| An update for League friends and subscribers. | | | | Podcast Features School Vouchers and Impact on Public Schools | For our February podcast, Civic Conversations talked to Steve Hinnefeld, author of the nationally recognized blog School Matters (https://inschoolmatters.wordpress.com/). Hinnefeld is a longtime journalist and writer in Bloomington. The discussion centered on how the school voucher program has evolved and its impact on Indiana's public schools. Hinnefeld explained how vouchers work and how they have become universal due to last year's legislative expansion of eligibility requirements. Governor Braun's recent budget proposal removed all income restrictions from the voucher program. “Indiana is spending a lot of money on school vouchers that could be spent on public school funds,” said Hinnefeld.
| | | | Have you ever struggled to explain DEI to family and friends? The national League provides an excellent description and some background information on their website. LWVUS went on to follow up with a blog on how DEI affects us. Feel free to share with anyone with questions. | | Next League Gathering Scheduled for March 11 | | "Save the Date" for the March League gathering on Tuesday, March 11. The event will take place at St. Thomas Lutheran Church, 3800 E. Third St., Bloomington, IN from 6:00-7:30 pm. Our speakers will be the Beacon Center's Forrest Gilmore, executive director, and Von Welch, board member and co-chair of their capital campaign. This is also an opportunity for both members and friends to meet, socialize, and learn about what League activities are coming up. Not a member? No problem! Anyone interested in the League is welcome. Refreshments will be served. We look forward to seeing you. Questions? Contact membership@lwv-bmc.org. No need to register for this event...just be there! - Nancy Riggert | | Long Indiana Legislative Session Approaches Halfway Point | On February 15, area Leagues hosted the second 2025 Legislative Update. All state legislators representing Brown, Johnson, and Monroe counties were invited to report on their work and priorities for the 2025 Indiana General Assembly and take questions from attendees. Senator Shelli Yoder and Representative Matt Pierce accepted the invitation. Sonia Leerkamp from the Brown County League of Women Voters moderated and forty-three constituents attended.
Representative Pierce flagged for attention HB 1006, which allows investigation of prosecutors who do not prosecute certain crimes, HB 1041 on trans athletes, HB 1230 for partisan affiliation in school board elections, and HB 1362 requiring approval by residents of areas that cities seek to annex. He reported that HB 1322 was amended to remove investing state retirement funds in Bitcoin.
Senator Yoder noted that SB 145, which was discussed at last month’s update, has not passed out of committee. This bill would have extended pharmacists’ ability to treat some health conditions. She has concerns about the evolving budget bill, SB 1, as well as SB 10 (student ID not allowed as voter ID), SB 518 (charter schools), SB 289 (banning DEI requirements in employment and education), and SB 257 (civics education). She is carefully watching budget efforts on universal school vouchers and zero increase for pre-K education.
The legislators and constituents discussed:
- SB 1, particularly the budget bill’s changes in property taxes
- SB 2 , on Medicaid, noting that although the limitation on HIP 2.0 coverage was removed, the cap on number of people on Medicaid remains
- HB 1662's implications for criminalizing homelessness
- Public school funding in SB 1, the senate’s budget bill
- SB 202 implications for political neutrality of higher education faculty
- SB 523, school chaplains
- HB 1169, access to birth control
- SB 442 and SB 289 and their implications for monitoring curricula in K-12 and higher education
- HB 1001 and the prospects for charter schools
Participants praised Senator Yoder’s defense of public education in the hearing (at 1:16 time stamp) on SB 257. Find up-to-date information on these and other bills at https://iga.in.gov/.
Legislative Updates are co-sponsored by the Leagues of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, Brown County, and Johnson County and the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. Legislative Updates will be presented via Zoom on March 8 and April 19. Register for these sessions and see the CATS recordings of previous sessions at https://lwv-bmc.org/legis-update. - Ralf Shaw | | LWV Sends Letter to Congressional Leaders | | On the 105th anniversary of its founding (February 14), the League of Women Voters sent a letter to Congressional leadership regarding the organization's grave concern over the state of our nation. Specifically, the League wroteto urge Congress to exercise its authority to protect the rule of law, defend the Constitution, and end the overreach that the Executive Branch has shown in the last few weeks. Go to the LWVUS website to access the letter. | | Update from LWVIN Women's Health Advocates | | An update from the Indiana League's Women's Health Advocates cover a wide range of legislative topics, such as DEI, Medicaid, and Medical Education/Practice. Click here to get the latest news. | | Join the League’s “Spring into Sustainability” Challenge! | | There's still time! We can help chart a path toward lower carbon emissions by participating collectively in the Bloomington’s “Spring into Sustainability Challenge,” March 1 – 31. By combining our efforts with those of many other organizations, we can more broadly engage the community in sustainable practices.
Sign Up to Get Started, and Spread the Word!
- Everyone with a Bloomington mailing address is eligible, even if you don’t live within the city limits.
- Sign up for our League team here. You can still sign up after March 1, but the sooner the better!
- Please encourage others to sign up with this link, too. Participants do not have to be League members to be on our team!
| | | How Does It Work?
- After signing up, participants will complete a quick household profile and identify their interests and priorities. For example, you can choose such filters as “renter friendly,” “most cost savings,” or “highest impact.”
- The platform has an extensive choice of actions, organized into these categories: Clean Energy Home, Shift Your Ride, Eat Green and Waste Less, Be Water Wise, Community & Learning, and Resilience.
- Based on your profile and filters, the platform provides you with specific customized recommendations.
- You choose the actions you wish to take and record them when completed.
- There is also the option to post comments and success stories on the Zero in Bloomington community page if you wish.
Celebrating Success!
- Winning groups are determined by how many actions their participants complete.
- The five organizations with the most actions completed can win up to $500 for their organization, plus recognition by the City of Bloomington.
- Participating organizations will also be recognized on social media and at the city’s Earth Day celebration on April 19th.
- But, most importantly, we will have taken meaningful action toward a net-zero carbon emissions future!
| | In My Opinion: Support Voting Rights Now | In 2010, Democrats were caught flat-footed by Karl Rove’s REDMAP strategy to focus on down-ballot races to help Republicans win state legislatures. The resulting country-wide wave of district reapportionments led to domination of the electoral process by one party.
In Indiana, where the two parties were traditionally divided about 55 to 45 and Democrat governors and senators had often been elected, suddenly one party became dominant, many candidates ran unopposed, voter participation dropped nearly to the lowest in the nation, and a 65 to 35 supermajority ruled the statehouse. The Hoosier state was gerrymandered. The majority has supported other legislative efforts, notably through voter suppression, to further consolidate single party rule and increase central control of state government.
We don’t have poll taxes or literacy tests; voter suppression is supported by changing voting rules to require needlessly strict documents to verify voter identity, fixed mailing addresses, restricting registration and voting by mail, polling place closures, and regularly “purging” the rolls of eligible registered voters, sometimes using sketchy secondhand information.
Bills still of particular concern this legislative session include:
- SB 10 invalidates state-issued student ID at the polls
- SB 540 makes county assessors appointed rather than elected
- HB 1193 abolishes elected township assessors
- HB 1197 makes candidate selection criteria subject to caucus approval
- HB 1633 study of mandated vote centers
- HB 1679 sets shorter times to complete redistricting, imposes sanctions for delays and sets new mandates for voting processes and reporting recounts, etc.
- HB 1680 imposes new restrictions on voters, e.g. undated absentee ballots to be rejected, and gives new powers over elections to the Secretary of State.
The League of Women Voters national position on voting rights is summarized: Protect the right of all citizens to vote and encourage all citizens to vote. We should do so! - George Hegeman, a member of the League for 47 years
Note: Scroll down to the "contacts" section for information on contacting your legislators. | | Action Alert: Oppose the SAVE Act Now | The House and Senate introduced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require citizenship documentation to register to vote even though voters in every state are already required to affirm or verify their citizenship status when registering.
It is already illegal for noncitizens to register and vote in federal or state elections. The bill’s requirement of a document to prove American citizenship to register to vote in federal elections is unnecessary and seeks to divide us. It also creates another barrier to voting.
The League urges you to contact your representatives and oppose this bill. Go here for more information and a form you can fill out to contact your representatives. | Contacts, Events, and News Sources | | Many citizens feel they have no say in their government. We can't have a say if we don't say anything. Contact your elected officials when you have something to say. Go to https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials to find the people who represent you in federal, state, and local governments. Contact them not only to urge action but also to show appreciation. | |
Proofreader: Kristina Lindborg
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