Perry County | Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

Chapter: Perry County

Do you want the absolute best for your family and our Perry County community? So do we.

If you believe, as we do, that working together is the best way to create a better Perry County, then we invite you to be part of our local KFTC chapter.

We are a diverse group of Perry Countians – teachers, retired coal miners, students, unemployed, moms, grandparents and many more. We work together – as we have for 30 years – to protect our water and land, bring new energy and new jobs to our area, share our vision with elected officials and make sure Perry County is a safe place to call home for everyone.

We support each other, have fun and get things done. Come join us at our next potluck chapter meeting!

Recent Activities

KY Public Service Commission establishes a fair process for calculating compensation credits for rooftop solar

KFTC Staff on July 19, 2021 in New Energy and Transition, Just Transition, , Sustainable Energy, Big Sandy, , Cumberland, , Perry County, , Rowan County

The grassroots campaign to protect rooftop solar in Kentucky and prevent electric utilities from rigging the rules against locally-owned distributed solar generation won a major victory in May, ending (for now) a multi-year dispute between solar advocates and monopoly utility companies over the value of fed-back rooftop solar energy.

On May 14, 2021 the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) issued a ruling rejecting Kentucky Power Company’s proposal to slash by seventy-five percent the value of the credit that new solar customers would receive for electric power from their panels that is fed back to the grid. Importantly, the PSC order established a methodology to determine a fair value of that fed-back distributed solar energy. The Commissioners then applied that new framework to calculate that, for Kentucky Power customers, the value for that credit is just twelve percent below what it would have been under the old policy.  

Despite challenges, Kentuckians make an impact in Frankfort

KFTC Staff on March 31, 2021 in Coal and Water, Economic Justice, New Energy and Transition, Voting Rights, Racial Justice, Campaign For Our CommonWealth, , Energy Democracy, , Just Transition, , Kentucky Voting Rights Bill, , Sustainable Energy, , Tax Reform, Big Sandy, , Central Kentucky, , Cumberland, , Harlan County, , Jefferson County, , Madison County, , Northern Kentucky, , Perry County, , Rolling Bluegrass, , Rowan County, , Shelby County, , Southern Kentucky, , Western Kentucky, , Wilderness Trace, General Assembly

You’ve made an impact during the 2021 General Assembly. Some of these impacts have been on legislation – a key meeting with a legislator that changes the course of a bill, or a push of calls and tweets that makes the will of the people more visible and harder to ignore. We also set a goal this session to continue to build the power we need. So many impacts have been in our own communities, talking with neighbors and networks about the bills that impact us, and the work of our legislators. 

HB 272 aims to charge ratepayers more, lessen executive power

Jacob Mack-Boll on February 10, 2021 in Economic Justice, Perry County

Throughout this pandemic, Kentuckians have looked out for each other. Now we need our elected leaders to look out for Kentuckians who are still hurting.

Today House Bill 272 passed out of the House Local Government Committee (see how committee members voted). This bill aims to bypass the regulatory power of the Public Service Commission – proposing to make blanket allowances for water utilities to charge late fees up to 10% at their discretion, with no state oversight and no justification. 

RECLAIM Act and AML pass the House as part of The Moving Forward Act

KFTC Staff on July 3, 2020 in Coal and Water, New Energy and Transition, Just Transition, Big Sandy, , Cumberland, , Harlan County, , Perry County, , Rowan County, Congress, , RECLAIM Act

Kentucky will have a better chance at seeing its $400 million backlog of mine reclamation projects move forward thanks to legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 1.

Both the RECLAIM Act and reauthorization of the Abandoned Mine Lands Program were included in the INVEST in America Act (a.k.a The Moving Forward Act), a broad bill addressing the country’s infrastructure needs.

"I am overjoyed that Congress is finally helping to clean up abandoned mines and polluted waterways," said Joanne Hill, a retired nurse originally from Harlan County now living in Pulaski County. "For too long, Kentuckians have been pleading for action with no response.”

Blackjewel has environmental debts, bankruptcy court told

KFTC Staff on June 25, 2020 in Coal and Water, Enforcement, Big Sandy, , Harlan County, , Perry County

KFTC and allies have asked a federal bankruptcy judge to consider the environmental liabilities created by Blackjewel LLC and its affiliate mining companies in settling the company’s bankruptcy case.

Blackjewel – the company that gained notoriety last year when it shut down while owing its workers unpaid wages – has unreclaimed mines throughout eastern Kentucky, as well as in Virginia and West Virginia.

In filings earlier this year, Blackjewel assured the court that the majority of its permits and reclamation obligations had been assumed by other operations, which would be responsible for maintaining and reclaiming the sites.

However, there has been no activity to transfer 149 of the 213 permits the company holds in Kentucky, research has revealed. In the meantime, environmental violations continue to grow at many of the sites.

“We’re alarmed by the fact that so few permit transfers have even been initiated, let alone completed. We’re also alarmed by high, and increasing, number of permit violations at the non-transferred permits,” stated the letter written by Mary Cromer with the Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center, based in Whitesburg.

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Chapter Feature:

Russell Oliver"KFTC empowers residents to bring about positive changes in their communities. It gives members confidence that they can make a difference. You are not one person, but part of a statewide organization of thousands supporting you and your cause."

-Russell Oliver, Perry County Chapter member

Regular Meetings:

Hazard, KY 41701
Monthly chapter meeting

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every other month at 6 p.m. for the Perry County chapter meeting. We rotate meeting locations so please check the KFTC calendar for most up to date meeting information.

Chapter meetings are a great time to plan local work, discuss local and statewide work, meet new people, and much more. Everyone is welcome and invited to attend! Hope to see you there!

Chapter Organizer:

Jacob Mack-Boll
Hazard, KY 41701
606-263-4982

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