Congressman Jim Baird (IN-04) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has created the America First Trade Promotion program (AFTPP) and applauded the agency for establishing this initiative. The AFTPP is a $285 million program designed to help farmers, ranchers, and producers leverage new market opportunities through President Trump’s trade deals and export more of their agricultural products worldwide. Applications for the AFTPP are due January 23, 2026.

“President Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins’ leadership has ensured that our farmers will benefit from historic trade deals that finally level the playing field and expand their opportunities for export growth,” said Congressman Baird. “I am glad to see the USDA continue to deliver on its commitment to our farmers and producers by creating the America First Trade Promotion Program to help our farmers take full advantage of these opportunities. This program is a historic investment in our great agricultural industry that will allow our farmers to sell their quality products on the global stage. I encourage eligible organizations in Indiana’s Fourth Congressional District to apply.”

GAVEL GAMUT

By Jim Redwine

www.jamesmredwine.com

(Week of 02 December 2025)

SOUR GRAPES

A plethora of professional football, a cornucopia of college football and, most importantly, the hallowed echoes of high school football. Thanksgiving brings out the America our Founders dreamed of, “A more perfect union”. One where the battles almost never involve fatal blows but where due process on the field requires impartial officials, the Judiciary (?), involved and spirited fans, citizens (?), teams with different positions, players and coaches who are leaders and standard bearers for the hopes of countless constituencies, fans (?).

Peg and I almost surfeited on football last week but our stomachs have about recovered from gastronomical excess and our eyes and seats are ready for more football. Unfortunately, we are already ruing the long, dark journey from February until the fall of 2026. Ah well, we do have a few other things to attend to. And the memories of this season and seasons past will sustain us until then. For example, my favorite Thanksgiving Day football game occurred during my senior year of high school in 1960. I have carefully and constantly rearranged that game, especially the role of my favorite seventeen-year-old player in the outcome.

I was a linebacker who was not particularly gifted in the speed department. All right, I was on defense because my time in the forty was not clocked, but calendared. On the other hand, as I was a catcher on the baseball team, I was fairly adroit at retrieving fumbles; I just did not usually advance them.

Anyway, as I relive that glorious Thursday afternoon in November of 1960, I see myself clutching a blocked punt from our opponent. Only an uncharitable observer would have pointed out that my teammate actually blocked the punt. Regardless, when the football bounced into my arms, I took off like a lightning bolt for the goal line fifty-one yards away, my player number on the team. Mercury could not have caught me.

The next day the newspaper showed why people dislike the media. My heroic touchdown was described thusly, “Jim Redwine, reputedly the slowest player on the team, lugged the ball over the goal line”. That is why my football career ended in high school.

However, Peg and I still plan to cheer on Indiana and Oklahoma University teams as they conquer the playoffs, cheer on Army in the Army Navy game, watch every single college bowl game late into the nights of January then end the season with the Super Bowl in February. Who knows, with coaches making more money than Croesus, maybe some school will hire me to coach linebackers on how not to run.

For more Gavel Gamut articles go to www.jamesmredwine.com

Or “Follow” us on Substack @gavelgamut 

BY: LESLIE BONILLA MUÑIZ, Indiana Capital Chronicle

More than 6,000 members of the Indiana Public Retirement System have collectively left behind millions of dollars in benefits — but a new database aims to connect them to their cash.

It’s the centerpiece of INPRS’ “reclaim your retirement” campaign.

“The creation of this database was driven by our commitment to protecting the financial well-being of our members,” spokeswoman Carolina Rodríguez told the Capital Chronicle.

As of October, about 3,700 INPRS members were eligible to request their earned retirement benefits, with median monthly payments ranging from $545.50 to $783.50. They may also have defined contribution accounts waiting, with balances averaging $14,451 to $33,342, according to INPRS.

Nearly 2,400 other retirees, survivors, and beneficiaries had funds issued to them but the money went unused, according to a news release.

“We have identified that many individuals have earned retirement benefits but were unaware they had funds available or had lost contact due to changes in address, employment, or personal circumstances,” Rodríguez said. “In some situations, benefit checks were delivered as intended but never deposited into the recipient’s account.”

The information is hosted securely in a database outside of INPRS member accounts. Visitors must enter a first name, last name, and date of birth.

“Everyone is invited” to search the database, the news release says. “… for themselves, friends, family members, former colleagues, and the like for a match. When a search for someone other than yourself is successful, let that person know right away.”

If there is a match in the database, instructions will pop up for what to do next. If there’s not a match, INPRS’ website offers, “you may still have a retirement benefit with us but you’re just not on our list for this initiative.”

Hoosiers can call the agency at 844-464-6777, 8 a.m.-8 p.m., and should be ready to authenticate their identities.

INPRS manages about $50 billion in assets on behalf of more than 540,000 current and former public employees.

WEEKLY DEATH REPORT OCT 20 TO OCT 26, 2025

Business Retention & Expansion (BR&E) team, along with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), recently visited Enerfab to tour their new facility and learn more about the company’s continued growth in the Evansville region. Enerfab has made a significant investment in its local operations, strengthening its presence and capacity in southwest Indiana.

Enerfab’s New Facility

In October 2025, Enerfab moved into a new centralized facility, bringing all operations under one roof to enhance efficiency and collaboration. The facility includes over 37,410 square feet of state-of-the-art shop space designed to support advanced construction and pre-fabrication work.

This strategic move allows for:
• Streamlined workflows
• Enhanced quality control
• Faster project delivery
• Greater operational efficiency

Enerfab’s investment reflects a strong commitment to innovation and operational excellence, providing the tools and resources needed to deliver high-quality results and better serve clients across multiple industries.

About Enerfab

Built for the Challenge.
Enerfab specializes in capital, mechanical, structural, millwright, and construction projects of all sizes. Their experienced superintendents and strong labor partnerships ensure that, no matter the location or complexity, Enerfab consistently delivers safe, high-quality, and innovative solutions.

E-REP appreciates Enerfab’s continued investment in the Evansville region and looks forward to supporting its ongoing success.

Por Leslie Bonilla Muñiz, Indiana Capital Chronicle

The report used 15 metrics to rank the Capitol’s lawmakers across 21 policy areas.

Former U.S. Sen. Mike Braun — now governor of Indiana — and U.S. Rep. Erin Houchin were among the 118th Congress’ most effective lawmakers, in an issue-specific analysis by the Center for Effective Lawmaking.

The center is a nonpartisan collaboration between the University of Virginia’s Batten School and Vanderbilt University.

Researchers there used 15 indicators of effectiveness to calculate scores for lawmakers who served from January 2023 to 2025. The metrics gauge how many bills a lawmaker sponsored, how substantial the policy proposals within were, and how far those ideas moved though the legislative process.

Then, they identified the top two performers — a Republican and Democrat — across 21 policy areas. The results were published last week.

Braun was named the most effective Senate Republican on housing policy. He got points for sponsoring two “substantive” pieces of housing-related legislation, one of which passed the Senate chamber, but didn’t become law.

Houchin was named the most effective House Republican on education matters. She sponsored one “substantive and significant” education proposal that became law, plus two “substantive” bills that died early on.

Committee chairs are often among best performers, but neither Braun nor Houchin led committees handling their respective top policy areas.

A broader analysis of the 118th Congress, released in March, identified Braun as the ninth-most effective lawmaker in the Senate, as well as the chamber’s fourth-best Republican.

He was lauded for introducing 116 bills, seven of which passed the Senate and four of which became law. Braun was also listed among first-term senators “exceeding expectations” by outperforming a benchmark.

“With Sen. Braun concluding his service in the Senate to become Governor of Indiana in January 2025, it is clear that there will be one less effective lawmaker among the more senior ranks in the Senate moving forward,” researchers wrote at the time.

All members of the 118th Congress, including the rest of Indiana’s delegation, are scored in an online database. They’re ranked by party.

Sen. Todd Young was lower than Braun despite sponsoring nearly three-dozen bills; one passed the Senate but it didn’t become law.

Rep. Larry Bucshon, who retired from the House in January, was the most effective Hoosier overall in that chamber. He was followed by Houchin and former U.S. Rep. Jim Banks, who has since won Braun’s seat in the Senate.

Former Rep. Greg Pence and current Rep. Jim Baird are next. Reps. Rudy Yakym and Victoria Spartz were near the bottom of the 228 Republicans.

Indiana’s two Democratic lawmakers, Reps. Frank Mrvan and André Carson, were also near the bottom of the 220 Democrats.

State lawmakers plan to meet in December to consider redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Those efforts will target Mrvan and Carson.

BY: LESLIE BONILLA MUÑIZ– Indiana Capital Chronicle

Cigarette consumption in Indiana dropped 40% during the first three months of a long-sought tax increase, according to the Indiana Department of Health. Enrollment in the agency’s smoking cessation program jumped almost 40% over that time.

“[Cigarette] use impacts, really, every aspect of health,” said Miranda Spitznagle, director of IDOH’s Division of Tobacco Prevention and Cessation. But it’s a risk factor that is “fully preventable.”

Using taxes to raise the price of tobacco helps current users quit and may dissuade others from starting, Spitznagle said.

“It’s a huge policy factor for public health,” she added.

State legislators stuck a $2-per-pack hike into the two-year budget, House Enrolled Act 1001. They also proportionally increased taxes on electronic cigarettes and other tobacco products.

Spitznagle said that across-the-board approach prevents users from switching products instead of quitting or pulling back.

“This year, Indiana lawmakers stood up to Big Tobacco” by boosting the taxes, said Allie Kast Gregg, government relations director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.

But public health wasn’t the only motivation.

The Indiana Senate resisted for years, but in the wake of a dismal budget forecast, agreed to include the hikes in the budget’s final draft.

The boost to a nearly $3-a-pack tax on cigarettes went into effect July 1 is already paying off.

Indiana has collected $188 million in cigarette taxes from July through October, according to the State Budget Agency’s latest monthly revenue report. That’s almost three times the $68 million earned over that time period last year.

IDOH used the first three months of data — July, September and October — to calculate a 40% drop in consumption.

Meanwhile, Hoosiers are flocking to the state’s cessation help program, Quit Now Indiana.

“The month of July specifically, we doubled our enrollments,” Spitznagle said, compared to that month last year.

Participation was up 38% over those first three months, rising from 620 to 1,241 people.

Quit Now Indiana is up to eight times more effective than solo efforts, Spitznagle noted. Going it alone has a single-digit success rate, while the state program has a 32% quit rate.

“What Quit Now Indiana offers is multiple touch points with a trained quit coach who knows how to talk through and make a quit plan … that understands nicotine addiction,” she said.

The program can also provide two weeks of nicotine patches or gum and helps enrollees see if their employers or health plans can offer further medical support.

The American Cancer Society also runs an email-based Empowered to Quit program.

Nearly 15% of adults in Indiana smoke, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from 2023.

Thousands of Hoosier deaths annually are attributable to smoking. An oft-cited CDC estimate from 2014 places the death toll at 11,000 a year.

Spitznagle said that for every one death, however, 30 people live with chronic health conditions linked to their smoking.