Lt. Gov. Crouch Reflects on State of the State Address, Economic and Mental Health Impact on Dubois County and State

Dubois Co. - After Tuesday night's State of the State Address given by Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, Indiana Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch joined WITZ to discuss how the state's economic outlook and struggles brought on by the pandemic impact Dubois County, and the state as a whole.

While the $3.9 billion in reserves and the resulting automatic taxpayer refunds may grab the attention of Hoosiers, Lt. Gov. Crouch credits the efforts of those same Hoosiers, and long-term fiscal choices, in steering Indiana in the right direction.

"Since 2005, we have had consistently balanced budgets, we're one of 13 states that has a AAA credit bond rating by all three agencies, we're a low-tax state environment, we're affordable, our living wage is up here in Indiana, we have more capital investments than we've ever had before, and we've created 31,700 new job commitments in 2021, which was a five-year high," Crouch said. "One of the things that we have to acknowledge is these accomplishments aren't all because of government - government might light a path - but it is the hard-working men and women in Indiana that are taking the risk and making the sacrifices that have really put our state on the road to prosperity."

Through her travels throughout the state, Crouch says that she has been to Dubois County "many, many times", and that it has caught her eye for one specific reason in the future.

"As Lieutenant Governor, I oversee the Office of Community and Rural Affairs and we recently, through that office, awarded and announced three cohorts that will be a part of our Hoosier Enduring Legacy Plan," Crouch said. "We will be working with Dubois County as part of our second cohort which will start some time this summer to be able to work with them on how do we develop a strategic plan in Dubois County and surrounding region to be able to wisely invest and use the federal dollars that are coming to the local communities."

The office will also partner with state universities in the cohort. As was stated in Tuesday's State of the State address in filling local jobs through increased education efforts, Crouch expects a statewide emphasis on preparing Hoosier students beginning at a young age.

"We need to do more to align our state's K-12, Higher Ed, and work force for economic development efforts," Crouch said. "We have launched a one-stop-shop website that proactively connects unemployed and underemployed Hoosiers with customized job and training opportunities."

According to Crouch, 240 employers and 16,000 individuals have created profiles. The state already has the Workforce Ready and Employer Training Grant Program which aids getting Hoosiers trained for higher-paying jobs.

The state's response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was not at the forefront of topics on Tuesday's speech agenda, though Governor Holcomb did mention the state's efforts to aid Hoosier mental health, led by Lt. Gov. Crouch.

Crouch says that while mental health and addiction were already prevalent issues, the pandemic has only worsened the matter.

"Before COVID, one-out-of-five Hoosiers struggled with mental illness or addiction and that number just keeps growing as a result of the pandemic," Crouch said.

The stress brought on by the pandemic has made its way into classrooms and into the lives of young Hoosiers, Crouch adds.

"When I talk to school superintendents, teachers, Boy- and Girl Scout leaders, anyone dealing with young people, they will say that amount of anxiety, depression, panic, suicide ideation, acting on suicide, and self-harm is the greater than we've ever seen among our young people - and that is the future of Indiana," Crouch said. "We are now focused on a private-public partnership that will include the Pacers and the Colts, and Eli Lilly and others that will look at how we can bring along corporate dollars alongside what the state is doing so that we can amplify what is working and fill in the gaps for what is needed."

As for the current short session in the General Assembly, Crouch many issues and expects over 1,000 bills to be introduced, with 300-400 to make it completely through the process.

General Assembly sessions and bills can be tracked at www.in.gov/indianageneralassembly