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The state of Indiana has committed $475 million for what it calls “transformational” road infrastructure projects throughout the state. Gov. Eric Holcomb announced the state would commit $75 million for improvements to 48 miles of U.S. 231, $200 million for a 25-mile extension of State Road 101 and $200 million to the Indiana approach to the Interstate 69 Ohio River Crossing. “Indiana’s location and extensive transportation network make our state one of the most attractive places in the country to do business and create jobs,” Holcomb said in a press release. “These projects will better connect our communities, enhance commerce...

Broadband internet is essential, not a luxury. Thank you @GovHolcomb for prioritizing #Indiana students and schools in your $250M investment so they have equitable access to participate in a meaningful digital learning experience. @ExcelinEd https://t.co/iLlqVzOqXf— Jeb Bush (@JebBush) April 23, 2021

The bill requires officers to take de-escalation training, defines a "chokehold" and classifies it as an act of deadly force.Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb on Thursday signed a bill into law that requires officers to undergo mandatory de-escalation training, creates a procedure to decertify officers who commit misconduct, and prohibits the chokehold under certain circumstances, among other things. Indiana House Bill 1006 was introduced following the death of George Floyd, which sparked a series of protests in cities all across the country. Protesters demanded police reform, for the chokehold to be banned, and some called for the police to be defunded....

A bipartisan group of governors from seven states announced on April 16 that they would form a Midwest regional partnership to coordinate efforts to reopen their states’ economies amid the CCP virus pandemic. The partnership will see the governors exchanging expert data and advice to reopen their economies in a way that “prioritizes our workers’ health,” the governors said in a statement Thursday. It includes Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-Ill.), Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.), Gov. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio), Gov. Eric Holcomb (R-Ind.), Gov. Andy Beshear (D-Ky.), Gov. Tony Evers (D-Wis.) and Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.). “We look forward to working with...

The governor is telling Christians how worship must be done and with stricter rules than for all other public gatherings. That is none of his damned business. It is a fundamental aspect of constitutional law and historic American practice that no government may tell citizens how to worship. How one worships is a sacred duty that our laws and traditions have reserved entirely to the individual’s conscience, completely outside of the bounds of government interference.Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, however, has decided that this natural right secured in both the Indiana and national constitutions is something he is allowed to waive...

The Indiana legislature has passed, and Governor Eric Holcomb signed  HB 1284. The bill reforms several areas of Indiana gun law. HB 1284 passed the House, 80-13 on 11 February, 2019. It passed the Senate, 47-7 on 8 April, 2019. HB 1284 was signed by Governor Holcolmb on 26 April, 2019.Voter registration forms will now be available with applications for carry permits, by designating the Indiana State Police, Sheriff's offices, and municipal law enforcement agency offices, as voter registration offices. The legislation creates immunity from civil action when justifiable self defense or defense of others is successfully raised. Those...

INDIANAPOLIS — Gov. Eric Holcomb will not take action to toll Indiana's interstate highways during his tenure in office, a decision that a key Region lawmaker believes betrays the goals of the state road funding plan Holcomb enacted last spring. The Republican chief executive on Thursday transmitted to the State Budget Committee an interstate tolling plan crafted by the Indiana Department of Transportation, as required by House Enrolled Act 1002 sponsored by state Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso. The plan details how the state could collect approximately $15 billion for road improvements between 2024 and 2045 by imposing tolls of up...

More than 60 years ago, the interstate highway system was envisioned to connect the country from coast to coast. Initially, a modest 3-cents-per-gallon tax on gasoline and diesel fuel was established and wholly dedicated to the construction and maintenance of roads and bridges. The vision became reality and exceeded expectations, connecting communities, making travel easier, and improving the flow of commerce. A short time later, the gasoline and diesel tax was increased to 4 cents per gallon—where it stayed until 1983, when it was doubled. Unfortunately, this also marked the point in which highway taxes began to be diverted to...

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Northern Indiana lawmakers are calling into question Gov. Eric Holcomb’s decision against imposing new tolls on the state’s interstate highways, while allowing the Indiana Toll Road’s private operator to significantly boost rates for large trucks using that highway. Democratic Sen. Karen Tallian of Portage tells the South Bend Tribune that the situation is unfair because only the communities in northern Indiana along the Toll Road will have the burden of higher tolls, while all parts of the state will benefit from the toll money. The Republican governor announced in September that the operator of the Toll...

Take Interstate 65 south across the Ohio River and you might not notice you've just spent $4. No toll booth stands between the Indiana border and Louisville. Motorists who frequently travel the route likely have a transponder device, with the cost charged automatically to their account. For those without a transponder, a camera captures a license plate photo and the tolling system operator, with access to motor vehicle records, sends a bill to the vehicle's registered owner. As technological advances make highway and bridge tolling easier and more efficient, technology also is delivering more fuel-efficient cars and trucks. The gasoline-tax...

It was disappointing, but not surprising, to learn from the Indianapolis Business Journal (Oct. 10-16) that both John Gregg and Eric Holcomb endorse public-private partnerships (P3s). These candidates for governor are experienced in the ways of our Indiana government. Mr. Gregg has served at the highest level of the legislature while Mr. Holcomb is our Lt. Governor. P3s are agreements between governments (national, state, or local) with private companies to assume control, but not ownership, of public assets. Hoosiers know them in the form of the new bridge over the Ohio River, connecting the east end of Louisville with Clark...

The controversial 2006 lease of the Indiana Toll Road paved the way for highway projects funded by public-private partnerships in Indiana — including the relatively smooth and nearly finished building of a bridge over the Ohio River at Louisville and the beleaguered construction of a 21-mile stretch of Interstate 69 from Bloomington to Martinsville. Indiana’s next governor — whose road-funding agenda will likely shape discussions at next year’s budget session of the Indiana General Assembly — will have a major role in crafting future deals to fund projects and maintain the state’s infrastructure. The question is whether the state will...

The state of Indiana needs to do a better job of looking out for the interests of Hoosiers, especially Monroe County Hoosiers, when it comes to construction of Interstate 69. Section 5 of the project, the part that starts just south of Bloomington and goes north to Martinsville, has run into problems. Not for the first time. Again, the private development company the state picked to build the highway has fallen behind on payments for work that’s been done. So major contractor Crider & Crider of Bloomington has stopped working, again, until it gets paid. State officials aren’t saying so,...

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - GOP Congressman Todd Young is accusing Democrats of using dirty tricks in an effort to get his name removed from the ballot in the race for U.S. Senate. And Republican leaders are expressing concern over the possibility that the Democrats will be successful. In order to make the ballot, a candidate must gather 500 petition signatures in each of Indiana's 9 congressional districts. Todd Young collected just 498 in the 1st Congressional District according to Democrats who have filed a challenge with the state Election Commission. The Todd Young campaign believes that it has 501 certified signatures...

Former Gov. Joe Kernan says a signature on a petition to place Barack Obama's name on Indiana's 2008 primary ballot isn't his, putting him among dozens of dubious signatures found in a newspaper's investigation. Kernan, a Democrat who campaigned for Hillary Clinton during the 2008 primary, told the South Bend Tribune that he didn't sign the Obama document. "No, not at all," the former South Bend mayor said when asked whether the signature next to his name on the Obama petition looked like his own. "Nor does the printing look like mine." The Tribune reported Wednesday that it has talked...