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(05/14/01 2:53am)
Gov. Frank O\'Bannon wasn't pleased with the two-year, $20.7 million budget that lawmakers sent him. But he wasn't displeased enough to veto the bill and call the General Assembly back for a special session. \nCriticizing the budget for spending more than the state is expected to take in, O'Bannon announced Friday that he plans to let it slide into law without his signature.\nAfter the revelation that the state is facing a projected $923 million revenue shortfall, the governor suggested repealing a 1999 property tax cut and hiking cigarette taxes by 50 cents a pack.\nLawmakers agreed to the property tax repeal, but his cigarette tax proposal fell flat.\nAs a result, the budget relies on gambling revenue and one-time bookkeeping tricks to help close up the shortfall. But, on the assumption that the economy will pick up, the budget bill spends more than $500 million in excess of projected revenue.\n"I remain concerned that this budget is just plain unrealistic when it comes to paying for the spending the General Assembly has put in place," O'Bannon said in a statement. "If economic conditions grow more challenging, the state is in real danger of coming up short."\nHouse Ways and Means Chairman B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, said the budget was responsible and contained enough money to help schools and universities through tough economic times.\n"To have done less would have caused teacher layoffs," he said. "To have done less would have increased tuition. In every budget, there's tradeoffs." \nO\'Bannon said he isn't happy with the legislature's proposed solution -- giving him broad discretion to spend money from the Rainy Day Fund, the state\'s emergency account.\n"I want to be sure that all expenditures -- especially, any spending that would draw down our important Rainy Day Fund -- are fully justified," he said. "I do not want to put Indiana in a position where a general tax increase is unavoidable, or we don\'t have enough funds to meet an emergency."\nThe budget already spends at least $46 million of the emergency fund and delays state payments to schools, universities and local governments. Also, it leaves a scant $2.5 million of existing revenue in the state's general fund or checking account. \nO'Bannon had until midnight Friday to act on legislation on his desk. \nWith only hours to spare, he signed two election reform bills that will upgrade voting systems and eliminate duplicate registration.\n"The governor and I have been working closely with legislators this session to advance election reform," Secretary of State Sue Anne Gilroy said at a Friday press conference. "The reforms that were signed into law will help achieve my top priority this legislative session -- ensuring that Indiana's future elections are the most accurate, accessible and secure in the country."\nOne of the bills creates an Internet-based voter registration database by 2004 to help eliminate the voter fraud that officials say is plaguing the system. The other measure establishes a voting system improvement fund to reimburse counties as much as 50 percent for buying new voting systems. Lawmakers hope to phase out lever voting machines and punch card ballots, which were at the heart of the election fiasco in Florida last fall. \nAnd Thursday, O'Bannon vetoed a bill that would have exempted lawmakers' e-mail from public records laws. Despite outcry from citizen's groups and newspapers around the state, the bill sailed through both houses.\n"Although the legislature clearly has the power to exempt itself from the public records act and address these issues in its rules, this is not a step that should be taken hastily or without careful deliberation and meaningful opportunity for public comment," O'Bannon said in a statement.\nLawmakers said the bill would have protected the privacy of constituents who write to them about personal matters. While playing down critics' concerns, O'Bannon said it amounts to an attack on open government.\n"I do not agree with those who suggest that House Enrolled Act 1083 would lead to the legislature closing down all manner of public records that are now open," he said. "I believe an open government is essential to a free society." \nLawmakers can override the governor's veto with a simple majority in both chambers.
(05/14/01 2:48am)
MARTINSVILLE -- Richard Miller often wakes up huddled and screaming for help.\nMiller, only 14 but mature beyond his years, still remembers the rusty, jagged metal collapsed around him. He still remembers the smell of the dusty air.\nMiller and Judy Kirby were the only survivors of a high-speed, wrong-way head-on collision on Ind. 67 on March 25 last year that left seven dead. Thursday, a jury from Dearborn County found Kirby guilty on seven counts of murder, four felony counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death and a lone felony count of aggravated battery.\nMinutes before, Kirby's knuckles were white as she clenched the hands of her attorney, Jennifer Auger. Kirby otherwise appeared calm as Morgan County Superior Court Judge Jane Spencer Craney prepared to read the jury's verdict.\n"Guilty," Craney declared -- a dozen times.\nKirby broke into incoherent sobbing, clawing at Auger's shoulder. \nAfter hearing 114 testimonies in an 11-day trial, the jury took fewer than 10 hours Wednesday evening and Thursday morning to reach the decision. They accepted deputy prosecutor Tom Iacola's contention that Kirby had been suicidal and intentionally plowed into Thomas Reel's minivan, killing him and his children, Jessica and Brad Reel.\nThe crash -- which police estimate occurred at a combined speed of 159 to 177 miles per hour -- also claimed the lives of Kirby's children Jordan, Joney and Jacob and Jeremy Young, a nephew in her care. \nEach murder count carries a standard sentence of 55 years, which Defense Attorney Tom Jones said he believes will be stacked on the June 7 sentencing. With standard 10-year sentences on the five other convictions, Kirby could face up to 435 years in prison.\n"This woman will never see daylight again," Jones said. \nProsecutors decided against pursuing the death penalty. The defense maintained that a thyroid problem compelled Kirby to drive her white Firebird more than 100 miles per hour southbound down Ind. 67 for 1.7 miles.\n"It's been proven that she was psychotic when she had this accident," Frank Henninger, her visibly shaken brother-in-law, said. "She was a good mother. She loved all her children and herself."\nSeveral of Kirby's family members shared the sentiment after Morgan County sheriff\'s deputies led her out the courtroom to a waiting van past a throng of reporters. Kirby, still sobbing, declined to respond to questions shouted at her.\n"She wouldn't have gone to pick up her four kids if she wanted to kill herself," Kirby's sister Kathy Walker whispered while sullenly pacing back and forth with averted eyes outside the Florentine-style brick courthouse. "It was clearly an accident, the hyperthyroidism that made her do it."\nWhile Jones put more than 700 hours of pro bono work into the case on the conviction that Kirby was delusional, he wasn't surprised by the verdict.\n"When you see pictures of seven dead bodies -- six children -- it becomes overwhelming," he said. "And we were afraid of that."\nBut Jones and Auger, his daughter, have still vowed to appeal.\nJury members -- one of whom wept while the verdict was read -- declined to comment. They sent a note to reporters saying it had been a "difficult decision."\nLouise Reel, Thomas' widow, tearily thanked them after the court had adjourned.\n"Justice has been served," she said. "I've been waiting 14 months, and I'm so relieved today. She took away my family."\nLouise Reel said her ordeal has challenged her deeply held Christian faith.\n"Tom would tell us to stay strong and believe," she said. "She took everything from me. Fortunately, I've had wonderful people in my life."\nThe tragedy has also left Miller -- now a high school freshman -- searching for answers.\n"It feels like God's hand was in this," he said. "There has to be a reason. It's something I'll think about for the rest of my life."\nMiller and Reel, who will ask Craney to sentence Kirby to life on the June 7 sentencing, hope for closure.\n"We're going to have a PJ party, with ice cream and pop," a shaking but satisfied Reel said. "I don't think it's inappropriate to celebrate. They would celebrate if she walked out of there, absolutely." \nStill, in spite of the loss of her husband and children, Reel said she doesn't hate Kirby.\n"She did a terrible thing," she said. "It's between her and God. I'm a very forgiving person, but what she did was so wrong"
(05/11/01 7:21pm)
For Theater and Drama Professor George Pinney, life has recently been a blast.\nPinney has served as choreographer of the Bloomington-based musical Blast! since 1995.\nAnd now the energetic visual and musical ensemble -- which has been on Broadway for three weeks -- received two Tony nominations Monday.\n"I'm a little dumbfounded," Pinney said early Monday afternoon. "It feels really wonderful - I've been giggling all morning."\nFunded and developed by local biotech millionaire Bill Cook, the troupe of brass and percussive musicians is guaranteed to take home at least one award. It's the only nominee in the "Special Theatrical Event" category, which the Tony committee added after Contact was shunned last year for lacking live music or a story line.\n"I'm really proud," Producer John Mason said. "It's in a year of powerful musicals that are setting box office records. It's really quite an honor, being the first musical to win in this category."\nMason directed an outdoor drum and bugle troupe in Dubuque, Iowa when Cook approached him in 1992. Cook sold him on his idea for a drum corps called Star of Indiana that would be geared toward young people.\nTwo years later, Mason had pieced a brass band together. Rehearsing in the gym of the old Grandview Elementary School, the ensemble went on to win the 1991 Drum Corps International World Championships.\nAfter a sold-out performance in Stillwater, Minn. a year later, Cook and Mason went out for a walk. Cook saw Star of Indiana evolving into a theatrical program grounded in the marching band tradition.\n"Up until that point, it had been 10 minute shows of just music," Mason said. "We toured all over and put on Canadian Brass kind of shows."\nThe idea fell to the backburner, and Star of Indiana continued touring and cleaning up at drum corps contests. Then in 1995, Cook watched a production of the Cole Porter musical Anything Goes in the IU Auditorium. He knew the director -- Pinney -- was just the man he wanted.\n"I saw it as an opportunity to interpret music in different ways," Pinney said. "It's really just a spectacle that defies definition. While it's percussionist and instrumentalist, all our performers are actors too."\nIt wasn't long before Blast! found its footing. It recently premiered in London, where it will set up another troupe. And the Tony nominations almost ensure its ten-week run on Broadway will be extended.\nDebuting April 17, the show has faced a chilly reception from New York's theater critics, who generally describe the show as gimmicky and hokey.\n"Blast! bored me cross-eyed," wrote Bruce Weber of The New York Times. "It was a halftime show that had wandered onto the stage at Broadway Theater, as if it got lost on the way to the stadium."\nBut, however harsh the critics have been, Blast! has been a huge hit with theatergoers.\n"We have a high level of enthusiasm from the audience," Mason said. "We've received three standing ovations every night we've been up there"
(05/07/01 2:33am)
Tom Wiggins dropped off a five-page art history paper on architecture Friday afternoon, wrapping up his academic career. \nHe shrugs it off as no big deal.\nWiggins hadn't been thinking much about graduation -- and he's still not sure what he's going to do with himself.\n"Everyone's been asking if I have a job lined up," he said. "Next question."\nWiggins, a fine arts major who maintained a 3.7 grade point average, received his degree at the Saturday morning commencement in Memorial Stadium with 6,064 fellow graduating seniors. Their family and guests filled up the 30,000 seats on the west side of the stadium.\nSome who showed up while the band blared the processional had to stand at the exits with police officers and sharp-eyed paramedic personnel. A few made their way to the bleachers in the north endzone, where shade was scant. \nSwamped with the 90 degree heat, many parents and grandparents ducked inside the foyer and watched the ceremony on closed circuit televisions. Some even shelled out $2.50 for the ice-cold fountain drinks.\nThe sun bore down unmercifully, but the 172nd commencement was uncharacteristically brief.\nBloomington Chancellor Kenneth Gros Louis -- the keynote speaker -- kept his comments short.\nGros Louis, who's retiring as chancellor after 38 years at the end of June, said he could identify with the black-robed students chatting on cell phones and knocking around beach balls. \n"In a sense, your commencement is also my commencement," he said. "Unlike most speakers at such occasions, I will live and die by the same advice I'm giving you."\nQuoting Shakespeare, John Steinbeck, John Kennedy and the Oxford English Dictionary, Gros Louis riffed off the theme of frontiers.\n"I'm urging us to accept the notion of a frontier, in that American sense, not as a border of a limit, but something unknowable, yet reachable, something with risks, but great rewards if we clear ground and build correctly," he said.\nThe lifelong academic asked the graduates to pursue their aspirations and think great thoughts.\n"I think of others in Bloomington, and I'm sure in your towns and cities as well, who don't even know they have a frontier, who believe that their futures will be identical to their presents and their pasts," he said. "So many in our country live their current lives in discomfort or fear or humiliation, but many have the natural ability to achieve beyond what they might even dare to hope."\nGros Louis received an honorary doctorate along with Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra Music Director Raymond John Leppard and Jack Gill, a venture capitalist with ties to the Kelly School of Business.\nBefore conferring degrees to graduates in the 12 schools, President Myles Brand invoked Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin.'" \n"The experts predicted we would colonize Mars, eliminate disease and have 20-hour workweeks," he said. "Well, the future belongs to those who build it -- not those who predict. I ask you to have a creative relationship with change"
(05/04/01 3:44am)
The idea floated around in the General Assembly for seven years.\nBut Indiana now joins 36 other states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico in allowing charter schools, autonomous public schools that don't fall under the control of a larger district or board. \nCharter schools -- which are secular and tuition-free -- relax state regulations for administrators. The state vests them with authority to design their own curriculum and control their own spending. \nStill, the students would be required to take standardized tests and meet state academic standards. \nGov. Frank O'Bannon -- a longtime charter school advocate -- signed a law Wednesday that allows establishing charter schools.\n"Indiana's efforts to give our schools greater flexibility are helping schools promote innovative approaches to education to ensure that every student is able to reach his potential," O'Bannon said at a Wednesday press conference. "I am pleased today to sign the bill into law and take a step toward more flexibility in our local schools."\nA sponsor draws up a charter, a contract with the state that lays out a school's goals and standards for measuring student performance. If the schools fails to comply with the terms of its charter, the state reserves the right to revoke it.\nThe sponsor is responsible for overseeing all administrative aspects of a charter school. Under the legislation, school corporations across the state would be able to draft charters. \n"This legislation is a careful balance between school board authority and local innovation programs," House sponsor Greg Porter, D-Indianapolis, said. "It also strikes a balance between current school districts and parental choice."\nPending the approval of the state department of education, public universities with four-year degree programs and the mayor of Indianapolis would also be able to set up and operate charter schools.\n"This authority is a responsibility I take very seriously," Indianapolis mayor Bart Peterson said. "I look forward to working with all members of our community to make charter schools a success."\nIn a Thursday press conference, Peterson unveiled his plans for establishing charter schools in Indianapolis. Through executive order, he created a review process and an advisory board to sift through applications. \nPeterson expects the first applications to come in this fall. And by 2002, he hopes a few pilot schools will be up and running.\nUnder the legislation, the only applicable regulation requires that teachers have an Indiana license. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle supported the bill, which is intended to foster creativity in the classroom.\n"The passage of this law is a great new opportunity for Hoosier families and teachers," Senate Sponsor Teresa Lubbers, R-Indianapolis, said. "The success of the charter schools in Indiana will be marked by improved student learning."\nDespite bipartisan support, legislative efforts had long been bogged down in disagreements over teacher licensing, labor rights and other issues. Compromise on teacher licensing and unrelated labor concerns won the support of the Indiana State Teacher's Association, the largest teacher's union in the state.
(04/27/01 5:37am)
There's a need to build a major $1 billion-plus highway between Evansville and Indianapolis, according to a state study released last week. While the Indiana Department of Transportation has not ruled out other routes, the study is calling for a more direct connection, predicting an economic boom for southwest Indiana.\nA new-terrain highway through southwest Indiana would also complete an international trade corridor between Canada and Mexico through the Midwest, the report finds. The proposed project would link the I-64 highway just north of Evansville to I-465 south of Indianapolis. \nThe study is hardly finalized -- it won't be finished until the end of 2002.\nBut project manager Michael Grovak said researchers put more than 7,000 hours into the 59-page report, which he described as the "most important part of the study." \n"The purpose and need statement is like the foundation of a house," INDOT Commissioner Christine Klika said. "You have to take a great deal of care and effort to make sure the foundation of your study is well constructed."\nBy year's end, Grovak -- spokesman for Bernardin Lochmueller & Associates, the state's consultant -- said the list of prospective routes will be narrowed to no more than five. When the study is finished, state and federal officials expect to select a route from the 14 existing proposals.\n"We are right on schedule," Grovak said. "The timetable is to have construction around the end of this decade."\nThe study doesn't address the route the highway should take, but it will have an impact on deciding which routes would fulfill the highway's purpose. And the study largely focuses on the economic stress in southwest Indiana. \nThe draft notes the four counties with the highest poverty rates in the state are in the southwest, along with five of the eight highest unemployment rates. And it finds that Evansville has the least efficient connection to Indianapolis of any major Indiana city, leaving southwest Indiana with little access to jobs and airports.\nCritics favor linking the cities by upgrading existing roads -- specifically I-70 and U.S. 41 through Terre Haute. They worry about the environmental impact of building a new-terrain highway, which would necessitate the clearing of some forest land.\n"They're ignoring public input and just pushing for the new terrain route," Hoosier Environmental Council spokesman Andy Knott said. "They're not addressing the environmental cost."\nKnott said he isn't pleased with the study. \n"It's biased toward a new-terrain route," he said. "It's not a surprise, but they're not being fair to the other options."\nThe state has scheduled several public hearings on the draft purpose and need statement, the first of which will take place from 6 to 9:30 p.m. May 7 at Martinsville High School.
(04/27/01 5:33am)
Gov. Frank O'Bannon has dropped his plan to raise cigarette taxes to help the state out of its $923 million revenue shortfall. \nAngela Belden, O\'Bannon\'s press secretary, said the governor found little support for the plan in his weekly breakfast with top legislators Wednesday. \n"It's off the table for this year," she said. "Still, the governor hopes legislators will see the need to pass a responsible budget, even if they haven't embraced his proposal."\nA decrease in tax collections arising from a slowing national economy threatens to wipe out the state's projected $874.3 million surplus. State coffers have also dwindled in recent years with tax cuts and new prisons.\nTo solve the severe shortfall, O'Bannon suggested a suspension of a two-year property tax credit and a 50 cent hike per pack of cigarettes last week. It met up with a cool reception from Senate Republicans and many House Democrats, especially after those in the 16 southern counties in which tobacco is grown. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Pat Bauer, D-South Bend, pronounced the proposal "dead on arrival."\n"There's no need for any sort of tax hike," Senate Republican Caucus spokesman Robert Campbell said. "We have enough revenue to get by, and it's a temporary situation."\nFiscal leaders in both chambers continued private talks in conference committee Thursday, hoping to reach a budget agreement before the regular session deadline of midnight Saturday.\nIf lawmakers cannot agree on a two-year spending plan by then, O'Bannon would be forced to call them back for a special session. The current two-year budget expires June 30.\nBut Senate Republicans remain optimistic a deal can be reached before the General Assembly will have to adjourn.\n"We should have a bipartisan agreement reached by tomorrow," Campbell said. "We want to have a day to look it over rather than push it through last minute."\nShunning O'Bannon's tax hike proposal, Republicans support using bookkeeping tactics to free up money over the next two years. They also proposed tapping into the state's Rainy Day Fund, a $2 billion cash reserve saved up in the event of a recession.\nO'Bannon has frowned upon dipping into the fund this session, but Belden said he "would take a hard look into it."\nEducation funding continues to be the main sticking point in budget negotiations.\nHouse Democrats are seeking 4 percent increases for schools and universities to keep place with inflation. Along with university officials, they contend such funding levels are needed to avoid teacher layoffs and substantial tuition increases at universities.\n"We realize that these are tough fiscal times," IU spokeswoman Susan Dillman said. "But we hope lawmakers will realize that it's not only an investment in education -- it's an investment in the state economy."\nWith the downturn in the economy, Republicans maintain increases at those levels might not be possible.\n"The current figure we're throwing around is three percent," Campbell said. "We'll probably meet them in the middle"
(04/26/01 5:37am)
While a developer continues to plan a controversial high-rise student housing complex at the long-abandoned ST Semicon site, the city is still pursuing a receivership.\nIf the project falls through, the city hopes to transfer legal responsibility of the property to an Indianapolis-based developer.\nA Friday court hearing on the receivership has been pushed back, although it has not yet been rescheduled.\nThe downtown property, just north of the Justice Building at 415 N. College Ave., has sat vacant since 1991. Bloomington Investment Group Inc. purchased the site -- where ST Semicon had long manufactured electrical semiconductors -- a year later.\nThe Indianapolis-based investment group is working on a sale to Intergroup Realty Trust, a Florida-based developer. Intergroup hopes to build a nine-story apartment complex that would house 800 students.\nCity and county councilmen have spoken out against the project, contending it would be too large and lack sufficient parking. But Bloomington Mayor John Fernandez backs the Melrose Aparments proposal, and it only has to be approved by city planning boards.\nStill, the city continues its receivership proceedings as a safeguard, City Attorney Michael Flory said.\n"It's a safety net," he said. "We want to lay the legal groundwork in case this project falls through."\nThe city began its legal proceedings two years ago to transfer the property to Indianapolis-based Mansur Real Estate Service Group. While the owner would retain its title, Mansur would become the legal guardian of the property, responsible for its cleanup and renovation.\nAs receiver, Mansur would be able to turn a profit from its investment by collecting rents from development. It hopes to build an apartment complex with 50 units and some commercial space on the ground floor.\n"Mansur's interest in the site and completing the project remains very strong," Mansur Senior Vice President Bob Echols said. "With local support, we are prepared to move forward with the project." \nHad the Friday hearing taken place, Flory said the city would have finalized the receivership.\nAfter two years of legal proceedings, Bloomington Investment Group is now cleaning up hazardous chemical waste that ST Semicon left behind, attorney Bruce McTavish said. The cleanup -- supervised by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management -- should be finished by late June. \nFlory said getting the site cleaned up is the city's first priority. But the case can still be made for a receivership, he said.\n"The building's falling apart," he said. "It's still a threat to public health and safety. And we want to make sure we have all our options on the table."\nThe city sought a continuance on the Melrose Apartment petition until the Board of Zoning Appeals' May meeting. Fernandez, who calls the site an "eyesore," said he hopes the developer can work out differences with zoning officials on issues such as density and parking.\nThe zoning board serves as a quasi-judicial body, and the current proposal doesn't comply with city code. But both sides have indicated they would be willing to compromise.
(04/26/01 5:32am)
The push to legalize dockside gambling died again at the hands of Senate Republicans Wednesday.\nHouse Ways and Means Committee Chairman Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, presented the idea Tuesday as a way to sew up the state's $923 million revenue shortfall. Bauer and his Democratic colleagues in the House -- who hold a 53-47 majority -- hope to increase funding for schools and universities by 4 percent to keep pace with inflation.\nThat's a point of contention with Senate Republicans, who control the chamber 32-18. They maintain that leaner fiscal times require budget cuts.\n"It is our opinion that we can operate within our current revenue steam," Sen. Robert Meeks, R-LaGrange, said. "It is our recommendation we do not need any revenue enhancement."\nBookkeeping tactics could be used to temporarily free up money for the two-year budget cycle, Meeks said. Senate Republicans also proposed tapping $325 million from the state's Rainy Day Fund. \nThe suggestion met with counterpoint from Gov. Frank O'Bannon's office.\n"That would only be in the event of a recession," O'Bannon spokesman Thad Nation said. "That would only be if we had two quarters of negative growth. That's not going to be triggered under this scenario."\nA decrease in tax collections arising from a slowing national economy threatens to wipe out the state's projected $874.3 million surplus. State coffers have also dwindled in recent years with tax cuts and new prisons.\nO'Bannon announced his own plan to steer the state through its fiscal troubles last week. In a rare visit to the General Assembly, he proposed delaying a property tax credit for two years and raising cigarette taxes 50 cents to 65 cents a pack.\n"We believe the governor has introduced a very reasonable plan," O'Bannon spokeswoman Angela Belden said. "And we hope the legislature will see that."\nA study released by the University of Michigan Tuesday might shore up support for the governor's proposal, Belden said. Researchers found that higher cigarette prices prevents teen smoking. \nStill, tobacco is grown in 16 counties in Indiana, and lawmakers fear angry constituents.\nBauer said he put the dockside legislation on the table to avoid the first tax increase since 1987, which Senate Republicans adamantly oppose. The idea has also fallen on deaf ears with many House Democrats, who hope to maintain their majority in the 2003 election. \n"It won't get to the floor of either chamber," Bauer said. "And the Senate Republicans won't go for it. It looks like we're going to have to start trimming."\nMeeks and his Republican colleagues back more modest increases in funding for schools and universities. University officials hope they can avoid a severe tuition hike.\n"We realize times are tough -- we'd be naive to think the money comes from nowhere," IU spokeswoman Susan Dillman said. "We know this budget is going to be tough, but we want to keep the university accessible." \nThe House passed the dockside gambling legislation 57-43 in early January.\nIt would have allowed the state's 10 riverboat casinos to remain moored so patrons could come and go at their leisure. It also would have raised admissions and wagering taxes, which Bauer said would have generated $377 million a year in new revenue.\nLawmakers scaled back the Senate version, but it failed to clear committee.
(04/25/01 4:48am)
It's halfway through National TV-Turnoff Week, an annual grassroots event.\nOrganizers hope viewers will skip out on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" and "Survivor" in favor of community-based activities. The Monroe County Green Party has planned several local events to publicize the movement, including a Wednesday nature walk and a family game night Friday.\n"Kids spend more time watching TV than they do at school," said Green Party Coordinator Peter Drake. "It's inherently disturbing; it's a major part of our lives and it's disturbing that it doesn't involve exercise or interacting socially."\nDrake throws out a statistic from Nielsen Media Research -- that the television is on for 7 hours and 40 minutes every day in the average American household. He doesn't think that's healthy.\n"It shapes the way we view the world around us," Drake said. "Consumerism is constantly impressed on people. You have to remember -- the viewer isn't the consumer; the viewer is the product they're selling to advertisers."\nFor Isabel Piedmont, tuning out for a week isn't much of a sacrifice, although she said she enjoys "Seinfeld" and "Law & Order." Piedmont, who's spearheading the nature hike, said she tries not to watch more than eight hours a week.\n"I think it's a great idea," she said. "I hope this week will force people to think about what they watch and their alternatives -- social interaction and communication, for instance. You might be sitting next to someone while watching TV, but you don't talk.\n"You sit there with your eyes glazed over."\nPiedmont said she worries that some parents allow television to raise their children.\n"It's something that children just plop down and watch," she said. "It acts as a babysitter -- and that's a dangerous thing."\nIt's the first time Piedmont will celebrate the annual event, which has been around for seven years. Founded to convince people to "turn off television and turn onto life," it's scheduled for the last week of April -- sweeps week.\nIt's drawn fire from some television executives, including Robert Sachs, president of the National Cable Television Association.\n"Denying children TV is no more likely to encourage kids to enjoy reading, for instance, than denying kids ice cream would encourage them to like brussels sprouts," Sachs told a gathering in Washington, D.C., according to Reuters.\nDrake said he doesn't agree with Sachs' assessment that the movement is feckless and out of touch with mainstream society. But he said the point isn't to convince people to stop tuning into their favorite programs.\n"We're not trying to get people to stop watching TV," Drake said. "But it's important that people actively make the decision of what they will watch and why."\nFor more information, visit www.freespeech.org/mcgreens/tv/
(04/24/01 5:21am)
State Sen. Vi Simpson's legislation to tighten Indiana's law on dog attacks heads to conference committee today. Simpson, D-Ellettsville, sponsored the legislation after a pack of dogs fatally mauled a 71-year-old census taker in Brown County last summer. \n"This is an issue that is extremely important to the people of Brown County and, indeed, to all Hoosiers," she said. "Dog owners must be held responsible for serious harm caused by their animals. This bill allows prosecutors to appropriately enforce personal responsibility."\nThe legislation would hold dog owners criminally liable for attacks that take place on their property. It would only apply to people required to be on the property, such as postal workers and health inspectors.\nUnder current state law, attacks resulting in death can be prosecuted as a Class C felony only if the attack occurs off of the owner's property. Simpson's bill would close this legal loophole.\n"The bill is narrow enough not to infringe upon the rights of rural residents who may keep dogs to protect their property," Simpson said. "At the same time, it protects those who are required by law to enter a property. People who choose to keep a pack of dogs must take responsibility for that choice."\nDorothy Stewart died June 10 when visiting a cabin near Nashville to collect census information. Brown County Prosecutor Jim Oliver backs the legislation, pointing out the current law doesn't provide appropriate penalties for what happened to Stewart.\nOliver has reached a plea agreement with the dog owners, under which they'll plead guilty to the charge of criminal recklessness, a Class D felony. Wayne Newton receives a three-year prison term under the sentence, while Joann Latvaitis gets a one and a half year term. \nOther law enforcement officials testified before the General Assembly in favor of the legislation, including Monroe County Prosecutor Carl Salzmann. \nThe Senate passed the legislation by a vote of 47-2 in early March. It passed the House 92-0 last week with provisions unapproved by Simpson. \nRep. Matt Whetstone, R-Brownsburg, revised the bill to exempt those owners who restrain their dogs or post prominent signs warning of their presence. His amendment would also create a notification system, so public servants could report threatening encounters and, if needed, obtain court orders to conduct their business.\n"I just think property owners have a right to some protection on their property," Whetstone said.\nIn conference committee, lawmakers will seek to settle their differences and fine-tune the bill.\nThe Associated Press contributed to this report.
(04/24/01 5:15am)
The General Assembly's regular session comes to close at midnight Saturday.\nBut with political bickering about a $21 billion two-year budget at a time when state revenues are shrinking with a slowing economy, a special session is inevitable.\nAnd redrawing the lines for the state's congressional districts -- an often political issue -- also looms large.\nThad Nation, a spokesman for Gov. Frank O'Bannon, said he is "70 percent sure" the governor will be forced to convene a special session that could stretch on until late summer.\nUnder the state constitution, the General Assembly must redraw legislative maps every 10 years. The majority parties control the process of drawing up the state legislature lines -- the Democrats in the House and the Republicans in the Senate. \nBut they might clash over congressional redistricting. With the 2000 U.S. Census showing population shifts away from the Midwest, Indiana will lose one of its 10 congressional seats.\nThe Democrats released their plan a few weeks ago, and Rep. Brian Kerns, R-7th, would be the odd man out. For the 2002 election, he would be pitted against five-term incumbent Rep. Steve Buyer, R-5th.\nWhile Democrats say their plan is fair, their colleagues across the aisle call foul.\n"Partisanship and political advantage should not be the sole motivation for any policy decision, and certainly not for one so important as congressional seats in our state for the next decade," House Republican Leader Brian Bosma said. "In this case the majority party has gone well beyond mere partisanship."\nWith O'Bannon sitting in the statehouse, House Democrats ultimately hold the upper hand. If the House and Senate can't reach an agreement on congressional districts, the task will go to a committee where an O'Bannon appointee would have the deciding vote.\nSenate Republicans -- hoping to reach a compromise -- came out with their own congressional map last week. It would eliminate a longtime Indianapolis seat, now held by Democrat Julia Carson. \nCarson is the only female and only black member of Indiana's congressional delegation, and Democrats bristle at the proposal.\n"The Republican map is amazing, especially since its main purpose is to be a statement of Republican beliefs and values," Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Robin Winston said. "The GOP trampled on diversity and demonstrated that its solemn messages on redistricting were not heartfelt. Rather, those messages now seem merely mercenary"
(04/20/01 5:46am)
State lawmakers overwhelmingly voted Thursday to lower Indiana's threshold for drunken driving to .08 percent blood-alcohol content. The legislation, which lended drama to this year's session, awaits Gov. Frank O'Bannon's signature.\nThe governor, who has lobbied for a lower threshold, pledged to sign the bill.\n"As the governor mentioned in his State of the State address, he will sign the bill," O'Bannon spokesman Thad Nation said. "He worked very hard to make sure it would go through."\nO'Bannon brokered a deal to get the legislation back on track after its sponsor, Republican Sen. Tom Wyss of Fort Wayne, withdrew his support last month. A House amendment that would allow a person to hold more than one beer wholesaler's license in Indiana angered Wyss, who advanced similar bills in 10 of the past 11 years.\nAccusing House Democrats of "playing political games with a life-or-death issue," Wyss said he would pull the plug on the legislation.\nThe governor then met with party leaders in both chambers and found a new Senate sponsor. Lawmakers agreed to remove the beer wholesaler language, added by Rep. Robert Kruzeman, D-Crown Point. The provision has since been attached to pending legislation.\nAfter O'Bannon resurrected the bill, it breezed through the Senate without provisions 41-8. It met even less resistance in the House Thursday, passing 87-4. \nWyss declined to speak with reporters Thursday. \nCurrent state law makes it a crime to drive with blood-alcohol content at or above .10 percent. Highway safety advocates contend most motorists are impaired well below that level.\n"With this proposal in place, we have another tool in our efforts to keep people who drink and drive off the road," House sponsor Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, said. "There has been a demonstrated impact in other states that have enacted this change, and I feel we must do everything in our power to make sure that the risks created by drunken drivers are drastically reduced."\nWhile some lawmakers backed the legislation in the hope of saving lives, approving the initiative had economic appeal.\nFormer President Bill Clinton signed a federal law last fall that will withold highway money from states that do not lower their limits to .08 by 2003. At the time, Indiana was one of 31 states that still had .10 as its legal limit. Indiana stood to lose up to $56 milllion and will receive a $12 million incentive for lowering the threshold at the first opportunity. \n"It's quite a relief that this finally passed," Senate Republican caucus spokesman Randy Campbell said. "It's just unfortunate that it had to come under the hammer of a federal mandate."\nAccording to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the typical 170-pound man would have to consume four drinks in an hour to reach .08, while a 137-pound woman would need three drinks.\nUnder the bill, which will go into this July, a judge can defer prosecution of a first-time offender with a blood-alcohol level between .08 and .10 so long as the person isn't responsible for death or property damage. The offender will have to go through a probationary period and an alcohol counseling course.
(04/19/01 5:15am)
It's been nearly a year.\nNineteen-year-old Jill Behrman, a lifelong Bloomington resident who had just completed her freshman year at IU, went for a bike ride the morning of May 31, 2000. She never returned.\nHer bicycle was recovered later that day in a cornfield near Ellettsville, miles away from where she was last seen. Since then, police and the FBI have been investigating the presumed abduction.\nWednesday, authorities announced they're pursuing the case from a different angle -- a covered-up accident. \n"We've talked to thousands of folks," FBI agent Gary Dunn said. "And we keep coming up with a recurring story. We believe someone struck Jill, and then cooler heads and common sense did not prevail. We believe someone -- someone local -- tried to cover it up."\nDunn has been on the case since last June with another FBI special agent and two detectives from the Bloomington Police Department. With a $50,000 reward for information, the investigators have received roughly 3,000 tips. They've interviewed hundreds of people -- Jill's friends, her family and area residents.\n"It's a compilation of all those sources," Dunn said. "We believe there's a conspiracy of silence. We know people have information, and they're not coming forward with it. We literally plead with people -- there's no information too insignificant."\nThe investigators have read Jill's diaries, her address book and her e-mail -- anything that might give a clue of who might have wanted to harm her. They've conducted several searches -- at Lake Monroe, at local motels and in wooded areas. \n"We've been working hard to leave no stone unturned," BPD detective Marty Deckard said. "We're practically married to the FBI. We go everywhere they go." \nAfter the tireless work they've put into the case, investigators now doubt an out-of-towner or acquaintance kidnapped Behrman.\n"We're putting together the pieces of the puzzle," Deckard said. "And while this is still ongoing and we don't rule out anything, we believe this was local in nature."\nWhile they're looking into a few leads, authorities still lack suspects. But Dunn emphasized they would not close the case until those responsible for Jill's disappearance are brought to justice.\n"We're not going to discard any scenario," he said. "We're looking into everything, and we're not about to give up."\nFriends and family, who still have trouble coping with the loss, appreciate the investigators' efforts.\n"It's really hard that it's still a mystery," said junior Heidi Morgan, a childhood friend of Jill's who attended Bloomington High School South with her. "We have to do everything we can."\nJill's mother, Marilyn, joined agent Dunn at the press conference to renew the call for information.\n"Sometimes I am very, very angry," she said. "Sometimes I am very, very sad. We need to find Jill -- she is not just a missing person. I believe someone out there can help us find Jill"
(04/18/01 5:08am)
The slowing economy has taken its toll on Yesse! Communications, the Indianapolis-based parent company of the Bloomington Independent. Last week, the chain of alternative newsweeklies filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. \nYesse! CEO Craig Hitchcock said the company will restructure to remain afloat. \n"It's a voluntary filing," he said. "We anticipate moving through the reorganization process. We anticipate to emerge with stronger cash flow, new capital and a plan for growth."\nKnown as "reorganizational bankruptcy," Chapter 11 allows a company to continue business operations while cutting back on costs to resolve its debts and produce returns for its stockholders.\nHitchcock said Yesse! is committed to its three most profitable papers -- the Independent, the Illinois Times in Springfield and the Impact Weekly in Dayton, Ohio.\n"It's not going to affect us," said Times editor William Furry. "It doesn't affect our editorial side."\nAnd the Independent won't be publishing its farewell issue any time soon, editor Cynthia Wolfe said.\n"It's important to distinguish that this is our holding company," she said. "Our revenues have been steadily increasing. It's not going to affect our day-to-day operations."\nFounded as the Bloomington Voice in 1992, the weekly tabloid covers politics and arts in southcentral Indiana, reaching 20,000 readers in the Bloomington area. Privately owned for five years, Yesse! purchased the Independent in 1997 as its flagship paper.\n"Since they're based in Indianapolis, we'd be the last paper they'd ever want to get rid of," Wolfe said. "I'm not sending out any resumes."\nThe bankruptcy hasn't shaken up the mood in the Independent newsroom, Wolfe said.\n"Bankruptcy isn't pleasant news -- it's not what people like to hear," she said. "But no one's panicking."\nYesse! filed for bankruptcy just two months after it chose to pull the plug on Icon, an Iowa City weekly the chain first tried to sell. Hitchcock said the company is looking for a buyer for The Octopus, a smaller-circulation weekly out of Champaign-Urbana, Ill.\nWhen Yesse! straightens out its finances, Hitchcock said it will consider acquisitions in mid-market cities with populations of at least 200,000.\n"We've learned in the past four years that it can be a lot harder to turn things around in the smaller markets," he said. "We spent a lot of time on these papers. We did not buy them to close them down"
(04/17/01 5:57am)
Few look forward to tax day, which fell on April 16 this year.\nLibertarians probably dread it more than anyone, but some party members said they see it as a political opportunity.\nA few dozen gathered outside the downtown post office at 206 E. Fourth St. Monday evening, bearing cardboard signs decrying bloated government. While sophomore Matt Briddell blared away on a trombone, they passed out literature to harried citizens hurrying to get tax return forms postmarked.\nIt's an inconvenience that no one should go through, said Monroe County Libertarian Party Chairman Erin Hollinden, a graduate student. In keeping with the Libertarian platform, she called for the abolition of the personal income tax.\n"The income tax breeds corruption among otherwise upstanding citizens," she said. "They may do nothing wrong or illegal over the course of the year, but come April they all cheat to pay the minimum of taxes. It's easy to understand that taking money from the people without their consent is immoral."\nHollinden wove through the crowd with a clipboard, speaking to whomever would listen.\n"We're not encouraging that you break the law and not pay your taxes," she said. "But it's outright theft. We're never going to see the money we invest to Social Security."\nFor Hollinden, picketing the post office in mid-April is an annual affair.\nThat's not the case for the IU College Republicans, who spoke out Monday after some wheedling from Hollinden. While the parties sometimes ram heads, sophomore Josh Claybourn said they share a similar view on the tax issue.\n"Taxes are radically high," he said. "They're higher than than they've ever been in peacetime. And it doesn't make any sense -- economists say that muzzles the strength of the economy."\nUrging tax relief, Claybourn said too much power is concentrated in the hands of Washington bureaucrats.\n"President (George W.) Bush's ($1.6 trillion tax cut) plan is a good start," he said. "It's political, because if it were any higher, they'd claim that only the rich would benefit. But we have a $5 trillion dollar surplus, and they're telling the people that they can't keep their own money."\nClaybourn's sentiment was echoed by those huddled out in a brisk wind.\n"Income taxes just feed the leviathan that is the federal government," said Paul Hager, who received 2 percent of the statewide vote when running for U.S. Senator last fall. "Today's a day when most people would be receptive to our message. Some government spending is legitimate, but we're drastically overtaxed."\nThe Libertarian Party -- which has a handful of officeholders in Indiana -- thrives on such grassroots activism, Hager said.\n"We just want to get out ideas out," he said. "That's what politics is all about. It's just another arrow in the quiver"
(04/17/01 4:00am)
Local activist Greg Garvey participates in a protest at the downtown Bloomington post office, 206 E. Fourth St., Monday evening. Garvey said he takes offense at a federal subsidy to Herman and Associates, an Indianapolis developer building a low-income housing complex on Bloomington woodlands.
(04/13/01 5:20am)
State Sen. Lawrence Borst, R-Greenwood, said he crafted a lean budget that reflects a slowing economy and dwindling revenues. But his handiwork will have to be scrapped.\nThe state will bring in $923 million less than lawmakers expected, the state forecast committee announced Thursday. With the shortfall, lawmakers will have to shave up to $600 million from the proposed two-year budget.\n"The personal income tax is running low," said Gary Baxter, the committee's lead economist. "We overestimated the economy, and while the sales tax has held steady, the personal income tax has slipped."\nTo make ends meet, lawmakers have agreed that they'll have to cut the two-year budget by $200 to $300 million a year. The budget-writing session ends April 15, and the daunting task is sure to require a special session. \n"There's not widespread panic over the situation," Senate Republican caucus spokesman Randy Campbell said. "We'll manage to make it work out."\nAppearing at the General Assembly, Gov. Frank O'Bannon said he'd present ideas Monday to help the state through the budgetary crunch. O'Bannon spokesman Thad Nation said the governor hopes to pay for his legislative priorities -- including adequate public school funding, two new prisons and in-home care for the elderly. Nation hinted that raising taxes might be necessary.\n "We'll have to step back and take a look," he said. "We're just going to have to see what works. We're already running a pretty lean budget."\nBut Nation said raising income or property taxes would only be considered as a last resort. Although he stressed that nothing has been finalized, Nation said a hike in cigarette taxes is more likely.\n"You might be able to go up to 50 cents," Nation said. "A 50 cent per pack increase would raise around $350 million in revenue a year."\nThe governor also rules out tapping either riverboat gambling money or the state's emergency rainy day fund, Nation said.\n"That would only be in the event of a recession," he said. "That would only be if we've had two quarters of negative growth. That's not going to be triggered under this scenario." \nThe General Assembly doesn't meet today, and lawmakers will hold tight in the meanwhile.\n"We're going to wait and see what the governor will suggest," Campbell said. "We're not going to lose any sleep, but we're not going to lose any time either."\nThree months remain in the budget year, and revenue has already fallen $214 million short of the December projection. The fiscal forecast predicts Indiana will see no revenue growth this year compared to last.\nThe projected surplus has dried up. After a $231 million shortfall this year, the forecast estimates the state will take in $302 million less than earlier predicted next fiscal year and nearly $390 million less in 2003.\nBut Baxter said that economic slowdown reached rock bottom -- and that there's nowhere to go but up.\n"We predict a general economic turnaround," he said. "It's clearly hit its low point."\nThe economy should be slightly stronger in Indiana than elsewhere across the country, Baxter said. \n"The technology sector has largely brought this slowdown about," he said. "We don't rely so much on it here. And automobile production is picking up, which will help with all the plants we have in Indiana"
(04/11/01 5:01am)
Although it has the backing of the mayor's office, the construction of a proposed downtown high-rise apartment complex might be a long way off. Florida-based developer Intergroup Realty Trust wants to build a controversial nine-story complex -- to house about 800 students -- at the abandoned ST Semicon site across from City Hall.\nThe size of the proposed building doesn't comply with the city's zoning regulations, and Intergroup has filed for a conditional use permit from the board of zoning appeals. Without a permit, fewer than 30 apartments would be allowed on the two-acre site.\nThe city's Board of Zoning Appeals will consider the permit at its monthly meeting in May. Mayor John Fernandez pushed the meeting back a month so issues such as size and parking could be worked out.\nUpon suggestion of the city council and concerned citizens, the Plan Commission announced Monday that it will also review the project. It must be approved by both committees before the developer can move ahead.\n"This is being subjected to another layer of public review," said Planning Director Tom Micuda. "We want to make sure the bulk of the public is happy with the design and density. And, we want to create more public discussion and dialogue."\nEight of the nine city council members sent a letter to the zoning board last week, urging its members to reject the project as proposed. Councilman Jason Banach, R-II, who works with the University's real estate office, said he did not feel comfortable taking a public stance on the issue.\nThe letter alleges the Melrose Apartments complex would not comply with the city's Growth Policies Plan. City code requires a project seeking a conditional-use permit adhere to the development plan, although Micuda said there is some room for discretion.\n"It would be too large, with not enough parking," said Councilman Jeffrey Willsey, D-IV. "And it would be architecturally awful."\nWhile the council has no say in the decision, Willsey said members have met with Fernandez to discuss their reservations.\n"We'd be willing to compromise," Willsey said. "There are some reasonable possibilities. We could see 600 students instead of 800, which would take off two stories. And we understand that there's a point where it would no longer be profitable for the developer."\nMicuda said those are the ballpark numbers being thrown around by city planning officials.\n"We haven't yet received a response from the developer," he said. "But they've indicated that they'd be willing to compromise."\nThe city council isn't alone in objecting to the project. County councilmen are eyeing the site as a possible location for a juvenile correctional facility. \nIt's the ideal location for the juvenile center, said Monroe County Sheriff Steve Sharp. \n"It's the answer to our needs," he said. "There are already kitchen and laundry facilities at the jail, and it would be better to keep county government centralized."\nMost city officials -- even those opposed to the Melrose Apartment complex -- would rather see private development of the site.\n"It's a legitimate use and I don't object to it," Willsey said. "But that's a block on non-taxable property downtown. It's a problem from a revenue standpoint. They've had a long time to move on that option anyway"
(04/05/01 5:36am)
According to state figures, unemployment in Bloomington stands at 2.6 percent, well below the 4.6 national percentage.\nBut another longtime Bloomington company announced layoffs Tuesday.\nWithin 60 days, Columbia House will close its compact disc order processing center just west of town.\nThe company will lay off 190 workers from the Bloomington facility and 500 at a distribution center near Pueblo, Colo. Operations will be consolidated at the company's main facility in Terre Haute, which has 2,270 workers.\nIn a statement, Columbia House Chief Executive Officer Scott Flanders said the closings were part of a company-wide effort to cut production costs.\n"Although we regret the need to reduce staff and close out facilities in Bloomington and Colorado, these cost-reduction initiatives will position the company for long-term success and profitability," he said. "These actions will drive greater efficiencies and enable the company to capitalize on emerging opportunities in both the traditional direct marketing and online segments of the club market."\nJohn Habets, vice president of human resources for Columbia House in Terre Haute, said the company will provide severance pay and help the laid-off workers find new jobs.\nHabets also said a few eliminated workers with seniority in Bloomington would be able to transfer to Terre Haute. Most of the Bloomington jobs involved clerical work and paid just above minimum wage.\n"We're certainly disappointed," said Nathan Hadley, the city's executive assistant for economic development. "It shows that we should continue to focus our efforts on new and changing economic circumstances. But immediately, we're going to see to it that these workers get the training they need."\nOwned by AOL/Time Warner and Sony Music, Columbia House is considered the leading direct marketer of music. In 1999, it bought out CDNow.com in an effort to expand its services online.\nColumbia House is best known for advertisements offering consumers deals such as "12 CDs for a penny." After joining, members must purchase several CD selections during the next year or two at a price of about $17 each plus $3 shipping and handling.\nColumbia House has operated out of Bloomington for the past 23 years.