Dozens of amendments to bills affecting Indiana environmental policy have sparked debate among lawmakers as the Legislature enters its final stretch of the session. The proposed changes arrive as members of the General Assembly decide whether the state should adopt greener initiatives or scale back current policy protecting water, energy and other resources.
The former South Bend mayor who became known in the 2020 presidential campaign as “Mayor Pete” has been meeting as transportation secretary with lawmakers of both parties to try to sell a roads, bridges and infrastructure program that President Joe Biden has likened to the building of the interstate highway system in the 1950s.
President Joe Biden is setting about convincing America it needs his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, deputizing a five-member “jobs Cabinet,” including former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, to help in the effort. But the enormity of his task is clear after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed to oppose the plan “every step of the way.”
Electric vehicles account for a tiny fraction of the cars on the road today, but electric utility AES Indiana wants to boost that number by offering a raft of rebates and other incentives to customers who drive them.
A bill that would set statewide standards for large wind and solar projects in Indiana passed a House committee on Wednesday morning, following a passionate debate between renewable energy advocates and a group of residents and local officials who said the bill would take away local control.