INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Gov. Mitch Daniels’ signed a bill that could increase the use of E85 – a blend of 15 percent petroleum-based gasoline and 85 percent ethanol – on campuses and school grounds throughout the state.

House Enrolled Act 1193 was passed in overwhelming fashion by both the Senate and House of Representatives.

“Grants to invest in E85 pumps and fuel tanks are currently available to retailers and local governments,” sponsor State Sen. Ron Alting (R-Lafayette) said. “This legislation would extend those grant opportunities to school corporations and universities so they can install E85 fuel tanks on campuses.”

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels signed a bill that could increase the use of E85 on campuses and school grounds throughout the state.

Alting said by increasing the availability of E85 on school grounds and campuses, more flex fuel and biodiesel vehicles could be included in the fleets used to transport students and driven by faculty. House Bill 1193 could also save schools money by giving them access to state tax breaks and incentives currently offered for those who produce and/or use biofuels.

Businesses like Crystal Flash Petroleum in Marion County and Family Express Corp. in LaPorte County have already taken advantage of the grants which became available last year and have since provided more than $135,000 for E85 sales, according to Alting. Funding for these grants comes from corn check-off funds and has no cost to Indiana taxpayers.

Indiana’s office of Energy and Defense Development says that E85 is a clean burning, high octane fuel derived from renewable sources produced in the United States, thus reducing the nation’s demand on foreign sources of energy. E85 decreases the harmful emissions found in gasoline while increasing the fuel’s octane rating.

“There is a growing opportunity for our state to be one of the nation’s leaders in promoting the use of renewable fuels,” Alting said. “Hoosiers are some of the country’s largest producers of corn and soybeans – products used to create biofuels.”

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The federal stimulus money invested in Indiana’s natural resources may not only stimulate the economy but also people’s interest in physical activity, says a Purdue University public health expert.

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels announced last week that more than $20 million in federal stimulus money will be used to hire more than 2,000 young adults for the Young Hoosiers Conservation Corps program, which is aimed at improving parks and trails.

Stimulus money will be used to hire more than 2,000 young adults for the Young Hoosiers Conservation Corps program, which is aimed at improving parks and trails like the Charlestown State Park in Southern Indiana.

“There is growing evidence that environmental opportunities are important for encouraging more individuals to engage in healthy, active lifestyles,” says Philip Troped, an assistant professor of health and kinesiology whose research focuses on how neighborhood environments influence physical activity. “Examples of environmental design that can influence physical activity include how we construct our neighborhoods, transportation systems, commercial centers, schools, and recreational facilities, such as parks and trails. Encouraging people, community leaders and policy-makers to think about such factors is a step toward making physical activity more accessible and getting more people to incorporate physical activity in their daily routines.”

For the first time, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published physical activity guidelines for all Americans last fall. The recommendations indicate that adults should get at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity physical activity, and youth should accumulate 60 minutes of activity daily. For adults, this activity should be in bouts of at least 10 minutes.

“The reality is that every person is not going to be able go to the gym five days a week to meet these recommendations, so we need to create safe, accessible neighborhood environments that support routine physical activities, such as walking on sidewalks and on nearby community trails,” Troped says.

INDIANAPOLIS, Inc. — Indiana solidified its place as a leader in homegrown clean energy production after Gov. Daniels signed into law today a bill to bring Synthetic Natural Gas (SNG) technology to the state, billions in energy savings and new jobs.

Senate Enrolled Act 423 was the first bill the governor signed into law for the 2009 legislative session.

Authored by Sen. Brandt Hershman (R-Wheatfield) the new law allows the Indiana Finance Authority to purchase SNG directly from power plants and sell the gas to utilities dollar for dollar under a 30-year contract. Hershman said through the state’s new contract, Hoosiers may see a significant reduction in their energy bills.

From left to right: Sen. Jim Merritt (R-Indianapolis), co-author of SEA 423, and Sen. Brandt Hershman (R-Wheatfield), author of SEA 423, join Gov. Daniels as he signs the first bill of the legislative session into law which extends Indiana’s leadership in clean coal.

Synthetic Natural Gas (SNG) is created when coal is put through a gasification process which safely removes the vast majority of unwanted pollutants, leaving a clean burning pipeline-quality gas that can be transported and used just as natural gas is used to heat many Hoosier homes. Synthetic Natural Gas is produced with 99 percent fewer emissions than a traditional coal power plant.

Hershman said the measure allows Indiana to use its own coal and pay Hoosiers working at the energy-producing facilities instead of sending money to other states. For example, in southern Indiana this law could help create an estimated 1,000 construction and 500 permanent jobs at a clean coal facility.

“Several years of work went into making this legislation a vehicle for Indiana to be a leader in producing electricity from clean coal,” Hershman said. “Our state has the largest and first facility of its kind for producing clean coal and we are first in producing gas from coal.”

Hershman said Senate Enrolled Act 423 is an essential step in securing the low-cost energy, economic development and environmental benefits of a SNG plant.

“Natural gas markets can be unstable and often fluctuate,” Hershman said. “Since Indiana coal prices have proven to be affordable and more stable than natural gas, this technology will provide Hoosier ratepayers a more reliable and consistently priced gas source.”

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -– Senate lawmakers today approved a bill that could increase the use of E85 – a blend of 15 percent petroleum-based gasoline and 85 percent ethanol – on campuses and school grounds throughout the state.

House Bill 1193, sponsored by State Sen. Ron Alting (R-Lafayette), now heads to Gov. Mitch Daniels’ desk after today’s 48-2 Senate approval.

According to Indiana’s office of Energy and Defense Development, E85 is a clean burning, high octane fuel that is derived from renewable sources produced in the United States, thus reducing the nation’s demand on foreign sources of energy. E85 decreases the harmful emissions found in gasoline while increasing the fuel’s octane rating.

“Currently, retailers and local governments can receive grants to invest in E85 pumps and fuel tanks,” Alting said. “This legislation would allow school corporations and universities to also receive grants so they can install E85 fuel tanks on campuses.”

Alting said by increasing the availability of E85 on school grounds and campuses, more flex fuel and biodiesel vehicles could be included in the fleets used to transport students and driven by faculty.

Alting said since grants became available last year, more than $135,000 has been provided to various businesses like Crystal Flash Petroleum in Marion County and Family Express Corp. in LaPorte County.

“As one of the country’s largest producers of corn and soybeans – products used to create biofuels – the Hoosier state has an innate responsibility to be one of the nation’s leaders in promoting the sale and use of renewable fuels,” Alting said.

Indiana currently offers tax breaks and incentives for those who produce and/or use biofuels. Funding for these grants comes from corn check-off funds and has no cost to Indiana taxpayers.

According to Indiana’s office of Energy and Defense Development, E85 is a clean burning, high octane fuel that is derived from renewable sources produced in the United States, thus reducing the nation’s demand on foreign sources of energy. E85 decreases the harmful emissions found in gasoline while increasing the fuel’s octane rating.

Sen. Alting represents Senate District 22, which includes a portion of Tippecanoe County.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Gov. Mitch Daniels will make a presentation during a town hall meeting Friday in Downtown Lafayette, state Rep. Randy Truitt (R-West Lafayette), said today.

Governor Mitch Daniels will attend a town hall meeting at the Lafayette Theater on Friday, March 6.

The town hall meeting at 10:00a Friday in the Lafayette Theater, 600 Main St. , Lafayette, is sponsored by Reps. Truitt, Tim Brown and Sheila Klinker and state Sens. Ron Alting and Brandt Hershman in conjunction with Greater Lafayette Commerce.

The forum will focus on property tax caps and local government reform. Gov. Daniels will give a 20-minute presentation, followed by a 40-minute question-and-answer session.

“I have been working with the Governor’s office on this meeting and I am looking forward to giving area residents a chance to interact with Governor Daniels,” said Rep. Truitt. “This will give the citizens of Lafayette a chance to discuss these issues and express their views.”

Gov. Daniels asked the Indiana Commission on Local Government Reform to develop ways to streamline local Indiana government. He asked two of the state’s most prominent citizens – former Gov. Joe Kernan and Chief Justice Randall Shepard – to lead the charge.

“Local government reform is an important issue facing the House right now,” said Rep. Truitt. “I look forward to hearing the governor’s presentation as well as the crowd’s input during the question-and-answer period.”