Lawmakers seek to shield businesses from COVID lawsuits
Businesses, not-for-profits, schools, religious organizations and other entities could soon be shielded from responsibility for COVID-19 infections.
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Indiana restaurant sues governor, state over mask mandate
An Indiana restaurant that was shut down over the state’s mask mandate aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus is taking the issue to court, saying it was improperly closed for violating masking requirements and capacity limits.
Holcomb’s agenda calls for increasing K-12 funding, continuing existing programs
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said he will try to increase funding for K-12 education in the state’s next two-year budget and, at a minimum, restore previous funding levels for higher education institutions.
Senate hearing elevates baseless claims of election fraud
Republican senators on Wednesday further perpetuated President Donald Trump’s baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, two days after Democrat Joe Biden’s victory was sealed by the Electoral College.
Justices split in Bloomington’s favor in annexation dispute with Holcomb
A divided Indiana Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of the city of Bloomington, upholding a ruling against the Indiana governor and striking down “special legislation” targeting the city’s annexation efforts. Dissenting justices, however, warned that the majority’s holding “erodes separation of powers.”
Indiana gets COVID-19 vaccine, health workers top priority
Indiana’s first doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine arrived Monday and several workers at a Fort Wayne hospital became the first in the state administered the shots to protect them from the coronavirus, state health officials said.
Mothers in birth certificate case win at US Supreme Court
In an order issued Monday, the United States Supreme Court denied certiorari in an Indiana birth certificate case, ending the state’s long-running fight to prevent non-birth mothers in same-sex marriages from being listed as a parent on their children’s birth certificates.
COVID puts Legislature in fiscal vise in upcoming budget session
As Indiana lawmakers prepare to craft the state’s next two-year budget, leaders promise K-12 education will be the top priority — but they also acknowledge that every line item in the spending plan is at risk of cuts.
Analysis: Short work by high court of Trump’s ‘big one’
For all Trump’s predictions that the U.S. Supreme Court and his three appointed justices would make things right, he and his supporters were lacking one basic element: a strong legal argument that might plausibly attract some sympathy on a court now dominated by conservative justices.
Trump loses Wisconsin case backed by Indiana lawyers; justice blasts state suit
President Donald Trump lost a federal lawsuit argued by Indianapolis attorneys while his attorney was arguing his case before a skeptical Wisconsin Supreme Court in another lawsuit that liberal justices said “smacks of racism” and would disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of voters only in the state’s most diverse counties.
AG Hill sues Nevada company for fraudulent sale of 3M masks
A Nevada company already facing a federal lawsuit in Indiana for efforts to defraud the state into buying respiratory masks the company didn’t have access to is now facing a state-court complaint brought by the Indiana attorney general.
Holcomb names Brown head of State Personnel Department
Gov. Eric Holcomb has selected Matthew Brown to serve as the director of the Indiana State Personnel Department, he announced Thursday. Brown currently serves as the director of the state Office of Administrative Law Proceedings.
Indiana reinstating surgery limits amid COVID-19 surge
Indiana’s hospitals will have to postpone elective surgeries starting next week under an order Gov. Eric Holcomb said Wednesday was needed to free up hospital capacity amid steep recent increases in serious COVID-19 illnesses.
Indiana GOP chairman joining Taft as partner
Indiana Republican Party chairman Kyle Hupfer is joining national law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister as a partner, the law firm announced Monday.
Blind voters claim Indiana absentee voting system is discriminatory
A group of blind Hoosiers and their advocates have filed a lawsuit against Indiana, claiming the state’s absentee voting scheme that forces them to “permit virtual strangers to fill out their ballots” violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Indiana health care workers first up for COVID-19 vaccine
As Indiana announces its preparations to begin coronavirus vaccinations for some 400,000 health care workers by the end of the month, the inoculation timeline for the state’s nursing home residents is still to be determined.
Elanco to build $100 million HQ campus at former GM site downtown
Elanco Animal Health Inc. announced Friday morning it will build a $100 million headquarters campus at the former General Motors stamping plant west of downtown, a move the state has incentivized with more than $86 million in tax breaks plus land for the project. The announcement came after the former owner of the site dismissed a lawsuit against the city and announced the property had been sold.
Indiana tops 6,000 coronavirus-related deaths since March
Indiana has topped 6,000 confirmed or suspected COVID-19 deaths with the state also recording a new high for average daily coronavirus fatalities amid the ongoing infection surge.
Justices order review of California virus rules for churches
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a lower federal court to reexamine California restrictions on indoor religious services in areas hard hit by the coronavirus in light of the justices’ recent ruling in favor of churches and synagogues in New York.
Indiana leaders pin slowing COVID-19 spread to vaccine
Indiana faces a longer stretch of COVID-19 illnesses and deaths while the governor and top state health official on Wednesday pinned improvement on personal responsibility and the looming first arrival of vaccines rather than reinstating more statewide precautions.