Pricey recounts, pricey gas

While a few small-government "liberty" candidates made waves in the May primary election with upset wins over GOP incumbents, several others who lost their races are also making noise of their own — filing petitions for vote recounts that may costs tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.

This week we also saw the governor and Republicans from the Louisville area call for relief on rising gas prices, while a bill to address gun violence hangs in the balance in the U.S. Senate.

Also: Another week or more of waiting to see if the Roe v. Wade decision is overturned and abortion becomes illegal in Kentucky.

Recounts ain't cheap

So, you say you want a recount? Well, it's going to cost you. A lot.

Judges handling the recount petitions of two Republican state House candidates who lost in landslides set their bonds at more than $21,000, while election officials estimate two congressional primary recounts will each cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

These recounts cannot start until the petitioners post the bonds, with several of the candidates saying their amount is too high. However, GOP Secretary of State Michael Adams says the petitioners are trying to push the real costs of a recount onto taxpayers, who "should not be forced to pay for the circus proposed by these conspiracy theorists."

Speaking of, these recount bond hearings are also notable for the testimony of state Sen. Adrienne Southworth, who claimed to be an expert on election recounts due to her marketing degree and experience sorting and counting wedding invitations.

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Waiting on Roe

The U.S. Supreme Court decision that may affect the fate of Roe v. Wade and legal abortion in America will have to wait until at least next Tuesday, but Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron kept abortion in the headlines this week.

Cameron sued the administration of Gov. Andy Beshear for not enforcing one of the provisions of Kentucky's new law implementing sweeping new abortion restrictions. The administration countered that a federal judge had already preliminarily enjoined the law's enforcement and stayed related litigation, calling the lawsuit "a baseless and blatant political stunt."

How soon this law goes into effect comes down to the fate of Roe v. Wade, with Debby Yetter writing this week about how local abortion rights advocates are already planning how to help women obtain services outside Kentucky if the state's trigger law bans abortion.

The notorious RFG

Just hours after Republican legislators called on Beshear to request the EPA drop a federal mandate for smog-reducing gas in the area, the governor announced that he had already done just the same.

The feds would still have to approve the waiver before stations in the Louisville area could stop using reformulated gas (RFG), but Beshear and Republicans said doing so would save consumers 20 to 32 cents per gallon on gas for some relief in the face of prices that are nearing $5 per gallon.

In other commuter news, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb rejected an overture by Beshear to avoid an 8% increase in RiverLink bridge tolls between the two states.

Will Senate act on a gun bill?

After taking criticism that he was more passionate to act fast on a bill to provide extra security to Supreme Court justices than one to address the gun massacre of 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell cracked the door open on supporting a compromise framework.

McConnell, who has decades of experience opposing and blocking gun reform bills, said he is "comfortable" with the framework reached by a bipartisan group of legislators and may support a bill if it reflects that framework.

That is not outright opposition, but pay close attention to those qualifiers.

In Louisville, hundreds participated in the "March for Our Lives" Saturday to support gun control legislation — just prior to another night of gun violence in the city.

In case you missed it...

• 2021 was another record year for fatal drug overdoses in Kentucky, with 72% of the deaths involving the powerful opioid fentanyl.

• Attorney General Cameron wants to impose stiff new felony penalties on shoplifters cheating self-checkout scanners.

• Louisville Metro Council doled out another round of American Rescue Plan Act funding.

• Not everyone thinks the new Kentucky law cracking down on "porch pirates" is a good thing.

Reach reporter Joe Sonka at jsonka@courierjournal.com and follow him on Twitter at @joesonka. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today at the top of this page.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Pricey recounts, pricey gas