Following a 2021 legislative session that commenced in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2022 session welcomed back a sense of normalcy. Legislators returned to their respective chambers in 2022 with virtually no pandemic-related restrictions. Lawmakers concluded business around 1 a.m. on March 9, five days earlier than their required adjournment day.
The 2022 General Assembly likely won’t be remembered for the typical differences between Republican and Democrat caucuses, but rather the conflicting priorities of the House and Senate Republicans. At the onset of session, House Republicans’ priorities included education transparency, strengthening COVID-19 vaccine exemptions under Indiana law, and a major tax cut that included eliminating the depreciation floor on Indiana’s business personally property tax.
The Senate Republicans unveiled some similar priorities, but with a more cautious approach especially with regard to sweeping, permanent tax cuts. Their priorities included ensuring more Hoosiers are eligible for the automatic taxpayer refund, shielding schools from unforeseen funding cuts due to quarantining students, and ending the public health emergency.
Of the 849 bills that were filed, 177 – or 21 percent – crossed the finish line.
Several bills considered by legislators this session impacted corn and soybean farmers. The Indiana Soybean Alliance Membership and Policy Committee (M&P) and the Indiana Corn Growers Association (ICGA) were pleased with the outcomes following this year’s General Assembly work.
The seed test legislation was successful, which means that the state seed lab will be able to increase its testing prices to market rates like those of surrounding states and hopefully alleviate the backlog caused by out-of-state samples, which were being sent to Indiana to take advantage of its lower than market rate prices. ICGA and M&P supported this bill.
The drainage task force legislation was also successful, so the legislature will convene a task force of stakeholders to evaluate whether the state’s water regulations are achieving water quality outcomes without creating undue burden on the agriculture and building industries and make recommendations on any needed changes. M&P and ICGA also considers this a victory.
Throughout session there were also dueling carbon capture and sequestration bills. The agricultural community rallied around a coalition-drafted bill that will require companies interested in capturing carbon and pumping it underground to obtain the agreement, by lease, easement, or other contract, of the landowners whose property will contain the underground storage well. Another set of bills which would have amended an existing pilot program to allow a company the right to store carbon underground without obtaining landowner consent were defeated in a floor vote and in committee, respectively. The language of those bills was not successfully inserted into any other legislation during the conference committee process.
In April 2021, Gov. Eric Holcomb vetoed SEA 303 that, among other provisions, would have required gas stations to have duplicative labels on gas pumps that dispense E15 fuel blends. In his statement, the Governor said he found the additional layer of government “unnecessary and confusing.” By law, the General Assembly is required to consider veto overrides before the end of the following session. Although SEA 303 passed out of the Senate 46-2 on its final passage last session, the chamber elected to sustain the veto 24-26 following advocacy efforts from the ethanol industry and ICGA.
With the legislative session concluded, focus for M&P and ICGA shifts to next year’s budget session.