New website tracks Indiana lawmaker votes

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — Jason Arp contends most voters don’t know who represents them or how these representatives vote.

His answer?

A brand new web site, IndianaScorecard.org, to trace and fee votes on over 400 payments to attain Hoosier state lawmakers on their protection of personal property; if a invoice raises taxes or grows authorities, it’s normally unhealthy.

Arp thinks the positioning will enchantment to individuals with “his leaning” towards fiscal conservatism and small authorities.

Whereas Arp acknowledges the state’s function in constructing roads and bridges, he says it goes astray when it begins to fund resorts and personal workplace buildings.

“That’s a extremely popular sentiment amongst the Chamber of Commerce varieties,” he says.

Arp stays a critic of standard public/non-public partnerships corresponding to Parkview Discipline, that almost all would cite as a hit.

“It’s the ‘seen’ versus the ‘unseen,’” he begins. “Has there been extra financial exercise from that? Has there been extra taxing funds to town? Has there been extra money to the colleges from that? And the reply is ‘no.’ It’s exhausting to consider however should you truly undergo the numbers and evaluate earlier than and after, there’s truly fewer {dollars} going into the issues that you just anticipate from these areas than there have been earlier than.”

Arp is in his second time period as a member of Fort Wayne Metropolis Council, the place he normally votes in opposition to financial growth offers. By day, he runs J. Arp & Firm, which performs “Proprietary Analysis, Buying and selling, and Portfolio Administration.”

A Legislature in Lockstep

Arp launched IndianaScorecard.org in an opinion piece for Indiana Coverage Overview.

Within the article referred to as “A Legislature in Lockstep,” Arp crunches the numbers and writes the outcomes are “a shock.”

“Many districts voted 65-70 p.c Republican however had a consultant who voted extra like Democrats than conservatives, rising taxes or eroding non-public property rights. Certainly, this was the norm,” he writes.

Arp blames the Home Republican Marketing campaign Committee and its $10 million {dollars} per marketing campaign cycle.

“That’s over $140,000 per Republican Home member,” he writes.

Arp contends the HRCC arranges fundraisers for candidates and invitations lobbyists from quite a lot of pursuits. If the HRCC loses confidence in a lawmaker, a portion of the warfare chest might go to a main opponent or the lawmaker may lose entry to the whole system.

Arp pauses for less than a second when requested why lawmakers would put up with it.

“For lots of people it’s a very powerful factor they’ve ever completed. They like being a State Rep. I feel plenty of occasions they run on good intentions after which they get there they usually’re informed that is what you bought to do. However they like being there. They like being necessary. They wish to keep there.”

Arp is aware of he has a method to go to alter minds, even among the many 4 different Republicans on Metropolis Council.

“It’s all futile however you need to do it anyway,” he laughs.