Latest news with #MikeYoung
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Valley man plans ahead for Flag Day
CANFIELD, Ohio (WKBN) — As the Valley observes those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country on this Memorial Day — a local man has his eyes on another patriotic event. Berlin Center resident Mike Young says he has secured the use of the Village Green in Canfield to hold a Flag Day celebration on Saturday, June 14. He said he came up with the idea as a way to show the Valley's patriotic spirit for our nation's Stars and Stripes. 'Well, I've just always been supportive of our country and our military and our flag and I just, with Flag Day coming up on June 14, I just thought this would be a good opportunity for the folks in the community and the whole valley here to just come out and show their support for our American flag,' Young said. The Flag Day celebration will be held from 10 a.m. until noon on the Green and will be free and open to the public. 'We're just asking people to come out there, bring your American flags, and we're just going to have our flag waving and just stand out there in celebration of the country and American Red, White and Blue,' Young said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
ITV News
19-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Brexit reset: Has Keir Starmer sold Devon and Cornwall's fishers down the river?
"I voted to leave on the promises of what Mr Johnson told us", says Mike Young, a fisherman from Brixham. "He went totally back on the word he gave us, and it looks like it has happened again now." Mike is saying what a lot of the UK's fishing fleet is thinking today, as Sir Keir Starmer's much-trailed Brexit reset has seen him extend EU fishing rights in British waters for another 12 years, until 2038. Fishing was the sticky point in negotiations over the weekend, which went on into the small hours of Monday morning, when the UK-EU summit was just a few hours away. Like any negotiation, sacrifices have to be made, and for the prime minister to get closer to the EU on things like defence and security, it's clear he needed to make some concessions elsewhere. The EU - led largely by the French - has been pushing for an extension to the post-Brexit fishing deal that would give them guaranteed, long term access to UK waters. It was due to expire at the end of June 2026, with the Cornish Fish Producers' Organisation recently calling for a "fairer deal". To get into the finer detail, this was largely about Boris Johnson giving EU vessels access to the UK's 6-12 nautical mile zone - an area off the coast of many communities in the South West that fishers strongly argue should be exclusively for them only. Many voted for Brexit on the promise of total control over UK waters - and many argue they've never seen it. Now fishers won't be able to re-negotiate for at least another 12 years, under the terms of Labour's reset deal, which the Conservatives and Reform have called a big "Brexit betrayal". But what some coastal Labour MPs are saying to me, is that there was never going to be a better deal. They argue that people who voted for Brexit were doing so on 'false promises', and anyone with knowledge of these negotiations knows that this deal is the best it's going to get - for now, anyway. In terms of what fishing provides for the UK economy, it's relatively small, but it's also not to be sniffed at, and it's important. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the sector contributes around 0.03% of GDP. So for every £1,000 of total economic output, around 30p. But it provides a critical source of income, not just through catch but with boat maintenance and tourism. The industry helps with food security and reports have shown it is critical when it comes to community cohesion. Particularly in parts of Devon and Cornwall, fishing is intertwined with identity and can be traced back generations. So, from an optics point of view, the angry headlines are not ideal for the prime minister and his new coastal MPs who now have to try and appease a disappointed sector. They hope that a £360 million investment into coastal communities might help soften the blow, with promises to modernise the fleet, upgrade equipment, and provide skills and training into the future. They'll also pitch this deal as giving fishers must better access to the EU, making exports much easier.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Editorial: Last-minute bill amendments must stop
The 2025 Indiana state legislative session lasted from Jan. 27 through April 24, the better part of three months. Yet, on the last day of the session lawmakers had to vote on bills with substantial last-minute amendments thrown in. The Indiana Capital Chronicle reported on the frustration felt by Sen Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, over late adjustments to an education 'deregulation' measure that was championed by his own party and won ultimate approval. 'This is bull crap,' Young lamented. 'You've got a 116-page bill. You've got 30 minutes to read it. We should have more time than that. 'I am so mad about this. Our one job is to do what's right for our constituents, and we can't do it if we don't have a chance to read the dang bill.' Here's an even more troubling example. On April 23, the day before the legislative session ended, Republicans buried deep in pages 181 and 182 of the 215-page budget bill an amendment giving Gov. Mike Braun control over membership of the Indiana University Board of Trustees. What does the IU board of trustees have to do with the budget? Not much, but state Legislature rules that amendments should be germane to the main subject matter of a bill don't apply to sweeping biennial budget legislation since, ostensibly, all state issues — including funding of state universities — are germane to state finances. That exception enabled Braun and fellow Republican culture warriors to use the budget bill to position themselves for control at the highest level over the state's 'liberal' bastion of higher education. The sneaky, underhanded way Republicans accomplished this left no time for proper legislative review, let alone public awareness and comment. The Legislature shouldn't be doing business this way, nefariously sneaking related — or unrelated — law into bills on an expiring clock. Yes, the legislative process demands compromise and a certain amount of back scratching to pass new laws. But this tactic sidesteps the rigorous process of vetting so fundamental to the development of sound public policy. Forty-four states have an imperfect solution to the problem — line-item vetoes that enable the governor to strike specific portions of legislation. When wielded ethically, governors can erase last-minute amendments or 'riders' before signing a bill into law. In 2005 in West Virginia, where the state constitution forbids more than one topic per bill, then-Gov. Joe Manchin vetoed a line item in a local parks boards bill. The last-minute rider to the bill would have made English the official language of the state. Manchin supported the English language idea but realized it should have no place in the parks board bill, so he struck it before signing the parks board legislation into law. Indiana is one of the six states that don't allow line-item vetoes by the governor. There are some good reasons for that, primarily that it puts too much power in the hands of the state executive to undo the efforts of the legislative branch. Of course, in the case of the state budget bill, Braun wouldn't have invoked a line-item veto anyway. It handed him a responsibility that he, no doubt, very much wanted. Braun almost certainly worked behind closed doors with GOP legislators on the strategy of adding it to the budget bill. In the end, it's just another example of why a state government supermajority of one party simultaneously controlling both chambers and the governor's office encourages abuse of power. Instead of empowering the governor to veto line items, perhaps a better way to bring substantial last-minute amendments under control would be to change the deadline for the final form of legislation to be posted online for review. Currently, it's just 24 hours. Extending it to seven days would enable legislators and their constituents to review and debate changes ahead of the final vote. Short of that, Hoosier must call on their legislators to behave ethically rather than pulling last-minute shenanigans to fool elected colleagues and hoodwink the voters who elected them.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Final legislative roundup includes health care, absenteeism and school accountability
The Indiana House voted on dozens of bills on the last day of the legislative session, April 24, 2025. (Niki Kelly/Indiana Capital Chronicle) One-hundred-and-seven days after the General Assembly convened, this year's legislative session came to a close early Friday morning after a marathon day at the Statehouse. Dozens of bills sprinted across the finish line in the final days — and hours — before the sine die gavel strike brought policymaking business to a close. Thursday alone saw more than two dozen proposals sent to Gov. Mike Braun's desk. And although the next state two-year state budget was the highlight of the night, debate swirled around other major bills, too, including those dealing with education 'deregulation,' pharmaceutical pricing and public retiree bonuses. Lawmakers also compromised on measures to connect Hoosiers to broadband; curb local energy project moratoriums; address K-12 chronic absenteeism; reinstate an A-F school grading system; and create separate bans on marijuana advertising and lab-cultivated meat. Tensions rose in the Senate before the chamber voted, barely, to send a Republican-backed education 'deregulation' measure to the governor. Heated debate on House Enrolled Act 1002 centered around last-minute conference committee changes, which included a dozen new code repeals. Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, was displeased with the rush to approve a long bill with new language. 'I can't be in the dang room because I don't know what's in it,' Young said. After the extremely narrow 27-21 vote, he approached the floor mic again — this time raising his voice. 'This is bull crap. You've got a 116-page bill. You've got 30 minutes to read it. We should have more time than that,' said Young, the only senator to refrain from voting. Twelve of his GOP colleagues cast unfavorable votes alongside Democrats. That's after the House voted the bill out 61-25. 'I am so mad about this,' Young continued. 'Our one job is to do what's right for our constituents, and we can't do it if we don't have a chance to read the dang bill.' Democrats, including Indianapolis Sen. Andrea Hunley, agreed that the bill required 'a little bit more scrutiny.' She referenced a repealed requirement for charter schools to publish economic interest statements. Also removed was an existing requirement for administrators to contact employment references before hiring teachers or other school personnel. Despite its length, the legislation will strike multiple sections of current state education code. This is bull crap. You've got a 116-page bill. You've got 30 minutes to read it. We should have more time than that. – Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis Examples include the removal of dozens of 'may' provisions, eliminating specific COVID-19 pandemic requirements and striking duplicate code. Republican bill author Rep. Bob Behning estimated that the cuts would reduce state education regulations by nearly 10%. There were bipartisan concerns earlier in the session about the bill's deletion of existing requirements for teachers to complete training in social and emotional learning (SEL) trauma-informed care and cultural competency. Some of that language was added back in the final version to ensure teachers are prepared to '(support) students who have experienced trauma that may interfere with a student's academic functioning.' Other legislation to further address widespread chronic school absences among Hoosier students earned mostly bipartisan support in both chambers; an 84-8 vote in the House and a 48-2 in the Senate. Sen. Stacey Donato's Senate Enrolled Act 482 specifically seeks to beef up the state's absenteeism statute. The measure has multiple parts, including a new definition in state code for chronically absent, specified in the bill as missing 10% or more of the school year, regardless of whether it is excused. Another provision allows local prosecuting attorneys to hold 'intervention meetings' with parents to help improve a student's attendance before any legal action is taken. A final section of the bill prohibits K-8 students from expulsion 'solely because the student is chronically absent or habitually truant. Current law permits students in those grades to be expelled for missing too much school. Indiana officials say chronic absenteeism rates are improving, but there's still more work ahead In the final days of the session, however, a conference committee added language to sunset the expulsion prohibition on July 1, 2026. After that date, students could be removed from school once again if they miss too many days of class. The latest attendance numbers released by the Indiana Department of Education last fall reported that 17.8% of K-12 students — roughly 219,00 kids — were 'chronically absent' during the most recent 2023-24 school year, meaning they missed at least 18 days. There was less consensus on a different bill to bring back a statewide letter grade system for Indiana's K-12 schools. It was sent straight to Braun after a quick 65-25 House vote. Earlier this week, lawmakers appeared to disagree on a final draft of House Enrolled Act 1498. Any serious conflicts were quashed behind closed doors; Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis, called his measure for a final concurrence vote in the House Thursday evening, signaling a truce with the opposing Senate chamber. Behning said his bill seeks to put the state education board's recently unveiled accountability draft — or something like it — into action. In its final form, the legislation will strip back much of the previous accountability framework and task Indiana's State Board of Education (SBOE) with building a new A-F rule — that looks beyond just academic performance and graduation rates — by the end of 2025. Once approved by the governor, a new round of grades will be assigned to Hoosier schools around the start of the 2026-27 academic year. Although the state board is responsible for hammering out the particulars, the bill does require the new grading system's methodology to be based on data from the state education department's existing GPS dashboard and proficiency rates from state assessments, including the IREAD. It also has to prioritize students earning new diploma seals recently approved by the state board. Yes, we certainly should hold people accountable. We should hold school leaders accountable. We should hold our children accountable. We should hold our parents accountable. But I don't think we should give them a label of an F (to show) that you're failing. – Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary School grades have been effectively suspended since 2018, when Indiana shifted from ISTEP to a new state standardized test and later grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic. House Democrats 'still had a problem' with the final draft, said Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary. 'We do feel like we need to look at our school accountability process, but we don't feel like we need to hold the Department of Education accountable for using the model of A through F,' he said. 'Yes, we certainly should hold people accountable. We should hold school leaders accountable. We should hold our children accountable. We should hold our parents accountable. But I don't think we should give them a label of an F (to show) that you're failing,' Smith continued, saying he preferred an earlier idea to give schools a 'need for improvement' designation, rather than a 'bad' letter grade. 'I just don't think that we need to do this.' A bid to boost Indiana's electricity supply — by side-stepping often-hostile local zoning authorities — squeaked through to the governor despite opposition from advocates of local control and renewable energy. A negotiated compromise for Senate Enrolled Act 425 just barely earned the constitutionally required majority of supportive votes during a 51-40 vote in the House. It enjoyed stronger margins in the Senate, with a 31-19 tally. Under the legislation, the owner of a proposed power plant wouldn't have to seek any local zoning approval in certain circumstances. But the Senate explicitly excluded solar and wind installations. Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, said it's ironic that a small modular nuclear reactor — 'which uses radioactive fuel and will generate radioactive waste' — would encounter less local scrutiny than solar panels and wind turbines. 'It's not consistent with the rhetoric that we hear on this floor all the time about how we are an 'all the above' energy state,' Pierce added. The measure's House sponsor, Rep. Ed Soliday, has maintained the Senate wouldn't allow it. 'There was just no hope of putting it back in,' he said Wednesday. '… We went back to them several times and they said 'no.'' The eased requirements apply if a project is located on land that already hosts an electric generation facility — even it's not operational — or a former mine. State regulators would also have to either grant a certificate of public convenience and necessity for construction or decline jurisdiction. Senate Enrolled Act 425 also aims to stop 'abuse' of moratoriums on electric generation projects by local authorities. It caps them to one year and prohibits renewals. 'I've seen how moratoriums can be abused,' Rep. Kendell Culp, R-Rensselaer, said Monday. He argued the 'real purpose' of moratorium is to create a 'pause' while a local government hurries to adopt an ordinance. But some keep moving the 'goal posts.' 'If there's a certain type of development your jurisdiction does not want, then just say 'no' upfront and save all the headache,' Culp said. Additionally, lab-cultivated meat could soon be banned from production or sale in Indiana for two years with violators to face $10,000 per-day fines. That's if Braun approves of House Enrolled Act 1425, which is coming his way after final votes of 74-15 in the House and 43-7. But a state study of the products' safety was shelved as lawmakers look to cut spending. 'We were supposed to have a study, I guess to determine what we would do after the moratorium, and apparently the fiscal people said we're broke, so take the study out,' Pierce said. 'So it makes me wonder what we're going to actually be learning in the next two years.' The Senate introduced the study and a one-year moratorium following pronounced confusion in that chamber's committee. In addition to cutting the study, the final version of the legislation extends the moratorium to two years. In another governor-bound proposal, those advertising marijuana within state lines could face fines of up to $15,000 apiece under a once-inconspicuous agency bill. Also in the co-opted House Enrolled Act 1390 — originally focused on the Bureau of Motor Vehicles — are contentious regulations for towing and overgrown rural intersections. The advertising ban would also apply to the rest of Indiana's Schedule I list of controlled substances. Contracts locked down before the measure's passage would be exempt. Hoosiers who live around the edges of the state have seen billboards and other advertising pop up because adjoining states have legalized marijuana. Other provisions would set standards for how law enforcement agencies handle their towing contractors, how much companies can charge for emergency towing, how owners can recover their towed vehicles and more. CONTACT US Both concepts landed in the final bill draft after being stripped out three weeks ago. In between, they were added to a bill about the sale of utility trailers and then removed. Lawmakers also folded in a weaker take on a tragedy-sparked push for better sightlines at overgrown, uncontrolled rural intersections. Counties would be able to mow or maintain vegetation in state- or county-owned right-of-way with permission from the Indiana Department of Transportation. The onus was previously on landowners. The legislation retained plenty of Bureau of Motor Vehicles changes, too. It would allow the agency to issue electronic registration certificates, requires that toll road operators invoice drivers within a year, caps the amount private driving skills trainers can charge for exams, and more. One other provision allows for real-time electronic insurance verification after accidents. The current system is unwieldy and often results in license suspensions. It eased through the House in an 81-9 vote, but encountered greater opposition in the Senate's 31-19 vote. Large numbers of Hoosiers will now be carved out of a bill regulating pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. Senate Enrolled Act 140 will require insurers and PBMs ensure network adequacy and restricts anticompetitive practices — but Medicaid, managed care organizations and the state employee health plan are all exempt due to concerns about cost increases. Instead, the issue of contracting under Medicaid and the state employee health plan is punted to an interim study committee — though at least one sponsor said it was 'kind of up to debate' whether or not there would be an added cost. 'We don't have a fully transparent model. So the fact that there could be a fiscal on it — and with this current budget situation — that's what's putting the pause on it,' said Rep. Julie McGuire, R-Indianapolis, before a Thursday committee. A bill seeking to define a 'squatter' encountered several hurdles this session, too, with critics concerned about whether vague language would unintentionally harm tenants with informal or unwritten rental agreements. Under the finalized Senate Enrolled Act 157, law enforcement officers can remove an individual on a property without the permission of the owner within 48 hours, unless there is 'credible evidence that the person is not a squatter.' It would also penalize someone who tries to evict someone who might have a right to the property. 'We don't want an unscrupulous landlord to be able to use the wrong date or something very simple like that as a means to abuse this part of the code,' said Rep. Joanna King from the floor. Still, the changes weren't enough for a handful of lawmakers. Pierce, a Democrat who voted no, previously indicated his doubts that such a law was necessary. However, it got a unanimous nod in the Senate — its originating chamber — and now goes to the governor. Indiana's public sector retirees are set to get a coveted bonus by October under legislation on its way to Braun — but with a 5% discount. The thousands of former state and local employees who live off pension benefits that don't keep up with inflation would've gotten nothing after Senate edits. But they would've won several years worth of full-amount bonuses through the original version of House Enrolled Act 1221. 'The 5% cut, it's not what we wanted. One year is not what we wanted. But, we live to … advocate for another day,' said Rep. Greg Porter, D-Indianapolis. 'This is the spot we landed on to preserve something,' Rep. Mike Karickhoff, R-Kokomo, told the Indiana Capital Chronicle after the 90-0 vote. He authored the legislation. The 13th check would range from $143 to $428, based on years of service for former teachers; excise, conservation and gaming officers; and most other retirees. That's instead of the typical $150 to $450 range. Former Indiana State Police employees would get checks for 0.95% — instead of 1% — of their maximum annual pension amounts. The bonuses would cost about $31.8 million, with the 5% cut saving about $1.7 million. That's according to an earlier fiscal analysis, which estimated the full-amount bonuses would've totaled $33.5 million in the 2026 fiscal year. Others were dissatisfied, arguing that a dismal revenue forecast shouldn't affect the checks. They're paid out of supplemental reserve accounts — featuring money from retirees themselves and employer matches — not the General Fund. Pierce accused the Senate of 'insisting' on the cut to 'send a message' of fiscal responsibility. He called it a 'kick in the teeth.' In the Senate, however, the 39-11 vote featured opposition exclusively from worried Republicans. 'The math is not math-ing,' said Sen. Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis. Under one of the final bills approved this session, a whopping $870 million in federal incentives could be on the way to help Indiana connect its last 150,000 Hoosiers to high-speed internet. That's if the state's own service providers don't get in the way, though. 'Number-one obstructionist': Electricity co-ops lambasted for slow broadband rollout Lawmakers' attempt to mediate utility pole attachment disputes between electric utilities and telecommunications companies crossed the legislative finish line Thursday night, after languishing on the Senate's calendar for four days. 'Obviously, I passed on this bill a lot of times,' Sen. Andy Zay, R-Huntington, told his colleagues. 'I had a lot of consternation whether … it was time for this.' Senate Enrolled Act 502 would give both sides a 60-day deadline to meet after a government broadband grant contract is executed. They'd have four months to reach a project management agreement after the National Telecommunications Information Administration approves the Indiana Broadband Office's proposal for spending the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) money. It also sets detailed deadlines for cooperation if they can't concur. And the office could set up a 'rapid response mediation process' when disputes arise — pulling back from the hefty fines previously considered. That's the compromise lawmakers reached in the House after several rounds of edits. Zay filed a motion to concur with that chamber's changes, but waited to call it for a vote. 'I wasn't certain whether to bring it forward this year or wait until next year when we're in the throes of the BEAD program,' he confessed. Ultimately, he decided that having 'this process in place will be a great start as implementation hopefully begins later this year,' adding that lawmakers could simply adjust it next year if needed. Zay's proposal sailed through the Senate on a concurrence for of 47-2. It heads to Braun for final approval. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
