Summer brings an end to the relentless busyness that is the legislative session. While legislators go back to their regular jobs and lives, some also use this laid-back atmosphere to learn more about the problems facing Indiana via interim study committees.

Senate President Pro Tem. Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, and House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, recently announced which lawmakers will serve on what study committees in the coming months.

Interim study committees help legislators understand issues they might address in the next session. Committees include senators and representatives who meet through the summer and fall to discuss these topics while consulting experts, stakeholders and the public.

Members of the Senate will chair the study committees this year, with members of the House of Representatives serving as vice chairs.

Among the new committees is the Medicaid Oversight Committee. It will review, consider, and make recommendations for new services and changes in services for the Medicaid program. Bray said in a press release that it is among the committees “that will work to balance the needs of Hoosiers and the duties of state government.”

Many committees are assigned senators and representatives with connections to the issues they study. For example, Senator Jean Leising, R-Oldenburg, is the chair of the Agriculture and Natural Resources study committee and isa farmer, a member of the Indiana Farm Bureau, and a former president of the Indiana Corn Growers Association.

Rep. Dale DeVon, R-Granger, is the vice-chair of the Interim Study Committee on Child Services. DeVon also is the chair of the Family, Children, and Human Affairs Committee, on the school board for The Crossing, a school for at-risk young people, and continues to meet with youth at the Juvenile Justice Center.

“With another successful session behind us, our members are excited to get back to work and dig in on a wide range of issues impacting Hoosiers,” Huston said. “Whether it’s continuing to bring down the costs of health care or boosting our workforce, our goal is to identify challenges and opportunities so we can hit the ground running in January.”

For a list of interim committees click here.

For a list of Senate committee assignments click here,here.