FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTW) Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear paid homage to the coal industry Wednesday by marking a milestone in sales of special license plates.
The state has issued 50,000 of the "Friends Of Coal" license plates to Kentucky motorists in the past two and a half years. That's more than any other specialty plates in Kentucky except for collegiate plates honoring the state's universities.
"Coal mining, as I've said many times before, is one of the cornerstones of Kentucky's economy," Beshear said during a Capitol press conference. "More than 19,000 people work directly at our mine sites with several times more than that number holding jobs indirectly related to the industry."
Beshear has been one of the coal industry's biggest cheerleaders, criticizing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for not approving new permits for mines in Kentucky.