Is fall finally here? It certainly feels like it. A stout cold front is blowing through the region as we type this. You’ll experience a sharp drop in temperatures today and into the weekend. Frost may even be possible! We can all finally breathe a legitimate sigh of relief. It’ll warm up some next week, though, so don’t worry. [WxOrNot]
Here’s another reminder that the 2026 Fall Fiesta at the Harvest Fest takes place on October 17. Everything goes down at Fountain Square Park from 11:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and it will be the highlight of your month, so you absolutely have to show up. There will be free pumpkins, gigantic skeletons, a Catrina contest with cool prizes, face painting, food, music and more. This year’s event logo is available on a great t-shirt, FYI, and they’ll have stickers available at the event. And if you’re a vendor or community fixture, you should consider supporting the 501(c)3 non-profit organization behind the event, the Bowling Green Community Development Initiative, started by Jose Gonzalez of Mercadito Hispano. Contributions are tax-deductible. [Fall Fiesta Bowling Green]
Nearly 90 scarecrows now line the trails at Lost River Cave, part of a 15th-anniversary tradition organized by community groups and businesses across Bowling Green and South Central Kentucky. The Scarecrow Trail, presented this year by M&L Electrical, is free to walk and stretches about a mile from the head of the greenways down to the spring, according to Nicole Coomer, director of marketing at Lost River Cave. [WBKO]
The State Budget Director released economic data for September and General Fund receipts increased 11.3% while Road Fund receipts dropped another 2%. Individual income taxes grew 4.4% but are down 4.4% for the year. Sales taxes rose 4.5%, up 5.8% for the year. Business taxes rose 51.2%, up 136.7% for the first quarter of the year. Cigarette taxes fell 0.5%, up 0.5% for the year. Property taxes jumped 18.3%, up 17.7% for the year. Coal severance taxes plummeted 62.8%, down 4% for the year. Motor fuels receipts dropped 5.2%. Vehicle use taxes increased 2.1%, down 1.4% for the year. License and privilege taxes grew 1.6%, down 1.3% for the year. [Press Release]
2027 Coca-Cola Scholars Program semifinalists have been announced and three Bowling Green students made the cut. Three others in the metropolitan area are also on the list, along with just ten others statewide. More than 113,000 applied but only 1,227 advanced (just 1.08%) to semifinalist based on their leadership and service in their schools and communities. [BLBG]
Hate to break it to you but, no, Kentucky is not likely to be an early indicator of how large the “blue wave” will be. Anyone truly in the thick of politics in the Commonwealth of Kentucky knows that’s not going to be a thing here. KY-05 was held by a Democrat 20 years ago and it doesn’t mean anything. Heck, KY-03 in Louisville was held by a Republican for a decade until about 20 years ago. No bearing on the national outlook. [Courier-Journal]
101 months? Let’s start with 101 years and go from there. A Bowling Green man convicted of federal terror-related crimes stemming from his membership in ISIS awaits resentencing after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his case. Mirsad Ramic, 36, was sentenced last year to 101 months in prison after a jury in U.S. District Court found him guilty of providing material support and resources to ISIS, conspiring to provide material support to ISIS and receiving military-type training from a designated terrorist organization. [BG Daily News]
The Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet released September unemployment data that’s seasonally adjusted (cooked/sugar-coated.) September’s unemployment rate, by this measure, was 4.7%, unchanged from August, but up 0.2% from a year ago. The US rate was 4.2%. There’s a lot of hype from the Beshear Administration about these numbers but only 6,721 people statewide got jobs statewide from August to September. Nonfarm employment dropped 800; leisure and hospitality grew by 2,000; accommodation and food services increased by 1,500; mining and logging increased by 200; federal government jobs in Kentucky were up 200; state government jobs up 100; local government jobs down 300. All government job losses in Kentucky totaled 2,600. Information services down 200 for the month, 500 for the year; financial activities sector dropped 200, down 500 for the year; manufacturing jobs fell by 300; durable goods manufacturing down 600; non-durable goods up 300; Manufacturing jobs down 2,100 overall for the year. Trade, transportation, utilities down 500; construction down 500; educational and health services down 600; social assistance down 900; professional and business services down another 900; scientific and technical services down 400; management jobs down 200; administrative, support and waste management down 300. [Press Release]
WKU Bachelor of Fine Arts film students took over Jody Richards Hall on Friday and Saturday, holding open auditions for community members interested in acting for student films. Sophomore film student Jesse Dixon said the auditions are open to anyone in the Bowling Green area. He explained that the department videotapes each audition and uploads it to a pool for directors to choose from when they begin their projects next semester. [WKU Herald]
Governor Andy Beshear says 24,655 children and 6,572 seniors in Kentucky are among thousands facing hunger after changes to federal food assistance programs. Wednesday, Beshear sent letters to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Kentucky’s congressional delegation about concerns he has following the changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). He says the changes resulted in more than 80,000 Kentuckians losing access to benefits. [WLEX18]
Kentucky’s state-required test results in 2025-26 showed progress in key areas alongside a continued need for improvement, state Department of Education officials said Thursday as testing data was released. Overall, students in the state received a color coded score of yellow — the medium rating — at the elementary, middle and high school levels, the same as the prior two years. [Herald-Leader]
Have y’all been following this grocery store drama in Metcalfe County? Houchens has now officially withdrawn from plans to develop a grocery store in Metcalfe County, Judge/Executive Larry Wilson said in an Oct. 14 statement. Wilson said company representatives told him the project was not feasible because of market conditions. Wilson said he met with Houchens in Bowling Green that day and learned the company had considered the proposal three times. He said the final decision had been made a couple of days before their meeting. [WCLU]
The WKU Department of Physics and Astronomy is set to host Nightmare on Physics Avenue this year from 4:30 pm to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27 in Kelly Thompson Hall. The event features Halloween-themed science activities and is led by physics students and instructors on campus. Guests can experience the thrills and enjoy candy. Hardin Planetarium, next to Kelly Thompson Hall, will offer 15-minute themed planetarium shows every 20 minutes from 4:30 until the last performance at 5:50 p.m. The free public show will begin at 7 p.m. [WNKY & WKU Physics]
Frankfort’s Board of Commissioners decided to give Flock the boot in Kentucky’s capitol city. When we say decided, we mean the entire board voted unanimously to end their contract with the shady company. Seems like it might be a good idea for Bowling Green to follow in their footsteps. [WKYT]
Kentucky has reported 157 measles cases in 2026, an increase of more than 50 cases that were confirmed Tuesday. The outbreak, which is a 35-year high for the state, is concentrated in western Kentucky, with Christian County reporting 45 cases and Trigg County reporting 25, according to data provided by state health officials. [WDRB-WAVE]
Eight states sued OpenAI on Wednesday, accusing it of deceiving parents about the safety of ChatGPT. The coordinated lawsuits — filed individually in Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, West Virginia, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho and Montana — target the AI giant for the harms its generative AI chatbot is alleged to have caused to ​children in those states. [NBC News]
Temperatures are dropping and the sun is setting earlier, so you should check out what the Warren County Public Library has going on. Yes, really, the library system. Here. Truly a hidden gem in Bowling Green and a public system that rivals those in larger cities here in the Commonwealth. No, we don’t say that lightly. Having visited county libraries across the state for decades — including extensive time with the systems in Louisville and Lexington — we can confidently say Warren County offers a public system that impresses us. [BLBG & WCPL]