GOP- Be in the Know

 VCRP Lincoln Day Friday, February 28, 2020

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VCRP Monthly Breakfast  -  Date: February 15, 2020

Location:  C.K. Newsome Center , Room 118A-B

    100 Walnut Street, Evansville, IN 47713

(From IndianaHouseRepublicans 01/22/20 post by A.Kern)

State Rep. Holli Sullivan’s bill that would prohibit holding a hand-held electronic device while driving passed out of the House Roads and Transportation Committee Wednesday.

Sullivan, who chairs the committee, said nine Americans are killed each day as a result of distracted driving. It is also one of the top killers of teenagers, responsible for more than 58 percent of teen crashes. She said while Indiana has a law that prohibits texting while driving, it is difficult to enforce and drivers continue to use their devices including scrolling through social media feeds and playing games. “Studies show how dangerous distracted driving is, and it is time for Indiana to act to prevent drivers from endangering themselves and others,” Sullivan said. “This is a simple but effective way to strengthen the current law. It provides clarity for drivers, law enforcement and prosecutors.”

Read MORE.

 Focusing on students, educators (from 012420 News Update)

Teachers are vital to the success of our students, and local schools are often the cornerstone of our communities. House Republicans continue to value the hard work and dedication of Hoosier educators. This session, several bills are a result of listening to our teachers and schools about how we can better support them:
Hold teachers and schools harmless from ILEARN results

In order to give students, educators and schools time to adapt to the new ILEARN exam, proposed legislation would ensure schools and teacher evaluations would not be negatively impacted by scores for two years.
Decouple teacher performance evaluations from student test scores
I co-authored legislation that would remove the state requirement that student test scores inform teacher evaluations and pay.
Provide flexibility in teacher training and licensure requirements
To reduce the number of state education mandates, proposed legislation would give local schools the ability to request waivers from certain required trainings, and make workforce-related Professional Growth Points optional. Indiana teachers currently have four options to renew their license. Under one option, teachers can develop a Professional Growth Plan and earn 90 points or hours over five years. This legislation would revise a 2019 law requiring 15 of those points be obtained through professional development related to the state’s or an educator’s community’s workforce needs.
Visit iga.in.gov to follow these bills supporting our educators and others as they move through the legislative process.

(from 012420 News Update)

 This week I voted in favor of House Bill 1007, which would eliminate almost $300 million in state debt and save Hoosier taxpayers $135 million in the long run by avoiding future interest payments. HB 1007 uses money from Indiana’s reserve funds to pay cash for six construction projects at Indiana colleges. All six of these projects were approved in the 2019 state budget, but now Indiana can pay the costs up front instead of issuing debt to pay for them.

Indiana’s strong financial leadership has positioned us to accomplish many good things, like making record investments in schools and road improvements while continuing to pay down the state’s debt. In fact, the 2019 state budget increased education funding by $763 million over two years. When the legislature adopts a new budget in 2021, HB 1007 will have put us in an even stronger position for the years to come. The bill has passed both the Senate and House and is ready to be signed into law by Gov. Holcomb.