Indiana Senate Education Committee amends, advances two education bills; tax-credit proposal for public school foundations fails

The Indiana Senate Education Committee, meeting for the final time in the 2025 session, approved an amended House Bill 1064 and advanced House Bill 1326 to the Appropriations Committee after adopting several amendments — but it rejected a proposed tax credit for donations to public school foundations.

The committee voted 7–6 to pass House Bill 1064 as amended; the amendment removes a provision that would have required school corporations to offer a cash-payment option for extracurricular activities. Later, committee members accepted two amendments to House Bill 1326 by consent and defeated a separate amendment that would have created a state tax credit for contributions to public school foundations.

The changes to House Bill 1064 were described to the committee as removing a local micromanagement requirement. Senator Brian Buchanan said the amendment “simply removes a provision requiring school corporations to offer [a] cash payment option” to extracurricular activities and argued the decision should be left to local school boards. The committee then passed the bill as amended.

House Bill 1326 drew multiple amendment calls. Senator Geary said his amendments were intended to “slow it down” by restoring an income eligibility threshold for Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs), limiting prekindergarten eligibility to four-year-olds rather than expanding to three-year-olds, and adding reporting requirements so the state can see SGO account balances and distributions to schools. Those two amendments (Amendments 3 and 7) were adopted by consent and incorporated into the bill.

Senator Shelly Yoder offered Amendment 6 to House Bill 1326 proposing a 25 percent state tax credit for contributions to public school foundations, with a $1,000 individual limit, a $2,000 limit for joint filers and a $1,000,000 statewide cap for credits awarded in a fiscal year. Yoder said the amendment was “conservative” compared with existing limits for SGOs and indicated the proposal could be funded within existing SGO caps during appropriations review.

That amendment failed on a roll call vote, 4–9. Senators who voted yes on the tax-credit amendment included J.D. Ford, Fadi Kadura, Shelly Yoder and Andrea Hunley. Senators voting no included Brian Buchanan, Stacy Donato, Tyler Johnson, Spencer Deary, Gary Byrne, Linda Rogers, Daryl Schmidt, Greg Good and Ron Rotz. Committee members who opposed it cited timing and overall budget constraints and requested further drafting and review.

After the amendment votes and the consent adoptions, the committee moved to send House Bill 1326 as amended to Appropriations; that motion carried 9–4. Senators voting to recommit to Appropriations included J.D. Ford, Andrea Hunley, Brian Buchanan, Stacy Donato, Tyler Johnson, Spencer Deary, Linda Rogers, Greg Good and Ron Rotz. Senators voting no were Fadi Kadura, Shelly Yoder, Gary Byrne and Daryl Schmidt.

Committee chair remarks and multiple members’ brief remarks framed the meeting as the committee’s final convening of the 2025 session. Members thanked departing association leaders and staff and closed the meeting with the committee adjournment.

Votes at a glance - House Bill 1064 (amended): Amendment removed a requirement to provide a cash-payment option for extracurricular activities; passed 7–6. (Roll-call votes recorded below.) - House Bill 1326: Amendments 3 and 7 (restoring SGO income eligibility, limiting pre-K to 4-year-olds, adding reporting) adopted by consent; Amendment 6 (25% tax credit for public school foundation donations, $1,000 individual/$2,000 joint/$1,000,000 statewide cap) failed 4–9; bill as amended recommitted to Appropriations, passed 9–4.

Roll-call details (as recorded in committee) House Bill 1064 — final passage as amended (7–6) Yes: Brian Buchanan; Stacy Donato; Tyler Johnson; Gary Byrne; Linda Rogers; Greg Good; Ron Rotz. No: J.D. Ford; Fadi Kadura; Shelly Yoder; Andrea Hunley; Spencer Deary; Daryl Schmidt.

House Bill 1326 — Amendment 6 (tax-credit proposal) (failed 4–9) Yes: J.D. Ford; Fadi Kadura; Shelly Yoder; Andrea Hunley. No: Brian Buchanan; Stacy Donato; Tyler Johnson; Spencer Deary; Gary Byrne; Linda Rogers; Daryl Schmidt; Greg Good; Ron Rotz.

House Bill 1326 — motion to recommit to Appropriations (passed 9–4) Yes: J.D. Ford; Andrea Hunley; Brian Buchanan; Stacy Donato; Tyler Johnson; Spencer Deary; Linda Rogers; Greg Good; Ron Rotz. No: Fadi Kadura; Shelly Yoder; Gary Byrne; Daryl Schmidt.

What the actions mean - HB1064: The committee’s amendment removes a statutory requirement that school districts provide a cash-payment option for school extracurricular fees; committee members argued the payment methods and options are best set at the local level. - HB1326: The bill was amended to reinstate an income eligibility threshold for Scholarship Granting Organizations and to retain a limit that prekindergarten scholarship eligibility remain for four-year-olds (not three-year-olds). The bill now includes additional reporting requirements for SGOs; the measure was sent to Appropriations for further fiscal review. The separate proposal to create a new tax credit for public school foundation donations did not receive committee approval.

The committee did not reference state statutes, ordinances or other legal authorities during the recorded discussion beyond citing the existing SGO contribution cap as context for the tax-credit proposal.