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Autism Society of Indiana Chapter
Legislative Relations
Legislative Updates
Despite the fate of HB 1001, the state budget bill, there were numerous
bills passed this legislative session that are positive for people with
intellectual and other developmental disabilities and their families.
HB 1028 -- Self-Directed In-Home Care Study. This bill requires the
area agencies on aging to study and report certain information
concerning self-directed in-home care to the division of aging and
requires the division to report any recommendations needed to improve
the delivery of consumer directed care to the legislative council and
the health finance commission no later than July 1, 2010. This bill
has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1049 -- Change the name of the MRDD Commission. This bill removed
the terminology "mental retardation" from the name of the
commission. The commission is renamed the Commission on Developmental
Disabilities. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1311 -- Hearing Aid Assistance. This bill establishes the hearing
aid assistance fund and hearing aid assistance program to be
administered by the state department of health to assist certain
children with payment of hearing aids. Annually appropriates the money
in the fund. Allows the state department of health to create a hearing
aid refurbishing program. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1339 -- Special Purpose Bus Driver Requirements. This bill revises
and repeals the child restraint system law to eliminate certain
exceptions for drivers from outside Indiana. Allows for certain
exclusions due to physical conditions. Creates certain requirements
for special purpose buses. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1376 -- Licensing Automotive Mobility Dealers. This bill provides
that automobile dealers must be licensed with the secretary of state in
order to sell, service or install adapted vehicles. Makes other
provisions. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1419 -- Student Discipline. This bill requires school corporations
to develop an evidence based plan for improving behavior and discipline
in schools. Requires the plan to incorporate a graduated system of
discipline which includes actions in lieu of suspension or expulsion.
This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1455 -- Autism Training. This bill adds autism to the training
curriculum that volunteer firefighters and law enforcement personnel
receive. Also requires the Dept. of Education to create and distribute
to school corporations for noncertified employees a document that
explains the aspects of autism including behavior that students with
autism may exhibit. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1572 -- Medicaid Studies. This bill has numerous provisions
regarding Medicaid. The bill was amended in Senate Committee to
address many of the issues regarding the Medicaid
Modernization/Privatization Project. The Select Joint Commission on
Medicaid Oversight will receive detailed information on the further
implementation of the project as well as some key provisions of the
contract and how effective it is. This bill has been signed by the
Governor.
HB 1603 -- Service Animals. This bill provides a person with a physical
and mental disability, accompanied by a service dog, be allowed in any
public accommodation without an extra charge, expands the definition of
public accommodation to include various educational settings and
provides that an employer must allow an employee with a disability to
keep a guide dog with the employee at all times. This bill has been
signed by the Governor.
SB 57 -- Sign Language Interpreters in Schools. This bill requires the
advisory board of the division of professional standards of the
department of education, before July 1, 2010, to adopt rules setting
standards for sign language interpreters working in an educational
setting. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
SB 136 -- Buy-Indiana Purchasing Preference Extension. Removes the
expiration date of a provision concerning certain purchasing
preferences for certain businesses. This bill has been signed by the
Governor.
SB 202- Lead-Based Paint Activities. This bill transfers
administration of the lead-based paint activities program from the
department of environmental management to the state dept. of health and
amends the definition of "elevated blood lead levels" for
purposes of the program. Puts forth requirements of businesses that
sell paint. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
SB 301- Medicaid Transfer of Assets and Trusts. This bill specified
that beginning Oct. 1, 2009, the Office of Medicaid Policy and
Planning, in determining eligibility, may not consider a total of
$1,200.00 per year in contributions by an individual to a family member
or nonprofit organization as an improper transfer and may disregard
certain contributions. The bill also specified that beginning Jan 1,
2009, a trustee of certain trusts may not distribute trust property
except for state and federal taxes to any person entitled to a payment
from the trust until the state has been fully reimbursed for rendered
assistance. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
SB 304 -- Communication of Medicaid Notices and Bulletins. This bill
specifies that a notice or bulletin from the office of Medicaid policy
and planning or a contractor of the office may be communicated instead
of mailed to a party affected by the notice or bulletin, and requires
written notice to be provided within a specified time frame. This bill
has been signed by the Governor.
SB 438 -- Self-Directed Care. This bill adds self-directed care as an
available service under the CHOICE and Waiver program. The bill also
requires certain Medicaid funds to follow a Medicaid recipient
transferring from institutional care to Medicaid home and community
based care. This bill has been signed by the Governor.
A couple of important issues failed to get passed this legislative session.
HB 1136 -- Testing of Special Education Students. Allows a student who
is a child with a disability to participate in: (1) the ISTEP test; or
(2) an alternate assessment approved by the state board and as
determined by the student's case conference committee. Provides that
the case conference committee for a student who is a child with a
disability may determine that the student is eligible to graduate if
the student: (1) passes an appropriate alternative assessment approved
by the state board; (2) maintains at least a 95% attendance rate; (3)
maintains a "C" average or the equivalent; and (4) satisfies
all other nonacademic state and local graduation requirements.
Requests the legislative council to create a study commission
concerning special education rules and the placement of special
education students during the 2009 legislative interim. This bill
passed the House but did not receive a committee hearing in the Senate.
HB 1447 -- Taxation Matters. This bill contains the language from SB
388, pertaining to the local funding community mental health centers
and community developmental disability centers receive to help deliver
services to people in the county. This bill had some late minute
drafting errors that caused the bill to not be able to be called down
late into the night on the last night of session. Rep. Welch and
others are working hard to make sure this language gets addressed in
the special session of the legislature this summer.
SB 14 -- Accessibility of Satellite Voting Locations. This bill
requires that all locations where a voter is entitled to cast in person
an absentee ballot before Election Day meet the same accessibility
requirements that apply to a polling place for a precinct.
Unfortunately some things outside our control prohibited this bill from
having a conference committee that could be signed by the conferees and
therefore the bill died. Fortunately, there are no elections this
fall and this bill can be taken up next session to address
accessibility issues for the next primary election.
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