HENDERESON, KY – iSurf News was honored to be included in a teleconference yesterday, March 9, with Kentucky State Governor Steve Beshear.

Governor Beshear held the conference in order to inform the local Western Kentucky public of certain issues that he is confronting on behalf of the state.

The initial issue discussed by Beshear was that of the Race to the Top (RTTT) program. RTTT is a competitive grant program utilized for state education institutions. The winning state will receive a financial grant towards improvement on various educational issues and areas.

“I am excited to find that Kentucky is among the top 16 finalists in the competition,” said Beshear. “We asked for 200 million dollars as a reward. We’ll move on from there.”

Beshear went on to state that the plan for this, if Kentucky should achieve the top position, is to improve different parts of Kentucky’s educational systems. Among the areas he stated would be improved upon were teacher training and instruction.

Another issue discussed was that of concerns about money invested into judicial corrections, both on a local jail and prison level. Beshear stated that he was very concerned about the issue, but on many levels there was very little that could be done.

“Of course, we would all rather spend our money on our children and jobs rather than on inmates,” said Beshear. “Nevertheless, we have no control over how many convicts we have. I am aware that we spend roughly $20,000.00 every year per inmate. We have to start being smart when it comes to criminals. We need to make sure we incarcerate those that are dangerous, but we also need to try to figure out ways of alternative sentencing when appropriate. Our first priority, however, is the safety of our public.”

One reporter commented on the massive amount of earthquakes that have struck the globe in the last few months, mentioning the fact that Kentucky sat upon the New Madrid Fault, a high risk area for potential future quakes.

“For years we have been planning for this,” the Governor remarked. “We’ve consistently worked with responders and regional and state agencies to put plans in place for this sort of emergency. We have even practiced earthquake emergency exercises.”

Governor Beshear stated that in May, 2011, the largest earthquake exercise ever performed in the state of Kentucky will be held. He also noted that the prior earthquake exercises really paid off during last year’s ice storm.

iSurf reporters also inquired of the impact of the 2010 census on government spending and the local economy, a subject that Governor Beshear was apparently very obviously passionate about.

“It’s vital that we get everyone counted in the 2010 census,” he said. “The numbers we receive from this will determine how many congressmen we have, and that, in turn, will determine the amount of representation Kentucky has in congress. Also, the higher our recorded population, the more money that is distributed for our state. We want our numbers to be accurate as this will get us money that will go to such institutions as Day Care Centers and Senior Citizens Centers, as well as other valuable and important state services. I encourage everyone to fill out the forms. It’s now simpler than ever, takes about five minutes, and the information is completely confidential. I strongly urge everyone to fill it out and send it in.”

iSurf News would like to thank Governor Beshear for taking the time to speak with our reporters and keep our local public informed on current issues.

Information provided to iSurf News by J. L. Graham -iSurf News
Posted by Karen Klay Orange - iSurf News