With bankruptcy law offices serving clients in 38 Indiana counties, I’m always interested in good news about employment in any part of our state. Just a few days ago, I was relaying news from the Honda plant in Greensburg, east of Indianapolis (see Debt And Possible Bankruptcy On Wheels For Car Companies And Car Owners). Now, I learn, there’s news of a very exciting new development coming from the west
North America’s largest pipeline project is just beginning construction on the Indiana segment of the pipeline, which will cover 366 of the 1600 total miles from the Rockies to the east coast. Federal funding for the Rockies Express East natural gas pipeline is already in place, and hundreds of workers are beginning to converge on the area in and around Cloverdale in western Indiana. Most exciting, pipeline officials estimate the project will bring more than $500 million dollars into our state’s economy over the coming eight months. That’s very good news for my Indiana small business owner clients, as well as for all my individual bankruptcy clients as they rebuild their finances and seek work.
Meanwhile, back in Indianapolis where my bankruptcy law practice is headquartered, there’s good news from a firm called Premiere Credit. Premiere has a government contract to collect student loans. While that may sound like bad news for my Indiana clients (remember, as I pointed out in (see Being Smart About Student Loans), in most cases student loans cannot be discharged in bankruptcy), the fact is, Premiere has plans to hire hundreds of collection agents and managers.
From the northeast comes news of Brevini Company, the wind turbine transmission manufacturer from Italy, which is in the process of moving its U.S. headquarters to Yorktown, Indiana, creating close to 500 new jobs. In Marion, Trienda, a Wisconsin plastic pallet maker, is moving into part of the old Thompson plan and plans to hire 50 workers to start.
Is all the news rosy around Indiana? Of course not! Job layoffs, traditionally one of the Big Three drivers of bankruptcy (along with divorce and medical costs) seem to happen every day in our state. In my bankruptcy law offices I see the “fallout” from layoffs, perhaps to a greater degree than at any previous time in my nearly twenty five year career.
But what I also see is all the new enterprise and all the new job opportunities. As Indiana continues to replace lost jobs, I know my Indiana bankruptcy clients will benefit.