I almost missed this.  Indianapolis Public Schools  have released their 2010 State of the District report.    And although how you interpret data is in the eye of the beholder,  I think it’s fair to say that IPS has pretty much been flat when it comes to progress and achievement as opposed to the prior […]

I spent some time yesterday observing both health care rallies at the Statehouse.   Nothing happened that I didn’t expect.  The anti-Obama health care crowd gathered on the Capital’s south side, the pro-Obama health care crowd was on the east side of the building. There were more anti-Obamacare people (about 500-600 by my last count) versus […]

I picked up some interesting information regarding local party politics this week.  It goes to precinct committeemen filings for the Marion County Democratic Party and who exactly might be running the show next year. According to Marion County Clerk Beth White’s Office there were 542 PC filings.  The number takes into account withdrawals and successful […]

I think we’re all agreed here the proposed $2 billion transfer of the city’s water and wastewater facilities is the biggest policy/political move of the Ballard administration.  It is fraught with a lot of risk, but also a lot of reward.  There’s going to be a lot of talk in the days ahead, but as […]

Now that the 2010 Legislative session has come and gone, we can discuss who won, who lost, who was basically a draw.  Actually, there are different degrees of how much individuals win and lose based on what they hoped to accomplish, what they got done and how this all plays into the upcoming elections.  So […]

I’m a little tired this morning after a long last day at the Legislature, so instead of me talking, I’ll let the lawmakers talk. David Long on Last Day Pat Bauer on Last Day Brian Bosma on Last Day

The deal is as follows… A one-year delay in the increase in the unemployment insurance tax. Flexibility for schools to transfer money from their capital budgets to operational budgets. Giving the Department of Labor the authority to create better rules on worker classification to draw better distinctions between full-time employees and independent contractors. Instruct the […]

I’m getting confirmation from very reliable sources that Indiana lawmakers have reached an agreement tonight.  No word on the details and no one is speaking on the record yet.  They were divided over unemployment insurance tax issues and some school funding matters.  Stay tuned.

Here’s where we are. 1.  Republicans say Democrats are including ridiculous demands for labor. 2.  Democrats say the GOP wants a two-year delay on unemployment that will cost the state $500 million. 3.   The Speaker doesn’t think they’ll be done tonight. 4.  The GOP doesn’t think there’s any reason to go past today. 5. […]

With a weekend left, Indiana lawmakers are blaming each other for the stalemate here at the General Assembly. Senate Pro Tempore David Long says there could have a deal last week, because Democrats are making unreasonable demands they say will break the state budget. Meanwhile, House Speaker Pat Bauer says he wants to make sure […]