topping the week's headlines from the state House Governor Mike Brown delivered his first State of the state address on Wednesday.

His speech focused on property tax relief, income tax relief, public safety, health care costs and education.

>> Republican and Democratic House leaders were among those in attendance for the governor's remarks and two of those House leaders are also with us tonight as we follow the work of the General Assembly on this week's prime time.

>> And good thing I'm Bruce Haines.

With us this week are Seventy Ninth District Republican state representative and House Majority Leader Matt Laman and Avios District Democratic State Representative and House Democratic leader Phil aquiver and we're glad you're with us as well.

You can join the conversation with your questions and comments.

Just call the number that you see on the screen.

And as we have widened out we are all here representing Acquited Representative Laman, Phil and Matt to us.

>> And gentlemen, thanks for being appreciate.

>> It's great.

So let's see New Year, new legislative session, new state chief executive, new first time state of the state address.

>> How do you do?

Well, first of all, I think it's great to be here, by the way, than to be with Matt.

>> You know, it's interesting that we are serving with we are we have a governor who we've served with which is a little different this year probably so we he's a former colleague so we're glad he was at least former colleague of the House version.

>> And so we'll we'll we'll see how it goes.

I was talking to someone earlier today about his speech and the delivery thought he did a really nice the delivery of the speech was kind of interesting how little it kind of engaging and and with with the audience if you will.

>> He was kind of you know, he'd say well we think that we got an answer.

>> So certainly, you know, the House Democrats always we've been talking all session about bread and butter issues trying to make sure that we're looking at different ways to lower costs for Hoosiers and I do like the fact that the governor was talking about emphasizing particularly health care costs.

These are the things that we've kind of you know, we've tried some things.

We've looked at things but there and I had actually had a personal conversation with him in his office a couple of weeks ago about this the issue with regards to health care and and there's a whole bunch of issues out there that I that we know having been coming off the campaign trail last summer where Hoosiers are struggling and you know, we're going to do all we can to make sure that we can whatever we can do to help lower costs for Hoosiers.

And so there are some good things in the speeches.

>> Obviously there's going to be some things that I disagreed with.

We'll probably get into those as the show moves along with you, sir.

>> Yeah, well, first of all, I like Phil said, it's great to be here and it's good to be with Phil.

I did say we're sitting on the opposite sides of where we normally sit on each other on that side of him.

>> I thought I thought the governor did a a job.

I think it was a different speech than what maybe we've been used to in the past.

I think he was more engaging.

I think he was more focused on specific issues.

I agree with Phil.

I think we want to see those same issues that are affecting Hoosiers primarily.

I think he'd hit on the head on the property tax issue.

He his he's always been on the campaign trail.

He was on he was always talking about the health care issues and so those are a couple of our priority bills are health care related and I think it's going to be I think we'll have a little more now that we didn't but a little more participation maybe in the second floor on some of those issues as we move forward.

>> I wondered about the property tax topic and of course health care as well and thinking of the work that has been done by the legislature on property tax getting into that and that game where you have little squares inside a big square and you have to move the wall around to get to the picture when you're working through capping annual increases of fighting ways to help with new homeowners and farmers and reform the system with transparency.

How is this tax relief going to be achieved when the legislature is also looking to balance the needs of schools and local units of government and things of that nature?

>> Are you going to try that first is going to start with the easy part to bed rather than a short when you get here, right?

>> Yes, yes.

Yes.

No yeah.

>> This is you definitely have a dichotomy here because what you have is you have really a serious situation where people are asking for relief on their property taxes based on what's been happening over the inflation and everything else over the last five years.

But I remind them the state of Indiana takes no property tax dollars.

We don't get any money from property taxes.

It's all local money.

So when we put our finger on that scale we have to look at who are we going to be impacting.

So I don't think we're there yet.

I think we have a lot of moving pieces to this puzzle yet I think there's probably some low hanging fruit.

You might be able to do some things with seniors and veterans and and some things that are really more impactful there.

I think that you were trying to engage the locals as they give us some ideas.

Tell us what you think is a good idea regarding how do we get to where we can bring a little bit of relief at the same time not and the last thing I want to do is to do anything from St.

Hours to backfill those losses because now we've entered into that space and you can't take it away.

So one thing about government is once you've given some is hard to take it away so we backfill with state dollars what is right 100 percent local dollars.

I think we're going down a bad path.

So I think we have to be very cautious how we go.

I think the governor you know, he's been very bold and very aggressive on this but I think we're going to have to get to a point where we find some common ground and maybe not as far as what maybe he wants to go or where I think we may be able to be on up.

>> Well, it's a little different year with regard to the budget in general because the last two we've had federal dollars that has boosted the surplus and the revenues in the 2001 and 2003 budget.

>> So this is a little bit different this year and and you nailed it with your question because it's there's really one word and called shift.

So any time that we started to move things around there's going to be a shift to someone.

Someone's going to have to pick up the tab if you will, or we're not going to have the services.

And one of the things that we served on the county council in Adams County and obviously my ties to local government here is that we want to make sure that we whatever we do, we've got to make sure that the impact that it's going to have on local government because there are still essential city services that Hoosiers are going to expect and demand whether it's you know, police fire we know and by the way, those are the major percentages that make up most local local budgets.

Seventy five percent are police and fire in those sort thing.

>> So and then I think it's funny how all these things sort of relate to each other because we talk about, you know, kind of the housing crisis and though I sometimes feel like we don't necessarily have the problem that we have it we need more supply, more housing supply which could then help lower the cost of of home particularly for new homebuyers and then could possibly potentially then lower the cost of property taxes.

So I did hear today talking with the local assessor's office that it looks like the report that I'm seeing that are going to come in property taxes are going to be a little bit lower than they would have maybe were last year just essentially just because of the maybe the home sales are starting to slow down a little bit and things like that.

>> So we got a lot lot to talk about, a lot to discuss and a long way to go for the out of session.

>> I was hearing two from so there hopefully was on the program last week that any work done on property tax is going to be a forward action because twenty five point five for fiscal year calendar twenty five property tax is coming soon in the mail already so that those numbers if I have it right relief is however that spelled finally you know ultimately would not include necessarily 25 right.

I think if you think back I don't remember what year it was we made some very serious changes to how that how those were processed and things like that and that process delayed actually tax bills going out and we had some municipalities that were not getting their tax revenue or meeting their tax obligations within like a year.

So I think one thing we're very cautious of is we can't be reactive.

We need to be proactive.

And so I do think what comes will be looking at longer term ,you know, places where you maybe can see a little bit where it's going to stop and where there's some benchmarks and so we'll see.

And as Phil said, you know, we're a long way from the end of April and I think a lot of things are going to change.

There are a number of bills that are in the pipeline now dealing with different aspects of health care for profit, not for profit insurer pharmacy Medicaid of course.

Which ones how do you put those in some sort of priority order save from your caucus perspective and then maybe got Soga?

Well, with regards to Medicaid, that's a we could spend a whole show on that.

As you know, Bruce , there was we go back to an accounting error, if you will, and we we know that we there have some obligations there to the neediest of Hoosiers and we want to make sure that folks like that you know and sometimes too and we say Medicaid we don't really realize it that it's the hit program and it's these other health wise and others that so actually these programs have names that every Hoosiers use and so we've got to make sure that that those folks are still taking care of .

And then with regards to the other type of health care savings, you know, we've talked about lowering the cost of prescription drugs.

We've talked about transparency so the opportunity to potential shop around for better value, better services for health care there's as you mentioned, there's other bills that are going to be out there with you talking about hospitals not for profit hospitals and things like that.

>> So the and I'm not sure if you're on health care not on the insurance committee but these issues have really dominated a lot of time for the legislature.

It feels like we've been a little slow maybe maybe we're still trying to figure some things out as far as you know, kind of the what necessarily impacts, you know, health care the most.

I do know I think everyone all the viewers and and all Hoosiers just they want and expect good quality health care and I want to make sure that they all can receive that but obviously also do everything that we can to help lower the cost health care.

Yeah, that would say you know, we we made we made health care part of our priorities Hospital 10 03 and hospital for both bills one dealing with this creating much more transparency in the process, creating some benchmarks for them for the insurance companies and health providers too from a cost standpoint cutting some kind of some some loopholes, maybe some things like that.

So 10 or three is really more I don't I think they'll come out with a lot of bipartisan support because I think it's just it really is a very large bill on some common sense issues around health care that will have a smaller impact maybe and then Tenno for is really the one that is saying look, if you're not for profit hospital, if you can't get to where you're two hundred percent of Medicare and Medicare I know is not 100 percent reimbursement anymore like it was at one time it's lower than that but still capping the two hundred percent of Medicare.

If you can't get to those those benchmarks then you lose your not for profit status because there's a lot of these not for profit hospitals and there are really there not those because they did a year ago or two years ago or three years ago but I still think there's some areas they can go.

But but the other part of that then is if they get to that point are the insurance companies pushing that back out to the to the actual payer which is the employer or individual.

And so we've got to make sure we're doing that as well.

Then you get all the people kind of stuck in the middle.

You've got these PBM the pharmacy benefit managers.

So my new staff this year I have a whiteboard in my office and I I drew them the graph of this and I said here hospitals here and providers here PBS and then I basically take my marker just different lines and million different directions and I said does that make sense because that's kind of how you feel.

>> You feel like we're going in every time we go over here then you've got to go there and you got to go back over here.

And so we've got bills dealing with PCBs.

You got bills dealing with health care.

We got to bring them all together by the end of session that says what I think people are asking for is more transparency, more reduction in cost without as Phil said, without a reduction in services you're seeing we don't part of these bills all have like some safeguards to not have an adverse effect on county owned or rural hospitals because the last thing we want is for real hospital to try to have to meet the same criteria that that that a big five hits, you know, and they can't and and suddenly they're gone and we've got to make sure we have real health care still because we have to have a lot of lawyers I represent those areas where I'm very committed to making sure our hospital stays independent and strong.

>> It was a screenshot picture of what happened to me when I think race that's as well and I am glad you brought it up because the governor I believe didn't mention that with regards to the other players in the health care industry which are the PBM and the insurance industry and with know where are the savings that come down we hear that especially we see the headlines with the of these negotiations going on between for example, know Parkview and their insurance provider and those bills came to agreement great savings and then what kind of room where are they?

You know, so that's all we know.

There's more players besides just the hospitals that are involved in this.

>> Yeah.

And I do think because I do think we have in the past and this is nothing against the whole commiseration I don't think that was their priority.

So you would go there and you'd say hey, this is what we're thinking of doing and yeah OK that's fine.

Yeah send me something I'll sign it.

And I think now what we have is we have someone on the second floor says this is my priority.

This is what I ran on, you know and so I think Hoosiers are looking at someone who has done it in his own business, sees the need and I think will be a great partner in this.

So I think it's going to be kind of an all hands on deck and health care will be I think when the big focus is when we end the session and I'm going to add one one last thing we move on something else because I was on the show here a couple of weeks ago with you and with regard to the two hundred some odd million dollars that we dedicated to the health care the health of Hoosiers basically you know, what can we do to get these programs out into into the counties?

All ninety two counties are on board right now and I think that will help just in general getting folks back in shape and and those sorts of things and you know, quality of life, quality of health for folks too.

So that's one thing that we don't being more proactive instead of what are we doing in reacting to expand health ?

>> OK, sorry go no that's fine.

I just want to know why you were on the show a couple weeks ago and I was not.

>> That's all I want to know but I told you the other night cheated on my show with it this is our show will tell the agent to call me.

>> We'll work out we'll get that figured out.

We but we can keep the spotlight on you for because in the prioritizing of legislation of course one is the budget bill and then we have ten or three and four which we're just now discussing and then there it is intended to an education bill about education deregulation.

Yeah.

And it's really it's really interesting because we I was actually on this bill last year a version of Tushka and it did not get a hearing and we said we've really got to as much as as education does take the majority of our budget if you take K-12 plus secondary education, it's a huge chunk of our budget.

So education has to be the focus but it also has to be that we're not forcing a lot of these institutions into duplicative reporting and making sure you're checking this box in that box and there's this a lot of I think low hanging fruit and what was interesting is represented beginning has been the longtime chair of the of the education committee when this was being discussed as one of our priorities, he said well, I'm going to be doing probably a lot of things there now we said Yeah, yeah.

And he was on board and so he's carrying the bill.

I think again it's bipartisan.

I think you're going to I think there's going be a lot of things that the schools have all come out said thank you for some of these things.

Again, pieces of the puzzle yet to fill here, here, here and here.

But I think when we're done that will be a good bill for local education to say hey, you've taken some of the shackles off of some of the burdens we've had for years and from looking at the House Democrats priorities regarding education not only aspects of life in Tenno too but also increasing in teacher salaries a study to try to understand absenteeism, the idea of teacher salaries increasing it seems like there is progress to be shared in a somewhat bipartisan spirit in recognizing still to that the football field still has lots of yardage it yeah.

>> I mean again Governor Holcomb excuse me Governor Braun talked about that in his speech with regards to increasing teacher pay and and you know, he mentioned that he was on the former school board member so he understands it.

What schools in general I've been going through .

So we're obviously going to do all that we can to push more funding for education, public education.

One of our top things that we've been talking about for the last couple of sessions probably even longer is pre-K. We've seen great success with the pre-K program.

Unfortunately don't feel as robust as it should be.

In other words, it's it's in counties but they're talk about rural areas.

The rural counties still have a tough time accessing rural quality pre-K program high school.

>> So anything that we can do there to strengthen pre-K, we will do that because we've seen the benefits of it with both of you have been not only participants on these various committees but you've also been authors, coauthor, sponsors of pieces of legislation that are going through the mechanism this this session and in the coming weeks.

Matt, let me just ask you to pick a couple that you're connected with.

What what kind of bills are you happy to have put your signature?

>> Well, I tell people, you know, we come from a from a background of AR we bring our expertize to the General Assembly and I as with an insurance background, I've got several insurance bills, none of them that are going to, you know, attract a lot of attention.

And I asked one of them someone from the media one time I said you never write anything about my bills.

>> And she says because it's insurance and nobody would read the story and it's probably true but there's a couple of things.

One is we've had issues in the past.

You're seeing a growing trend in what's called earn wage access and so that was a bill I actually had drafted in then I passed it off to represent Dushka.

I'm on the bill with him.

That's it's a space right now that's becoming a growing rapidly of people saying I want to access my paycheck before my pay day.

Not always the best financial stability thing but it's better than going out and getting a payday loan and these don't have interest.

They're just a small fee to process.

So I think we're going to put some good parameters around that.

So that's when I hope we can get across the finish line and I'm looking forward to working on that.

>> I also noticed as well maybe thirty seconds on the Watershed Development Commission.

So all of a sudden water legislation is or should say all of a sudden but it seems that it is getting more coverage now of the limited asset that it is.

>> Well, and I think that that bill I think its members of Hynie that has that bill I think it has to do with making sure that when we have these watershed's mommy and my mind's more of the Wabash watershed is that these are not being impacted by other parts of the state where we're going to make a rule to do something now whether it be with the LEAP project issue with the water over there, those changes in that structure don't have a negative impact on my watershed on the Mavi watershed.

So represent mine.

You brought this up so we got to make sure our watersheds are kind of independent at the same time meeting the criteria needed and that we're making sure that we do have the water that we need.

>> Yeah, fill your legislation say there are two interesting pieces both related to either athletic events and the transactions that occur there in or the idea of being able to streamline event and feel good about it.

>> You you know it's funny because sometimes I think this comment actually might have been made on the floor this week about some of the best ideas or at least things that you try to solve from constituents that you talk that you meet at the door and you know, we were probably going there pretty quickly.

Were you do any worse with something with a credit card?

>> But there are a lot of high schools are just kind of done that already and there's been some concern from parents hey, I'm sending ten by ten dollars with my kid, let them get their popcorn and think I really don't want to give them the credit card because who knows what they're going to do with it.

Yeah, so that's kind of that's fun but it's also trying to solve a problem.

And then you mentioned the other one with regards to streaming and watching high school sports, I don't know you know they do charge you for that and and to me that's just something where you know, is that necessarily appropriate as a people ought to be able to watch a high school game from you know, because the fees are a little bit high as well and versus if you just went to the game, you know, to participate .

So we'll see kind of where those go and throughout the system that this year and this I had also one to to share with both of you I think it is ten 06 perhaps where we're looking at energy ten or five total five you can get energy and these the references to seven to 10 or seven.

>> All right.

So we're going to our priority about but loving the notion of the idea that this bill contains a wide ranging draft that creates a tax credit for the manufacturers of small modular nuclear reactors.

>> Yeah.

Is there such a thing?

Yes.

Yes there is.

And I think it's something that we're going to have to truly embrace.

This has been an issue I've had the privilege of touring the the cook plant up in Michigan a couple of years ago and I always kind of been a fan of nuclear energy and then after touring that and reading more about it, I think if we have a need I mean you talk to the to the power companies and I'll tell you what we've produced in the last hundred years we're going to have to have that same amount again in the next ten because of the desire and you've got the you've got the Google plant.

You got the you've got the Amazon up in South Bend.

You they're pulling a lot of energy and so you know, we use all hands on deck but you got solar, you got wind with wind and blow in the sun don't shine.

You don't have any energy.

So the most reliable energy we have is nuclear.

You're seeing them develop more small nuclear.

I told them I'd be more than happy to put one in my backyard .

>> Not sure my neighbors like him but I'd be OK with it.

But I do think you're going to see that progress to where is more regional.

There's a movement right now to to maybe some of the conversion over some of the maybe coal plants to move those over to more than small nuclear and there is there is entity entities out there that can do that.

>> We have about a minute left.

Oh thirty seconds apiece if you can believe it.

So other legislation you're following or keeping an eye on as we go through the coming weeks well very quickly, 10 or seven I think the concern the question is going to be is how much while the EMR is being built, how much of it that is really a cost to to ratepayers.

So we're going to ask a lot of questions there.

Ben.

Obviously several bills that we've gone through when that kind of caught my eye this week was moving city election to presidential years I believe got out of the committee.

I'm going to take a look and hear what they have to say in committee.

>> I haven't seen the meeting but that'll be something I'm sure will be hotly discussed.

It will be interesting to you, sir, through I think we're just going to stay focused on on some of our priorities.

We'll see.

We got to tighten it.

But I can't I cannot leave tonight without saying boiler up.

I think that starting with humans if that was kind of decided on another network no.

I will follow the political bouncing ball here for Representative Matlala and Representative Phil Chiquitita Heinsohn for all of us with PrimeTime.

Thanks for watching.

We'll see you next week.

Good to