| An update for League friends and subscribers. | | | | Summary of March Legislative Update | On March 8, area Leagues hosted the third 2025 Legislative Update. All state legislators representing Bartholomew, Brown, Johnson, and Monroe counties were invited to report on their work and priorities for the Indiana General Assembly and take questions from attendees. Senator Shelli Yoder and Representative Matt Pierce accepted the invitation. Christopher Emge, Senior Director of Government and Community Relations at the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, moderated and fifty-two constituents attended.
Senator Yoder noted that her bill, SB 54, which eases the way for high school students to become LPNs, has passed on to the House. She was also pleased about the passage of two other bills: SB 326, on child sex abuse material, and SB 423, which improves licensing for childcare providers. Senator Yoder has concerns about how the still-evolving budget bill, SB 1, as well as SB 518 (charter schools) will affect local governments.
Representative Pierce reported that the leaders hope to conclude the session by April 24. He noted that this session “is all about the money,” with no efforts to address healthcare funding or schools. He described how efforts to reduce property taxes may lead some local governments to raise income taxes. Pierce cited the prospect of requiring road funding through a wheel tax, which could be a prelude to converting I-70 to a toll road.
Audience members raised questions about:
• SB 518 and the prospect of any transparency on private and charter school budgets
• SB 287 requiring that school board elections be partisan; there is some resistance in the House
• SB 2's implications for HIP (Healthy Indiana Plan) funding and work requirements
• SB 10 and whether voters would be able to use state university IDs to vote
• HB 1004 and how restrictions on not-for-profit hospitals might affect rural hospitals
• SB 10 (again) and whether a vote center was located on the Purdue campus
• SB 2 (again) concern about focus on fraud, rather than how to deal with increasing costs for HIP
• Are Indiana farmers and IU affected by federal government cuts in USAID, tariffs, US Department of Agriculture? The legislators had not heard much discussion of these questions at the Statehouse.
• Thanks to the legislators for education advocacy, prompting the observation that schools are moving “from local control to control of the locals.”
• The lack of follow-up assessment on the impacts of legislation after it is passed
• SB 450, proposing a US Constitutional Convention is seen as a “message bill,” and is unlikely to see any action
• The apparent confusion that funding public health, like lead testing or smoking cessation, would mean the legislature would be able to reduce healthcare funding
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, the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, NAACP Branch of Monroe County, and Unitarian-Universalist Congregation of Columbus Indiana. The final Legislative Update of the session will be presented via Zoom on April 19. Register for this and see the CATS recordings of previous Updates at https://lwv-bmc.org/legis-updates. - Ralf Shaw | On the 105th anniversary of its founding, 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 writes to 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. The attached letter outlines our concerns and is signed by leadership from every state League and DC affiliate in the country. Click here to read the entire letter.
Other action alerts:
| | | Hoosier women’s groups condemn Governor Braun’s Executive Orders 25-35 and 25-36 reinforcing the state’s legal definition of sex and ensuring what he describes as fairness in women’s sports. In keeping with our LWV positions to support equal rights for all under state and federal law regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, or disability, we joined with 11 other women’s groups to condemn the Governor’s actions. Click here to read the letter.
For a complete list of Indiana action alerts, see the March LWVIN newsletter. | | | | News from the Climate Change Unit | Spring into Sustainability Challenge and Zero in Bloomington
Thanks to those of you who participated on behalf of the League in Bloomington’s Spring into Sustainability challenge in March. As of March 26, our team saved approximately 375 kilowatt hours of electricity, 141 gallons of gas, and 3.8 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. The Spring into Sustainability challenge ends on March 31. However, you can still help chart a path toward reduced carbon emissions by joining the city’s Zero in Bloomington program, where you will find a broad range of resources for action. Learn more and sign up here. | | | Earth Day Celebration, April 19, Switchyard Park
Bloomington’s 3rd annual Earth Day celebration is Saturday, April 19, 12:00-4:00 pm at Switchyard Park. There will be live music, food trucks, door prize drawings, tree giveaways, and more. This event is a great opportunity to celebrate, learn, and find new ways to take action toward a sustainable future.
Urge Congress to Support the Clean Energy Tax Credits in the Inflation Reduction Act
The clean energy tax credits in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act are a driving force in Indiana—and across the nation—for jobs, economic growth, and reduced carbon emissions. These credits are currently at risk of being eliminated in the House budget reconciliation bill. Rep. Houchin (Indiana District 9), along with twenty other representatives, has asked the Ways and Means Committee to preserve these tax credits. Please contact Rep. Houchin to thank her and urge her to continue her support. Also please ask friends and family in other districts to contact their representatives in support of these credits. You can learn more and take action through the nonpartisan Citizens’ Climate Lobby’s Clean Energy Tax Credits campaign. Citizens’ Climate Lobby is one of our League partners. - Kristina Lindborg | | Beacon, Inc. Plans for Supportive Housing Presented at March League Gathering |  | Rev. Forrest Gilmore, Executive Director of Beacon, Inc., spoke to League members and friends at the March gathering. Beacon supports people experiencing extreme poverty, especially hunger and homelessness. Their major programs help people in poverty not only survive but thrive: Shalom Center, Phil’s Kitchen, Friends Place, Street Outreach, Rapid Re-housing, and Crawford Homes. Gilmore’s talk “Responding to the Crisis of Homelessness in Bloomington,” began with statistics on homelessness. The number of homeless people in Monroe County, based on one-day, point-in-time counts, hovers around 350 over the past decade; the percentage with severe mental illness or substance use disorder is increasing.
Beacon has launched its “Light the Way” campaign, to build a new facility for supportive housing and shelter. Beacon Center will be located at 1201 W. Third Street (former Weddle-Brothers site, south of Rose Hill Cemetery). It will offer a comprehensive range of services including emergency shelter, employment training, mental healthcare, and lifelong homes. The estimated cost is $20 million; commitments from local government, secured grant funding, and contributions from individuals have secured about $15 million so far.
Readers of this newsletter will not be surprised to hear that the participants had many questions for Rev. Gilmore, who responded with additional information and insights on how the proposed center will support permanent housing, overnight shelter, and a daytime resource center into a single location. Community partners will also have their own space at the Center to offer healthcare, mental health services, legal aid, and more. - Ralf Shaw | | Library Hosts Presentation on Tariffs | Indiana University Economics Professor Gerhard Glomm has organized a talk by Professor Michael Hicks about tariffs. The Monroe County Public Library will host the presentation in the library auditorium on Saturday, April 12, from 2-3:30 pm. Hicks is the George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Economics and Director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Ball State University. His work has appeared not only in scholarly sources but also in such publications and media as Rolling Stone, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, NPR, and Fox Business News. He was featured in our January 2024 podcast (scroll to the bottom of the page), where he discussed the impact of Indiana's voucher program on school choice and public schools and how this impact affects a community’s economy. - Ralf Shaw | | | | Girls Inc. Hosts Fundraiser on April 17 | | Girls Inc. is the longest-running girls’ leadership program in the U.S.; the Monroe County organization is an LWV-BMC partner. We are happy to help them communicate their plans to hold their annual fundraiser "IGNITE" on Thursday, April 17, from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm at Ivy Tech Shreve Hall in Bloomington. This is a fun evening with good food and powerful stories of confident women and girls. If you are a member of LWV-BMC, we have reserved a table for 8. We particularly invite members who have volunteered for League activities in the last year but welcome any member, first come, first served. | | | | Contact Marion Krefeldt (team@lwv-bmc.org) to let her know if you are interested. For nonmembers, please do consider attending. Click here for more information and a link to purchase tickets. While you're on the website, learn more about Girls Inc.'s mission. - Marion Krefeldt | | After a two-month hiatus, the B Square Bulletin is publishing again. LWV-BMC has a link to the publication in each newsletter, along with other news sources, but if you'd like to subscribe, go to https://bsquarebulletin.com and click Subscribe. The publication's stated mission is "To give Bloomington residents an easy on-ramp to understanding all aspects of the place where they live, and to give them the information they need to help Bloomington’s community thrive." | | Highlights on Limestone Post Articles | Two recent articles in the Limestone Post would be of particular interest to League members and friends:
Ida B. Wells spent much of her career as a journalist in the late 1800s shedding light on the horrors of lynching. The writer, editor, activist, and co-founder of the NAACP has been called the most famous Black woman of her time in the U.S. This article by Richard Campbell shows her lifelong fight for racial justice.
Bloomington has several news outlets that report on pressing issues in the community, but because the local news landscape is fragmented, many residents have expressed a desire for a curated summary of the news. A newsletter called Today in Bloomington says it does just that. But is it truly part of the local news ecosystem? | 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. | |
Writer: Pat Miller
Proofreader: Kristina Lindborg
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