Blog By: Lauren K. Repa
Kentucky is known worldwide for its horse races, and betting on horse races is integral to Kentucky's culture and economy. In this blog, 2L Staffer Lauren K. Repa argues that the passing of House Bill 551 this past September, legalizing all sports betting, might put horse racing at risk, with betters flocking to other forms of gambling. However, not all is lost; Repa asserts AI apps such as EquinEdge might be the program Kentuckians need to keep horse racing alive with the passing of the new legislation.
Blog By: Antonio C. Ellzey
In this blog, 3L Antonio C. Ellzey points out that California Governor Newsom recently vetoed a pending California state law that aimed to address the dangers of gas appliances. Specifically, the new law would have required manufacturers to place warning labels on gas stoves to inform consumers of their health effects. Some say the new law would help build awareness around a hidden danger while others say the new would restrict Californians’ freedom. Ellzey believes the pending law would positively impact Californians because they can make better-informed decisions around their health and safety, which would ultimately help save lives.
Blog By: Stevi Whitman
In this blog, 3L staffer Stevi Whitman argues for the use of certification marks to promote authenticity within the whiskey industry by introducing the Estate Whiskey Alliance® (EWA). The EWA is a member led association spearheaded by UK Innovate at the University of Kentucky, the James B. Beam Institute, Marker’s Mark Distillery, and other founding members, tasked with ensuring quality standards of whiskey production, promoting the benefits of local sourcing, and advancing sustainability efforts throughout the whiskey industry through the use of certification marks.
Blog By: Phillip Burress
Kentucky is home to 100 distilleries in 42 counties and produces 95% of the world's bourbon. In this Blog, 3L Phillip Burress discusses the threat posed by "Whiskey Fungus" on Kentucky property owners and the legal challenges facing Kentucky distillers.
Blog By: Ashton Edwards
In this Blog, 3L Staffer Ashton Edwards argues that instead of staying silent on the issue, Congress should respond to the interstate commerce concerns that reside in the Prop 12, a proposition that was made law by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023. Edwards discusses that so far, Congress has yet to address the arguments and concerns of Farmers, the Court, or citizens, even though this law arguably has a substantial impact on interstate commerce.
For those not well versed in science jargon, CRISPR-Cas is a genome-editing technology that allows the user to precisely cut out sections of DNA. Not surprisingly, scientific technology is moving faster than the gears of the political process can turn. The FDA and the USDA have realized that CRISPR is coming whether they are ready or not. But the agencies are going different directions on whether to regulate the organisms that undergo CRISPR alterations.
In the Sylvania Wilderness of the upper peninsula of Michigan, a few property owners have been squaring off with the United States Forest Service for a quarter century. This contest lead to Herr v. United States Forest Service, the latest in a storied tradition of litigation over Crooked Lake, where the 6th Circuit ruled in favor of the private land owners because the United States Forest Service had over stepped its regulatory authority by restricting motorboat usage.
Nuclear power plants, especially small, single reactor plants in competitive electricity markets, have struggled financially for years. This financial struggle has many contributing factors, including fear of nuclear meltdown, the exorbitant start-up cost of a nuclear power plant, and most importantly, environmental sanctions put in place by state and Federal governments. However, nuclear power plants generate nearly twenty percent of America’s electricity and are critical reliability components that contribute to both the stability and integrity of the system.
Two years ago, the deeply conservative state of Kansas repealed a law requiring twenty percent of the state’s electric power to come from renewable sources by 2020, seemingly delivering a blow to the state’s environmentalists. Kansas zipped past that twenty percent goal in 2014 and actually produced more than thirty percent of its energy from wind by 2016. This underscores the reality that some of the fastest growth in renewable energy is occurring in states led by Republican governors and legislators.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently closed the G20 summit citing the “unfortunate” position the United States was in compared to the other nineteen members of the G20 who remain committed to the Paris climate accord. The Chancellor’s statements were seemingly borne from the intention of ringing the proverbial bell, however, President Trump’s position on climate change, somewhat uncharacteristically, has stood firm since he learned “[t]he concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”
Farmers of the twenty-first century depend on agricultural equipment outfitted with computer systems and state-of-the-art software. The proliferation of high-tech farm equipment in recent years not only increased average yields in light of unreliable market prices, but it also distorted traditional notions of ownership.
Braidy Industries will break ground on construction of a greenfield aluminum mill in Eastern Kentucky in early 2018. While proponents like Matt Bevin believe the aluminum mill is the answer to the economic devastation caused by the collapse of the region’s coal industry, Kentuckians should consider whether swapping one fluctuating industry for another is the long-term solution we need.
The raging opioid epidemic in the Ohio River Valley is seeing its worst year yet in 2017. Drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death among Americans under 50. Northern Kentucky, Louisville, and Lexington have felt the worst of its effects in the Commonwealth. Earlier this year, Louisville experienced 151 overdoses in only 4 days.
