Indianapolis, In. — The 2018 legislative session has reached the midway, with Senate bills moving to the House for consideration and approved House bills crossing over to the Senate. I’ve been working hard to represent our community, including passing bills addressing K-12 funding and protecting Hoosier veterans.
As always, education remains a top priority. We have more students than ever enrolled in our public schools, which is great news. House Bill 1001, would boost funding for traditional K-12 schools to account for a higher than expected increase in enrollment. We want to ensure schools are provided the funding they anticipated upon the passage of last year’s state budget, and this legislation will restore all of that funding and reaffirm our commitment to Hoosier educators and students. This increase would be in addition to the $7 billion annually Indiana spends on K-12 education.
A personal priority for me this session is to help the men and women who are putting their lives on the line for our country. A bill I co-authored, House Bill 1047, would ensure all military personnel, including members of the Indiana National Guard, neighboring states’ National Guard and reserve branches, who are called to active duty during their academic term are provided a tuition refund or credit. This would include those who are from another state but are attending a state college or university in Indiana. These students could also be re-enrolled in courses that were not completed due to their active duty status.
Senate Bill 262, a bill I am sponsoring, would also keep the best interest of veterans with disabilities in mind. This legislation would require the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to issue a permanent parking placard to Hoosier veterans with disabilities when requested. The bill passed unanimously out of the Senate and will soon be making its way over to the House. This commonsense legislation will ensure their veterans are not burdened with paperwork and delays when trying to renew their parking placard.
As the session progresses, I will continue to use any input you have to help guide me when voting on policies impacting our community and state. As your representative, I appreciate your questions and opinions. Please feel free to email me at h67@iga.in.gov or call me at 317-234-3827.
