Thrills and Chills: A Glance at Bills Filed during the 2021 Session

If you’re like me, you’re already sick of political chatter this year. Extremism from both sides of the political aisle is the greatest I recall during my lifetime, and politics seems to be becoming less collegial. Yet, rather than work toward compromise, partisans are turning inward to isolate themselves or “canceling” those of whom they are critical. I have always enjoyed browsing the marketplace of ideas and considering all potential policy solutions to resolve an issue. And Lord knows, I have a lot of issues!

I am not alone; the disability community, too, could be specifically affected by a number of bills introduced in this year’s session of the General Assembly. This blog post is a curated list of some of the bills that I hope will be passed, as well as the bills I view as particularly detrimental to the interests of the greater disability community. I’ve also thrown in some bills that seem just plain weird. In the interest of time, have limited myself to three topics per category. Thus, the good, the bad, and the ugly of the 2021 Session:

The Good

HB 1081 – Medicaid Self-Directed Care. Yes! This bill would require the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) to submit a State Plan Amendment to the federal government, requesting that the Indiana’s Medicaid program participate in the Community First Choice Option to give more Medicaid enrollees access to self-directed care. Currently, Indiana only allows some participants on its Aged and Disabled Waiver limited options to receive some attendant care services in a self-directed manner. This bill, if enacted, would presumably provide many more Hoosiers much more autonomy over their activities of daily living.

HB 1092 – Tax Credit for Contribution to ABLE Accounts. I cannot think of a single reason anyone would oppose this bill (except, perhaps, for Ebenezer Scrooge, himself). If passed, this bill would provide a state tax credit to any taxpayer contributing to an ABLE account in the state. The tax credit would be the lesser of: (1) the total amount of contributions made by the taxpayer in the taxable year; (2) $1,000 (or, for a married person filing a separate return, $500); or (3) the amount of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income minus allowable credits. This bill is particularly beneficial to working individuals with ABLE accounts, as they can benefit from funds added to their accounts and the tax credit.

Multiple bills would keep and/or expand telemedicine/telehealth in Indiana, including, HB 1286, HB 1347, and SB 3. During the pandemic, many Hoosiers learned what people with disabilities already knew: sometimes it’s difficult or impossible to go out about for health care purposes. Although having complete choice as to whether one meets in person or remotely would be ideal, at least those with transportation difficulties now have at least one avenue to receive needed medical care.

The Bad

SB 12 – Service Dog Endorsement on Operator’s License. This bill worries me more than any other, especially as a service dog owner. If passed, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) would have to ask those obtaining or renewing driver’s licenses whether they voluntarily want their license to describe the use of their service animal. Critically, the bill defines “service animal” differently than federal law does. Moreover, the BMV has no mechanism to truly know whether a service animal is legitimate. For these reasons, the public will be more confused than ever about service dog laws. In addition to navigating that confusion, service dog handlers will also likely encounter more fake service dogs than ever. Please let Senator Kruse know that people with legitimate service dogs denied entry to public facilities already have resolution methods. SB 12 would only make the problem worse.

Several bills, including HB 1295 and HB 1375, for the Elimination of Gun-Free Zones. Don’t get me wrong; I generally be support Second Amendment and believe the world would be a lot safer if everyone was packing. However, there are a few places where guns do not logically belong, including State-operated facilities for individuals with mental illness. I am not associating mental illness with criminal violence. However, I am concerned that if individuals working in these facilities bring weapons onto the campus, the risk of suicide and other forms of bodily harm is needlessly increased. As a State employee who is physically unable to wield a gun, I am also uncomfortable with the idea that frustrated members of the public could legally carry guns when coming to confront me or my colleagues.

Another batch of bills, including HB 1315, HB 1437, and SB 369, would allow government bodies to meet and conduct business remotely. As noted when discussing the telehealth bills, remote participation is usually a nice option for people with disabilities. However, government bodies do not seem as attuned to the needs of people with disabilities as do medical providers (and, as those using American Sign Language can certainly attest, medical providers still fall short granting reasonable accommodation requests). Just trying to watch the 1102 Commission meetings during the coronavirus pandemic was an ordeal, even though the subject matter was intellectual and developmental disability services. Thus, I am concerned that if more government business is conducted electronically, people with disabilities will be shut out of the conversation more easily. Not all platforms are accessible to individuals with various disabilities, not everyone has access to the Internet, etc.

The Ugly

HB 1333 – Cultural Awareness and Competency Training. I appreciate the intention behind this bill, which is to ensure that healthcare professionals have ongoing cultural awareness and competency training – including disability-related training. The problem is that the Department of Health and the Office of Minority Health must develop the training. I don’t know about you, but I would much prefer the Governor’s Council on People with Disabilities or Indiana Disability Rights to provide disability awareness and competency training.

SB 286 – Disability and Rehabilitative Services. This bill provides criteria as to what individuals comprise the Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services (DDRS) Advisory Committee. Two things about this bill bother me. First, only two self-advocates are permitted to serve on the Committee, although its work pertains exclusively to people with disabilities. Second, and the reason why I categorize this bill as “ugly,” is because it is disability-specific, limiting membership to those involved with or having intellectual and developmental disabilities. As we know, DDRS serves people who are blind, people who are Deaf or deaf, people with physical disabilities, and people with mental illness, in addition to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

A handful of bills would, if passed, raise the minimum wage, including HB 1345 and SB 334. Importantly, neither of these bills would change the definition of “employee” in the Indiana Code. This means that, even if one of these bills went on to increase Indiana’s minimum wage, it would still be lawful to pay people with disabilities working in sheltered workshops as little as one cent per hour. I encourage you to reach out to these bills’ sponsors and see if either would be willing to see wages increase for all Hoosiers.

I promised to be brief, which has precluded me from discussing other important bills. I also encourage you to check out: SB 74, which would make it illegal for an employer to require an employee to vaccinate; SB 378, regarding electronic monitoring in nursing homes; HB 1261, which would require places of public accommodation to use closed captioning on all televisions in use; nearly every voting bill; and SB 202, SB 206, and SB 229, which would generally preclude nursing homes from excluding visits from all family members during a public emergency. Although this might ban me from social media, I have to say it: Keep fighting for disability rights!

(Picture of Emily Munson wearing green V-neck shirt and green beaded necklace. She is smiling and has shoulder length black hair) Emily Munson, 36, is an Indianapolis attorney with spinal muscular atrophy, type 2. She enjoys advocating for disability rights, reading, and cuddling with her service dog, Rigby.