State workforce commissioner emphasizes retraining
Indiana’s unemployment rate hit record lows in January and February, yet labor participation remains stagnant as the state and country continue to grapple with workforce shortages.
Government & Economic Development
Articles
Former hospital exec Kitchell picked to chair Governor’s Workforce Cabinet
Former Indiana University Health executive Ryan Kitchell will replace former chair and Indiana Higher Education Commissioner Teresa Lubbers, who announced she would step down from both roles in November.
Government spending bill contains nearly $10B in home-district projects
The bipartisan spending measure, financing federal agencies this year, contains 4,975 such home-district projects, according to an Associated Press examination of items attributed to specific lawmakers in documents accompanying the bill.
House passes $35-a-month insulin cap as Dems seek wider bill
The Affordable Insulin Now Act will serve as a political vehicle to rally Democrats and force Republicans who oppose it into uncomfortable votes ahead of the midterms.
Wastewater treatment plans move ahead despite backlash in West Indy
A fight over zoning has devolved into debates over odor, water quality, and the impact of another wastewater treatment plant in the area on nearby residents.
Indy competes for $75M to remake brownfields for food processing, manufacturing
A coalition of city-county government and local community groups this week completed a final round of applications for a federal grant of up to $75 million, that could total $90 million with a required local match.
Here’s what survived the Legislature and what didn’t
Tax cuts, employer vaccine mandates and various social issues dominated the 2022 Indiana General Assembly. But a divide between Republican leadership in the House and Senate also set the tone.
As city looks to state for help, path to more road funding unclear
Indianapolis officials are looking to state government for options that could help the city close a funding gap of up to $1 billion a year for roads and transportation infrastructure.
Indy faces $1B annual transportation infrastructure funding gap, report says
The city of Indianapolis faces a huge funding gap to improve and maintain its roads, bridges, sidewalks and other transportation infrastructure—an amount approaching the city’s $1.3 billion annual budget—according to a new Department of Public Works report.
New legislation adds incentives for Indiana film, media productions
Eligible productions could include film, television, music or digital media. State Rep. Bob Morris (R-Fort Wayne) said the legislation could make Indiana a leading state for film and media production.
City ponders coordinating redevelopment of multiple downtown sites
Roughly 17-1/2 acres of city-owned property in various stages of the redevelopment process have developers chomping at the bit to make their mark on the city’s skyline.
READI funding snag might rule out some projects
Local and state officials learned in January that several projects included in plans awarded grants just a month before might now be ineligible because of rules attached to the funding.
New city policy provides avenue for neighbors’ ideas on road safety
Residents are taking a do-it-yourself approach to tweaking specific stretches of road by their schools, businesses and neighborhoods to better protect children and neighbors.
Holcomb visits White House to urge Congress to pass innovation bill
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb joined President Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday to urge Congress to pass funding provisions to legislation designed to boost economic competition and semiconductor chip production in the United States.
Biden’s inflation plan upends thinking on jobs sent overseas
Critics see this new Biden effort as largely an attempt at political damage control, rather than a data-driven approach to reducing inflation.
State legislators approve repealing gun permit requirement
The bill’s provisions would allow anyone age 18 or older to carry a handgun in public except for reasons such as having a felony conviction, facing a restraining order from a court or having a dangerous mental illness.
Indiana lawmakers give final OK to economic development updates
The measure heads to Gov. Eric Holcomb, who made modernizing the state’s economic development toolkit a top legislative priority and is expected to sign the bill into law in an effort to help the state be more nimble when recruiting new business.
Indiana lawmakers near deal on multiyear income tax cut
The tax cut package was a major remaining issue as the Republican-dominated Legislature looked to possibly finish this year’s session on Tuesday.
Tax on closed-system vaping products might be reduced
The Indiana House and Senate have both approved a measure that would reduce the tax on disposable e-cigarettes from 25% of the wholesale price to 15%.
Indiana lawmakers send campus free speech bill to governor
The proposal, authored by Republican Rep. Jack Jordan of Bremen, aims to codify the First Amendment and U.S. Supreme Court precedents into Indiana law, which Jordan said should guide college campus policies and ensure that free speech applies equally for all students.