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SubscribeSecretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kentucky’s chief business official, is reminding Kentucky businesses and those authorized to do business in Kentucky that they must file an annual report with the Secretary of State’s office and pay a $15 filing fee no later than June 30, 2017.
Businesses can quickly file their 2017 annual reports by visiting the Secretary of State’s website. The online report includes information generated from businesses’ prior filings, eliminating the need to enter the same information every year.
“We set a record in 2016 for the number of annual reports filed online – nearly 150,000 – saving both time and money for those businesses and the state,” said Grimes. “You can quickly view your report, make necessary changes, and file it.” Businesses may also file and pay in person or via U.S. mail.
The filing requirement applies to the more than 200,000 corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, limited liability partnerships, business trusts and professional service corporations registered in the commonwealth.
Businesses that fail to file an annual report before the deadline will be listed in bad standing with the Secretary of State and receive a final 60-day notice. Failure to comply with the 60-day notice results in administrative dissolution of the business entity or revocation of authority to do business in Kentucky.
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is beginning a tour of the state to hold conversations with Kentuckians about the state of the commonwealth’s civic health. The series of stops, which will be in every part of Kentucky, started Thursday at the University of Louisville.
“At the beginning of the year, my office released the second installment of Kentucky’s Civic Health Index, which revealed some alarming figures about the trust Kentuckians place in public institutions,” said Grimes. “We know that the more engaged people are, the more faith they are likely to have in important institutions such as media and government – and even in the people around them, like neighbors.”
The Index showed the commonwealth improved in national rankings in social connectedness, community engagement and voter registration since Grimes released the first report in 2012. But, it also showed that fewer than half of Kentuckians have confidence in media, a decline of more than 10 percent in three years, and fewer Kentuckians are trusting of their neighbors. Overall, Kentucky ranks 48th in the nation, ahead of only New Mexico (49th), Montana (50th) and Utah (51st), for public confidence in media.
Grimes has called on Kentucky’s elected officials – including legislators and constitutional officers – to help start down the road of restoring trust by signing a pledge to not share fake information and to call out inaccurate news and information to constituents. The Restore Trust in Kentucky pledge has already been signed by many officials, and Grimes is encouraging other Kentuckians to sign on at sos.ky.gov.
“Kentucky is at its best when everyone is engaged,” said Grimes. “This latest Index confirmed our work is not complete when it comes to improving the commonwealth’s civic health, and we are rededicating ourselves – with many partners – to formulating fresh strategies to help bridge participation and engagement gaps.”
The next stop on Grimes’ civic health tour is next week at Western Kentucky University, a partner in the release of the Civic Health Index. The roundtable discussion will be held Feb. 1, 3:30 p.m. CT, at the Faculty House.
The full Civic Health Index and related information is available at sos.ky.gov.
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes this week met with Chinese Embassy officials to continue to cultivate the economic and cultural relationship between Kentucky and the People’s Republic of China. Grimes is Kentucky’s chief business official.
“As Secretary of State, I look for every opportunity to help grow Kentucky’s economy and further develop connections for our state and its businesses,” Grimes said. “Kentucky’s trading relationship with China is strong and continues to grow because of the many factors that make our state a great place to do business. I am hopeful that with continued dialogue we will see even more investment in the commonwealth.”
China is the commonwealth’s 4th largest export partner with more than $1.9 billion of Kentucky exports in 2015, a growth of more than 16 percent year over year.
Grimes traveled to China in 2015 to provide information about Kentucky, its business climate and economic development opportunities in the state as part of a delegation coordinated and funded by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.
During the week-long trip, Grimes spent time in several cities and met with various government and business officials. Numerous Kentucky companies, including Lexmark, KFC/Yum! Brands, Brown Forman, and Ashland Oil, have offices in China.
Grimes has also made visits to Birtley Industrial Equipment Corporation’s headquarters in Lexington and offices in China. Birtley, a manufacturer of advanced coal preparation products, was the first Chinese manufacturer to locate in Kentucky, investing approximately $10 million and creating as many as 50 new full-time jobs.
“Encouraging businesses to make Kentucky their home is vital to growing jobs and opportunity in our commonwealth,” said Grimes. “There are also many opportunities for Kentucky businesses to do business abroad, further growing Kentucky’s economy, and I am committed to helping build relationships with other countries to provide the foundation for those investments.”
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is calling on fellow elected officials, beginning with Kentucky constitutional officers and members of the General Assembly, to help restore trust in public institutions after a recent report on Kentucky’s civic health shows trust in media in the Commonwealth at an all-time low.
Grimes, the Commonwealth’s chief advocate for civic engagement, released the 2016 Kentucky Civic Health Index on Wednesday. The Index, which is available on the Secretary’s website at www.sos.ky.gov, measures the state of engagement and civic literacy in the Commonwealth.
“The foundation of our democracy and our nation depends on trust in our institutions and in each other,” Grimes said. “This new report shows an alarming years-long decline in Kentuckians’ confidence in news and media, and that corrosive distrust is perpetuated by the unadulterated peddling of fake information. Today, I am asking my fellow constitutional officers and members of the General Assembly to sign a pledge to refuse to traffic in fake and fact-less information, and to help restore their constituents’ trust in our public institutions and each other.”
The Index shows the Commonwealth improved in national rankings in social connectedness, community engagement and voter registration since Grimes released the first report in 2012. More Kentuckians are volunteering, making charitable contributions, and registering to vote. However, troubling findings revealed that fewer than half of Kentuckians have confidence in media, a decline of more than 10 percent in three years, and fewer Kentuckians are trusting of their neighbors. Overall, Kentucky ranks 48th in the nation, ahead of only New Mexico (49th), Montana (50th) and Utah (51st), for public confidence in media.
The pledge may be signed on the Secretary’s website, www.sos.ky.gov. All elected officials joining the effort will be publicly listed.
Grimes presented the first-ever Civic Health Index shortly after taking office in 2012. She then undertook an extensive effort to offset what the report showed as declining civic health by launching a 15-stop, statewide roundtable tour to discuss the finding and work toward solutions with Kentuckians.
“While we have made progress over the years, our work to ensure more citizens are active in their neighborhoods, communities, and the Commonwealth is not yet finished,” said Grimes. “I hope all Kentuckians will join me to help to restore trust in our public institutions, to get engaged in civic matters, and to usher in a new era of connectedness.”
Partners on the 2016 Kentucky Civic Health Index are the Secretary of State’s office, the Institute for Citizenship and Social Responsibility at Western Kentucky University, the National Conference on Citizenship, and the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville.
The State Board of Elections on Tuesday, Nov. 22, certified vote totals from the Nov. 8 general election and issued certificates of election to candidates who received the highest number of votes, completing the official administration process of the statewide election. Detailed official results are available at GoVoteKY.com.
Approximately 1.95 million Kentuckians, 59% percent of registered voters, cast ballots in the general election, said Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kentucky’s chief election official.
“Our election administrators – more than 15,000 across Kentucky, including the State Board of Elections, county boards of elections, county clerks, and precinct election officers – are the backbone of this process, and again, they led a successful election,” said Grimes. “I am deeply grateful for their hard work and dedication to ensuring our elections run efficiently and fairly.”
Grimes announced that the Meeting of Presidential Electors will be held on Dec. 19 at 11:30 a.m. at the Supreme Court Room in Frankfort. The electors cast the official votes of Kentucky for President and Vice President of the United States.
The Kentucky Election Integrity Task Force also met Tuesday to review the administration of the election. The members, which include U.S. Attorney’s offices, the FBI, the Kentucky Attorney General’s office, and Kentucky State Police, said the high-profile election was largely free from issue or problems. Law enforcement officials are currently reviewing election complaints they have received to determine which may merit further investigation. Grimes chairs the task force, which she brought together for the first time in 2012.
Pursuant to Kentucky law, the Office of the Attorney General will randomly select six counties in which it will conduct a post-election audit. The drawing was scheduled for last Tuesday.
The State Board of Elections led a post-election meeting of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Advisory Committee to assess current voting processes and discuss possible improvements. Kentucky is one of the few states in the nation which conducts regular meetings in accordance with the federal voting law passed in 2002.
“I have been a committed advocate for making sure every Kentuckian – especially those with disabilities – are able to cast their ballots independently and in private,” said Grimes. “Voting is a cherished right, and I’m proud to help preserve it for all citizens.”
Grimes continues to push for legislation that would make it easier for persons who qualify by age, disability, and illness to vote absentee in-person. The proposal enjoys the support of disability advocates and has the recommendation of the HAVA Advisory Committee.
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes today projected approximately 60 percent of the 3.3 million people registered to vote in Kentucky will turn out for next week’s general election.
“We hope this year will continue to be a record-breaking year in Kentucky,” said Grimes. “Two weeks ago, we made history with the highest number of Kentuckians registered to vote. Now, we hope that will translate to great voter turnout on Election Day.”
Grimes tracks absentee ballot totals as an indicator of final turnout on Election Day. According to current statistics, Grimes projects turnout for the Nov. 8 general election will be on par with the presidential elections of 2008 and 2012 when 64 percent and 60 percent of Kentuckians voted, respectively.
As of Monday, nearly 47,000 voters had voted in person on machines in county clerks’ offices and approximately 39,700 mail-in absentee ballots had been sent to voters who had requested them.
About 20 percent of Kentucky voters cast ballots in the May Primary Election.
Grimes encourages voters to prepare to vote on Nov. 8 by checking their polling places and viewing sample ballots through GoVoteKY.com, Kentucky’s one-stop portal for election resources.
Voters can honor Kentucky veterans’ service by casting their ballots in their honor during the upcoming general election on Nov. 8. Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is reminding Kentuckians to participate in her office’s “Vote in Honor of a Veteran” program.
“The more than 300,000 veterans who live in our Commonwealth deserve our respect and admiration for their service. All of them have given of themselves to protect our rights – especially the right to vote – and many gave their lives,” said Grimes, Kentucky’s chief election official. “We owe it to them to go to the polls on Election Day and cast our vote in their honor.”
Voters can request a “Vote in Honor of a Veteran” button from their county clerk or the Secretary of State’s office. The button can be personalized to include the name of a veteran the voter will honor on Election Day. Voters can also submit online tributes to the veterans they are honoring at sos.ky.gov.
Grimes is passionate about supporting Kentucky’s active-duty and veteran military members and their families. As Secretary of State, Grimes has advocated on their behalf in a range of issues from voting to business creation to job opportunities, and she played an integral role in the creation of the Kentucky Veterans Hall of Fame.
Following a trip to the Middle East, Grimes fought for improved voting procedures for deployed military which resulted in the Commonwealth’s first Kentucky Military Heroes Voting Initiative, allowing military to receive absentee ballots through a secure online portal and cutting out weeks in the military absentee process. More than 4,500 military and overseas voters have utilized the portal ahead of the Nov. 8 general election. Military voters who qualify can access the portal at GoVoteKY.com.
