Indiana woman gets 4 years for fatal school bus stop crash
An Indiana woman who plowed her pickup truck into four children, killing three of them, while they crossed a highway to board a school bus was sentenced Wednesday to four years in prison.
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Vaping crisis could be impetus for Legislature to raise smoking age to 21
Time and again, legislation in Indiana to raise the age to possess or purchase tobacco to 21 has failed. But that could be about to change.
Indiana resisting marijuana trend of neighboring states
Indiana’s Republican Statehouse leaders are firmly against taking any steps toward following neighboring states in legalizing marijuana use during the upcoming legislative session. But they might not be able to avoid talking about it during the 2020 election campaign.
Holcomb backs ban on drivers using handheld phones
Indiana’s governor on Tuesday threw his support behind a statewide ban on drivers using handheld cellphones as well as a plan to raise the minimum age for smoking and vaping to 21. Gov. Eric Holcomb made the proposals central to his 2020 legislative agenda.
‘Children are children’: Coalition forms after legislative attempt to lower waiver age
The Children’s Policy and Law Initiative of Indiana and more than 20 nonprofits and community groups have joined together to form the Indiana Coalition for Youth Justice, which advocates for reform in the juvenile justice system so that it offers treatment, programs and interventions that are age-appropriate, fairly applied and result in the best possible outcomes for Indiana children and public safety.
DCS troubles continue with arrest of former caseworker
Despite the attention the Statehouse has given to the Indiana Department of Child Services in the past two years – hiring outside consultants to review the agency and passing numerous laws regarding policies and practices within the department – an arrest of a former caseworker on neglect charges is bringing another call for more changes.
Web Exclusive: Inmates pursue legislative opportunities through public policy course
When a college program was crafted for the Indiana Women’s Prison in 2012, director Kelsey Kauffman knew she wanted to teach women about public policy. But the experience also became a life lesson that gave some of the women a new mission after their lives behind bars.
Panel recommends boosting Indiana’s cigarette age to 21
An Indiana legislative panel is recommending that Indiana’s legal age for buying cigarettes be raised from 18 to 21.
Mobile sports betting will launch Oct. 3
Mobile sports betting will officially launch in Indiana on Oct. 3, enabling Hoosiers to wager through their phones or computers without ever visiting a casino.
NCAA urges California governor not to sign ‘fair pay’ bill
The Indianapolis-based NCAA’s Board of Governors is urging Gov. Gavin Newsom not to sign a California bill that would allow college athletes to receive money for their names, likenesses or images.
Study committee begins summer review of criminal justice reform initiatives
As criminal justice reform efforts continue across the state, members of the Indiana General Assembly are meeting this summer to discuss issues related to pre-trial release, indigency and sentencing, among others.
Ban on Indiana abortion parental notification law upheld
A federal appeals court has upheld an injunction blocking a 2017 Indiana law that would have required parental notification for mature minors seeking an abortion. One member of the three-judge panel dissented, however, and would have allowed the law to take effect.
Supreme Court rolls out updated child support calculators
Practitioners and parents alike now have access to updated child support calculators, the Indiana Supreme Court announced Tuesday. The new calculators were updated to comply with House Enrolled Act 1520, which changes the conditions of terminating a parent’s child support duty.
Judge blocks Indiana law banning second-trimester abortion procedure
A federal judge late Friday issued an injunction blocking a new Indiana law from taking effect that would have prohibited the most common procedure used to perform second-trimester abortions. Senior Judge Sarah Evans Barker’s 53-page order blocks enactment of House Enrolled Act 1211, which she noted banned “an abortion procedure known to medicine as ‘dilation and evacuation’… and referred to by its political opponents as ‘dismemberment abortion.’”
New laws for 2019
The following enrolled acts, followed in parentheses by their corresponding public law numbers, take effect July 1 unless otherwise noted below.
Zipping into statutes: Overview of new laws for 2019
Although the $34 billion budget dominated the session, legislators introduced and considered more than 600 bills each in both the Senate and the House. The ones they passed covered a variety of matters, including hate crimes, hemp, gambling, foster parents, electricity generation and, of course, electric scooters.
Introduced, debated but not passed in the General Assembly
Not every bill introduced gains the traction needed to get to the governor’s desk. Many times, a proposed new law fails to get a committee hearing, or it stalls once it reaches the floor. Other times, as a measure progresses through the Statehouse, it ignites disagreements that are ultimately too much to overcome.
After years, administrative law reform clears Statehouse
The idea of revamping the state’s administrative law system has been floating around the Statehouse for years, but during the 2019 session, the reform effort finally gained broad support that has resulted in a new law proponents say will bring independence and transparency to the proceedings.
Report: Indiana opioid prescriptions fell by 35% since 2013
A national report says opioid prescriptions in Indiana have decreased by 35.1 percent over five years. The American Medical Association Opioid Task Force 2019 Progress Report shows Indiana’s reduction in opioid prescriptions from 2013 to 2018 is two percentage points higher than the national average of 33 percent.
New DCS laws bringing changes to agency, foster parent system
Holding her infant foster daughter, attorney Kiamesha Colom explained in simple terms a 13-page bill that revamps parts of Indiana’s foster care system. Come July 1, she and her husband, like other long-term foster parents around the state, will be able to have more of a say in the care and protection of their baby.