Kentucky Takes a Proactive Step on Carbon Monoxide Safety in Schools — and Other States Should Pay Attention

When it comes to carbon monoxide (CO) safety in schools, most action happens after someone is harmed. Too often, it takes hospitalizations—or worse—for inspections, policies, or funding to follow.

That’s why Kentucky’s recent announcement outlining a 2026 statewide carbon monoxide safety initiative deserves national attention.

According to documented press reports included in the CO Safe Schools incident database, Kentucky has experienced at least 38 hospitalizations of students and staff due to on-campus carbon monoxide incidents since the year 2000. While we cannot change the past, we are encouraged to see proactive, preventive steps being taken to protect future generations of students.

This initiative signals a meaningful shift: acknowledging aging infrastructure as a real risk factor, treating carbon monoxide as a serious health and life-safety issue, and acting before tragedy strikes.

Photography sourced from KY Department of Education

What Kentucky Is Proposing Related to School Carbon Monoxide Safety and Why It Matters

Governor Andy Beshear’s announcement outlines a multi-pronged approach that focuses on prevention, inspection, and awareness, starting with schools and expanding to other vulnerable settings.

Key elements of the initiative include:

• Proactive inspections of aging buildings, beginning with schools, then extending to daycares and senior living facilities

• State-led visual inspections of furnace rooms, HVAC systems, kitchen equipment, and emergency monitoring devices

• Carbon monoxide readings taken during inspections, with all Housing, Buildings and Construction (HBC) inspectors now carrying CO detection devices

• Partnerships with local building personnel and the Department of Education to ensure inspections are coordinated and consistent

As Gov. Beshear noted, “When a student walks into a school, they should be focused on learning, not the safety of their classroom.” 

That statement gets to the heart of the issue: safety should be built into the environment, not placed on the shoulders of students or educators.

Importantly, the initiative also recognizes seasonal risk, noting that winter heating use increases the likelihood of CO exposure when systems malfunction or are improperly ventilated.

What We Hope Kentucky Gets Right

While this initiative is a strong step forward, how it is implemented will determine its long-term impact. From our work tracking incidents nationwide, there are several areas we hope Kentucky prioritizes:

Inspection is a starting point, not the finish line. Visual inspections and spot CO readings are critical, but they must lead to concrete follow-up actions—repairs, upgrades, ventilation corrections, and, where needed, installation of appropriate CO detection systems.

Detection must be reliable, appropriate, and consistent. Carbon monoxide doesn’t respect room boundaries or schedules. We hope this initiative leads to thoughtful conversations about where CO detection exists, where it doesn’t, and whether current systems are adequate for occupied spaces—especially classrooms and areas where people sleep.

Communication matters as much as equipment. When CO incidents occur, confusion can cause harm. Clear protocols for notification, evacuation, and medical response should be part of any statewide safety effort, not an afterthought.

Data should inform future policy. Each inspection and reading is an opportunity to learn. Aggregated, anonymized data can help identify trends, prioritize funding, and shape smarter codes and standards over time.

What Other States Should Take From This

Kentucky’s announcement offers a model that other states can adapt:

• Don’t wait for a fatality to act. Proactive inspections cost far less than emergency response, litigation, and lives lost.

• Start with schools. They are among the most densely occupied buildings in any community and often house aging mechanical systems.

• Equip inspectors with CO detection tools. You can’t address what you’re not measuring.

• Acknowledge aging infrastructure as a safety issue, not just a maintenance problem.

Most importantly, Kentucky’s approach recognizes that carbon monoxide safety is a public health issue, not just a building code checkbox.

How CO Safe Schools Can Be a Partner

CO Safe Schools exists to support exactly this kind of forward-thinking work. We bring:

• National incident data that helps states understand where and how CO exposures are happening in educational settings

• Plain-language tools and frameworks for schools, districts, and inspectors to assess risk

• Training and educational resources that help occupants recognize symptoms and respond quickly

• Experience translating real-world incidents into actionable prevention strategies

We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with Kentucky—and any state willing to lead—by sharing data insights, supporting education efforts, and helping ensure that prevention strategies are grounded in what actually happens on campuses.

Looking Ahead

Carbon monoxide is an invisible threat, but its impacts are not. Hospitalizations, evacuations, and fatalities leave lasting marks on families and communities.

Kentucky’s initiative acknowledges a hard truth: safety doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when leaders choose to look upstream, invest in prevention, and treat occupant health as non-negotiable.

We hope this marks the beginning of a broader, nationwide shift; one where no student’s safety depends on luck, and no state waits for tragedy before taking action.