INDIANAPOLIS - As the dust settles in the time-zone fray, 19 counties have asked federal officials to move them to Central time. If their wishes are heeded, almost a third of Indiana counties would be in the Central time zone.
That outcome, according to some, would mean a jagged boundary between the zones and was not at all what the Legislature intended. House Democratic Leader Pat Bauer, D-South Bend, said "pockets of lost time are all over the state" in the current scenario.
"It's a mess by asking every county to apply," Bauer said. "It's a mess that never should have happened."
But Gov. Mitch Daniels, who pushed the Legislature to pass the daylight-saving time bill that opened the debate on time zones, said he had no concerns with how the time-zone debate is playing out.
"From what I've seen, it looks to make common sense," Daniels said.
Even if all counties petitioning for Central are moved, he said, the state will still be better off and less divided, because all of it will be on daylight-saving time.
But there's no denying that some Hoosiers are holding Daniels responsible for the outcome, including several who wrote to the U.S. Department of Transportation about the issue.
Frances DeJoy of Noblesville wrote of her preference for Central time, closing with: "P.S. to Governor Daniels: I voted for you for daylight-saving time because you said you favored Central time, that is, until you flip-flopped."
But many businesses wrote in to support Eastern time, including a letter from Vectren Corp. In it, Niel C. Ellerbrook, Vectren chairman, president and CEO, concedes that the five counties in Northwest Indiana are "inextricably linked" to Chicago and should stay on Central.
But, he said, not only should no more counties be added to Central, but the five counties in Southwest Indiana that already are in the Central time zone - Gibson, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh and Warrick - should be moved to Eastern "in an effort to align them with the majority of the state."
Now that counties have voted, it comes down to simply waiting for federal transportation officials to announce a proposed rule change - their decision on a time zone boundary.
When announcing the requirements for a petition, the U.S. Department of Transportation promised to review requests on an "expedited schedule."
But agency spokesman Bill Mosley said Friday he had no idea how long a decision might take.
"I couldn't give you a specific time frame," Mosley said.
After a proposed federal decision comes out, the USDOT will open the proposal up for public comments and hold hearings in any affected areas. Mosley again said he had no idea if those hearings would be held regionally or county by county.
Federal officials would then review public comments and issue a final decision. Again, Mosley said he couldn't say how long that process might take.
And while federal officials aren't saying much, Indiana Chamber of Commerce President Kevin Brinegar said he's confident that USDOT won't add any counties to the Central Time zone. The chamber lobbied aggressively for daylight-saving time and then to keep most of Indiana in the Eastern time zone.
"I'll be very surprised if they approve anywhere near this number of petitions," he said.
Brinegar said some county commissioners voted for Central before compiling the data that was supposed to make their case. He said some contacted the chamber trying to get economic trends data that would point toward Central and were told no.
And some feel USDOT won't move many counties to Central. Rep. Dave Crooks, D-Washington, an outspoken backer of Central Time, said he's not sure what will happen. He said the current setup, with counties "pitted against each other" and battling to sway neighbors into Eastern or Central, isn't helpful.
"If I were the governor, I think I'd intervene at this point and tell (USDOT) to take no action until the General Assembly addresses it next session," Crooks said.
He said he could carry legislation in 2006 to require a statewide referendum on whether the majority of Indiana should be in Eastern or Central time.
Others say that if the eight counties in Southwestern Indiana that want to join the Central time zone are added, it could be a boost to the region. Ken Robinson, executive director for Vision-e, an economic development corporation for Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh and Warrick counties, said time-zone unity could be attractive to businesses.
"We could communicate some real continuity in Southwest Indiana," Robinson said. "There are companies that are really interested in being on the same time."
He said having more counties in sync with Evansville would eliminate some shipping and delivery confusion for companies who buy and sell parts and goods within the region. And Robinson said the fact that so many counties opted for Central shows the unity of the economy in the region.
"(Counties) must be thinking: 'Who do we relate to?'" Robinson said. "Evansville really is the central city to the region."
© 2005 The Evansville Courier Co.