Statehouse Update 5
Introduction
The Indiana General Assembly continued committee activities, conducted second and third readings, and passed bills from one chamber to the other during a busy legislative week in the Statehouse. Next week is the last full week for committee reports before the February 17 deadline. Bills that do not make it out of committee by the deadline will not survive this legislative session. The current total of bills for this session remains nearly 1,250, of which our office is monitoring over 250 bills that could have an impact on University operations.
The state budget (HB 1001) continued through the legislative process this week as the House Ways and Means Committee heard testimony from the public on various programs included in the Governor’s proposed budget. The next step in the budget’s legislative process is for the Committee to amend and report the bill out for second reading amendments to the full House.
Below is a sample of bills being tracked by Ball State Governmental Relations that moved during the last week. If you have questions about these or other bills that you may have heard about, please contact the Office of Governmental Relations at gov@bsu.edu.
Bills That Moved
House Bills (HB)
HB 1002 – Various Education Matters: Removes and repeals various education provisions and expired education provisions. Merges and amends provisions regarding fund distribution upon the termination of a charter and the cessation of a charter school. Amends the age eligibility for a member of a governing body. Establishes information that must be included in a consolidated audit by an organizer. Provides adult high schools are excluded from all cohort based graduation rate calculations except to the extent required under federal law. Amends the termination and notice requirements with regard to terminating a transportation program. Relocates a provision regarding trauma informed classroom instruction curriculum in teacher preparation programs. Provides that a provision that decreases state tuition support for failure to meet student instructional day. This bill passed out of the House on third reading (Yeas: 75, Nays: 16) and was referred to the Senate.
HB 1032 – Foreign Interests: Prohibits a prohibited person from entering into a contract for the provision of goods or services with the state, a state agency, and a political subdivision. Requires agents acting on behalf of certain countries of concern to register with the attorney general. Establishes the foreign adversary enforcement fund. Requires schools and school corporations in Indiana to disclose certain foreign gifts and contracts. Requires public and private postsecondary educational institutions in Indiana to disclose certain foreign gifts and contracts. Prohibits certain individuals and business entities from acquiring: (1) an interest in business entities governed under Indiana law; and (2) real property located in Indiana. Requires certain individuals and business entities to divest their ownership of any interests in business entities or real property not later than January 1, 2026. Repeals existing statutes regarding foreign ownership of real property. This bill was held in the House Judiciary Committee and rescheduled for a hearing on February 10.
HB 1203 – Reservist Tuition Supplement Program: Establishes the reservist tuition supplement program fund (fund). Requires the commission for higher education to administer the fund and use money in the fund to award scholarships to eligible applicants. This bill passed out of the House Education Committee (Yeas: 11, Nays: 0) and was recommitted to the House Ways and Means Committee.
HB 1235 – Military and Veteran Matters: Expands the eligibility requirements for admission to the Indiana Veterans' Home. Adds a definition of an "eligible person" for purposes of administering grants for veteran services (GVS). Provides that a qualified entity may receive a GVS to provide certain services to support an eligible person. Makes changes to the qualifications to receive a veteran's burial allowance. Establishes the Medal of Honor license plate. Restores a provision of current law concerning certain disability ratings, as determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, and educational cost exemptions. Provides that the disability ratings and educational cost exemptions apply to an individual whose parent enlisted in the armed forces after June 30, 2017 (instead of June 30, 2011). Updates references throughout the Indiana Code relating to the armed forces of the United States or uniformed services to include the United States Space Force. Replaces references to an honorable discharge with references to a discharge under conditions other than dishonorable. Makes technical changes to various references relating to the components of the armed forces of the United States. Makes technical corrections. This bill passed out of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and Public Safety (Yeas: 11, Nays: 0) and was recommitted to the House Ways and Means Committee.
HB 1326 – Student and Teaching Scholarships: Provides that a student must be at least three years of age to qualify for a scholarship granting organization scholarship and removes income eligibility requirements. (Currently, the student must be at least four years of age to qualify and be a member of a household with a certain annual income.) Provides that applicants enrolled in a transition to teaching program after June 30, 2024, may qualify for certain scholarships if the applicant is a member of a household with an annual income of not more than 400% of the amount required for the applicant to qualify for the federal free or reduced price lunch program. (Currently, the annual income threshold is $100,000 or less.) Permits the commission for higher education to use the remaining balance allocated to certain teaching scholarships or in certain teaching scholarship funds to fund additional specified teaching scholarships. This bill passed the House Education Committee (Yeas: 6, Nays: 4) and was recommitted to the House Ways and Means Committee.
HB 1634 – Math Education: Requires each school corporation and charter middle school to automatically enroll a student who meets certain conditions in a middle school advanced math course. Allows a parent of a student to opt out of automatic enrollment. Allows a parent of a student who does not meet the conditions for automatic enrollment to opt the student into a middle school advanced math course. Establishes requirements regarding: (1) mathematics screening, evaluation, and intervention; and (2) teacher preparation program math curriculum and content. This bill passed out of the House Education Committee (Yeas: 11, Nays: 0) and is now eligible for second reading amendments on the House floor.
Senate Bills (SB)
SB 120 – DNA Samples at Time of Arrest: Requires a sheriff to take a DNA sample of a person taken into custody for a felony. Provides that it is a Class C misdemeanor if a person refuses to provide a DNA sample to a sheriff. This bill passed after second reading amendments and is eligible for third reading in the Senate.
SB 146 – Teacher Compensation: Requires the department of education to submit a report to the general assembly before November 1, 2025, that provides an analysis of the feasibility and cost of increasing school corporation employee health plan options. Creates the Indiana teacher recruitment program and fund. Provides 20 days of paid leave for a full-time teacher employed by a school corporation and 10 days of paid leave for a part-time teacher employed by a school corporation upon: (1) the birth of the teacher's child; (2) the birth of a child to the teacher's spouse; (3) the placement of a child for adoption with the teacher; or (4) the stillbirth of the teacher's child. Removes a prohibition on ranking teacher preparation programs. Beginning June 30, 2025: (1) increases the minimum salary for a teacher employed by a school corporation to $45,000 (current law requires $40,000); and (2) requires a school corporation to expend an amount for teacher compensation that is not less than 65% of state tuition support (current law requires 62%). Changes the name of the "teacher appreciation grant" to the "teacher incentivization grant". Amends the requirements regarding the teacher incentivization grant. Joins the interstate teacher mobility compact. This bill passed third reading (Yeas: 50, Nays: 0) and was referred to the House.
SB 255 – Education Matters: Requires the department of education to grant an initial practitioner license to an individual who: (1) holds a bachelor's degree with a major in any combination of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; (2) successfully completes a total of at least nine academic credits regarding certain instruction in teaching; and (3) meets other specified requirements. Requires a principal to allow a student who is enrolled in a public secondary school to receive religious instruction for a period or periods that do not exceed the amount of time that is equivalent to attending one elective course at the public secondary school during the week. (Current law provides for a period or periods of not more than 120 minutes in total in any week.) Changes certain requirements regarding the reporting of a bullying "incident" to the reporting of a bullying "investigation". Requires discipline rules to include a provision to make a reasonable attempt to notify both the parent of a targeted student and the parent of an alleged perpetrator that the school is investigating a possible incident of bullying before the end of the calendar day on which the school is made aware of the possible incident of bullying. This bill passed third reading (Yeas: 49, Nays: 0) and was referred to the House.
SB 285 – Comparative College and Career Information: Tasks the commission for higher education (commission) and the department of workforce development with collecting and compiling certain information concerning: (1) postsecondary education; (2) career and technical education; (3) workforce qualifications; (4) workforce earnings; and (5) workforce debt. Requires the commission to create an interactive website known as the student horizon dashboard to provide public access to certain collected and compiled information. Requires the commission, with assistance from the department of education and the department of workforce development, to create a report known as the student graduate horizon scorecard (scorecard) for annual distribution. Specifies that the scorecard must contain certain information concerning high paying civilian and military careers and in demand jobs. Requires the commission to prepare an annual report for the legislative council. Requires state educational institutions and career and technical education centers to collect and provide information as requested by the commission. This bill passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee (Yeas: 13, Nays: 0) and is eligible for second reading amendments on the Senate floor.
SB 289 – Nondiscrimination in Employment and Education: Requires a school corporation, charter school, state agency, and political subdivision to post on its website certain training and curricular materials concerning nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, inclusion, race, ethnicity, sex, and bias. Provides that a school corporation, charter school, state agency, or political subdivision may not: (1) require or otherwise compel a student of the school corporation or charter school or an employee to affirm, adopt, or adhere to certain beliefs or concepts; or (2) use public funds to contract with, hire, or otherwise engage consultants, trainers, or other persons to take certain actions to promote the beliefs or concepts. Provides that a school corporation, charter school, state agency, political subdivision, or an employee of a school corporation, charter school, state agency, or political subdivision may not, in the course or scope of public service or employment, promote, embrace, or endorse stereotypes. Establishes a process for an employee, a parent, or an emancipated student to file a complaint of a violation. Allows the attorney general to file an action for mandate to compel a school corporation, charter school, state agency, or political subdivision to comply with certain requirements. This bill passed third reading (Yeas: 34, Nays: 13) and was referred to the House.
SB 365 – Education Matters: Requires the department of education (department), in collaboration with the commission for higher education (commission) and the department for workforce development, to create a combined return on investment report for specified programs. Requires the department, in collaboration with the commission and the department for workforce development, to collect and maintain certain data concerning the specified programs. Requires the department to publish the return on investment report on the department's website and submit the report to the governor's workforce cabinet and the legislative council. Provides that the department shall administer and implement the career navigation coaching system developed by the commission. Establishes the career coaching fund (fund) and provides that the department shall administer the fund. Provides certain requirements for an eligible entity to receive a grant from the fund. Requires the department to prepare a report concerning career coaching and submit the report to the governor and legislative council. Requires the department of workforce development to update wage threshold data used to categorize career and technical education programs for use in the subsequent school year. Makes conforming changes. This bill passed the Senate Committee on Education and Career Development (Yeas: 10, Nays: 3) and is eligible for second reading amendments.
SB 448 – Higher Education and Workforce Development Matters: Requires the Indiana management performance hub, in collaboration with the department of education (department), to: (1) collect and compile certain student income data; and (2) report certain credential information on the department's website. Requires the secretary of education to establish a plan to develop a market driven stackable credentials and qualifications framework and submit the plan to the general assembly. Provides that the commission for higher education (commission) shall (instead of may) approve or disapprove certain branches, campuses, centers, new colleges, new schools, degrees, or programs. Provides that before the commission approves or disapproves a degree or program, a state educational institution shall provide, and the commission shall consider, certain information regarding the degree or program. Requires the commission to: (1) review each degree or program for approval or disapproval at least one time every 10 years; (2) outline a process for degree and program monitoring, improvement, suspension, and closure; (3) publish certain information; and (4) take official action regarding the approval or disapproval of certain requests within 90 days. Requires the commission to prepare and submit an annual report to the legislative council regarding certain student enrollment data. This bill passed out of the Senate Committee on Education and Career Development (Yeas: 13, Nays: 0) and was reassigned to the Appropriations Committee.
Looking Ahead
Next week we can expect the General Assembly to continue to increase committee activity, hold second and third readings, and pass bills from one chamber to another. We will continue to monitor important legislation and provide weekly updates.