A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning criminal law and procedure.

Children Education Healthcare Labor

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Representative Wendy McNamara
Last action: 2026-02-19
Official status: Engrossed House Bill (S)
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary and digest do not provide specific details on the extent of increased penalties.

Making Battery on School and Healthcare Workers More Serious

This law increases penalties for hurting school and healthcare workers, limits extra punishment for certain Department of Child Services (DCS) employees, and requires employers to report such incidents semiannually.

What This Bill Does

Increases the penalty for battery on health care employees.
Increases the penalty for battery on school employees.
Limits additional penalties for DCS employees who directly help children or parents.
Requires employers of hurt school and healthcare workers to report this to the Department of Labor every six months.

Who It Names or Affects

School employees
Healthcare workers
Employers of school and healthcare workers
Department of Child Services (DCS) employees who directly help children or parents

Terms To Know

Department of Child Services (DCS): A government agency that helps children who are in danger or need special care.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify the exact extent of increased penalties.
It is unclear when this law will start to take effect.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HB1040.02.COMH.AMS05

Committee House Bill (S) • Senator Aaron Freeman

Filed

Plain English: The amendment adds a new section to the Indiana Code that defines and protects vulnerable workers from certain types of exploitation.

Adds a definition for 'vulnerable worker' in the criminal law and procedure code.

The specific protections and penalties are not detailed in this amendment text, making it unclear what exact actions would be prohibited or how they would be enforced.

HB1040.02.COMH.AMS06

Committee House Bill (S) • Representative Wendy McNamara

Filed

Plain English: This amendment requires employers to report incidents of workplace battery against healthcare and school employees to the appropriate authorities.

Adds a requirement for employers to notify law enforcement when a healthcare or school employee is a victim of workplace battery.

The exact details on how and when these reports must be made are not specified in the provided amendment text.

HB1040.01.INTR.AMH01

Committee Introduced House Bill (H) • Representative Wendy McNamara

Filed

Plain English: This amendment does not provide specific changes to the bill and is filed for reporting purposes.

The official text of the amendment does not specify any concrete changes to the bill, making it unclear what modifications are intended.

HB1040.03.COMS.AMS001

Filed House Bill (S) • Senator Tyler Johnson

Failed

Plain English: This amendment aims to modify the Indiana Code regarding criminal law and procedure, but does not provide specific details on what changes it intends to make.

The amendment seeks to change parts of the Indiana Code related to criminal law and procedure, though exact changes are not specified in the provided text.

The official amendment text is incomplete and does not specify the concrete changes intended for the Indiana Code.

HB1040.03.COMS.AMS002

Filed House Bill (S) • Senator Aaron Freeman

Passed

Plain English: This amendment changes the Indiana Code to add a new section about criminal law and procedure, but the specific details of what this new section will include are not provided in the given text.

Adds a new section to the Indiana Code concerning criminal law and procedure.

The official amendment text does not provide enough information to explain the exact content or impact of the changes.

Bill History

2026-02-19 Senate
Second reading: amended, ordered engrossed
2026-02-19 Senate
Amendment #2 (Freeman) prevailed; voice vote
2026-02-12 Senate
Committee report: amend do pass, adopted
2026-01-27 Senate
First reading: referred to Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law
2026-01-14 House
Referred to the Senate
2026-01-13 House
Third reading: passed; Roll Call 44: yeas 92, nays 1
2026-01-13 House
Senate sponsors: Senators Freeman, Carrasco, Raatz
2026-01-12 House
Second reading: ordered engrossed
2026-01-08 House
Committee report: amend do pass, adopted
2026-01-08 House
Representative Pfaff added as coauthor
2025-12-02 House
Authored by Representative McNamara
2025-12-02 House
Coauthored by Representatives Engleman, Barrett
2025-12-02 House
First reading: referred to Committee on Courts and Criminal Code

Official Summary Text

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning criminal law and procedure.
Battery against school and healthcare employees.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning criminal law and procedure.

Battery against school and healthcare employees.

Increases the penalty for battery on certain health care employees and school employees. Specifies that the enhancement for battery committed against a department of child services (DCS) employee applies only to those DCS employees whose responsibilities include personally supervising a child or parent, personally providing services to a child or parent, or personally interviewing a child or parent as part of an investigation. Requires the employer of a health care or school employee who is the victim of battery to make a semiannual report to the department of labor concerning workplace batteries.