Madison County advocates for emergency shelter funding on ‘National Day of Action'
MADISON COUNTY, Ky. (FOX 56) — On Tuesday, advocates rallied nationwide and at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., demanding sustainable solutions for the chronic issue of homelessness.
Organizations in Madison County are fighting for their unhoused population and say elected officials are focused on solutions that worsen the crisis.
Michael Harrington, with the Madison County Tenants Union, said he works daily with dozens of people who don't have a place to sleep at night. He explained that homelessness is a crisis anyone can fall into.
'If we lose our jobs and are not able to pay the rent, what are we supposed to do?' he asked.
Madison County advocates for emergency shelter funding on 'National Day of Action'
Amber Spradlin murder case officially moved to Pike County
2 charged after pounds of meth, stolen gun seized during Kentucky traffic stop
Shelbi Poole said Up Initiative is the only place in Berea where the unhoused can go for a free place to eat, shower, and do laundry, but it's unable to provide an overnight shelter.
'There's no funds for those types of things in this type of work,' said Poole. 'We operate on $200 worth of donations a month from a grant. Everything else has come in from people's hearts.'
With no full-time emergency shelter available, there's no place for the homeless community to go at night without possible repercussions.
Last year, the Safer Kentucky Act was signed into law. It made street camping illegal, meaning people found sleeping in a public place could face fines or jail time.
'As homelessness has become a crime in Kentucky, we cannot tolerate living in a county that says the only solution to homelessness is jail,' said Harrington. 'And the only place that we're allowed to be if we don't have a place to sleep inside is behind bars.
Poole noted that with limited funding and a law like this in place, their hands are tied.
Read more of the latest Lexington & central Kentucky news
'It's very hard for us to give somebody a tent to keep them out of the rain when they could go to jail for that tent that we provide them so that they have some sort of roof over their head,' said Poole.
Harrington is advocating for change and building support for emergency shelter services by gathering petition signatures.
He hopes that the fiscal court will step up and prioritize funding for emergency shelters.
'A public service, like an emergency shelter, really needs to be funded with public dollars,' he said. 'So, we want them to match the generosity that we've seen from residents, local congregations, and local businesses.'
Read more of the latest Kentucky news
We reached out to the Madison County Judge Executive and a magistrate for a comment but did not hear back.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Ex-council leader wrongly claimed tax discount
A former Conservative council leader has admitted claiming the single person discount for council tax despite not being eligible. Phil Broadhead, who spent three months leading Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council in 2023, said it happened when he moved house in 2022 and blamed the local authority's online forms for not being in "plain English". Broadhead, who voted on the authority's budgets at a time when he was in council tax arrears, said he repaid the underpayment as soon as it was noticed and that the council agreed it was an honest mistake. BCP Council said it had "worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use". Under the Local Government Act, an offence is committed if a councillor votes on any financial or budgetary matters when they are themselves in council tax arrears for two months or more. Broadhead - leader of the Conservative group at the council - has not confirmed to the BBC how long he was in arrears. In a letter, published in the Bournemouth Daily Echo, he admitted to the error but said he wondered "how many other examples there are of people getting caught out by the complications of online intricacies". "Surely we need a team whose focus is on making sure that the council's processes pass the plain English and ease test," he added. In January this year, BCP Council said it had recovered £654,000 by re-checking who was claiming single person's council tax discount and checking against other records such as the electoral roll. Details of that investigation are due to be published shortly. The deadline for a council response to a Freedom of Information request from a resident about the matter passed earlier this week. The council has yet to publish its response. In a statement to the BBC, Broadhead said: "When I was informed by the council that I'd been claiming this discount, I was shocked. "At no point had I had any correspondence by post that this was applied. When I asked to see the form to show I'd selected to receive the discount, I was told it had been lost. "I've since discovered that in the council's previous (and now scrapped) change of address form, if you didn't list those moving with you - which I must have inadvertently skipped - it automatically applied this discount without even telling you. "This is perhaps why so many others have fallen into this same trap, with the council reporting £700k collected for those mistakenly doing the same thing. "Once noticed, I rectified immediately and have repaid the full underpayment. The council agreed that it was an honest mistake and agreed no further action was needed. "I sincerely hope they've closed this quirk in the system so others don't fall into the same trap." A BCP Council spokesperson said the online form used to register for council tax at a new address included a confirmation screen showing any discounts being requested. "They are then sent an email every year, asking them to check that the details are still correct and that their circumstances have not changed, which also confirms any discounts being applied," the spokesperson said. "We have worked hard to make our online systems clear and easy to use and residents are also able to contact us if they have any questions. "As part of routine checks undertaken by BCP Council, working alongside the national fraud initiative, discrepancies between council tax payments and individual circumstances are flagged to us. "We then contact those individuals to make them aware and discuss repayment options, including applying a penalty where appropriate." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Dorset and BCP residents owe £45m in council tax BCP Council
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Over a thousand advocates rally 'to pay childcare providers fairly' at CA Capitol
( — Over a thousand childcare providers, parents, children, and legislators gathered on the west steps of the California Capitol building to call on the legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom to pay childcare providers the full cost of care. 'I need to make sure that I don't have to rob Peter to pay Paul,' childcare provider Horace Turner said. 'I'm juggling credit cards just to make sure I can provide for these beautiful children. Without us, the economy cannot run.' The rally comes as the providers' contract with the state is set to expire on July 1. Liliana Camacho, a mother of four and a member of Parent Voices California, was on a three-year waitlist for childcare and had to pay out of pocket for an unlicensed friend to watch her kids while she worked. Charges filed against former Cal Fire employee in child pornography case 'I had to quit my job. I felt that was the best thing I could do, because I couldn't afford to hire someone to watch them,' Camacho said. Since securing care for her children, she has been able to return to work, but many others haven't. 'A lot of people assume we want free childcare, but that's not exactly what we want,' she added. 'We just want something affordable. [Families] are going into homelessness because they can't find childcare that allows them to get a job.' Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez, who represents downtown Los Angeles, said the recent chaotic ICE raids in the heart of his district underscore how invaluable childcare providers are to all Californians. 'Families who dropped their kids off with their childcare providers didn't come home that day because they were taken by ICE,' said Gonzalez (D)- Downtown Los Angeles. 'That hurts. Many of these people behind me are the ones who have to explain to these kids what's going on. We want to make sure the folks behind us are included in the budget — that those dollars are allocated, and that they are the ones who receive them.' FOX40 reached out to the governor's office for comment on the matter, but did not hear back. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
Funeral arrangements released for former Kentucky Rep. Charles Miller
LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) — Funeral arrangements have been made for a former state representative and longtime educator. The Louisville Democratic Party announced on June 8 that Charles 'Charlie' Miller died. Funeral arrangements released for former Kentucky Rep. Charles Miller Artificial intelligence is getting tougher to spot in Kentucky: Media studies expert helps tell the difference Lexington man who escaped Lee County jail by imitating brother arrested Miller's visitation is Thursday, June 12, from noon to 8 p.m. at the Pleasure Ridge Park Performing Arts Theater. His funeral will be Friday, June 13, at 10 a.m. in the new gym at Pleasure Ridge Park High School. Miller represented District 28 in the Kentucky House of Representatives from January 1998 to January 2023. He also previously served as the principal at Pleasure Ridge Park High School for Jefferson County Public Schools. Bill could make federal minimum wage $15: Kentucky among states paying less than that Kentucky sitting near bottom of rankings in environmental protection: Study Airbnb generates an estimated $590 million in Kentucky in 2024 Ballotpedia said Miller also served as a member of the board of directors for Columbia Hospital, Humana Hospital, and Norton Hospital. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
