Indiana Senate leaders release their latest state budget proposal. Here’s what’s in and what’s out.
Senate fiscal leaders presented a conservative state budget plan Thursday morning that drops universal school choice and extraneous spending.
State Government
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Q&A with Rodric Bray: Indiana Senate’s top leader talks legal experience, decriminalizing marijuana
Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, an attorney, said he doesn’t see himself as dictatorial, but as a consensus builder.
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Advocates hope move by state to expand parental leave will inspire private sector
Under Gov. Mike Braun’s new policy, all women employed by the state, including both full- and part-time workers, are eligible for up to six weeks of paid childbirth recovery leave.
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Braun’s top lawyer knows state government from the inside
Patrick Price, Gov. Mike Braun’s newly minted general counsel, has provided legal guidance for the State Budget Agency, Indiana Department of Revenue, Indiana Office of Technology and the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
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Finding freedom? Noncompete agreements facing stiff challenges on state, federal level
Noncompete agreements are taking center stage in the Indiana Statehouse and on the federal level this year.
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Articles
After third committee vote, Delta-8 regulations head to Indiana House floor
Senate Bill 478 sets out advertising, age-limit, licensing, packaging, testing and other requirements for the hemp-derived products.
Braun orders state-affiliated nonprofits to produce missed transparency reports
The Governor’s Office singled out the Indiana Economic Development Foundation, which supports IEDC travel and business-attraction efforts, for failing to produce years of transparency reports.
Indiana Lt. Gov. announces spending cuts — along with taxpayer-funded car buy
Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith’s office said it won’t renew almost $150,000 in other contracts for services such as professional development and graphic design.
Indiana Senate committee advances marijuana billboard advertising ban
Lawmakers said they’d be open to expanding the prohibition to other forms of advertising, too.
Poacher-reporting program racks up tips, pays rewards
The total number of tips approached 600 in 2022, then shot up to nearly 900 in 2023 and crossed 1,000 last year for the first time in at least a decade.
Governor’s office clarifies intentions for Indiana Historical Society building
Gov. Mike Braun’s office maintains the intention is not to force the nonprofit to give up its building.
Where do federal funding cuts leave Indiana?
The state of Indiana receives more than $20 billion from the federal government annually and is the third-most reliant state on federal funding, according to one study.
Braun executive orders seek to limit misuse of unemployment benefits
For eligible Hoosiers on unemployment, Gov. Mike Braun said he wants the state’s unemployment program to provide more job assistance support and become a “springboard” for opportunity.
State’s proposed budget could cost Indiana Historical Society its building
The historical society owns the downtown Indianapolis building where its headquarters, museum and archives are housed. However, the state owns the land.
LEAP spending nears $1B with projected budget shielded, investigation finds
The LEAP Research and Innovation District, led by the Indiana Economic Development Corp., is among the costliest economic development projects Indiana has attempted. But the agency’s structure obscures its spending and who benefits.
Senate advances new $500 child tax credit
Bill author Sen. Greg Walker, R-Columbus, said the tax credit is one of many measures lawmakers should consider to make it easier for Hoosiers to afford to have children.
Some local governments are slowing spending as lawmakers debate property tax cuts
The bill would reduce property taxes—and therefore reduce local government revenue—by about $1.4 billion over three years, according to the bill’s fiscal plan.
Illinois secession bill passes first hurdle
Republican House Speaker Todd Huston’s proposal would create a commission tasked with exploring the secession and transfer of certain Illinois counties to Indiana.
Five takeaways from the House Republican state budget plan
The two-year spending plan funds many of Gov. Mike Braun’s agenda items—including additional funding for private school vouchers—but doesn’t include several state tax cuts the new governor proposed.
Social media ban for Hoosiers under 16 gets Indiana Senate greenlight
A bill prohibiting some Hoosier minors from using social media without their parents’ permission received bipartisan support in the Indiana Senate on Thursday and moved to the House for further consideration.
Indiana Senate committee advances several health care bills
Legislators voted to advance five health care-related bills, including measures banning non-compete agreements for physicians and placing limits on prior authorization.
State leaders pressure IU to ensure Kinsey Institute’s compliance with 2023 funding ban
Republican state leaders, including Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith, joined Purple for Parents of Indiana on Wednesday to call for continued scrutiny to ensure compliance with a 2023 state law barring state dollars from being used by the sex research organization.
Braun orders remote state workers back to office, eliminates DEI in first executive actions
By ending the pandemic-era measure, all state agencies must require their full-time workers to be back in office by July 1.
School districts, coalitions punch back at bill that would close their doors
A Republican-backed bill that could dissolve five Indiana school districts, including Indianapolis Public Schools, sparked backlash from advocates and district leaders who argue the legislation unfairly targets high-poverty and urban districts that primarily educate children of color.