Guide to the 2019 Legislative Session



Welcome to the 12th edition of FV Indiana's Guide to the Legislative Session.

This year brings a "long session" that will begin on January 3, 2019, and is expected to last through April 29, 2019. This session will provide many opportunities for families to be involved, share your experience, and build relationships with legislators that will impact current and future decisions. This guide is intended to be a reference issue; in it you will find information on how a bill becomes a law, definitions and translations of acronyms and information on the House and Senate leadership. We encourage you to contact your legislators, make the effort to introduce yourself, share your perspective and continue to build a relationship.

Watch FV Indiana and other sources for action alerts as the session progresses.

If you have information about the session to share please call us at 844 F2F INFO or email
info@fvindiana.org.







Hot Topics for 2019 (we will update these, as needed, as the session progresses)


State Budget


Hate Crimes Legislation


Teacher Pay


Pre-K Expansion


Medical Marijuana


List of current bills: http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2019/bills/


Guide for Following Legislation


How to Track a Bill:


Click on the bill number and title


Find important and relevant information, including:


All versions of the bill


Latest fiscal note


These provide a short summary of the legislation and highlight the fiscal impact if enacted

Roll calls (votes)

Bill actions


Follow where the legislation is in the process and the last action that was taken

House and Senate amendments


To see the changes made to the bill

Committee reports

Conference committee reports/concurrence/ dissent


Shows the final action that was taken on amended bills


Many community organizations host "Third House" or "Meet Your Legislator" events throughout the legislative session. These events provide an opportunity for constituents to hear about the latest from the Statehouse and to ask questions. You can find a calendar that lists those events here:


https://www.aclu-in.org/en/third-house-meetings

How a Bill Becomes Law

Legislation 101


Any legislator in either chamber (House or Senate) can initiate a bill on any matter. The Indiana Constitution provides that all appropriations and revenue-raising bills MUST originate in the House. To introduce a bill, a member files it with the Clerk. The bill is first read to the chamber, at which time each member has a printed copy to study. After the first reading, the bill is assigned to a committee. On the next legislative day, the bill is read for the second time so it will be ready for action when it comes out of the committee. Much of the "work" on a bill comes in the committee. Members of key committees, and particularly committee chairs, can be very influential in modifying the language of a proposed bill and determining whether or not it advances to a vote by the full house. Amendments (changes in the original bill) or even complete bill substitutions may be offered by the committee that studies the bill or by a member from the floor. Sometimes there may be several versions of one bill before the committee can agree. If a committee reports favorably on a bill (a majority of the committee votes for it), it is returned to the full house for a third reading and possibly further debate. Most bills passed out of committee are passed by the full house, but they may be altered, sometimes dramatically, or perhaps not voted upon at all.






Parliamentary maneuvers are sometimes very confusing to spectators, but these rules help to maintain order. Sometimes a bill's opponents can use parliamentary procedures to block a vote on a bill they cannot defeat or amend to their liking. Assuming that a bill survives such parliamentary maneuvers, the vote is taken. If a measure receives a majority of votes, it is passed and sent to the other chamber for consideration and goes through the whole process again. The second chamber can amend the bill, pass it as is or defeat it. If the legislation is amended, it is returned for consideration by the originating chamber. When the House and Senate disagree about amended portions, the presiding officers of each body appoint members to a conference committee which tries to find an acceptable compromise which must be approved in identical form by a majority of both houses. If the second chamber passes the bill without any changes, it is sent to the Governor, who can sign it or veto it. If he signs it, it becomes law; if he vetoes it, the bill "dies" and would have to be reintroduced another year unless the veto is overridden by the legislature, which is rare.






All bills vetoed by the Governor are sent back to the presiding officer of the house of the General Assembly where it originated with a list of reasons for the veto. The Governor's veto can be overridden by two-thirds of the votes in each house. When this happens, the bill becomes law. All bills introduced in the current session, as well as their current status in the process and any amendments, can be viewed on the state website at http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2019/bill



Take Action!


Advocacy Questions and Answers

How can I take action on legislation?


1. Form a relationship with your representatives and senators by calling, emailing, faxing, and scheduling meetings to tell them about how their decisions on the budget and laws affect the quality of life for you and your family.


2. Consider focusing your efforts on key issues such as the Medicaid services, ensuring that any plans for K-12 supports inclusive education practices or First Steps issues.






How can I contact my state representative or senator?


Every member has an email address and an office phone number at the statehouse. The most effective ways to communicate are by personal contacts, be they emails, phone calls or face-to-face meetings. Legislators prefer to hear from their own constituents directly and may not pay attention to mass emails or form letters, especially from people outside their districts. Many legislators even invite constituents with concerns to contact them at home or via cell phone. Information about legislators is available on the state website at http://iga.in.gov/legislative/find-legislators/






You can mail and phone your legislators at the following:


House of Representatives


Indiana House of Representatives


200 W. Washington Street


Indianapolis, IN 46204-2786


(317) 232-9600


(800) 382-9842






Senate


Indiana State Senate


200 W. Washington Street


Indianapolis, IN 46204-2785


(317) 232-9400


(800) 382-9467






TDD Telephone Numbers


TDD (317) 232-0404


TDD (800) 548-9517






The Governor


The Honorable Eric Holcomb


Office of the Governor


Statehouse


Indianapolis, Indiana 46204-2797


(317)232-4567






How do I contact other state agencies?


The State of Indiana website is found at: www.in.gov and contains links to all state as well as many federal and local web resources. Many State Agency and programs have email newsletters that you can sign up for on their Website, these are a great way to get up to date information about the agency.






When is the General Assembly in session?


The 2019 General Assembly will convene on Jan. 3rd.






Stay Informed


Groups that provide legislative updates and Action Alerts






Family Voices Indiana


www.fvindiana.org


http://fvindiana.blogspot.com






The Arc of Indiana


http://www.arcind.org/our-programs/public-policy-advocacy/


Information on the Arc's legislative agenda and general legislative information including link to sign up for action alerts.






Indiana General Assembly


http://iga.in.gov/


Indiana General Assembly website.






Indiana DOE


http://www.doe.in.gov/


Legislative agenda by the Indiana Department of Education.










Glossary


Become familiar with these commonly used acronyms


Appropriation: a specific amount of money that is intended for use by a specific state program


FSSA: Family and Social Services Administration (in charge of Medicaid & First Steps)


DD: Developmental Disabilities


DOE: Department of Education


FY: Fiscal Year


HB: House Bill


HR: House Resolution

SB: Senate Bill

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