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IS IT TRUE JULY 22, 2015

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IS IT TRUE that At-Large City Council member Jonathan Weaver sent Cheryl Musgrave an interesting e-mail following yesterday ERC meeting? …Weaver e-mail stated the following?

Cheryl,
If the ERC would have followed your suggestion (#4), the city would
have been sued because we would have violated state statute. By asking
them to deed city owned property to the developer, you are breaking the
law Are you asking the council body to support your idea?
Your appointment to the ERC has been a huge disappointment and a
roadblock for the community. I would recommend that you would step down
from your appointment.
Jonathan

IS IT TRUE if anyone should give anyone a lecture about being a huge disappointment Mr. Weaver should be the last person to do so? …we hear that Mr. Weaver’s political opponents are going to engage him in open and lively debates concerning his political, professional and personal life conduct? …when all is said and done we wonder if the voters will determine that At-Large City Council member Jonathan Weaver is the big disappointment and a roadblock for the community?

IS IT TRUE that the popular State of Indiana Attorney General Greg Zeller has decided to run for a Congressional seat to be vacated by Republican U. S. Representative Todd Young? …political wisdom suggests that the Attorney General is a shoe-in to win the GOP nomination for U.S. House of Representatives? …if Mr. Zeller is elected to the U. S. House don’t be surprised to see many political people throughout the State try to draft the extremely popular Vanderburgh County Prosecuting Attorney Nick Hermann to run for Mr. Zeller’s vacant seat? …when Mr. Zeller first ran for Attorney General it was Nick Hermann who help mastermind his convention victory? …we hear if Mr. Hermann wants to replace State Attorney General Zeller his chances are very good? …Evansville would be proud and delighted to see Nick advance to this position.

IS IT TRUE the EVSC and the local Teamster 215 are still at odds? …it looks like it’s going to be a long school year that will be dominated by collective bargaining issues and a possible employee strike of 780 EVSC Union workers once school is in session? The EVSC Board could also say that enough is enough and de-certify the union. Folks, this could get interesting?

Please take time and vote in today’s “Readers Poll”. Don’t miss reading today’s Feature articles because they are always an interesting read. New addition to the CCO is the Cause of Death reports generated by the Vanderburgh County Health Department.

Copyright 2015 City County Observer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Governor Pence to Ceremonially Sign Bills Relating to Broadband Infrastructure, Internet Tomorrow

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Indianapolis – Tomorrow, Governor Pence will ceremonially sign two bills: broadband ready communities (HEA 1101), which aims to facilitate more investment in broadband infrastructure to support access for Hoosiers across our state, and taxation of Internet access (SEA 80), which prohibits government from collecting a tax on Internet access or use. Details below.

 

Wednesday, July 22:

 

1:00 p.m. EDT – Governor Pence to ceremonially sign HEA 1101, broadband ready communities, and SEA 80, taxation of Internet access

*Media are welcome to attend.

Statehouse – Room 206, 200 W. Washington Street, Indianapolis, IN

LETTER TO THE EDITOR : PERRY TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE RICK RINEY STATES DISAPPOINTMENT IN LOCHMUELLER GROUP BUS STUDY

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RICK RINEY

PERRY TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE

Mr. David Goffinet

Lochmueller Group, Inc.

Dear Mr. Goffinet

I have no doubt you must address financial issues, but hopefully not all at one time.  It is not the fault of the West Side Residents that bus fare has had no increase since 1999.

Some of our clients have no choice other than the bus.  This community is made up of a lot of older folks who do rely on bus service as well as those who use it as their only means of transportation.  I just wonder if this survey took them into consideration.  It also says it will affect 15,000 annual riders – how many of them will be out of work without transportation?  Did the survey factor that in; did anyone talk to any of them?

Surely there must be a better resolution other than that of totally ignoring a sector of the taxpaying community.???

I drove part of the Westside expected routes today.  From Speaker Road (the City limits) to the closest bus stop is 1.1 miles.  From Mudd Center to the nearest bus stop, it is 6-10 blocks.  Howell is at least that.  Surely you do not intend for anyone to have to walk blocks – in any kind of weather, with groceries or children – for the opportunity to work or shop in our City, do you?  I did not drive the Mesker Park route, but I wouldn’t think you would take away service to the Zoo -  would you?  Especially if we are trying to sell our city, do we not need transportation for tourists to our attractions?

Unless you rethink this issue, you ARE telling me you want our people to walk 6-8-10 blocks or 1.1 miles, sometimes in the dark, possibly with children or groceries, without “sidewalks” to catch a bus to go to work, a doctor’s appointment or to purchase food.  I have not even mentioned the impact this will have on our handicapped individuals.

For the most part, the West Side is pretty content with services provided; however, we do not want to have those we do have reduced.  Half the Westside, that’s been in the city 50 plus years, still is without “SIDEWALKS”

The elimination of this route will create an unfair hardship.  Cities change, as do their dynamics, but we cannot ignore the fact the West Side is still a well-populated, valuable part of our city.  Is it possible to lessen the number of stops along the route to keep the bus moving?  Could you run the route as is in an “every other” type of route – such as running the route as it is now and then on the next run as you propose?  Possibly the bike routes could be financially tweaked and funding transferred – after all, most people do not shop for groceries or transport families on bicycles.

I hope the folks that took this survey come out and see what it would be like to walk a great distance, in inclement weather, in the dark, without “sidewalks”, with children, with groceries, etc., after being on their job all day, and see how well that works for them!!!!!

Does the safety of the West Side Taxpayer matter – to anyone other than me?

Respectfully

Rick Riney

Perry Township Trustee

km

July 14, 2015

cc:  The Honorable Mayor Lloyd Winnnecke

City Council Members

File

Footnote:  Temperature on July 13, 2015 was 93 degrees with a heat index of 108 per WTVW news cast.

U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT NAMES ST. MARY’S #3 IN INDIANA AND BEST IN SOUTHERN INDIANA

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Also ranked as high performing in two specialties 

(Evansville, IN)  St. Mary’s Medical Center has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #3 hospital in the state of Indiana after two years as the #4 hospital. St. Mary’s has also earned top honors as the best hospital in Southern Indiana for the third year in a row. The annual U.S. News Best Hospitals rankings, now in their 26th year, review approximately 172 hospitals in the state and recognize those that excel in treating the most challenging patients.

“This recognition is truly a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our medical staff and associates,” says Keith Jewell, President of St. Mary’s Health. “Moving from #4 to #3 in the state and maintaining our standing as the best hospital in Southern Indiana is a testament to our staffs’ commitment to delivering the highest quality care and providing the best possible healthcare experience to our patients– the St. Mary’s Experience. I couldn’t be more proud to serve our community with such an exceptional team.”

In addition to the overall health rankings, St. Mary’s was recognized as high performing in two specialties: Pulmonary and Nephrology. For 2015-16, U.S. News evaluated hospitals in 16 adult specialties and ranked the top 50 in most of the specialties. Less than 3 percent of the nearly 5,000 hospitals that were analyzed for Best Hospitals 2015-16 were nationally ranked in even one specialty. St. Mary’s is part of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and non-profit health system.

“A Best Hospital has demonstrated expertise in treating the most challenging patients,” said Ben Harder, chief of health analysis at U.S. News. “A hospital that emerged from our analysis as one of the best has much to be proud of.”

U.S. News publishes Best Hospitals to help guide patients who need a high level of care because they face particularly difficult surgery, a challenging condition or extra risk because of age or multiple health problems. Objective measures such as patient survival and safety data, adequacy of nurse staffing and other data largely determined the rankings in most specialties.

Indiana rankings are freely available at http://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/area/in and will appear in the U.S. News “Best Hospitals 2016” guidebook, available in August.

Governor Pence Statement on June Employment Report

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Indianapolis – Governor Mike Pence today issued the following statement following news that Indiana’s unemployment rate decreased 0.2 percent to 4.9 percent in June, marking the first month since February of 2008 that the rate of unemployment in the Hoosier State has been below 5 percent. June marks the third month in a row that Indiana experienced significant declines in unemployment, with the state seeing a 3.5 percent decrease in the unemployment rate since January of 2013, the second largest decrease in the nation. In addition, Indiana’s unemployment rate has decreased 5.9 percent since July of 2009, the low point of employment, the second largest decrease in the nation.

 

“Indiana’s economy is on the move thanks to hard-working Hoosiers and businesses both large and small. With each passing day, it becomes more apparent that Indiana is strong and growing stronger, and now, for the first time in more than seven years, Indiana’s unemployment rate is below five percent. Our administration is committed to implementing the kinds of pro-growth policies that allow businesses to succeed and families to thrive, and Hoosiers can be assured that we will not relent in these efforts in the months to come.”

Indiana joins multistate challenge of “Waters of the United States” rule 

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AG Zoeller: EPA’s proposed rule oversteps its authority; states seek an injunction

INDIANAPOLIS – The State of Indiana officially joined a multistate lawsuit challenging the statutory and constitutional validity of an EPA proposed rule that would redefine small bodies of water such as streams, drainage ditches and wetlands as “waters of the United States” and would require agricultural landowners to obtain expensive permits.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized the proposed rule June 29, and nine states filed a legal challenge to the rule in federal court in Georgia on June 30. Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller announced July 6 that Indiana also would join the multistate suit. On Monday, an amended complaint was filed in federal court listing Indiana as an additional state plaintiff joining the original nine.

The amended complaint notes that Indiana, like the other plaintiff states, long has had jurisdiction to regulate non-navigable small bodies of water within its borders, based in part on two prior U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed “waters of the United States” or WOTUS Rule would redefine such small bodies of water as being under federal, not state, regulatory jurisdiction. The impact on Indiana’s agricultural economy would be particularly acute, as landowners could have to obtain more permits for agricultural runoff or discharge of water into drainage ditches, and violations could trigger onerous fines of $37,500 per incident per day.

“We contend EPA has greatly overstepped its bounds by intruding into an area of state environmental jurisdiction with a rule that is impractical, potentially harmful to Indiana’s agricultural economy and costly to taxpayers. In defending state authority, my office is joining our fellow states in asking the federal court to restrain EPA’s unconstitutional overreach,” Zoeller said. The Office of the Attorney General represents the State of Indiana in court.

The amended lawsuit contends, among other things, that the proposed WOTUS Rule exceeds EPA’s authority under the Clean Water Act as well as Congress’s Commerce Clause authority. The plaintiff states also contend the proposed rule would violate the Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which reserves to states all government powers not expressly granted to the federal government. The multistate complaint asks the federal court for an injunction that would prevent EPA from implementing and enforcing the proposed rule.

The amended complaint also notes the WOTUS rule would redefine drainage areas such as intermittent streams that occur with heavy rain as being “waters of the United States” subject to federal regulation, including areas within a 100-year floodplain whether connected to a navigable body of water (such as a river) or not, and water located within 1,500 of the ordinary high-water mark, which the State contends is an arbitrary and difficult-to-define standard. Such a broad expansion of federal authority into areas never before subject to the EPA would mean landowners would have to apply for expensive additional permits and the State would incur additional resources in processing those applications, the suit contends.

Indiana Farm Bureau voiced its support of the WOTUS Rule challenge, noting the impact on farmers.

“When it comes to fighting overzealous regulators, Greg Zoeller has time and again stood with Indiana farmers,” said Don Villwock, president of Indiana Farm Bureau. “The WOTUS rule is just the latest example of his leadership in protecting the property rights of Hoosiers. Indiana Farm Bureau is grateful that the Attorney General and the state of Indiana will join the legal action against water regulations that will severely limit farmers’ ability to farm their land.”

The original complaint challenging the WOTUS Rule was filed by a bipartisan group of state attorneys general of Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, South Carolina, Utah and Wisconsin on behalf of their states. Indiana joined through the amended complaint. Named as defendants in the multistate lawsuit are the EPA and its administrator, Regina A. McCarthy, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its assistant secretary of the Army, Jo-Ellen Darcy.  The suit is filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, and no hearing dates have been scheduled yet. Any Indiana-specific legal work on the case would be handled by a deputy AG who is a salaried attorney who does not charge billable hours and would be paid the same regardless; but much of the effort on the case will be shouldered by the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office since it is the lead plaintiff state. Indiana is not using any outside counsel to participate.

Meanwhile, three other separate legal challenges to the WOTUS Rule are each currently pending in federal courts in Ohio, Texas and North Dakota, in which 18 additional states are participating in some combination as plaintiffs. The case Indiana joined is the nine-state case pending in federal court in Georgia; and that brings to 28 the total number of states challenging the EPA rule on various legal grounds. AG Zoeller is one of eight state attorneys general primarily from Midwestern states who serves on a new Agricultural Committee of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) that will address issues of state government authority regarding agriculture.

Governor Pence Announces 2015 Mr. and Miss Indiana Math and Science Awards

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Indianapolis – Governor Mike Pence today announced the winners of the 2015 Mr. and Miss Math and Science awards. The Mr. and Miss Math and Science awards aim to recognize students who have exemplary performance in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) classes and extracurricular activities. The winners receive a $1,000 college scholarship through Indiana’s CollegeChoice 529 Direct Savings Plan.

 

“I’m proud today to recognize these stellar, outstanding individuals and the achievements they have accomplished while in high school,” said Governor Pence. “These Mr. and Miss Math and Science award winners represent the bright future of this state, and I look forward to their continued accomplishments in their collegiate careers and beyond.”

 

Evansville’s Adam Lonnberg and Indianapolis’ Margaret Christy are named 2015 Mr. and Miss Math, and Carmel’s Adit Chandra and Helena Ma are named 2015 Mr. and Miss Science.

 

Adam Lonnberg, 2015 Mr. Math, recently graduated from Signature High School in Evansville, where he was named a National Merit Semifinalist, an AP Scholar with Distinction, and a member of the National Honor Society. There, Lonnberg served as a tutor in mathematics and chemistry, Chairman of Education of Signature High School’s Math Club, and Co-President of Model United Nations. He received the “Outstanding Achievement Award for Excellence in Mathematics” from the University of Evansville and the “Local Site Scholar Award” in the Indiana State Mathematics Contest. Lonnberg volunteers during summer breaks at St. Mary’s Medical Center. He plans to attend University of Evansville in the fall.

 

Margaret “Maggie” Christy, 2015 Miss Math, recently graduated from Franklin Central High School in Indianapolis, where she was named an AP Scholar, Co-President of the Student Council and National Honor Society member. She received the National Center for Women & Information Technology Aspirations in Computing Award and the Top 10 Award for finishing in the top ten of her class all four years of high school. She helped found and subsequently coached the Auto Flashes, the school’s robotics team, and represented the city of Indianapolis and state of Indiana as a VEX Robotics student ambassador at the VEX World Championship. Christy volunteers as a “buddy” with children who have special needs during Parent Night Out events at Indian Creek Christian Church Access Ministry. She plans to study actuarial science and applied statistics at Purdue University in the fall.

 

Adit Chandra, 2015 Mr. Science, recently graduated from Carmel High School in Carmel, where he was named an AP Scholar, Indiana Academic All-Star, US National Chemistry Olympiad National Finalist, and Intel ISEF International Finalist. Chandra was selected to the Carmel Education Foundation Board, served as the President of the Science Olympiad, and co-founded and captained the Science Bowl club at Carmel High School. He won a state championship in cross country and played saxophone for the junior all-state band. He also conducted research with professors at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Chandra plans to attend Harvard University in the fall.

 

Helena Ma, 2015 Miss Science, recently graduated from Carmel High School in Carmel, where she was a National AP Scholar, National Merit Scholarship Finalist, and Presidential Scholar Semifinalist. There, she participated in the Science Bowl, Math Club, Physics Bowl, Chemistry Olympiad, and Science Olympiad. Ma was also a member of the National Honor Society, Student Government House of Representatives, Principal’s Advisory Council, and served as editor-in-chief of her school’s newspaper. She also conducted research with a professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and volunteered regularly at St. Vincent’s Hospital Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. She plans to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the fall.

 

Indiana’s top math and science students were nominated earlier this year, and a panel of STEM professionals, teachers, and university selected the winners based on academic performance, work in research, leadership, community service, and extracurricular involvement. Nominations for the 2016 Mr. and Miss Math and Science awards will open next s

VANDERBURGH COUNTY FELONY CHARGES

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SPONSORED BY DEFENSE ATTORNEY IVAN ARNAEZ. 
DON’T GO TO COURT ALONE. CALL IVAN ARNAEZ @ 812-424-6671.

Below is a list of felony cases that were filed by the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office on Monday, July 20, 2015.

Jordan Anthony Payne Escape, Level 5 felony

Cameron Chirell Dunbar Possession of altered handgun, Level 5 felony

Carrying a handgun without a license, Class A misdeamnor

Michael Dewayne Charles Armed robbery, Level 3 felony

Robbery resulting in bodily injury, Level 3 felony

Criminal recklessness, Level 6 felony

Domestic battery, Level 6 felony

Battery on a person less than 14 years old, Level 6 felony

Auto theft, Level 6 felony

Resisting law enforcement, Level 6 felony

Possession of a synthetic drug or synthetic drug lookalike substance, Level 6 felony

Resisting law enforcement, A misdemeanor

Criminal mischief, A misdemeanor

Leaving the scene of an accident, B misdemeanor

 

Blake Wayne Ramsey Residential entry, Level 6 felony

Governor Pence Declares Period of Mourning, Directs Flags Be Flown at Halfstaff

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Indianapolis, IN – Governor Mike Pence has declared a period of mourning in the wake of last week’s shooting in Tennessee which took the lives of four U.S. Marines and one Navy Sailor and is directing flags at state facilities statewide to be flown at half-staff beginning today, July 21. Flags should be flown at half-staff until sunset on Tuesday, July 28.

 

Governor Pence also asks businesses and residents to lower their flags to half-staff to pay tribute to these brave individuals who made the ultimate sacrifice in defending our nation and our freedom.