Indiana lawmakers kill drug screening for welfare
The measure failed in the last minutes of the General Assembly session Thursday. The House passed the measure 81-17, but the Senate voted 24-24 against the bill.
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Statehouse update: Guns in school parking lots, concussion training, veterans clinics and more
High-profile bills on mass-transit, road funding and business taxes passed the Indiana General Assembly on Thursday, but so did several other pieces of legislation. Here’s a rundown.
General Assembly passes bill to legalize industrial hemp
A bill to legalize the cultivation of industrial hemp in Indiana is headed to Gov. Mike Pence after it passed the House on Wednesday night and the Senate on Thursday.
Compromise bill allows state to spend $200M on interstates
The House passed the compromise bill 95-4, even as a number of lawmakers – including Democrats – complained that the legislation doesn’t include any money for local roads.
Preschool pilot program headed to Pence’s desk
The General Assembly has approved a pilot program to send low-income children in five counties to preschool.
Indiana lawmakers pass package of business tax cuts
The corporate income tax and state banking tax would be reduced to 4.9 percent and local governments would be left to decide whether to cut the business equipment tax.
Lawmakers create an exit plan for takeover schools
A bill passed by the Indiana General Assembly this year could help bring takeover schools out of their status as islands and reconnect them to larger school systems.
Pence signs military relief fund changes into law
The measure will make about 26,000 Indiana veterans who served in the Armed Forces or National Guard after Sept. 11, 2001, eligible for grant payments through the state's Military Family Relief Fund starting July 1.
Statehouse update: Abandoned houses, hemp, daycare, addicted moms and more
Numerous bills advanced Wednesday at the Indiana Statehouse, including several that were sent to the governor for approval. Here's a rundown:
Criminal code update pleases some, worries others
Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard said the bill “has been a long time coming” and will provide “sentencing reform that really has been sorely needed.”
Food restrictions back in Indiana welfare bill draft
A contentious measure to screen and drug-test some welfare recipients and to limit food-stamp use to only "nutritional" foods has resurfaced in the Indiana General Assembly with little time left to vote on the bill.
Bosma: $400M for roads, $15M for preschool program
Indiana would spend heavily on new road construction and launch a preschool pilot program under a pair of last-minute deals reached between Statehouse Republican leaders.
Deal on mass-transit legislation headed for vote
The compromise language does not include a provision to establish a light-rail system or an increase in corporate taxes. However, the legislation would still allow for an increase in individual income taxes pending voter approval.
Lawmakers seek to remove Indiana from Common Core
The Indiana Senate voted 35-13 Wednesday to end the state's use of federal Common Core standards and instead adopt a series of state-written guidelines.
Lawmakers getting closer on nursing home moratorium
House Public Health Chairman Ed Clere said Tuesday that negotiators had found a compromise that would ban new construction for two years except in counties whose nursing homes are at 90-percent capacity or higher.
UPDATE: House leader says tax, preschool deals near
Indiana Speaker of the House Brian Bosma said the governor and legislative leaders have reached broad agreement on some of the biggest legislative items being considered this session.
Plan would help pay loans for some Indiana teachers
The legislation would provide loan reimbursements of up to $9,000 for some of those teaching science, technology, engineering or math.
Indiana road-funding measure nears final vote
Indiana House and Senate lawmakers are still deciding whether to release $200 million for road expansion projects.
Gay couples in Indiana could pay more for tax filings
Conflicting state and federal policies will likely cost Indiana same-sex couples more in time, paperwork and money when they file their tax returns this year, experts say.
Lawmakers vote to put Energizing Indiana program on hold
A bill that would sideline the state’s energy-efficiency program was sent to the governor Monday, but Indiana lawmakers are still mulling bills that would relax gun regulations in school parking lots and make some welfare recipients undergo drug-testing.