The Indiana General Assembly passed a $27.8 billion, two-year budget Tuesday night, with the support of both Republicans and Democrats, putting an end to the special session. All 48 House Republicans voted for the budget.

I supported the budget because it prioritized K-12 education and student assistance and maintained funding for public safety and higher education, while saving millions of dollars in other areas of state spending.

Was the budget perfect, and did it have everything I wanted it to include? No.

But did it force Indiana to live within its means, allowing the state to remain ahead in these tough economic times? Yes.

A vote against the budget, in my view, was a vote to shut down government services. It also would have shut down every state highway project and delayed benefits for the unemployed and disabled.  

I wish we would have been able to avoid special session altogether, but when you are given a budget plan that runs the state into debt, you can’t support it.

However, we came into special session with a positive outlook and an agreement that all four caucuses were going to compromise and create a responsible budget together. Within days, the House majority broke that agreement, starting the circus the special session became.

It took 175 days, a special session, numerous newspaper editorials and the threat of a government shutdown for Speaker Pat Bauer to finally compromise with the other caucuses and allow his members to vote freely on a state budget. I was glad to see him finally let the budget pass.

Even though the special session took a little too long, we were able to create a budget that was not only supported by the majority of legislators but was also good for Hoosier taxpayers.

At the beginning of the process, Gov. Mitch Daniels outlined five simple conditions to be met before he would sign a budget — no tax increases, at least $1 billion left in the state’s reserves, that legislators cut $1 for every $1 they spent beyond his proposal, that one-time funds be spent for one-time purposes and that no gimmicks were used. I considered them reasonable and obtainable requests.

The budget, which passed Tuesday night with a House vote of 62-37 and a Senate vote of 34-16, included those five criteria and more.

Funding was maintained for programs allowing older Hoosiers to remain at home instead of moving to nursing care. Also funded were community health centers, the arts, public broadcasting, Medicaid and the 21st Century Technology and Research Fund, which helps bring cutting-edge companies to Indiana, and many other important programs.

Education was a top priority when crafting this budget, which was hard because we had a limited amount of revenue to work with. Indiana’s expected revenue is 7-8 percent lower this year 2009 then what it was in 2008.

There are no caps on the growth of charter schools, money is provided for a scholarship tax credit that could help many low-income families send their children to non-public schools and for the first time ever, Indiana is exploring the possibility of online schools that extend learning beyond the traditional classroom.

The budget supports K-12 education with an average increase of 1.1 percent in calendar year 2010 and 0.3 percent in calendar year 2011 and fully funds enrollment growth at rapidly growing schools.

At a time when many states are looking at tax increases or massive cuts, including education, Indiana is doing neither.

More than 20 states have had to raise taxes in order to plug budget gaps. At least 35 states are either proposing or implementing funding cuts to public schools. Some are even considering early release of prisoners and layoffs of state troopers.

Not included in the budget, however, was the Indiana Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s Home, which I have been advocating to keep open since the announcement was made it was going to be closed. I would have liked for at least one more year of funding to have been included, but it was turned down.

However, I do support the Hoosier Youth Challenge Academy and the program it offers to young Hoosiers. I still think both programs could have worked simultaneously at the facility, but because of financial reasons we weren’t able to save the children’s home.

I certainly hope all the children attending ISSCH have successfully transitioned into a safe environment where they can continue their educations.

Please understand I voted to support the budget because it was good for Hoosiers and for the state of Indiana. It was a hard decision to make, considering the ISSCH was not included, but I had to do what was best for everyone.

This budget will put Indiana in better shape and be the driving force behind us to get through these tough economic times and stay ahead in the future.

If you have questions or comments, please contact me by e-mail at h53@in.gov, by phone at 1-800-382-9841 or by writing me at the Statehouse, 200 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, IN 46204. Those interested in receiving my weekly e-newsletter may sign up at www.in.gov/h53.