No one really expected the start of the 2012 session of the Indiana General Assembly to be uneventful.
Those expectations were fulfilled last week with a political wrestling match over a contentious labor bill heralded by Republican leaders and hated by their Democratic counterparts.
If passed, Indiana would become the 23rd state in the nation with a so-called right-to-work law that outlaws agreements between labor unions and employers that make membership or payment of union dues or fees a condition of employment.
The legislation proved divisive from the get-go. It’s what sent House Democrats into an unofficial walkout the very first day of the session and kept them out the rest of the week.
Republicans who control the Statehouse weren’t happy. They want to fast-track the controversial legislation — and clear the sidewalks leading into the Statehouse of bill protesters — before national news crews arrive for next month’s Super Bowl in Indianapolis.
Simple math puts the “yea” votes on the side of bill supporters, who’ve tried to make the case that the legislation is simply a job-creator needed in a job-hungry state with a 9 percent unemployment rate.
But it’s not so simple. A marathon committee hearing on the bill, conducted Friday, raised a lot of questions about just how much impact such legislation would have over the long term.
The testimony in front of a joint House-Senate labor committee was often conflicting, as speakers wielded rival studies from other states.
Here’s a sample of that: After the president of The State Chamber of Oklahoma (that state’s version of the Chamber of Commerce) boasted Oklahoma’s right-to-work law pushed the state from 40th to first in job creation six months after Oklahomans voted it in by referendum, a University of Oregon economist said it wasn’t so.
The economist, Gordon Lafer, is a critic of right-to-work legislation. He said Oklahoma’s job growth was pushed by other factors, including the state’s booming oil industry. Lafer also pointed out that Indiana saw twice the manufacturing job growth from 2009 to 2011 than five right-to-work states combined: Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
Bill supporters and opponents alike both claim to have most Hoosiers on their side of the debate, but that seems questionable, too.
More believable is the study that came out of Ball State University’s nonpartisan Bowen Center for Public Affairs last month. That study showed 27 percent of Hoosiers were for a right-to-work law while 24 percent were against. The rest — almost half the Hoosiers polled — said they don’t have an opinion on the issue or they don’t understand it.
Maureen Hayden is the Indiana Statehouse bureau chief for CNHI, the parent company of the Tribune-Star. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
Local & Bistate
STATE OF THE STATEHOUSE: Legislative labor bill banter goes on
- Local & Bistate
-
-
A fallen soldier returns home
An Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of Spc. Arronn D. Fields early Thursday morning at Dover Air Force Base, Del.
-
Official touts trade with northern neighbor
A top Canadian diplomat told a Terre Haute audience Thursday his country was “disappointed” when President Obama at least temporarily rejected a proposed transcontinental oil pipeline from Alberta to Texas.
-
Caution urged for summer’s kickoff
Lane restrictions in construction zones on Interstate 70 and other highways around the state will be lifted to accommodate holiday travel for the Memorial Day Weekend.
-
Letters delivered
Several positions will be eliminated this summer at the Terre Haute mail processing facility as the U.S. Postal Service begins moving the operation to Indianapolis, a U.S. Postal Service spokesman has confirmed.
-
Companies seek Vigo tax abatements
Two Vigo County companies are seeking tax abatements for expansion projects, one of which is included as part of a county incentive package.
-
High-speed chase suspect caught in West Virginia
The suspect in a cross-country, high-speed chase originating in Terre Haute last week was reportedly in federal custody Thursday evening.
-
Second victim of deadly I-70 semi-trailer crash identified
The Vigo County Coroner’s Office has identified the passenger of a semi-tractor crash on May 16 in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 near the 12-mile marker.
- VIGO COUNTY JAIL LOG: May 22-24, 2012
-
Burn ban in effect for Vigo County through holiday weekend
Vigo County officials have issued a burn ban effective Thursday and remains in effect until 8 a.m. Tuesday.
-
Brazil remembers a Fallen Son
A small town seemed sadly quiet Wednesday, waiting to honor a local fallen warrior.
-
ISU OKs four-year degree guarantee
Indiana State University has announced a four-year “graduation guarantee” for students enrolling this fall and beyond.
-
Dems tout good side of compromise
Indiana Senate Minority Leader Vi Simpson, chosen to run as the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor with gubernatorial candidate John Gregg, said during a stop Wednesday in Terre Haute that bipartisan experience is a key factor in creating jobs and legislation to help Hoosiers statewide.
-
Motorcyclist dies, motorist charged after accident
A Terre Haute man has died of injuries he sustained in a two-motorcycle, one-car crash that also injured another motorcyclist late Tuesday. The incident has led to the arrest of the car’s driver.
-
Grant money will help replace Collett Park area tree canopy
A combination of city funds and a state grant is allowing TREES Inc. and the city of Terre Haute to plant 100 trees next year to replace a storm-destroyed street-tree canopy in the Collett Park neighborhood.
-
Schools surpass goal for Riley
The lives of about 5,000 children in Vigo County are touched each year by Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, and now, the Riley Children’s Foundation has been touched with gratitude by students in the Vigo County School Corp.
-
Historic preservation proposal discussed during open forum
More than three dozen people turned out Wednesday to ask questions about a proposed Terre Haute ordinance that would set up a formal process to preserve historic properties in the city.
-
Banks of the Wabash workers getting festival ready to roll
Concession stands and amusement rides lined the lawn, waiting for a crowd.
-
Search on for Gibault walkaway
The Indiana State Police are seeking help in finding a juvenile who they say walked away from a Vigo County treatment facility Sunday evening.
-
Graduate college in four years? ISU ‘guarantees’ it
Indiana State University has announced a four-year graduation guarantee for students enrolling this fall and beyond.
-
School bus crashes into central Indiana home
A school bus rumbled through the backyard of a suburban Indianapolis home and crashed into the side of the house.
-
Markets swoon, oil prices fall as anxiety about Europe takes hold
The threat of a financial crisis spreading from Europe shook markets on Wednesday. The euro dropped to a nearly two-year low against the dollar. Oil prices sank to their lowest this year, and stocks took another fall.
-
The closing of St. Ann Parish: Shuttered parish will help others live on
St. Ann Parish celebrated its last Mass on Sunday.
-
Foreclosure lawsuit questions dog mayor
Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett said Tuesday he is “100 percent” certain the foreclosure suit filed against him by GMAC Mortgage on his eastside home will be resolved within the next “couple of weeks.”
-
TB case cause for concern, not panic
A suspected case of tuberculosis at a Vigo County middle school is cause for concern, but health officials are taking appropriate precautionary steps, says Union Hospital’s chief medical officer
Dr. John Bolinger said the suspected TB case at Woodrow Wilson Middle School “is a concern,” but Vigo County and state health departments “are there to handle situations like this. They’ll do the right thing.” -
Woodgate residents considering legal action
Residents came in force Tuesday to try to compel the Vigo County Board of Commissioners to change how a development is progressing near Woodgate subdivisions in southern Vigo County.
-
Clay County soldier dies in Afghanistan
A 27-year-old Knightsville resident and Northview High School graduate died Monday from a rocket propelled grenade attack in Afghanistan while serving with the Indiana National Guard.
-
Farmersburg man arrested on rape charge
A Farmersburg man has been arrested on suspicion of rape and criminal confinement after a May 4 incident that allegedly occurred at his parents’ residence.
-
Truck driver in double fatal crash identified
A truck driver killed in a crash on Interstate 70 in Vigo County last Wednesday has been identified as Alfonso Ochoa Diaz, 60, River Rouge, Mich.
-
Two arrested on reckless driving charges
Indiana State Police on Tuesday nabbed two drivers accused of reckless driving in northern Vermillion County.
-
Garfield Towers resident, injured in fire, dies
A man who sustained burns in the Garfield Towers fire has died at an Indianapolis hospital.
- More Local & Bistate Headlines
-
Raw Video: Toddler Trapped in Washing Machine
Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance
Hurricane Forecast: 15 Named Storms Expected
NJ Official: NYPD Muslim Surveillance Legal
Vegas Grocer Deported to Face War Crimes Charges
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington
Man Tells Police He Killed Missing Boy in 1979
Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought
Sudden Storm Topples Wisconsin Trees
Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns
Search Intensifies for Missing Louisiana Woman
Bloomberg: Man Implicates Self in Etan Patz Case
NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted
Neighbors of Etan Patz's Suspect: It's Shocking
FAMU Bandmates: Victim Volunteered to Be Hazed
Raw Video: Wildfire Burns 110 Square Miles
Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament
Raw Video: Fire on Nuke-powered Sub in Maine
Stuntman Makes Skydive Without Parachute in UK
Heidi Klum Goes Sheer
Shark Attacks Australian Fishing Boat
Snoop Dog throws 1st pitch at White Sox game
Kayaker Survives Trip Over Washington Waterfall
Alison Brie Likes To Jog Naked
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Alton's Best Burger Ever
Ellie Kemper's Stripper Surprise on 'Ellen'
Maddie the Balancing Dog On Cross-Country Trip
Crawford's Sexy Leather Look
Boys eyes 'removed with spoon'
"Twilight" Stars Caught Kissing
Etan Patz Case: Suspect Arrested
Britney's Hot Pink Mini-Dress
Wrongfully accused rapist exonerated after 5 years in jail
Actress to Play Casey Anthony
Prince William on The Queen: 'Woman in Man's World'
Fight erupts in Ukrainian parliament over language bill.
