INDIANAPOLIS—On Friday, Senate Democratic Leader Greg Taylor (D-Indianapolis) made the following comments on the close of the 2024 Legislative Session: 

“This has been one of the most concerning legislative years I can remember. Unfortunately, despite calls and alarms raised by my caucus, this state has continued to fix the consequences of its own policy actions on the backs of those who can least defend themselves—our children. We have a Medicaid shortfall—our first proposal was to strip funding from our most medically complex children so they would no longer receive the best and most efficient care from their families. We have a childcare problem—this Legislature acts to loosen safety measures increasing the number of children in a setting beyond best practices set by experts. Indiana has a workforce problem—Indiana wants our kids to pick up the slack. Now we’re going to lower the age kids can serve alcohol in bars so they’re working late into the night instead of being at home studying or preparing for school the next day.  

“On top of all that, we’re also mandating that schools accept off-campus religious instruction from third-party organizations during the school day—allowing children to leave school to be instructed by people who are unvetted and not required to be background checked. Also, we’re not even mandating a review of the appropriateness of the curriculum or the safety of the space.

“This General Assembly also mandated retention all while knowing it’s considered an adverse childcare experience comparable to parents’ divorcing or homelessness. 

“To me, this has been the Session of Child Endangerment, and it’s disappointing because Democrats had real solutions to improve our state and help our kids. Unfortunately, Republicans chose to disregard those for quick fixes that will come back to bite us later on.”