Statehouse Report 9
March 2, 2009
LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS
Halfway Home!
With committee work completed on bills last week, all attention was focused on the floors of the Senate and the House, which faced deadlines for second and third reading of bills introduced in each Chamber. This juncture marks the halfway point of the session, which is scheduled to end on April 29. At this point, all bills that have passed one house will be considered by the opposite house. This next segment of the process is scheduled to be completed in mid-April and then followed by conference committees to reconcile bills into final legislation. So, while those in the Statehouse usually call this period half time -- for those ice hockey fans out there -- it is actually the end of the first period of a three period game. But, we never want to go to overtime!
Biennial Budget Bill
With the House budget passed last week, all eyes now turn to the Senate. President McRobbie has been requested to present Indiana University's biennial request on March 16 to the Senate Appropriations Committee. The Committee also granted both President McRobbie and Purdue's President France Córdova a joint appearance on the same day to present the Indiana Innovation Alliance. We look forward to the opportunity to make our case to the Senate for the state's investment in our appropriations request and the Alliance.
Legislation that Passed the House and Senate
The following bills are just a portion of those we have been following which passed and will be eligible for further action during the remainder of the session.
HB 1001 Budget Bill (Rep. Crawford): Includes university operating and capital appropriations.
HB 1014 Age Discrimination (Rep. V. Smith): Prohibits employer discrimination against individuals age 40 or over.
HB 1188 College Head Start Program (Rep. Porter): Establishes new dual credit program permitting students to take college courses in high school.
HB1573 Various Health and Licensing Matters (Rep. Welch): This bill involves numerous changes in professional licensing guidelines and other health related items.
HB 1620 Energy Efficient Buildings (Rep. Pierce): Requires public buildings to be constructed according to energy efficiency standards and increases opportunities for universities to pursue energy savings contracts.
HB 1656 State Economic Stimulus (Rep. Austin): Primarily funds local street projects, but includes several university repair and rehabilitation projects.
SB 11: Firearms in Locked Vehicles (Sen. Nugent): Prohibits an individual, a corporation, and a governmental entity from adopting or enforcing a policy or rule that prohibits an individual from legally possessing a firearm that is locked in the individual's vehicle while the vehicle is in or on the person's property. The bill exempts schools and universities from the provision.
SB 39 Tuition Exemption for Purple Heart Recipients (Sen. Delph): Current state law limits the benefit to Purple Heart recipients who served after 9/2001. The bill extends the benefit to all Purple Heart recipients, regardless of when they served.
SB 54 Jurisdiction of University Police (Sen. Lanane): Extends the jurisdiction of university police beyond campus boundaries if authorized by university trustees.
SB 232 Public Access Issues (Sen. Gard): This bill strengthens current public meeting and public records access statute.
SB 393 Primary Care Physician Loan Forgiveness Program (Sen. Simpson): Establishes a new primary care physician loan forgiveness program.
IU School of Medicine Day
The School of Medicine hosted a very successful exhibit on the main floor of the Statehouse last Tuesday. In addition to representatives of the Indianapolis campus, all of the eight Centers for Medical Education hosted the event. Numerous legislators stopped by to visit with students and staff from their centers and to view the exhibit
Looking Ahead
This week, given the hectic pace of the past two weeks and the long weekend break for members, action is expected to be much slower in both chambers. Bills will be assigned to committees. Deliberations begin in the Senate on bills introduced and passed in the House. Meanwhile the House will begin work on bills introduced and passed by the Senate. The process begins anew with committee hearings on these bills prior to second and third readings on the floors of each chamber.
