Indiana

By Chase Karacostas

Happy Wednesday, Hoosiers! Welcome to the first issue of the State Affairs Indiana newsletter.

We are so glad you are here. Our goal is to bring you the best coverage of Indiana state government, focusing on how it impacts your daily life and how it informs the sometimes difficult decisions you and your family have to make each day. 

We know there are many issues that are underreported or that are not being covered at all, and so we want to bring you the stories that actually matter to you. 

So what are we offering? Two products: State Affairs and State Affairs Pro. State Affairs is focused on everyday Hoosiers, and State Affairs Pro is focused on those who work in and around government. If you have a Pro subscription, you get access to both. 

With this newsletter, we’ll bring you a round-up of our reporting each week and anything else you need to know from around Indiana. Got questions? Ideas for what we should cover? Send an email.

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Let's get to it. In today's newsletter:

• Meet the Indiana team

• A contentious vote for U.S. Sen. Todd Young

• The “Hoosier condition” and American music

Who we are

Left to right: Brian A. Howey, Ryan Martin and Kaitlin Lange.

State Affairs has tapped top talent in Indiana who will bring you stories from the ground up, from the perspective of Hoosiers from all walks of life. 

Kaitlin Lange has covered six legislative sessions at the Indiana Statehouse. Before joining State Affairs Indiana as a senior investigative reporter, she was the sole Statehouse reporter at The Indianapolis Star, writing about state and federal politics and policy for all of Gannett's Indiana papers. She lives in Noblesville with her husband, cat and dog. 

Ryan Martin is a senior investigative reporter for State Affairs Indiana. He joined the company after working as an investigative reporter at The Indianapolis Star. He was part of a team of journalists from four newsrooms who won the  2021 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for an investigation that examined K-9 units and the damage inflicted by police dogs.

You’ll also sometimes be hearing from Brian A. Howey, the managing editor of State Affairs Pro Indiana and founder of Howey Politics Indiana. He, along with columnists from around the state, write news and analysis on issues ranging from economic policy to why anyone would be crazy enough to run for office. If you’d like to subscribe to Howey Politics/State Affairs Pro, click here.

Howey is a third-generation Hoosier journalist. After graduating from Vincennes University and Indiana University at Bloomington, he wrote for the Warsaw Times-Union, The Elkhart Truth, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette and NUVO Newsweekly. In 1994, he founded Howey Politics Indiana, where he was publisher until it was acquired by State Affairs in August 2022. He also has a self-syndicated column running on more than 30 news sites. Howey and his wife, Susan, live in Indianapolis.

Our editor-in-chief is Alison Bethel. You can read about her here. If you want to reach her, email her or send her a message on Twitter.

EXPLAINER

Four issues likely to come up next session, and three that won’t

Indiana lawmakers will return to the state house in January for the legislative session in order to pass laws that impact every Hoosier. Arguably their most challenging task will be crafting the two-year budget for the state. Everyone will be asking for money, but there will only be so many new dollars to go around, State Affairs’ Kaitlin Lange writes.

• Four issues that will be discussed: Housing affordability, tax cuts, high school requirements (think calculus class vs. workforce training), and health care funding. 

• Three things you won’t see? Marijuana legalization (rarely ever even gets a hearing), abortion legislation, and a cigarette tax increase (desired by the Chamber of Commerce but likely to be ignored by lawmakers).

Take a legislative deep dive.

POLITICS & POLICY

Why Sen. Young voted to recognize same-sex marriage

U.S. Sen. Todd Young, a longtime conservative Republican, broke ranks with much of his party to vote in favor of the “Respect for Marriage Act,” which formally recognizes same-sex marriage under federal law. His Hoosier colleague in the Senate, Mike Braun, voted against the bill.

• You might be wondering, isn’t same-sex marriage already legal? Yes, you are correct. The Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in its 2015 Obergefell ruling, but a concurring opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas in the Dobbs case this summer that overturned Roe v. Wade said the court should reconsider that case, among others. Thomas, of Georgia, argued same-sex marriage was on similarly rocky legal footing as  abortion. 

• The Respect for Marriage Act was then proposed by the House of Representatives to protect same-sex couples in the event the Supreme Court overturned its Obergefell ruling in the future. 

Young’s decision was so contentious that last week he published an op-ed in the IndyStar explaining his decision. Here’s some of what he said: 

“Those who believe marriage was created by God as a sacred union between one man and one woman ― which includes many people of faith ― want to be treated with dignity and respect … (Same-sex couples) want to enjoy the same legal protections of civil marriage as married men and women. They don’t want to live in fear of their families being ripped apart by a future court decision.”

You can read the full column here. 

The Respect for Marriage Act now awaits a final vote in the House where it is expected to easily pass and President Joe Biden has already said he plans to sign it.

Howey's Weekly Analysis

Each week, we’ll also be bringing you a column from Brian Howey that you won’t find anywhere else. 🎶This week, he writes about the way the “Hoosier condition” dominates American music. Read the story.

Political snippets

💵Student loans: The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the Biden administration’s case to reinstate student loan forgiveness. In the meantime, the White House last month extended the pause on payments into next year. Here’s exactly when. (Politico)

Rail strike: Congress passed a bill — and Biden signed it — to avert the looming railroad workers strike. The law has bipartisan supporters and detractors, with some accusing lawmakers of choosing the side of wealthy railroad companies over everyday workers who simply wanted guaranteed sick leave. Indiana, the “Crossroads of America” would have been one of the worst impacted states if the strike had happened.

Beyond politics

🗳🙅No vote, no date. Nearly half of singles on Tinder said “not voting” is a dealbreaker for them in their search for a partner, according to the company’s “Year in Swipe” analysis. 

• The annual analysis looks at what’s been on the minds of singles over the past 12 months, and civic engagement was a big issue. Three-quarters of singles said they want a partner that’s “respectful of or invested in social issues.”

On Our Minds

• A federal appeals court reinstated a 2016 law that requires Indiana abortion providers to bury or cremate the fetal remains. (Associated Press)

• An Indiana man and his nephew now face charges for their involvement in the Jan. 6 riot, which included, among other crimes, hitting police officers with an American flagpole. (IndyStar)

What else?

🍿I, your newsletters editor, was one of the only people who saw “Glass Onion,” the sequel in the “Knives Out” murder mystery franchise. It was excellent, and I was struck by this article about how Netflix might have left money on the table with just a one-week run of the film in theaters. It’ll be on Netflix Dec. 23.

📚Kaitlin is finally reading fellow Hoosier and former Vice President Mike Pence's "So Help Me God." And yes, she knows she's a little behind for someone who loves politics. 

🎵Lindsay Moran, from our operations team, has been reminiscing about her “Spotify Wrapped” playlist. “I’m a Harry stan as of 2022. He finally got me.”

If you are a Pro subscriber and would like to opt out of the weekly newsletter, press unsubscribe at the bottom of this page. But if you have friends or family who understand the importance and impact of decisions made by the movers and shakers in state government, forward it on and they can sign up here.

Have feedback? Ideas for coverage? We would love to hear from you. Email me or our newsroom products chief of staff Joy Walstrum.

Chase Karacostas is State Affairs’ newsletters editor. A fan of all things Taylor Swift, he was previously a reporter covering politics, the environment, business, travel and the LGBTQ+ community.

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