music >> All of us get calls from people sending us texts of these rates that are so high, we can't believe it.

>> Is a change at the top.

The answer to lower your electric bill.

[MUSIC] >> This product has been shown to cause injury.

>> I could not find one farmer in my in my district to tell me to vote no on this bill.

>> The state Senate debates the right to sue pesticide companies for injury.

[MUSIC] >> We're just hoping to grow the next generation of teachers.

>> And see tomorrow's teachers today.

>> Production of Kentucky edition is made possible in part by the KET Millennium Fund.

>> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky edition for this Friday, March the 6th, I'm Renee Shaw and we thank you for kicking off your weekend with us.

The full Senate signed off on a bill today regarding the Public Service Commission, but not before a major change was made.

The legislation would rework the Public Service Commission, or PSC, which oversees and sets the rates for Kentucky ratepayers, some of whom are seeing utility bills at an all time high.

There was some concern earlier this week that the bill could prevent advocacy groups or residents from speaking before the PSC to advocate for or against new projects or rate changes, but a floor amendment by the Perry County bill sponsor changed that language, and he said it was never the bill's intent to silence any Kentuckians.

>> It replaces section two of the bill and establishes a clear statutory framework for intervention in cases before the Public Service Commission to assure that individuals and organizations with legitimate interests may apply.

And this was always our intent.

That's why I told a lot of our members a lot of the emails and hate that you were getting.

We agree with them.

All of us get calls from people sending us texts of these rates that are so high we can't believe it.

But you have no power truly to do anything about it.

And that's the most frustrating thing I've seen since I've been here, because that is all handled by the Public Service Commission.

But it dawned on me we are the ones that can set the policy and the language for the Public Service Commission, and that's exactly what we want to do.

This is our first step.

And what I'm going to continue to bring to you, to help us start getting control of the rates and Kentucky to where we have surplus power and affordable rates like we used to have.

>> The changes were also welcomed by the environmental group, the Sierra Club, who was concerned about the stifling of consumer voices.

In a statement sent to KET today, here's what the Kentucky chapter director had to say.

Quote, we're glad lawmakers removed the provision that would have blocked public participation in these proceedings.

The Sierra Club is one of the few organizations consistently representing Kentucky ratepayers, communities and public health, ensuring decisions aren't dominated by fossil fuel interests.

Kentuckians deserve a voice, and this amendment protects that right.

End quote.

Right now, the PSC is administratively attached to the Energy and Environment Cabinet within the executive branch.

This bill would give the State Auditor's Office oversight over some limited administrative functions.

A Louisville Democrat took issue with that part of the bill.

>> My problem, and something that we keep doing in this chamber, is just adding little political gotchas to bills.

I believe that it was a move made for simply political reasons.

Take it from the executive branch, give it to the legislature, give it to a Republican in the executive branch, take it from a Democrat.

Give it to Republican.

It's not necessary.

>> Senate Bill eight passed the upper chamber with a vote of 30 to 5 today.

It now heads to the House for consideration there.

And we continue our legislative update with the lower chamber.

The House passed updates to Kentucky's law restricting private electronic communications between students and teachers.

It comes as a law passed just last year created some confusion and some unintended consequences.

>> We all united a year ago to stop minor students from being subjected to a one on one conversation, unrelated to their academic studies, that could result in inappropriate communication.

I truly believe that we all still want to prevent communication of that nature.

What I also hope we agree on is the need to clarify our previously enacted language so that we do not unintentionally punish our Commonwealth's great educators who are trying to shape the lives of our young people in a positive way.

Some of the common cleanup measures in this bill are that it clarifies the definitions of family, qualified school volunteers and school district employees.

It includes exemptions for virtual school instruction and feedback, emergency situations, field trips, and work based learning.

It permits group messaging relevant to the school involvement when the parent is included, or multiple faculty members.

>> House Bill 67 reworks last year's Senate Bill 181, filed by State Senator Lindsey Tichenor.

She filed her own cleanup bill this year, also filed as Senate Bill 181.

A rural lawmaker leading the House Agriculture Committee wants farmers and other property owners to have more say when they have to sell their land for the sake of a public project.

While the government has what's called eminent domain.

This state lawmaker says his family and other rural Kentuckians have been harmed in the process.

>> I grew up hearing all my life of the fact that my grandparents, who owned a farm in Trigg County, were moved out of that area where their farm was located in the late 1940s when Lake Barkley was created.

They never complained.

They understood the importance of what was going on, why they had to move, but they never felt like they were fairly, fairly treated during the process.

>> House Bill 542 offers a number of protections for landowners, including the right to appraisal and access to property through out negotiations, something vital to farmers tending to crops.

The House passed the bill Friday.

It now heads to the Senate for further consideration.

Now it's time for postscript, where we look back at some of the legislation that saw some action earlier this week that we haven't yet reported on.

Yesterday, the Kentucky House approved House Bill 534, which is a sweeping elections bill.

As our June Leffler reports, it lasers in on potential noncitizen voting despite little evidence of that happening in the Commonwealth.

>> In Owensboro, lawmaker proposes an elections overhaul with integrity in mind.

>> We have put in a great set of election laws in recent times and we have what I think are the best laws in the nation, but there are those who are always looking for new ways to cheat the system.

Because of that sad reality, it is our responsibility to remain ever vigilant.

>> He proposes new election rules in House Bill 534.

Among other things, it allows federal candidates to run for a congressional seat and for U.S.

president in the same election cycle.

It also allows nonpartisan judicial candidates to identify their party affiliation.

The state must also work with the federal government to confirm voters citizenship, and Kentucky's courts would have to forward names of convicted felons to the state Board of Elections, even if the person is still appealing their case.

Democrats say some of these provisions could disenfranchize Kentucky voters.

>> Why are we making that change from the way things currently stand today, which is those individuals would still have the ability to be on the voter roll while they are still in an appeals process.

>> So what we have is a convicted felon who, through an appeals process, will be able to continue to vote for possibly years, lose their appeal.

And we've had a convicted felon who should not have been voting, voting for years.

>> I would argue the opposite is also true.

That individual might be going for multiple years in the appeals process and miss out on on multiple years of being able to vote.

>> Regarding noncitizen voting, Democrats say Kentucky's secretary of state and other election officials can prevent that already.

>> And honestly, I have more faith than those in Commonwealth than I do for those in D.C.

right now.

>> This vote came on the same day the head of the U.S.

Department of Homeland Security was fired.

That agency oversees immigration enforcement and a citizen verification tool called Save That.

ProPublica and the Texas Tribune reported recently, quote, made persistent mistakes.

A foreign born citizen and Louisville lawmaker speaks to this.

>> Data has proven out that that there is no widespread noncitizen voting in Kentucky or in the United States.

This save system that we're currently using has been expanded, as I mentioned, very rapidly, to try to find data and to act as though we are in this emergent state of widespread noncitizen voting, when in reality, the facts have not borne that out.

>> Voters that are flagged should not be simply turned away at the polls.

They can use a provisional ballot, sign an affidavit and provide identifying documents at a later date to cast their vote.

House Bill 543 passed in a 53 to 40 vote.

>> Section 145 of the Kentucky Constitution now reads in part that no person who is not a citizen of the United States shall be allowed to vote.

It does not say only a few, only just one.

It says no.

>> Though several Republicans sided with Democrats to oppose the measure, it now heads to the Senate for Kentucky Edition.

I'm June Leffler.

>> Thank you.

June.

That bill is 534, and the Secretary of State's office says it does support the bill, but adds that it still needs a little more work.

The Kentucky County Clerk's Association says it has concerns with the bill.

There was lengthy debate on the Senate floor yesterday about pesticide labels.

Senate Bill 199 would limit citizens from suing pesticide companies for injury or cancer risk, unless the Environmental Protection Agency determines the manufacturer withheld information on the warning label.

Supporters say it will cut out red tape saving costs for farmers, but opponents say it's protecting businesses that are knowingly causing harm.

Our Mackenzie Spink explains.

>> Pesticides are an integral part of modern farming, but using them isn't without risk.

Sponsor of Senate Bill 199, Senator Jason Howell says the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, does a rigorous job determining which products are safe.

Therefore, a warning label on approved products is sufficient to warn consumers of risk and protect the company from liability.

>> The EPA process for approving these pesticides is very complex, very detailed, takes a long time when a when a product comes to market.

The EPA does a full analysis on this, conducted primarily through independent laboratories that meet international standards.

And then the EPA goes in every 15 years, reviews and certifies this product.

>> Opponents on both sides of the political aisle say pesticides cause significant harm, and companies shouldn't be shielded from potential lawsuits.

>> This product has been shown to cause injury, and this bill is a bill to say, even though we know that we're going to excuse that and they cannot get sued over that.

>> I think the people have a right, if they were wronged, to sue.

And and if a judge rules that a court, a case should move forward, we should allow that process to move forward, that that is the American way.

And I don't think it's our place to step in and provide protection for companies who should either stand by their product or pay up if it doesn't serve.

>> Senate President Pro Tem David Givens runs a farm store in his home district.

He says the farmers who use these products receive training on how to safely use them.

>> I have to keep records of all the pesticides we sell.

I have to certify that a lot of the farmers, depending on the pesticide, have authority to purchase that pesticide, meaning they've had training on proper use, proper application.

So the system has lots of built in safeguards.

>> Supporters of the bill emphasize the importance of keeping pesticides affordable for Kentucky farmers, and opponents argue that those farmers are the ones most at risk of injury without legal options.

Senator Aaron Reed says the farmers in his district made their opinion clear.

>> Mr.

president, I cast an I vote and I do so reluctantly because I am a champion of medical freedom.

However, I could not find one farmer in my in my district to tell me to vote no on this bill.

Every farmer I talked to begged me to vote yes, because without this product, they cannot make a living.

>> Senate Bill 199 passed 23 to 13.

Six Democrats and seven Republicans voted no on the measure for Kentucky edition.

I'm Mackenzie Spink.

>> Thank you.

Mackenzie.

According to the news organization Reuters this week, a Missouri state court judge gave initial approval for a class action lawsuit against Bayer for claims that its pesticide product caused non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The settlement from Bayer would be over $7 billion to the victims.

Headline making cases across the country involving the illegal sale of body parts has led a state lawmaker to introduce legislation to strengthen Kentucky's law against abuse of a corpse.

Under Senate Bill 221, anyone who knowingly purchases, sells or transfers a body or body parts that has been authorized for cremation or burial would be guilty of a felony.

On Thursday, some members of the Judiciary Committee questioned the bill's sponsor, State Senator Brandon Storm, about how the law would be applied.

>> What we're trying to address is situations where individuals who did not consent to have their body parts studied.

This would prohibit individuals from selling those body parts.

>> Maybe I'm going too far down the rabbit hole here, but for example, my dad purchased a medical practice many, many moons ago.

There were actual human skulls that I don't know where they came from, but they were, I guess, in the 50s, you know, they they regularly would get some of these things.

Would that make it a felony to transfer that if you don't know the source?

>> I think in your situation it refers to a a relic of the past, perhaps.

And this would be referring to individuals who were authorized for final disposition through cremation or burial.

So we're trying to make sure we're very tight on that.

>> How would this bill relate to a fetus being aborted or any other reason of death?

>> I think if it had been authorized for final disposition through cremation or burial, very likely that would qualify under this statute.

>> The abuse of a corpse Bill passed committee and now heads to the full Senate for consideration.

There.

Now moving to some national news with the Kentucky connection.

Kentucky is one of 22 states suing the Trump administration for its latest round of tariffs.

On February 20th, the U.S.

Supreme Court ruled the president exceeded his authority when he used emergency powers powers to levy tariffs on countries throughout the world.

In response, Trump imposed a temporary tariff using part of the Trade Act of 1974.

In the new lawsuit, the 22 states say the tariff is illegal, and the suit asks for the federal government to begin issuing repayments to states and businesses for money they've already paid due to tariffs.

In a statement to the Lexington Herald-Leader, Governor Andy Beshear said, quote, Americans and American businesses have paid 90% of President Trump's tariffs at a time when costs are already too high and families need help, end quote.

[MUSIC] One of the education related issues the Kentucky General Assembly is looking to address this session.

The state's teacher shortage among the legislation introduced a bill supporting the Grow Your Own Teacher initiative.

One organization that has been taking this grow your own approach Educators Rising Kentucky.

It's an annual conference.

Thursday, aspiring teachers got the opportunity to build their skills and connect and learn from experienced educators.

>> Educators rising is an organization aimed to recruit middle school and high school students who are interested in education and then give them early exposure opportunities like visiting classrooms, touring college campuses.

So really, we're just hoping to grow the next generation of teachers.

>> We have teachers that will be retiring, and so we're always in the growth mode.

We're always in the area of needing excellent teachers, quality teachers.

So recruitment is so important for us.

We started out with 200 students attending a one day event, and today we have over 975 students registered for this event.

So it has grown over the past four years, and it's just an opportunity for students to test drive teaching for us to grow our own right here in Kentucky.

>> This year.

It's a lot of it's a lot of people, and it's very encouraging looking around just to see how many people genuinely are interested in coming to this conference and participating.

And they're so excited.

It's not just the amount of people in the room, it's the energy that they bring with them.

It's the passion and the drive that they bring with them and you feel it.

>> This year we had a red carpet teacher walk, and it gave every teacher leader an opportunity to feel the spotlight, to feel like a celebrity.

Most times, teachers sometimes feel like an island, or especially in the CTE world, that they're the only teacher in their chapter.

And to have that moment and to have your students cheering you on, you don't really get that a lot.

So to have that be something we can offer our teacher leaders today, it was amazing.

And then in this recruitment phase, in this phase of trying to gain our next generation, it's important to show them that we are going to continue spotlighting, celebrating, supporting, lifting up, hugging, loving our teachers and educators.

Rising is one of those ways that we we ensure that happens.

>> It has really turned me into a confident, well-spoken, collaborative leader, and I that that skill is so invaluable to me as well as that I obviously I do intend on being a teacher.

I think the main thing that Educators Rising has done for me in that area is just putting me around so many like minded people, giving me that community, giving me that sense of self.

It really has.

All of the competitions are tailored to what I will be doing in the future.

Getting that practice gives me confidence.

Getting around other older teachers and newer teachers, and seeing the different passions and drives and the reasons that they want to stay in teaching and the reason that they join teaching.

Hearing all the stories of how teaching has changed somebody's life or a teacher has changed somebody's life, has really impacted me and made me want to become a teacher.

>> I just see that the teaching profession is going to be in great hands.

The students are so much further along than even I was when I started thinking about teaching.

It was so much later that they're getting this earlier and that they're seeing these experiences.

They're going to be ready on day one to teach, and I'm excited about that.

>> Winners from the competition portion of the event will go on to compete at the National Conference in Oregon in the summer.

[MUSIC] If you're getting ready for spring storms, you are not alone.

Louisville Gas and Electric, one of Kentucky's biggest utilities, is working to improve power lines, poles and other infrastructure at the neighborhood level in order to cut down on power outages when storms hit, Elgindy says similar efforts in the past few years have reduced the frequency of power outages by 40%, and their duration by 30%.

>> We're increasing our investment efforts, and part of that is adjusting our design criteria for the materials that we use.

We are using poles, wires and equipment that can withstand higher winds and also more freezing rain and ice accretions.

Because it's not just severe weather in the spring and summer that we're seeing, we're seeing more extreme winter storms across the area as well.

And it's not just anecdotal.

We're hearing from scientists at the National Weather Service and NOAA that the destructive tornado alley is showing signs of shifting further east into states like Kentucky.

So we have to be prepared for that.

Our customers expect a reliable and safe electricity no matter what nature brings.

So we're taking steps to harden our system for the threats of today and the threats of tomorrow.

>> Lenny says in the next five years, it will upgrade hundreds of substations.

Some are now 100 years old.

[MUSIC] Watch out for some severe weather tomorrow, but if you can check out some of the events planned all over Kentucky this weekend and beyond, our Toby Gibbs tells us more.

In this look at what's happening around the Commonwealth.

>> Hit the trail this weekend at Carter Caves State Resort Park as it offers a guided geology hike along the scenic Three Bridges Trail.

Participants will take a three and a half mile hike through the formations of Fernbridge Smoky Bridge and Raven Bridge, and learn about the natural arches, fractured rocks and geologic history along the way.

The hike takes place Saturday.

They're getting an early start on spring in Shelbyville as the city hosts its annual Spring Arts and Crafts Festival.

One of a kind arts and crafts from around the region will be on display.

There will also be food trucks on site in case hunger strikes while taking in the sights.

The festival happens Saturday.

[MUSIC] See some big trucks doing big stunts in Louisville this weekend with the return of Monster Jam.

[MUSIC] Watch world champion drivers perform jaw dropping stunts in massive monster jam trucks, with appearances by fan favorites like the legendary gravedigger and the six ton Unicorn Sparkle Smash.

In the market for something truly Kentucky made, then check out the Kentucky Crafted market happening this weekend in Lexington, the market features visual and craft artists from around the state, along with live music, local food products, and art activities for the kids.

Celebrate all things Irish next Friday in Morehead at Irish Fest.

This annual family friendly event is in honor of Irish American Heritage Month and features food, music and traditional Irish dancing.

Get a little pick me up and satisfy your sweet tooth at the Calvert City Coffee and Chocolate Festival, taking place this Saturday, the festival brings together vendors from across western Kentucky offering samples of coffee, chocolate and other treats.

It's an event that shows in Kentucky.

Fiddling around can be serious business.

The Kentucky State Fiddle Championship returns to the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame for a weekend celebrating traditional music.

Competitions include fiddle, banjo, mandolin, flat pick guitar, singing, and dance, with performers competing for prizes and statewide recognition.

[MUSIC] Kentucky's wildlife is stepping back into the spotlight as the Salato Wildlife Education Center in Frankfort reopens for the 2026 season, see indoor and outdoor exhibits highlighting native wildlife including black bears, elk and bald eagles.

The reopening takes place next Tuesday.

And that's a look at what's happening around the Commonwealth.

[MUSIC] I'm Toby Gibbs.

[MUSIC] >> Thank you so much, Toby Gibbs.

We're about an hour away from tonight's comment on Kentucky.

Bill Bryant and a panel of Kentucky reporters look back at the big events of the week, including reaction of the bombing in Iran, a sixth district congressional debate earlier this week, and the continuing Kentucky General Assembly session.

That's on the way at 8:00 eastern, seven central, right here on KET.

We hope you have a great weekend and then come back to us Monday night at 630 eastern, 530 Central on Kentucky Edition, where we inform, connect and inspire.

We hope you'll connect with us all the ways you see on your screen.

You can stream our content online at KET.

Send us an email at the email on your screen and look for us on the social media channels.

I'm Renee Shaw.

Have a wonderful weekend and I will see you Monday night.

Take good care.