Statehouse update: Wine sales, cell-phone searches, historic tax credits, concussion safety, more
Numerous bills were weighed Thursday at the Indiana Statehouse. Here’s a rundown.
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Plunging corn prices bring new strategies on farms
A December survey by ag publication Farm Futures indicated a coming 3-percent reduction in corn acreage from last year, with a nearly 8-percent hike in acreage for soybeans.
Statehouse update: School safety, Common Core, teacher incentives, abortion and more
State lawmakers on Wednesday weighed in on legislation involving mobile-phone snooping, education issues, abortion restrictions, sex trafficking, guns, abandoned houses, veteran injuries and several more topics. Here’s a rundown.
Bill limiting environmental rules heads to Indiana Senate
Indiana regulators would be barred from adopting environmental rules tougher than federal standards under a bill that's advancing in the General Assembly that has drawn criticism that it would hamper efforts to protect the state's environment and public health.
Propane shortage hits Indiana sellers, customers hard
Central Indiana propane dealers are rationing their inventories to help supplies last and transporting propane here from as far away as Mississippi, Kansas and South Carolina. An estimated 500,000 Hoosiers rely on propane to heat their homes.
Notre Dame plans $400M stadium, campus expansion
The Rev. John Jenkins, the university president, called it "the most ambitious building project in the 172-year history of Notre Dame," saying more space was needed to accommodate the university's broadening research activity.
Indiana House passes revised gay-marriage ban
The proposed amendment, which cleared the chamber on 57-40 vote, now heads to the Indiana Senate, where members of the Senate Judiciary Committee could amend the measure back to its original form.
Obama speech to challenge Congress on minimum wage
Challenging lawmakers to help him create greater economic opportunity, President Barack Obama will use his State of the Union address Tuesday to announce he's raising the minimum wage for new federal contract workers to $10.10 an hour.
GE plans shutdown of last Fort Wayne facilities
GE says it plans to shut down the last of its Fort Wayne facilities after more than a century in the city. The company once had almost 10,000 workers at the 13-building campus.
Statehouse update: Deer hunting, miscarriages, veteran education, Indiana-grown, and more
State lawmakers on Monday weighed in on legislation involving canned deer hunting, college credit for veterans, parental options after miscarriages, out-of-state seedling sales, and more. Here’s a rundown.
States investigating ITT, other for-profit education firms
For-profit education companies are facing public criticism and regulatory scrutiny over high drop-out rates, graduates' poor job prospects and the high debt levels of its students.
View of health rollout improves, but only slightly
Negative perceptions of the health care rollout have eased, a new poll finds. But overall, two-thirds of Americans say things still aren’t going well.
Indiana bill would limit use of drone surveillance
The bill introduced by Republican Rep. Eric Koch of Bedford would strictly regulate police use of unmanned aircraft and prohibit their use to conduct surveillance without a court warrant.
Minimum wage bills pushed in at least 30 states
A pitch last week from Indiana Democrats was a nonstarter. But a Quinnipiac University poll this month found 71 percent of Americans in favor of raising the minimum wage—including more than half of Republicans polled.
Propane costs soar amid winter supply squeeze
Many distributors in the Midwest are limiting the amount of propane they deliver to customers. And the Indiana attorney general’s office is urging Hoosiers to conserve the amount of propane used to heat their homes.
Lawmakers advance bill allowing industrial hemp crops
Hemp plants could start appearing in Indiana fields if a state Senate bill to allow growing the crop gains support from lawmakers.
Senate OKs ban on tanning for those under 16
A bill that would ban young people from using beds at tanning salons passed 30-17 Thursday in the state Senate.
Indiana business tax changes still worry some mayors
Some local-government officials around the state remain concerned about changes Indiana lawmakers are considering to the state's property tax on business equipment.
Toyota world’s top-selling car maker for second year
Toyota remained the top-selling automaker for a second year in a row, beating U.S. rival General Motors by some 270,000 vehicles in 2013.
Same-sex marriage amendment advances in House
The Republican majority in the Indiana House has signed off on a maneuver advancing the proposed state constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.