The 2018 Indiana State Legislature is back in session. Many bills have already been filed and are in committee to be discussed and various hearings will be held the week of January 8^th. A few of the bills have an impact on companies and individuals and are summarized below:

HB1002 – Reorganization of Workforce Funding and Programs – This bill establishes the Next Level Workforce Training and Development Fund as a dedicated fund for certain state workforce programs and will repeal certain educational and workforce training programs and phase outs. This bill will dedicate all corporate AGI tax revenues to the fund.

HB1004 – Various State and Local Government Matters – One part of this bill will provide that the board of a political subdivision or an agency that has the power to award contracts for a public work project may solicit at least three quotes by telephone, fax or email for a public work project that is estimated to cost less than $50,000 without mailing a notice at least seven days before the time fixed for receiving quotes. Also, removes the requirement that a meeting for receiving quotes must be open to the public.

HB1015 – Unlawful Indemnity Agreements – Provides that the law concerning indemnity agreements in construction or design contracts applies to certain design-build contracts. Specifies that a provision in a professional services contract that requires indemnification and defense of a promise for certain liability is void.

HB1036 – Unemployment Insurance – Excludes worker’s compensation and occupational diseases compensation payments from the definition of “wages” for unemployment insurance purposes. Establishes a flat fee of $12 as the employer’s collection fee for withholding amounts from an individual’s income to repay unemployment insurance benefit overpayments.

HB1086 – Garnishment of Wages – Provides that a creditor may, by written consent or court order, access wage report information from the department of workforce development for the purpose of obtaining a garnishment order. Requires an employer that is garnishing a judgment debtor’s wages to inform the clerk of courts when the judgement debtor leaves employment with the employer.

HB1112 – Cybersecurity – Establishes the cyber civilian corps and the cyber civilian corps advisory board. Requires the cyber civilian corps to provide rapid response assistance, upon request to an Indiana governmental, educational, nonprofit, or business organization, to a cybersecurity incident.

HB1177 – Drug Testing of Employees and Applicants – Provides that, unless federal law requires otherwise, a drug test given to an individual by or on behalf of an employer, or by or on behalf of a prospective employer as a condition of an offer of employment, may not include a screening for THC.

SB93 – Fair Pay in Employment – Provides that it is an unlawful employment practice to pay wages that discriminate based on sex, race, or national origin for the same or equivalent jobs and the civil rights commission has jurisdiction for investigation and resolution of complaints of these employment actions.

SB121 – Minimum Wage – Increases the minimum wage paid to certain employees in Indiana as follows: (1) after June 30, 2019, from $7.25 an hour to $10 an hour; (2) after June 30, 2020, from $10 an hour to $13 an hour; and (3) after June 30, 2021, from $13 an hour to $15 an hour. After June 30, 2022 and each subsequent June 30, the hourly minimum wage increases at the same percentage as any increase in the Consumer Price Index for the preceding calendar year.

SB254 – Economic Development Incentive Accountability – Adds various job and employee definitions to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) laws. Requires all records related to the taxpayer funded economic development incentives must be disclosed under the open records law. Requires the IEDC to recapture job creation incentives from a recipient that: (1) fails to make the level of capital investment; (2) fails to create or retain the promised number of jobs; or (3) pays less in wages than specified in an incentive agreement.

Information above was obtained from The Corydon Group’s First In Public Affairs bulletin to the INCPAS and was prepared by Lou Belch on January 9, 2018.