Indiana News Update

State casino taxes highest in Midwest
Indiana casinos on average pay the highest effective tax rate in the Midwest, according to a newspaper report.  The Times of Munster reported Sunday that a state study found Indiana casinos pay taxes averaging 38 percent of revenue. Casinos pay wagering taxes of between 15 and 40 percent on money bet on the floor and pay $3 to $4 per person in admissions taxes.

Bacon eyes statehouse seat
Ron Bacon, the Republican Warrick County coroner and former Warrick County councilman, will challenge 18-term State Rep. Dennis Avery when his District 75 seat in the Indiana House comes up for election in 2010. A formal announcement is planned for noon Wednesday at the Freedom Medical store in Evansville’s Washington Square Mall, and Bacon is waiting to name his priorities and reasons for running until then.  But he said Monday he’s focused on leaving the economy in better shape for family members who will inherit Freedom Medical, which he founded in 1977 and says is now the only independent durable medical equipment store remaining in Southwestern Indiana.

Drawing of districts to be topic of hearing
Lawmakers will hold a hearing today on whether Indiana should revamp the way it draws state legislative and congressional districts. Among those testifying before the Census Data Advisory Committee will be Sen. Mike Delph, R-Carmel, who wants Indiana to switch to an independent commission to draw the maps.  Julia Vaughn, policy director for Common Cause/Indiana, which has long backed an independent commission to draw legislative maps, said she hopes the legislative committee hearings — which will be webcast at mediaserver.ihets.org/senate233 — will ignite a public debate on redistricting that will encourage the legislature to adopt changes when it goes into session in January.

Samuel R. Turpin – Indiana Public Policy

Indiana News Update

Where will 750 jobs from Republic Airways land?
Indianapolis could have built-in advantages in a high-stakes game to lure hundreds of airline-related jobs.  At stake are 750 jobs resulting from Indianapolis-based Republic Airways Holdings’ July acquisition of Milwaukee-based Midwest Airlines and the all-but-locked-up bid for Frontier Airlines out of Denver.  Whether Republic chooses to consolidate its operations in one location — meaning a boost in tax revenue and well-paying jobs for the winning city — or keep its interests separate is the million-dollar question leaving officials scrambling to put together incentive packages.

Access counselor’s job is all about openness
 To Andrew J. Kossack, the mission of the Office of the Indiana Public Access Counselor is clear because it’s right there within the name.  “It’s public access; it’s not government restriction counselor,” he says.  That’s how Kossack plans to approach his new job as the state’s access counselor.  That doesn’t mean he necessarily will side with the citizen who files a complaint after being denied a public record or being turned away from a public meeting.

After ruling, make voter ID law better
If the Indiana Supreme Court acts quickly, as the state requests, to reverse a ruling last week by a three-judge appellate court striking down the state’s tough voter identification law, it could deny Hoosiers a needed opportunity to improve its law.  The Indiana Court of Appeals’ ruling was blasted by an angry Gov. Mitch Daniels, who called it “preposterous.”  But, was it? What the justices of the appellate court said was that to impose a mandatory photo identification requirement at the ballot box but not have that same stringent requirement at nursing homes or for absentee ballots establishes a dual standard on Indiana voters that the court held is not “uniform and impartial” as required by Indiana’s Constitution.

Samuel R. Turpin – Indiana Public Policy

Indiana News Update

Indiana to get $11 million for conservation projects
Indiana is getting more than $11 million to support energy efficiency and conservation projects in Bloomington, Fort Wayne and Indianapolis.  The Department of Energy grants will help communities create green jobs, become more energy efficient and reduce local pollution.  The grants will be used for a variety of projects in the three cities that Sen. Evan Bayh says will produce long-term benefits. The money comes from the federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program.

Bank on Evansville model going statewide
Bank on Evansville, a public-private partnership created to develop affordable and accessible banking solutions and financial education for low-to-moderate income residents, is going statewide.  The Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority Board has approved funding for Bank on Indiana, which will begin in October. The state estimates about 217,000 Indiana residents could benefit from the initiative. A news release from Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel’s office says Evansville is the only city in the state to implement the “Bank on Cities” model. It says the city was asked to provide assistance with the creation of “Bank on Indianapolis” and the launch of “Bank on Indiana.”

Casinos put cards on table
A plea for land-based gambling in Gary could also lead to a casino in northeast Indiana and more tax revenue for the state, a panel of legislators examining gaming issues heard Monday.  Don Barden, owner of the two Majestic Star casinos in Gary, said allowing him to build a land-based casino closer to existing highways in Gary and relocate his second license to northeast Indiana could mean $50 million in new tax revenue for the state.

Redistricting prompts rare GOP divide
Two of the state’s top Republicans found themselves in a rare position last week. They disagreed with one another.  Republican Senate President Pro Tem David Long criticized Secretary of State Todd Rokita for recommending changes in the way the maps designating the districts for state legislators and U.S. House members are drawn. Drawing the maps is the legislature’s job, Long said, and Rokita has no business developing his own proposed maps.  There was no similar criticism when Rokita pushed hard for a law requiring voters to produce IDs at the polls – also a decision only the legislature could make. The voter ID law hurts Democratic turnout. Rokita’s proposal to take politics out of the redistricting decisions could hurt Republicans as well as Democrats.

Samuel R. Turpin – Indiana Public Policy

Indiana News Update

Gov. Daniels chosen for Fatherhood Hall of Fame
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels is headed to the Fatherhood Hall of Fame.  Daniels will be inducted into the hall Tuesday during a banquet in Indianapolis. He’ll be introduced by two of his four daughters.  The Fatherhood Hall of Fame was created by Dads Inc. in 2007 to raise awareness about the importance of active and involved fathering.  Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Eugene White also will be inducted Tuesday into the hall, whose past inductees include former Indianapolis Colts Coach Tony Dungy and U.S. Senator Evan Bayh.

State to centralize accounting
State officials will go live with a new centralized accounting system Sept. 16 – 11 years after the project began.  The total cost for the system and training is $140 million.  Until now, state agencies have operated on several systems. Ryan Kitchell, head of the Indiana Office of Management and Budget, said the new system will allow him to balance the state’s checkbook every month instead of every year. And the system has built-in fraud and abuse protections.

Sunday sales

Most Hoosiers are evenly divided on the question of whether or not Indiana should allow Sunday sales of alcoholic beverages from retail outlets. That’s our view as well; we can take it or leave it.  But legislators, lobbyists and businesses keep talking about it, and now Indiana lawmakers plan to commence a legislative study of the issue.   The sore spot that is likely to keep this issue brewing from year to year is an inconsistency in current state law.  Now in Indiana, no retail sales of alcoholic beverages are permitted on Sundays at grocery stores, drug stores and liquor stores. Six days a week, you can buy beer, liquor, or wine at these retail outlets. But you can’t buy it on Sunday. Yet if the intent of that law is to discourage drinking on Sundays, it doesn’t work. That’s because you can buy it by the drink in restaurants and taverns on Sundays.

Hoosier welfare winners and losers
When the State Budget Committee meets this month to review performance of the $1.34 billion welfare privatization contract, it will look mostly at numbers – how quickly food stamp and Medicaid applications are processed and error rates. By necessity, the contract review must be driven by numbers, but the urgency for addressing the problem-plagued deal comes from the Hoosiers suffering under its terms.  State Rep. Gail Riecken, D-Evansville, cites as an example a father battling early-stage Alzheimer’s disease who forgot to send in required paperwork for his son, who has Down syndrome. The younger man’s benefits were cut, leaving the family struggling to have them reinstated.

Samuel R. Turpin – Indiana Public Policy