Blog | pegasusinstitute

May 15, 2024
3 min

Tennessee Continues to Test nearly 2x as Many Residents per Capita as Kentucky, Still has Fewer Deat

Three weeks ago, Tennessee seemed to be weathering COVID-19 better than Kentucky – with greater numbers of tests administered and fewer confirmed deaths. Both trends persist, although Kentucky has increase its testing capacity. Increased Testing Availability and Distribution In the early stages of the COVID-19 crisis, only those with the most severe COVID cases were receiving tests, and these tests were usually performed in a clinical environment. As this crisis has evolved,

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Josh Crawford

May 11, 2024
4 min

Policies for a Coronavirus Shut-down Recovery

As states begin to reopen and policymakers begin to shift their focus from solely fighting COVID-19 to also fighting the economic and social harms that resulted from shutting down the economy, not all policy solutions are equally valuable. Below are five key policies to ensure that Kentucky can emerge from COVID-19 as strong as possible. Over the next few weeks, we will expand upon some of these recommendations. 1. Do the same with less, but if need be, do less with less. The

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Josh Crawford

May 1, 2024
3 min

As COVID-19 Lockdowns Persist, So Does Deadly Violence

As we approach the end of the second month of the Great Pause, a clearer picture has emerged of violent crime during this period. Unfortunately, the situation for many in Louisville and across the Commonwealth is rather grim. Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) Chief Steve Conrad recently testified before the Louisville Metro Council about the state of violent crime in Louisville during the first four months of 2020. His testimony was far from encouraging. Chief Conrad

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pegasusinstitute

May 1, 2024
4 min

There is Very Little Consistency or Apparent Coordination Between 7 State Reopen Pact ; Here's W

Despite being a southern state in every way imaginable, with a culture completely consistent with that of the Upper South, a shared history with the American South, and everything from dialect to food preferences that align incontrovertible with the region, Kentucky is partnered with six Midwestern states to coordinate reopening their state economies. This week, several states, Kentucky included, have provided additional details about their plans to reopen their state's econo

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Erinn Broadus

Apr 30, 2024
3 min

Unemployment Relief May Be Hard to Come by for Some Kentuckians

The coronavirus has catapulted the number of unemployment claims in the United States to the highest numbers in recorded history. Unfortunately, Kentucky is no exception. The most recent data available indicates that for the week of April 18, 2024 there were 103,548 new unemployment filings in Kentucky, almost 4 times more than at the peak of recession (25,057). The Tax Foundation created an interactive chart for each state comparing new and continued unemployment claims to t

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Jared Crawford

Apr 29, 2024
3 min

Kentucky’s New Vape Taxes are some of the Highest in the Country

As legislators wrapped up the 2020 session this week, they passed multiple new taxes on vapor products in the final revenue package. Pegasus Institute has consistently opposed taxes on vape products for the wide ranging negative effects of any tax increase on these products, but the new $1.50 per cartridge tax puts Kentucky in a uniquely bad position. To understand the impact of these taxes, we must first break down the ways in which the legislature decided to tax different v

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 25, 2024
2 min

COVID-19 Hospitalizations in Kentucky Have Slowed Considerably Over the Last Week

New data shows that Kentucky's hospitalizations related to COVID-19 have slowed considerably this week, with daily new admissions going down by more than 75% over the last seven days. As of April 24th, the state has 303 individuals hospitalized for COVID-19, with 164 individuals currently in the ICU. The new admissions bring the total number during the pandemic to 1,143. Friday's numbers bring the average daily admissions over the last seven days to 19.2 individuals per day.

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Josh Crawford

Apr 23, 2024
2 min

NEW REPORT: The Case for COPS 3.0

This January, we debuted our District Data Dashboard. The Dashboard tracks six county-level data points that we feel must be improved for Kentucky to move forward. Five of those data points we tracked before. This year, we added a sixth – full-time, local law enforcement officers per 1000 residents. We found that the state averages 1.2 full-time, local officers per 1000 residents. We also found that 23 counties – nearly a fifth of the counties in the state – had 0.0 full-time

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 23, 2024
2 min

Kentucky Coronavirus Hospitalizations per capita More than 2x Higher than Tennessee

Comparisons to Tennessee are commonplace in Kentucky and the state government response to the coronavirus has been no different. In the first weeks of economic shutdowns, some outlets compared the total number of cases in Tennessee to the number in Kentucky, criticizing Volunteer State Governor Bill Lee for not enacting more draconian economic constraints. The widely used justifications for economic shutdowns was to avoid overwhelming the health care system, a universally des

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 22, 2024
3 min

Tennessee has Tested 3x as Many Residents as Kentucky and has 40% Fewer Deaths Per Capita

Comparisons to Tennessee are commonplace in Kentucky and the state government response to the coronavirus has been no different. In the first weeks of economic shutdowns, some outlets compared the total number of cases in Tennessee to the number in Kentucky, criticizing Volunteer State Governor Bill Lee for not enacting more draconian economic constraints. Such comparisons failed to control for key differences like population and the number of tests administered however, rend

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 21, 2024
2 min

Kentucky Could Be Out of Money to Pay Unemployment Benefits in Less Than a Month

After an unprecedented four weeks, three of which have set all time records for the number of Kentuckians filing for unemployment, the state’s unemployment insurance trust is projected to be approximately a month away from running out of money. National comparisons show Kentucky’s overall Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund solvency ranking 45th in the United States, only having enough money for about 4 more weeks of payments. Research by Pegasus Institute echoes those projecti

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 20, 2024
2 min

Kentucky's Per Capita Unemployment Claims More than 20% Higher Than Next Closest Neighboring Sta

A Pegasus Institute study found that Kentucky has experienced more new unemployment claims per 100,000 residents over the last four weeks than any neighboring state by a wide margin. Data from the past four weeks of unemployment claims for every state in the region show that Kentucky is not just highest per capita, but more than 20% higher than the next closest state, Ohio. Since the week ending on March 21st, the first week of unemployment data after the economic shutdown re

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 17, 2024
3 min

How Does Kentucky Stack Up with White House's New "Opening Up America Again" Criteria?

Yesterday, the White House announced its public health expert led plan to begin reopening the US economy. The plan, known as "Opening Up America Again," allows for a phased return to normal, helping to mitigate the potential for additional waves of COVID-19 and protecting the most vulnerable. A full copy of the plan, provided by the White House, is available here. What are the Three Phases? Phase One Individuals - Vulnerable populations continue sheltering in place - When in

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 17, 2024
1 min

Despite Strong Start, Kentucky is Considerably Behind in COVID-19 Testing

Approximately a month ago, Kentucky was a leader in testing per capita in our region, behind only Illinois on March 21st. More recent numbers however show that the state is falling behind considerably, a trend which was notable in the data as early as March 31st and has not improved in the weeks since. Among states in the region, which includes Kentucky and the seven states that border the commonwealth, Kentucky ranks sixth in COVID-19 tests per capita. As of April 16th, the

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pegasusinstitute

Apr 13, 2024
2 min

Kentucky's Largest Cities Projected to be Among Worst Impacted in the United States by Economic

Kentucky's largest cities of Louisville, Lexington, and Bowling Green are particularly vulnerable to effects brought on by the economic pause related to the coronavirus pandemic. A recent study by The Brookings Institute found that all three were in the top 15 in the United States of cities that will immediately feel the fiscal impacts. The study considered two critical factors, the share of general fund revenues from elastic sources and share of metro employment in high risk

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Jordan Harris

Apr 9, 2024
1 min

Kentucky 8th Highest in United States in Unemployment Claims, Highest in Region

New data compiled by The Tax Foundation, using today's record unemployment numbers, shows that Kentucky is 8th highest in the United States in unemployment compensation claims as a percentage of the civilian workforce. As of April 4th, 11.9% of Kentucky's civilian labor force has applied for or is receiving unemployment compensation. Among neighboring states, only Ohio joins Kentucky in double digits, with 11.5% of its population having applied for or receiving unemployment c

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Dr. John Garen

Apr 3, 2024
3 min

COVID-19: In Rush to Act, There are a lot of Questions that We Still Haven’t Answered

A recent thread in the news is the economic and other negative consequences of the COVID-19 restrictions. In other words, there are trade-offs . . . more prevention of the virus comes at a cost of other things. Rational decision making requires assessing the trade-offs. This is difficult right now due to uncertainty about the virus. But this can breed fear and unwise actions. I‘m concerned about the limited information being publicized, which feeds the fear factor. To a

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Jason Pye

Mar 27, 2024
3 min

Guest Blog: Kentucky's Emergency Order Statutes are Being Tested. They Grant Too Much Power.

The response to the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a wave of governors effectively shutting down their respective state economies. Certainly, the United States is in a crisis, one from which we may not see the light of day for weeks, and the economy has almost certainly entered a recession, with millions of Americans losing their jobs as businesses are forced to either cut back or shutter their enterprises. Gov. Andy Beshear has used the broad executive powers given to him by t

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Jonathan Shell

Mar 27, 2024
1 min

In this time of crisis, be thankful for the American farmer

The forgotten farmer has moved to the forefront of the American economy. For as long as I can remember, the role of the American farmer has taken a back seat to many industries in our modern economy. In fact, two weeks ago, many Americans would probably admit that they gave little thought to the men and women that ensured grocery store shelves remain stocked with food. One of the many outcomes of coronavirus pandemic is a rediscovered appreciation for the value of our farmers

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Dr. Gary Houchens

Mar 25, 2024
4 min

COVID-19 and P-12 Education in Kentucky, Explained

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has impacted every sector of life in Kentucky. For families who have students in, or who work in, P-12 education, the closure of schools has presented a unique set of challenges. How will students learn, and how will education policy shift as a result? The following post summarizes what has happened so far and what this means for P-12 students, parents, and educators moving forward. Schools close, move to “non-traditional instruction” In early

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