Indiana Legislative Session: Addressing Challenges and Priorities

Source: PHOTO: Donnie Burgess

INDIANAPOLIS –The Indiana legislative session begins on January 9th and two Republicans in the Indiana General Assembly are talking about their top priorities.

Indiana Senator Rod Bray says gaming legislation may be difficult because of the recent indictment of former State Representative Sean Eberhart.

“It taints the Statehouse, it diminishes the confidence that people have in the integrity of the Statehouse, it causes an awful lot of problems, and it makes it particularly difficult to engage in that kind of policy,” Bray told Indy Politics.

Sean Eberhart, who represented District 57 in the Indiana House of Representatives covering Shelby County and portions of Hancock and Bartholomew counties, concluded his 16-year tenure on November 9, 2022. He was charged in a case dealing with the relocation of casinos to Indiana.

House Speaker Todd Huston also expressed concern about the number of truant Hoosier students but was unsure if lawmakers would prioritize education truancy during the upcoming session.

“I heard last week in Marion County that prosecutors have told the schools that they won’t even send a letter to parents regarding truancy,” he said. “I don’t know why that would be the case. There’s a law on the books regarding that. Certainly, that needs to be reinforced.”

Lawmakers are set to consider bills that increase Medicaid reimbursement rates, expand the roles of entry-level healthcare professionals, ban union-exclusive project labor agreements, raise business personal property tax exemption, and mandate state-level recognition of diverse business certifications by local governments.