Cuts to state boards and commissions wins Indiana Legislature’s OK

A few dozen of Indiana’s state boards and commissions face elimination as legislators on Friday endorsed a plan principally aimed at panels deemed unproductive.

An initial version of House Bill 1003 targeted 63 boards, commissions, committees and councils for elimination or modification at the end of this year.

The bill approved in House and Senate votes on Friday dialed that number back to about 40 and delayed most of the board eliminations until July 2027 to allow for possible changes during next year’s session.

Republican legislators made the bill a top priority for this legislative session.

Bill author Rep. Stephen Bartels, R-Eckerty, and other supporters argued that many of the state’s more than 250 boards and commissions were rarely meeting and some struggled with member attendance.

The final bill retains the state’s Natural Resources Commission, which an earlier version would’ve scrapped. It did, however, remove a requirement that the governor’s citizen appointments be bipartisan. 

Another contentious action remained in the bill, however: elimination of the Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission, with its building code responsibilities shifting to the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.