A look at news and events in the Daniels Administration

March 3, 2009– The State of Indiana has launched a website to provide information about the federal stimulus package and use of the funds in Indiana.  The address for the website is INvest.in.gov.

INvest.in.gov provides information about the federal legislation and has a frequently asked questions section as well links to announcements that are made in Indiana.  The website will serve as the central point for state communication about the federal funds. It will be updated frequently as additional information becomes available.

Read Governor Mitch Daniels' introductory message for all who visit the website below:

Thank you for visiting INvest.in.gov. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed by the President will send unprecedented amounts of funding to states designed to stimulate the economy and to help those states with severe budget crises. Because we've been more careful about state spending, we've been able to balance our budget, repay all debts, and build strong reserves, so Indiana is in a different fiscal position than many other states. We still face difficult times, but we are holding our own and maintaining vital services that have been slashed severely in other states.

My direction to our team has been simple: jobs, speed, prudence, and long-term value. We will use these dollars to put Hoosiers to work quickly. We will use them carefully, making sure to protect education and other services in the years after these one-time funds stop coming. And whenever possible, we will use them to create assets of lasting value: roads, bridges, buildings, but also better prepared teachers, more energy efficient homes, and so on.

We must never forget that Washington does not have the money it is now beginning to distribute. The federal government will be borrowing it, and our children will inherit the bill. Our duty to use it wisely and efficiently is therefore a very solemn one.

This website will be maintained to keep Hoosiers fully informed about uses of federal stimulus funds. You are invited to check it often.

Governor announces INDOT stimulus plan ready to move forward

February 27, 2009– Governor Mitch Daniels has announced that the Indiana Department of Transportation’s (INDOT) plan for distribution of Indiana’s $658 million share of federal economic stimulus funds for highway infrastructure among state and local projects is nearing completion.

In addition, the governor said INDOT has identified and released its second list of state projects for bid that will use federal stimulus dollars. The list includes 29 projects in 21 counties valued at $43.6 million.  A list of those projects can be found here.  The first list included 26 projects with a value of approximately $39 million. The initial list of projects may be found here.

According to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the stimulus funds will be distributed this way: INDOT, $440 million; local agencies, $198 million, and $20 million for transportation enhancement projects, which includes such items as sidewalks, trails and stoplights.

“Our priorities for using stimulus funds are speed and jobs. INDOT has looked for projects that meet the federal rules for funding and has quickly identified eligible projects throughout Indiana that will employ workers with diverse skills. With the jumpstart we’ve had with Major Moves, we’re much better positioned than others to act rapidly,” said Daniels.

The $198 million local agency distribution – specific dollar amounts that have not yet been determined – will be divided among Metropolitan Planning Organizations (14 MPOs in Indiana), Group III cities (populations between 5,000 and 50,000), Group IV cities (populations under 5,000), and local bridge projects.

More information, including timelines for obligations of funds established by the federal government can be found at this link: http://www.in.gov/gov/2991.htm. INDOT will publish details for submitting local government projects next week and will continue to advertise projects in addition to the Major Moves program.

March 2, 2009– A portrait of Theodore Clement Steele is the newest edition to the Hoosier Heritage Portrait Collection that adorns the south wall of the Governor’s Office.

Steele, an Owen County native, is one of Indiana’s best known artists and his impressionist paintings often featured southern Indiana landscapes.  In the late 1800s, Steele lived in Brookville, and he later moved to Brown County and built “The House of the Singing Winds” in Nashville.  The property is now a part of the T.C. Steele State Historic Site.

In January 2006, Governor Mitch Daniels designated the south wall of the governor’s office as a place for portraits of historically important Hoosiers – a change in the longstanding tradition of hanging portraits solely of former governors.  The portraits, which are loaned to the state, are part of a rotating exhibit that is updated periodically.  Portraits of Jane Chambers McKinney Graydon of Indianapolis, Mother Theodore Guerin of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods and Harvey Weir Cook of Indianapolis, are also currently hanging in the Governor’s Office.

The Steele portrait, painted by Muncie native Wayman Adams, is on loan from the State Museum.  It replaces a portrait of William Henry Harrison.

A photo of the portrait can be found at this address: http://www.in.gov/gov/files/Press/TC_Steele.jpg

Overheard: Governor Daniels in the news

Indiana Gov. Daniels takes on stimulus, pushes policies at One Southern Indiana luncheon

New Albany Tribune & Jeffersonville Evening News

By David A. Mann

February 27, 2009

Indiana’s somewhat unique position as a state not operating in a deficit will make the distribution of economic stimulus money fairly different than others.

That’s according to Gov. Mitch Daniels, who talked about the economic stimulus plan and continued to press for his state policy initiatives during a luncheon Thursday.

The luncheon, held at Amatrol Inc. in Jeffersonville, was hosted by One Southern Indiana, the area’s economic development agency.

“Indiana is in somewhat different shape than most states,” Daniels said.

About 32 states are cutting kindergarten through 12 education funds, and 24 states have proposed tax increases, he said. Neighboring Illinois is trying to borrow money in order to pay its bills.

Those states are trying to keep their day-to-day operations running or “fill in holes,” as Daniels put it.

In distributing Indiana’s $4.3 billion share of stimulus money, state lawmakers have to be careful not to create “cliffs,” Daniels said, referring to creating programs that the state would not be able to fund two years from now after stimulus funds dry up.

The bill is written for states in the worst shape, Daniels said.

Indiana will focus on highway and clean-water projects with its share of the package.

The $787 billion federal stimulus package has been championed by President Barack Obama as a means of jump-starting the troubled U.S. and world economies.

The state has released two lists of projects that could potentially be paid for by stimulus money given to Indiana. There are no projects in Clark or Floyd counties on either one, although these lists are separate from certain transportation-specific stimulus funds.

Aside from the stimulus, the governor called on lawmakers in Indianapolis to act on some of his legislative initiatives.

He called on the General Assembly to make the property tax caps — that members voted for last year — permanent through a constitutional amendment.

House Bill 1001 placed a 1 percent cap on a home’s assessed value, which means less property taxes for local governments. A 2 percent cap was put on rental properties, and a 3 percent cap was administered on business properties.

Daniels said that he wants the caps put into the state’s constitution so that a future Legislature or judge can’t revoke them.

Further, the governor applauded the state Senate for acting on some of the Kernan-Shepard recommendations. Those ideas were released last year by a panel led by former Gov. Joe Kernan and Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall Shepard. The purpose of the committee’s report was to streamline local government and thus lower property taxes.

He urged the House of Representatives to act on the recommendations as well.

Daniels again touted the idea of an automatic taxpayer refund, by which the state would refund money after it reaches a certain level of reserves. He also called for increasing efficiency in education spending by lowering the amount spent on administrative and overhead costs.

Typical in such events, the governor took questions from audience members.

Addressing a comment on the Ohio River Bridges Project, Daniels said a new, bi-state authority with representatives from Kentucky needs to be created.

The $4.1-billion Ohio River Bridges Project seeks to construct two new spans between Louisville and Southern Indiana. The Hoosier state has its share of the money for the project, thanks to the $3.8 billion lease of the North Indiana Toll Road. Kentucky is still looking for a way to pay for it.

Addressing a question about a proposed federal coal fire plants, Daniels said, “People on the coast … have pointed a giant cannon at states like Indiana and Kentucky,” which use coal for energy.

The tax will be paid overwhelmingly by residents in such states.

“I honestly hope that we will think twice before we pile another enormous burden on this economy.”