Ryan Van Velzer

Some news: I'm Kentucky Public Radio's new managing editor. I’m excited to edit a talented statewide politics team and manage a collaboration of public radio stations that reaches all 120 Kentucky counties. lpm.org/news/2024-03-2…

I just heard @WFPLNews reporter Sylvia Goodman say on air she read through every bill filed this year by the KY General Assembly (there were 1,297) in an effort to identify “shell bills,” empty vessels lawmakers use to slip in last minute stuff, and I think she deserves an award.

If you picked a random bill filed in the General Assembly this year, there’s more than a one in ten chance the original version would be devoid of meaningful content. They’re called shell bills and here’s why Kentucky lawmakers use them so much. lpm.org/news/2026-03-2…

Feds move to dismiss charges against officers accused of falsifying warrant in Breonna Taylor raid lpm.org/news/2026-03-2…

The Kentucky House impeached Fayette County Circuit Court Judge Julie Muth Goodman, with what one Republican calls “no historic precedent.” lpm.org/news/2026-03-2…

The investigation was only launched after @courierjournal asked Louisville Metro Police about questionable uses of force by the officer.

A Kentucky Senate committee has approved a bill allowing 18- to 20-year-olds to carry concealed firearms with provisional licenses. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Days after a heated hearing, the chair of the House impeachment committee filed articles of impeachment against sitting Fayette County Circuit Court Judge Julie Muth Goodman. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

The Kentucky Senate added more spending to the budget than the House version, but now GOP legislative leaders in each chamber will hammer out their differences. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

The top four Democratic hopefuls to take over Sen. Mitch McConnell’s open seat took to the debate stage Tuesday, bashing the president in sharp contrast to their Republican rivals. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Disregarding the Democratic governor’s veto, lawmakers vote to finally push through priority legislation opting Kentucky into a federal tax credit for educational scholarships. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Lawmakers decided not to vote on a bill Tuesday that would restrict food assistance eligibility requirements for Kentuckians. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

The top three Republicans vying for Sen. Mitch McConnell’s seat sparred in Louisville Monday in the first debate ahead of the May primary. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

The Kentucky Senate has passed legislation opponents argue would make it easier to bring back the death penalty, and advocates say cuts through red tape. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Kentucky-based Addiction Recovery Care is under fire in a civil lawsuit for allegedly fraudulently billing Medicaid for a service. A federal database shows ARC made up 20% of all payments for that service in the country in a two-year period. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Certain Kentucky low-income parents and child care providers who successfully prepare children for kindergarten would get a $2,000 reward under the bill. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

President Donald Trump held a rally in Kentucky on Wednesday and blasted Rep. Thomas Massie, who has been a thorn in the president’s side in major policy disputes. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

A Warren County deputy facing a series of department and constitutional violations was suspended after filing to run for sheriff. The sheriff then oversaw the hearing that led to the deputy’s termination. And it was legal. wkyufm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Kentucky Auditor Allison Ball released a report Monday investigating hundreds of cases in which the state housed children in unusual settings she said were often unsafe with little oversight. lpm.org/news/2026-03-1…

Sgt. Benjamin Pennington was a 26-year-old soldier from Hardin County, Kentucky. On March 1, he was injured during an Iranian attack on a military base in Saudi Arabia. He died Sunday. lpm.org/news/2026-03-0…

"Emily, who NPR is only identifying by her first name because she fears retribution from the federal government, says she followed an ICE vehicle at a safe distance into a parking lot. “And then someone leaned out of the passenger side of that SUV... northcountrypublicradio.org/news/npr/nx-s1…