Daniels goes barefoot to spur shoe donations
Gov. Mitch Daniels worked barefoot Friday morning to raise awareness of a nonprofit group that collects and donates new shoes to needy people around the world. Daniels held a press conference in his Statehouse office, answering questions about the state budget and other important issues while standing barefoot in front of a pile of shoes donated to Samaritan’s Feet.
Welfare bill filed in House
Although the governor of her own party did not want her to, state Rep. Suzanne Crouch has gone ahead with her plan to introduce a bill to halt temporarily the expansion of Indiana’s new welfare eligibility program. Crouch, a Republican from Evansville, last week filed House Bill 1691 to pause the administration’s welfare modernization process from expanding to the 33 remaining counties it has not yet reached.
Lugar: Difficult Times Intensify Vulnerability of Children
Global Action for Children Friday presented U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar with its 2009 Children’s Champion Award “for outstanding leadership in the United States Senate to improve the lives of the world’s orphaned and most vulnerable children.” Lugar made the following remarks in accepting the award: “It is a pleasure to be here with all of you today in this beautiful room in the Newseum overlooking the Capitol. I thank James Haven for his generous introduction. I am grateful to be recognized by the Global Action for Children as a Children’s Champion.
Indiana’s share of stimulus could be $3 billion
Indiana stands to receive as much as $3 billion if an economic stimulus package backed by Democrats in the U.S. House becomes law, and Gov. Mitch Daniels said it should be spent on Medicaid, education and highway projects. Daniels said at least $1.5 billion, or about half of Indiana’s share of the proposed $825 billion rescue backed by President-Elect Barack Obama, should go to the state’s Medicaid program, which provides health care for disabled, needy, elderly and young Hoosiers.
Smart green policy for economic recovery
Just as you think Indiana is on the cusp of “going green,” reality hits: Steep cuts in state funding have been proposed for forests, recycling, pollution prevention and air quality protection. Some Hoosiers may be persuaded to believe that cutting back on our efforts to green the Hoosier economy is sound in the face of our severe economic storm. However, in this moment of crisis for our state’s economy, the Hoosier Environmental Council encourages all Hoosiers to advocate for smart environmental policies as part of a comprehensive economic recovery strategy. Let’s pass a Green Jobs Bill in Indiana this year.
Ind. legislative session off to a partisan start
Partisan tensions are part of every legislative session in Indiana, but it usually takes a few weeks for them to flare up. From day one this session, Gov. Mitch Daniels and his Republican colleagues in the General Assembly have been at odds with Democrats on what a new, two-year budget should entail, job creation efforts and whether the next step should be taken now toward amending caps on property tax bills into the state constitution. But political rancor has already intensified, which could complicate negotiations on big issues early and make a long session seem even longer. At a time when lawmakers say the public expects them to put partisan wrangling aside, especially given the sagging economy, there are signs the parties are digging in for trench warfare.
Brown’s smoking bill facing difficult road
A Purdue University study on the air quality at Indiana’s 11 casinos painted a nasty picture about the impact of smoking. The study, which was released by the Indiana Campaign for Smokefree Air, indicated the average level of indoor air pollution at the 11 casinos is five times higher than the limit considered healthy by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The air on average was dirtier than EPA limits even in the nonsmoking areas within casinos The casinos and other facets of the state’s hospitality industry are fighting state Rep. Charlie Brown’s, D-Gary, legislation to ban smoking in all public places across the state.
