(NETWORK INDIANA) Governor Holcomb has signed a controversial alcohol bill. The bill grandfathers in businesses which already have permits to sell carryout cold beer. But Ricker’s convenience stores, whose unexpected permits sparked a legislative push to reexamine the issue, can keep those permits only through next April. By then, legislators hope to pass a comprehensive overhaul of alcohol laws. And new applicants will need to sell 60-percent of their alcohol in-store to qualify for a carryout permit. Holcomb says he’s signing the bill “with the understanding we need to review and make common-sense changes to Indiana’s alcohol laws.”
(AP) Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb has signed a bill into law that will sharply curtail the benefit available to those who install solar panels. Tuesday was the last day the Republican could veto or sign the bill, which critics contend is part of a broader nationwide push by utilities to seize control of the emerging solar market. Holcomb says he understands those concerns, but signed the bill because the benefit will be phased out slowly. Indiana’s investor-owned utility companies lobbied for the measure during the legislative session. They say solar panel owners who feed excess power to the grid are compensated too generously, a rate that will be drastically lowered under the measure. Critics say Indiana’s approach is too Draconian and will muscle out smaller companies, like solar panel installers.