​ Evansville – July 7, 2022 – CenterPoint Energy is alerting customers of reported increases in door-to-door, phone call and text message scams. Reports of individuals impersonating CenterPoint Energy have employed various tactics, including requests to check electric meters at customers’ homes and spoofing company phone numbers to threaten service disconnection.

 CenterPoint Energy will never call a customer and demand payment over the phone to avoid immediate disconnection. The company would never ask customers to make payments with a pre-paid debit card, gift card, any form of cryptocurrency, or third-party digital payment mobile applications. Furthermore, all CenterPoint Energy technicians and contractors will have a company badge to display when performing work.

“We encourage customers to remain on high alert as we continue to see utility scams on the rise across our service territories,” said Ashley Babcock, Vice President, Indiana and Ohio Gas. “Any customer who is approached with what they believe to be a scam should report the incident to CenterPoint Energy through our online Customer Service form.”

CenterPoint Energy continues to identify opportunities, such as working with its phone vendors, to mitigate the risk of scam calls to its customers. While scammers can spoof CenterPoint Energy’s phone numbers, if the company’s name is not displayed on the caller ID when receiving a call to a mobile device, it can be considered a scam call and the customer should hang up immediately.

If a customer needs to verify their account status, they may call customer service at the number listed on their bill or log in to their account on our website. Customers should not send money in any form until their account status has been verified with Customer Service.

Depending on the particular scam, customers who believe they have been a victim can also take the following steps to report:

• File a report with the local police department.
• File a report with the FBI.
• File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.

Overturn Of Roe Vs Wade –Let’s Pause and Work Towards an Amenable Solution

By Dannie McIntire

JULY 8, 2022

The overturn of Roe Vs Wade by our Supreme Court has inflamed emotions on both sides of the abortion debate into very distinct “us” versus “them” camps, “Pro-Life” versus “Right-To-Choose”.

So where does the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn its earlier 1973 decision leave the issue of abortion?

First and foremost, the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe Vs Wade did not make abortion illegal in regard to Federal Law. 

Regardless of which political spectrum you identify with, I believe all of us need to pause the “hatred” that seems to have become so intense between the two “ideologies” and examine what the Supreme Court’s ruling in overturning Roe Vs Wade actually has done.

The court basically ruled that since abortion was not directly protected under the Constitution of the United States, the question of whether abortion should be legal or illegal was a “States Right”, protected under the 10^th Amendment.   

Under the Bill Of Rights 10th Amendment, all rights and powers not specifically reserved to Congress by Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution are reserved by the states.

The recent Supreme Court ruling in essence found that the 1973 Supreme Court ruling overstepped the federal government’s powers under our Constitution.

I think the rationale behind the court’s ruling needs to be celebrated, not on the basics of the abortion question, but that “the people” have the right to determine the issue. I think it bodes well for our democracy when that last step in our judicial system “rule of law” can say, “Oops, the earlier court in 1973 violated the Constitution by asserting a power it did not have.  

Now it’s up to the elected legislators in Indiana to determine, if so inclined, any tightening or loosening of abortion restrictions within the state of Indiana.

“The ball” in essence has been thrown back into “the people’s court”. Now it is “your job” as a citizen of Indiana, if so inclined, to let your state representatives know your feelings on the issue of abortion.

Research your representative’s stand on the issue of abortion, if it lines up with yours, let them know that, and let them know they will receive your vote the next time they stand for reelection. 

If your representative’s stand on abortion doesn’t line up with yours, let them know that, and let them know they will not receive your vote the next time they stand for reelection. 

But first and foremost, I hope the citizens of Indiana, regardless of their stance on the issue of abortion, if they engage one another on the issue of abortion, will remember that everyone has the right to their own opinion.

My opinion, if different than yours, doesn’t make yours wrong, as yours doesn’t invalidate mine.

 

     

INDIANA (July 7, 2022) —According to a recent conservation survey, Indiana farmers planted an estimated 1.5 million acres of overwinter living covers in the late fall of 2021, matching the record 1.5 million acres planted in 2020, according to the Indiana State Department of Agriculture.

Overwintering living covers (i.e. – cover crops and small grains, like wheat) are known for their environmental benefits. Cover crops and small grains help increase organic matter in the soil and improve overall soil health by adding living roots to the soil additional months out of the year. Cover crops also improve water infiltration into the soil, while other covers, like legumes serve as natural fertilizers. The 1.5 million acres of living covers planted sequestered an amount of soil organic carbon that is the equivalent of 819,941 tons of CO₂.

Although the conservation transect does not differentiate between cover crops and small grains, Indiana farmers typically plant fewer than 300,000 acres of small grains annually, so cover crops vastly dominate the 1.5 million estimated acres. Except for corn and soybeans, cover crops are planted on more acres than any other commodity crop in Indiana. Cover crops are typically planted in the fall after harvest and are utilized to protect the soil and keep roots in the ground throughout the winter, which improves soil health and helps filter water runoff.

The conservation transect is a visual survey of cropland in the state. It was conducted between March and April 2022 by members of the Indiana Conservation Partnership, including the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, Indiana’s Soil and Water Conservation Districts and Purdue Extension, as well as Earth Team volunteers, to show a more complete story of the state’s conservation efforts.

“By increasing our cover crop practices each year, we are ensuring that we provide healthier soil for the next generation,” said Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, the Indiana Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “I am proud of the collaborative efforts being done by our farmers and leaders in Indiana agriculture.”

As a result of the cover crops and other overwintering covers planted last year, it is estimated that 2.1 million tons of sediment was prevented from entering Indiana’s waterways, which is enough sediment to fill more than 597 Olympic-size swimming pools. Overwintering covers also prevented 5.1 million pounds of nitrogen and over 2.5 million pounds of phosphorus from entering Indiana’s waterways.

The conservation survey also showed that about 70 percent of farmed acres were not tilled and 18 percent of farmed acres had employed reduced tillage after the 2021 harvest. This early spring survey is not intended to quantify pre-planting tillage.

“Indiana farmers continue to help lead the way through their dedication to conservation farming,” said Jerry Raynor, state conservationist for USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in Indiana. “The work being done by farmers throughout the state to promote soil health through no-till farming and the planting of cover crops will have positive impacts for generations to come. We are committed to continuing to help farmers help the land through financial assistance and free conservation technical assistance as they implement these practices and more to help conserve this vital resource.”

Indiana State Department of Agriculture Director Bruce Kettler is excited to see what the future holds for soil conservation in Indiana.

“As recent surveys have proved, soil conservation remains an integral part of how Hoosier farmers care for their land and the work they do,” said Kettler. “With this increasing trend of cover crop acres and soil health, future generations are in trustworthy hands.”

Kurt Theurer is one of the many farmers throughout Indiana seeing the benefits of no-till farming paired with cover crops. Theurer farms 1,650 acres in Jay County, Indiana, evenly split between corn and soybeans. He has no-till farmed and planted cover crops on approximately 400 of his acres for more than a decade and transitioned the remaining acres after he started farming them five years ago. Theurer started cover cropping by testing a small plot with oats. After seeing an immediate impact, he planted his entire farm in cover the next season.

He is also the Jay County Soil and Water Conservation District Board Chairman and has implemented a nutrient and pest management plan on his land with assistance from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

“I did a small trial at my home farm and the weeds that I had, the resistant weeds, just went from crazy to barely any after I ran a cover crop,” Theurer said. “The next spring, that soil was just a whole totally different soil type. You could tell in the field the next spring right where we quit our oats.”

“We’re starting to get a lot of earthworms again,” he continued. “We’re starting to get a lot of root penetration down through our hardpans with all our cover crops. And my organic material that I’m building, I was only at like 1.5 percent organic material when I started and I’m like 2.5-3 percent now. So, I feel that I’m working in the right direction.”

Click here or visit isda.in.gov to see the results from the survey. To visit the Indiana Conservation Data Hub click here.