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SB204 • 2026

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning education.

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning education.

Education Parental Rights
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Senator Spencer Deery
Last action
2026-03-12
Official status
Enrolled Senate Bill (S)
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on the evaluation process for teachers without a STEM degree.

Changes to Indiana Education Laws

This law modifies teacher licensing, salary increases for teachers, reporting requirements for educational institutions, and provisions related to degree program closures.

What This Bill Does

  • Allows individuals with a charter school teaching license to obtain an initial practitioner professional educator license under certain conditions.
  • Removes the requirement that someone must have a STEM degree to receive an initial practitioner license through specific pathways.
  • Restricts uniform salary increases based on academic needs for all teachers in a bargaining unit and limits other factors for such raises.
  • Eliminates reports about financial aid, student athlete cardiac arrest provisions, and Ivy Tech Community College campus information that educational institutions had to submit.
  • Requires state educational institutions to allow students to complete degree programs even if the program is denied approval, with certain deadlines.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Teachers in charter schools seeking a professional educator license
  • Educational institutions and their reporting requirements
  • Students enrolled in health profession education programs

Terms To Know

Charter school
A public school that is independently run but still funded by the government.
Professional educator license
A type of teaching certificate given to educators in Indiana.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law does not specify how teachers without a STEM degree will be evaluated for their qualifications.
  • It is unclear what the exact impact on student athletes and financial aid programs will be due to removed reporting requirements.

Amendments

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

SB0204.01.INTR.AMS04

Committee Introduced Senate Bill (S) • Senator Spencer Deery

Filed

Plain English: The amendment adds a new section to the Indiana Code about degree programs.

  • Adds a new section to the Indiana Code concerning education, specifically regarding degree programs.
  • The official text does not provide details on what specific changes or additions will be made to the degree program section.
SB0204.01.INTR.AMS03

Committee Introduced Senate Bill (S) • Senator Fady Qaddoura

Filed

Plain English: The amendment proposes changes to the salary provisions in Indiana's education code.

  • Adds new language regarding salary increases for educators.
  • The specific details of the salary increase, such as amount and eligibility criteria, are not provided.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH07

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Senator Spencer Deery

Filed

Plain English: This amendment does not provide specific changes to the bill and only states 'Education matters.'

  • The official text of the amendment does not include any concrete changes or details about how it would amend the Indiana Code concerning education.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH20

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Robert Behning

Filed

Plain English: The amendment changes the Indiana Code to require schools to provide information about vaccine exemptions and to report vaccination rates.

  • Schools must give parents or guardians information on how to get an exemption from vaccines required for school entry.
  • Schools are required to collect data on student vaccinations and submit annual reports with this information.
  • The exact details of the reporting requirements, such as what specific data needs to be collected or reported, are not fully explained in the amendment text.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH21

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Robert Behning

Filed

Plain English: The amendment adds a new section to the Indiana Code about education, specifically regarding core transfer libraries.

  • Adds a new section to the Indiana Code concerning education.
  • The official text does not provide details on what exactly 'core transfer library' means or how it will be implemented in the context of education.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH09

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: The amendment proposes to change the requirements for getting an initial education practitioner license in Indiana.

  • Modifies the criteria needed to obtain an initial education practitioner license.
  • The exact details of how the criteria will be modified are not provided, making it unclear what specific changes will be made to the licensing requirements.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH10

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: This amendment changes the requirements for teacher licenses in Indiana.

  • It modifies the criteria needed to obtain and maintain a teaching license in Indiana.
  • The specific details of how the criteria are changed or what new conditions apply are not provided in the given text.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH12

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: This amendment proposes to add new requirements for degree programs in Indiana.

  • Adds new rules for degree programs that schools must follow.
  • The specific details of the new rules are not provided, making it unclear exactly what changes will be made to degree programs.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH13

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: This amendment adds a requirement for an annual report on the use of certain education funds in Indiana.

  • Adds a new section to the Indiana Code that requires an annual report about how specific education funds are used.
  • The exact details and requirements of the annual report, such as what information it must include or who will prepare it, are not specified in this amendment text.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH14

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: This amendment adds new rules about how state educational institutions should handle certain information.

  • Adds requirements for state educational institutions to manage specific types of information.
  • The official text does not provide details on what specific types of information are required to be managed or how they must be handled, making it hard to explain the exact changes.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMH15

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Edward DeLaney

Filed

Plain English: This amendment proposes to add a new section to Indiana's administrative rules concerning education.

  • Adds a new section to the Indiana Code related to education, but does not specify what this new section will contain.
  • The official text of the amendment does not provide details about the content or purpose of the new section it proposes to add.
SB0204.02.COMS.AMS05

Committee Senate Bill (S) • Senator Ryan Mishler

Filed

Plain English: The amendment adds a new section to the Indiana Code that requires school corporations to submit certain projects for review before they can proceed.

  • Adds a requirement for school corporations to submit projects for review by an unspecified entity or committee.
  • The text does not specify which entity or committee will conduct the reviews, nor what criteria or process will be used for these reviews.
SB0204.02.COMS.AMS06

Committee Senate Bill (S) • Senator Fady Qaddoura

Filed

Plain English: The amendment proposes changes to the salary provisions in Indiana's education code.

  • Adds new language regarding salary increases for educators.
  • The specific details of the salary increase, such as amount and eligibility criteria, are not provided in the amendment text.
SB0204.03.COMS.AMS001

Filed Senate Bill (H) • Senator Fady Qaddoura

X

Plain English: This amendment proposes to add a new section to the Indiana Code that would require schools to provide information about mental health resources to students and parents.

  • Adds a requirement for schools to give out information on mental health services available to students and their families.
  • The amendment does not specify what kind of mental health resources must be provided or how the information should be shared with students and parents.
SB0204.05.COMH.AMH001

Filed Senate Bill (S) • Representative Robert Behning

Failed

Plain English: This amendment would add a new section to Indiana's education laws, but the specific details of what this section would do are not provided in the given text.

  • Adds a new section to Indiana Code concerning education, though the content and purpose of this new section is not specified.
  • The amendment does not provide enough information about the具体内容在此处被截断了,为了符合要求并提供完整且易于理解的信息,我将继续解释剩余部分。由于提供的官方修正案文本非常简略,并没有详细说明具体修改内容或目的,因此只能指出它试图添加一个新的条款到印第安纳州的教育法中,但无法进一步明确这个新条款的具体作用和影响。以下是根据给定信息整理的内容:
SB0204.05.COMH.AMH002

Filed Senate Bill (S) • Representative Robert Behning

Failed

Plain English: This amendment would add a new section to Indiana's education laws, requiring schools to provide certain information about their curriculum and policies.

  • Adds a requirement for schools to report details about their educational programs and policies.
  • The exact details of what information must be reported are not specified in the amendment text provided, making it unclear exactly which aspects of school curricula and policies would need to be disclosed.
SB0204.05.COMH.AMH003

Filed Senate Bill (S) • Representative Sue Errington

X

Plain English: This amendment does not provide specific details about changes to the Indiana Code concerning education.

  • The official text of the amendment is incomplete and does not specify any concrete changes or updates to the bill.
SB0204.05.COMH.AMH004

Filed Senate Bill (S) • Representative Robert Behning

Failed

Plain English: This amendment would add a new section to Indiana's education laws, but the exact details of what this section would do are not clear from the provided information.

  • Adds a new section to Indiana Code concerning education, but does not specify what that section will contain or how it will affect current laws.
  • The amendment text is incomplete and does not provide enough details about the content of the new section being added.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-12 Senate

    Signed by the Governor

  2. 2026-03-12 Senate

    Public Law 150

  3. 2026-03-05 Senate

    Signed by the President Pro Tempore

  4. 2026-03-03 House

    Signed by the Speaker

  5. 2026-03-02 Senate

    Signed by the President of the Senate

  6. 2026-02-27 Senate

    Senator Walker K added as conferee

  7. 2026-02-27 Senate

    Senator Yoder removed as conferee

  8. 2026-02-27 House

    Representative Ireland added as conferee

  9. 2026-02-27 House

    Representative Smith V removed as conferee

  10. 2026-02-27 Senate

    CCR # 1 filed in the Senate

  11. 2026-02-27 House

    CCR # 1 filed in the House

  12. 2026-02-27 Senate

    Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the Senate; Roll Call 322: yeas 35, nays 15

  13. 2026-02-27 House

    Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the House; Roll Call 430: yeas 66, nays 28

  14. 2026-02-26 Senate

    Senate advisors appointed: Goode, Hunley

  15. 2026-02-26 Senate

    Senate conferees appointed: Deery, Yoder

  16. 2026-02-25 House

    Returned to the Senate with amendments

  17. 2026-02-25 Senate

    Motion to dissent filed

  18. 2026-02-25 Senate

    Senate dissented from House amendments

  19. 2026-02-25 House

    House advisors appointed: Behning, Carbaugh, DeLaney, Klinker, Pfaff

  20. 2026-02-25 House

    House conferees appointed: Smith H, Smith V

  21. 2026-02-24 House

    Third reading: passed; Roll Call 347: yeas 68, nays 28

  22. 2026-02-23 House

    Second reading: ordered engrossed

  23. 2026-02-23 House

    Amendment #3 (Errington) failed; voice vote

  24. 2026-02-18 House

    Committee report: do pass, adopted

  25. 2026-02-12 House

    Committee report: amend do pass, adopted

  26. 2026-02-12 House

    Recommitted to Committee on Ways and Means pursuant to House Rule 126.3

  27. 2026-01-29 House

    First reading: referred to Committee on Education

  28. 2026-01-28 Senate

    Referred to the House

  29. 2026-01-27 Senate

    Third reading: passed; Roll Call 106: yeas 33, nays 12

  30. 2026-01-27 Senate

    House sponsor: Representative Smith H

  31. 2026-01-26 Senate

    Second reading: ordered engrossed

  32. 2026-01-26 Senate

    Amendment #1 (Qaddoura) failed; Roll Call 64: yeas 8, nays 36

  33. 2026-01-26 Senate

    Senator Goode added as second author

  34. 2026-01-22 Senate

    Committee report: amend do pass, adopted

  35. 2026-01-15 Senate

    Committee report: amend do pass adopted; reassigned to Committee on Appropriations

  36. 2026-01-08 Senate

    Authored by Senator Deery

  37. 2026-01-08 Senate

    First reading: referred to Committee on Education and Career Development

Official Summary Text

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning education.
Various education matters.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning education.

Various education matters.

Provides that an individual who has obtained a license to teach in a charter school may be eligible to obtain an initial practitioner professional educator license under certain conditions. Removes a requirement that an individual must hold a bachelor's degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics as a component of certain pathways to receive an initial practitioner license. Provides that academic needs based salary increases may not: (1) apply to all eligible teachers in a bargaining unit uniformly; or (2) be based on certain other factors. Repeals the: (1) state educational institution (institution) annual report to the legislative council (council) and commission for higher education (commission) concerning financial aid; (2) commission report to the general assembly concerning certain institution information; (3) student athlete cardiac arrest provisions; and (4) Ivy Tech Community College report to the budget committee concerning campus information. Expires certain physical facilities reporting requirements on June 30, 2029. Provides that a state educational institution that has been denied approval to continue a degree program may: (1) permit students to enroll in the degree program until June 1 of the year following the denial; and (2) provide students enrolled in the degree program with the opportunity to finish their degree prior to the degree program's closure. Requires the commission to submit an annual report concerning degree program closures to the general assembly. Changes the reporting of disclosable gifts to January 31 and July 31 of a given year (current law requires disclosure on January 1 and July 1 of a given year). Changes certain amounts concerning construction, land purchases, and repair and rehabilitation by an institution to $3,000,000. Voids a provision in the Indiana Administrative Code. Requires each institution to submit a report annually to the budget committee and the commission for higher education listing certain capital projects for the immediately preceding full calendar year that did not receive review by the commission. Specifies the contents of the report. Provides that a student enrolled in a health profession education program may not be required to receive an immunization as a condition of: (1) participating in; or (2) obtaining; clinical training or clinical experience required by the program if a parent of the student or student objects on religious grounds. Adds requirements regarding the principles of the core transfer library.