NEWPORT, Ky. — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced Tuesday that 33 cities or counties would see an extended gas tax break as his executive order to cut the tax is set to expire Thursday.

Beshear issued the executive order in early May.

The 10-cent tax break on wholesale gasoline was designed to help ease economic pressure caused by the U.S. war with Iran.

WCPO met Kyle Harris in Wilder, Ky. Tuesday as he filled up his work truck at the Shell gas station along Licking Pike.

“It’s unfortunate for everybody … anybody that has a fleet vehicle, personal vehicle, gas prices are not good for anybody,” Harris said.

WATCH: How Northern Kentucky drivers feel about the looming gas price hike

Kentucky gas tax break to expire in most of the state

Harris said he was fortunate to have a work truck that helped him save, but filling up his personal car has cost about $20 more per tank on average this summer.

“We don’t have to fill up as often, but still, the increases, you never want to see that,” Harris said. “It’s going to hurt everybody’s pockets.”

In his announcement, Beshear said it was up to local officials to receive extended relief.

“To extend the May 5 executive order past the 30-day mark of Wednesday, June 10, Kentucky law required county judge/executives and city mayors to make a request,” the release read.

In Northern Kentucky, four municipalities asked for and received an extension through June 30, including Covington, Alexandria, Glencoe and Falmouth.

We reached out to multiple municipalities and judge executives in Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties to see if they applied for an extension to the gas tax break. We only heard back from Boone County Judg/Executive Gary Moore.

Moore issued the following statement:

• Kentucky ranks 36th overall in child and family well-being, according to the 2026 KIDS COUNT Data Book.
• The state saw improvements in economic well-being, with fewer children living in poverty.
• Education and health metrics have generally worsened, including lower reading and math proficiency rates.

The release of the KIDS COUNT Data Book on Monday, June 8, shows that Kentucky ranks lower than most states in child and family well-being.

The report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation analyzes all 50 states across 16 indicators related to family and community, economic well-being, education and health. The commonwealth ranks 36th overall in the 2026 results, with improvements in some areas and declines in others.

Kentucky ranks 36th overall in 2026 KIDS COUNT Data Book

Kentucky ranks 36th overall in the 2026 KIDS COUNT Data Book, showing improvements and declines in various areas.

Related to economic well-being, the number of children living in poverty in Kentucky decreased from 22% in 2019 to 19% in 2024, and the number of children whose parents lack secure employment dropped from 31% to 28%. The commonwealth ranks 39th for economic well-being.

Metrics related to education have worsened, with an overall ranking of 22. There was increase in young children not in school (ages 3-4) from 59% to 63%; an increase in fourth graders not proficient in reading from 65% to 67%; and an increase in eighth graders not proficient in math from 71% to 76%.

The rate of high school students not graduating on time has dropped from 9% to 8%.

Health metrics have also worsened, with an increase in low birth-weight babies from 8.7% to 8.8%; an increase in children without health insurance from 4% to 5%; and an increase in child and teen deaths per 100,000 from 29 to 31. The rate of children and teens who are overweight or obese has dropped from 37% to 33%. Kentucky ranks 31st for health.

Family and community metrics improved, with a drop in the percentage of children in single-parent families from 36% to 34%; a drop in children living in families where the household head lacks a high school diploma from 11% to 10%; a drop in children living in high-poverty areas from 15% to 11%; and a drop in teen births per 1,000 from 25 to 20. The commonwealth ranks 44th for family and community.

Reach Marina Johnson at Marina.Johnson@courier-journal.com.

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) – The Miss Kentucky pageant returns to Bowling Green for the fifth time, with contestants gathering for the scholarship competition.

Pageant director, Regina Webb, and several contestants previewed the event ahead of the competition.

The Miss Kentucky Scholarship Foundation has awarded more than $45 million in scholarships, ranking it among the largest scholarship providers for women in the world.

“I know I’ve heard one young lady who was a former Miss America, and she said that she won $80,000 over her time being in preliminaries in her state pageant and then won Miss America,” Webb said.

Contestants share personal growth

Contestant, Bella Franklin, said three years ago, she never would have imagined being part of the Miss Kentucky organization.

“I was a shy little girl. I didn’t even have a community service initiative. And being involved in it now, just saying yes to that one opportunity to compete in a prelim changed my life for the better. Now I’m so much more confident in myself. I’m able to talk to people and just overall the experiences that I had are truly amazing,” Franklin said.

Bowling Green resident and contestant, Madison Taylor, said she is proud to show off her hometown to contestants from across the state.

“I think Bowling Green is the perfect location for this pageant because it has everything that you could possibly need. And I’m excited for all of my friends across the Commonwealth to come and experience all the things that I love about my hometown of Bowling Green,” Taylor said.

Webb said, pageants are often misunderstood, and she wants audiences to see the women as more than their appearance.

Franklin and Taylor said, contestants are defined by far more than a crown and a sash.

“Obviously sometimes it’s hard to hear what they think, but truly just showing them that pageant girls are so much more than just the crown on the sash. We’re educated. We know how to use our voices,” Franklin said.

“These girls are smart and they have service initiatives where they’re going out into the community and making a difference. It’s really about sharing your message and making a difference in our community and our state overall,” Taylor said.

The Miss Kentucky pageant runs June 10-13 at SKyPAC in Bowling Green. The pageant can be streamed on Pageant Vision.