WYRZ.org 98.9 WYRZ – The Voice of Hendricks County
INDIANAPOLIS – On the day Governor Mike Pence is expected to praise a possible surplus for our state, it’s important to remember just how his administration got there from 2014. From the mismanagement and wasteful spending of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to burdening Department of Child Services case managers with law-breaking caseloads, Mike Pence’s ideology may be in check, but the overall well-being and success of Indiana is well short of what’s on paper.
“Governor Mike Pence and the Statehouse GOP’s governing mantra should be accountability and transparency. But time and again they have kept problems in the shadows by providing agencies the bare minimum to keep the ball rolling. What Gov. Pence does is create more problems for Indiana and its hardworking families,” said John Zody, Chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party. “This is the consequence we get when Mike Pence demands state agencies revert millions of dollars back to the state’s general fund in order to create a surplus on paper. Putting the well-being of Hoosiers at risk simply to advance an ideology is not the way we should do business in Indiana.”
Hoosier’s shouldn’t assume the BMV and DCS are the outliers. Here’s a list of agencies that Governor Pence forced to revert funds back to Indiana’s General Fund and as a result, placed the overall well-being of Hoosier families in jeopardy.
Top Agencies Who Placed Well-Being of Hoosiers at Risk for Mike Pence’s Surplus in 2014 Source: Indiana.Gov
| Agency | Amount (% of Budget) | Effect |
| Department of Health | $2,000,865.82 – (6.3%) | “Largest HIV Outbreak in state history” – NWI Times, 4.18.15
“HIV outbreak may only be part of rural health crisis” – New Albany News & Tribune, 3.30.15 “Outbreak spreading fast across Southern IN” – New Albany News & Tribune, 3.23.15 |
| Bureau of Motor Vehicles | $4,938,415.97 – (11.3%) | Did mismanagement and overcharges help pay for Indiana’s surplus?
Coverage on BMV scandal: Indy Star, 3.23.15 |
| Department of Child Services | $4,054,005.10 – 0.7%) | “Caseloads leading to more child abuse.” – FOX 59, 6.9.15
“DCS turnover affecting Family Drug Court” – WRTV, 2.3.15 “DCS employee sues over ‘excessive’ caseloads” – Indy Star, 7.14.15 |
| Department of Transportation | $1,277,431.00 – (3.0%) | “Governor receives earful over rough road” – Washington Times Herald, 6.11.15
“State cash flow problems threaten to delay construction projects” – Greensburg Daily News, 5.30.15 “Study: 21.5% of state’s bridges classified as deficient” – WRTV, 5.27.15 |
| Indiana Criminal Justice Institute | $510,781.78 (8.3%) | “…because of state cuts made last year, 80 percent of Indiana providers had been forced to lay off staff.” – Associated Press, 9.14.14
“The state’s decision to withhold some available funds comes at a time when domestic violence shelters are reporting a sharp increase in demands for service…” – Indy Star, 9.17.14 |
| Office of Energy Development | $51,775.00 – (28.30%) | “Gov. Pence Lets Indiana Energy Efficiency Program Die” – Think Progress, 3.31.14
“Before being dismantled, Indiana’s efficiency program was effective” – Midwest Energy News, 6.26.15 |
| Public Universities | $33,996,164.65 – (2.3%) | “Pence’s Budget Cuts “Forced At Least One State College To Turn Away Students From Its Nursing Program.” – Anderson Herald Bulletin, 7.19.14
“Gov. Mike Pence’s Administration Has Placed Further Pressure On Universities, Demanding Funding Cuts To Help Build The State’s Reserves” – Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, 12.14.14 |
