INDIANAPOLIS — Despite living through nearly two years of a global pandemic and the challenges that have come with it, Gov. Eric Holcomb called Hoosiers "resilient" in his State of the State address Tuesday night, saying they have a spirit that can't be broken.
The governor went on to give a progress report on a number of issues like the economy, education and COVID, while integrating some of his agenda for this next year.
Holcomb touted Indiana as a state where families want to live and new businesses want to invest, pointing to a fiscal year that closed with extra cash and an unemployment rate of 3%, the lowest, he said, in 21 years.
"We saw 29 new headquarters plant their flag in Indiana, both homegrown startups and out-of-state relocations,” said Holcomb, citing historic investments in education thanks to the budget passed last session.
The governor said those investments were already paying off.
"More than 85% of school corporations raised teacher base salaries by an average of nearly $1,800 this school year and 99% will raise salaries in the next one,” Holcomb said as he announced measures to help students who fell behind during the pandemic, including a new dashboard to track how schools are doing.
"For the first time, parents, community leaders and school corporations themselves can have easy public access to robust data regarding school performance,” Holcomb said.
Turning to Hoosiers’ health, Holcomb said it needed to improve, explaining Indiana ranks 46th in obesity and smoking and 40th in childhood immunizations.
When it comes to the COVID vaccine, the governor thanked the 3.5 million Hoosiers who got their shots, saying they're a big reason hospitals haven't collapsed.
"If you haven't been vaccinated, I encourage, I plead, I even beg of you to speak to your doctor and do so. I say this, even if you've disagreed with every position I've taken. I just want us both to be around to continue to have those disagreements,” Holcomb said.
The governor also thanked health care providers, people working in nursing homes and schools and members of the Indiana State Department of Health for working in what he called “overdrive” for the past two years. Holcomb said no words, salary, or earthly awards would ever be enough to repay them for the lives they've cared for and saved during the pandemic.
More details on the topics of Holcomb's address Tuesday night:
Economy
Holcomb started by pointing to the state's balanced budget since 2005 and reducing the state's debt by 24% in just the last four years.
The governor also noted Indiana ending 2021 with $3.9 billion in reserves and so sending $545 million back to Hoosiers in automatic taxpayer refunds.
Indiana's unemployment rate sits at 3%, the lowest it has been in two decades and lower than all bordering states.
Holcomb also said 73,000 more Hoosiers are working today than were working prior to the pandemic.
Businesses made $8.7 billion in new capital investment in Indiana, $1.8 billion in new payroll and received 31,700 new job commitments with an average wage over $28 an hour.
To continue Indiana's success, the governor wants to do the following:
- Invest in once-in-a-lifetime, transformational opportunities
- Provide greater flexibility within our existing tax-credit incentive programs
- Recruit more remote-worker jobs
- Eliminate the 30 percent business personal property tax floor on new equipment
Education
The governor said Indiana is investing $1.9 billion in K-12 education, and $1 billion in the K-12 tuition support. Holcomb claims 99% of school corporations in Indiana will raise salaries in the next year.
Holcomb said he wants the state to strengthen early learning opportunities for Hoosier children from birth to age 5, so they will be better prepared for kindergarten. The Department of Education is also launching several accelerated learning programs.
The governor also said Indiana needs to focus on attracting teachers and focus on diversity and teachers in special education and STEM. To do that, the state is launching a teacher marketplace to connect them with school openings.
Health
Gov. Holcomb pointed out Indiana ranks 46th in obesity, 46th in smoking and 40th in childhood immunizations, but did not address any new initiatives about those issues.
He did focus on mental health, saying Indiana would make the following investments:
- Expanding access to mental health services
- Rolling out the new federal 988 Suicide Hotline
- Investing more to reduce the stigma of mental health challenges
The governor pointed to the Indiana Public Health Commission, which will submit a report this summer, for developing additional plans to address issues such as infant mortality, Hoosier health and wellness and modernizing the state's public health system.
Infrastructure
The state is investing $60 billion over the next 20 years to expand and enhance roads and bridges across the state. he said $420 million was committed to wastewater, drinking water and storm water infrastructure. Also $150 million to expand walking, hiking and biking trails.
The state has also invested $350 million in broadband.
Holcomb also wants legislators to invest $70 million in the state's law enforcement academy.
Other items
Holcomb thanked Hoosiers for their help with the 7,500 Afghan evacuees that were brought to Indiana to be resettled around the country.
He also thanked the more than 3.5 million Hoosiers who are vaccinated against COVID-19 and the health care workers fighting the pandemic.