Published: October 29, 2009 08:29 am      

CLERE: Not all my important meetings are in Indianapolis

Starting in about two months, I’ll be spending a lot of time in Indianapolis. In the meantime, we may find ourselves in a meeting together. I’ve been attending a lot of them lately.

The General Assembly is scheduled to convene Jan. 5. In the meantime, I’m around here most of the time.

I go to Indianapolis two or three times a month for meetings and other business. For example, I’ll be up there today. My first meeting is with the Indiana Housing and Community Development Agency. We’re working on several issues.

First, we’re looking for a way to salvage the Linden Meadows affordable housing development. State Sen. Connie Sipes, D-New Albany, and I became involved several months ago after the troubled project started running out of options. IHCDA didn’t create the mess, but I’m pleased to report the state agency is committed to trying to fix it, so long as other players will cooperate.

In addition, I’m still pursuing federal stimulus funding for a major housing rehabilitation project for the S. Ellen Jones neighborhood in New Albany. The city’s initial application to IHCDA was unsuccessful, and I’ve been working with the agency for months to make sure New Albany is at the front of the line when additional money becomes available.

Finally, I’m working with IHCDA to determine whether New Albany might be eligible for federal money that could become available later this year for flood damage. This is separate from other flood assistance, which I’ll discuss later.

That’s just one agency. I have a long list of state agencies and the projects and other initiatives I’m pursuing with each of them. That requires a lot of meetings. Many of the meetings I enjoy the most, however, are closer to home. Last week was packed, as usual.

I participated in a two-hour Community Discussion at LifeSpan Resources, which is the designated Area Agency on Aging for Clark, Floyd, Harrison and Scott counties. It’s one of 16 such agencies around the state that develop and coordinate programs and services to help older Hoosiers and people with disabilities remain independent in their homes.

A big topic of discussion was Indiana’s Family and Social Services Administration, which administers Medicaid, food stamps and other assistance programs. Indiana started modernizing FSSA last year in an attempt to improve efficiency and consistency and eliminate fraud.

The new system, which was administered by private contractors, didn’t work as planned. About two weeks ago, Gov. Mitch Daniels fired the lead contractor and announced changes that should combine the best elements of the old and new systems.

LifeSpan and other agencies on the front line of providing human services have experienced the problems firsthand, and it will take awhile to convince them the changes will work. That’s understandable. Since I was elected last fall, I have been helping individuals and families who have had trouble getting benefits from FSSA.

It’s not always a problem with the system, but regardless of the reason, I will do whatever I can to help. If you’re having trouble with Medicaid or other benefits or know someone else who is, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

After the excellent discussion at LifeSpan, I shifted gears for a lunch meeting with local small business owners who are members of the National Federation of Independent Business.

NFIB looks out for the interests of small business and has been an important advocate at both the federal and state levels. A big victory in Indiana was the elimination of the inventory tax several years ago, saving Hoosier taxpayers about $400 million per year.

I appreciated the opportunity to get to know NFIB and its local members. Small business is the backbone of our economy, and I will continue to be a champion. We discussed a lot of topics, including health care, local government reform and constitutional property tax caps.

From there, I went to the Salvation Army in New Albany for an Unmet Needs Committee meeting. The committee was formed after the federal government denied Indiana’s request for disaster assistance for the Aug. 4 flooding.

The committee is made up of representatives of churches, social service agencies and local government who are working to help the neediest flood victims. We’re still hoping for federal assistance - an appeal is pending - but folks without heat can’t wait.

That evening, I attended the monthly meeting of the S. Ellen Jones Neighborhood Association, which is in the process of merging with the East Spring Street Neighborhood Association. Together, they will be known as the Midtown Neighborhood Association.

The combined organization will preserve and enhance the individual identities of the many smaller neighborhoods within its boundaries, and its increased clout should be useful in influencing policy. I have long been a supporter of New Albany’s neighborhoods, and I’ll be looking for opportunities to continue that support from the Statehouse.

Save Our Knobs is another grassroots community organization. The group, which has been involved in various planning and zoning issues over its 15-year history, had its annual meeting last week. I attended and was grateful for the opportunity to speak and answer questions.

My meetings in Indianapolis are frequently the result of meetings I’ve had here at home. After so many good meetings here last week, I’m going to be especially busy at the Statehouse.

Rep. Ed Clere represents District 72 in the Indiana House of Representatives. He may be reached by phone at 1-800-382-9841, by e-mail at h72@in.gov or by mail at the Statehouse, 200 W. Washington St., Room 401-7, Indianapolis, IN 46204.