Veteran Bills before the 2017 General Assembly As of: February 15, 2017 See: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2017/bills/ Senate Bill 59 – Reciprocity in professional licensing. Authored by: Sen. Randall Head Assigned to: Commence and Technology Status: Floor vote, Feb 14 Establishes requirements to obtain reciprocity for an out-of-state individual seeking licensing in Indiana for the following professions: (1) Social worker or clinical social worker. (2) Marriage and family therapist. (3) Mental health counselor. (4) Addiction counselor or clinical addiction counselor. (5) Psychologist. Senate Bill 155 – Capital punishment and serious mental illness. Authored by: Sen. James Merritt Assigned to: Local Government Status: Committee hold for amend and vote Establishes a procedure to determine whether a defendant charged with or convicted of murder is an individual with a serious mental illness. Prohibits the imposition of the death penalty on a defendant found to be an individual with a serious mental illness. Senate Bill 242 – Indiana housing first program. Authored by: Sen. James Merritt Assigned to: Local Government Status: Committee hold for vote Establishes the Indiana housing first program (program) to provide housing and support services for eligible homeless persons. Requires the housing and community development authority (authority) to administer the program. Requires the authority to establish, not later than January 1, 2018, policies and procedures to implement and administer the program. Provides that the policies and procedures must include, along with other requirements: (1) a plan for moving eligible homeless persons into housing directly from the streets or emergency shelter care without a precondition of accepting or complying with certain requirements; and (2) partnerships with private and public entities to provide support services and a continuum of care for program participants. Provides that in establishing the required policies and procedures, the authority may collaborate with or seek guidance from: (1) other appropriate state agencies; (2) officials in other states or municipalities that have implemented housing first programs; and (3) other specified public or private entities. Establishes the Indiana housing first account within the state general fund to provide funds to provide housing and support services to eligible homeless persons under the program. Allows the authority to adopt rules to establish the policies and procedures to implement and administer the program Senate Bill 245 – Long term small loans. Authored by: Sen. Travis Holdman Assigned to: Insurance and Financial Institutions Status: Committee hearing Feb 16 Provides that a lender that is licensed by the department of financial institutions to engage in small loans may enter into a transaction for a long term small loan with a borrower. Defines a long term small loan as a loan that: (1) is entered into by a licensed small loan lender and a borrower; (2) has a principal amount of at least $605 and not more than $2,500; and (3) is payable in installments over a term of not more than 24 months. Provides that with respect to a long term small loan, a lender may contract for and receive a monthly loan finance charge that: (1) does not exceed 20% of the principal; and (2) is earned by the lender on a daily basis using the simple interest method. Sets forth certain requirements and prohibitions with respect to long term small loans. Senate Bill 307 - Veteran preference for employment and training Author Sen. Brandt Hershman. Sponsors Reps Baird and Frye Assigned to: Veterans Affairs and the Military Status: Passed Senate 47 – 1. Referred to House Requires the department of workforce development (department) to give a veteran or the spouse of a veteran priority for placement in any federal or state employment or training program administered by the department if the veteran or the veteran's spouse: (1) submits documentation satisfactory to the department establishing the veteran's honorable discharge from service; and (2) meets the eligibility requirements for the program Senate Bill 351 - Disability parking placard. Authored by: Sen. Douglas Eckerty. Sponsors Reps McNamara and Sullivan Assigned to: Veterans Affairs and the Military Status: Passed Senate 50 – 0. Referred to House Provides that a veteran who qualifies for the disabled Hoosier veteran license plate is entitled to receive a disability parking placard. Requires that parking signs for accessible parking spaces for an individual with a physical disability must bear, instead of the international symbol of accessibility (also known as the international wheelchair symbol), the modified symbol of access. Requires that license plates and placards issued by the bureau of motor vehicles for display in or on a vehicle used to transport a person with a disability must bear, rather than the international symbol of accessibility, the modified symbol of access. Senate Bill 382 - Veterans' driver's licenses. Authored by: Sen. Michael Crider Assigned to: Veterans Affairs and the Military Status: Passed 47 – 2. Referred to House Provides that an individual may request an indication of the individual's status as a surviving spouse of a veteran on the individual's driver's license or state identification card. (Current law provides only for an indication of veteran status.). Requires the bureau of motor vehicles (bureau) to share with the Indiana department of veterans' affairs information submitted to the bureau concerning requests for an indication of status as a surviving spouse of a veteran on a driver's license, permit, or identification card. Senate Bill 454- Veterans' treatment pilot program. Authored by: Sen. Michael Delph Assigned to: Veterans Affairs and The Military Status: Passed Committee. Recommitted to Tax & Fiscal Policy Requires the state lottery commission to adopt rules to establish a scratch-off game to provide treatment to Indiana veterans. Deposits revenue from sales of tickets for the scratch-off game into the veterans' treatment fund. Requires the director of the department of veterans' affairs (department) to give notice of the existence of the veterans' treatment program (program) to each individual in Indiana who has a traumatic brain injury or posttraumatic stress disorder related to the individual's service as a member of the armed forces. Requires the department to maintain a waiting list of individuals eligible to receive treatment under the program. Allows an individual who meets certain requirements to directly petition to be placed on the waiting list. Establishes the program as a pilot program and the veterans' treatment fund to provide treatment for veterans with traumatic brain injury or posttraumatic stress disorder at no cost to the veterans who receive treatment. Requires the state department of health to establish and administer the program standards. Allows the state health commissioner to appoint an advisory board for the program. Provides a facility and health care provider with civil immunity for providing treatment under the program and requires the veteran to acknowledge that there is immunity before receiving treatment. Allows money to be deposited into the fund as a directed gift. Requires annual reporting and a report to the senate committee on military and veterans affairs Senate Bill 515 Tax Administration Authored by: Sen Hershman Assigned to: Tax and Fiscal Policy Status: Passed Comm . Feb 14 Increases to $7,500 the amount of the military income tax deduction, including retirement or survivor's benefits received during the taxable year by an individual, or the individual's surviving spouse, for the individual's service in an active or reserve component of the armed forces of the United States, including the army, navy, air force, coast guard, marine corps, merchant marine, Indiana army national guard, or Indiana air national guard. Etal. Senate Bill 517 - Distribution of lottery revenues. Authored by: Sens. Sen. Ron Alting, Michael Delph, James Merritt. Co-Authored by Sens. Jon Ford, Blake Doriot, Michael Crider, Rick Niemeyer, Jack Sandlin, David Niezgodski, Eddie Melton, and Frank Mrvan. Assigned to: Veterans Affairs and The Military Status: Passed Committee. Recommitted to Tax & Fiscal Policy Requires the state lottery commission to adopt rules to establish a scratch off game to benefit Indiana veterans. Deposits a part of surplus revenue from sales of tickets for the scratch off game into the veterans homelessness assistance fund. Establishes the veterans homelessness assistance fund. Requires the department of veterans' affairs to adopt administrative rules for: (1) oversight of; and (2) the awarding of grants to qualified entities from; the veterans homelessness assistance fund. Senate Bill 521 - Tax deduction for military income. ( See HB 1001) Senate Bill 565 - Military income tax deduction (See SB 515) HB 1001 – Biennial Budget Authored by: Rep. Timothy Brown Assigned to: Ways and Means Status: Comm HearingFeb 16 Provides $5,000,000 from a 2013 appropriation for the health and safety contingency fund to rehabilitate a state owned building to be used to provide services to Indiana's veterans. Provides an income tax deduction for military retirement and survivor's benefits, and removes the age requirement for the deduction. Etal House Bill 1308– Various professional licensing matters. Authored by: Rep. Dennis Zent Assigned to: Employment, Labor and Pensions Status: 2nd Reading Feb 16 Requires the boards under the authority of the agency