LEGISLATIVE SERVICES AGENCY
OFFICE OF FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS
FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
LS 7513 NOTE PREPARED: Apr 29, 2025
BILL NUMBER: HB 1515 BILL AMENDED: Apr 24, 2025
SUBJECT: Education and Higher Education Matters.
FIRST AUTHOR: Rep. Behning BILL STATUS: Enrolled
FIRST SPONSOR: Sen. Buchanan
FUNDS AFFECTED: X GENERAL IMPACT: State & Local
DEDICATED
FEDERAL
Summary of Legislation: This bill provides that accredited nonpublic schools are eligible to participate in
the following:
(1) The establishment of police departments.
(2) The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Teacher Recruitment Grants.
(3) The Principal Institute.
The bill also provides that charter schools are eligible to receive STEM Teacher Recruitment Grants.
This bill establishes a three school year:
(1) Centralized School Facilities Pilot Program; and
(2) Student Transportation Pilot Program.
It allows:
(1) not more than three applications, as selected by the Department of Education (DOE), to
participate in the Centralized School Facilities Pilot Program; and
(2) not more than three applications, as selected by DOE, to participate in the Student Transportation
Pilot Program.
It also establishes a:
(1) local centralized school facilities board; and
(2) local student transportation board;
for participating school corporations and schools and grants the local boards certain powers and duties. It
allows school corporations and schools to opt out of the pilot programs by providing a one year notice.
The bill requires the Department of Local Government Finance, in consultation with DOE, to prepare and
submit reports that include certain recommendations.
The bill establishes a Mastery Based Education Pilot Program administered by DOE. It provides that school
corporations and charter schools may apply to participate in the Mastery Based Education Pilot Program.
HB 1515 1 This bill also establishes the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance and requires the Alliance to conduct a
school facilities assessment and establish a school facilities and transportation implementation plan.
The bill allows a parent of a Choice Scholarship student or an eligible Choice Scholarship school on behalf
of a parent to petition DOE to reconsider the eligibility of a Choice Scholarship student enrolled in the school
if the parent has reason to believe that the student was determined ineligible due to enrollment data
inaccuracies reported by a school.
This bill provides that a student must be withdrawn from enrollment in a school corporation's virtual
education program if the student accumulates 10 consecutive or 18 cumulative unexcused absences (instead
of the number of unexcused absences sufficient to result in the student's classification as a habitual truant).
The bill amends eligibility requirements for the High Value Workforce Ready Credit-bearing Grant.
This bill establishes the: (1) County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and Public Defender Scholarship Program;
and (2) County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and Public Defender Scholarship Fund.
The bill provides that a land use application for any approval that is required by a unit for a public or
nonpublic school may not be denied for the sole reason that the requesting entity is seeking to establish a
public or nonpublic school.
The bill provides that, if Vigo County transfers or gifts any unencumbered funds to a school corporation, the
county executive may establish a local board to have oversight and manage the use of the funds. It provides
that the expenses of the local board shall be paid by the county.
The bill requires certain individuals and certain schools to ensure that an AED is operational and present at
certain events, and that individuals present at certain events are aware of the location of the AED and
emergency plans regarding the use of the AED. It adds a requirement regarding certain school emergency
action plans for sudden cardiac arrest. It also removes certain sudden cardiac arrest training and certificate
of completion requirements.
The bill establishes requirements regarding a standardized admissions test for state educational institutions
that offer certain health education programs.
The bill requires a public school provide written notification to an employee and parent of a student not later
than 14 days regarding certain unsubstantiated or otherwise dismissed allegations.
The bill requires DOE to submit a report to the General Assembly on the academic readiness of students who
enroll in a virtual school or program. It provides that the State Board of Education shall adopt rules regarding
financial reporting and oversight required by a school corporation and a vendor who enter into or renew a
contract relating to the operation of a dedicated virtual education school. It also resolves conflicts.
Effective Date: Upon passage; July 1, 2025.
Explanation of State Expenditures: STEM Teacher Recruitment Fund: The bill expands eligibility for
STEM Teacher Recruitment Grants to organizations serving nonpublic and charter schools. The Commission
for Higher Education administers this grant and may need to adjust policies and application forms. It is
anticipated this can be accomplished with existing resources and may have only a minor impact on future
HB 1515 2 grantees. The STEM Teacher Recruitment Fund received a $10 M appropriation during the FY 2024 to FY
2025 biennium, and awarded grants to 19 programs or organizations. Any impact to future grant awards will
depend on legislative and administrative actions.
High Value Workforce Ready Credit-bearing Grant: The bill expands eligibility of the pool of candidates
for the High Value Workforce Ready Credit-bearing Grant and could increase applications for this grant. The
Commission for Higher Education administers this grant program under the Adult Student Grant Fund. Any
impact to workload should be able to be accommodated with existing staffing and resources. IC 21-12-8-9
provides that priority for applicants are to be determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
(FAFSA) if demand exceeds the available appropriations. Appropriations for FY 2024 and FY 2025 were
$12.1 M to the High Value Workforce Ready Credit-bearing Grant. During FY 2023 and FY 2024, the CHE
awarded $6.6 M to $6.9 M annually in total grant expenditures to approximately 3,100 students in each year.
Average Daily Membership (ADM): The bill requires that school corporations must withdraw students from
enrollment in the school corporation’s virtual education program if the student has 10 consecutive or 18
cumulative unexcused absences. Current law requires those students to be withdrawn from enrollment if they
are habitually truant, which is defined in code as missing 10 days without being excused or without being
absent under a parental request filed with the school. The change could impact the number of students that
are withdrawn from enrollment in virtual programs, which could then impact state tuition support
expenditures. Any impact would be small.
Tuition Support Distributions: If a student attending a school that participates in the Choice Scholarship
Program was mistakenly marked as ineligible is able to receive a full Choice Scholarship under the bill, state
expenditures would increase. Any impact is expected to be minimal.
Department of Education (DOE): The bill impacts workload at the DOE to reconsider the eligibility of a
Choice Scholarship to a student at the request of a parent or eligible Choice Scholarship school. The DOE
would also need to adjust enrollment counts and tuition support distributions as applicable. It is anticipated
this can be accomplished with existing resources.
The Principal Leadership Institute: The bill expands eligibility for participants of the Indiana State
University Principal Institute to include accredited nonpublic school principals. The Principal Institute
Advisory Board may need to revise processes or procedures. It is anticipated this can be accomplished with
existing resources. The Principal Leadership Academy received a $1.2 M appropriation during the FY 2024
to FY 2025 biennium.
Virtual Education: This bill requires DOE to issue a report to the General Assembly regarding education
outcomes for virtual education students. These requirements should be met within existing resources.
Program Administration: The bill has several workload increases for state agencies including implementation
of pilot programs and reporting requirements in 2027 and 2028 for the DOE and the Department of Local
Government Finance (DLGF). The bill's requirements should be able to be implemented with existing staff
and resources, assuming near customary agency staffing and resource levels.
Health Education Academic and Admissions Standards: The bill requires that if a standardized test isrequired
for admissions to a graduate or post-graduate health education program, the standards must be universally
applied. It also specifies that eligible SEIs that are not open enrollment programs must require graded ("A"
through "F") rather than "pass/fail" assessments for all courses required to graduate. These requirements are
HB 1515 3 within each SEI's routine administrative functions and should be able to be implemented with no additional
appropriations, assuming near customary agency staffing and resource levels.
Public Service Attorney Scholarships: The bill establishes the County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and
Public Defender Scholarship Fund. The bill does not make an appropriation to the fund and specifically
prohibits state appropriations to the fund. If the fund receives donations, CHE would administer the program
and fund, which would provide scholarships beginning in the 2026-2027 academic year to students in an
Indiana law school that agree to become a full-time county deputy prosecuting attorney or public defender
in the state for at least five years after they become eligible to practice law. Applicants must also meet certain
academic criteria. Depending on administrative and legislative actions, CHE may require additional staff to
administer the program. The Indiana Commission on Court Appointed Attorneys would be required to certify
that scholarship recipients who choose to be public defenders are maintaining a full-time caseload. The
Department of Revenue could also be tasked with assisting CHE in enforcing the repayment of scholarships.
Additional Information - Public Service Attorney Scholarships: The scholarships, when combined with other
financial aid, cannot exceed the student's tuition costs and are also capped at $20,000 annually for full-time
students, and $15,000 annually for part-time students. The maximum award amount per individual is capped
at $60,000 over a four-year period. In the event that a scholarship recipient fails to meet the requirements for
the scholarship, the recipient would be required to pay back all or a pro-rated portion of the scholarship.
Explanation of State Revenues:
Explanation of Local Expenditures: Local Facilities and Transportation Boards: The bill establishes the
Centralized School Facilities Pilot Program and the Student Transportation Pilot Program. As part of the pilot
programs, a local facilities board and local transportation board will be created that, beginning with the 2026-
2027 school year, will influence the management of school facilities and the transportation of students in all
of the participating public schools. The bill limits the number of boards that can be approved by DOE to three
in each pilot program. Depending on the decisions of these local boards, participating school expenditures
could be impacted.
Indianapolis Local Education Alliance: The bill establishes the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance
consisting of nine members including the Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) superintendent, the mayor of
Indianapolis, and appointees of the superintendent, IPS board president, and mayor. The alliance is required
to conduct a school facility assessment and develop a facilities and transportation implementation plan,
which would likely increase expenditures in 2025.
Mastery Based Education Pilot Program: The bill establishes the Mastery Based Education Pilot Program.
Any public schools that participate in the program would experience a minor workload increase to provide
certain information to DOE, but could also experience workload decreases and additional flexibility if certain
requirements in Indiana Code are suspended for the participant, as allowed under the bill.
Virtual Education: This bill requires DOE to adopt rules regarding the reporting of information regarding
virtual education. Schools that engage in virtual education will have to comply with the reporting
requirements, but any associated workload increase should be met within existing resources.
Vigo County: To the extent that Vigo County transfers or gifts unencumbered funds to Vigo County School
Corporation in the future and the local board that may be created under the bill has expenses in fulfilling its
duties, the county must pay those expenses.
HB 1515 4 Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Requirement: Public schools may incur costs to purchase and
ensure the proper maintenance of one or more AEDs, depending on the number of AEDs already owned by
the school and the number needed to meet the requirements in this bill.
Notification of Unsubstantiated Allegations: Public schools may experience a minor workload increase to
update existing policy and adhere to the bill's reporting and communication requirements. The bill's
requirements are within a school's routine administrative functions and should be able to be implemented
with no additional appropriations, assuming near customary agency staffing and resource levels.
Explanation of Local Revenues: Local Facilities and Transportation Boards: Beginning with the 2026-
2027 school year, the bill gives each local facilities board and local transportation board in the pilot programs
authority to influence the management of school facilities and the transportation of students in all of the
participating public schools, including entering into revenue sharing agreements. If, after the three-year pilot,
participating schools elect to continue operating with a board, the funding and assets of the schools related
to facilities or student transportation, as applicable, would be transferred to the board.
Charter Schools in Indianapolis: The bill specifies that a charter may not be granted within the boundaries
of the IPS school district (unless the charter school submitted a proposal to an authorizer before April 2,
2025) between July 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025. This could potentially delay the opening of a charter
school in the IPS school district, which could increase enrollments in IPS and other nearby public schools.
Any enrollment increase would be temporary, but could lead to more state tuition support revenue.
ADM: Any impact to school corporations’ state tuition support revenue from the bill’s provision regarding
withdrawing virtual education program students who have a specified number of unexcused absences would
be small. [See Explanation of State Expenditures.]
State Agencies Affected: Department of Education; State Board of Education; Department of Local
Government Finance; Indiana Commission on Court Appointed Attorneys; Department of Revenue;
Commission for Higher Education; Indiana State University, Principal Institute.
Local Agencies Affected: Public schools; school corporations with virtual education programs; Vigo
County; Vigo County School Corporation; public schools in Marion County.
Information Sources: Commission for Higher Education:
https://www.in.gov/che/academic-affairs/teacher-recruitment-programs/
Indiana State University, Principal Leadership Institute: https://indianapli.org/
Fiscal Analyst: Alexander Raggio, 317-234-9485; Allison Leeuw, 317-234-9465.
HB 1515 5