Political Notebook - The blog

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A good cause

New House Ways and Means Chairman Tim Brown has brought a deliberate vibe to the fiscal-minded committee.

The Crawfordsville Republican starts every meeting with a moment of silent reflection.

Afterward, he points to a jar of money sitting in front of him as the penalty jar for cell phones. At that point lobbyists all around the room -- and a few lawmakers -- can be seen reaching for their devices and setting it to silent.

"Good, that's the way it's supposed to work," Brown says.

Every once in a while a phone goes off and someone drops a dollar into the jar. Brown also gives the money to a local charity every few weeks.

To contact Niki Kelly email her at nkelly@jg.net or follow her on Twitter @nkellyatJG.

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