Q. What is a special session and why is Indiana having one?
A: A special session is a short legislative session, called by the governor, that takes place outside of the normally scheduled session. Governor Holcomb has called a session to address some legislation that didn’t get voted on before the regular session ended.
Q: What legislation is being voted on?
A: The governor and the House and Senate leadership have agreed to consider only four bills. These four bills would make changes to the tax code, provide funding for school safety grants, and provide money to fund the takeover of Muncie schools. You can read the text of the bills here. https://iga.in.gov/ss/2018/\
Q: How unusual is it for the governor to call a special session?
A: Pretty unusual. The last special session was in 2009, when lawmakers had to negotiate a state budget after a recession that caused a large shortfall in revenue. The last time a special session was called when the governor and both chambers were controlled by the same party was over 30 years ago, in 1987.
Q: When is the special session?
A: The special session will begin on May 14. The governor and House and Senate leadership hope to finish all votes in one day. This would require a 2/3 majority of each chamber to agree to suspend normal rules of order and vote on the bills without allowing public comment or any amendments to be proposed.
Q: How much is will this cost Indiana taxpayers?
A: The governor estimates it will cost $30,000 per day plus mileage reimbursements for representatives.
Q: Why should Monroe County NOW members be watching?
A: Since there is a potential for any bill to be brought up for a vote, we need to act quickly if any additional bills that we would like to support or oppose are brought up for a vote. Bills that seemed to be dead at the end of the legislative session could be alive again or new legislation could be introduced.