Financial disclosure is required of public officials and candidates because it enables the public to evaluate potential conflicts of interest, deters corruption, and increases public confidence in government. While state law requires every city and county to require financial disclosure, Louisville Metro’s requirements are inadequate and not in keeping with disclosures required by other municipalities in Kentucky.

Louisville Metro’s disclosures focus on actual, self-reported conflicts, not potential conflicts.  Sources of income, most property ownership, creditors and more are not covered by Louisville’s law, despite being included in a Kentucky League of Cities Model Ethics Ordinance and in the laws of most cities and counties, including many suburban cities right here in Jefferson County.  This week, I filed an ordinance to change that.  You can read it here. The ordinance will have first reading at Metro Council tonight and could be considered by a Council committee next week.  I hope it will pass in time to require more disclosures from candidates, including candidates for Mayor of Louisville, before the May primary election.

WLKY reported on the ordinance this week: Louisville ordinance would strengthen financial disclosures (wlky.com).

I am also working on an ordinance which would require lobbyists seeking to influence Louisville Metro decisions to register and make disclosures.  That’s done in every state, including Kentucky, and in many cities. No registration and disclosure is required in Louisville under current law. I hope that will change.  The lobbyist ordinance will be filed later this month.

When constituents hear gunfire in Louisville they assume that it is illegal.  But that’s not always the case.  While many cities in Kentucky and around the nation prohibit random gunfire in city limits, Louisville has no such prohibition.  I hope that will change, with an ordinance Council members Pat Mulvihill, Nicole George and I filed this week.

The ordinance has exceptions for self-defense, legal hunting, firing ranges, permitted and safe outdoor locations for sport shooting and more.  LMPD believes it will give officers an additional tool to stop random gunfire, including around holidays like the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve, which annually causes significant property damage and has caused injuries in Louisville. More about that “celebratory” gunfire here.

The current proposal is here. You can read more about it in this WDRB story: Ordinance would make random gunfire in Louisville illegal | News | wdrb.com.  The ordinance will have first reading at Metro Council tonight and may be considered by the Council’s Public Safety Committee next week.   

The Omicron surge in COVID-19 cases appears to have peaked in Louisville.  While many are still ill and off work, the decline in cases is allowing private and public services to get closer to normal. Yard waste in Louisville’s Urban Services District (USD) is one such service. 

Louisville’s Solid Waste Management Department appreciates everyone's patience as yard waste collection was suspended because of COVID-related staffing shortages. Yard waste collection is scheduled to resume on Monday, February 14, but will follow an every-other-week schedule through winter. In the D9 portion of the USD, that means yard waste can be set out for collection on Friday, February 18 and every other week after that. See below calendar for details on yard waste and recycling dates. Use the Recycle Coach app to check your schedule for all services- garbage, recycling, yard waste and large item collection!  

The free Christmas tree and yard waste drop-off sites will remain open until curbside collection resumes. The last day for drop-off will be Saturday, February 12. All yard waste must be in compliance with curbside guidelines. Containers used to bring yard waste to the drop-off sites must be taken back by residents.

DROP-OFF HOURS & LOCATIONS

Tuesday-Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Waste Reduction Center closes at 3 p.m. on Saturdays.

• East District Recycling Center, 595 N. Hubbards Lane
• Public Works Yard, 10500 Lower River Road (enter from Bethany Lane)
• Shawnee Park, 230 Southwestern Parkway (Athletic Complex)
• Waste Reduction Center, 636 Meriwether Avenue 

It’s time to clean house and get ready for another large item collection if you live in the 9^th District Louisville Metro Urban Services District (USD). You may begin setting out your junk on Friday, February 25, in the afternoon. All junk must be set out by Monday, February 28, at 6:00 a.m. Some items (hazardous materials, construction debris, etc.) are not collected and these guidelines are being strictly followed. For collection guidelines, please click here.

To sign up for large item set out reminders by email and text, or to find out if you are in the collection area,  click here and enter your address. After selecting your address from the list of suggested addresses, you can view collection dates by month, or sign up for reminders.

The self-service recycling drop-off locations are getting an upgrade. Each site will transition from one or two 30-yard dumpsters that had to be removed to be emptied to several 8-yard dumpsters that can be emptied into a truck on site. This allows the emptying process to be more efficient and to occur more frequently. The new design will help prevent illegal dumping. Larger dumpsters were notoriously filled with illegal materials, like construction debris, causing contamination to the recyclables. New signage is clear and consistent showing what is accepted and what is not. 

Thanks to a partnership with the Waste Management District, a front loader truck and enough dumpsters for all 14 sites were purchased. The new recycling dumpsters have been placed at Cyril Allgeier Community Center and the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center parking lot so far. The transition will continue for the remaining locations. Watch MetroTV's announcement video

Nothing makes my phone ring more than the removal of trees in public rights-of-way.  Unfortunately, not everyone seems to know (or care) that removal of a public tree without a permit is prohibited by Louisville ordinance and subject to a fine of up to $1,000.

Public trees include any tree in Louisville Metro’s right-of way, generally including, among other areas, trees in the soil between the sidewalk and the curb.   Topping, severely pruning or otherwise disfiguring a public tree is also prohibited. 

Louisville’s public tree ordinance is here.

The February D9 Community Conversation is scheduled for Tuesday, February 22, at the St. Matthews Library, 3940 Grandview Avenue, beginning at 6:30 pm. I’ll be available for discussion of anything on your mind. This is an in-person meeting, and masks and social distancing are required.

If you prefer to watch virtually, you can tune in live on the Councilman Bill Hollander Facebook page. You can submit questions ahead of time to my Legislative Assistant, Kyle Ethridge.

Please mark your calendar and join us – and bring along a friend or neighbor!

The Louisville Asset Building Coalition (LABC) is providing FREE tax preparation services again this year. There are in-person and drop off appointments available. The service is FREE if you earned $66,000 Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) or less in 2021.

To make an appointment at United Crescent Hill Ministries (UCHM), please call (502) 574-5687 to see if you qualify and make your appointment. Drop off only appointments are available every Friday through the end of tax season between 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at United Crescent Hill Ministries, 150 S. State Street, in Clifton.

Other locations throughout Louisville offer appointments too. To make an appointment please call (502) 305-0005 or click here for an online appointment. Click here to view the brochure of other locations.

In order to access free self-file assistance, please visit www.labcservices.org and click on the “Free Tax Help” option.

AARP Foundation Tax-Aide Free Income Tax Preparation Assistance

Tax preparation assistance is also available through the AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program, which provides tax assistance to anyone, free of charge, with a focus on taxpayers who are over 50 and have low to moderate income. Assistance will be available by appointment only at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2822 Frankfort Avenue.

Appointments are available every Wednesday from 10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. from February 2 through Apr 13, 2022.  For an appointment call 502-208-6731 or visit the web scheduler at http://www.aarp-tax-aide-lou.org/Sites/sites.html   For more information and a full AARP schedule, please visit www.aarp-tax-aide-lou.org.

Recently constituents have contacted me regarding improper use of the walking path in Seneca Park. As a result, Olmsted Parks Conservancy installed new signage to indicate that the path is not intended for rollerblading or bicycling.

“No rollerblades or bicycles on the walking track, please.”

As always, I appreciate the constituents who pointed out the problem! 

Café LOUIE is back in 2022 to connect citizens to their elected representatives, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. each Saturday morning through March 26. While sessions in January and on February 5 have been virtual, organizers hope to return to in-person sessions after that date. 

Elected officials will be given a brief time for prepared remarks and to answer a few pre-selected questions submitted by attendees.  You can submit questions on the form at the bottom of this page: Café LOUIE | The Library Foundation (lfplfoundation.org).  

Every Café LOUIE is open to the public. I will be participating at events on February 26 at the St. Matthews Library and March 26 at the Crescent Hill Library. The events are streamed at this Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CafeLOUIE/. 

The Crescent Hill Community Council needs your help planning the 4th of July Festival. They will be having a kickoff meeting on Thursday, February 10th at 7:00 PM via Zoom. Help is still needed in the following areas: Art Fair, Children’s Fun Zone, Cake Booth, Pet Contest, Publicity, Fund-Raising and Logistics and more!

If you are interested in helping in the planning of one of these areas, please join in at the meeting and/or contact Cynthia Thomas, 4th of July Festival Chair at cynthiathomas01@gmail.com.  This is a great way to get involved in the neighborhood.

The Louisville Sustainability Council (LSC) opened the 2021-22 grant cycle for the Louisville Sustainability Fund in November 2021. This fund offers grants to support innovative, entrepreneurial projects and programs to plan for the impact of climate change on our most vulnerable citizens, while supporting community equity and resilience. Recipients will receive between $500 and $5,000 toward their project and will have access to LSC events, programs, mentors and the opportunity to partner their work with the LSC initiatives. Apply for the 2021-22 Louisville Sustainability Fund by February 28. 

The Louisville Zoo invites students of all ages throughout Kentucky to get involved in its 10th annual Trashformation: A Trash-to-Treasure Art Contest for Students. Kentucky students are encouraged to communicate the importance of recycling and sustainability through art, and all entries must be made from recyclable materials. This annual contest is part of the Zoo’s Party for the Planet: A Month-Long Celebration of the Earth, powered by the LG&E and KU Foundation.

The registration deadline for the contest is Saturday, February 19. Visit louisvillezoo.org/trashformation  for more information on categories, rules and to register.  

Pictured: Bug 3 by Dottie Matthews