House committee to hear magistrate bills
Bills that would provide magistrates for three circuit courts in Southern Indiana are scheduled to be considered Jan. 21 by the Indiana House of Representatives Courts and Criminal Code Committee.
Indiana General Assembly
Articles
Pence’s $51M prison expansion proposal met by skepticism
Gov. Mike Pence's proposal for expanding two state prisons is drawing skepticism from some legislative leaders as it comes just months after Indiana's criminal sentencing laws changed in part to reduce the need for more prison space.
Service of process fees increase under proposal in Senate
Fees sheriffs collect to serve parties in civil lawsuits would nearly double under a bill that cleared a Senate panel last week.
Lawmakers: Longer sentences, more police will deter crime
Harsher sentences and an increased police presence can help fight crime in Indiana, Republican state senators said Wednesday.
Senate panel advances bill to open adoption records
Advocates of opening Indiana’s adoption records won an emotional first round Wednesday as a Senate panel advanced legislation that for the first time would open birth records of hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers.
Senate panel passes bill for harsher beheading penalties
Decapitation soon could be punishable by death in Indiana. The state Senate Criminal Law Committee unanimously passed a bill Tuesday that would allow prosecutors to seek the death penalty for beheadings.
Lanane to Pence: properly staff DCS caseworkers
Indiana Senate Democratic Leader Tim Lanane said Monday that Gov. Mike Pence must add 77 new caseworkers at the Department of Child Services to comply with state law.
Bill would block local limits on large livestock facilities
Local governments would be prohibited from placing restrictions on large livestock facilities in rural areas under a bill being considered in the Indiana Senate.
Senate committee advances bill to raise judges’ retirement age
A proposal to raise the mandatory retirement age for appellate judges from 75 to 80 narrowly advanced in the Indiana General Assembly Wednesday.
Fate uncertain for bill to end Sunday alcohol sales ban
A House committee chairman says he hasn't decided if he'll allow a hearing on a proposal to end Indiana's long-running ban on retail stores selling alcohol on Sunday — the last of its kind in the nation.
Electric utilities battle over annexing territories
When it comes to annexing nearby land, the city of Greenfield has a proposition that officials say sells itself.
Rush’s debut State of the Judiciary address set
Indiana Chief Justice Loretta Rush will deliver her first State of the Judiciary address before a joint session of the General Assembly next week.
Bill would let Hoosiers refuse gay-wedding services
Legislation that supporters contend is needed to protect Indiana residents with strong religious beliefs by allowing them to refuse services for same-sex weddings is drawing fire from gay rights groups and others who say it would legalize discrimination.
Bill seeks to give Indiana appellate judges more time on the bench
Sen. James Buck is again pushing to increase the mandatory retirement age for Indiana appellate judges.
Impact of Indiana’s criminal code changes unclear
Indiana's prosecutors and judges are still adjusting to sweeping changes to the state's criminal code intended to send more low-level, nonviolent criminals to community corrections programs and jails instead of state prisons.
Little Statehouse appetite exists for government reform
Indiana lawmakers set to reconvene next week aren't showing any signs they'll embrace some of the more sweeping changes to the structure of the state's local government proposed by a bipartisan commission.
Indiana senator plans medical marijuana proposal
A state senator says she plans to push for the legalization of medicinal marijuana in Indiana.
Frustrations with patent trolls spark push for pest control
Three years after passing the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act which overhauled the U.S. patent system, Congress and state legislatures have been introducing bills that primarily seek to reform the process by clamping down on so-called patent trolls.
Death records law causing headache for genealogists
Although the Indiana Supreme Court recently confirmed that death certificates listing the cause of death are public records, the state is continuing to grapple with questions over privacy and online access to the documents.
Senate president says funding for We the People will continue
Praising the We the People curriculum for instilling a sense of civic responsibility in the next generation, Indiana Senate President Pro Tem David Long pledged that state funding for the program would continue.