Kentucky’s newest House member plans to take a leave of absence from her job while the legislature is in session. 

It’s not uncommon for state lawmakers to continue working in their careers while the General Assembly is in session, but Republican Suzanne Miles doesn’t quite find herself in the same situation. 

Miles is the Owensboro field representative for 2nd District Congressman Brett Guthrie.  She plans to go on unpaid leave to avoid a conflict of interest.

“Ethically and morally, I would not be accepting two checks during the same time period," says Miles.  "We’ve had a lot of discussion about that.”

Miles won a special election this week for state representative, replacing Democrat John Arnold who resigned amid sexual harassment accusations. 

The 7th District House seat covers Union and parts of Henderson and Daviess counties.

In this season of giving, you’re no doubt thinking about your family and friends, and all the things you have to be thankful for in 2013.

That spirit of giving can also extend to organizations that matter to you—the ones that really make a difference in your life. As the year comes to a close and you consider which organizations to support, please consider putting WKU Public Radio on your list!

Your tax-deductible, end-of-the-year gift will help us bring you the excellent news and information programming, music,  and weekend shows that you rely on hearing whenever you listen to WKU Public Radio.

When you give at certain levels, you can get one of our great thank you gifts, like the WKU Public Radio sweatshirt and baseball hat. Those items would make great holiday gifts for you, or perhaps someone you know who loves WKU Public Radio. You can see all of our gifts here.

After nearly four months of meetings and without interviewing a single witness or examining any evidence, the special House committee tasked with investigating claims of sexual harassment against a former state lawmaker voted Thursday afternoon to end its operations.

This summer, female staffers with the Legislative Research Commission say former Rep. John Arnold, a Democrat from Sturgis, sexually harassed and assaulted them.

Democratic committee chair Jeff Donohue of Louisville made the motion to disband the panel. He cited an opinion drafted by legal counsel that said lawmakers could not discipline Arnold because he resigned in September.

“Despite the committee’s lack of jurisdiction and as a member of the House of Representatives, I’d like to work with my colleagues to develop stronger policies and laws to prevent sexual harassment. And that is what I plan to do. And I thank you all for your time today.”

Donohue says he doesn't know how much the committee has cost taxpayers.

The Kentucky Department of Corrections has released an action plan to remedy missing DNA samples from convicted felons.

An investigation by the Office of the Inspector General found that the department was missing more than 16,000 DNA samples from felons. The samples were required to be collected under a new state law. Those samples are used for forensic analysis in all manner of cases.

Department of Corrections spokeswoman Lisa Lamb said the new, more stringent collection plan is already being implemented.

“We now have a multi-level review to ensure that DNA is collected prior to any type of release from custody. This could be an offender who serves out his sentence in prison, that multi-level review takes place to ensure that before he or she walks out that door, that the DNA has been collected.”

Lamb says the Department of Corrections will conduct an internal investigation into the issue without the assistance of the state auditor.

The Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is driving home a second car of the year award.

The vehicle manufactured at the Bowling Green General Motors plant has been named Autoweek's Best Car for 2014. Automobile magazine last month gave similar honors to the Stingray.

"The thing about the Corvette is that it's always been a good sports car for the money. But I can tell you that it's really the best sports car you can buy right now regardless of price," said Wes Raynal, editor of Autoweek.

Raynal says the new Corvette has a more comfortable and better-built interior than previous versions of the vehicle. He believes the Stingray will continue the Corvette's image as an iconic car.

"I don't know if you've ever seen that poster of the '63 Stingray, and the tagline is something like, 'They don't write songs about Volvos,'" Raynal told WKU Public Radio. "It's part of America. It's like Elvis, and Bruce Springsteen, and Coca-Cola, and Levi's."