Open Government Initiative announced

On Monday, August 16, members of the Senate Democratic Caucus announced the Indiana Open Government Initiative, a plan to improve transparency in state government budgeting and spending.

Senate Democrats will introduce legislation during the 2011 legislative session that pushes for more accountability to foster better budgeting practices, safeguard taxpayers, promote good jobs and improve efficiency. 

The legislative proposal will include the following:

1. One stop online public access to track taxpayer dollars in state budgets, spending and contracts.

2. Corporate accountability for state economic development incentives.

3. Restrict “Pay to play” for fair competition in awarding state contracts.

Share your ideas

Also announced under the initiative is an online forum where Hoosiers can submit their own ideas for increasing transparency in Indiana state government. Ideas submitted on the initiative website will be considered for inclusion in the final legislative package.

Watch Senate Democrat Leader Vi Simpson’s video inviting you to contribute to the plan>

Background

Thirty-two states allow residents to access detailed information about government expenditures online. Open government initiatives can save millions of taxpayer dollars through more efficient government operations, more competitive contracting bids and lower risk of fraud. Transparency also allows states to track how well subsidies and tax incentives deliver results and to reinvest dollars from underperforming programs into more successful ones.

Background on Senate Democrats’ work for transparency >

Issues addresssed this week in the Senate

Ethics reform – Ethics reform legislation that will provide more accountability and transparency in state government is headed to the governor who is expected to sign the bill into law. Provisions contained in House Bill (HB) 1001 will affect legislators, lobbyists, the executive branch and universities. A few of the bill’s provisions include: requiring uniform reporting by all lobbyists; reducing the threshold for reported one-time lobbyist expenses from $100 to $50 as well as the annual total from $500 to $250; prohibiting lobbyists from paying out-of-state travel expenses for legislators; and requiring legislators to wait at least one year after leaving office before they can become lobbyists.

Public-private partnerships authorized – Legislation was approved this week which authorizes public-private partnerships for the construction and development of the Illiana Expressway in the northwest region of the state and bridges across the Ohio River in southern Indiana. Passage of Senate Bill (SB) 382 is the first step in the process to proceed with nearly $5 billion in new infrastructure projects that will create thousands of jobs and stimulate economic development opportunities. The legislation provides authorization for a private company to build and operate a toll road connecting I-65 in Lake County with either I-57 or I-55 in Illinois. The new bypass will help relieve congestion on the I-80/94 Borman Expressway, one of the most heavily trafficked interstates in the nation. The legislation also authorizes a public-private partnership for the construction of new bridges spanning the Ohio River connecting Indiana and Kentucky. According to the Federal Highway Administration, for every $100 million invested in construction projects, up to 2,000 jobs are created.

Property tax billings – HB 1059 will require counties to get property tax billings mailed on a timely basis. Counties that anticipate being behind schedule with spring tax bills will be required to send provisional tax bills in which 50 percent of the previous year’s total tax liability would be due in the spring installment. If final property tax bills cannot be determined by the fall, the remaining 50 percent of the previous year’s bill would be collected in the fall. If the final amount for the current year can be determined, a reconciliation bill for the remainder of the current year’s taxes would be due in November. In addition, counties will be able to appeal to the Department of Local Government Finance for an extension if the bills can be distributed and due by June 10. Passage of this bill will help homeowners budget for their property taxes and allow local units of government to maintain more concise operating budgets and avoid borrowing millions of dollars in loans. The bill now goes to the governor.

Earned income tax credit protected – Legislation that will protect a debtor’s Indiana Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from bankruptcy proceedings has advanced to the governor. HB 1021 will allow the state EITC to be considered exempt property under the bankruptcy property exemption statute. In 2008, the General Assembly increased Indiana’s EITC to 9 percent of the federal EITC received by a taxpayer. More than 493,000 Hoosiers benefitted from the EITC that year, receiving an average credit of $1,991. In total, the EITC put nearly $981.6 million back into the pockets of working Hoosier families. Current law already provides that an individual’s federal EITC is exempt. At a time when Hoosier families are hurting from the economic recession and the rate of personal bankruptcy filings is up, passage of this legislation will be very important for working families.

Alcoholic beverage sales – SB 75 contains several provisions pertaining to the sale of alcohol in this state. If signed into law, the bill will allow a microbrewery to sell the brewery’s beer for carryout on Sundays, allowing microbreweries to have the same sales opportunities as wineries. Other provisions will allow liquor stores and other establishments to have carryout sales on primary and general election days, and allow restaurants and bars to sell alcoholic beverages on Sundays until 3 a.m. the following day. In addition, the measure calls for all establishments selling alcohol for carryout to check the identification of all customers who appear younger than age 50.

Child support collections – Legislation has advanced to the governor that will require persons who own or operate a river boat licensed as a gambling operation or a horse racetrack licensed for gambling games in Indiana to withhold cash winnings of those individuals who are delinquent in child support.payments. The measure requires the Child Support Bureau to provide certain information to gaming officials about delinquent parents. SB 163 will provide another avenue for collecting delinquent child support and get some of those casino winnings to the children who need it most. Testimony revealed that Indiana ranks 41^st in the nation and only collects 58 percent of what is owed. The delinquency equals about $2.2 billion statewide.

Ethics reform bill a “bipartisan and bicameral effort”

On Thursday the Indiana Senate unanimously voted to move forward a comprehensive ethics reform bill affecting the General Assembly and the state executive branch. House Bill 1001 will now go to a conference committee where differences between the House and Senate versions will be reconciled. The bill, which has received bipartisan support this year, is expected to receive approval by both chambers then go to the governor for his signature or veto.

Senate Democrat Leader Vi Simpson said the bill is a “bipartisan and bicameral effort.”

Restrictions on legislative lobbying

The bill addresses several issues related to lobbying in the General Assembly, including barring lawmakers from becoming lobbyists for one year after they leave office.

The bill would also reduce the amount of a single gift or expenditure for a legislator that must be reported by a lobbyist from $100 to $50.  The calendar year threshold of gifts or expenditures that must be reported would also be reduced from $500 to $250.  The bill makes further clarifications for lobbyist expense reporting and increases fines for failure to file the reports on time.

University representatives advocating before the General Assembly would be required to register as lobbyists.

The rules on reporting and avoiding conflicts of interest by lobbyists representing more than one of clients are also clarified in the bill.

Restrictions on state officials

Elected state officials and candidates for state office, including the governor and gubernatorial candidates, would be prohibited from fundraising during the budget-making sessions (on odd-numbered years) of the General Assembly and during the day before, the day of, and the day after each legislative Organization Day.

A new provision added by the Senate would prohibit statewide elected officials from using state appropriated funds for advertisements that use the official’s name or likeness. Exceptions were allowed for the governor making announcements concerning public health or safety. State elected officials could also seek approval for state funded ads if they have a “compelling public policy reason.”

One of the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill to be negotiated next week is the “pay-to-play” provision, which would prohibit vendors holding or seeking state contracts worth $100,000 or more from donating to the campaigns of candidates seeking state office.

Video: Simpson Mid-Session Update

Audio: Senate passes ethics reform bill, Simpson lauds bipartisan support

Today the Indiana Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill (SB) 114, a legislative ethics reform package. The bill requires elected state officials and political appointees to be out of office one year before becoming lobbyists and prohibits campaign fundraising by candidates for statewide office during legislative sessions when the state budget is appropriated. The bill also reduces the amount of reportable gifts to a legislator from a lobbyist from $100 to $50. Senate Democrat Leader Vi Simpson says she is happy that this bill was created with bipartisan, bicameral support. The measure now moves on to the House of Representatives for further consideration.

Listen to Senator Simpson’s comments from the Senate floor today:

Video: Lewis on ethics reform

Early start to session?

The Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee and House Ways and Means Committee have already been assigned big issues on the first official day of the 2010 session. We’re hearing that these committees may begin hearings in December on some of the following bills – before the General Assembly reconvenes on Jan 5. Is this a trend for Indiana’s part-time legislature?

Two bills filed in the Senate on Tuesday:

SJR 1: Constitutional amendment for already enacted 1-2-3% property tax caps
SB 23: Delay of unemployment insurance employer contributions changes by one year

Five bills filed in the House on Tuesday:

HJR 1: Constitutional amendment for already enacted 1-2-3% property tax caps
HB 1001: Ethics reform on lobby gifts, legislator to lobbyist transitions, and political contributions by state contractors
HB 1002: Worker Preference on public works projects
HB 1003: Halts the contracting and privatization of services for FSSA’s Medicaid and Food Stamp program
HB 1004: Limit the annual increase of homestead and farmland assessments

To track legislation visit http://www.in.gov/legislative/