Let me clarify the below tweet: the Senate GOP budget proposal does not change the income tax cut timeline/guardrails that were established in legislation last year. The House wanted to speed those cuts up; the Senate doesn't go along with that. x.com/brandonjsmith5…

There are 100 members in the House. There are 50 in the Senate. There were 21 amendments filed to HB1001, the state budget, on the House floor. There are 84 amendments filed to HB1001 on the Senate floor. (In the House 43% were filed by Republicans; in the Senate, it's 33%.)

Legislative leaders are unveiling the final version of the new state budget. It includes the school voucher expansion that was in the House GOP budget. Public health funding at $150M. Mental health funding at $110M ($100M for SB1, $10M for HB1006)

Looks like the project labor agreement ban is not coming back after all. Looks like Rep. Torr backed off despite saying he'd add it to an unrelated bill in a conference committee earlier this week. That bill has become about criminal law matters instead: iga.in.gov/legislative/20…

The lieutenant governor would be one of the officials getting a raise in the new state budget, though Crouch herself wouldn’t benefit as LG, since the raises don’t take effect until after the 2024 election. She would benefit if she’s elected governor.

Former Republican State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jennifer McCormick is running for governor as a Democrat.

The three-day Juneteenth festival in Jeffersonville will include a panel discussion, art show, food trucks and a pop-up museum to teach about the historical contributions and accomplishments of local Black residents. Aprile Rickert reports. lpm.org/news/2023-05-0…

Indiana State Health Commissioner Dr. Kris Box is retiring at the end of May. Between the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent push to overhaul the public health system, she is likely one of the most impactful health commissioners Indiana has ever had.

Today’s Indiana Medical Licensing Board meeting is underway. The board is dealing with some work (adopting rules, etc) before it gets to the hearing for Dr. Caitlin Bernard. wfyi.org/news/articles/…

x.com/nkellyin/statu…

AG’s office: if you hadn’t spoken to the IndyStar, we wouldn’t be here today, correct? Bernard: No, if Rokita hadn’t made this his “political stunt,” we wouldn’t be here today.

Protected health information under HIPAA is specific, Morical says. And none of what Bernard shared was protected health information, as confirmed by an IU Health investigation and two expert witnesses.

It would appear the Board will find that Bernard violated the patient’s privacy under HIPAA and state law. But deliberations continue.

The board is now voting. It finds that Dr. Bernard violated patient privacy under both HIPAA and state law. Now discussing sanctions.

Dr. Strobel is recommending a letter of reprimand. He says Dr. Bernard is a good doctor and should be able to go back to practice. He says he doesn’t think Bernard had any idea the story would blow up the way it did.

The board sanctions Dr. Caitlin Bernard with a letter of reprimand and a $3000 fine. That’s the legal maximum of $1000 per count found to have been violated. Bernard can go back to her practice.

Rep. Randy Frye (R-Greensburg) is retiring from the General Assembly, effective July 8. In a statement, Frye said he's been dealing with multiple health issues the last few years and wants to focus on his wellbeing and his family. Frye has spent 13 years in the Indiana House.

Reaching out to get reactions from Indiana universities to today's Supreme Court Decision. The first thing I've received is a single line from Purdue: "Purdue University will follow the law".

I've deleted my previous tweet, as I have more up-to-date info on when the ban takes effect. The Indiana Supreme Court rules that the state’s near-total abortion ban does NOT violate the Indiana Constitution. The ban is now set to take effect within the next month or so.

Indiana's near-total abortion ban will go into effect soon after the Indiana Supreme Court ruled today it does not violate the Indiana Constitution. The ruling does not prevent other challenges to the law. Brandon J. Smith reports. lpm.org/news/2023-06-3…