LIMA, Ohio - A group of business and civic leaders is raising money in hopes of making sure that the Lima Army Tank Plant is not included in a new round of military base closings.

The group has collected $20,000 from two businesses and has another $10,000 pledged toward the fund. The group wants to use the money to make sure state and federal officials are aware of the plant's importance. The tank plant employs about 500 workers and makes the Abrams M1A2 tanks.

Under legislation passed two years ago, the Pentagon is required to present by May 2005 a list of bases it recommends for closure or realignment.

The Department of Development will provide a total of $1.5 million in grants to help local officials in five Ohio communities respond to expected announcements about bases next year.

Ind. commissioner resigns amid inquiry

INDIANAPOLIS - Gerald Coleman resigned Thursday as commissioner of the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, a state agency under investigation for alleged bribery and fraud and long criticized for poor service.

Gov. Joe Kernan appointed Mary DePrez, special counsel to the secretary for the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, to take Coleman's place with the BMV.

Coleman, who became commissioner in January 2002, has not been implicated in the investigation.

He ordered an internal investigation to determine whether branch managers knew of what prosecutors say was a bribery scheme to help foreign nationals fraudulently obtain driver's licenses. Four former workers face charges including bribery, official misconduct and attempted identity theft.

Anti-barking plan heads for final vote

MOREHEAD, Ky. - An anti-barking measure would require pet owners in Rowan County to either silence their clamorous canines or pay fines of up to $100.

The measure, which is scheduled for a final vote Feb. 17, has stirred the passions of people on both sides of the issue, but is especially irksome to those who have hunting dogs whose worth is at least partially based on how loud they can bark.

Ewell Balltrip, executive director the Kentucky Appalachian Commission, said creation of subdivisions and other housing developments in otherwise rural communities have mountain residents living closer to one another than ever before.

"That does generate a different environment and a need for new rules for living," Balltrip said.

Bob Arnold, executive director of the Kentucky Association of Counties, said he knows of no other rural community in the state that has specifically banned barking dogs.