FCPS is undergoing a state audit amid lingering questions about its finances, but 2026 could bring more state-level attention to the district.
Look no further than last week's meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on State Government, where lawmakers teased a bill aimed at advocacy on the part of public school leaders.
"Coming off of all the issues in Fayette County, obviously there's a lot of issues there... that we're going to deal with in the upcoming session," Nicholasville Rep. Matt Lockett said, signaling that legislators have more in mind than perusing audit findings when they return to Frankfort in January.
Advocacy Questions
The comment came during a discussion about proposed legislation to add civil and criminal penalties to state rules barring tax dollars from being used to advocate for or against public questions on the ballot.
We believe that spending on third-party lobbyists is unethical and a gross misinterpretation of how funds should be utilized that were intended for student learning.State Rep. Vanessa Grossl
Concerns about the matter stemmed from posts by school districts advocating against Constitutional Amendment 2, which would have altered language in the state Constitution to allow lawmakers to pass voucher-style legislation if they chose. Kentucky Republicans, including Attorney General Russell Coleman, felt the public positioning violated the law.
Rep. Steve Rawlings intends to push for penalties that will add "teeth" to the statute prohibiting taxpayer-funded advocacy by public school leaders.
School Lobbying
Joining that discussion was Rep. Vanessa Grossl, who hopes to add language that would prevent K-12 public school districts and education cooperatives from hiring third-party lobbyists or PR firms — a move spurred by Lexington Herald-Leader reporting that FCPS paid tens of thousands of dollars to promote a failed tax hike proposal and defend the reputation of the superintendent.
"We believe that spending on third-party lobbyists is unethical and a gross misinterpretation of how funds should be utilized that were intended for student learning," she said. "Most of the school superintendents that I have spoken with about this issue... could not even fathom hiring an outside lobbyist in their district."
Fayette County Public Schools declined to comment for this story, but FCPS spokesperson Miranda Scully had described the contract with the lobbying group as one to conduct "community outreach, stakeholder engagement, and informational services throughout the summer to ensure all options related to the budget were fully explored and understood by the public."
The lobbying firm in question, Piper-Smith, is pulling its contract with FCPS at the end of the year, citing what it calls "reputational damage" from negative publicity.
FCPS Superintendent Demetrus Liggins has said he welcomes any examinations into the school system and its finances.
In September, Liggins told state lawmakers, when it comes to the budget, "There are countless things that I could say that I wish would have happened, should have happened, needed to happen. While those matters are being examined very thoroughly, I want to be clear. In my role as superintendent I understand that the bucks stop with me, and I accept that."