By Taylor Dixon

TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana legislators have spent the last three months working on bills they believe will best help Hoosiers. From a record investment in education to police reform to controversial abortion stances, this session was unlike any other—most notably because it’s technically not even over.

The House and Senate went into a prolonged recess on April 22 with plans to reconvene in the fall to discuss redistricting matters.

Now that they’re off though, many will return to their “day jobs,” families and other responsibilities that were put on hold for months.

Indiana, like over half of the country, is in what the National Conference of State Legislatures calls a “gray category.” This means that legislators spend two-thirds of their time being legislators but do not make enough to live off the job.

Many Indiana legislators own small businesses. Sen. Eric Bassler, R-Washington, owns and operates a coffee and ice cream shop in his town as well as working for Edward Jones as a financial advisor. While Sen. Andy Zay, R-Pierceton, operates a three-generation car rental business, Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, works as a professor of business at Indiana University Bloomington. Rep. Rita Fleming, D-Jeffersonville, is a retired obstetrician who delivered over 7,000 babies.

Now that the session is over, many are getting to spend more time with their families. When in session, Zay spends four days a week in Indianapolis away from his home. So now that he is able to be home more, he is looking forward to spending time with his kids and watching his son play baseball games.

“So, for me, out of session is coming home and reacclimating with my family,” Zay said. “It’s good for our family, great for us, to be back together and to be able to help carry some of the load of being parents and just, reacclimate with that, in a personal sense, is the most important.”

Fleming said she spends her free time gardening and canning her own vegetables to try to live as sustainably as she can. She also loves spending time with her 14 grandchildren and getting to be “on call for babysitting” during the summer.

Others have spent much-needed time in their homes working on projects that they didn’t have time for during session. Sen. J.D. Ford, D-Indianapolis, took this week as a “staycation” during which he caught up with chores around the house and spent time walking his border collie-sheltie mix, Stella, at Eagle Creek Park.

“I think that this is a time where a lot of legislators are trying to just kind of recuperate from the past session,” Ford said.

Yoder said she, like Ford, has been spending the last week cleaning and working on projects around her house. She also said that she is spending more time with her three kids, playing with their two dogs and three rats. Yoder is looking forward to spending time outdoors running, swimming and kayaking this summer as well.

“Right now it’s just kind of a time to catch my breath and do a little bit of spring cleaning, and then I’m going to take some summer time to do a few of those outdoor physical activity hobbies that I enjoy so much,” Yoder said.

Even when not in session, though, many legislators are talking to constituents and preparing for next session.

Ford has organized outdoor activities like hiking and other outdoor events to get to know his constituents and hear from them. He said he did not want to be “one of those politicians that gets elected and is never seen again.” So Ford tries to stay connected through social media to promote his ideas and get feedback when not in session.

Yoder has also been spending time connecting with constituents by holding weekly virtual town hall meetings. Last Saturday, she held her first in-person event of the year, where she helped plant trees in her community.

Fleming said that she spent time talking to her constituents about what they want to see discussed in future sessions and what can be done to help the state.

“Even though we’re not in session, we’re still very busy as representatives because this is the time that allows us to meet with our constituents and hear what their reaction is to what legislation has been passed and what they are hoping for in future legislation,” Fleming said.

FOOTNOTE: Taylor Dixon is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.