EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT
FOOTNOTE: EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
Governor Braun Leverages Indiana Workforce Development Board to Grow Jobs and Wages for Hoosier Workers
INDIANAPOLIS – Governor Mike Braun has signed an executive order reinstating Indiana’s State Workforce Development Board to strengthen Indiana’s statewide workforce development strategy, grow jobs and higher wage opportunities for Hoosiers, and ensure full alignment with the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. The executive order positions the Board as a central coordinating body to align employers, education and training providers, and state agencies around measurable workforce outcomes.
“My most important responsibility is making life better for Hoosier families on the kitchen table issues that really matter, and that means new job opportunities, higher wages, and a clear path to a high-paying skilled career. We will use the Indiana Workforce Development Board to bring together an elite team of job creators and workforce development experts to help create new opportunities and bigger paychecks for Hoosier workers.” — Governor Mike Braun
The Workforce Development Board will include entrepreneurs and representatives from businesses of all sizes. Members will represent urban, rural, and suburban Hoosier communities.
The Workforce Development Board will advise the Governor and the Secretary of Commerce on workforce development strategy, including a review of statewide policies and programs with recommendations on actions the state should take to strengthen Indiana’s workforce. The Board will develop comprehensive state performance accountability measures to track results and ensure success for Hoosier workers.
Reinstating the Board reinforces Indiana’s commitment to an employer-led, outcomes-driven workforce system that supports talent pipelines, regional economic growth, and long-term wage advancement.
Congressman Baird Announces Significant Health Care Funding for Indiana Through Rural Health Transformation Program
Washington, D.C. – Congressman Jim Baird (IN-04) announced that the State of Indiana will receive nearly $207 million in funding for Fiscal Year 2026 through the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program.
“Hoosiers in rural communities deserve access to timely, high-quality care,” said Congressman Baird. “I was proud to support the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which authorized the Rural Health Transformation Program to deliver vital funding that will help address provider shortages, barriers to accessing care, and workforce shortages, while allowing our rural health care providers to continue to provide quality care. I am pleased to see these taxpayer funds returned to Hoosiers so Indiana can increase access to care and improve patient outcomes. I thank President Trump for signing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act into law and CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz for his leadership in delivering this critical funding for Hoosiers and Rural America.”
The RHT Program was created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The RHT Program empowers states to strengthen rural communities by improving health care access, quality, and outcomes by transforming the health care delivery ecosystem. RHT Program funding consists of $50 billion allocated to approved states over five fiscal years, with $10 billion available each fiscal year, beginning in Fiscal Year 2026 and ending in Fiscal Year 2030. Fifty percent of this funding is distributed equally to all approved states, and the remaining 50% will be allocated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) based on a variety of factors including rural population, the proportion of rural health facilities in the state, the situation of certain hospitals in the state, and other factors to be specified by CMS.
More information on the Rural Health Transformation Program can be found here.
Important Changes to SNAP Benefits Starting January 1
Indiana is launching Smart SNAP, a new initiative to promote healthier food choices. Beginning January 1, 2026, sugary drinks and candy will no longer be eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits. This change is part of Governor Braun’s Make Indiana Healthy Again initiative. Learn more about what this means for you by visiting the Smart SNAP webpage.
Food Inspection Reports
Screaming Eagles visit SIUE, Lindenwood
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball opens 2026 and the Ohio Valley Conference schedule on New Year’s Day with a visit to SIU Edwardsville in Edwardsville, Illinois. The opening weekend of 2026 concludes January 3 when USI visits Lindenwood in St. Charles, Missouri.
The Screaming Eagles (3-9, 0-2 OVC) are hoping the quick road trip can get the team on track after a rough 0-2 start to OVC play. USI could not hold off Little Rock in the conference opener, losing 77-62, and suffered a heartbreaking loss to Morehead State, 64-60, in overtime at Liberty Arena.
Senior guard Cardell Bailey led the way for the Screaming Eagles on the homestand with 17.5 points per game, while senior guard Ismail Habib and junior guard Kaden Brown posted 16.5 points and 10.0 points per game, respectively.
For the season, Habib has been posting 17.9 points per game to lead the Ohio Valley Conference and USI in scoring. Bailey is second on the team in scoring with 14.3 points per contest this season and is averaging 18.0 points per outing in thelast five games.
SIUE (8-5, 1-1 OVC) lost its 2025-26 OVC opener at Eastern Illinois, 76-72, in overtime, but bounced back to defeat Western Illinois, 66-61, on the road. The Cougars are 3-2 in the last five games and 5-5 in the last 10.
USI leads the all-time versus SIUE, 46-25, since the series began in the 1970s. USI also holds a 24-8 lead in conference games, both OVC and the old Great Lakes Valley Conference, since 1995.
SIUE won the first game last year in Edwardsville, 82-76, while USI took the second game at Liberty, 82-68.
Lindenwood (8-5, 2-0 OVC), which is tied for first in the OVC after the first two games, is 2-0 in the OVC after posting a win over Eastern Illinois, 82-74, on the road, and Western Illinois, 92-76, at home. The Lions, which lost to Missouri State, 70-65, in its final non-conference game before the holidays, have won six of its last seven.
USI leads the all-time series, 8-2, after splitting the conference games last season. USI won at Liberty Arena, 80-73, and fell at Lindenwood, 81-78, in overtime.
Attorney General Todd Rokita leads multistate coalition supporting President Trump’s policy to record biological sex on U.S. passports
Attorney General Todd Rokita this week led a coalition of 24 states and the Arizona Legislature in filing an amicus brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, supporting the Trump administration’s policy of listing biological sex — rather than subjective gender identities — on U.S. passports.
The brief calls for reversal of a district court’s preliminary injunction blocking the policy in Ashton Orr, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al., arguing that the Constitution permits the government to define “sex” as the objective, biological characteristic of male or female for official documents.
“Passports are official government property, and allowing self-defined entries would create chaos, inconsistency, and endless administrative problems while undermining accurate identification.” Attorney General Rokita said. “Government records must reflect verifiable biological reality — the same standard used for centuries — rather than ever-changing personal perceptions that could lead to unlimited options and unreliable documentation.”
The coalition contends that recording biological sex aligns with centuries of historical practice, dictionary definitions, Supreme Court precedent, and rational government interests in uniform, verifiable records. It notes that subjective gender identities can change and multiply indefinitely, making them unsuitable for official documents like passports. The brief also highlights the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent stay of the injunction, signaling the policy’s likely constitutionality.
Joining Indiana are the states of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming, as well as the Arizona Legislature.
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