Indiana’s 124th General Assembly came to a close at approximately 8:30 pm on Mar 8, 2024.
As an even year, this was a short session, and it was considered an “emergency” session. As such, “An emergency is declared for this act” was listed at the bottom of every bill. For such a session, there was no lack of bills.
IAHE Action processed 3,620 documents throughout the session. Our all-volunteer team continued to monitor updates, communicate with legislators, and testify on bills impacting home education. Just under 50 bills were continuously tracked during the first half of the session. That number decreased to 20 bills when legislation crossed chambers.
We continue to work with the Indiana legislature dutifully and respectfully to preserve the parental right to educate our children free of Government interference.
Below, you’ll find some of the bills we tracked this year.
Bills that impacted Indiana homeschoolers and their outcomes
HB 1001: Education and Higher Education Matters
Authored by: Representative Chuck Goodrich, Representative Behning, Representative Heaton
Final Status: Passed
HB 1001 initially allowed Career Scholarship Account (CSA) participants to utilize funds to obtain a driver’s license.
In the Senate, the bill was modified to include language related to the Educational Scholarship Account (ESA). Siblings of current ESA students will be permitted to join the ESA program and curricular materials will be purchasable through the ESA.
HB 1093: Employment of Minors
Authored by: Representative Kendell Culp
Final Status: Passed
HB 1093 made sweeping changes to Indiana youth employment law.
HB 1135: Cosmetology Apprenticeships
Authored by: Representative Timothy Wesco
Final Status: Signed into Law
HB 1135 added registered apprenticeships to practice cosmetology to acceptable education qualifying someone as a cosmetologist.
HB 1219: Various Education Matters
Authored by: Representative Jake Teshka
Final Status: Failed
HB 1219 removed annual days of instruction requirements and added annual instructional time requirements measured in minutes. This would have created an undue burden on those students in nonaccredited nonpublic schools with less than one employee.
HB 1243: Various Education Matters
Authored by: Representative Robert Behning
Final Status: Passed
HB 1243 made several changes to the education code. Regarding those enrolled in nonaccredited nonpublic schools with less than one employee, parents will now have the ability to give written permission for their child to take the high school equivalency exam. Previously, parents were required to seek permission from their local public school superintendent or principal.
HB 1408: Indiana Education Scholarship Account Program
Authored by: Representative Zach Payne
Final Status: Failed
HB 1408 sought to remove all Education Scholarship Account (ESA) qualification requirements thus making ESAs available to all Indiana students.
SB 143: Education Matters
Authored by: Senator Brian Buchanan
Final Status: Failed
SB 143 required the Indiana Department of Education to partner with the Indiana Office of the Treasurer to detail out Indiana education law and academic themes and content that should be covered for ESA students. All eligibility requirements would be removed, funding for curricular materials and technology would be available, and any other expense the Treasurer approved would be funded. This would have removed any application deadlines.
SB 165: Education Matters
Authored by: Senator Michael Young
Final Status: Failed
SB 165 removed annual days of instruction requirements and added annual instructional time requirements measured in minutes. This would have created an undue burden on those students in nonaccredited, nonpublic schools with less than one employee.
SB 195: Age for Compulsory School Attendance
Authored by: Greg Taylor
Final Status: Failed
SB 195 proposed decreasing the compulsory age from the date the child turns 7 years of age to 5 years of age by August 1st.
SB 216: Agriculture Pesticides
Authored by: Senator Kyle Walker, Senator Chris Garten, Senator Rick Niemeyer
Final Status: Passed
The Office of the State Chemist proposed language in SB 216 to ban the use of pesticides on school premises. Nonaccredited nonpublic schools with less than one employee were excluded from this.
SB 224: School Funding
Authored by: Senator Fady Qaddoura
Final Status: Failed
SB 224 proposed sweeping changes to funding for pre-K students and sought to lower the compulsory age from the date the child turns 7 to 5 years old on or before August 1st.
SB 255: Education Accounts
Authored by: Senator Ryan Mishler
Final Status: Failed
SB 255 proposed to combine all current state education funding options (CSA, Choice Scholarship, and ESA) into one program by creating the Indiana Funding Students First grant.
This bill would have removed all eligibility requirements to receive state education funding thus moving all education under the purview of the State.
For the first time, “homeschooled” appears in a bill digest.
SB 282: Absenteeism and School Attendance
Authored by: Senator Stacey Donato, Senator Linda Rogers, Senator Jeff Raatz
Final Status: Passed
SB 282 created truancy prevention measures for every education option except for nonaccredited nonpublic schools with less than one employee. All nonpublic schools were eventually removed from the language and only public schools remained in the language.
The bill requires that all parents of habitual truants be referred to the prosecutor’s office, affidavits filed, and parents be prosecuted thusly. Attendance officers will be required to meet at least one team a year with DCS and intake officers of the juvenile court to discuss the effectiveness of truancy prevention measures being utilized in that attendance officer’s jurisdiction and to review data, policies, and procedures.