Hoosier lawmakers overwhelmingly agree that with a near-total abortion ban on the horizon, more Indiana tax dollars must be spent to support women, families and the approximately 8,000 additional babies likely to be born in the state each year.
But they don't quite agree yet on exactly how to do it.
On Friday, the Indiana House voted 93-2 to advance its family and children spending plan to the Senate, while the Senate voted 46-1 to send its proposal for "wraparound services" to the House.
House Bill 1001 appropriates $58.5 million to state agencies and other programs through June 2023 to cover expanded prenatal services, Medicaid birth and delivery costs, child care, contraceptive availability and other anticipated expenses linked, in part, to the proposed abortion restrictions in Senate Bill 1.
The measure also eliminates the 7% state sales tax on child diaper purchases, which the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency expects will reduce state revenue by up to $8.3 million a year when fully implemented.
In addition, the legislation increases to $1,600 from $1,500 the per child state income tax exemption, makes the exemption worth $3,200 for a child's first year of life, creates a new $3,000 per year income tax exemption for families with adopted children and sets the maximum state income tax credit for an adopted child at $2,500 per year, up from $1,000.
Democrats argued the plan could be even more generous given Indiana's unprecedented $6.1 billion in budget reserves. But Republicans insisted this is just a start, and additional support for Hoosier families is likely to be enacted when the Legislature convenes its regular, annual session in January.
"I will gladly push the green button for this," said House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers. "It's the right thing for taxpayers. It's the right thing for Hoosiers. It's the right thing for women and children."
Meanwhile, across the rotunda, Senate Bill 2 allocates only $45 million to support various programs focused on maternal and infant health, pregnancy prevention and adoption operated by the Indiana Department of Child Services, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Indiana Department of Health and Department of Homeland Security.
State Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, similarly described his proposal as "a start" toward improving Indiana's human services, particularly mental health services, next year.
However, state Sen. Tim Lanane, D-Anderson, wasn't buying it. He said the programs and services in Holdman's legislation could, and should, already be available to Hoosiers.
"We're only doing this now because the fundamental rights of women are being stripped away, and there's no amount of money that can compensate them for that loss of liberty," Lanane said.
The House proposal also implements Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb's plan to spend about $1.1 billion in excess state revenue to provide $225 taxpayer rebate payments to some 4.3 million Hoosiers already in the process of receiving $125 checks linked to unanticipated state revenue growth during the 2021 budget year.
If the measure becomes law, up to 800,000 additional Hoosiers who did not file a recent income tax return would become eligible for the $225 rebate, so long as they file a special affidavit with the Indiana Department of Revenue.
The Senate, on the other hand, is scheduled Saturday to approve Senate Bill 3.
It scuttles the governor's $225 taxpayer rebate checks in favor of taking a penny off the state's record-high gasoline tax, suspending the collection of Indiana's 7% sales tax on residential utility bills through the end of the year, setting aside up to $1 billion for future state construction projects and depositing $400 million in Indiana's pension stabilization fund.
The House and Senate currently are planning to end the special legislative session around Aug. 5 and are required to adjourn, by law, no later than Aug. 14.
Both chambers must approve any spending or tax proposal with identical language before the deadline to send it to the governor to be signed into law or vetoed.
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