INDIANAPOLIS – Yesterday, Jan. 5, State Rep. Alex Burton (D-Evansville) unveiled the House Democrats’ 2026 Working Hoosiers Agenda. The agenda centers on bringing down the cost of living and prioritizes measures to build an Indiana where Hoosiers can get ahead rather than get by.

Those measures include bringing utility costs down; lowering health care costs and protecting Hoosiers from medical debt; helping Hoosiers buy their first home through housing reform; delivering accessible, affordable and safe child care to working families; and keeping Indiana safe for all Hoosiers.

Burton issued the following statement in support of the Working Hoosiers Agenda:

“Hoosiers are working hard, but for too many households the cost of living keeps climbing faster than earned wages. The Working Hoosiers Agenda is about putting people first by stabilizing and lowering monthly costs, protecting families from medical debt, helping first-time homeowners, supporting working parents, ensure child care affordability and making sure every Hoosier is safe in their neighborhood. This is a practical, people-focused agenda that prioritize working families, while advocating for policies that position a real shot at getting ahead.”

See the full Working Hoosiers Agenda below: 

Priority 1: Provide immediate financial relief on utility bills

1. Eliminate the sales tax on residential utility use
2. Protect Hoosiers from being overcharged by limiting excessive utility company profit margins
3. Pause skyrocketing rate hikes
4. Get big utilities out of politics by ending the appointment of political cronies to consumer watchdog positions and banning spending on political contributions and gifts

Priority 2: Keep Hoosiers healthy through affordable health coverage and guardrails on medical debt

1. Cap insurance premiums
2. Implement a state health exchange
3. Stop medical debt from impacting credit scores

Priority 3: Create generational wealth by empowering more Hoosier homeowners

• Help Hoosiers save for their first home by creating tax-free savings accounts for home purchases
• Establish a first-time homebuyer grant program funded by a tax on investor-owned properties
• Institute a property tax credit to deliver real and immediate relief for homeowners

Priority 4: Deliver accessible, affordable and safe childcare for working families

1. Create a public-private partnership program to split childcare costs between employers, the state of Indiana and parents
2. Save families money through a childcare tax credit
3. Fully fund Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) vouchers to keep daycare centers open and parents at work

Priority 5: Keep Hoosiers safe in their homes and neighborhoods

1. Fund the police, fire, and EMS by taking Senate Enrolled Act 1 back to the drawing board and inviting more public input
2. Keep violent offenders off the streets
3. Deter violent crimes against law enforcement officers through sentencing enhancements

BY: LESLIE BONILLA MUÑIZ, INDIANA CPITAL CHRONICLE

Indiana lawmakers hope to crack down on doxing after more than a dozen of their own became victims of threats amid a turbulent but unsuccessful redistricting campaign.

Doxing is the public release of someone’s personal information, without their consent, as a threat.

Senate Bill 140 would make that a Class A misdemeanor, or a felony if the doxing results in serious injury or death.

“Basically it’s what Sen. (Spencer) Deery and Sen. (Greg) Goode and Sen. (Jean) Leising and several others over the redistricting … experienced,” said bill author Sen. Vaneta Becker, R-Evansville, told the Senate’s Corrections and Criminal Law committee Tuesday.

Targeted lawmakers included those for and against President Donald Trump’s failed push to eliminate Indiana’s two Democratic congressional seats in favor of a 9-0 Republican delegation, ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

The Indiana Senate voted the maps down mid-December, after months of intense pressure and weeks of threats.

Those included swatting attempts at lawmakers’ homes — hoax reports to emergency services intended to trigger armed responses — plus bomb threatsand more.

“I was threatened to have my family killed in front of me, whereafter I would be killed,” redistricting bill author Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, revealed mid-meeting last month.

Indiana State Police are leading an ongoing investigation into the intimidation against lawmakers.

While Tuesday’s discussion centered on lawmakers impacted during redistricting, everyday Americans are increasingly seeing their personal information spread across social media as retaliation for a wide range of disagreements.

Becker’s legislation would criminalize intentionally posting the personal information of a targeted person — or close connections — as a threat, in retaliation for something legal the targeted person did.

Personal information would include someone’s Social Security number, address or phone number, along with the name or address of their employer or places they frequent.

The definition for threat pulls from the state’s intimidation statute. Posts to social media would count, as would emails and other forms of electronic communication.

Tweaks to some of the bill’s definitions are expected.

Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, said the bill’s definition of a “closely connected” person was too vague. It would include the target’s spouse, sibling, child, parent and grandparent, but also an unrelated person living in the same household, a dating partner or a coworker.

Committee Chair Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis, assured her he would clarify the “broad” language in an amendment on Friday, before a vote on the bill.

“There’s a lot of benefit to people that disagree getting together and talking about it, and we do that all the time,” Freeman said later.

“How anybody is 45 years old, living in their mother’s basement and never having a relationship with anybody, and getting on a computer and doing this stuff? ” Freeman said. “… My God, can we be adults about this?”

He especially bemoaned the targeting of families with children.

The Class A misdemeanor created in Becker’s bill could rise to a Level 6 felony if a post results in serious bodily injury, or a Level 5 felony if it results in catastrophic injury or death.

Included are protections for those who make reports to law enforcement, prosecutors, and the Department of Child Services “reasonably and in good faith.”

The bill additionally appears to protect constituent communication and organizing, protecting those who engage in “lawful and constitutionally protected activity as it pertains to speech, assembly, and petition.”

STATEHOUSE (Jan. 6, 2026) – A bill authored by State Rep. Tim O’Brien (R-Evansville) would classify emergency medical services as essential under Indiana law.

House Bill 1251 would formally recognize EMS as an essential public service, similar to police and fire departments. O’Brien said this classification emphasizes the importance of EMS first responders and the need to address shortages in areas that are currently underserved by emergency ambulance services.

“Emergency medical services, including ambulance services, play a vital role in safeguarding public health, safety and welfare,” O’Brien said. “In too many areas, especially rural communities, people worry about whether an ambulance will arrive quickly when they call 911. This bill is about recognizing EMS as essential and making sure counties are identifying areas in need and covering those lapses.”

O’Brien authored a law in 2024 to have the Indiana Department of Homeland Security conduct a comprehensive overview of EMS services across the state. The report found significant gaps in EMS staffing levels across districts, notable variation in basic and advanced life support services across counties, including no coverage in some townships, and difficulty recruiting and retaining EMS workers in certain areas.

O’Brien said his bill would also have county commissioners identify underserved areas and contract with providers to establish EMS services.

House Bill 1251 was referred to the House Veterans Affairs and Public Safety Committee for consideration. To learn more about the bill and follow session, visit iga.in.gov.