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Indiana House Democrats' 2023 priorities go beyond governor's agenda

Rep. Phil GiaQuinta (D-Fort Wayne) is the leader of the Indiana House Democratic Caucus.
Rep. Phil GiaQuinta (D-Fort Wayne) is the leader of the Indiana House Democratic Caucus.

Indiana House Democrats will push for many of the same priorities Republican Gov. Eric  Holcomb is advocating for in 2023.

House Democratic Leader Phil GiaQuinta (D-Fort Wayne) said Indiana must invest in its people. And the first way to do that, he argued, is “adequately” funding public health.

“Good health should be a Hoosier basic," GiaQuinta said. "Health outcomes must rise above partisan fighting.”

The House Democrats’ agenda goes further than the governor’s – they want to fully fund the Public Health Commission’s recommendation at $243 million a year.

READ MORE: Governor’s Public Health Commission issues final report with $240M price tag, following system study

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Democrats also want to go further in increasing access to early childhood education, pushing for universal pre-K.

“The more children we have accessing early education, the more benefits Indiana will reap in the long run,” GiaQuinta said.

GiaQuinta said the legislature needs to focus on these kinds of issues and not the “extreme, needless culture wars.”

Contact reporter Brandon at  bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at  @brandonjsmith5.

Brandon J. Smith has previously worked as a reporter and anchor for KBIA Radio in Columbia, MO. Prior to that, he worked for WSPY Radio in Plano, IL as a show host, reporter, producer and anchor. His first job in radio was in another state capitol, in Jefferson City, as a reporter for three radio stations around Missouri. Brandon graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2010, with minors in political science and history. He was born and raised in Chicago.