Published: October 04, 2008 10:53 pm         

ELECTION '08: Indiana House District 46

TERRE HAUTE — Democrats have had a stronghold in the Indiana House District 46 for more than two decades, but Republicans have won the seat twice since 1994.

The Nov. 4 election is a match-up of experience versus a call for change.

Incumbent Rep. Vern Tincher, D-Riley, touts his experience, serving 22 of the past 26 years as the district representative. He lost in 1994 to David Lohr, a former Vigo County GOP chairman, and in 2002 to Brooks LaPlante, a Vigo County businessman.

Republican challenger Robert Heaton, 52, said people want a change, a measure Heaton says is needed in the House district long held by Tincher, 72.

Tincher, retired, served 22 years in the Indiana State Police and worked as a bricklayer, later becoming a union representative. He said Indiana must address funding for worker unemployment compensation. He also advocates for a state illegal immigration law.

Heaton, owner of Heaton Financial Services, which sells insurance and mutual funds, said government policy should not weaken families, adding that he is a pro-life advocate. He said the Indiana General Assembly needs to be responsive to voters.

Heaton may be best-known for playing basketball with future NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird on the 1979 Indiana State University team that went to the NCAA championship, falling to Magic Johnson’s Michigan State team. Heaton was known for two “miracle-man” shots that won games against New Mexico State and Arkansas.

Both candidates favor a constitutional amendment in the 2009 Indiana General Assembly for property tax caps, which then would require a statewide voter referendum in 2010. Heaton favors school vouchers, giving parents ability to select a school. Tincher opposes vouchers, saying as property taxes are removed, public school districts may face funding hardships.

District 46 covers half of Vigo and Clay counties and all of Owen County, except one township, as well as a township in Monroe County. Some cities and towns in the district include Riley, Brazil, Center Point, Clay City, Stinesville, Spencer and part of Terre Haute.

When asked about his view on abortion, Tincher said that he does not support abortion but “I think Crisis Pregnancy Center and Planned Parenthood have a role to play, and it should be a free choice of a woman to visit either one and make the decision that affects her life and her body.”

Tincher said a representative must work for his elected district.

“I believe I am an independent, experienced thinker that does what is in the best interest of the district, rather than what the governor wants,” Tincher said. “I have always been an independent thinker. When Evan Bayh was governor and he created the Family and Social Services Administration, I thought it was too large and a bad idea, and I was one of three Democrats that voted no. In fact, I think it is still a bad idea, too big.”

Tincher said a change in the state’s property tax law has altered how public schools are funded.

“I do not want to see school vouchers that allows a student to go to a private or parochial school. When we have tax dollars going away from public schools that creates a hardship and shortfall in the school funding area. The state just cannot afford to have dollars leaving public schools,” Tincher said.

Heaton said Indiana had 11 charter schools in 2002, which has since grown to 38 as of last year.

“I think overall in western Indiana, the public school system is doing great. In some parts of the state, in Lake County or maybe Marion County, I think it is important for parents to be able to say they want their son or daughter to go to another school, because they don’t feel like their child is getting educated,” Heaton said.

“If we are for the kids and the low-income or inner-city kids, they need help. That is what they need, in my opinion,” he said.

Heaton said Indiana must focus on jobs and small business development should be among priorities for the state. He referred to Van-Tec, a company started in 1981 by Jim Vance in Spencer. That company in 1988 was sold to Boston Scientific, which now employs about 1,200 workers with a $46 million payroll in Owen County, Heaton said.

“What a success story,” he said. “In some way, we need to further small business development. In Vigo County, there is 500 acres undeveloped in the county industrial park and Pfizer has land that can be developed. There is potential to grow.

“We need quality jobs. Vigo County lost 660 jobs with Pfizer. I would be willing to work with people such as Steve Witt, executive director of the Terre Haute Economic Development Corp.; talk to people in Indianapolis; or if I have to go to another country and talk to whoever to entice businesses to come to Indiana and hopefully the Wabash Valley, I’ll be willing to do it,” Heaton said.

Heaton said learning people’s viewpoints on issues is one of the biggest responsibilities of a legislator.

“People want to be represented, that it what it boils down to. The grassroots approach of representing people in District 46,” he said. “You have to represent all the people, whether in towns, cities or out in the country.”

Tincher, part of a House study committee, said the State of Indiana should adopt an illegal immigration law, one patterned after an Arizona law that has been upheld by a federal appellant court.

“That bill requires employers to verify, through federal Homeland Security, that all new employees are U.S. citizens. As long as that employer does that check, and it later turns out they have hired an illegal worker, there is no penalty. If they failed to check workers through Homeland Security for citizenship, then they can be penalized by losing any type of license or permit required in their business,” Tincher said.

“With Indiana’s unemployment rate at 6.3 percent, we have a surplus of workers and these illegal, undocumented workers are taking all kinds of jobs, including jobs in construction,” Tincher said. “It is estimated that 13 percent of workers in construction are undocumented, illegal aliens.”

“Plus those illegal aliens are using our emergency rooms and we have to teach English as a second language. And in a few school corporations, the students that need English as a second language are the majority of the students. That is taking a lot of resources in education and medical attention and social services that cost the state dollars,” Tincher said. “By not having jobs for the illegal workers, this is protecting Hoosier jobs for our Hoosier citizens who need jobs,” he said.

Tincher said Indiana ranks near the bottom in benefits for worker compensation benefits. He said the state’s worker unemployment compensation fund “is dangerously low because we have not had an increase in the level of assessment and have given breaks to employers. With our current unemployment rate over 6 percent, that fund is going to have to be addressed. We need to have adequate reserves to ensure we have benefits for unemployed workers."

Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com.