A House bill, HB 1007, aims to help ensure AI data centers coming into the state have the massive amount of power they need — primarily by subsidizing small nuclear plants and keeping coal and natural gas plants online. Consumer and environmental advocates worry this could mean higher electric bills for Hoosiers.

The Indiana Black Legislative Caucus said Gov. Mike Braun’s executive order ending diversity, equity and inclusion in state government sends a message that Indiana doesn’t care about fairness.

Indiana is in the midst of a five-year reduction of its individual income tax rate. A bill unanimously approved by a Senate committee Tuesday would continue to cut the rate after that — but only if state revenues grow.

Companies like Google, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon are building large data centers in Indiana for AI. Each one requires power 24/7 — and a lot of it. But Indiana utilities weren’t anticipating this when they made plans to get more power from sources like wind and solar. Data centers could delay utilities’ efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

It’s two weeks into Indiana’s legislative session, and lawmakers across the state have filed more than 2,200 bills, only a fraction of which will become law. Here’s a look at what Southern Indiana officials are focused on.

The Clean Water Indiana Program usually provides matching dollars to help farmers and landowners implement practices like cover cropping and no-till agriculture — to keep the soil from eroding and getting into local waterways.

Indiana’s Lifeline Law — which provides immunity from underage drinking charges for people who seek police or medical help — has been in place for more than a decade.

Last year, Indiana was one of just 10 states chosen as part of a federal demonstration program to increase access to mental health and substance use disorder resources. The state’s eight pilot sites received their designations as Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics at the beginning of this year.

A measure proposed by state lawmakers and endorsed by the Indiana secretary of education would raise teacher pay to a minimum of $45,000 and provide teachers with up to 20 days of paid parental leave.

Hoosiers on unemployment insurance could see the maximum length of benefits cut nearly in half under a new proposal heard in a Senate committee.