Editorial Roundup: Indiana

South Bend Tribune. Feb. 12, 2021. Editorial: Indiana lawmakers should put the brakes on wetlands bill For all the reasons to oppose the bill that would eliminate Indiana’s wetlands protections, you can start with the origins of this legislation – and how quickly it is making its way through the legislature. Senate Bill 389 would put up to 80% of the remaining wetlands in the state at risk of permanent elimination. It would also remove costly mitigation requirements for developers. Opponents say that doing away with the protections could increase flooding, degrade water quality and destroy wildlife habitat. More than 40 organizations have opposed the bill, some have raised ethics concerns and Gov. Eric Holcomb, who has expressed unease about the environmental impact, allowed his state environmental and natural resource agencies to oppose the measure during a recent hearing. That bears repeating: The Republican governor has expressed unease with a bill moving through the Republican-controlled legislature, and has allowed state agencies, which rarely take a position on pending legislation, to oppose it. Despite all that, the bill is advancing at a fast clip. Which may be hard to figure until you factor in the origins of SB 389: All three authors of the bill, including Sen. Linda Rogers, R-Granger, have close ties to the building industry. All three – Sens. Chris Garten, Mark Messmer and Rogers – run companies that are members of the Indiana Builders Association, the group leading the lobbying effort for the bill. And at least four sponsors of the legislation work in construction or development, including three members of the Senate Environmental Affairs Committee, where the bill originated. They all deny any conflict of interest, but the reality is that since 2017, builders associations and groups – including the Indiana Builders PAC – have given more than $230,000 to the bill’s authors and 19 co-authors. During that same period, two of the bill’s authors each received more than $50,000 from those groups as well as other construction and development related companies and individuals. Rogers received about $21,000. For her part, Rogers says ‘œI would not author legislation that would (affect me personally). I guess I kind of take offense when people mention that to me, just because they think it’s going to enhance my pocketbook. It’s not in any way.’� But as critics have rightly pointed out, even if lawmakers don’t intend to profit from the legislation, it’s still problematic. And just the appearance of impropriety – which diminishes public trust – should guide lawmakers in such matters. Opponents of the bill acknowledge there is room to discuss how the program can be improved, but that you need a scalpel, not a bomb, to approach the task. Democrat Sen. Karen Tallian proposed an amendment that would redirect the issue to a summer study committee to come up with a solution. The amendment failed. The bill passed out of the Senate just one week after it was first heard in committee, and the number of opponents allowed to speak during the committee hearing was strictly limited. Those who weren’t allowed to speak were told they could hand in written testimony, but committee members immediately voted on the bill, which now moves to the House. ‘œIt was imbalanced, it was improper, it was disrespectful. And it certainly wasn’t fair,’� noted an opponent of the bill. It’s also another reason for the House to put the brakes on Senate Bill 389 and address the legitimate concerns that surround the issue. ___ Terre Haute Tribune-Star. Feb. 12, 2021. Editorial: Diminished Democrats have work to do to rebuild locally Competition between political parties can lead to stronger candidates and more responsive government. Complacency by either party elicits the opposite result.