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By Becky Killian, Staff Writer

The Washington County Board of Commissioners has handled the following business during recent meetings:

APPROVED: The county will provide a letter of support to Mainstream, which will use the letter as part of a grant application to the state for funds to extend broadband services to underserved parts of the county. The total project cost is $4.7 million, with Mainstream providing $2.6 million. The remainder of the cost, or $2.1 million, would be covered by the grant. No county funds will be used in the project. Some areas of the county identified for the project are in the southern portion of the county as well as the Salem Bypass and East Day Road.

REPORT: Rick Voyles, who has returned to his role as the county’s Highway Department Superintendent, said the county’s paving projects for the year are near completion. A total of about 24 miles will be paved this year. He also mentioned complaints about a dangerous intersection at Old 160 and Heritage Chapel Road. A property owner has agreed to let the county remove a fence row that is obstructing the view at the intersection.

REQUEST: Cameron Stahl asked commissioners to consider allowing golf carts on the county’s roads. He was assured the commissioners would research the request.

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita and Secretary of State Diego Morales are asking the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to verify the citizenship status of voters who registered in Indiana without providing state-issued forms of identification.

“Hoosiers deserve to know that only eligible voters are participating in our elections and that legitimate ballots are not being diluted by noncitizens,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We are doing our part to provide this assurance.”

Attorney General Rokita and Secretary Morales sent USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou lists of certain voters who registered without state IDs — along with a joint letter formally requesting the agency’s assistance in verifying those individuals’ citizenship status.

“A fair and secure election process begins with accurate voter information,” said Secretary Morales. “As Indiana's Chief Election Officer, I am committed to ensuring that every registered voter in Indiana has met the legal requirements, including being a U.S. citizen. I’m proud to partner with Indiana’s Attorney General in taking proactive steps to gather missing information for those who completed their registration without a state-issued ID. This is crucial to maintaining the integrity of our elections and increasing public confidence. Only U.S. Citizens can vote in Indiana. Period.”

Federal law requires USCIS to respond to inquiries from state government agencies “to verify or ascertain the citizenship or immigration status of any individual within the jurisdiction of the agency for any purpose authorized by law.”

The letter is attached.

As part of a multistate coalition, Attorney General Rokita is also pressing federal authorities in another letter to provide a plan for how they will verify voters’ U.S. citizenship status in response to state requests. Ohio and South Carolina are leading that effort.

October 11, 2024
Ur M. Jaddou
Director
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
5900 Capital Gateway Drive
Camp Springs, Maryland 20746

Dear Ms. Jaddou:

The Offices of the Indiana Attorney General and Secretary of State request the assistance
of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) in verifying the citizenship
status of certain individuals registered to vote in Indiana. As voters in our state cast their ballots
in the coming weeks in important federal, state, and local races, it is essential that they do so with
confidence in the integrity of our elections. It is beyond question that states have a compelling
“interest in protecting the integrity and reliability of the electoral process.” Crawford v. Marion
Cnty. Election Bd., 553 U.S. 181, 191 (2008). “[P]reventing voter fraud” and thereby ensuring
“public confidence in the integrity of the electoral process,” are priorities that should be pursued
vigorously at all levels of government in our country. Id. at 197. They are essential to the proper
functioning of our constitutional Republic. One of the chief ways that we can pursue these goals
is by confirming that every person registered to vote in Indiana is a U.S. citizen. Therefore, we
ask, pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1373, that USCIS verify the citizenship status of the individuals
registered to vote in Indiana who are identified in Attachments A, B, and C of this letter.

As the Attorney General and Secretary of State of Indiana, we are tasked in various ways
with safeguarding the lawful and orderly administration of Indiana elections. See, e.g., Ind. Code
§ 3-6-4.1-22; Ind. Code § 3-6-3.7-1; Ind. Code § 3-7-26.3-10. Ensuring that our elections are
conducted in accordance with state law means, among other things, keeping ineligible voters off
our state’s voter rolls. See Ind. Code § 3-14-2-10. We take that responsibility seriously.

Under federal law, it is “unlawful for any alien to vote in any election held solely or in part
for the purpose of electing a candidate for the office of President, Vice President, Presidential
elector, Member of the Senate, [or] Member of the House of Representatives.” 18 U.S.C. § 611(a).
Federal voter registration laws require the form for federal elections to state “each eligibility
requirement (including citizenship).” 52 U.S.C. § 20504(c)(2)(C)(i). Likewise, falsely claiming
to be a citizen to register to vote or to vote in a federal, state, or local election constitutes a federal
felony punishable by up to five years in prison. See 18 U.S.C. §1015(f).

Similarly, Indiana law prohibits non-citizens from voting. Ind. Code § 3-7-13-1. Our State
Constitution expressly reserves the franchise to citizens. See, e.g., Ind. Const. Art. 2, § 2(a) (“A
citizen of the United States, who is at least eighteen (18) years of age and who has been a resident
of a precinct thirty (30) days immediately preceding an election may vote in that precinct at the
election.” (emphasis added)). And Indiana statutes governing voter registration make clear that a
person must be a “United States citizen” to register to vote. Ind. Code § 3-7-13-1. Attempting to
register or assisting someone else to register to vote when the registrant is not an eligible voter are
crimes under Indiana law. See Ind. Code § 3-14-2-1 & 2.

In addition, Indiana is obligated by federal law to “perform list maintenance” on its
statewide voter registration list—including removing voters “who are not eligible to vote” from
the voting rolls. 52 U.S.C. § 21083(a)(2)(A) & (B). Indiana law also requires Indiana election
officials to take steps to verify the residency and citizenship of registered voters. See Ind. Code §
3-7-38.2-16; Ind. Code § 3-7-38.2-7.3. State election officials are further directed to remove
ineligible voters from the voter rolls under various circumstances. See, e.g., Ind. Code § 3-7-46-
1; Ind. Code § 3-7-45-1; Ind. Code § 3-7-38.2-1.

Under current law, there is no single method for verifying to a reasonable degree of
certainty the citizenship of all Indiana voters. We therefore seek to utilize all tools at our disposal
to verify voters’ citizenship and help ensure the integrity of our state’s voter registration system.
One of those tools is provided by federal law, which requires USCIS to “respond to an inquiry by
a . . . State . . . government agency, seeking to verify or ascertain the citizenship or immigration
status of any individual within the jurisdiction of the agency for any purpose authorized by law.”
8 U.S.C. § 1373(c). Federal law also prohibits USCIS from “in any way restrict[ing], any
government entity or official from . . . receiving from [USCIS] information regarding the
citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual.” Id. § 1373(a). That
means USCIS cannot restrict its own officers and employees from responding to our request for
citizenship verification. Information provided by USCIS in response to this inquiry can then be
used by Indiana state and local officials to remove ineligible voters from our voter rolls. See
Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc., 570 U.S. 1, 15 (2013) (explaining that states may
“deny[] registration based on information in their possession establishing the applicant’s
ineligibility” (quotations omitted)).

Accordingly, we formally request that USCIS fulfil its obligations under 8 U.S.C. § 1373(c)
and verify the citizenship of the individuals identified in the attachments to this letter. The attached
lists of registered voters include all voters currently registered in Indiana who completed their
registration without submitting a state-issued form of identification. See Ind. Code §§ 3-7-33-4.7.
Although possession of a state-issued identification does not demonstrate that a person is a citizen,
the fact that a person obtained such identification provides some assurance that their citizenship or
immigration status may have been previously confirmed by a state official. See Ind. Code § 9-24-
11-5(c) (requiring the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles to issue temporary identifications to an
individual who has temporary lawful status.”).

For each individual for whom we seek verification, we have provided the name and date
of birth. That information is sufficient to allow USCIS to verify these individuals’ citizenship
status through use of USCIS’s Person Centric Query Service. In total, we seek citizenship
verification for 585,774 individuals. We have separated the individuals who are the subject of our
request into three categories: (1) registered Indiana voters who registered without providing a
driver’s license number or social security number (Attachment A); (2) registered Indiana voters
located overseas (Attachment B); and (3) registered Indiana voters who registered to vote without
providing a driver’s license number (Attachment C). We request that USCIS provide us with
verification of the citizenship statuses of these individuals in this order priority—first providing
verification for the individuals in Attachment A, followed by verification of the statuses of the
individuals’ listed in Attachments B and C.

The last day to register to vote in Indiana was October 7. Election Day is a little over three
weeks away. We are thus at a critical juncture in this election cycle when verifying the integrity
of Indiana’s voter rolls is of acute importance. Because “the right to exercise the franchise in a
free and unimpaired manner is preservative of other basic civil and political rights,” Hoosiers
deserve to know that only eligible voters will be participating in our elections, and that their votes
will not be diluted or distorted by ballots cast by non-citizens. Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533,
562 (1964). We ask that you assist us, as you are required to do by law, in giving the citizens of
our state that assurance.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this important request.
Sincerely,
___________________________ _________________________
Todd Rokita Diego Morales
Indiana Attorney General Indiana Secretary of State

The following information is provided by Indiana State Senator for District 45 Chris Garten. He is the Majority Floor Leader in the state senate. He has served Clark County and portions of Floyd Co. since 2018.

With early voting starting in Indiana and Election Day just a few weeks away, it is important Hoosiers are prepared to vote.

Indiana law requires voters show a photo identification (ID) when they cast their ballots.

The ID must:

Display your photo;
Display your name;
Display an expiration date and be current or have expired after the Nov. 5, 2024 General Election;
Be issued by the state or federal government.

If you need to update your state-issued ID, the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles will offer extended hours on Monday, Nov. 4, and Tuesday, Nov. 5.

You can find polling locations, see who is on your ballot and view any referendum questions online at IndianaVoters.com.

For more information on what Senate Republicans have done in recent years to ensure elections are secure and view tips on how to protect yourself from election-related scams, click here.

Public Question #1

When Hoosiers vote this year, they will see "Public Question #1" on their ballot.

This bipartisan measure would amend the Indiana Constitution to remove the State Superintendent of Public Instruction from the list of officeholders who could temporarily discharge the powers and duties of governor should the governor and lieutenant governor offices be vacant.

To learn more about Public Question #1 on this year's ballot, click here.

Senate Republicans Offering Paid Spring Internships

The Indiana Senate Republican Caucus is offering paid spring-semester internships in our communications, information technology, legal, legislative, page and policy offices during the 2025 session of the Indiana General Assembly.

Senate internships are full-time positions at the Statehouse in downtown Indianapolis that typically begin with a mandatory orientation in late December or early January and conclude at the end of the legislative session in April 2025.

For more information and to apply, click here.

The Washington County Board of Commissioners issued a county-wide burn ban at 11:45 a.m. Monday, Oct. 21.

The ban will remain in effect until further notice.

By Jerry Curry, Staff Writer

U.S. Congresswoman Erin Houchin, representing Indiana’s 9th Congressional District, visited Eastern High School in Pekin on Wednesday Oct.16.

She was greeted at the door by three seniors, Darren Roller, Sydney Kaelin, and Kaden Rickard.

Houchin spoke to a group of approximately 25 student council members and teaching staff about her career and educational background. The sponsors for the student council are teachers Kim Brown and Shelby Thomas.

“Government is everywhere,” was Houchin’s opening comment. She grew up in Scottsburg, the daughter of a dentist. Her father worked his way through school.

Although she did not have a goal to be in politics, she started as an intern in the state senate. She met her husband, Dustin Houchin, who also was an intern for the senate. He later got in to politics and became the Washington County Superior Court Judge.

After the internship, she took another political job that she hated, which eventually turned her against politics. She worked at this job for one year because she had a conviction to finish anything she started. Houchin then started a career in marketing.

Politics found her again when U.S. Senator Dan Coats called and offered her a job as regional director, which she accepted. Pregnancy complicated the situation, but she carried on.

Afterward, she was elected to the state senate and served for four years.

Houchin then ran and was elected to the U.S. Congress. She was the first female to serve in Indiana’s 9th Congressional District.

Presently, she is running for her second term. She has a passion to serve and get things done for people.

She said, “I like to look at life as a six-lane highway. I can chose other lanes.”

Houchin is a proud alumna of Indiana University in Bloomington and holds a degree in psychology. She also attended George Washington University and got a degree in political management.

In congress, Houchin serves on the House Financial Services, Education and Workforce, and Rules committees.

She and her family live in Salem.