirement System, they have received a modest 1.5% annual increase in COLA each year. Yet, since 2011, the inflation rate for cost of living has increased year over year to a total of 29.6% increase. In other words, a dollar in 2024 buys almost 30% less than it did 13 years ago. Franklin County currently has 6,277 retired state employees and 953 retired teachers living in our community for a total of 7,230 retired state employees and teachers residing in Franklin County making up 14% of our community's population. In comparison, there are approximately 9,000 currently employed residents living in Franklin County. Within the next two (2) years there will be more retired state workers and teachers living in Franklin County than current employees of the Commonwealth and local school systems.
It is unacceptable that we have not provided for a cost of living adjustment that has, at a minimum, kept up with the dramatic increase in inflation and the average additional costs of living for our parents and grandparents. The average retired former state employee makes less than $31,000.00 per year off of their retirement earnings and the average retired teacher in Franklin County makes less than $36,000.00 per year in retirement earnings. This pattern of not providing for our retired state employees and teachers must come to an end, and the inviolable promise to provide for those who worked in state government and those that formed the basis of our educational foundations must be honored. We must budget for the provisions that our retired neighbors need and deserve after a life of service to our community. I will fight on day one for a guaranteed annual COLA for State government retirees and retired teachers that first gets our retirees to a proper level of compensation to meet the unbelievably high inflation increases over the last thirteen (13) years. Once that goal is accomplished, I will fight for a guaranteed, fair, and just cost of living adjustment every year forward.
Kyle, with his father, Tom Thompson. Mr. Thompson worked for State Government for 32 years and was a teacher for 2 years prior to joining the state workforce. He retired in January of 2008.
"[A]ll property of the Churchill Downs Authority are hereby declared to be public property...and shall be exempt from all taxes and special assessments of the Commonwealth or any political subdivision...provided that the authority shall annually contribute to Louisville, Jefferson County, and the Jefferson County School District an amount equal to the local property taxes Churchill Downs would have paid under private ownership". KRS 58.580
"The Finance and Administration Cabinet, within budgetary limits fixed by any appropriations made by the General Assembly for such purpose, shall contract with the city of Frankfort for the provision by the city to state agencies located at the seat of government for fire and police protection of state-owned property and other municipal services as are provided by the city to commercial and industrial taxpayers residing in the city of Frankfort." KRS 45.021
THE COMMONWEALTH'S ANNUAL PAYMENT
TO FRANKFORT IN LIEU OF PAYING PROPERTY TAXES
In 2002, Churchill Downs entered into a bonding agreement with Louisville Metro Government, wherein the city would retain legal ownership of the historic racetrack. However, at that time, the agreement made Churchill Downs tax exempt for thirty (30) years. Nonetheless, the Churchill Downs agreed to make 'payments in lieu of paying property taxes' directly to the Jefferson County Public Schools. That meant that Churchill Downs, would make a payment of $230,000.00 annually to JCPS.
This was because in 1978, the Kentucky Legislature passed a law that stated:
In 2018, the Jefferson County PVA increased the estimated value of the track from approximately $20.4 million to $117 million, after an investigative report made by WDRB, that noted that more than $250 million dollars in renovations had been made since 2002. This property value increased the amount owed to JCPS to $908,273.00 in 2019. In 2020 they paid $1,082,817.00; in 2021 JCPS was paid $1,077,537; in 2022 they paid a slight decrease of $1,042,157. This means, that Churchill Downs, a private company that earns revenues in excess of $2.5 BILLION annually, was paying around 8 cents for every $100 of value of its crown jewel race track, and paid a total of $4,110,784.00 during those four (4) years to the JCPS.
In 1975, Governor Julian Carroll, understanding that the City of Frankfort should be compensated for the amount of strain on the city's resources and manpower and maintenance, budgeted $150,000.00 to be provided to the City of Frankfort for the express purpose of purchasing a new firetruck. In 1983, this regular 'payment' to the city of Frankfort became KRS 45.021, a statute entitled: Contracts for municipal services to state agencies by city of Frankfort. This statute states:
In the forty (40) years since the creation of this statute, the annual amount paid to the city of Frankfort since Governor Carroll's 'gift' has risen by a grand total of $45,000 to a whopping $195,000.00 annually. This means that for a the years 2019 to 2022 the City of Frankfort received a total of $780,000.00 in payments from the State of Kentucky... TOTAL. This is an amount that is a quarter of a million dollars less than what the Jefferson County Public Schools get each year, on a property that is 178 acres in size and valued at $117 million. In Frankfort and Franklin County, there are more than 145 properties owned by the Commonwealth in Kentucky, located on more than 3,000 acres and a value of more than $773,616,038. Thus, if the State of Kentucky made annual payments to the City and County for the use of our roads, fire and police protection, the extended and nearly debilitating amount of increased use of our city infrastructure 5 days a week, the Kentucky State Legislature should budget, at a minimum $1,500,000.00 a year for the city of Frankfort and $2,750,000.00 a year to Franklin County. The last 164 years Frankfort has been treated as a city that is REQUIRED to simply be happy that state government chose them to be the seat of Kentucky's government. And, we are never to ask for what is a reasonable fee for the very presence of state government being centered in our beautiful city. Those days are over, and I will fight for my hometown to receive a fair annual payment for the use of our community's resources and limited public servants.
Economic Development As a Need To Provide For The Economic Future of Franklin County
I believe that the concept of economic development has the potential to transform Frankfort/Franklin County unlike any other initiatives that the community may undertake. However, I believe the current state of economic development initiatives in our community have lacked a long term vision and cooperation across all levels government, including the Legislative Branch of State Government, the Executive Branch of State Government, the Frankfort City Commission and the Franklin County Fiscal Court. There current draft of the city and county comprehensive plan is an excellent example of the chaotic and ill informed decision making that will eventually lead to the slow death rattle heard from the soul of our hometown if we follow it as outlined. It is time that reason and common sense help craft a vision of a prospering future Frankfort. But sadly we continue to operate as if our community’s best times happened over 40 years ago. It is time that we demand that our state and local officials provide the most basic of what is rightfully ours, including Capital View Park, Parcels B and C, and Parcel A to allow us to build a Convention Center through allotted funds in the next three (3) biannual budgets; that we are provided the opportunity to build an indoor sports and event facility in downtown Frankfort that includes the return of a minimum 5,000 seat arena and an indoor aquatic center to name just two (2) immediate needs; and that the legislative and Executive branches of state government work with city and county officials to bring a state of the art, performance amphitheater, attached to a performing arts center for local schools, dance academies, and musical talents of all ages. In addition, we must lay out a plan to proceed with a minimum of 1,500 acres of land available for true industrial growth that must be utilized along US 127 South to bring in commercial industry and manufacturing in a minimum BILLION dollar project bringing in more than 2,000 high paying jobs to the area.
Crime and Drug Activity
FUNDING FOR JOINT EFFORTS TO CREATE STATE AND LOCALLY ESTABLISHED INPATIENT AND OUTPATIENT DRUG REHAB CENTERS AND SPECIALTY COURTS
Kyle will work to provide funding for state and locally funded cooperative efforts to create government developed, yet self-sustainable, inpatient and outpatient opioid treatment facilities. Will work to provide funding from the Administrative Office of the Courts to fund specialty courts that will include Drug Courts, Mental Health Courts, and Veterans' Courts in every jurisdiction in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Kyle has recently been honored as a guest speaker at the Rise 24 Conference in Anaheim, California, the world's premier conference on addiction, mental health, and justice reform. There he spoke about new technology in the area of transdermal alcohol detection, the Buddi AlcoTag, and its viability considering potential legal challenges through lens of Daubert and Frye Tests that determine whether a Court should consider scientific evidence in a criminal proceeding.
Arts and Convention Center
WORK TO END STATE AND LOCAL CORRUPTIONS
Kyle loves his hometown and he loves the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He detests public corruption and elected and non-elected officials that rob the citizens of our great state from true representation. He has never backed down from doing the legal and factual research to show when a the city of Frankfort has been taken advantage of by outside contractors and/or business deals. He has helped state and federal officials end millions of dollars in Medicaid fraud throughout the Commonwealth. He has also demanded that the City of Frankfort follow the letter of the law when making determinations regarding local properties. And, he has never voted to ever raise the local taxes on any Frankfort citizen because he does not believe the harm done by previous elected officials by putting the burden on the financial back of the citizenry. He will take these same ethics to the Kentucky State House of Representatives.