State lawmakers face tough choices over prison costs
Indiana lawmakers will swim rough political waters next year when deciding whether to spend millions more on overcrowded prisons or reducing prison sentences and being seen as soft on crime.
State Government
Articles
Judge denies motion to dismiss school funding suit
Hamilton Southeastern Schools, Franklin Township Schools and Middlebury Community Schools say the school formula violates the state constitution's requirement for "general and uniform" public education funding because districts get different per-pupil amounts.
Indiana voter turnout up nearly 4 percent from 2006
Figures released Monday by the Indiana secretary of state’s office show that about 1.79 million Hoosiers cast ballots for the Nov. 2 election.
State still issuing water permits under controversial, old rules
More than three years after sparking an uproar by issuing BP a permit allowing it to discharge more pollution from its Whiting refinery, Indiana is still issuing permits under the same problematic set of rules that played a role in that 2007 controversy.
State will preserve payments for foster, adopted kids
A lawsuit settlement will bar the Department of Child Services from making a proposed 10 percent reduction in daily payments to caregivers.
Nearly 2 million new court cases filed in state last year
The 2009 Indiana Judicial Service Report says the number of cases filed in state courts has increased by 16.5 percent since 2000.
State joins push to protect elderly from financial scams
Indiana doctors may soon check on patients’ financial health as part of a program that teaches health care providers how to spot victims of swindlers.
Democrats contest GOP Charlie White’s election win
The Indiana Democratic Party says the Democrat who lost the race for secretary of state should get the job if Republican winner Charlie White cannot serve because of alleged voter fraud.
Man gets 40-year sentence for lawmaker attack
A man found guilty but mentally ill for an attack on Indiana state Rep. Ed. DeLaney was sentenced to 40 years in prison Thursday.
Governors see GOP’s Midwest gains as path to presidency
Republican governors meeting in San Diego said Thursday their statehouse victories in the Midwest leave the party well positioned for 2012 in the battlefield that often determines the presidency.
Election gives GOP upper hand in dealing with unions
The goals of Gov. Mitch Daniels and his fellow Republicans could chisel away further at the clout that has dwindled among the state’s labor unions.
Promotus Advertising wins state tobacco cessation account
The Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation account is worth $1.6 million to the minority owned agency.
Carp czar has huge task of fighting invasive fish
John Goss, a Hoosier who helped create the Great Lakes Compact to conserve water, is coordinating federal, state attack.
Indiana Legislature to broadcast all meetings online
All Indiana General Assembly committee meetings will be shown live online in the 2011 session for the first time.
State gives Speedway $2.9M for blight cleanup
Indiana Lt. Governor Becky Skillman says the grant will pay to demolish old building foundations, deteriorated pavement and concrete slabs in the downtown business district.
Indiana House speaker offers two Democrats committee chairs
New Republican Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma says he’s serious about seeking bipartisan support in the upcoming legislative session.
Indiana environmental activists to push bipartisan agenda
Jesse Kharbanda, executive director of the Hoosier Environmental Council, said the new Legislature will make it more challenging to sell environmental initiatives mainly because there are more than two dozen freshmen lawmakers he and others will have to court.
Legislator: Statewide smoking ban could pass in 2011
A statewide ban on smoking in all public places may have the momentum it needs to finally pass the Indiana General Assembly in 2011 after four unsuccessful attempts.
Audit: Indiana owes feds $39M for Medicaid
A federal audit recommends that Indiana's human services agency refund the federal government nearly $39 million it overpaid to Medicaid providers during a nine-year period.
Daniels appoints new social services chief
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has accepted the resignation of Family and Social Services Administration Secretary Anne Murphy and has appointed the agency’s chief of staff, Michael Gargano, to replace her.