Committee hears bill to create scholarships for students who pledge five years as prosecutors or public defenders

The Senate Education, Career and Technical Development Committee took testimony on House Bill 1049, which would create a scholarship and fund for law students who pledge to serve five years in a county prosecutor’s office or in the public defender system.

Representative Stuart Wald, the bill’s sponsor in the House, told the committee scholarship recipients who attend an accredited law school and remain in good standing would receive $20,000 a year for full‑time study and $15,000 a year for part‑time study; the sponsor said the total support would cover roughly 70 percent of typical in‑state tuition. Students who accept the scholarship must pledge five years of full‑time service in a qualifying public sector legal role; the Commission for Higher Education would administer the program and handle collection if a recipient fails to meet the service requirement.

Witnesses from the Indiana Supreme Court and the state’s legal professional groups supported the bill, citing a persistent shortage of attorneys in many counties. Justin Forkner, chief administrative officer for the Indiana Supreme Court and co‑chair of the Supreme Court’s Commission on Indiana’s Legal Future, said Indiana ranks in the bottom 10 nationally for attorneys per capita and that over half of Indiana counties qualify as a ‘‘legal desert’’ under the metric of fewer than one lawyer per 1,000 residents.

Other witnesses representing prosecutors and public defenders said the shortage is felt most acutely in public safety and criminal justice fields, where private‑sector salaries and other incentives make hiring and retention difficult. The Indiana Public Defender Council and the Prosecuting Attorney’s Council urged passage as a targeted incentive to bring new attorneys into public service.

The bill does not appropriate new money in the statutory language, but the sponsor said the budget includes $1 million for the scholarship program; the Commission for Higher Education would set application criteria and administer disbursements.

Quote from the hearing

"If a student qualifies, if they're a full time student, they'll receive $20,000 a year. Part time ... they'll receive 15. So the math comes out, both of them get around 60,000," —Representative Stuart Wald, explaining scholarship award levels.

What’s next: HB1049 received supportive testimony and will move through the legislative process for committee consideration and any fiscal adjustments tied to the budget.