The first thought of how to help the homeless is pulling in a pair of handcuffs.

I think that's wrong.

Law enforcement does not need to be.

The first line.

Forestal estimates that a single homeless person sent to a local jail It's Indiana Week in Review for the week ending July 3rd, 2026.

Indiana Week in Review is produced by WFYI in association with Indiana Public Broadcasting stations.

Additional support is provided by ParrRichey.

This week, the Supreme Court ruled 6 to 3 to uphold birthright citizenship.

Samantha Horton reports the decision brings some relief to Indiana immigrants and those that work with them.

When the decision came down, it was a sigh of relief for Exodus Refugee Immigration CEO Cole Varga and his team.

Very happy with that ruling.

but unbelievable that this was not a 9-0 opinion because the 14th amendment is so clearly written that it's, we're a bit surprised that this was even taken on by the court.

But Varga says many are.

Still worried about their legal status.

The Supreme Court's 2025-26 calendar.

Term included other immigration decisions.

Last week, the court justices voted to allow the president to end temporary protection status.

For Haitians and Syrians.

It also ruled it to overturn allowance for people to seek asylum at the border.

So what are the implications of the Supreme Court decisions for Hoosiers?

It's the first question for our Indiana Week in Review panel.

Democrat Lara Back.

Republican Chris Mitchem.

Ebony Chappel director of brand and community strategy at Free Press Indiana.

And Niki Kelly, editor in chief at Indiana Capital Chronicle.

I'm Jill Sheridan, managing editor at WFYI.

So, Lara, we have heard some reaction from state leaders, but how do you think this will impact immigrants here in Indiana?

Well, I mean, I think that it is a really dangerous time to be an immigrant in this country.

Unfortunately, I don't think they have protections, that they should have.

And I applaud groups like Exodus, that are working so hard to protect them and make sure that they do have protections in this in our country now, what little they have.

I think the biggest takeaway for me about the Supreme Court ruling on birthright citizenship is that there are three Supreme Court justices who are okay with the president having an executive order to overturn the Constitution.

And at a time in this country when we are getting ready to celebrate our 250th anniversary, we wanted to move away from a monarchy and having a king.

And it is very concerning to me that Supreme Court is going back into that direction of one ruler having all the power.

It's just a it's a dangerous time for immigrants.

And I think really for the country and for democracy.

I mean, it was a significant decision that impacted, I think many people had a very, you know, visceral reaction to this, to this decision this week in one way or another.

And the state also she mentions Exodus.

You know, our very own attorney general, has, gone against groups like this.

And he is also taking measures right now to go against, you know, municipalities.

I'm thinking about Merrillville this week and, and ways that the state is moving forward, to treat immigrants.

Yeah, it's it's almost ironic that, you know, Senate Bill 76 that was passed, this past session that pretty much mandates that local government units of government have to comply with federal, immigration agents.

and obviously so anything that happens at the federal government now can very easily be directed back to Indiana with this.

But when it comes to to folks in Indiana and kind of how they react to this, I always like to tell the story of whenever I was on house staff, I got a call from a constituent that said, you know, we have to secure our southern border.

That's when the wall was really big.

And my response to that person was, well, sir, you know, I, I understand that you want to make that a priority, but I don't think the folks from Kentucky are that bad.

It's just from a from a state standpoint.

So I gave him the number to the federal person to go, you know, talk about that one.

So, you know, if you're in Indiana and you want to try to advocate against something like this, it's tough because it's a supreme Court decision.

Right.

And the Supreme Court did what they're supposed to do in their role, which is interpret law and not legislate law to the whims of, you know, whatever they think, you know, the society likes.

And so I think on the, on the, the issue with the, the Haitians and the Syrians that you brought up, you know, I think all they really did was say that since the beginning of time and just like now, the, executive branch of the United States government has the authority to do this.

And I kind of feel like they didn't necessarily apply that same standard to the birthright citizenship part, because I think you could argue that the original authors of the 14th amendment probably didn't intend for folks to come to the country, have a kid, and then go back and, you know, have that kind of way to enter the country and have influence over the country that way.

So, you know, I think when it comes to Indiana again, Senate Bill 76 will really be the bellwether going forward of how you have to start enforcing these kind of policies that happen at the federal level.

And that law going into effect.

You know, yesterday, Niki, another Supreme Court decision, though, this week was the temporary protection status.

And we have a number of people in the state.

I actually think that ruling is going to have far more impact, because while birthright is going to rile people up, it stays with the current practice that our country has lived under its entire existence.

So nothing changed per se.

with the temporary protection, status issue, you know, Haitians who live here under TPS, I mean, they should probably be prepared that Trump is going to deport them.

And, you know, I think we tried to find a number.

It's kind of hard.

I think there we have easily tens of thousands of Haitians here under TPS.

I mean, they're more here legally or illegally.

But, you know, if I were them, yeah, I would be prepared for for a change.

And the economic impact that they may have to the state as well.

I mean, that could be significant.

Yes.

They for a lot of jobs, just ask Logansport, Indiana, right?

Yeah.

Niki, I'm so glad you brought up Logansport.

I wanted to speak about TPS as well.

So I read a figure that said we have 50,000 Haitian immigrants living in our community, and they have enriched our communities, whether we're talking about the east side of Indianapolis or a community like Logansport, which greatly benefited from having their population increase, having people come in to work those jobs.

I want to go back to the beginning as far as the 14th amendment is concerned.

So it was ratified in 1868 as a result of a man named Dred Scott who was enslaved to his wife Harriet, who went to go and fight for their civil rights.

At that point, the Supreme Court told them, enslaved people and their descendants have no rights in this country, no rights that a white man should uphold or respect.

And that is the quote, you know, I'm not just, you know, editorializing there.

That is what they said.

So this 14th amendment was made at that point to make sure that there was a legal pathway for those people to have citizenship in this country.

I think something that we need to be concerned about is the fact that we have people who have come here who have been naturalized, who have gone through other processes and that are having their citizenship rights revoked.

So upholding 14th Amendment step in the right direction.

But citizenship as a whole is really under fire in this country and something we should be paying attention to.

I mean, I do feel for, you know, the Haitian immigrants I think you mentioned, I mean, the fear is still persistent among these communities from what I'm hearing.

Yeah, I think that's really true.

and I also believe, again, it is a dangerous time for people who are from other countries who are immigrants.

And when you think back to the Genesis of so much of this, I mean, it's going back to not to throw Donald Trump under the bus here, but I mean, it's going back to I'm going to build a wall and Mexico is going to pay for it.

And demonizing the other.

but then you look at people in their everyday lives with immigrants, like the Haitian immigrants, you know, they're seeing them in their churches, they're seeing them and, they're caring for their, elderly parents and homes and, and things like that.

So, it's it's really important, I think, that we be very mindful and very compassionate of the situations, that folks are finding themselves here.

Well, also this week, governor Mike Braun announced that the state will make good on any financial loss that local governments face because of the ongoing gas tax suspension, as Ben Thorp reports.

While the suspension has saved residents money at the pump, the move has made an impact on local roads and government budgets.

The governor has previously stated that the suspension of the state's gas and excise taxes is costing the state roughly $140 million each month.

Now, the governor says the state will work to ensure that local governments aren't missing out on their portion of those taxes as well.

Every penny that you've had to forego will be replenished, and we hope to do the same thing for State Road funding as well.

The proposal will still need to be approved by the state Board of Finance in late July.

A spokesperson for the Indianapolis Department of Public Works says the tax suspensions have cost the city roughly $8 million so far, and they quote, appreciate the news about reimbursement.

So, Chris, was this solution a priority for the governor, do you think?

Yeah, I think so.

Because really, towards the beginning, whenever he started this whole gas tax escapade, he's said that his goal is to make sure that the local governments are reimbursed.

And I enjoyed coming on the show.

It's almost like every single time I'm on, I get to talk about we're talking about fiscal.

That's the fiscal responsibility of the state, because we get to do fun stuff like bring in the bears, but we also just get to be flexible of things that are under our state's control, whether that be a pandemic, whether that be foreign affairs that are causing rising costs.

Here in America, we have the flexibility to been able to kind of adapt to those storms.

So I think a lot of praise has to go to Governor Braun for even be willing to do the gas tax in the first place.

A lot of previous governments or excuse me, previous governors, opted not to do so.

But then also a lot of praise has to go to the Republican fiscal leadership for having the reserves, having the, you know, flexibility to be able to, you know, do things like this, reimburse local governments.

And I think it's really important that he did it this way because, you know, unlike SCA 1 from last year that, you know, caused a lot of property tax, strains for the local government, they did ultimately have a seat at that table through the legislative process here.

They really didn't.

Braun just kind of said, hey, we're going to do this.

And we'll take care of you in the future when they're kind of left in an unexpected limbo a little bit.

So I think this was a good step forward to making sure, like, I'm going to stick to my word and make sure that you guys will be, reimbursed to the fullest.

I mean, was, you know, a resounding success.

Everybody loves having lower gas taxes, but we did.

It for two straight.

Months.

We did hear, you know, from quite a few, municipalities pretty quickly that wait, wait, wait a second, that this piece, you know, reimbursing, local, local governments is, is really key, especially if it comes to road funding in the state.

Well, yeah, absolutely.

I mean, I think he's doing the right thing.

and I think he has to do it and I would differ.

I would, I would beg to differ with, with Chris on the fact that local municipalities had a say in SCA one, I think they probably feel a little, I think they probably feel a little, bamboozled by how everything went down.

but sca one is really going to have a major impact because these communities are now working on their budgets and they're now looking at the reduced, property taxes that they're bringing in.

They're having to raise taxes, are having to do all these other things so they don't have the flexibility right now to absorb the gas tax.

what was taken away with the gas tax.

But again, let's go back to why we're here.

Donald Trump started an incredibly unpopular war with Iran.

this is the reason why we are in the situation.

We're in a country without a navy is basically controlling the Strait of Hormuz.

And this is Mike Braun's guy.

This is his guy, Donald Trump.

So it's just because you support Donald Trump doesn't mean it's going to benefit you in the long term, and has been a bit of an escapade.

He has said, you know, for months now we've had a suspension and, we're probably expecting that there will be another.

Yeah.

The governor is, set to announce the final extension that would get up to the full kind of 120 days of the suspension of the taxes.

after that, though, it would be up to the legislature to come in a special session.

I honestly don't think that governor Mike Braun, when he started this, I think he thought it would be a quick 30 day thing and and the Iran war will be over and it'll be fine.

And, that hasn't happened.

So certainly gone longer than he expected.

But we'll see what lawmakers want to do after that.

You know, they could come in and suspend it some more if they feel like they can afford it.

And that would be right before an election.

I think we are seeing nationally prices come down a little bit, but still, do you maybe, Hoosiers are just living in this bubble right now where we have affordable gas.

Yeah, yeah, I think John Guyer out of Fulton County put it best, in a story published by FPI news.

When you said this holiday was a double edged sword, because at some point we are saving money on the front end, but potholes need to be filled.

We need to prep for the winter and people have to be paid.

That's something else that we are at risk of is having to furlough the people who this is their job to keep our roadways accessible.

So this is absolutely a priority.

I'm glad that a resolution is in the works.

so that we can keep people working and keep our roads safe.

So and I would say for the sake of fairness, obviously it's all hunky dory.

Positive.

Right now.

But I will say when the when the legislature when the legislature comes back in, if you're taking money out of reserves to do this, that's going to be a reason going forward of maybe we can't find this thing over here because we have to replenish those reserves.

So it would.

Be fair, though, the way they said it in the news releases, they're not taking it from rivers reserves or taking it from the motor vehicle Highway Fund.

I was unaware of thinking.

Motor vehicle.

Fire we fund had a couple under 100.

Yeah.

I mean it's like up to 200 millions that they would have to reimburse.

So we'll see a lot of money look like that.

Yeah.

That's another story for another day.

Yeah.

And that's I think that's been in a new bank.

I think that's another thing too.

When you look at the the more rural communities, I mean, in Indianapolis.

Yeah, we are used to this because of the road funding formula.

But you start getting into some of these, smaller communities where you have legislators and leadership.

it's gonna be really eye opening for them to not get their streets, get the roads paved or the potholes or things like that.

Welcome to the club.

Yeah, exactly.

Time now for a viewer feedback.

Every week we pose an unscientific online poll question.

This week's question will local road funding be impacted by the state's gas tax holiday?

Vote yes or no.

The last question post of yours are your utility bills unaffordable?

5,044% answering yes and 56% saying no.

If you would like to take part in the poll?

Go to WFYI.org/IWIR and look for the poll.

Well, Indiana is at the center of a data center.

Boom.

But as Farah Anderson reports about the third state counties are parsing and proposing their own restrictions.

As proposals to build data centers spread across Indiana.

Many local governments are racing to decide how to regulate them.

Janet McCabe, a senior policy advisor at Indiana University's Environmental Resilience Institute, says many communities are trying to keep up with the industry.

This is an example of a kind of development that is moving really fast.

It's a bit of a challenge.

For local governments to.

To catch up.

At least 17 counties with temporary moratoriums in two counties, Marshall and Cass, that have banned new data centers altogether.

So, Niki, is it the state's responsibility to perhaps provide more governance about these data centers?

Yeah.

Look, the the lawmakers have been trying to figure out how to handle wind and solar for years.

Right.

Remember they tried a couple of years ago to basically say that locals could not ban them?

and locals, you know, kind of flipped out and said, you know, local control, local control.

So they didn't go down there.

And I think they're still mad about that.

so I feel like this is we're coming to the same conversation there because, you know, Republicans in power believe the data centers are good and good for the community and the investment and, you know, but the people just aren't seeing that.

So the state is going to have to decide or otherwise.

We're going to get to a point where half the counties have a moratorium.

And I don't I don't think that they think that's a good thing for for Indiana.

It is feels a little bit like the Wild West out there.

Ebony and people and communities are having very strong reactions.

And I think many people also feel like, they're just kind of out there on their own.

So, you know, what should the state do at this point?

So outside of governance, I would like to see some form of guidance that can help guide community leaders, because I do think that it is a community centric decision.

Those people live there.

They know their communities better than people at the state houses.

They should be able to make those decisions on their own.

I'm encouraged by the process that Boone County is following, by having that year long moratorium so that they can research and decide, is this in our best interest long term?

So I think some guidance would be helpful to help communities go through their own processes and decide whether or not.

But governance, I don't think a one size fits all solution is the answer here.

I think I. Think part of the problem Chris is just that it's happening so quickly.

And yeah, I mean, we're not react.

I mean, he's absolutely right when she says that you have a lot of these local governments, you know, 10 or 12 member municipal governments negotiating with Google and Microsoft coming in, you know, and all of these different numbers and stuff.

So I do think guidance would help, but also I actually think you kind of have to separate it into two issues for me, when it comes to what the local local should control and what the state should control when it comes to statewide policy.

I absolutely think locals should have the ability to do zoning and where it's going to go and where do the infrastructure improvements happen.

But a lot of these data centers are actually turning into energy producers.

regarding state governance, they already passed a law that said that if you are a major data, center developer, you have to pay for at least 85% of your electric generation costs.

Most of the ones you're seeing approved now are over 100%, just because that's what local communities are demanding.

So but now you have these people coming in wanting to add energy to the grid, and now you have local governments saying, actually, we don't want that.

Even though adding energy to the grid could impact Hoosiers across the state when it comes to utility rates, you already have AEP, the the, parent company to Indiana, Michigan power, which serves northeast Indiana, saying that their next rate case is actually going to be a decrease because of the amount of electric generation coming on from these developers.

And you also have, you know, the city of Hobart.

You can ask the mayor how that's doing up there.

They just approved over a $70 million expenditure from an Amazon developer up there, when their entire city budget is around $40 million.

So I think when it comes to trying to convince these local governments to be more open to it, the state can only do so much from a statewide policy.

And I think it's going to be these local examples that you're seeing from around the state that are ultimately, hopefully going to continue to, expand and make these data centers a little more appetizing.

We've got this initial investment, though, by like long term, you know, people are worried about these energy costs.

And and it will continue to be a concern.

Yeah.

And I think also too, it matters what your algorithm is in terms of how you feel about data centers, right.

I mean, I think if you are worried about them and you're afraid about them, then you get into an algorithm that is generated by fear and generated by concern.

And I think if you are also pro data centers, you get into another algorithm.

So I think there's not a lot of room in the middle, which is why that guidance would be really incredibly helpful.

And I agree with Chris.

You do have people in smaller communities negotiating with Google, negotiating with with meta.

And I think that's where having a level of expertise to assist those folks, really would be helpful for them, especially in terms of capturing investment.

And I think another issue, too, is this is just one of those issues in our culture right now where our world is changing so rapidly, and I don't think anyone has really been prepared for that since Covid.

And when you think about the technology that not everybody really understands and what's powered to make that technology, there's a lot of fear around it.

And, I think there are some good opportunities to bring people together, but I think people also retreat to their retreat to their silos and stay in those silos.

And that's going to become an issue for a lot of these companies, though I think they have a really big opportunity here, and I hope they take that opportunity to get embedded in the communities where they're located to do training on AI, to do, you know, business development classes, to really come into communities and prove their worth and be a true community partner.

And again, the world is different, and this is an opportunity for them to step up to that, to more algorithms.

Yeah.

Sorry.

New laws went into effect this week in Indiana.

One of those laws makes it a class c misdemeanor for homeless people to sleep or camp on public land.

Ben Thorp reports.

Some sheriffs and advocates are worried it could lead to jail, overcrowding.

Lawmakers behind the law have argued it won't criminalize homelessness and aims to connect people to resources and move them indoors, especially during extreme weather.

But Marion County Sheriff Kerry Forestal says he thinks the legislation will lead to costly jail overcrowding at any time.

sands,with the maximum sentence.

The law makes people subject to a misdemeanor if they stay in the same spot 48 hours after receiving a warning, with a few exceptions.

So Ebony do think this new law will help or hinder people experiencing homelessness.

I think it will continue to hinder people experiencing homelessness.

People arent homeless on our streets because they don't know how to access resources, so that as a justification is laughable.

We live in a state that has not increased the minimum wage.

It's still $7.25 an hour, $2.13 if you're working for tips.

And I've lived that life myself.

So speaking from experience.

But we have that.

We are allowing our communities to become a playground for slumlords and developers.

We do not have housing inventory.

The housing that we do have is overly expensive, and we are not investing in the resources that help to prevent and solve and support those experiencing homelessness.

They're overworked and under-resourced.

So for me, I feel like there needs to be more focus on infrastructure that supports those efforts and the overall quality of life for people, as opposed to continuing down this pathway of criminalizing homelessness.

I find it to be very shameful, and I don't see any element of it that could be helpful.

I mean, this law is probably getting the most reaction that of all the laws that went into effect this week.

Niki, do you think it's, poorly timed?

Maybe.

Look, I don't I don't know what to expect from this law.

I mean, the fact is, it really only will be used in a couple parts of the state.

Let's say Indianapolis is.

Going to be used in Indianapolis, maybe 1 or 2 others.

I think we're going to have to see, I mean, if there if there's a way that this law can be used to actually get these people to homeless shelters and connect them, once they're there, they can connect to resources.

I mean, that's a good thing.

But I think this is one that we're going to have to see, you know, how it plays out for a few months.

lawmakers that did write this bill, you know, have taken issue with, criminalize homelessness verbiage, but it does make it a crime.

Yeah.

And to your point exactly.

It's true to your point exactly, though, on the face.

Yeah.

It is brutal.

But I will say the bill does have so many steps you have to take to get to that point.

I mean, the first time you see somebody, it has to be a warning.

The police officer supposed to take, supposed to check if that person is considered mentally unstable and get them to services.

If there is an open bed near you within.

I think it's half up.

Yeah, five miles or something.

Then you can't bring the charge.

So there's there's a lot of steps to get to that misdemeanor point.

But to your point, it does criminalize it.

And whenever you know you're trying to advocate against something that's a pretty strong leading talking point.

Well, that's Indiana Week in Review for this week.

Our panel has been Democrat Lara Beck.

Republican Chris Mitchem, Ebony Chappel, director of brand and community strategy at Free Press Indiana.

And Niki Kelly, editor in chief at Indiana Capital Chronicle.

You can find Indiana Week in Reviews, podcast and episodes WFYI.org/IWIR or on the PBS app.

I'm Jill Sheridan, managing editor at WFYI.

Join us next time because a lot can happen in an Indiana week.

The views expressed are solely those of the panelists.

Indiana Week in Review is produced by WFYI in association with Indiana Public Broadcasting stations.

Additional support is provided by ParrRichey.