Posted: 6:13 AM A bill is headed to Kentucky's governor that would give stronger protections in court to people who claim the government has infringed upon their religious freedom.

Posted: 4:20 PM Kentucky's agriculture commissioner says a legal review reinforces the need for state legislation to regulate industrial hemp if the federal government legalizes the crop.

Posted: 2:27 PM A House committee has held a hearing but taken no action on a telephone deregulation bill that has generated widespread opposition because of concerns raised by opponents.

Posted: 2:24 PM A House committee has passed a bill that would exempt a Christians-only health care ministry from insurance regulations.

Posted: 12:21 PM The GOP has split over a Republican senator's filibuster of President Barack Obama's CIA nominee and claims about the use of drones in the Unites States.

Updated: 10:46 AM Almost 13 hours after he began speaking, Sen. Rand Paul ended his day-long filibuster at 12:38 a.m. today because he had to go to the bathroom. The Kentucky Republican stalled a confirmation vote on CIA Director nominee John Brennan.

Posted: 3:59 PM Legislation intended to increase oversight of a multitude of tiny taxing districts that have existed largely under the radar of government auditors has cleared a Senate committee, but with a change that Auditor Adam Edelen called unacceptable.

Posted: 12:15 PM A proposal that could open the door to industrial hemp farming in Kentucky has cleared a House committee - but it still faces an uncertain future in the full chamber.

Updated: 7:26 AM House Bill 279 sailed through the Kentucky House of Representatives and is now in the Senate. It's supporters say its designed to protect religious freedoms, but others say it could have different effects.

Posted: 5:11 PM A House redistricting plan would pit Republican against Republican in the next election cycle.

Posted: 2:39 PM State GOP Chairman Steve Robertson has sent a letter to Democratic lawmakers raising concerns about actress Ashley Judd as a potential U.S. Senate candidate.

Posted: 12:01 PM FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear has talked a second time with actress Ashley Judd and says she would be "an effective and formidable" challenger to Republican U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell.

Posted: 11:16 PM Much-called-for changes to the state's prescription drug law are on their way to the governor.

Updated: 11:14 PM The U.S. Department of Labor has announced a $5.2 million grant for out-of-work coal miners in eastern Kentucky.

Posted: 11:22 PM A proposal that could open the door to industrial hemp farming in Kentucky is scheduled for a vote in the House Agriculture and Small Business Committee later this week.

Posted: 11:23 PM One of the largest construction projects in the state is happening in Central Kentucky. Protected by armed guards and high fences, the almost two-billion dollar building project is unlike anything else in the Commonwealth.

Updated: 7:45 PM The debate over the statewide smoking ban continues at the Capitol.

Updated: 2:40 PM A House committee is expected to unveil a legislative redistricting bill on Tuesday.

Posted: 10:49 AM President Barack Obama has selected the head of the Wal-Mart Foundation as his budget director in the midst of a partisan battle over government spending.

Updated: 6:25 AM House lawmakers are set to review their redistricting bill in committee.

Updated: 11:52 PM Vice President Joe Biden said nothing shaped his consciousness more than seeing TV footage of voting rights marchers being beaten by state troopers on Selma's Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965.

Updated: 11:54 PM The $85 billion in federal spending cuts that began kicking in Friday are here to stay if you believe the latest public statements from Washington.

Posted: 12:21 PM People familiar with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's thinking on fracking tell The Associated Press he was on the brink of approving the much-debated gas drilling method last month but held off after discussions with environmentalist and former brother-in-law Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Posted: 10:08 AM It's not the first time that government economic engineering has produced a time bomb with a short fuse.

Posted: 6:44 AM Supporters of the long-delayed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to Texas say that a new State Department report is the latest evidence the project should be approved.