By Kentucky Public Radio
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wuky/local-wuky-805739.mp3
Frankfort, KY – Tonight, Governor Beshear holds a town hall meeting in Ashland. Wednesday he travels to Hazard and Thursday he'll be in Dry Ridge. He's already been to Henderson. He's taking his pitch for budget cuts and a 70-cent increase in the state's cigarette tax to the people. But in tight budget times, wouldn't videoconferencing be a cheaper way to relay his message? "There's a lot of ways I can communicate with folks and I think face-to-face communication is extremely important. I want to look them in the eye, tell them where we are, what we're proposing and what our options are and I want to hear from them."
The governor says he's just trying to get the ball rolling in the discussion over fixing the state's 456-million dollar revenue shortfall. He says time is of the essence and the sooner lawmakers address the deficit, the better. The next regular legislative session starts January sixth.