General Assembly Opens Today

Governor-Elect Eric Holcomb

Today is opening day of the 2017 legislative session, and it sounds like there will be plenty to talk about in the Indiana General Assembly.

I wonder what celebrity will be there to throw out the first bill?

It’s a long session of the Assembly.  That means that interested parties should be on guard for craziness from now until the session shuts down in April.

Even more interesting is that we have a new Governor in Eric Holcomb who is soon to be sworn in at the Indiana Farmers’ Fieldhouse on Jan. 8.  It’s a little bit scary because Democrats and Republicans alike are without much knowledge of Holcomb’s agenda or how he will handle key divisive issues. The bar was not set too high by Mike Pence who has essentially abandonded the state with the title of Governor while dealing with his transition to Vice President.

Watch Brian Bosma and David Long and other House and Senate leaders as they no doubt try to puppet the Governor into doing their bidding.

It seems to me education, specifically what will ultimately replace ISTEP, what will happen with teacher evaluations/performance pay, the possible expansion of vouchers, and school accountability, will be a major issue as it always is in a budget year.  I also think that you’re going to see the state’s crumbling infrastructure take center stage.  There also seems to be a swell for some reform when it comes to how redistricting is approached…though I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Get ready, it’s going to be a long ride to April.
Source: Indy Democrat Blog