2021 Session News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

GARY A. WARNER Oregon Capital Bureau "Sine die is imminent," declared Senate President Peter Courtney on Tuesday, using one of the secret decoder ring-needed terms of the Oregon Legislature. Translation: We're almost through for 2021. But not so close you can't pop a last-minute bill into the hopper, which Courtney did Tuesday morning with a bill to ban horse racing in Oregon. Take a journey to Grants Pass, which is an overlooked and underappreciated gem of a weekend getaway! With just 25 days left before the Oregon constitution requires the Legislature to shut down the 2021 se...

Credit Alan Mbathi / IPB News Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita wants Gov. Eric Holcomb’s lawsuit against the General Assembly to stop before it goes any further. Holcomb sued lawmakers earlier this week over a bill that allows them to call a special session during a public emergency, giving legislators more power to intervene with the governor’s decision-making. But Rokita said Holcomb isn’t allowed to bring a lawsuit without an OK from the attorney general’s office – and Rokita didn’t give that permission. Indiana law says the state speaks with one voice in court – the atto...

Listen to the broadcast version of this story. A bill that would get rid of state protections for some wetlands in Indiana narrowly passed the Senate. There’s only one stop before the controversial bill becomes law — Gov. Eric Holcomb’s desk. The current bill no longer gets rid of all state wetland protections. But, among other things, you wouldn’t have to get a permit to build on the state’s smallest type of wetland or a wetland in a farm field. The bill also creates a task force to study issues with the wetlands law. The bill passed 31-19 and faced opposition on both sides of the ...

Indiana legislative leaders are planning to postpone the official end date of the 2021 session by several months because, they say, of delays around

Landmark police reform legislation is just the stroke of a pen away from becoming law. The measure, crafted over the last year following protests around the country against police misconduct and racial inequity, was unanimously approved by the Indiana Senate Tuesday. The bill, HB 1006, requires all police to undergo de-escalation training and makes it easier for the state to de-certify those who commit misconduct, even without a criminal conviction. De-certification prevents someone from being employed as a police officer in the state. Sen Mike Young (R-Indianapolis) said the measure also res...