Lawmakers must conclude this year's General Assembly by the end of April.
Indiana lawmakers have begun the final sprint of the 2025 legislative session, where they could advance bills on halting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, support for students who struggle learning math and property tax sharing with charter schools.
Bills that failed to advance out of committee or pass their respective chambers are now considered dead, although language can still be added back to surviving bills. Lawmakers must conclude by the end of April.
More than 30 education-related bills that could reshape the state’s K-12 education system remain under consideration.
Here’s a look at some of the education bills that are still alive and will soon be debated in committees and possibly on the House and Senate floors.
House Bill 1001 — State budget
Primary author: Rep. Jeff Thompson (R-Lizton)
What it does: Although not necessarily an education bill, Indiana House Republicans’ pitch for the state’s two-year budget includes K-12 school funding.
The bill proposes a 2% increase in tuition support funding each year of the budget. The total budget, which includes money earmarked for curricular materials, would be $9.4 billion in 2026 and $9.6 billion in 2027, according to the Legislative Services Agency.
The bill would also create a universal school voucher system, allowing any Indiana family to use state funds to attend private, parochial, or nonreligious schools through the Choice Scholarship Program.
There’s other education funding through the budget, including $86 million each year for Braun-proposed Freedom and Opportunity in Education fund that’s not yet defined.
The House pushed through their version of the budget largely unscathed from its original state. The Senate now takes up the proposal, and revisions are expected before both chambers reach a final agreement in April.
Senate Bill 1 — Property tax proposal
Primary author: Sen. Travis Holdman (R-Markle)
What it does: The Senate’s priority bill – also not specific to education – would provide some relief to homeowners while seeking to be “responsible” with local governments and schools as those entities could need to change up their budgets as a result.
School districts will have the greatest financial impacts in 2028 with an estimated reduction of more than $183 million in property tax revenue, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency. Losses in 2026 and 2027 would total a similar amount.
Senate Bill 518 — Property tax sharing
Primary author: Sen. Linda Rogers (R-Granger)
What it does: This bill, which went through significant changes to emerge from the Senate, would require school districts with at least 100 students attending an eligible charter school in their boundaries to share their operations fund levy with those charter schools starting in 2028.
More than 35 districts meet that 100-or-more-student threshold.
House Bill 1201 — Absenteeism changes
Primary author: Rep. Bob Behning
What it does: The bill builds on some of the state’s new truancy law, which requires schools to report when students miss more than 10 days of school.
The bill prohibits schools from expelling or suspending students solely for being chronically absent or habitually truant. It has bipartisan support.
Senate Bill 287 — Partisan school board elections
Primary author: Sen. Gary Byrne (R-Byrneville)
What it does: The bill would require school board candidates to declare a political party for primaries.
House Bill 1285 — More trained-staff to de-escalate situations related to seclusion and restraint
Primary author: Rep. Becky Cash
What it does: The bill would establish that every Indiana school building has a staff member available to de-escalate behavior in situations where students may be secluded, restrained or put in timeout.
The bill originally included a rule that would have required schools install cameras in special education classrooms and seclusion rooms. That language was removed.
House Bill 1498 — A-to-F grades return
Primary author: Rep. Bob Behning (R-Indianapolis)
What it does: The bill modifies the state’s A-F school accountability framework, allowing a new grading system to be developed and implemented by the State Board of Education before the end of 2025. And it also calls for null school letter grades to continue through the 2024-25 school year.
Senate Bill 146 — Raising base teacher pay
Primary author: Sen. Linda Rogers (R-Granger), Sen. Jeff Raatz (R-Richmond)
What it does: The bill would raise the minimum teacher salary from $40,000 to $45,000 – a boost for early career educators that is also supported by Braun’s administration.
Indiana law requires schools to pay teachers at least $40,000 a year.
The average salary for a first-year teacher was $48,129, according to the 2023-2024 Indiana Teacher Compensation Report.
Senate Bill 289 — Ending DEI programs
Primary author: Sen. Gary Byrne (R-Byrneville)
What it does: The bill would ban state agencies and recipients of state contracts or grants, as well as state educational institutions and health profession licensing boards from requiring its employees, contractors, volunteers or vendors to participate in Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, training and hiring of DEI-focused consultants.
The bill would also ban schools from compelling students to adopt or adhere to certain beliefs, and from hiring outside contractors to promote certain beliefs, and prohibits the endorsement of stereotypes.
And it bars schools from blaming students for historical actions committed by members of the same race, sex, ethnicity, religious or national origin.
The bill conjoined with a now dead Senate bill to build all encompassing anti-DEI legislation.
Senate Bill 523 — Chaplains in schools
Primary author: Sen. Stacey Donato (R-Logansport)
What it does: The bill would allow public school districts and charter schools to hire, or approve as a volunteer, chaplains or certified clergy members to provide religious or—under certain conditions—nonreligious support to students, as long as the student has parental permission.
This is virtually the same bill language from last year’s legislative session, which aimed to alleviate some of the work for school counselors.
Senate Bill 403 — Financial data requirements apply to charters
Primary authors: Sen. Greg Taylor (D-Indianapolis) and Sen. Linda Rogers (R-Granger)
What it does: This bill would require charter schools to share certain financial data with the public, like traditional public schools. It has bipartisan support.
House Bill 1634 — New help and interventions for students who struggle in mathematics
Primary author: Rep. Jake Teshka (R-North Liberty)
What it does: The support-focused bill would deliver swift interventions to K-8 students who are struggling with foundational math skills.
Under the bill, schools would provide structured math support focused on foundational skills and real-world problem solving.
House Bill 1348 — Allows nonaccredited public schools to meet diploma requirements
Primary author: Rep. Timothy Wesco (R-Osceola)
What it does: The bill would make a high school diploma issued by a nonaccredited nonpublic school, like a homeschool, legally sufficient to demonstrate a student has met high school requirements.
Rachel Fradette is WFYI's Statehouse education reporter. Contact Rachel at rfradette@wfyi.org.
