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Spending your government check

January 24, 2008

If you pay taxes, President Bush and leaders in Congress have agreed to send you at least $600 in the hope youâ??ll spend it and pump more life into the economy. They have their wishes, but Americans are independent sorts. What would...

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Blame Daniels for the economy?

January 23, 2008

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At this point four years ago, now-Gov. Mitch Daniels had started outlining a platform based on revitalizing the economy. The economy had been headed south since the â??70s and had taken another beating early in the decade. Voters were only too...

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Supremes appear to back voter law

January 9, 2008

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Questions posed by U.S. Supreme Court justices today suggest they might be reluctant to overturn Indianaâ??s voter ID law. Reports from the proceedings quote Justice Anthony Kennedy, often a swing vote on the court, as asking why the court should be...

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Taxing lawyers, docs, Realtors

January 7, 2008

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Your lawyer probably isnâ??t complaining. Neither would your doctor, Realtor or accountant. In all the talk about reforming property taxes, hardly a word has been said about shifting some of the property tax burden to services. That means some of the most...

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Feeling left out of the process?

January 4, 2008

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The Iowa caucuses are over and the New Hampshire primary isnâ??t far away. Indianaâ??s primary arrives May 6, long after a string of states could easily make ours all but irrelevant. How do you feel about having little, if any voice...

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Checking for illegal immigrants

January 3, 2008

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The clash over illegal immigration under way in other states may well show up in the General Assembly this year. State chamber lobbyist George Raymond expects at least one bill to materialize, and he thinks the chances of passage are pretty...

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Amendment for houses of worship

December 13, 2007

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State Sen. Pat Miller says sheâ??s looking to the future by proposing a constitutional amendment that would protect churches and other houses of worship from someday being taxed. Itâ??s not a â??crisis today,â?? but could become a problem in the future...

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Would a county CEO be a king?

December 12, 2007

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A centerpiece of the sweeping proposal rolled out yesterday by the Commission on Local Government Reform involves consolidating many county offices under one elected official. A county chief executive would appoint the assessor, auditor, coroner, recorder, surveyor, treasurer and even the...

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Kernan, Shepard break china

December 11, 2007

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Folks who think itâ??s time to bring local government from horse-and-buggy days into the modern era have to be smiling about the report that the Commission on Local Government Reform released this morning. The report, written by former Gov. Joe Kernan...

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Revving for another Super Bowl bid

December 7, 2007

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After weeks of talking, Mayor-elect Greg Ballard and the Indiana Convention & Visitors Association have decided to shoot to host the 2012 Super Bowl. It wasnâ??t so long ago â?? in May â?? that the NFL owners voted 17-15 to give...

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Stopping the tax buck

December 7, 2007

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We Hoosiers are getting value from the libraries, schools and other public services we fund with our taxes, but not enough valueâ??at least according to Mike Hicks, who moved from Ohio this year to take over the Bureau of Business...

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Is Indiana addicted to gambling?

December 4, 2007

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Indiana relies heavily on gambling to fund state and local government. Nearly $1 billion is generated for government by riverboats, the lottery, and taxes on parimutuel wagering and charity gaming. Just how long the state will be able to keep the...

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Lottery vs. local ad firms

November 26, 2007

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The Hoosier Lottery has rejected all bids for the creative part of its advertising account. Most of the bidders were local, and the agencies involved are miffed that they were passed over. In this weekendâ??s IBJ, reporter Anthony Schoettle...

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Is Jones a political football?

November 26, 2007

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Carmel tech entrepreneur Scott Jones is finding himself in the middle of a political debate he didnâ??t ask for and doesnâ??t want. The spokeswoman for the Indiana Democratic Party is questioning whether Jones needed the $4 million in grants that two...

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Solving the tax debate

November 13, 2007

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Gov. Mitch Daniels has proposed capping residential property taxes at 1 percent of a homeâ??s assessed value, rental properties at 2 percent and businesses at 3 percent. Now state Sen. Luke Kenley says the bipartisan commission on taxes he heads will...

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How did media affect Ballard's win?

November 8, 2007

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Election Day was no high point in the annals of Indianapolis media. How could we have missed such a big story, that Greg Ballard was about to upset incumbent Mayor Bart Peterson? Local news organizations treated Ballard as an afterthought until...

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Will business like Ballard?

November 7, 2007

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Dating at least to the â??60s, when Richard Lugar was mayor of Indianapolis, the cityâ??s comeback has been driven by nationally renowned cooperation between government and business. Business interests came out of the woodwork to support Lugar, and subsequent mayors William...

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A new mayor in Indianapolis

November 7, 2007

Comments(7)

Now that Greg Ballard has pulled the big upset, how will Indianapolis be different under his administration? Is his election good or bad for business?

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Arts leaders tout Peterson

November 6, 2007

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The race between Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson and his Republican challenger, Greg Ballard, became interesting in the final days, and not just because Ballard suddenly got traction in a widely publicized poll. In the past few days, two prominent arts leaders...

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