Combined Effort to Secure $29.75 Million for Edmonson Water District

 

 

Lynn Bledsoe

Gimlet Managing Editor

 

May 26, 2026- Brownsville, KY.- Some well-known politicians came to Brownsville to announce the funding granted to the Edmonson County Water District. Local, State and Federal governments worked together to secure a little over $29.75 million for the Edmonson County Water District. The funding will be used to build a new intake, make upgrades to the water plant and improve the district overall.

Edmonson Judge Executive Scott Lindsey made introductions and opening remarks.  Lindsey said, ” In a rural county like ours, infrastructure is everything. Reliable water service is not only essential for families and businesses today, but it is also critical for future growth, economic development, public safety, and opportunities for our next generation.”  He thanked everyone who had helped on securing the funding needed for the Edmonson Water District.

In 2022 when Lock 5 was starting to be removed from the Green River, the water levels dropped to fast causing a danger to Edmonson Water supply. Edmonson Water Manager, Kevin Shaw came out of retirement to help Edmonson County back in 2024. He went to work assessing problems and issues along with other employees and the water board. Hard decisions were made for the betterment of Edmonson Water. Today Shaw said, “This is a great day for Edmonson County, and it’s even a greater day for all the citizens.”

KY State Representative Michael Meredith, “I grew up on a hillside farm overlooking the Green River. My grandmother’s family settled on another hillside overlooking the Green River in 1802, and anybody who knows me knows I’m from Edmonson County, and it’s my home. I got a phone call in 2022 that we were missing the mark on river levels, and I became very concerned. Barry Rich, former member of the Edmonson Water Board, reached out to me, staff, board members, and magistrates, about the water dropping too quickly.”  Meredith said his goal was always for the citizens of Edmonson County not to have to carry the burden of others’ mistakes. In 2024, Rep. Meredith and Senator Givens secured $6.5 million. $3.5 million of this was reserved as matching funds, but if not needed, it could go to other uses for the Water District. This was still far from the minimum $14 million needed for a new intake to be built. Guthrie’s staff representative, Hunter Whitaker, became a big part of helping Edmonson County by spending lots of time in the county, resourcing grants, and relaying back to Congressman Guthrie what was needed. In 2024, Guthrie and McConnell tried to source money from the appropriations budget, but that fell apart. McConnell and Guthrie proposed a second plan, a Senate and House project that would not only build the new intake but also upgrade the treatment plant. This was a success, allowing Edmonson County Water to secure the funding needed to cover everything. Meredith thanked McConnell for making Edmonson County a priority in his last year in the US Senate.

KY Senator David Givens praised Rep. Michael Meredith for all the work he did to keep this issue in front of everyone. ” This is a case study of the role of government. A fascinating, in the annals of turning crisis into opportunity someone needs to catalog what Michael shared, of the way this evolved with the Army Corps of Engineers and the mistakes that were made in the initial process. Rather than letting a crisis grow worse, you, the Judge Exec., local leaders, Congressman Guthrie, Senator McConnell, and others turn the crisis into an opportunity.”  Givens praised Kevin Shaw for his determination and his staff’s determination to provide good, clean water and to reassure citizens that they will have water.

Congressman Brett Guthrie stated ,” Every time we talked in Washington DC about funding, the staffers always said ‘Edmonson County is a number one priority, we’re not changing that.” ” We are really proud that we could get this money and do this for Edmonson County. ” Congressman Guthrie stated that there was not a proper study done into the Green River, but they thought it was a proper one. Everyone, from citizens, water board members, local, state, and federal governments, worked to get things done for Edmonson County. He thanked Senator McConnell for all his help in Washington to correct a 100-year-old problem on the Green River. Congressman Guthrie stated that Senator McConnell never forgot that the most important thing was that he got to do big things for this country because people from Kentucky allowed him to do that.

Senator McConnell said, “A classic example of every level of government working together to produce a good outcome.” He thanked the citizens for electing him 7 times to represent Kentucky. He was 42 years old when he first won, and he served 42 years. “Here we are at the end of the trail, and I can’t thank you enough.”