I just noticed this because it was such a close vote. Rep. Van Haaften’s amendment to HB 1029 was defeated by a vote of 49 to 49. HB 1029 is a bill related to education finance and tax credits. Among other things, the bill provides for up to $2,000 in contributions to an Indiana college choice 529 investment plan to be deducted from adjusted gross income. The rest of the bill has to do with university bond issues.

In a prior post, Paul O’Malley posed a question about the non-compete provision in the proposed Toll Road lease. It was hard enough to find and is an important enough question, that I thought I’d make it the subject of a separate post.

One of the things that the State gives up in return for the $3.4 billion Toll Road payment is the right to improve US 20 such that it becomes a “comparable highway” or otherwise build a “competing highway.”

With respect to US 20, this means that the State cannot make that highway “a divided 4 or more controlled access interstate quality highway with interchanges, interstate quality bridges or combination or portion thereof.” With respect to other roads, the State cannot build any newly-constructed interstate quality, divided 4 lane roads, at least 20 continuous miles of which is within 10 miles of the highway.

The “non-compete” provision can be found at Section 14.1(e) of the Agreement, with the relevant definitions found at Section 1.1 (page 4).

Unless the construction constitutes a Competing Highway, development, redevelopment, construction, maintenance, modification or change in the operation of any existing or new mode of transportation (including a road street or highway) is not prohibited.

The Indy Star an editorial that purports to provide answers on various toll road questions. There is actually some rather good information in there. But, I’m a blogger and not generally inclined to focus on the positive. So, I won’t. I thought this non-answer was pretty bad, particularly given that they were asking themselves the questions.

Isn’t the deal moving too fast?

Leasing the Toll Road is a logical extension of the role the private sector already plays in design and construction of public roads.

Just 10 percent of new road design is handled by INDOT, according to Sharp. State governments can’t offer large enough salaries to keep the necessary expertise in-house; so private firms handle most of the work. All the road construction itself is handled by outside companies. INDOT acts as the project manager and financier.

This response does not at all address the question of whether the process is moving too quickly. The governor has basically handed the legislature enacting legislation along with a done deal, both of which are fairly complicated; both of which will effect Hoosiers for generations to come. He has done this during a short session, with no prior study. The legislature has no opportunity to do its due diligence on the deal by seeking independent analysis or otherwise. Instead, they are asked to give an up or down vote in the space of about 2 weeks. The Star’s “answer” does not address any of this.

Meanwhile, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette has an editorial that takes Gov. Daniels to task for his hastiness and his dismissiveness toward discussion of the proposal.

If Gov. Mitch Daniels is truly interested in hearing anything other than accolades for his sketchy transportation program, it’s hard to tell. His administration’s dismissive response to the House Democrats’ proposal is indicative of more than partisan politics. It shows the governor’s contempt for the political process and for an honest discussion of Indiana’s economic future.

Hoosiers should demand that the General Assembly put the brakes on the governor’s Major Moves proposal. His unrelenting push to lease the Indiana Toll Road to an overseas consortium is an affront to those who have raised legitimate questions about the implications of such a policy and to those who have urged him to exercise caution.

The Journal Gazette concedes that on the surface the Governor’s plan looks more attractive than the Democratic plan. They go on to write:

But the prospect of instant gratification doesn’t excuse due diligence in studying the governor’s plan or in examining the alternative proposals that he himself asked for. His argument that Indiana must act fast before other states jump in is specious. A day after Daniels announced the toll road bid results, Texas’ Harris County commissioners authorized $1 million to study options for an 83-mile toll system. They will separately investigate selling the toll road authority, leasing it or keeping it county-owned.

. . .

Indiana lawmakers should be leery of the governor’s now-or-never approach. If Texas officials, whom Daniels has cited as leaders in public-private transportation partnerships, are spending $1 million to study the issue and taking until June to make a decision, what is the rush here?

Well said. Gov. Daniels is pushing like a telemarketer. I’m reminded of the Giovanni Ribisi movie Boiler Room: There is no such thing as a no sale call. A sale is made on every call you make. Either you sell the client some stock or he sells you a reason he can’t. Either way a sale is made, the only question is who is gonna close? You or him? Now be relentless, that’s it, I’m done. The Governor is determined to close. The only question is whether the legislature is going to let him push them around.

Niki Kelly has a Toll Road article in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette entitled Toll Road sides start swinging. I don’t have anything of substance to add to the article, but I saw the quote from Governor Daniels comparing the privatization offer to a “Powerball check.” I thought to myself, “what, you mean half of it is going to be gone before it gets to us, long lost relatives will be coming to us for handouts, and, much to the surprise of our neighbors, 7 years from now we’ll be filing for bankruptcy?”

Some of the Senate activity that caught my eye. This is in no way comprehensive.

SB 148 passed the Senate. It allows county adjusted gross income tax (CAGIT) revenue in Elkhart County and Marshall County to be used to operate and maintain jail facilities, juvenile court, detention, and probation facilities, other criminal justice facilities, and related buildings and parking facilities (in addition to the financing, construction, acquisition, renovation, and equipment of those facilities permitted under existing law). So, basically, it allows CAGIT revenue to pay operating expenses instead of just capital expenses.

SB 191 passed third reading and requires the police to transmit a photo of the criminal to the state central repository for criminal history data, and includes a photograph as information that may be obtained in a limited criminal history.

SB 205 passed third reading and provides that a public agency does not have to create or disclose e-mail lists under the open records law. If such a list is disclosed, it may not be used for a commercial or political purpose. The blogosphere’s own Rep. Heim is the House sponsor for this bill.

SB 247 passed the Senate and addresses “various homeland security matters.” Time is running short, so I’ll just paste the digest:

Adds the department of homeland security’s building law compliance officer to the certification board that administers the provisions concerning qualifications for state public works projects. Establishes the Indiana intelligence fusion center (fusion center) to collect, maintain, and analyze intelligence information and other information relating to criminal activity or terrorism. Designates the counterterrorism and security council (CTASC) and the fusion center as criminal justice agencies. Allows CTASC to hold executive sessions and exempts certain records of CTASC and fusion center from the open records law. Combines five funds managed by the department of homeland security into the homeland security fund, and provides that money in the homeland security fund reverts to the fire and building services fund if the homeland security foundation is terminated. Permits the department of correction to read mail to and from offenders unless the mail is privileged, and prohibits the department of correction from disclosing the contents of this mail unless certain conditions are met.

According to a story in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, the House engaged in a bit of idiocy last night, voting “98-0 to eliminate all property taxes by 2009. But there was no funding mechanism attached to replace the $5.5 billion in revenue raised by local property taxes.”

That prompted Senator Kenley’s response:

“This is a proposal that’s not responsible,” said Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, chairman of the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee. “We’ll deal with it in the Senate. I have volunteered to be the No. 1 bad guy.”

Voting for nonsense legislation because it feels good is just a waste of time. If you want to engage in symbolism instead of crafting sound legislation, stick the sentiment in a House Resolution and get your warm fuzzies that way. If you want to get rid of the property tax, come up with a mechanism for replacing those funds.

There are several stories out today about the Democrats alternate proposal to Gov. Daniels’ proposed sale of the Indiana Toll Road to a foreign consortium. (Evansville Courier Press, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, Indy Star). The Democrats propose doubling the tolls (something that would happen anyway under the sale to the foreign consortium) and using the revenues to take out 20 year bonds, generating $1.6 billion for the state to use for major highway and bridge projects. The State would retain control of its highway.

Is the Democratic proposal good or better than the Republican proposal? I don’t know. But more disturbing is the administration’s snap judgment on the plan. ” State Budget Director Chuck Schalliol immediately dismissed the Democrat[ic] plan.”

I think Rep. Van Haaften makes an excellent point:

One local House Democrat said the administration’s attitude wasn’t helping sway his vote.

“I’m interested in any piece of legislation that is openly debated,” said Rep. Trent Van Haaften, D-Mount Vernon. “But I have serious concerns about the governor’s ‘take it or leave it’ attitude on this.”

The Governor’s hardsell tactics should be raising red flags everywhere. Either way you go, it’s a transaction worth billions of dollars which will affect Indiana for generations to come. You don’t rush to make a decision on such a thing in a couple of weeks. I used a farming metaphor last time, “you don’t eat your seed corn.” Today, I’ll use a carpentry metaphor, “measure twice, cut once.”

On the bright side, maybe Rep. Thompson will slow this thing down by proposing an amendment prohibiting gays from driving on the Toll Road.

SB 88 concerning seat belts, passed the Senate 26 to 21. This requires all occupants, as opposed to just the occupants of the front seat, of a motor vehicle to wear a seat belt. Occupants of pickup trucks and SUVs plated as trucks would now be required to wear seat belts (currently they are not). The following are excluded from the requirement: farm trucks being used on a farm for agricultural pursuits, vehicles in a parade, living quarters of an RV, the treatment area of an ambulance, the sleeping area of a tractor, and vehicles not equipped with seat belts.

I’m often one of Speaker Bosma’s critics, but today he did a couple of good things. First, he leaned on Rep. Thompson to withdraw his anti-anti-gay discrimination ordinance amendment. Now I see, according to the Indy Star, he prevailed on Rep. Foley to (essentially) withdraw the the judicial power grab he stuck into House Bill 1419.

I’m sure I will disagree with Representative Bosma on plenty of issues in the future, but I think he deserves some credit for today’s work.

The following is a list of bills that have already passed the House and have moved on to the Senate:

HB 1013 In God We Trust License Plate.

HB 1021 Hay baling on Interstate rights of way. Requires the department of transportation to develop a pilot program to contract with bidders to harvest forage along the rights-of-way of interstate and state highways.

HB 1023 Allows a methadone clinic to be opened in a county contiguous with a county that already contains a methadone clinic if the new county has a population of at least 40,000.

HB 1040 Technical corrections bill.

HB 1103 Defines a dealer of trailers for transportation of watercraft as a watercraft dealer. Also gives drivers an extra day if their license expires on a day when the license branch is closed.

HB 1106 Automatic external defibrillators. Removes the requirements that a person or entity that acquires a defibrillator ensure that the users have completed certain courses and have enlisted a physician for medical direction.

HB 1111 Life insurance and Medicaid — allows the state to use Medicaid funds to pick up the premium on a Medicaid recipients life insurance policy if the recipient assigns the rights to the State. Such a life insurance policy would no longer be counted as the recipient’s asset for purposes of qualifying for Medicaid.

HB 1114 Among other things waters down of the privacy burdens imposed on a County Recorder with respect to recording documents containing social security numbers. It also eliminated the fee and associated fund designed to compensate the recorders for that burden.

HB 1134 Recodification of Title 21. Along with the technical corrections bills, the recodifications are an important part of making Indiana’s Code among the nation’s best. The goal of the recodifications is to provide better organization of a particular Title of the Indiana Code and simplify the language to the extent possible without making substantive changes to the law. Title 21 is the K-12 education finance law.

HB 1150 Antique license plates – allows for the use of antique license plates or replicas thereof on antique motor vehicles.