The 2017 legislative session reached the halfway point this week, marking a milestone for legislation as House bills move to the Senate for consideration and Senate bills crossover to the House.

House Republicans made progress on our agenda priorities, including passing an honestly balanced budget and a long-term road funding plan. We also successfully moved bills supporting students and teachers, improving Indiana’s workforce, increasing public safety and attacking the state’s drug epidemic.

Did you know? Nearly half of every dollar the state collects goes to fund education. This support continues in the House budget proposal, which increases the base funding for each K-12 student throughout the state. While maintaining our healthy reserves, we modestly increase the state’s investment in higher education and double state funding for Indiana’s high-quality, pre-K pilot program, which helps low-income children.

The budget also includes pay increases for Indiana State Police and Conservation Officers, as well as increases in state income tax exemptions for military pensions and survivor benefits.

In addition, we passed a comprehensive, responsible and sustainable plan to fund our state’s roads and bridges for the next generation. This conservative, user-based plan would ensure all taxes paid at the pump would be dedicated to funding infrastructure improvements for the first time in Indiana’s history. Click here to learn more.

By law, session must conclude by April 29. I look forward to continuing the discussions on these and many other issues facing our state, while advocating for legislation benefiting our community. Please contact me if you have questions or comments at 317­-232­-9816 or h76@iga.in.gov.

COA Orders Trial Court To Comply With Trial Rule 59 In Custody Case

Olivia Covington for www.theindianalawyer.com

A Putnam Superior Court must reconsider a motion to correct error on a child custody modification motion, the Indiana Court of Appeals held Friday, because the trial court did not provide a reason for granting the motion to correct.

After Caleb and Tammy Riggen’s marriage was dissolved in 2014, Tammy Riggen was given physical custody of their child. However, Caleb Riggen moved to modify custody, and after the Putnam Superior Court heard testimony from the child’s guardian ad litem, the court granted his petition in February 2016.

Tammy Riggen moved to correct error soon after, alleging that the court had erred in making its findings and contending that there was insufficient evidence to support the modification order. After the GAL filed a supplemental report, the trial court granted Tammy Riggen’s motion to correct error, but did so without providing a reason in its order.

On appeal in Caleb Riggen v. Tammy Riggen, 67A04-1606-DR-1312, Caleb Riggen held that the Putnam Superior Court abused its discretion in granting his ex-wife’s motion when it “failed to articulate any reasons whatsoever for why it granted Mother’s motion.” The Indiana Court of Appeals agreed, with Judge L. Mark Bailey writing in a Friday opinion that under Trial Rule 59(J), a court “shall specify the general reasons” for its decision to grant relief on a motion to correct error.

“Were this case before us with an appellee’s brief, we might conclude that the error was harmless,” Bailey wrote with a reference to the fact that Tammy Riggen did not file a brief. “However, father has directed us to prima facie error. Under these circumstances, we are constrained in our review and therefore vacate the trial court’s order granting Mother’s motion to correct error.”

On remand, the appellate panel instructed the trial court to comply with Trial Rule 59 when considering the motion to correct error.