Bill would direct Secretary of State to study municipal election timing and vote centers

Senate sponsor presented House Bill 1633 to the committee as a study bill directing the Indiana Secretary of State to: study scheduling of local elections and the use of vote centers statewide, hold at least three public meetings on the topics, and report findings to the Legislative Council by Nov. 1, 2025.

Julia Vaughn, executive director of Common Cause Indiana, told the committee she supports studying vote centers and the scheduling of municipal elections but opposes assigning the study to the Secretary of State’s office. Vaughn said the correct venue for a bipartisan study is the interim election study committee or Legislative Services Agency (LSA), which she described as the nonpartisan entity historically tasked with election studies. Barbara Tully of the League of Women Voters gave the same objection and said the league supports vote centers broadly but prefers a bipartisan legislative forum to conduct the study.

Keegan Prentice, representing the Secretary of State’s office, said the office supports the study and that it has data and connections across counties to hold the required meetings. He said the office has collected financial data from roughly 20 counties on municipal-election costs but acknowledged counties hold most cost records and that the office continues to gather more information. Prentice said the Secretary of State’s staff would provide input to any study regardless of the forum.

Committee members asked why the Secretary of State was named rather than LSA; Sponsor Gaskell said he would confer with the House sponsor and report back. The committee held House Bill 1633 for amendment and a vote next week.

Ending: Supporters and opponents agreed a study would be useful but differed over which entity should run it. The committee did not vote; the bill is set for amendment and a vote next week.