House committee moves vaccine mandates bill forward
The vaccine-mandate provisions of the bill would effectively force employers to accept any medical or religious reason to exempt employees from getting a vaccine, without question.
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House, Senate differ on handling vaccine mandates, health emergency
Indiana House and Senate Republican leaders appear to be at odds on how to handle legislation to address employer vaccine mandates and end the state’s public health emergency.
House Republicans unveil $1B tax cut plan; other GOP leaders are more reluctant
The plan proposes lowering or eliminating four separate taxes on sales, business personal property, individual income and utility receipts.
Indiana legislative leaders take aim at ‘out-of-control’ health care prices
House Speaker Todd Huston and Senate President Rodric Bray sent a joint letter Tuesday to 20 hospital and insurance executives, telling them to submit a plan by April 1 that would lower Indiana’s hospital prices to the national average or lower by 2025.
COVID-19 surge not deterring push to end Indiana health emergency
A House committee is set to vote Thursday on a bill that includes administrative actions sought by Holcomb, along with provisions that would force businesses to grant broad exemptions to any workplace COVID-19 vaccination requirements.
Indiana’s GOP governor, lawmakers differing on top issues
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb proposed a tax cut for some businesses Monday that is decidedly less ambitious than what many of his fellow Republicans want to seek during the new legislative session.
Business tax cuts top Holcomb’s 2022 agenda
Reducing the business tax on equipment and modernizing tax incentives to attract more businesses to Indiana are among the top items on Gov. Eric Holcomb’s 2022 “Next Level Agenda,” which he announced Monday afternoon.
2021 Year in Review: Vaccination rollout starts with huge demand, then hits wall
By Christmas, nearly 63% of adult Hoosiers had been vaccinated, with 36% of adults having received a booster shot. But among all Hoosiers eligible (including children 5 years and older), only about 52% of the state’s population over the age of 5 had been fully vaccinated, putting Indiana near the bottom among states.
2021 Year in Review: GOP splinters over emergency powers law
A family feud broke out among Indiana Republicans this year when Gov. Eric Holcomb sued the Indiana General Assembly’s legislative leaders in his own party. He did so to challenge the constitutionality of a new law that weakens his emergency powers and was enacted by fellow Republicans over the governor’s veto.
2021 Year in Review: Scandal rocks casino project
Troubled Indianapolis-based casino company Spectacle Entertainment was at the center of multiple controversies in 2021, from its top executive being forced out to losing stakes in two new casino projects.
Indiana lawmakers face debates on vaccine limits, pot, tax cuts
The Republican-dominated General Assembly is expected to begin the 2022 session Tuesday with action on a bill that would force businesses that require COVID-19 vaccinations to grant exemptions to workers claiming medical or religious objections.
Holcomb ‘stunned’ by Rokita’s suggestion that pandemic stats are inflated
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb slammed Attorney General Todd Rokita for comments he made in an interview this month suggesting the state is inflating its COVID-19 numbers.
NFIB names new Indiana state director
As state director, Robinson will be the primary advocate in the Indiana Legislature and guide member engagement and political involvement throughout the state.
Anger over mask mandates, other COVID rules, spurs states to curb power of public health officials
At least 19 states, including Indiana, have this year restricted state or local authorities from safeguarding public health amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Indiana House Republican to file sweeping marijuana legalization bill
Rep. Cindy Ziemke, R-Batesville, acknowledges that it will be difficult to persuade reluctant Republican legislative leaders to give the bill a chance. However, some political observers believe Ziemke’s interest in the issue could at least open the conversation in the GOP-dominated Legislature.
Indiana’s COVID death toll tops 18,000
The Indiana State Department of Health on Wednesday reported 86 more deaths from COVID-19, raising the total death toll to 18,057. The seven-day average of deaths from COVID remained unchanged at 36 per day.
New lawsuit could further snarl-delayed Terre Haute casino plans
One of the companies that was pass over for the license, Las Vegas-based Full House Resorts, has sued the Indiana Gaming Commission, claiming it didn’t follow state law when it picked Churchill Downs to develop the casino.
AG Rokita sues Biden administration over preschool masks, vaccine mandates
Indiana and 23 other states filed the suit to stop rules that require students as young as 2 years old to wear masks if they attend a preschool program funded by Head Start.
Indiana reports 118 more COVID-19 deaths
The state’s total death toll is nearing 18,000, with a recent average of 36 deaths per day. Hospitalizations have remained relatively steady—around 3,000 patients—over the last week.
Peppermill Farms seeks to keep housing affordable
The affordable housing complex’s owner plans to pump $23 million into major renovations, more than double the 40-year-old property’s valued worth.