Holcomb touts Indiana accomplishments in state of the state address

(The Center Square) – In his State of the State address Tuesday, Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb boasted of Indiana’s strong financial position – which is stronger than might have been expected after 10 months of the COVID-19 pandemic and massive disruptions to the way people in the state work and live.

“Ladies and gentlemen, because of you, the state of our state is resilient and growing,” Holcomb said in his address, “Our foundation has held strong.”

He went on to tout Indiana’s enviable financial standing, with a vague reference to its comparison with some other states.

“I don’t know how many other states in America have a triple AAA credit rating, are expected to finish the year with over $2 billion dollars in reserves and experience an all-time record year of new job commitments,” he said.

Holcomb’s speech was not before a live audience this year because of the pandemic. It was recorded in a studio and piped out to those watching on television or online.

It comes two months after his re-election to a second four-year term in November.

The governor opened the address by talking about the 9,000 residents of Indiana who have died with Covid-19 over the last ten months.

“It’s impossible to calculate the far-reaching ripple effect of the personal community loss of lives and livelihoods,” he said, asking people to pause for a moment of silence to remember them.

He went on to talk of the state’s “profound gratitude” to nurses and others who have cared for people with Covid-19 and also the law enforcement officers who have put their lives on the line over the last 10 months to keep communities safe.

He also thanked “churches, synagogues and mosques” for offering spiritual guidance during the pandemic.

But his focus was on the economy.

Indiana is one of just 15 states with a AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor’s, and is one of just a handful with significant reserves.

“Because of the strong position we were in pre-pandemic, an immediate, aggressive and targeted COVID-19 responses throughout, I was able to include in my two-year state budget proposal that Indiana is now in the position to restore state agency budgets, increase K-12 funding by $377 million, restore higher education funding by $103 million dollars and increase it in each of the next two years, make new investments in our state parks and in our Indiana State Fairgrounds, that serves all 92 counties, build a new state police lab and Indiana National Guard Armory, along with improvements to two others,” Holcomb said.

He added the state is now in a position to pay down $400 million in teacher pension debt and will soon be able to pay off the outstanding bonds for I-69, the new interstate that will run from Evansville in the south, through Indianapolis and to Fort Wayne, in the northeast, and continue over the border with Michigan to Lansing.

Holcomb is a former congressional staffer who rose through the ranks of Indiana politics, serving for two years as the chairman of the Indiana Republican Party before becoming chief of staff to Indiana Sen. Dan Coats. In 2016, he ran for the U.S. Senate to succeed Coats, but dropped out in February of that year to become lieutenant governor under then Gov. Mike Pence. He was shuffled into the governor’s office that year when Pence, running for re-election, was chosen by Donald Trump to be his running mate.

In November of 2020, Holcomb beat back a challenge from Libertarian candidate Donald Rainwater in addition to Democratic challenger Woody Myers, a black doctor who in the 1980s was the state health commissioner. Holcomb won with 56.5 percent of the vote, which included the votes of 30 percent of Biden voters, according to exit polls.

In his speech on Tuesday, Holcomb was exuberant, though at times strangely so.

“Ladies and gentlemen, coming off of 2020, I’m convinced 2021 can be the best ever,” Holcomb said. “So the central question for us all is, How can we seize this day?”

He also touted the new state position he created – a chief Equity, Inclusion and Opportunity officer and referred to a “diversity dashboard” that is being set up to monitor diversity in state agencies.

He talked of the state’s successful efforts to reduce infant mortality through focusing on 20 counties in particular with a Healthy Baby Program.

The state’s infant mortality rate has declined for three years in a row.

“It stands at its lowest level ever in recorded state history dating back to 1900,” Holcomb emphasized.

He also referenced the report produced by his Next Level Commission on Teacher Compensation, which recommended 37 things that can be done at the local school corporation level and at the state level to free up more money to give raises to teachers.

“When, not if, when we do this, we will be among the best in the Midwest for teacher pay, and will be better able to attract and retain teacher talent, including attracting more minority candidates,” he said.

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