Companies like Google, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon are building large data centers in Indiana for AI. Each one requires power 24/7 — and a lot of it. But Indiana utilities weren’t anticipating this when they made plans to get more power from sources like wind and solar. Data centers could delay utilities’ efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

It’s two weeks into Indiana’s legislative session, and lawmakers across the state have filed more than 2,200 bills, only a fraction of which will become law. Here’s a look at what Southern Indiana officials are focused on.

Last year, Indiana was one of just 10 states chosen as part of a federal demonstration program to increase access to mental health and substance use disorder resources. The state’s eight pilot sites received their designations as Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics at the beginning of this year.

The Clean Water Indiana Program usually provides matching dollars to help farmers and landowners implement practices like cover cropping and no-till agriculture — to keep the soil from eroding and getting into local waterways.

Indiana’s Lifeline Law — which provides immunity from underage drinking charges for people who seek police or medical help — has been in place for more than a decade.

A measure proposed by state lawmakers and endorsed by the Indiana secretary of education would raise teacher pay to a minimum of $45,000 and provide teachers with up to 20 days of paid parental leave.

Hoosiers on unemployment insurance could see the maximum length of benefits cut nearly in half under a new proposal heard in a Senate committee.

Gov. Mike Braun hopes to “look for efficiencies” in Indiana’s environmental rules to make them more business-friendly. His pick to head the Indiana Department of Environmental Management is likely the right person for the job.

Legislation proposing a change to how farmland property taxes are calculated could reduce farmers’ bills by more than $100 million a year.

New Gov. Mike Braun unveils his budget proposal. House Republicans release their agenda. And the Black Legislative Caucus discusses its priorities for 2025.