Senate Republican Leader David Long, R-Fort Wayne, on Monday pledged that LGBT non-discrimination legislation will begin next session in the Senate and will get a hearing.
Long also says the measure will balance equal protection with religious freedom.
Long says he won't yet talk about the specifics of an LGBT rights bill, insisting that he wants the Senate GOP caucus to examine the measure first. Still, he stresses that religious freedom cannot be discounted in the discussion.
"In our United States Constitution and certainly in the Indiana Constitution, it's on the same level as freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of association; it's that important," he says.
House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, says lawmakers shouldn't be, in his words, "bullied, badgered or blackmailed" into a decision.
"It will be a public policy conversation about what's right for Hoosiers," Bosma says. "Not what the Human Rights Coalition out of Washington, D.C. thinks is right for Hoosiers or perhaps even some valued employers; it has to be a decision by the elected policymakers."
Long says the bill will be authored by Sen. Travis Holdman R-Markle. Holdman authored a bill last session that would have allowed organizations with state and local government contracts to make hiring decisions based on religion.