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Committee clears changes to grain indemnity fund reporting and governance
Summary
Senate Bill 461 clarifies governance and reporting for Indiana's grain indemnity fund, preserves the fund's separate status, tightens accounting standards and removes some proposed administrative uses; committee passed the bill unanimously.
Senate Bill 461, presented to the Appropriations Committee, clarifies the structure, reporting and allowable uses of Indiana’s grain indemnity (grain insurance) fund, a statutorily separate fund administered under the Department of Agriculture.
Sponsor Senator Lysein told the committee the bill clarifies that the fund is distinct from state cash and that its money is contributed by farmers over time; he cited a fund balance of about $33.7 million as of June 2024. The bill requires reporting that follows generally accepted accounting principles and creates clearer governance language for the fund.
Lysein and witness Josh Trenary of Indiana Pork Producers said stakeholder groups and the agribusiness council collaborated on the bill language. The sponsor offered an amendment to remove several additional permitted uses from a $350,000 administration account to preserve fund balance; he said it was intended to prevent early depletion and was adopted by consent.
Supporters noted the fund has been tapped only twice historically and that the bill was intended to strengthen protections for farmers who store or defer price grain with dealers that later suffer license revocation. The committee passed the amended bill by roll call, recorded as 14‑0.
The committee recorded its vote by roll call and advanced the bill to the next stage.
