Priorities set for session
The clock keeps ticking, days come and go and the weeks roll on by. Our family has learned through the events of 2015 that life continues regardless of what is thrown at us. We look forward to 2016, and the many blessings to come.
Indiana’s General Assembly has convened and is under way for 2016. This short session is a mixed bag for legislators and the public. For the elected folks, it can be a pressure cooker of issues. For the public, it can be a rapid-fire session that is impossible to track. No matter what, I hope all the issues can be addressed with minimum acrimony!
All four legislative caucuses and the administration are busy discussing options to address Indiana’s transportation infrastructure needs. Each one has a different approach, but I will explain the House Republicans’ proposal. Unlike most states, Indiana charges a sales tax on gasoline in addition to a fuel excise tax. For years, all the revenue from the state sales tax on fuels has gone to the state General Fund. In the 2013 budget passed by House Republicans, we dedicated one percent of all sales tax revenue to the Motor Vehicle Highway Account Fund; this was the rough equivalent to one-seventh of the sales tax on gas, or one penny for every gallon sold. Our proposal will distribute an additional four cents to roads, totaling five cents for every seven cents collected per gallon.
Devoting more of the sales tax collected on gas toward roads and bridges, though a great idea, will create a hole in the General Fund. In this case, $330 million. There has been only one responsible and sustainable solution proposed to close this gap: a one-dollar increase to the state cigarette tax. This would generate nearly $280 million more for state Medicaid, freeing up general funds to help cover the shortfall. Another aspect of our proposal is providing more flexibility and road funding tools to local governments, such as an optional wheel tax for cities of at least 20,000 residents. All serious proposals to fund our transportation infrastructure are on the table and will be fully vetted. My hope is that a responsible, comprehensive and sustainable plan can be agreed upon and enacted.
In our continuing commitment to education and empowering teachers, fixing recent issues with ISTEP testing is front and center. Action on ISTEP is imperative and we have fast-tracked the solution. That legislation, which has already passed the full house, would prevent educators from receiving unfair evaluations during this transition to higher standards. Additionally, efforts must be made to get young people excited about becoming teachers. To do this, House Republicans have proposed awarding top-performing high school graduates a scholarship if they enter the field of education and stay in Indiana classrooms for five years. A good teacher is the single most important factor in student achievement. We need to offer our best and brightest incentives to enter the teaching profession and stay in Hoosier classrooms.
In addition to roads and education, we are focusing on public safety. The counties of House District 23 are being ravaged by illegal drugs. Methamphetamine and heroin are rampant in our area, but most of the state is also hit by this scourge. Indiana, unfortunately, is a national leader in regards to drug-related problems. House Republicans are committed to considering legislation this session that would restrict meth cooks’ access to pseudoephedrine (PSE), the key precursor to making meth. Heroin is a more difficult issue. The public must wake up and help fight the influx of this horribly addictive drug. In regards to both, we are considering tighter penalties for drug traffickers.
With these three topics on our agenda, I foresee this session being a very productive one. Friends, let’s never forget that we all have an obligation to participate in our government. Call, write or e-mail to express your opinion; it does get heard and discussed. Feel free to e-mail me at H23@iga.in.gov or call (317)232-9981. Thank you for your interest!
More later,
WCF
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Rep. Bill Friend represents portions of Cass, Fulton and Miami counties.
He also serves as Speaker Pro Tempore.
