A look at proposals highlighted by Gov. Mitch Daniels in his State of the State speech Tuesday night:
— RIGHT TO WORK: Daniels called on legislators to approve a right-to-work bill, which prohibits companies and labor unions from agreeing to contracts that require workers who are not union members to pay union representation fees. He says that making Indiana the 23rd state with such a law will help the state attract new businesses.
— SMOKING BAN: The Republican governor wants a law enacted to protect workers and business customers from the hazards of secondhand smoke, saying public support for such a law has grown along with the evidence of the health risk to workers.
— STATE FAIR STAGE COLLAPSE: Daniels says the state should "deepen" its response to the deadly stage collapse during last summer's Indiana State Fair by increasing payments to victims and their families beyond the state's current $5 million liability cap, but didn't give a specific recommendation.
— TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT: The governor renewed a call he's made for several years for an "overdue modernization" of township government, but gave it only a brief mention, after giving the subject much more prominence last year, only to see legislators take little action.
— HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION: Daniels says the state will spend a record $1.2 billion on road and bridge projects during 2012. He promised more progress on highway projects such as the Hoosier Heartland Corridor between Lafayette and Fort Wayne, and the U.S. 31 upgrade between South Bend and Kokomo. He said the closed Sherman Minton Bridge over the Ohio River would be repaired and reopened by March.
— NATURE TRUST: The governor announced the creation of new Bicentennial Nature Trust with $20 million in state money, to protect more natural spaces in connection with Indiana's 200th anniversary as a state in 2016.
