Lawrence County Organization of Teachers

02/20/2026

Don’t let up! We have to continue to demand respect! Stay strong!

02/20/2026

02/17/2026

HB 500 Will Devastate Educator & Public Employee Health Insurance. 310,506 people are impacted directly and each of those Kentuckians contribute to the family income, they shop at their local grocery store, they tithe at their chosen church, they buy gas at their local gas stations, their stylists cuts their hair, etc. Millions of Kentuckians will be impacted by the current provisions of HB 500. Call the LRC hotline at 800-372-7181 and send a message to your state senator or state representative: NO on HB 500

02/17/2026

🚨‼️

02/16/2026

HB 500 (the House budget) is a direct hit to Kentucky’s public schools—and the people who keep them running.

What’s in it:
✅ Freezes SEEK funding for 2 years (after decades of not keeping up with inflation)
✅ Cuts school transportation—shorting bus funding by $129M by 2028 compared to what state law requires
✅ No educator raises—even as Kentucky’s teacher shortage gets worse
✅ No new preschool investment—despite proven benefits of early learning

And the biggest blow: public workers & retirees’ health care.

‼️ HB 500 caps the state’s health insurance contribution. The Kentucky Personnel Cabinet warns this could create a $202M shortfall by 2028, likely passed on to workers through premium hikes or benefit cuts.

That could impact 310,506 Kentuckians—teachers, bus drivers, school staff, retirees, and their families—with premium increases projected as high as 78%, plus higher deductibles and reduced coverage.

We're holding an Urgent Action Call on Monday, February 16th at 8:00pm ET. We'll go over what's in the bill, how you could be impacted, and how to take action. We're expecting a very large crowd, so don't wait to secure your spot: https://www.mobilize.us/protectourschoolsky/event/904073/

02/06/2026

02/06/2026

02/01/2026

Laid Back Country Picker performs "LB's Truth" from his upcoming album, "Go West." Available for preorder now, shipping Dec. 9th. Find out more at https://ww...

09/20/2025

Teacher-tested calm-down strategies for *every* grade: https://edut.to/46N8e7J

08/28/2025

TEACHERS’ RETIREMENT FUNDS SEE DOUBLE-DIGIT GAINS FOR THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR

FRANKFORT, Ky. – Kentucky teachers’ retirement investments posted the third consecutive double-digit gains for the recently concluded fiscal year – 12.34% for the Retirement Annuity Trust and 12.58% for the Health Insurance Trust.

That follows previous years of 12.27% and 10.61% for the annuity trust and 12.73% and 11.94% for the health trust.

Returns for the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Kentucky (TRS) annuity trust over the last 30 years are 7.95% compounded, which is ahead of the 7.1% long-term assumed rate of return. TRS staff presented the pension system’s investment results for the year ended June 30 to the Investment Committee at its Aug. 28 meeting. The net return after fees is 12.04% for the annuity trust and 12.3% for the health trust.

TRS’s annuity investments were in the top decile for the most recent year, the three-year and the 10-year period – all at 6%. The returns were in the top quartile for the five-year period. All rankings are according to Aon Investments USA’s analysis of large domestic pension plans with more than $1 billion in assets.

During the year, TRS benefitted from another year of full funding from the state budget along with an additional $40 million from the budget reserve trust fund.

“Teachers will benefit from another year of full funding and another strong year in the markets,” TRS Executive Secretary Gary Harbin said. “Disciplined investing focused on the best returns is beneficial in all markets – and that’s long been the approach of the TRS Board of Trustees and the investment team.”