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Sunday, January 09, 2011

Ind. Law - "Social issues return to agenda: GOP majorities reviving bills on abortion, migrants"

Niki Kelly of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette has an interesting article today on "social issues."

"Social issues," as used in the story, apparently encompasses everything except money issues. Some quotes:

Lawmakers will have more than money issues on their minds this legislative session.

Some hot-button topics already are making waves – on issues as varied as abortion, immigration, sentencing reform and labor unions.

“I honestly think the amount of focus on social issues depends entirely on how quickly the governor’s agenda passes,” said Rep. Win Moses, D-Fort Wayne. “If we have a month to kill at the end, we’ll hear them all then.” * * *

Some of the usual suspects include altering the Indiana Constitution to prohibit gay marriage, which is already state law. There will be another attempt to require doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at local hospitals, similar to an Allen County ordinance.

But there are also some new bills and new versions of old proposals.

Sen. Mike Delph, R-Carmel, is leading the pack with a “birther” bill. Birthers are people who don’t believe President Obama was born in the United States and therefore is ineligible to serve. * * *

Delph’s legislation – Senate Bill 114 – would require presidential candidates to file a certified copy of a U.S. birth certificate along with additional documentation to be on the Indiana ballot.

“It’s healthy to not have this uncertainty and this debate,” he said.

Delph also will carry an immigration bill, although it won’t be filed until next week. He has tried unsuccessfully in the past to move similar legislation. * * *

A number of abortion bills have been filed in both the House and Senate, including one to ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. * * *

Another bill would require a woman seeking an abortion to have a fetal ultrasound at least 18 hours before the procedure. The woman would also be responsible for the cost of the ultrasound.

Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, wants to go further – much further. He has co-authored Senate Bill 290, which would prohibit abortions in Indiana unless a physician determines it is necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman. * * *

Another issue – this one being pushed by Daniels as a way to save money in the state prison system – is sentencing. So far, legislators looking to reclassify, and sometimes reduce, drug and theft crimes have avoided being labeled as soft on crime. * * *

Daniels’ sentencing plan would keep some low-level offenders out of state prisons and refocus some resources at the local level for more drug addiction treatment and probation services.

All these topics are sure to create debate and even a few hard feelings. But the one that could prove most contentious is right-to-work legislation being pushed by Republicans.

Rep. Jerry Torr, R-Carmel, introduced House Bill 1043, which would add Indiana to the list of 22 right-to-work states. In broad terms this means that employees could not be forced to pay union dues as a condition of employment. * * *

The issue created tension on the first day of the session with House Democrats trying to kill the bill procedurally before it even has a hearing.

[More] Dan Carden reports today for the NWI Times under the heading "Plenty of hot issues before state lawmakers." Some quotes:
Indiana Republicans won control of both chambers of the General Assembly in November by promising less government and more freedom.

But a look at the more than 500 legislative proposals already filed shows there still are plenty of things state lawmakers want you to do, want you to stop doing and want you to pay for. And there are even a few days left until the House and Senate bill filing deadlines this week.

Among the most popular topics of legislation in 2011 are abortion, guns, sex crimes, state rights and taxes. Here are a few of the proposals in each category. * * *

STATE RIGHTS: Senate Bill 298 and House Bill 1078 explicitly prohibit the application of any foreign law to any legal situation in Indiana. Senate Bill 114 requires a candidate for president of the United States to submit a copy of his or her birth certificate to the Indiana secretary of state in order to appear on the ballot. Meanwhile, several proposed resolutions, which lack the force of law, condemn the perceived expansion of federal power and assert Indiana's rights under the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 9, 2011 06:01 PM
Posted to Indiana Law