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Indiana Legislature 9 results
Beginning in the mid-1990s, a group of Orange County citizens wearing orange T-shirts encouraged Indiana lawmakers to grant a gaming license to French Lick. Above, some of the “Orange Shirts” pose for a photo at the Statehouse (l-r): (front row) Betty Oakley, Mary Gilliatt, Geneva Street, Rep. Tom Saunders, Willa Sanders, and Leon Sanders; (back row) Debby Gilliatt, Vicky Perambo, Adina Cloud of the French Lick Springs Resort, Steve Ferguson of Cook Group, Tina Conner of Historic Landmarks, and Jack Carnes. | Photo from the Carnes Family Collection

How Orange T-shirts Helped Revive Gaming in French Lick
Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson
Beginning in the 1990s, a group of Orange County citizens traveled multiple times to the Indiana Statehouse to encourage lawmakers to grant a gaming license to the town of French Lick. Limestone Post and the Southern Indiana Business Report look back at those early days and how gaming today has affected the town and its citizens. Read the article by Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson.
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Indiana’s poorly written abortion ban has led to dangerous consequences for pregnant Hoosier women. Despite most people wanting more access to abortion, Indiana legislators have prevented doctors from taking proper care of their patients. (above) In September 2022, community members gathered at the Monroe County Courthouse for a protest vigil a few hours before Indiana’s near total abortion ban went into effect. | Photo by Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian

The Harmful Consequences of Indiana’s Badly Written Abortion Ban
Rebecca Hill
Indiana legislators have not clarified critical language in the state’s abortion ban, which has led to serious negative consequences for women’s healthcare, including endangering the lives of pregnant women. In part 2 of Rebecca Hill’s in-depth look at Indiana’s abortion ban, she writes about the problems that the majority of Hoosier lawmakers choose to ignore. Click here for the article.
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One out of ten Bloomington residents struggles with food insecurity. A patchwork system of food banks, community kitchens, food-assistance programs, and other initiatives helps people get healthful food, but experts say it doesn’t address the root of the problem: poverty. | Photo by Olivia Bianco

‘Patchwork’ of Aid for Food Insecurity Doesn’t Address Its Cause Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Food Insecurity, Part 2
Christina Avery and Haley Miller
One out of ten Bloomington residents struggles with food insecurity — having limited or uncertain access to food. A patchwork system of food banks, community kitchens, food-assistance programs, and other initiatives helps people get healthful food, but experts say it doesn’t address the root of the problem: poverty. Read part 2 of our Deep Dive into food insecurity.
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Indiana ranks among the worst in the country for policies that strengthen rural education and support the learning and development of rural students, according to a report by the National Rural Education Association. | Photo by WR Heustis/Pexels

School Matters: Indiana Short-Changes Rural Schools [column]
Steve Hinnefeld
“School Matters” is a new Limestone Post column by journalist Steve Hinnefeld that will cover local and regional education, as well as statewide legislation that could affect schools in our community. In this first article, Hinnefeld looks at Indiana’s low national ranking for policies that address rural schools and rural students. Click here for School Matters.
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The U.S. electrical grid is a complicated network of wires that traverse the continent and connect with regional private operators who then transmit and distribute power. Some call it “a patchwork of operators with competing interests,” writes Rebecca Hill. Indiana’s electricity comes primarily from coal, natural gas, and a growing renewables market, but the transition to renewables is not without problems. | Photo by Benedict Jones

The Power Struggle in Indiana’s Changing Energy Landscape Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate
Rebecca Hill, Benedict Jones
Indiana’s electricity comes primarily from coal, natural gas, and a growing renewables market. The transition to renewables, though, is not without problems, and the grid operators, regulators, and Indiana legislators are at odds with how to handle it. Rebecca Hill takes an in-depth look at Indiana’s power structure, as part of Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate. Click here to read about the transition of Indiana's energy landscape.
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Bloomington and Monroe County have already received their first payments from the first opioid settlement, but none of it has been spent. Many health service providers wonder where the money will go. NaloxBoxes, like the one above at the IU Health Center, are among the uses approved by the state as part of the settlement documents. | Photo by Benedict Jones

How Will Opioid Settlement Monies Be Spent — and Who Decides? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate
Rebecca Hill, Benedict Jones
Bloomington and Monroe County have already received their first payments from the first opioid settlement, and health providers wonder where the money will go. In this article for the series “Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate,” Rebecca Hill interviewed state and local officials to report on the issue and its possible solutions. Click here for the article.
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Letting one political party define election districts has converted our representative government into a plutocracy, write Jim and Tomi Allison. The result of gerrymandering is legislators choosing their voters instead of voters choosing their legislators. Next week, several groups are convening in Bloomington to organize a rally later this month at the state capitol. | Public Domain

Statehouse Rally: ‘Let Voters Choose Their Legislators, Not the Other Way Around’
Tomi and Jim Allison
Letting one political party define election districts has converted our representative government into a plutocracy, write Jim and Tomi Allison. The result of gerrymandering is legislators choosing their voters instead of voters choosing their legislators. Next week, several groups are convening in Bloomington to organize a rally later this month at the state capitol. Click here to read the full story.
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A bill passed by the Indiana House in February aimed to limit a local government’s authority, but not the state’s, over the right to harvest resources, such as timber, on personal property. The bill died in a Senate committee, but balancing personal property rights with the rights of others who might be affected is an ongoing battle. | Limestone Post

Property Rights, Public Good, Campaign Contributions: Will Bill to Limit Local Government Be Revived?
Susan M. Brackney
A bill introduced in the Indiana House this year would have limited local governments’ ability to regulate such things as logging on private property, even if, for example, the logging threatened to damage Lake Monroe. But it isn’t just about private property vs. public good, writes Susan M. Brackney. Special interest groups and campaign finance play a role, too. Click here to read the full story.
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Former Bloomington Mayor Tomi Allison (far right) and Indiana University Professor Emeritus Jim Allison (second from right) say our democracy is in urgent need of reform to give voices back to the majority of Americans. At Inaugurate the Revolution in January, the Allisons discussed three key efforts — instate the popular vote, eliminate gerrymandering, and create a rank-choice voting system. | Limestone Post

Democratic Reforms Needed for Your Vote to Count
Tomi and Jim Allison
Former Bloomington Mayor Tomi Allison and Indiana University Professor Emeritus Jim Allison say our democracy is in urgent need of reform to give voices back to the majority of Americans. They suggest starting with three key efforts: instating the popular vote, eliminating gerrymandering, and creating a rank-choice voting system. Click here to read the full story.
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