Indiana road-funding measure nears final vote
Indiana House and Senate lawmakers are still deciding whether to release $200 million for road expansion projects.
Indiana House and Senate lawmakers are still deciding whether to release $200 million for road expansion projects.
Conflicting state and federal policies will likely cost Indiana same-sex couples more in time, paperwork and money when they file their tax returns this year, experts say.
Indiana lawmakers have only a few more days this week before they wrap up the 2014 legislative session. But that doesn't mean they're totally done for the year.
Local governments have loudly fretted about the potential loss of tax dollars from a reduction or elimination of the business personal property tax, and raised concerns about forcing intrastate competitions for business relocations.
Indiana lawmakers have moved some bills to the governor, but more contentious bills scheduled for a vote Wednesday were pushed off for approval later in the session, which ends next week.
Indiana House Bill 1242, authored by Rep. Martin Carbaugh, R-Fort Wayne, would ban an employer from refusing to hire anyone because of his or her status as a veteran of the U.S. military.
The Senate voted 33-15 Tuesday to advance the package, sending it to a conference committee of House and Senate members.
The Indiana House approved a Senate bill that adds transparency to redevelopment commissions and forces decades-old tax-increment financing districts to expire.
The Indiana House approved a bill Monday that would allow farmers to grow hemp – a non-intoxicating cousin of marijuana – if the federal government lifts restrictions on the crop.
A former state Republican Party chairman’s pledge to provide campaign cash to protect House members who were considering voting against a constitutional gay marriage ban offers a rare look at the private power game that plays out at the Statehouse.
Lawmakers' efforts to crack down on the use of Indiana tanning beds this year are part of a national push to limit young people's exposure to risks that include skin cancer.
Indiana lawmakers advanced a wide range of measures Thursday as they headed into the final two weeks of their 2014 session, setting up last-minute negotiations on everything from road funding to education.
The Indy Eleven soccer team would generate just $2 million to $4 million a year in ticket sales, a fraction of the $51 million that owner Ersal Ozdemir has estimated a new downtown stadium would generate including non-soccer events, according to an independent analysis.
The current version of the measure is far less sweeping than what supporters originally sought. The measure approved Thursday would only apply to welfare recipients who had previously been convicted of a drug crime.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence spent Wednesday morning highlighting the work of an Indianapolis preschool as he made a final pitch for an early education voucher plan that has foundered in the Legislature.
The bill's author, Sen. Jim Merritt, R-Indianapolis, said he's going to take the next few days to review the House's changes before determining whether to ask the Senate to approve it or send the bill to a conference committee to restore its original wording.
The legalization of the production of industrial hemp is a step closer to reality in Indiana after the House Agricultural Committee passed an amended bill Tuesday.
Pence is heading to the Shepherd Community Center to highlight his request that the state provide vouchers for children from low-income families to attend preschool.
The measure was revised multiple times in the Senate after the Hoosier State Press Association and animal rights groups blasted it as an attempt to restrict whistleblowers at factory farms. Earlier versions would have banned videotaping or photography without permission.
The bill, authored by Sen. James Merritt, R-Indianapolis, seeks to end a nearly 70-year old ban on beer and alcohol sales at the state fair.