In this episode of Indiana Statehouse Week in Review, MADVoters’ Director of Advocacy Kaitie Rector walks us through the major bills that moved or surfaced this week at the Indiana General Assembly, with a focus on affordability, democratic governance, public health, civil rights, and the steady expansion of state power at the expense of local control. From housing and utility costs to Medicaid, immigration enforcement, environmental deregulation, education governance, and abortion access, we break down what each proposal does, who it affects, and why advocates should be paying attention now.
MADVoters Bill Tracker: https://www.madvoters.org/bill-tracker
Support MADVoters: https://www.madvoters.org/donate-here
0:00 Intro / How we’re approaching the week
We set expectations for the episode, explain how to follow bills, and talk about using the IGA and MADVoters tools to track what’s moving and what’s already dead.
5:00 HB 1001 – Housing affordability
We discuss this as an “affordability” priority bill focused on housing, raising concerns about how proposals framed as increasing supply or efficiency can undermine local control and tenant protections.
5:05 HB 1002 – Utility affordability
Discussed alongside HB 1001 as part of the affordability agenda, this bill focuses on electric utilities and rate impacts, with skepticism about whether it meaningfully lowers costs for everyday Hoosiers.
9:45 SB 1 – Human services eligibility and administration
We talk at length about Medicaid and SNAP changes, emphasizing how tightening eligibility and adding administrative hurdles causes eligible people to lose benefits through paperwork failures, not fraud.
13:15 SB 12 – Ban on ranked-choice voting
We frame this as a preemptive, anti-democratic move to outlaw a reform Indiana isn’t even using, purely to block future local experimentation.
16:10 SB 76 – Immigration enforcement
We discuss how this bill strengthens immigration enforcement and forces the state to defend those actions, highlighting both the political signaling and real human consequences.
24:15 HB 1423 – Indianapolis Public Schools governance
This is a major segment: we explain how the bill strips power from the elected IPS board and shifts authority to an appointed structure, effectively setting up a state takeover aligned with charter interests.
28:45 SB 277 – Environmental deregulation (IDEM)
We describe how this bill weakens environmental protections by changing statutory requirements and limiting enforcement, increasing risks to communities and neighbors.
32:05 SB 267 – Influence campaign / protest reporting
Framed as “transparency,” we explain how this bill targets protest activity and political expression, creating chilling effects on organizing and dissent.
35:30 SB 200 – Political access in schools (no slide)
This bill comes up organically without a slide; we discuss how it limits school discretion by requiring access for outside political or advocacy groups.
38:10 HB 1065 – Ban on gratuities for public officials
We note this as a rare piece of genuinely positive legislation aimed at reducing corruption and unethical gift-giving.
39:50 HB 1066 – Government vehicle purchase limits
Discussed as a common-sense accountability measure to prevent misuse of public funds for luxury vehicles.
41:40 SB 85 – Medical debt protections
Flagged explicitly as good news, this bill strengthens protections for patients facing medical debt and aggressive collection practices.
43:30 SB 91 – Syringe exchange extension
We emphasize the public-health stakes, explaining how syringe exchange programs save lives and what Indiana risks if the program expires.
46:05 SB 182 – Legal sex definitions
Discussed as a dangerous, ideologically driven bill that erases trans and nonbinary Hoosiers from statute and invites further discrimination.
49:20 SB 236 – Abortion pills and reporting requirements
We spend extended time on how this bill escalates abortion criminalization, chills medical care, and creates spillover harms for miscarriage and pregnancy treatment.
53:20 SB 285 – Criminalization of homelessness
We describe how the bill punishes unhoused people while preempting local governments from pursuing humane, evidence-based solutions.
56:40 HB 1086 – Ten Commandments in classrooms
We close the bill discussion by calling this an unconstitutional culture-war bill mandating religious displays in public schools.
59:10 Wrap-up and calls to action
Final thoughts on advocacy priorities, tracking bills, and where listeners can still intervene.
MADVoters Bill Tracker: https://www.madvoters.org/bill-tracker
Support MADVoters: https://www.madvoters.org/donate-here
