FEIGENBAUM: Right-to-work just one of big stories brewing in ’12
Hoosiers may never have started a January with the likely litany of top 10 stories of the year lined up quite as transparently as they seem for 2012.
Statehouse Dispatch
Articles
FEIGENBAUM: Chief justice’s retirement puts court at crossroads
You cannot overstate the positive impact Indiana’s longest-serving Supreme Court chief justice, Randall T. Shepard, has had on the state and local judiciary in Indiana (and nationally, where he is the longest-serving court leader).
FEIGENBAUM: Passage of Daniels’ agenda will spawn sweeping change
You shouldn’t have much trouble discerning the immediate winners from the 2011 session of the Indiana General Assembly.
FEIGENBAUM: Lessons learned from an unconventional session
Hoosiers were on notice headed into the session that they would not see four months marked by a “business as usual” attitude.
FEIGENBAUM: Conference committees may offer fewer fireworks
Given the historical context, it would not be unexpected that there wouldn’t be much left to argue about as the 2011 legislative session approaches its scheduled April 29 conclusion.
FEIGENBAUM: New legislative maps matter over the long term
District lines largely will guide the partisan composition of the Indiana House of Representatives and the delegation we send to Congress for the next decade.
FEIGENBAUM: Wrangling over budget takes center stage in Legislature
Budget cuts became more painful in the past several years as the national recession drew the fiscal noose tighter on Indiana government income.
FEIGENBAUM: Fallout from Democrats’ walkout will affect fall elections
Following five weeks in a chain hotel in Illinois, House Democrats marched back into the Statehouse—literally—on March 28, escorted by union leaders along Capitol Street and up the east steps in an event made for media. So who wins?
FEIGENBAUM: Right-to-work issue still alive and kicking
Legislative observers wonder whether this session’s unique nature may convince Senate leaders to be a bit more flexible in ruling on germaneness.
FEIGENBAUM: Thoughts turn to truncated state budget process
As the legislative standoff continued, those who were concerned about policy turned their attention to the budget process.
FEIGENBAUM: Will Democrats hold out until some warm April day?
Indiana House Democrats largely remain bunkered en masse in Urbana, Ill., save occasional individual appearances back at town hall events in their respective districts.
FEIGENBAUM: Prepare for a history-making budget process
Hoosier Democrats may find that their solon sojourn in Illinois invokes Newton’s law of political physics: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
FEIGENBAUM: Freshmen legislators’ green is showing
The “new kids in the bloc” failed to heed their elders, and got a bit greedy too quickly, goading Democrats into the only recourse open to them.
FEIGENBAUM: Gambling and guns create legislative fireworks
At least one Indianapolis legislator has quietly investigated allowing casinos to collaborate on a temporary downtown facility, and Republican Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard has publicly not ruled it out.
FEIGENBAUM: Governor focuses on the big issues, just as Reagan did
That “think big” attitude seems to be carrying over to lawmakers, who this month focused on major issues.
FEIGENBAUM: Unemployment insurance bill’s path surprisingly smooth
Once in a legislative blue moon, a bill will zip through the labyrinthine process with alacrity.
FEIGENBAUM: Lawmakers wrestle with when and how to regulate
What may be appropriate regulatory reform to one person or industry may be anathema to another.
FEIGENBAUM: Daniels experiences pushback even from Republicans
Assorted issues advanced by Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels are confronting political pushback—from his Republican legislative majority.
FEIGENBAUM: Right-to-work debate could create sparks in Legislature
The bulk of legislative Democrats, allied with organized labor, are vehemently opposed to having Indiana join almost two dozen other states with right-to-work laws, labeling them as discriminatory against minorities and women, and contending that such laws will do little more than reduce wages and lower the living standards of many Hoosiers.
FEIGENBAUM: Here’s what to expect from State of the State Address
State of the State Address can help outline priorities for a given session, and governors have used them to dramatically draw a line in the proverbial sand, directly delivering a message to the individual members and leaders of the legislative branch—and over their heads to the voters—as to what they expect, will tolerate, and hope for.