Indiana Dems Plan to Stay Out of Session

The Indiana House speaker Wednesday called off what would have been the first day of the new legislative session after most House Democrats remained behind closed doors to discuss their response to a "right-to-work" bill pushed by majority Republicans.

Republican Speaker Brian Bosma tried three times Wednesday afternoon to gavel the House into order, but each time no more than five of the 40 Democratic members were on the floor.

Bosma says he'll try to have the House meet on Thursday, but that a Democratic boycott won't lead to Republicans backing off on the measure.

"This summer, economic development experts, the folks responsible for attracting employers here, told us that between a third and a half of employers that are looking to put something someplace are leaving Indiana off the table because we're not a right-to-work state," Bosma said.

House Democratic Leader Patrick Bauer says the party's lawmakers will stay out until the GOP meets a demand for more public hearings on the bill.

"We refuse to let the most controversial public policy bill of the decade be railroaded through with the public being denied their fair and adequate input," he said. "What's the urgency? Are they ignoring the public input? They have not made the case to the public that Indiana is in dire need of an anti-paycheck bill."

Last spring, most Democrats spent more than a month in a hotel in Urbana, partially out of protest over the same legislation. Indianapolis Rep. Vanessa Summers, when asked how long her fellow Democrats would remain behind closed doors, replied, "Two hours, 10 hours, 12 hours, who knows?''

Bosma asked her to have Bauer contact him.

(With additional reporting from Illinois Public Radio)