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The same sex couple whose marriage was the first recognized in Indiana wants that recognition restored by a federal appeals court.

Niki Quasney and Amy Sandler, married in Massachusetts last year, are one of the couples who challenged Indiana’s marriage statute.  They also asked for emergency recognition of their marriage because Quasney is terminally ill with ovarian cancer. 

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals Friday halted same sex marriage in Indiana, granting a motion by Attorney General Zoeller to stay the effects of a ruling that struck down the state’s gay marriage ban.

District Court Judge Richard Young Wednesday handed down a decision ruling Indiana’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional and ordered counties to license marriages for same sex couples. 

Fewer than than 6,000 Hoosiers were recorded as homeless this year, a two percent decrease from 2013. The state’s homeless population has seen a steady decline over the last four years.

The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority conducts what’s called a “point-in-time” count each January.  Coordinating with homeless shelters and outreach groups around the state, the IHCDA determines the number of homeless people on a single night. 

Indiana will recoup nearly 40 percent of the money it lost this year in a dispute over a 1990s tobacco settlement.  The money is used to help fund tobacco cessation programs, community health centers and the state’s children’s health insurance program.

Forty-six states reached a settlement with the four largest tobacco companies in 1998 that pays out more than $200 billion over 25 years.  More than 40 other tobacco companies have since joined the settlement and part of the deal requires states to ensure those companies are paying the correct amounts into an escrow account.  

Artist Peter Bremers' exhibition, Inward Journey, ​opens on Friday, June 27th at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.   It's Bremers' first solo exhibition in America and will be on display through Aug. 31st.  The Museum of Art's Charles Shepard sat down with Bremers in our studios earlier this week to discuss his work and his inspiration.   

A recent episode of WBOI Presents featured IPFW historian Jeffrey Malanson and political scientist Mike Wolf discussing the two ways the United States Constitution can be amended according to Article V.  One of the methods has been used 27 times.  The other has never been used. 

A federal judge’s ruling striking down Indiana’s same-sex marriage ban brought a flurry of activity – and even some confusion – at county clerk offices Wednesday, as gay and lesbian couples applied to be legally married.

Judge Richard Young released the decision Wednesday without issuing a stay, meaning all same-sex couples in Indiana could immediately apply for marriage licenses.

A federal judge Wednesday struck down Indiana’s ban on same sex marriage, saying marrying the person you love, regardless of gender, is a fundamental right.

In his ruling, Judge Richard Young says he’s never seen a “phenomenon” throughout the federal court system like the recent cases regarding same-sex marriage. 

Lambda Legal, the gay rights organization that represents the couples challenging Indiana’s ban, says there have been 19 federal rulings in same-sex marriage suits in the last year – and all 19 have gone in favor of same-sex couples. 

An Indiana Tax Conference held Tuesday focused on simplifying the state’s tax system.  Governor Mike Pence says a simpler code will be a big part of his legislative agenda next session.

Participants at the conference included Arthur Laffer, the principal architect of Reaganomics, anti-tax activist Grover Norquist, and former Bush administration economic advisor Al Hubbard. 

Their message is uniform: Indiana’s tax code is too complex and must be simplified to create a better environment for economic growth. 

Governor Mike Pence will convene a tax conference in Indianapolis this week that he says will bring together leading tax reform thinkers to focus on making Indiana’s tax climate more competitive.

The Indiana Tax Competitiveness and Simplification Conference will feature more than two hundred national and local tax experts in an effort to develop recommendations for the Pence administration and General Assembly.