• By Chloe White, TheStatehouseFile.com
• On Thursday, the Indiana House of Representatives dismissed 15 amendments on House Bill 1032. The proposed legislation, written by Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, would redraw Indiana’s congressional voting districts six years early, ahead of the 2026 mid-term election—a major goal of the Trump administration.

  Each of the 15 suggested edits to HB 1032 were proposed by House Democrats and highlighted concerns like transparency and racial equity. Meanwhile, Smaltz urged the chamber to leave his bill untouched, calling it “carefully crafted,” which received laughs from his colleagues across the aisle.

  Funding issues

  Rep. Sue Errington, D-Muncie, authored an amendment that, if successful, would have delayed the implementation of redistricting until the costs of child care, health care and utility costs across the state were lowered. The amendment failed 27-67. 

   

  Photo by Sydney Byerly, The Indiana Citizen.

  Amendment 1, authored by Rep. Sue Errington, D-Muncie, would delay the implementation of redistricting until the costs of child care, health care and utilities were lowered across the state. In her testimony, Errington highlighted that 7.6% of Hoosiers have no health care. The amendment failed 27 to 67.

  “House Democrats have been and will continue to be focused on the affordability crisis,” said Rep. Carey Hamilton, D-Indianapolis. “We have been and will continue to fight for working families. … It shouldn’t be so difficult for our families to get by.”

  Amendment 2, by Rep. John Bartlett, D-Indianapolis, and Amendment 9, by Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, had near exact wording and were rejected under House Rule 80 for not being “germane.” The bills would have required the state comptroller to compile a report highlighting the funding required to perform mid-cycle redistricting. House Democrats requested to appeal the motion, but it was overturned 63 to 29.

  Amendment 21, by Rep. Greg Porter, D-Indianapolis, also was concerned with costs. It would have required a state cost-analysis report of redistricting that included topics like state and contracted employee pay and election updating costs, but it failed 29 to 63.

  Minority impact

  Stacks of pink sheets of paper with the different House Democrats’ amendments sit in wire baskets beside the clerk’s desk. Democrats authored and introduced 15 amendments on Thursday, with 13 being defeated and two overturned.

  Photo by Sydney Byerly, The Indiana Citizen.

  Amendment 10, by Rep. Robin Shackleford, D-Indianapolis, which would require the General Assembly to perform an analysis highlighting the impact of policy or budgetary changes on Black and Latino communities. Smaltz said he was uncomfortable changing specific language in HB 1032 and discouraged his fellow representatives from voting in favor of the new wording. The amendment failed 27 to 67.

  Amendment 15, also written by Shackleford, would require the General Assembly to perform a district-specific population analysis. This would ensure that the redrawing of congressional maps would be nondiscriminatory and comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965; however, the amendment failed 29 to 66.

  Amendment 16, authored by Porter, would have given Gov. Mike Braun 30 days following the passage of HB 1032 to review the proposed bill to ensure that it does not violate the Voting Rights Act or federal laws and regulations. It also failed 28-65. 

  Rep. Ed Delaney, D-Indianapolis, throws his hands up in exasperation while discussing one of his proposed amendments that would have defined the term “community of interest,” a move he hoped would highlight the polarity within the proposed congressional districts combining some of the most rural parts of the state with larger urban areas.

  Photo by Sydney Byerly, The Indiana Citizen.

  Amendment 17, by Rep. Ed Delaney, D-Indianapolis, would define the term “community of interest” in HB 1032. The change was intended to highlight the polarity within the proposed congressional districts. For example, the proposed map would connect rural counties like Crawford, with more urban counties like Marion. The amendment failed 29-65.

  “We don’t redistrict for the sole and only purpose of suiting the whims of one political party,” said Delaney. “No interest of the public is involved, only the interest of one political party.”

  Public hearings and transparency

  Amendment 3, by Rep. Caroline Jackson, D-Hammond, would have added two lines to HB 1032 requiring the General Assembly to hold a public hearing in each congressional district, similar to the previous redistricting process, but it failed 30-64.

  “In 2021, the election committee went to each and every district,” said Jackson. “They allowed individuals in each one of your communities to come out and speak, to address issues, concerns, etc. … Why deny them that opportunity this time?”

  Rep. Mitch Gore, D-Indianapolis, authored two amendments—one to outlaw political gerrymandering and another giving Hoosiers the ability to vote on a new map via a ballot referendum. Both amendments failed.

  Photo by Sydney Byerly, The Indiana Citizen.

  Amendment 13, by Rep. Mitch Gore, D-Indianapolis, similar in nature to Amendment 3, would have given Hoosiers the ability to provide input and vote on any new district map provided by the General Assembly. Smaltz reminded members of the House that Indiana is not a state that allows referendums. It failed 28-66.

  Amendment 18, authored by Delaney would have required the General Assembly to identify all members involved in the redrawing of the congressional map. It failed 29-65.

  Committees 

  Amendment 5, 7 and 8 would each assign the topic of redistricting to a regular or interim committee to ensure fairness, legality, nonpartisanship and cost efficiency within the process. All three amendments failed.

  “Let’s not only not do mid-decade redistricting, let’s say we’re going to take a stand to take politics out of redrawing maps,” said Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington. “Let’s send a signal to other states that it’s time to stop.”

  On Friday, the House will meet for a third time to vote on HB 1032; if it is passed, it will head to the Senate on Monday. 

  Sen. Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis, watched part of the session and said he believes if the legislation passes, topics like fiscal responsibility, citizens rights issues and appropriate representation must be reviewed within the bill before it is put into law.

  “Unfortunately, my colleagues on the Democrat side of the House were not successful getting any amendments, but hopefully we’ll get something done in the Senate,” said Taylor. “Midterm redistricting is wrong. … But if we’re going to have it, we should put some guardrails on it.”

  Chloe White is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news site powered by Franklin College journalism students. Sydney Byerly is a reporter for The Indiana Citizen, a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens.

By Casey Smith, Indiana Capital Chronicle

Signatures are also required from coworkers who agree to serve as “alternate care providers.

Indiana will begin allowing some state employees to bring their infants to work under a pilot program announced Tuesday by Gov. Mike Braun and detailed in a newly issued policy.

The move comes months after Braun’s administration ended hybrid schedules for most state workers and rescinded thousands of remote-work agreements as part of a broader return-to-office directive that requires employees to report in-person unless granted narrow exceptions.

The “Family First Workplace” initiative has already launched for staff in the governor’s office, the Indiana Department of Health and the State Personnel Department, according to Braun’s announcement. 

The governor said the effort is part of Indiana’s commitment “to strengthening families, supporting parents in the workforce, and promoting healthy early childhood development.”

“Indiana is going to lead the nation in pro-family policy. The parental bonding that happens in the first months of a child’s life are irreplaceable, and our new Family First Workplace pilot program helps parents stay connected to their newborns while continuing their careers,” Braun said in the news release. “Indiana is building a culture that puts families first.” 

The governor’s announcement followed an executive order issued earlier this year that expanded paid childbirth leave and parental leave, as well as paid leave for state employees who experience a stillbirth or infant loss.

SPD policy sets standards, restrictions

The new, four-page policy officially took effect Dec. 2 and aims to “provide a framework for a pilot program that will allow parents to bring their infants to the workplace where operational needs and the environment make such opportunities feasible, safe, and effective without impeding productivity,” according to the document.

The policy states that time spent with parents in the first six months of a child’s life “is important to their health and wellbeing, and that having opportunities to have their infants nearby can generate higher morale, increase job satisfaction, and motivate higher productivity in employees who are new parents.”

SPD defines eligible state workers as full-time employees of the governor’s office, IDOH, SPD and any other agencies later authorized to participate in the pilot program by Braun’s office. Participants must be employed by the state at the time the infant is born.

An “infant” is specifically described in the policy as “the biological or adoptive child of an eligible employee who is between four weeks and six months of age, and who is not yet able to crawl or walk without assistance.”

Children can only be in tow for up to six months. An infant becomes ineligible at the end of the calendar week in which they turn six months old — or when they become mobile — “whichever occurs first,” per the policy.

What the program requires

Before bringing an infant to work, an employee must submit a written request at least 10 business days in advance and complete a series of documents, including a participation agreement and waiver, a pediatrician clearance form, and a supervisor sign-off confirming the details of participation.

Signatures are also required from coworkers who agree to serve as “alternate care providers” — defined in the policy as fellow employees “who ha(ve) expressly agreed to step in to care for the Infant for not more than one-hour per workday if the eligible employee must attend to duties that cannot be effectively performed if the infant becomes disruptive at that time.”

Alternate providers are prohibited from providing care more than a total of one hour per workday, and supervisors cannot assign subordinates to serve in that role.

The policy does not make clear how many coworkers must agree to help, however.

Participating employees must also “maintain productivity,” including meeting quality, quantity, and timeliness” performance standards; keep the infant’s area clean and sanitary; ensure the child has all required vaccinations; and remove the infant if management deems the child disruptive.

Agency management is responsible for determining if a child is disruptive. In such instances, employees “will use appropriate leave for the remainder of the workday.”

Where infants are — and are not — allowed

Agencies must determine which workplace locations are safe and appropriate. 

But the policy lists several areas where infants can’t be present, including:

• stairwells
• state vehicles
• laboratories
• fabrication, maintenance or construction areas
• storage rooms
• kitchens with hot appliances
• loading docks
• utility or mechanical rooms
• server rooms
• fitness rooms during active use
• locations accessible by incarcerated individuals or federal detainees
• Family and Social Services Administration/Division of Mental Health Addiction hospital patient areas
• any posted restricted or high-noise area

Infants have to remain in the employee’s regular work station or designated infant-care areas unless being taken to a lactation or diaper-changing space.

Employees are additionally prohibited from placing their Infant in state vehicles and taking their Infant with them while traveling for conferences, inspections audits or other field work.

Participating agencies have obligations, too, like creating lactation spaces; identifying coordinators to handle questions and approvals; determining which positions and work locations are suitable; and enforcing safety and productivity requirements.

They’re also directed to terminate an employee’s participation if operational needs or performance standards aren’t being met.