Public Policy Letter: Bills Gaining Momentum as Hearings Continue

Action on bills that INARF is watching in the General Assembly picked up this week. A number of bills have been set for hearing next week. 

The Senate’s version of the budget, HB 1001, will be the subject of a Senate Appropriations committee hearing on Thursday, April 9th. Until then, Appropriations is scheduling hearings on elected offices and selected state agencies. No hearing is currently set for FSSA.

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Rep. Dan Leonard’s HB 1242, which mandates training for police reserve officers in interacting with persons with disabilities, addiction disorders, and Alzheimer’s disease, is set for hearing on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. in the Senate Homeland Security Committee. It’s sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Travis Holdman. 

HB 1401, Rep. Tom Washburne’s bill expanding the crime of Medicaid fraud to include causing a Medicaid claim that is materially false or misleading to be presented, is set for hearing Tuesday at 10 a.m. in the Senate Corrections and Criminal Law Committee. Sen. Mike Young is Senate sponsor. 

HB 1613 would centralize appointing, rule-making, and contracting authority in the Secretary of FSSA rather than division directors. Rep. Ed Clere’s bill s set for hearing Monday at 10:30 a.m. in the Senate Family and Children Services committee. 

Sen. Pat Miller’s bill that expands the permissible uses of the Spinal Cord and Brain Injury fund to include facilities, treatment, and services will be heard Monday at 10:30 a.m. in the House Public Health Committee. Rep. David Frizzell is the House sponsor of SB 166. 

The bill that establishes a 3-year moratorium on new nursing home beds, Sen. Pat Miller’s HB 460, passed the House, 52-40. 

Rep. Eric Koch’s HB 1142 passed the Senate 45-5. It establishes a process for review and analysis of all tax incentives to facilitate the General Assembly’s decisions regarding continuing, repealing, or altering the various incentives (such as the Neighborhood Assistance Program.) 

These bills passed out of their respective committees and are eligible for Second Reading on Monday: 

SB420—Sen. Ron Groom’s bill changes the term “mental retardation” to “intellectual disability” throughout the statutes. 

HB 1108—Rep. Woody Burton’s bill requires guidelines for teacher training programs to prepare teachers to recognize that a student that isn’t progressing at a normal reading rate should be referred for further evaluation. 

HB 1435—allows a qualifying non-profit corporation to give sealed bottles of alcoholic beverages as prizes at a charity gaming event without obtaining an alcoholic beverage permit. Rep. Julie Olthoff is the bill’s author. 

The full text of these and other bills that INARF is watching can be found at http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2015/bills/.