Two groups bid for 'In God We Trust' license plates
By Bill Estep
BESTEP@HERALD-LEADER.COM
FRANKFORT -- The effort to create a state "In God We Trust" license plate is causing some controversy, and not because of questions about separation of church and state.
Rather, there are two different groups proposing a plate with the same motto. One is a non-profit that raises awareness of what it believes are damages caused by pornography and the sex trade. The other is the legislature.
Reclaim Our Culture Kentuckiana (ROCK), the non-profit, applied Nov. 26 to the state Transportation Cabinet to establish a specialty "In God We Trust" plate six weeks before state Rep. Jim Gooch, D-Providence, filed House Bill 207 to create the same plate.
If ROCK's application had been approved by the Transportation Cabinet, it could have received money for programs from the sale of the plates. Under the bill in the legislature, however, the money is designated to help homeless and needy veterans.
The organization contacted legislators about letting its proposal go forward and offered to meet with lawmakers. However, group members think Rep. Hubert Collins, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, used information from ROCK's research as a guide in revising HB 207, then quickly moved the measure through his committee without meeting with the group.
"They used the work product as a road map to go forward after they heard about our idea," said MaryAnn Gramig, policy director for ROCK.
Michael Aldridge, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, said the initial version of HB 207 referred to the "In God We Trust" plate under the law covering regular plates. He questioned whether that could raise a legal issue over state endorsement of religion, but Collins' amendment put that to rest by making "In God We Trust" a specialty plate, Aldridge said.
However, Collins, D-Wittensville, said he didn't use any information from ROCK to prepare a substitute for Gooch's original bill.
Collins said that after the bill was passed by his committee, he didn't feel a need to call ROCK members back.
The issue has caused some hard feelings. In a Web site posting, ROCK said it respects veterans and is "sickened that their integrity and sacrifice is being exploited" by some legislators for political gain.
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