Sen. Liz Brown

Provides that an individual may be employed by a child care provider before the state-mandated criminal history check of the individual is completed if the following conditions are satisfied: (1) The individual's: (A) fingerprint-based check of national crime information data bases; (B) national sex offender registry check; (C) in-state local criminal records check; and (D) in-state child protection index check; have been completed. (2) If the individual has resided outside Indiana at any time during the five years preceding the individual's date of hire, the individual's: (A) out-of-state child abuse registry check; and (B) out-of-state local criminal records check; have been requested. (3) The individual's employment before the completion of the state-mandated criminal history check is limited to training during which the individual: (A) does not have contact with children who are under the care and control of the child care provider; and (B) does not have access to records containing information regarding children who are under the care and control of the child care provider. (4) The individual completes an attestation, under penalty of perjury, disclosing: (A) any abuse or neglect complaints made against the individual with the child welfare agency of a state other than Indiana in which the individual resided within the five years preceding the date of the attestation; and (B) any contact the individual had with a law enforcement agency in connection with the individual's suspected or alleged commission of a crime in a state other than Indiana in which the individual resided within the five years preceding the date of the attestation. Establishes a process by which a child caring institution, group home, licensed child placing agency, or secure private facility (child services providers) may request a review of base rates and other cost-based rates approved by the department of child services (department).

Establishes a procedure to grant licenses and certificates to practice certain health care professions in Indiana. Requires the applicant to hold a current license or certificate from another state or jurisdiction and meet other requirements. Allows the applicant who meets certain requirements to apply for a provisional license or provisional certificate. Requires the provisional license or provisional certificate to be issued within 30 days. Provides for penalties for submitting false information on an application for a provisional license or provisional certificate. Requires a board to make a final decision on a license or certificate application before the expiration of a provisional license or provisional certificate. Provides that if a board has a pending application for initial licensure or certification that requires final approval by the board, the board shall meet not more than 31 days after the application is ready for approval. Provides that the medical licensing board may not issue a physician's license to an applicant using the reciprocity law beginning July 1, 2026. Eliminates certain requirements for an applicant seeking licensure as a clinical social worker, marriage and family therapist, mental health counselor, addiction counselor, or clinical addiction counselor. Requires the boards that regulate bachelor's degree social workers, social workers, clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, mental health counselors, licensed addiction counselors, licensed clinical addiction counselors, and respiratory care practitioners to issue a license by reciprocity within 30 days if certain requirements are met. Requires the speech-language pathology and audiology board to, before January 1, 2023, initiate and make every effort to enter into reciprocity agreements with contiguous states for individuals licensed as: (1) a speech-language pathologist; and (2) an audiologist; to practice the individual's profession under the license from one state in the other state. Adopts the audiology and speech-language pathology interstate compact. Makes conforming amendments.

Modifies the definition of "protected person" for purposes of the admission of a statement or videotape of an individual who is less than 14 years of age at the time of the offense but less than 18 years of age at the time of trial. Provides that a person who knowingly or intentionally: (1) pays, or offers or agrees to pay, money or other property; or (2) offers a benefit; for a human trafficking victim with the specific intent to induce or obtain the product or act for which the human trafficking victim was trafficked commits human trafficking, a Level 4 felony. Specifies that consent by the human trafficking victim is not a defense to a prosecution. Requires law enforcement agencies to report human trafficking investigations to the attorney general within 30 days after an investigation begins. Makes a technical correction.

Provides that an order for protection issued ex parte or upon notice and a hearing, or a modification of an order for protection issued ex parte or upon notice and a hearing, is effective: (1) for two years after the date of issuance; or (2) indefinitely after the date of issuance if the respondent is a sex or violent offender and is required to register as a lifetime sex or violent offender and the petitioner was the victim of the crime that resulted in the requirement that the respondent register as a lifetime sex or violent offender. Requires a respondent who is subject to an indefinite order for protection to request a hearing in objection to the order of protection within 30 days of the order being issued. Allows any party to request a hearing on a two year order for protection at any time. Provides that a person may only request one judicial review hearing on a protection order.

Provides that, in determining whether at least 50% of the instructional services that a student receives from a school corporation is virtual instruction for purposes of the 2021 fall count of ADM, the department of education (department) shall review the attendance of each student on each school day from the school corporation's first day of school until the school corporation's last day of school of the 2021 fall semester. Makes an exception regarding the school days the department reviews for students who transferred to or from a school corporation during the 2021 fall semester. Provides that, if a school corporation's tuition support amount is adjusted as a result of the application of this provision, the department shall, after December 31, 2021, settle any overpayment or underpayment of state tuition support to a school corporation resulting from the adjustment of tuition support on the schedule determined by the department. Requires each school corporation and charter school to annually report to the department the number of students who, during the students' expected graduation year: (1) were enrolled in the school corporation on the September ADM count day; (2) completed graduation requirements before the February ADM count day; and (3) were not enrolled in the school corporation on the February ADM count day. Requires, not later than September 1 of each year, the department to: (1) compile and prepare a report regarding the information reported by school corporations and charter schools; and (2) submit the report to the legislative council.

Makes changes to the requirements necessary to obtain an initial practitioner license for an individual who completes an alternative teacher certification program and changes regarding teaching special education under the license. Provides that, for school years beginning after June 30, 2022, a school corporation may provide a supplemental payment to a teacher in excess of the salary specified in the school corporation's compensation plan. (Current law allows a school corporation to provide supplemental payment to a teacher in excess of the salary specified in the school corporation's compensation plan if certain circumstances apply.)

Provides that, beginning January 1, 2023, certain practitioners are subject to disciplinary sanctions if the practitioner communicates or disseminates to the general public an advertisement that includes deceptive or misleading information or does not prominently state the profession or license held by the practitioner. Establishes certain exceptions. Provides, for purposes of the law prohibiting the unlawful practice of medicine or osteopathic medicine, that "the practice of medicine or osteopathic medicine" includes attaching to an individual's name additional terms or other specified words that identify a member of a medical specialty. Establishes certain exceptions. Specifies that the exclusions to the practice of medicine and osteopathic medicine do not allow a person to use words or abbreviations that indicate or induce an individual to believe that the person is engaged in the practice of medicine or osteopathic medicine.

Amends various statutes to update population parameters for political subdivisions based on the 2020 decennial census. Updates multipliers that are based on a county's population and used in determining distributions made by the department of correction to county misdemeanant funds. Removes language providing that changes to boundaries of certain political subdivisions may not take effect during the year immediately before the year a federal decennial census is conducted. Makes conforming amendments. Makes technical corrections.

Makes Code publication corrections. Repeals and relocates specific Indiana Code chapters consisting of definitions or statutory lists for organization of the provisions by alphabetical or Code cite order. Updates the statutory lists. Resolves technical conflicts: (1) between various enrolled acts passed during the 2022 legislative session; and (2) between various enrolled acts passed during the 2022 legislative session and ESB 80. Makes technical corrections in HEA 1363-2022.

Defines "certificate of burial rights" for purposes of the cemetery law. Replaces references to other instruments issued upon the purchase of burial rights with the term. Provides that before entering into a sales contract with a consumer, an owner of a cemetery must provide a written statement including a price range of all commodities and services available for purchase. Specifies that the schedule of fees and the fees charged in connection with the installation or use of commodities in a cemetery must be consistent with the statement provided to a consumer. Prohibits the preinstallation of a vault. Increases the maximum civil penalty for a violation of the cemetery association law from $1,000 to $5,000. Permits a city or town, county, and township to appoint a cemetery caretaker to control and manage cemeteries in the entity's care. Establishes requirements for a city or town to appoint a cemetery caretaker through a proposed ordinance. Requires a city or town to review the status of the control and management of a cemetery for which it is responsible at least once every 10 years.