IPS moving ahead with part of Rebuilding Stronger plan
Indianapolis Public Schools plans to implement only part of its massive Rebuilding Stronger overhaul after the school board failed to place an operating referendum on the upcoming May ballot.
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Analysis: Anti-ESG pension bill could shrink state pension returns $6.7B in next decade
An updated fiscal analysis for the legislation shows that over the next decade, the bill, if enacted, could reduce investment returns on defined-benefit funds by $6.4 billion and defined-contribution funds by $300 million.
Tech parks could capture larger share of tax dollars
A bill that would divert some $6 million in state and local tax revenue annually to state-certified technology parks has passed the Senate and is headed to the House, where similar legislation died two years ago.
Pay-transparency trend reaches Indiana as push for equity gains momentum
Compensation has long been a taboo topic around most watercoolers, but that’s changing as more states are forcing companies to open up about their salaries.
Bill requiring public retirement system to divest from ESG-following firms advances
An Indiana House committee on Thursday approved a bill requiring the state’s public pension system to divest from and terminate business relationships with firms or funds that use non-financial environmental, social and governmental framework factors in investment decisions.
Education bills seeking to overhaul school curriculum advance in Indiana legislature
State lawmakers in House and Senate education committees collectively took up more than a dozen bills on Wednesday. Most of those measures advanced or are scheduled for committee votes next week.
Indiana’s plan to ‘reinvent high school’ moves forward
The bill would allow students to meet graduation requirements through career experience and give students state-funded scholarship accounts to spend on workforce training outside their schools.
Funding-boost bill for Indiana public health program advances
State Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box, several medical organizations and business groups urged lawmakers to support the plan, pointing to Indiana’s poor national rankings in areas such as smoking, obesity and life expectancy.
Lawmakers aim to raise penalties for airline disruptions
Senators who want to impose tougher penalties when airlines strand or delay passengers say they finally might be able to turn their ideas into law because of outrage over debacles like the one at Southwest Airlines in December.
Indiana gets the nod to proceed with federal hydrogen hub proposal
The Indiana coalition, which received U.S. Department of Energy encouragement to submit a full proposal, is now deciding whether to join forces with other applicants for a better chance of securing a portion of $7 billion in federal funding.
Some truckers want higher speed limits; key lawmakers reluctant
Two legislators are seeking to eliminate the lower speed limit for heavy trucks on rural interstates and highways, but their proposals appear to be another chapter in more than 30 years of fruitless efforts on behalf of independent truckers.
Rebooted data privacy legislation making its way through Statehouse
A data privacy bill died in the House last year, but a Fort Wayne lawmaker said she did “an entire rewrite” before introducing a new version of the bill this year, and she’s optimistic it will gain more support.
Architects push for restoration of historic preservation tax credit
The effort is meant to create more incentive for developers to rehab vacant, deteriorating institutional structures in communities throughout the state.
City eyes updates to Union Station overpasses
City officials plan to pour at least $10 million into structural and aesthetic improvements to five CSX railroad overpasses and the sidewalks and roads that run beneath them on the south side of downtown.
Indiana lawmakers weigh bill to create universal school choice program
Testimony heard in the Senate education committee raised questions about how much universal education scholarship accounts would cost and whether the state can afford to fund all students who are eligible to participate.
U.S. Treasury buys time for Biden, GOP on debt limit deal
The countdown toward a possible U.S. government default began Thursday with Treasury implementing accounting measures to buy time as frictions between President Joe Biden and House Republicans raise alarms.
Indiana Senate panel advances bill protecting donor privacy
Not-for-profit organizations in Indiana would be permitted to keep the identity of their members and donors secret under a bill now advancing through the Indiana General Assembly.
Bill would require schools to report student requests to change names, pronouns
Gender identity and transitioning are the focus of a number of bills filed by Indiana lawmakers in the 2023 session, including one that would require teachers and schools to disclose if students request to change their names or pronouns.
Proposal could ax business personal property tax for thousands
The bill would raise the exemption that determines which companies must pay the tax. It would exempt companies that own machinery, equipment and other tangible goods that cost them, in total, less than $250,000. The current threshold is $80,000.
Carmel set to expand White River Greenway
The trail will wind and curve near the White River for 5.4 miles from East 116th Street to East 146th Street once it is completed next year.