We’ve come to the end of the 124th General Assembly. This was a budget year which is referred to as a “long session.” It came to an end on April 25th.
Our all-volunteer team has been hard at work.
- More than 6,000 documents indexed
- 680 bills reviewed and classified
- At the start of session, closely following 60 bills. At the end, 13.
Our custom state-of-the-art software allows us to index and run more than 100 searches over every new document within 30 seconds of its publication. All bills are indexed regardless of any classifying our team has done. We are on the lookout for any amendments or Lazarus language that may pop up.
It was a very active session for us at the statehouse. Below, you’ll find the updates on the 124th session.
HB 1001: State Budget
Author: Rep. Jeffrey Thompson
Final Status: Passed
The state budget is monitored closely every year for any changes to Indiana homeschool freedoms with regard to state funding. It went into law on July 1, 2025.
HB 1348: Nonaccredited Nonpublic Schools
Author: Representative Timothy Wesco
Final Status: Passed
We first reported on HB 1348 on January 21, 2025. It passed out of committee 9:4 on January 27th. On January 29th, it passed second reading and received its third reading on January 30th and passed out of the House with a 62:29 vote.
The bill headed to the Senate where Senator Raatz, Chairman of the Education of the Workforce Development Committee, and Senator Freeman, Chairman of the Corrections and Criminal Law Committee, were co-sponsors. It passed out of committee 9:4 on March 20th. On March 25th, it passed out of the Senate with a 32:15 vote. It returned to the House without amendments and became law on July 1, 2025.
Indiana’s two homeschool graduate legislators (Rep. Wesco and Rep. Lawson) and three homeschooling-parent legislators (Rep. Cash, Rep. Hostettler, and Senator Freeman) are in support of this bill. Senator Raatz is a long-time supporter of Indiana homeschoolers and their chosen independence.
IAHE and IAHE Action thanks Rep. Wesco, Rep. Cash, Rep. Lawson, Rep. Hostettler, Senator Raatz, and Senator Freeman for their work on behalf of the homeschool community.
SB 11: Minor Access and Use of Social Media
Author: Sen. Mike Bohacek, Sen. Liz Brown, & Sen. Chris Garten
Final Status: Failed
This bill would have required social media platforms to first obtain a parents’ verifiable consent for social media access of minors less than 16 years of age.
SB 143: Parental Rights Bill
Authors: Sen. Liz Brown, Sen. Scott Alexander, & Sen. Brett Clark
Final Status: Passed
We first reported on SB 143 on January, 13, 2025. The bill passed out of committee amend do pass on January 16th and received its second reading on January 23rd. On January 27th, it passed its 3rd reading with a 44:5 vote.
The bill headed to the House where Representative Lindauer, Representative. Matt Commons, Representative J.D. Prescott, and Representative Timothy Wesco were co-sponsors. The bill passed out of committee on March 24th with a 9:3 vote. It received its third reading on April 1st and passed with a 69:24 vote. It was returned to the Senate with amendments and a motion to concur was filed on April 8th. This means the Senate accepted the House amendments. This bill was signed by Governor Bruan and became law effective July 1, 2025.
SB 482: Absenteeism
Author: Sen. Stacey Donato & Sen. Linda Rogers
Status: Passed
SB 482 introduces the term “chronically absent” and works to force the Indiana Department of Education to distinguish between excused and unexcused absences, this definition currently varies amongst school districts, and requires IDOE to collect demographic-based data on all public and charter schools. It requires IDOE to develop a set of best practices and resources for schools regarding chronically absent students.
IDOE is required to “establish a categorization framework for excused absence based on the reason for the absence” within public and charter schools based on demographics. It also requires IDOE to “create a list of best practices to reduce student discipline and post the list on the department’s website.” The department must do a deep dive into the root causes of suspensions and expulsions and deliver a report no later than November 1, 2025 to the legislative council. It suggests that the prosecuting attorney may hold one or more attendance intervention meetings to address a student’s truancy and work to improve attendance. It specifically states the path to developing an intervention plan, provide any necessary support services, and to find a way to avoid prosecution if applicable. The bill language adds that a public or charter school may not expel a student solely based on attendance.
This bill became law on July 1, 2025.
SB 483: Regulation of Homeschooling
Author: Sen. Jeff Raatz
Status: Failed
We first reported on SB 483 on January, 14, 2025. This bill did not receive a committee hearing, but we continued to watch diligently as portions of the language may have been brought back as an amendment to another bill.
IAHE Action continued to work closely with state leaders and lawmakers regarding chronic absenteeism occurring in publicly funded schools.
We are thankful for the conversations that have been had and are glad to report this bill is dead.
We are watching. We are listening. We are working.