Episode 80: Indiana General Assembly 2025 Session Recap

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Episode 80: Indiana General Assembly 2025 Session Recap

Guest: MADVoters Director of Advocacy, Kaitie Rector

Scott Aaron Rogers

May 13, 2025

Transcript

Episode 80: Indiana General Assembly 2025 Session Recap

Guest: Guest: MADVoters Director of Advocacy, Kaitie Rector

Full show notes at https://hoosleft.us/

Visit MADVoters at https://www.madvoters.org/

Welcome to the HoosLeft Podcast, a show about Indiana politics, history, and culture from an unapologetically leftist perspective. My name is Scott Aaron Rogers, and I’m recording from Bloomington.

One week ago, Governor Mike Braun signed over 60 bills into law, including the two-year state budget. Lawmakers had wrapped this year’s session of the General Assembly and sent their final stack of legislation to Braun’s desk one week prior, giving him those seven days to either sign or veto each.

Now that the dust is beginning to settle, Hoosiers are beginning to absorb what the new budget and new laws will mean for them, their families, and their futures. And few people in the state do a better job processing all of this information and breaking it down than the team at MADVoters.

Their Director of Advocacy, Kaitie Rector, joined us at the beginning of the legislative session back in January to give us a preview of what might be coming at us. Now, she’s back to help us understand what made it through.

In this conversation, we’ll look at Braun’s property tax priorities, the ongoing evisceration of public education from kindergarten through college, the erosion of vital Medicaid services, the Christian nationalist culture war agenda, a couple new laws that don’t completely suck, and a two billion dollar monkey wrench.

But first, this is where I ask you to please consider supporting HoosLeft with a paid subscription. This is an independent media project; I don’t paywall content; and I don’t rely on advertising. Only individuals like you keep this thing going. So please, if you find value in this work, go to HoosLeft.us and subscribe at the paid level - it’s only $5 a month, or $50 a year, to help me write more, research more, and organize more. Not ready for long-term commitment? You can make a one-time contribution on Cash App or Venmo. Links are in the show notes. Me, and my old body, would like to spend less time on construction, and more time constructing a better future for Indiana, but I need your financial support to do so.

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Now, here is MADVoters Director of Advocacy, Kaitie Rector.

Things We Talked About:

Final Property Tax Bill Goes to Governor: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/15/indiana-senate-sends-finalized-local-property-income-tax-plan-to-governor/

Charter Schools Win Big: https://mirrorindy.org/indiana-charter-schools-funding-wins-2025-legislative-session/

Oklahoma Religious Charter School Controversy: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-considers-endorsing-countrys-first-religious-public-char-rcna203328

They Pass This Stuff Around: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/american-legislative-exchange-council/

State Dissolves Union School Corp. Without Notice: https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/indiana-union-school-closure-lawmakers-no-explanation

Braun Axes DEI in State Government: https://indianapublicmedia.org/news/braun-signs-executive-order-eliminating-dei-initiatives-in-indiana-government.php

The Legislature’s Final DEI Bill: https://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2025/04/24/indiana-general-assembly-anti-dei-bill-mike-braun/83235456007/

Ball State Caves on DEI: https://indianapublicmedia.org/news/ball-state-ends-dei-programs-to-comply-with-state-and-federal-orders.php

“Obeying in Advance” https://timothysnyder.org/on-tyranny

Braun’s “Complete Takeover” at IU: https://www.highereddive.com/news/a-complete-takeover-indiana-lawmakers-pass-last-minute-college-governanc/746654/

IU’s Little 500: https://www.visitbloomington.com/indiana-university/little-500/

Byrne’s Controversial Sex Ed Bill: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/briefs/after-pushback-requirement-for-indiana-schools-to-teach-consent-in-sex-education-returned-to-bill/

Hunley, Yoder Push Back in Subcommittee Meeting: https://iga.in.gov/session/2025/video/committee_conference_committee_for_sb_442

Bill Called For Indiana to “Submit” to Christ: https://www.courierpress.com/story/news/local/2025/04/18/resolution-calls-for-indiana-house-to-submit-to-jesus-christ/83118349007/

No Fault Divorce Repeal Withdrawn: https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/bill-would-end-no-fault-divorce-for-some-indiana-couples-domestic-violence-prevention-network-abuse-children-child-marriage-split-timothy-wesco/531-753b25ad-2025-41ac-b757-bd8c477e16d0

Elvis Impersonator Wants to Ban Drag? https://www.instagram.com/corinnestraight/reel/DGDviNiOklz/

NCAA Prez: “Less Than 10” Out of 500K+ College Athletes is Trans: https://thehill.com/homenews/lgbtq/5046662-ncaa-president-transgender-athletes-college-sports/

NCAA Caves to Trump Anyway: https://www.commondreams.org/news/trans-athletes

Test Strips Decriminalized: https://www.wthr.com/article/news/investigations/13-investigates/senate-passes-bill-to-make-test-strips-legal-in-indiana-fentanyl-deadly-substances-putman/531-b5735786-59f9-4b0c-8466-3d49d68d80a5

Eviction Expungement Fixes: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/01/fixes-to-evictions-expungement-bill-bring-indiana-housing-advocates-back-on-board/

Hospital Merger COPA Bill: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/best-states-news/articles/2025-03-17/indiana-lawmakers-seek-to-forbid-hospital-monopolies-but-one-merger-fight-remains

Qaddoura’s Medical Debt Bill Narrowly Defeated: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2025/bills/senate/317/details

Bipartisan Hospital Pricing Bill: https://www.billtrack50.com/billdetail/1780795

Period Product Tax Repeal Fails: https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/an-indiana-girl-scouts-push-to-repeal-the-period-tax-might-be-thwarted-by-a-tight-budget

Medicaid Bill Imposes Work Requirements: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/18/senators-send-medicaid-work-requirements-to-governors-desk/

Means Testing Often Costs More: https://www.vox.com/2021/10/15/22722418/means-testing-social-spending-reconciliation-bill

Medicaid Fraud Claims Wildly Overblown: https://ccf.georgetown.edu/2025/01/10/the-truth-about-fraud-against-medicaid/

Surprise Budget Shortfall: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/16/newest-forecast-data-projects-2b-less-in-revenue/

Final Budget Dominated By Across-the-Board Cuts: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/23/senate-house-reach-final-budget-compromise/

State Cuts Parton’s Imagination Library: https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/governor-tasks-first-lady-maureen-braun-to-keep-dolly-parton-imagination-library-alive-in-indiana

Hoosier Lawmakers Chop Public Health: https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/expert-cuts-to-historic-investment-may-thwart-efforts-to-tackle-indianas-public-health-issues

Braun: “Fuck Those Kids,” Essentially: https://fox59.com/indiana-news/indiana-opts-out-of-federal-sun-bucks-program/

Once again, that was Kaitie Rector, Director of Advocacy at MADVoters - in my opinion, the best source in Indiana for information on voting, legislation, elections, and civics.

I’ve got some of my own thoughts about this legislative session, which I’ll share in this week’s essay - look for that on Friday.

Then, beginning this coming weekend - May 18, I will be hosting a live Sunday morning talk show featuring a panel of guests from around state. I love the deep dives on a single topic that I get to do on this podcast, but I also want to talk more about current events in Indiana with a diverse group of Hoosiers. The network Sunday shows out of Indianapolis are okay, but half the time is wasted on bad-faith MAGA talking points with pushback from a very narrow section of the Democratic establishment.

HoosLeft This Week will bring together panelists from the democratic socialist left to principled never-Trump conservatives. By removing the bad-faith arguments, my hope is that we can demonstrate the full range of what is possible in our state once we come to our senses and toss these bums from office. Again, that will be live every Sunday morning beginning May 18, streaming live on the Project Next Media network - YouTube, FaceBook Live, and Twitch - links in the show notes.

Hope to see you there in the comments, but feel free to reach out before then - I’m on Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube and TikTok at hoosleft and on most other social media sites at scottrog78. You can also email me at scott@hoosleft.us.

Thanks again to our guest Kaitie Rector, and to MADVoters for all their tremendous work. They can always use your donations, and I’ve included a link to that as well. After you show them some love, how about signing up for a paid subscription over at HoosLeft.US, where you can find every episode and article we’ve ever published. Hit me up on social media with your feedback, tips, ideas, and concerns. And please forward the show to a friend and have them pass it on. Let’s keep building this project - and a truly democratic state - one conversation at a time. Until the next one, this has been the HoosLeft podcast. I’m Scott Aaron Rogers. Love each other, Indiana.