Statehouse Update 2
Introduction
The second week of the 2022 Legislative Session has been filled with committee hearings, as well as the continued introduction of bills. This week, the House and Senate introduced nearly 250 bills, bringing the current total for this session to just over 830 bills. To date, Ball State’s Office of Governmental Relations is tracking nearly 200 bills.
On Tuesday, Governor Eric Holcomb gave his 6th State of the State address. He commended the efforts in retaining Indiana’s reputation in sound fiscal management and gave mention to the current state of the pandemic. He notably identified key ongoing initiatives including investments in economic development, education and our communities. During the address, Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch advocated for statewide strategy in supporting mental health.
Please see below for a list of bills being tracked by our office that have either been introduced or have moved during the last week. If you have questions about these bills or other legislation filed this session, please contact the Office of Governmental Relations at gov@bsu.edu.
Introduced Bills
House:
HB 1362 - Education matters: Contains provisions related to K-12 curriculum. Also includes provisions prohibiting a teacher prep program from including or promoting certain concepts as part of a course of instruction. Concepts related to sex, race, ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, or political affiliation.
HB 1388 - Education costs reduction: Provides new eligibility requirements for applicants whose mother or father are actively serving on Title 10 or Title 32 orders and have either served during wartime or performed equally hazardous duty, or who have received a Purple Heart decoration or have been wounded. Provides for educational cost reductions of certain amounts for applicants who have qualified under the new requirements.
HB 1403 - Hazing: Requires: (1) a postsecondary educational institution; and (2) a national organization that sponsors or recognizes a local affiliate organization that includes students of a postsecondary educational institution; to develop and conduct an educational program on hazing. Includes provisions regarding allegation reports and contributory hazing.
Senate:
SB 276 - Cause of action for civil rights violations: Prohibits a governmental entity (entity), including a state educational institution (institution), from discriminating against persons: (1) over the exercise of rights provided or protected by the Constitution of the United States; or (2) by granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting. Specifies certain exemptions. Provides that prohibited discrimination may be asserted as a claim or defense in a judicial or administrative proceeding regardless of whether the relevant entity or institution is a party to the proceeding. Provides that, if the relevant entity or institution is not a party to a proceeding, the relevant entity or institution has an unconditional right to intervene in order to respond to an action or claim alleging discrimination. Specifies certain awards and remedies. Defines certain terms.
SB 286 - Prohibition on employer immunization requirements: Prohibits an employer from requiring an employee or prospective employee to inject, ingest, inhale, or otherwise incorporate an immunization in the employee's or prospective employee's body as a condition of employment or as a condition of receiving additional compensation or benefits. Allows for a civil action against an employer for a violation.
SB 287 - Health and immunization matters: Provides provisions regarding COVID-19 immunization passports, budgetary regulations and immunization status discrimination for state educational institutions. Also includes prohibitions for the medical licensing board of Indiana or the Indiana board of pharmacy from taking disciplinary action against a physician or pharmacist based on the failure to follow certain guidelines, recommendations, or rules regarding COVID-19.
SB 366 - Higher education funding: Includes requirements for the commission on higher education to create a higher educational operating funding performance based formula and higher educational capital project evaluation metrics in each year prior to a budget session of the general assembly. Provides requirements for the commission to base its recommendations for capital projects based on the evaluation metrics. Also includes reporting and communication-based provisions for the budget committee and the commission upon a biannual third-party audit for the funding formula.
SB 415 - School discrimination: Provides that a teacher, administrator, or other employee of a school corporation or charter school shall not require or make part of a course certain concepts related to race or sex. Provides that a school corporation or a charter school, or an employee of a state agency, school corporation, or charter school acting in an official capacity, shall not direct or otherwise compel a school employee to personally affirm, adopt, or adhere to certain tenets relating to race or sex. Provides that a student enrolled at a state educational institution shall not be required to engage in any form of mandatory gender or sexual diversity training or counseling. Provides that any orientation or requirement that presents any form of race or sex stereotyping or a bias on the basis of race or sex is prohibited.
Bills that moved:
House:
HB 1003 - Nursing programs and licensing matters: Provides that the state board of nursing (board) shall issue by endorsement a license to practice as a registered nurse or practical nurse to an applicant who is a graduate of a foreign nursing school and provides certain documentation. Allows an eligible associate degree or bachelor's degree registered nursing program to increase enrollment at any rate deemed appropriate by the program. Allows a nursing program to substitute a certain number of simulation hours for clinical hours in certain circumstances. Establishes requirements for clinical preceptors. Provides that a majority of the faculty of each nursing program is not required to be full-time employees of an institution. Requires the board to amend or adopt rules to implement certain provisions. Requires the Indiana professional licensing agency to issue a temporary license to an individual who meets certain requirements in order to provide temporary health care services in Indiana. Makes conforming changes. Bill was passed in the House Public Health Committee and is now eligible for second reading amendments on the House floor.
HB 1107 - Various education matters: Includes provisions regarding education and career support pilot program. Allows the Commission for Higher Education to apply for funding for the pilot program. Also allows state educational institutions to apply to be apart of the pilot program. Heard by the House Education Committee.
HB 1134 - Education matters: Contains provisions related to K-12 curriculum. Also includes provisions prohibiting a teacher prep program from including or promoting certain concepts as part of a course of instruction. Bill was amended and passed in the House Education Committee and is now eligible for second reading amendments on the House floor.
Senate:
SB 91 - Accreditation of teacher preparation programs: Allows a teacher preparation program to report the program's admission practices, in accordance with the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP) standards, for teacher preparation programs accredited by the AAQEP. Requires the department of education to approve at least two accreditors that: (1) accredit teacher preparation programs; and (2) are recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation; to accredit teacher preparation programs for use in Indiana. Heard by the Senate Education and Career Development Committee and is scheduled for another hearing.
SB 167 - Education matters: Contains provisions related to k-12 curriculum. Also includes provisions prohibiting a teacher prep program from including or promoting certain concepts as part of a course of instruction. Concepts related to sex, race, ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, or political affiliation. Heard by the Senate Education and Career Development Committee and is scheduled for another hearing.
