A House Republican priority proposal — intended to level out sudden fluctuations in utility bills — earned bipartisan support in the Senate on Tuesday.
“This is a transformational and historic piece of legislation,” said Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford. He is the House measure’s sponsor in the Senate.
House Bill 1002 deals with utility assistance programs, predictable billing plans and hot-weather shutoffs for low-income customers.
It also introduces multi-year rate plans outfitted with performance-based incentives, along with utility company data reporting requirements.
Senators approved it unanimously in a 46-0 tally. Democrats, though, complained it wouldn’t save customers money on their bills and therefore didn’t go far enough.
Since the bill was amended, it doesn’t yet go to Gov. Mike Braun. The House must agree to the changes, or delegates from both chambers will attempt to compromise.
Doxing, crypto and more
A flurry of other bills also earned third-reading approval, but similarly need concurrences or conference committee compromises.
Lawmakers’ attempt to crack down on doxing — proposed after more than a dozen members reported redistricting-related threats last year — left the House on a unanimous, 88-0 vote.
Senate Bill 140 works doxing into the state’s intimidation statute. Posting someone’s personal information to a social media platform with ill intent would be a Class A misdemeanor, but could be a felony in some cases — like if the target is a member of the General Assembly.
Defendants accused of crimes would have to be in the courtroom while victims deliver impact statements under another bill approved in the House on Tuesday. Right now, those can be delivered to an empty chair, which families testified offers no closure.
Senate Bill 9, which has exemptions for defendants who pose safety risks or cause major disruptions, was approved in a unanimous, 90-0 vote.
Across the Statehouse, the Senate approved an all-out ban on digital currency kiosks, or cryptocurrency ATMs, in a unanimous, 45-0 vote.
House Bill 1116 began as an attempt to regulate the kiosks amid reports of devastating scams, but was amended in committee last week after the panel’s chair — Sen. Scott Baldwin, R-Noblesville — declared he saw “no legitimate reasons” for the machines.
And heading Braun’s way is a ban on ranked choice voting.
Under that system, voters rank the candidates in order of preference. If no candidate wins a majority of ballots on which they are listed as the top choice, the other rankings are used to determine a winner.
Senate Bill 12 crossed the finish line with a 58-30 vote in the House, largely along party lines. Ranked choice voting isn’t currently used in Indiana.
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