The Right Way to Do a Pay Raise
Andrea Neal column for Aug. 31 and thereafter740 words INDIANAPOLIS — In Indiana, the average teacher earns $44,966 a year. A low-level accountant gets $38,122. The average state employee receives $32,461. A part-time legislator, counting salary and expense stipends, makes $45,221. Such salary statistics may explain the typical Hoosier reaction to legislative pay raise proposals. Read the full article…
The Risky Business of Car Cell Phones
Andrea Neal column for Jan. 20 and thereafter790 words INDIANAPOLIS — My definition of road rage: The way I feel when my Ford Escort and I are forced into a defensive maneuver by an Escalade whose driver is changing lanes while talking on a cell phone. Count me in as a supporter of Sen. Rose Read the full article…
Rebuild FSSA From Scratch
Andrea Neal column for Oct. 22, 2003700 words INDIANAPOLIS — Blow up the child welfare system and start over. That was an idea touted by Republican Steve Goldsmith during his unsuccessful 1996 campaign for governor. A great idea that backfired. Family and Social Services Administration workers took Goldsmith"s suggestion as a personal affront. Their union Read the full article…
Republican Leaders Will Have to Say No And Mean It
Andrea Neal column for Nov. 30 and thereafter730 words INDIANAPOLIS – As lawmakers gear up for the 2005 session, they’d be wise to pick up the following self-help title: "Don’t Say Yes When You Want to Say No." As much as Republicans might like to use their new majority status to fund preferred budget items Read the full article…
Gov. Kernan Needs Fiscal Reality Check
Andrea Neal column for Jan. 13 and thereafter720 words (Note to editors: Publication is especially timely for Tuesday Jan. 13 because Gov. Joe Kernan will deliver his State of the State address that evening). INDIANAPOLIS — Buried deep in a news article about Gov. Joe Kernan’s all-day kindergarten plan was this comment from Republican governor Read the full article…
Orange County Citizens to Cast Vote on Their Future
700 words by ANDREA NEAL With a month to go before the election, yard signs are disappearing and political tensions rising in French Lick. The Nov. 4 referendum on whether to allow a casino in the historic southern Indiana resort town is viewed as a "do-or-die" issue by both supporters and opponents. Tempers are hot, Read the full article…
