Statehouse Update
On May 14, the Indiana General Assembly's Legislative Council announced interim topics for legislators to study between now and the 2025 budget session. The council authorized and directed 19 different legislative interim committees to deal with 66 topics and responsibilities. Eight statutory study committees will not meet as they were not assigned any topics for the interim.
The Education Study Committee was only assigned two K-12-related issues (1. the impact of absenteeism on students and school funding distributions; and 2. school discipline related to creating a safe environment and improving educational success). Meanwhile, the Health Care Cost Oversight Task Force continues its work from the previous interim. Additionally, due to the $1 billion Medicaid forecasting shortfall announced in December 2023, the legislature reauthorized the Medicaid Oversight Committee and it will meet again to review, consider and make recommendations concerning the health care program.
Senate Enrolled Act 150-2024 created the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Task Force. Members of the task force will study the technology, assess benefits and risks to the state and how state AI use might affect Hoosiers. Then, they’ll develop recommendations for how to use AI to “achieve greater operational performance and efficiency of government services.”
The two-year State and Local Tax Review Task Force will continue to meet throughout the interim (it statutorily must meet at least two more times this year, having already met in January and April). The task force has until December 1, 2024 to prepare findings and recommendations on the following:
- The state's near term and long term financial outlook and overall fiscal position
- The state's appropriation backed debt obligations
- The funded status of pension funds managed by the state, including methods to reduce the unfunded actuarial accrued liability of the pre-1996 account within the Indiana state teachers' retirement fund
- The individual income tax, including methods to reduce or eliminate the individual income tax
- The corporate income tax
- The state gross retail and use tax, including a review of the state gross retail tax base
- The property tax, including methods to reduce or eliminate the tax on homestead properties and reduce or eliminate the tax on business personal property
- Local option taxes, including the local income tax, food and beverage taxes, and innkeeper's taxes