Pence disaster relief denial leaves legislators scrambling to help East Chicago

Members of the Lake County delegation rallied around a series of proposals to provide financial assistance to the city and school district; push for cleanup and testing efforts; and better assist residents being forced to relocate because of contamination at the U.S.S. Lead Superfund site.

The legislators' push began as the start of the new session began, weeks after Pence, now the vice-president elect, denied Mayor Anthony Copeland's request for assistance.

"It's disappointing to have our previous governor deny the request," said Rep. Earl Harris Jr., D-East Chicago, because it's not something the mayor would have asked for without needing it.

People can't do anything about something that's already happened, Harris said, and it's important to look forward and get things done.

Pence's administration denied the request, according to a Dec. 14 letter city officials released Wednesday, citing a series of services the state had supplied to city officials to assist residents at the U.S.S. Lead Superfund site. City officials said the mayor plans to submit a new request to Gov. Eric Holcomb.

"Given the level of coordination among federal, state and local agencies, the state resources provided to date and the resources available under the federal Superfund program, the issues described within your letter are being addressed without the need for a disaster emergency declaration," wrote Mark Ahearn, Pence's general counsel, in a letter to Copeland. "Should new needs arise, we recommend that they be managed on a case-by-case basis to determine the best course of action."

Harris said East Chicago is facing some serious issues that are affecting people's lives and health.

The most important goal of the legislation is getting people into a safe situation," Harris said.

"That's the bottom line for me," he said.

East Chicago and Northwest Indiana have been economic engines for the state, Harris said, and has done its part to build up the area and economy as a whole.

"It's now our time to ask for help," Harris said.

Copeland, in his request, said the city needs more resources to address ongoing issues at the Superfund site as the city cannot handle all the cost itself.

"The residents of my city, my staff, other local officials and I have been laboring under conditions which are not of our making, but which cry out for help," Copeland wrote to Pence on Dec. 1.

Copeland noted, in the letter, that Indiana code defined a disaster as "being an occurrence or imminent threat of widespread severe damage, injury, loss of life or property damage from a utility failure, public health emergency, blight or other public calamity."

The resources of East Chicago are strained to the "point of breaking," Copeland wrote, and resources from the state are needed to adequately respond to the continuing crisis.

Harris' bill would compel the Indiana Department of Environmental Management to assist with clean up of the U.S.S. Lead Superfund site and test soil and water throughout the city; have the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority to work with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to relocate residents of West Calumet; and request the U.S. Department of Education assist the school district to cover the cost of students who left the district during the relocation process.

Sen. Frank Mrvan, D-Hammond, put in a bill, which was sent to the Appropriations Committee for review, would take money from the Department of Homeland Security and disburse it to eligible agencies dealing with lead and arsenic contamination in East Chicago. Should the bill pass, $2.5 million would be available to the city during the next two budget years.

Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago, filed a bill to assist the School City of East Chicago, which shuttered the former Carrie Gosch School because of concerns about the high lead and arsenic levels in the ground at the U.S.S. Lead Superfund site.

The bill, should it pass, would provide $2.2 million to pay off the loan on the now-closed Carrie Gosch, according to the bill text, and $2.8 million to offset a disaster loan to district got to cover the costs of relocating school operations to the former West Side Junior High School building.

Harris entered an identical proposal in the House of Representatives.

At this point, Harris said it's critical that community members and organizations get involved and start putting pressure on officials to move these initiatives forward.

"The bigger your numbers are, the more success you'll have," Harris said. "That's reality."

Mrvan and Randolph could not be reached for comment Thursday.