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INDIANAPOLIS AWAITS SUPER BOWL DECISION: Indianapolis is pledging to transform parts of its Downtown into a weeklong outdoor NFL Village with big-name musical performances, giant video screens and, mindful of the potential for plunging temperatures, huge fire pits as part of its bid to host the 2012 Super Bowl (Indianapolis Star). .jpg)
Should it prevail, bid organizers say, the city also will build a privately financed $9 million athletic facility at Tech High School that can be used by one of the teams for its practices and, after the game, turned over to the school district to help speed along efforts to revive struggling Near-Eastside neighborhoods. Armed with a 3-inch-thick proposal, bid committee president Mark Miles and Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Eugene White will lead a team from the city to pitch these ideas to the NFL’s 32 owners in Atlanta today in hopes of landing Super Bowl XLVI. Indianapolis will go first and get 15 minutes. It will be followed by Glendale, Ariz., and Houston. A decision is expected this afternoon. Indianapolis is considered the favorite this year because it fulfilled an unwritten NFL requirement of building a new stadium for its home team, the Colts, but lost to Dallas in the bidding last year for the 2011 game. "Because of the work done (on Indianapolis’ bid) last year, we had the luxury to ask how we can take this further," Miles said. "Our ambition is to use the excitement and focus of the Super Bowl to transform Downtown for a week and the Near Eastside forever." The decision is expected to be announced around 2:30 p.m. today.
50/50 CHANCE FOR AXLE CONTRACT TO RATIFY: Will the UAW strike against American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. be over come Thursday night? Voting on the proposed contract ended at 6 p.m. Monday at the Three Rivers United Auto Workers Hall. But the final votes at some of the other UAW halls won’t be taken until Thursday, the 87th day of the strike (South Bend Tribune). Bill Younts, vice president of UAW Local 2093, wasn’t really sure how the final tally would go. At first, he said the new contract tentatively agreed to by negotiators Friday evening "probably" would be ratified. But then he quickly added, "I don’t know. I would say it has a 50-50 chance."
WAGNER JOINING WRTV BLOG: The great speculation about the fate of The Nastiest Woman In Indiana Politics, Jen Wagner, everybody’s favorite Bloosier blogger, is now over with the announcement that she will be joining Norm Cox and Abdul Hakim Shabazz at the CapitolWatch blog on rtv6blogs.com, a relatively newish domain for the online politics coverage offered by WRTV 6 News (Blue Indiana).
Republican Convention
SOUDER ENDORSES ZOELLER: U.S. Rep. Mark Souder has endorsed Greg Zoeller for the Republican attorney general nomination. Zoeller also has brought on Whitley County Republican Chairman Jim Banks to run his convention campaign. "In a campaign like this, it’s all about the 2,000 delegates," Banks told Howey Politics Indiana on Monday. "We will be reaching out to every one of them." Banks said that Zoeller has now been endorsed by the 3rd, 8th and 9th CD chairs.
COUNTY CHAIRS APPOINTING DELEGATES: Republican county chairmen spent the weekend through today hurriedly appointing delegates for the June 2 GOP convention. The delegates could determine whether Greg Zoeller or Jon Costas wins the attorney general nomination (Howey Politics Indiana).
COSTAS PICKS UP 19 MAYORAL ENDORSEMENTS: Valparaiso Mayor Jon Costas announced a fresh round of endorsements Monday in the Republican race for Indiana attorney general (Times of Northwest Indiana). Costas, a part-time attorney specializing in elder law, is competing for the GOP nomination aGainst southern Indiana native Greg Zoeller, who has served as chief deputy to Attorney General Steve Carter since 2001. Republicans will decide the nomination June 2 at the state party convention in Indianapolis. Zoeller was in Schererville last week to accept the endorsement of Carter, who grew up in the Lowell area. Meanwhile, Costas is reaching outside the region, and he now has the backing of 19 Indiana mayors. "Jon Costas has been a great mayor, and it’s important we have state leaders who know how to address the concerns of the people and understand local government," Marion Mayor Wayne Seybold said in statement. "I know Jon will bring the same energy and efficiency to state government that he’s exhibited as mayor." Other mayors to endorse include: Jim Brainard, Carmel; Andy Cook, Westfield; John Dennis, West Lafayette; Brad DeReamer, Greenfield; John Ditslear, Noblesville; Scott Ferguson, Shelbyville; John Lasley, Lebanon; Craig Luedeman, Seymour; Sharon McShurley, Muncie; Jeff Rea, Mishawaka; Mark Senter, Plymouth; Wayne Seybold, Marion; Dr. Rob Thoman, Southport; Jason Thompson, Monticello; Larry Thompson, Nappanee; Bob Vanlandingham, Wabash; James Walker, Peru; Ernest Wiggins, Warsaw; Joe Wright, Beech Grove.
Indiana General Assembly
JOHNSON CONCEDES TO WEBSTER IN HD19: Republican 19th District representative candidate Bill Johnson has conceded the GOP spot in the November election to his opponent, Andrew Webster (Post-Tribune). "Now that the provisional votes have been counted and the election results are about to be certified, I want to congratulate Andrew Webster as the winner of the Republican ticket for District 19 State Representative," Johnson said in a statement released Monday. The 25-vote spread between the two candidates held up after final provisional votes from the May 6 primary came in last week, with Webster garnering 1,184 to Johnson’s 1,159. The Porter County Election Board reported 218 for Webster on Monday and 184 votes for Johnson. Lake County counted 975 for Johnson and 966 for Webster. "I look forward to helping our nominee and the Republican Party recover the prized seat in the Indiana State House," Johnson said, pointing to the Democrats’ majority. Webster will face Democratic incumbent Shelli VanDenburgh in November.
State
MYERS DENIES INTEREST IN LG, MAYOR: Woody Myers has no interest in fueling speculation about what he might run for next (Shella, WISH-TV). Dr. Myers called from Washington where his son graduates this weekend to say that there is nothing to speculation about a run for mayor or a desire to be named Jill Long Thompson’s running mate. Much of that speculation is sparked by a $25,000 Myers donation to Thompson. Dr. Myers supported Jim Schellinger in the primary and says he just wanted to be a good Democrat. He didn’t rule out a run for office in the future but says none is planned.
ACLU TARGETS FSSA CHANGES: Problems with Indiana’s landmark automation of welfare eligibility have cost some disabled residents food stamps and other benefits they need to survive, the American Civil Liberties Union alleges in a lawsuit that seeks class-action status (Kusmer, Associated Press). In one case, a woman with hearing problems and other disabilities lost her Medicaid and food stamps after being told she could not meet in person with a state case worker, the lawsuit alleges. In another, a mother of two lost her food stamps and subsidized health care for her children when the tax return she provided didn’t include one attachment. “There are a thousand of these stories,” Gavin Rose, an ACLU of Indiana attorney, said Monday. “I’m sure there are cases out there where people are quite literally facing a life-or-death situation.” Secretary Mitch Roob of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, the lead defendant in the case, said the state was complying with the law in denying or eliminating benefits to clients whose applications were lacking necessary information. He said the state would seek to have the lawsuit thrown out. Roob also said the state’s rollout of the automated system under a $1.16 billion, 10-year contract with IBM Corp., Affiliated Computer Services Inc. and other companies reached 20 additional counties in Indiana on Monday. The case was amended Friday in Marion Superior Court in Indianapolis to include members of six households, all residents of the 12-county region where FSSA inaugurated the privatized welfare system by which clients can use the Internet, call centers and fax machines to apply for and renew benefits.
$80M TO GARY METHODIST HOSPTIAL HAS RISK SAYS ROOB: A payment of nearly $80 million due Methodist Hospitals this week would make the hospital "cash rich" for a time, Indiana Family and Social Services Secretary Mitch Roob said (Times of Northwest Indiana). The question is how the cash-strapped hospital will use the money, said Roob, who called on "leadership to step in and lead the effort." The Methodist Hospitals’ Northlake Campus in Gary is due to receive its Medicaid Disproportionate Share payment later this week, which is meant to compensate hospitals with high percentages of uninsured and low-income patients. Planned changes in federal and state regulations governing distribution of the funding could make this the last sizable payment, Roob said. "We plan on providing the largest and likely last payment of that size to Gary Methodist," Roob said. "This is a time of enormous opportunity and enormous risk." The payment is expected to arrive before Sunday, when a moratorium is due to be lifted on legislation that limits funding of the disproportionate share program, the Hospital Care for the Indigent program and other programs. "Methodist will be cash rich," Roob said. Hospital and community leaders "need to plan for the future. They need to be hard-headed about the future of that facility."
ISP WON’T REMOVE I-69 PROTESTERS IN TREES: Indiana State Police say they won’t take any action against two protesters who are camped out in trees near where the Interstate 69 extension is to be built along the Gibson-Warrick County line (Associated Press). State police spokesman Sgt. Todd Ringle says the protesters were allowed to remain in the trees because they are not scheduled to be cut down for construction. A man and a woman on the ground were asked to leave the property Monday but were not arrested.
INDOT UNVEILS US31 PLAN: Dozens of people gathered Monday at Jackson Intermediate Center in South Bend, where representatives from the Indiana Department of Transportation unveiled stage one design plans for the corridor (South Bend Tribune). Several representatives were on hand to answer questions from concerned residents such as Harbaugh. Many displays, each containing a section of the new highway, were set up around the gymnasium. Rickie Clark, an InDOT spokesman, said many of the phases of design are only tentative because construction dates are still far off and portions of the route are subject to change. Construction will begin later this year and is expected to be completed in 2015. Clark said InDOT is not required to inform residents who will be affected by the new highway until 18 months prior to that specific area going under construction.
TROOPERS GIVE HONORARY MEMBERSHIP TO SHERIFF DOMINGUEZ: The Lake County sheriff was spurned by his own department’s police officers, but he is feeling the love from state law enforcement (Times of Northwest Indiana). The Indiana Troopers Association announced Monday it has named Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez a lifetime honorary member. The association provides support services for active and retired troopers and promotes the state police department’s image. Dominguez served as a state trooper for three years during the 1970s. "To receive this great honor from the Indiana troopers association, I will continue to do my best and make them and the citizens of Indiana proud," he said. Karen Shelton, director of operations for the association, said the sheriff had not served enough years as a trooper to be a regular member but earned this honor because he is a "strong supporter of our efforts." The lifetime membership comes three months after the Lake County police department’s Fraternal Order of Police expelled Dominguez from its membership. Dominguez said earlier this year he was removed as a member of Chris Anton Lodge 125, a social organization representing county police officers, many of whom work under the sheriff. The sheriff, who has feuded with his department’s FOP members for years, claims his expulsion was a political decision by supporters of former Sheriff John Buncich, a Dominguez political rival. Buncich is a senior member of the Lake County Fraternal Order of Police.
COALITION OPPOSES BP AIR PERMIT: BP Whiting’s contentious air permit hit another bump in the road Monday. A coalition of environmental groups filed a 37-page appeal with a request to temporarily halt construction. A federal lawsuit is also on the way in the coming weeks (Post-Tribune). The coalition said BP and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management failed to account for thousands of pounds of potential emissions from three new flares, and that including them would have required BP to use additional pollution control equipment. The groups also want the permit to regulate greenhouse gases. Tom Anderson, executive director of Save the Dunes Council, said the groups were disappointed the Indiana Department of Environmental Management wasn’t willing to address concerns they raised in public comments. "We are extremely disappointed to have to take this step, but IDEM’s unwillingness to address the environmental community’s concerns has forced our hand," Anderson said in a statement. "This is about protecting public health and ensuring that the communities around this facility are not subjected to more air pollution than the law allows."
Congress
BUSH THREATENS FARM BILL VETO: Technically, the $300 billion farm bill is now finished: Members of the Senate and the House polished off a compromise version earlier this week. And now a showdown looms. President Bush is still threatening a veto, even though the House and Senate appear likely to overturn it. He didn’t like the bill several months ago, and he says he doesn’t like it now, either (U.S. News & World Report). A major point of dispute has been subsidies: billions of dollars paid out annually by the government to farmers, either directly for growing crops like corn and wheat or as a form of insurance if crop prices fall. The president, along with a number of farm lobby critics, has criticized subsidies as an unfair practice, as handouts to rich people who don’t need them. And they have criticized the bill for other reasons: for spending too much money on pet projects and for spending too much money in general
LUGAR TO MEET WITH MICHAEL DOUGLAS: U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Dick Lugar will meet with actor and movie producer Michael Douglas on Wednesday, May 21 (Howey Politics Indiana). A credentialed media photo opportunity will occur at 10:30 a.m. in Room 306 of the Hart Senate Office Building. Douglas is a board member of the Ploughshares Fund (www.ploughshares.org), a grant making organization advocating for the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Lugar is co-author of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program. The program’s successes include the deactivation of 7,266 nuclear warheads (www.lugar.senate.gov/nunnlugar).
Cities
JEFFERSONVILLE GETS LOOK AT $120M SEWER PLAN: The Jeffersonville City Council got its first detailed look last night at a plan to eliminate illegal discharges of untreated sewage that could cost the city $80 million to $120 million (Louisville Courier-Journal). The discharges could drive up city sewer bills from the current average of about $24 a month to as much as $65. Consulting engineer Len Ashack told the council that the first major installment of the sewer plan is likely to be construction of a second treatment plant in two or three years. The plant is estimated to cost up to $12 million. He said city officials have been working on the plan with the EPA for two and a half years. But the frequency and intensity of the meetings has increased since Jan. 1, when Mayor Tom Galligan took office, he said.
LAKE REBATES TO COST CITIES: Nearly $10 million in new rebate checks going out late this month may come at the expense of city, town and other local government treasuries (Times of Northwest Indiana). Gov. Mitch Daniels ordered state and county officials Friday to restore property tax rebates that were denied to 29,000 taxpayers, primarily in Gary, Hammond, East Chicago and Whiting. Mike Wieser, finance director for the Lake County auditor’s office, said Monday the money to back up those checks likely will be loaned from county government coffers but may ultimately come out of municipal, township and county government budgets. Whiting Mayor Joseph Stahura said Monday he expects that decision to cost his city budget about $200,000. "We went into this year preparing for reductions, so I will have to find ways to deal with it," Stahura said. "At the same time, I’m glad to see the homeowners getting that money because our people have been hit hard. So however we can help them, we will." Merrillville Town Manager Tim Brown said Monday, "Certainly it will have an impact, but we are getting hit harder by mortgage foreclosures that are costing us hundreds of thousands of dollars in uncollected property taxes."
GARY SEEKS $5M IN ASSESSING ERRORS: The city of Gary and three sister agencies have launched a long-shot bid to recoup $5 million in property taxes lost to assessment errors and taxpayer appeals (Times of Northwest Indiana). Indiana debuted an annual assessment system last year called trending, and city officials say the switch prompted a rash of successful appeals that cost the city $3.2 million in refunds. "That’s what we think it’s attributable to," Gary Controller Celita Green said. Another $1.8 million in errors shorted the city, its sanitary and stormwater districts, and Gary/Chicago International Airport, said city consultant Damon Tsouklis, of Cender & Associates. The Merrillville firm filed an appeal last month on behalf all of four Gary taxing units with the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance. Tsouklis said a number of city-owned properties that were not supposed to be on the tax rolls were issued bills, erroneously inflating Gary’s 2007 revenue expectations. Taxing units typically must make budget appeals to the state before Dec. 31. But legislators extended the deadline to May 1 to aid East Chicago, which initially feared losing more than $10 million after a local assessor mistakenly double-entered an ArcelorMital steel plant assessment into a county database. East Chicago ultimately decided against an appeal, explaining the city’s actual losses were "negligible." If any of the $5 million in Gary appeals is approved by the state, the tax burden would be added to this year’s bills.
MAYOR HENRY SEEKING DEPUTY MAYOR: The departure of Mayor Tom Henry’s top executive has forced the city’s leader to recall his transition team to find a replacement (Fort Wayne Journal Gazette). Deputy Mayor Mark Becker announced his resignation May 9 to take a dual post with the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership. Henry on Monday announced asking his transition team to screen candidates to replace Becker, who will leave May 31. Henry’s transition team helped the mayor fill his administration, although it decided to retain the bulk of former Mayor Graham Richard’s staff, including Becker. “I have charged the transition team with finding someone who knows our community, understands our opportunities and has a familiarity with the way government works,” Henry said in a statement. “I know that’s a tall order, but I have faith that the transition team will provide me with qualified candidates. I have also told them that while I would be delighted if candidates were presented immediately, they should not sacrifice quality for speed. This position is just too important.”
Counties
FAYETTE COUNTY UNEMPLOYMENT TIPS TO 9.6%: Unemployment dropped last month in Fayette County, but its rate remains the highest in the state, a position it’s held for 12 consecutive months (Richmond Palladium-Item). Fayette County’s April unemployment rate was 9.6 percent, a drop of 1.3 percent from March’s peak of 10.9 percent. Unemployment declined in all area counties last month by a full percentage point. Wayne County’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.4 percent, down from 6.5 percent in March, ranking it 28th in the state. Union County’s rate in April dropped to 5.4 percent, down from 6.6 percent in March, earning a rank of 34th in the state. Randolph County was 11th in the state with an unemployment rate of 5.9 percent, down from 7 percent in April.
Education
TAXPAYER FORCES EVANSVILLE SCHOOL REFERENDUM: Those who wished for a referendum on the Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corp. strategic plan apparently will get their wish (Evansville Courier & Press). Superintendent Vincent Bertram, saying EVSC was "blindsided" by a remonstrance petition opposing an initiative he thought had near-unanimous community support, said he will advocate having voters decide the fate of a $149 million bond issue. The bond issue funds much of the plan, which includes a new high school and middle school and additions and renovations at several schools. It is to be fully implemented by fall 2011. "Essentially, what we’re going to do is start over," Bertram said. Frankie Niedhammer, a Vanderburgh County resident who led efforts to fight EVSC’s plan, said a referendum "is what we said we wanted in the first place."
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