From the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette:
Gov. Mike Pence’s first legislative session is in the books, and his agenda, though considered light by some, included a few key victories.
Aside from a 10 percent income tax cut, much of Pence’s agenda lacked pizazz. It focused on helping veterans and students while keeping Indiana on the fiscal straight-and-narrow.
And following any other governor but Mitch Daniels this might be enough.
Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, said it’s almost unfair to compare the two governors since “years of pent-up Republican ideas burst out through Mitch Daniels.”
Democrats controlled the office for 16 years before his election.
“Now, Gov. Pence is starting on a new list, but we’re in a far better place,” Long said. “So maybe it doesn’t seem as dramatic.”
He acknowledged it took Pence time to adjust to the rocket-like pace of the General Assembly, especially compared with the glacially slow pace in Congress, where Pence previously served.
“I confess it was a slow warm-up period, but it’s a new team,” House Speaker Brian Bosma said. “He finished extremely strong and weighed in at the right time on a lot of the right issues. He was very successful.”
He said it’s always a learning curve with a new governor. Indeed, Daniels had his own bumps in the road – such as initially proposing a tax increase and losing his temper a few times.
A few of Pence’s victories include procuring an income tax cut for Hoosiers, though less of a reduction that stretched out four years before implemented.
And he also staked his first session on a regional works council meant to reinvent career, technical and vocational education in Indiana high schools.
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See the full article here:
http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130427/NEWS/130429663/0/SEARCH
