Latest news with #AndreaHunley
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
House, Senate push along bills to attract nuclear developments to Indiana
Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, addresses the House chamber on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. (Casey Smith/Indiana Capital Chronicle) Multiple Republican energy bills dealing with incentives for nuclear power inched closer to the governor's desk Tuesday following key votes in both the House and Senate. That included House Bill 1007, a priority measure that would expedite approval processes for large-load customers like data centers and create cost recovery mechanisms for projects utilities take on to serve those big customers. It also would require a big prospective grid addition to make 'significant and meaningful financial assurances' for such projects — reimbursing at least 80% of costs and protecting other existing and future customers from the expenses. The bill additionally gets tough with utilities planning to close — or convert to natural gas — any coal-fired plants of at least 125 megawatts. Current law mandates utilities that are not generating at least 85% of peak demand to report three-year projections to the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC). The legislation would instead require all utilities to annually report the amount of resource generating capacity they plan to take offline. If, after an investigation, the IURC doesn't think a utility can provide reliable service, it would have to block the utility's plan or order it to either acquire or build capacity. 'This bill is about three things: high-wage advanced manufacturing jobs, protecting consumers from rate shifts from large-scale loads, and protecting consumers from rate increases through premature plant closures,' said bill sponsor Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford. 'Those are three worthy goals.' The bill advanced from the Senate in a 36-13 vote, with some bipartisan opposition. All but one Democrat — Sen. David Niezgodski, a co-sponsor — voted against the proposal, along with four Republicans: Sens. Ron Alting, Vaneta Becker, Aaron Freeman and Mike Young. After strong pushback, senators removed more contentious provisions that intended to boost small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) development — including a 20% sales tax credit for SMR manufacturers. But Democratic Sen. J.D. Ford, of Indianapolis, said he still had 'serious concerns' about pieces left in the bill that could boost 'a risky, unproven technology,' referring to SMRs. 'My constituents … they don't support this,' he said. 'They don't want to be the test case for nuclear experiments that have failed in other states.' House Bill 1007 missed the opportunity to put important consumer protections in place. – Sen. Andrea Hunley, D-Indianapolis Sen. Andrea Hunley, D-Indianapolis, expressed additional concerns 'about the message being sent to ratepayers and the entire state.' 'House Bill 1007 missed the opportunity to put important consumer protections in place,' she said. 'We know that our utilities already operate as state-sanctioned monopolies, and we have to make sure that we are empowering the IURC, but also empowering ourselves and our ratepayers, to truly, truly get a handle on the increasing rates, and make sure that we're not politicizing that in any way.' Shortly after the Senate voted to return the bill to the House for final approval, Robyn Skuya-Boss, director for the Hoosier Chapter of the Sierra Club, reiterated the advocacy group's concerns over what she called an 'Energy Inflation Act.' She emphasized that legislative action came just days after Gov. Mike Braun signed coal-related executive orders similar to those endorsed by President Donald Trump. 'Hoosiers should be alarmed that we're witnessing a massive transfer of wealth from hard-working families to financially healthy utilities and tech companies in the form of higher utility bills along with increased air and water pollution,' Skuya-Boss said in a statement. 'Renewable energy adds a tremendous amount of value to the grid, and it's disheartening that lawmakers, utilities, and tech companies are actively standing in the way of progress for Indiana's economy and our environment.' Across the hall, lawmakers in the House made progress on two other bills, overcoming hesitation from some members of the supermajority. The first, Senate Bill 423, forms a small modular nuclear reactor 'pilot' program intended to attract interested developers to bring nuclear to Indiana. Bill sponsor Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valpraiso, made clear though that the legislation blocks program participants from charging ratepayers for no-cost contributions by third parties. Opposition brings likely end to Indiana utility siting bill, but the issue isn't going away 'Already, partnerships are being formed. …. What this bill does is place restrictions on those partnerships that currently do not exist,' he said. 'It's important that we have some control over these partnerships.' Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, said he while 'appreciate(d)' the bill's intent to require tech companies to 'pick up some of these costs for SMRs, it still has a fatal flaw.' 'At the end of the day, if the project doesn't pan out, which I think is maybe more likely than not … the ratepayers are going to be on the hook for some of those costs, which is going to be substantial,' Pierce said. The bill ultimately passed in a mixed 67-29 vote, sending it back to the Senate chamber. Also returning to the opposing chamber one last time — in a similarly divided 59-38 tally — is Senate Bill 425, which addresses transitions of coal-fired plants to natural gas or SMR sites. Soliday said the bill seeks to ensure that locals don't drag out rezoning processes needed for those transitions to move forward. Provisions in the legislation set timelines for both utilities and local zoning authorities to prevent yearslong 'back and forth delays' that defer decisions. 'In some counties, not all, instead of making a decision, they keep deferring,' Soliday said, pointing to moratoriums, for example, that 'keep investors' money tied up, and they can't move forward with a project.' The bill limits such moratoriums to just one year, then local governments 'have to decide.' CONTACT US 'A 'no' is OK,' Soliday continued, 'but do it in a timely way so the developers can move on.' Pierce had reservations about this measure, too. 'What this bill is basically saying is if someone comes into your community and they want to put a small modular reactor into a generation facility that exists, your local communities have nothing they can say about that,' he said. 'I think it's a mistake what we're doing,' Pierce added. 'We're essentially saying that we value efficiency and speed more than we value public input, because under the current system, you kind of have this back and forth with advisory planning commissions … and that does take some time, but it gives people who are interested in that zoning issue an opportunity to be involved.' Rep. Kendell Culp, R-Rensselaer, maintained that the bill still allows 'an opportunity to go back and forth with the planning commission.' 'The ultimate decision-makers are the county commissioners, the legislative body,' Culp held. 'What a lot of these communities are doing is they're using this as a stall tactic. … We're trying to tighten up this loophole a little bit. Local units will still have a whole year to make a decision, and they can still say no, but they can't delay decisions. … because this drives down development, currently.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Republicans reject cascade of Democratic amendments to budget
Republicans largely rejected over sixty Democratic ideas for the budget on April 14, 2025, including the final amendment pictured here. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle) The Republican Senate supermajority spent nearly four hours beating back attempts to amend the state's two-year budget on Monday ahead of a key deadline, mostly spurning ideas from their Democratic colleagues. The body opted to accept just three changes to House Bill 1001, including one to clarify that the Midwest Continental Divide Commission would get $4 million over the biennium — and not $2 million — and another reviving a specialty license plate. But another 60-plus amendments, mostly from the chamber's 10-member Democratic caucus, were rejected. Sen. Andrea Hunley, still emotional after getting her amendment to require doula reimbursement defeated without discussion, decried lack of support for Democratic motions related to health care. 'Those aren't partisan issues. At least, they shouldn't be. But not a single one was accepted — at least not yet. I'm going to be optimistic,' said Hunley, D-Indianapolis. 'Our state's budget is intended to be a reflection of our values in our state … (and) our Hoosiers deserve better than a chorus of 'no,' 'no,' no.'' At various points, Democrats tried to increase funding for subsidized child care and tuition support. One such amendment from Sen. Fady Qaddoura separated curricular materials from the overall formula — funding them at $244 million rather than $160 million — while another boosted complexity funding to support impoverished students. Qaddoura's motions, like others, were quashed with little discussion. Republicans also rejected Democratic amendments to raise funds through cigarette, alcohol or gaming taxes, sometimes known as sin taxes. Speaking on cigarette taxes, Sen. Ryan Mishler said that he wanted to 'keep all options open,' but wished to wait until the revenue forecast slated for Wednesday before implementing a tax increase. Mishler, R-Mishawaka, is the Senate sponsor for House Bill 1001 and chief budget architect for Senate Republicans. 'We may not have a full budget forecast but we already know … it's going to be very, very tight,' countered Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington. Public health advocates have long sought an increase to the cigarette tax in Indiana, which has one of the lowest taxation rates in the region. But senators have repeatedly batted away such increases even after House lawmakers advanced them in back-to-back budget cycles. In a perennial effort, one suggestion sought to create a pathway for legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes, arguing that it would reduce the legal burden imposed on courts for minor possession, provide veterans and other first responders with requested medicinal relief and bring much-needed revenue to the state. Many Hoosiers, said Sen. Rodney Pol, already cross into Illinois, Michigan and Ohio to legally purchase cannabis. The majority of Hoosiers support legalizing marijuana to a certain extent, according to public policy polling. 'This is a conversation that we just keep avoiding and it's just inevitable,' said Pol, D-Chesterton. The amendment, like the ones proposing sin tax increases, was defeated on a voice vote. Even ideas that had previously passed the chamber were voted down by Republicans when suggested by Democrats, including an effort that would have established a newborn tax credit. 'Raising a child is incredibly costly, especially as the cost of living continues to rise and more families struggle to make ends meet,' said Pol. 'Parents are stretching their budgets to afford diapers, secure reliable child care and care for their own mental health.' A bill from Sen. Greg Walker, R-Columbus, to create just that passed out of the chamber unanimously in February but died in the House without a hearing. No Republican spoke on the amendment to say why it was defeated on Monday. And while the House version of the budget struck a tax on the period products, Senate budget writers nixed that proposal. 'These are very necessary products,' said Hunley. 'What I'm really asking us to do is stay in alignment with what our bipartisan friends in the House did.' The sole Republican to speak on the amendment, Sen. Liz Brown, compared purchasing period products to other expenses for children, such as sports equipment. 'That becomes an essential item in your budget. Whether it's a new pair of sneakers, making sure your kid has soccer cleats, making sure you can pay for a jersey — whatever it is. All those items that you purchase become essential,' said Brown, R-Fort Wayne. Hunley's amendment, which also exempted the sales tax on adult diapers, and Yoder's amendment on just period products were both rejected. Even Gov. Mike Braun's ideas didn't get the greenlight from Senate Republicans. Qaddoura introduced a measure that would have created a school tax holiday for student supplies. However, Mishler pointed to concerns from retailers around implementing it as well as concerns about potential future expansions. Senate Republicans split with House GOP on education in latest budget One Republican senator who does not caucus with the GOP also had his proposals defeated, though some colleagues broke ranks with the supermajority to support his ideas. Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, introduced four separate efforts that were all rejected, including the expansion of the homestead exemption for senior citizens and requiring the Senate wait 24 hours after a conference committee report on the budget before calling a concurrence vote. On the latter, he pointed to the 2023 budget vote, when a last-minute adjustment to school runs upended a seemingly routine process — meaning that a newly written budget was published just a few hours before the final vote. 'That's not fair. It's not fair to us; it's not fair to our constituents that we don't have enough time to read and understand what's in the most important bill we pass,' said Young. Though a general practice, the Senate doesn't have a firm rule. Citing that tradition, Mishler asked for the amendment to be rejected. A full vote on the budget is expected in the Senate Tuesday but the spending plan will likely change following the forecast revenue on Wednesday. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
