EDITORIAL: Indiana legislators spent too much negative energy

Legislators had to back off from two of the most controversial bills they passed during the four-month session that ended Wednesday.

On the final day, they softened their action reducing the influence of Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz.

A bill that once called for removing Ritz immediately as chair of the State Board of Education now postpones that possibility until 2017. That means Ritz can keep the chairmanship for the rest of her current four-year term.

Republicans who oppose Ritz might need to use their bill in 2017, because by targeting Ritz for the past four months, they may have improved her chances to be re-elected.

Earlier, lawmakers backed down from the Religious Freedom Restoration Act by passing a quick fix that assured it could not be used to discriminate against same-sex couples. That came after major Hoosier businesses, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and other groups complained loudly about the law.

This may not have ranked as the most divisive session of the Legislature in recent memory. It’s hard to top 2011 when Democrats boycotted the proceedings and took up residence in an Illinois motel to delay passage of a right-to-work law.

Still, this has to go down as one of the most disappointing recent years at the Statehouse, falling far short of its potential for progress.

Hoosier voters have shown they solidly prefer Republican leadership — and for many good reasons involving fiscal responsibility, economic growth and protection of individual liberties.

Given their strongest legislative majority in generations, Republicans missed an opportunity to put their positive stamp on the state. They spent too much time on negative energy — battling Ritz and gay marriage — and not enough on building a state where all Hoosiers can be more prosperous. It was too much dividing, not enough uniting.

The Legislature’s most important job is passing a two-year state budget. Half of that budget goes for public education, making it the No. 1 priority.

Lawmakers did well for Indiana schools as a whole. They approved healthy funding increases of 2.3 percent in each of the next two years.

Republicans previously changed Indiana’s way of compensating teachers from a seniority-based system to a model that rewards the best teachers for their skills. To have a chance to succeed by keeping and attracting outstanding teachers, that system needs enough money to make merit raises meaningful.

But the funding increase for every school district is different, and it appears most school districts in northeast Indiana will get less than the statewide 2.3 percent average. A few actually may see decreases.

Fighting for fair treatment of local schools ought to be Job One for local legislators.

Still, some positive news came out of Indianapolis. Legislators made a strong investment in community corrections programs aimed at breaking the cycle of crime while saving money on prisons. They increased spending on mental health and addiction treatment for offenders to get at the root causes of crime.

Lawmakers allocated money to reduce Indiana’s high rate of infant mortality and doubled spending to prevent domestic violence. Highway spending received a $200 million boost.

This set of legislators stumbled often in 2015, but will get another chance to make a better Indiana in the 2016 session.

We hope they will find the delicate balance in which Indiana can be attractive to employers without being hostile to workers, welcoming to all while respecting differences and in step with the rest of the nation while maintaining our what makes us special as Hoosiers.